Trailers | Trucks and Trailers

Types of Trailers

November 8th, 2007 by shenron

Trailers are extremely common structures used on roads today. A trailer is almost any type of structure that connects to a towing vehicle in order to carry an item. Some trailers are enclosed units, while others are open. Most trailers include the same types of components such as wheels, axles, chassis, suspension and enclosures. Certain types of trailers are made for specific devices (e.g. boat trailer, motorcycle trailer, etc) others are all purpose.

Trailers can vary in size and are usually built for specific types of vehicles. For instance most motorcycle trailers are built for passenger style vehicles such as a pick up truck or car. Other trailers are used in commercial logistic services and towed only by a specific class of vehicle (e.g. semi trailers are only legally able to be towed by a big rig tractor). Following are some of the most common types of trailers used on America’s roadways.

The Semi Trailer

Semi trailers are usually large structures used for towing heavy loads. They are used by big rig tractors and include several axles, wheels, a suspension, brakes and brake lights. It should be noted that at the front of the semi trailer are usually connector wires that simply plug into the towing vehicle so that the driver can control the trailers brakes, braking lights and directional signals from the cab.

One of the characteristics of a semi trailer is that they do not have a front axle, instead when they are hitched to the tow vehicle, they balance out using the towing vehicles axle or a front axle assembly called a dolly. Semi trailers can be parked in a yard and hitched to numerous vehicles during the course of its delivery. Since semi trailers require a front axle to balance correctly, when parked, they have what is called a landing gear, or legs that stand the semi trailer upright and secure. In the US, there are certain laws regarding the total length of a semi trailer. Semi trailers are not allowed to exceed a total of 53 feet, however, on many roadways; you can see several trailers linked up to one another which exceed 53 feet. Linking is done with a small module called a bogey.

Semi trailers can vary by design. Some are fully enclosed, others can be refrigerated to carry food that can spoil and other types of semi trailers only include a flat bed or canvas enclosure to carry goods such as timber or items that are weather resistant.

The Motorcycle Trailer

The motorcycle trailer is a much smaller sized trailer and probably the smallest type of trailer on the road. Motorcycle trailers are built specifically to transport motorcycles. For most motorcycling enthusiasts bringing their motorcycle along with them on vacation or to a special area to ride is essential. Many times motorcycle trailers are used to transport recreational motorcycles such as dirt bikes or even quads that are not street legal. Since most motorcycles are considerably light weight, the motorcycle trailer doesn’t have to be an extremely heavy structure. Most motorcycle trailers easily attach to a pick up truck or even the family car. Motorcycle trailers usually have space to carry two motorcycles and use a series of belts and chains to anchor the vehicles to the trailer. Most motorcycle trailers are not enclosed, however enclosed motorcycle trailers are available.

In addition, there are motorcycle trailers in which a motorcycle is used to haul items. These trailers either come in one or two wheel models and are very light weight and thin. Motorcycles are never used to haul normal sized trailers due to safety concerns, but motorcycle trailers that for instance can carry an extra passenger (side car) or small amount of items (built specifically for motorcycles) are legal and relatively safe.

The Travel Trailer

Travel trailers are commonly called pop up campers or camper trailers. These trailers are enclosed units built specifically for lodging one or more individuals while camping outdoors.

Pop up campers are trailers that have a rigid bottom structure, but a canvas top that pops up to create an enclosure. One of the reasons pop up trailers are used is due to the weight savings of hauling these trailers and the aerodynamics of hauling these trailers. Since pop up campers are flat when hauled, they cause very low wind resistance which save on gas mileage and because they are light weight they can be hitched to a variety of vehicles including a pick up truck or even a family car. Other types of travel trailers can vary in size and may require a special type of vehicle such as a pick up truck or even a heavy duty pick up truck to haul them.

The Boat Trailer

A boat trailer is a trailer that is made to carry a boat. Besides the trailer frame, it sometimes also includes a winch to pull the boat (since boats have no wheels) onto the trailer frame. Most boats are purchased with their own customized trailer. Boat trailers vary in size ranging from large trailers to carry yachts to small simple boat trailers that carry personal watercraft.

The Small Cargo Trailer

Cargo trailers are used to haul light to moderate amounts of cargo. For instance, a cargo trailer might be used to haul a lawnmower, several bicycles, some home goods, etc. They are many times attached to cars and light duty pick up trucks. They usually include only two wheels which are usually smaller or relatively the same size as the car or light trucks tires. Most small cargo trailers are easy to hook up and relatively affordable – usually costing less than $1,000.

The Horse Trailer

A horse trailer carries horses from one stable to the other. They are usually enclosed structures with swing out doors and small windows at about eye level for ventilation. Besides horse trailers, other types of trailers are available to transport live stock such as chickens, cows, etc. Horse and livestock trailers can vary in size and complexity. Horse and livestock trailers for instance can be small and connect to a pick up truck or be as large as semi trailers that connect to a towing truck.

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Hitching a Trailer

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Hitching a Trailer

October 16th, 2007 by shenron

Hitching a trailer is a term used by truck drivers to connect the towing vehicle to a trailer. Trailers come in a variety of types, but are usually structures that include wheels, a chassis, sometimes a suspension and sometimes an enclosed cargo area.

When hitching a trailer to a towing vehicle a coupler is used. A coupler from the towing vehicle attaches to the trailer ball. In a way this creates a ball and socket connection which while keeps both the towing vehicle and trailer together also allows for movement between the two which is necessary, especially when riding on uneven surfaces. On the trailer, the ball secures to the draw bar.

Types of Couplers

Common types of couplers include; Straight couplers, A-Frame couplers Adjustable couplers, Goose couplers and Fifth Wheel Couplers. Some types of couplers such as the Straight and A-Frame are used mostly with semi trailers, where fifth wheel coupling is common with small trailers that are pulled by cars.

Trailer Jacks

It should be noted that most trailers are not always the same height as the towing vehicle. This can cause problems when hitching both together. A trailer jack is a device that lifts the trailer to a specific height in order to easily hitch it to the towing vehicle. There are several types of trailer jacks including A-Frame Jacks, Drop Leg Jacks and Swivel Jacks.

Electrical Components and Hitching

Besides connecting the trailer to the towing vehicle, many times you will also need to connect electrical components of the trailer to the towing vehicle as well. For instance, if your trailer has brake lights, then there should be a simple electrical connector that fits to your truck or car. This will ensure that when you brake, the braking lights on the trailer will also be activated to safely alert vehicles behind you.

Large trailers, such as semi trailers also have connections to connect air brakes and other electronic equipment. Since most trucks are unable to stop their loads only using their vehicle’s brakes, most semi trailers have their own brakes and brake lights. When the driver presses the brakes, it also activates the trailers brakes ensuring that the entire vehicle comes to a complete and full stop.

Safely Hitching a Trailer

To safely hitch a trailer, you will normally have to be familiar with both your towing vehicle and the trailer. Most of the time, it only takes a couple of minutes to successfully hitch a trailer, however, before driving away, a visual safety check must be made to ensure that the trailer is hitched properly to the towing vehicle. Besides the hitch itself, other things to check to ensure safe operation of towing a trailer is the weight distribution of the load you are carrying, total weight load and trailer’s wheels.

Check the weight distribution inside the trailer. For instance, if all the items you are hauling are located on one side of the trailer, this could be a safety issue causing the truck and trailer to tip when going around a turn. Total weight load is also another concern. If the trailer is empty, you may need to carry at least some weight (about 10% of the trailer’s weight to ensure safe driving). Finally, just as you inspect your vehicle before you drive it, you should also inspect your trailer fully, looking at the wheels, axles, brakes, connectors, etc.

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Pusher Trailer

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Pusher Trailer

October 2nd, 2007 by shenron

The pusher trailer’s benefits are its fewer energy conversions (chemical - thermal - mechanical), the less IC horsepower it needs, it’s potentially lighter than a generator trailer, the EV system does not need to be sized for continuous use, and it’s cheaper than the other trailers out there. A difficult problem with the pusher trailer is how to control the throttle and transmission remotely. Pusher trailers are gasoline or diesel fueled trailers with a traditional internal combustion and transmission which can be hitched up to battery electric vehicles and run from the cockpit to give the vehicle increased range.

The trailer also provides ground traction through the heels to push the trailer forward, and just by default, the electric vehicle as well. In this way, a t rip beyond the normal range of the EV can be undertaken without stopping to recharge at all. If you want to experience all around town driving, the Ev’s are the best choice. The two words that can show thousands of things are clean and quiet. These pusher trailers are up to the task of keeping up with the urban traffic. Longer trips can be more difficult to you, but the problem is that they do need to be recharged from time to time if you’re using an EV. The pusher is a type of range extender trailer. Pusher trailers are made from a clip of a car that has all of the driving components all in one end. It’s hitched to an EV and controlled from the inside of the EV. The pusher trailer then provides all of the motive power for longer trips, usually for cruising power on the highways. A pusher trailer is generally considered to be more efficient than the other popular option for range extending, such as to carry a generator used to turn the EV into a series hybrid.

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Genset Trailer

October 2nd, 2007 by shenron

This is most commonly referred to as a range extending device for the use with battery electric vehicles. The Genset trailer consists of an internal combustion engine and an electrical generator. They run on traditional fuels such as gasoline or diesel and are sized to provide the continuous power requirements for the vehicle they are about to be associated with. Most small to mid-sized passenger vehicles would require about 15 to 20 kW for unlimited freeway travel as long as fuel were available. The larger-sized vehicles could require approximately 30 kW or more of power. It all depends on how heavy and/or un-aerodynamic they happen to be at that certain point in time.

One such trailer is the AC propulsion. It is a backtracking Long ranger range extending gas fueld trailer, making it a gas-electric series plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. This trailer uses a 500 cc Kawasaki engine with a 9.5 gallon fuel tank and achieved 30 to 35 mpg. It’s rated at 20 kW DC output and can maintain up to 60 to 80 mph. The AC Propulsion company is situated in San Dimas, California and was founded in 1992 by Alan Cocconi. This company produces the Genset trailer, in which was a prototype gasoline-powered motorcycle-engine-base to extend an Evs range. In the process of testing this certain device, they had discovered that emissions for a gasoline engine optimized to run at a constant RPM were far below those of conventional vehicles. An under-trailer genset that is easily detachable and has the capacity to refrigerate three containers at one time has been released after field trails involving nine units. The development of the UTD genset trailer was initiated by Cummins Swan Hill in Victoria after consultation with a number of road transport operators.

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Double Decker Trailer

October 2nd, 2007 by shenron

The meaning of double-decker is any public transit vehicle that has two levels for passengers, one deck above the other one. Other terms may refer to a sandwich like layer development, in which three layers of bread and two fillings; and to roads and bridges which have one roadway running above another. The double decker trailer is a two-level trailer which can have living quarters in it, or “travel trailer”. When traveling the trailer is only as high as a regular trailer, but when it is set up it will increase in height to two full levels. These trailers are built by Jexcar and many different others; they are often used in motion picture productions as portable dressing rooms. Some trailers are equipped with an upper deck that can be conveniently tilted down to load or unload cargo. An upper deck is supported on for posts, one mounted at each corner of the lower deck. The front posts are fixed in place but the rear posts are pivotally mounted to the lower deck so as to have forward or rearward freedom of movement.

The upper deck is pivotally mounted to the top ends of the front posts. Sleeves mounted on a cross member at the rear edge of the upper deck slide up and down the rear posts as the deck is raised or lowered. The cross member has some rotational freedom of movement relative to the upper deck to prevent binding with the rear posts when the upper deck is moved up or down. These types of double decker trailers can be spotted in most public areas, and are a daily tool that can be helpful and useful all at the same time to you and your needs. Many different other transit vehicles have the double-decker systems, and for the trailer it is another tool that helps to increase the loading capacity.

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