1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to recreational vehicles (RVs) and more specifically, to RV door locking mechanisms that enable multiple baggage doors to lock and unlock as a result of a single activation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recreational vehicles (RVs) have become an increasingly popular and common means of recreation. RVs are mobile vehicles that include a living space inside and can be either self-propelled, as in a motorhome, or can depend on another vehicle for their motive power, as in a trailer such as a fifth wheel trailer. A typical RV comprises a ladder frame mounted on a plurality of wheels adapted for rolling movement across the ground. A floor is mounted atop the frame, a plurality of walls is built atop the floor, and a ceiling is built atop the plurality of walls in order to define an interior living space for the RV users.
RV users will typically use the RV to travel to a recreational area and live in the RV for some period of time. Some RV owners even use their RV as their primary residence. Thus, since an RV will often be used for extended periods of time, RV customers will usually desire storage areas where luggage, supplies, appliances, equipment, and the like can be stowed.
To address this need, RV manufactures often include hollow compartments to be used as storage areas. These storage areas are usually accessible from outside of the RV, through openings cut in the side of the storage area of the RV, and movable storage area doors usually cover these openings so that cargo will not fall out of the storage areas during travel.
Since cargo inside the storage areas is often valuable to the RV owner, the RV owner usually desires to secure the storage area from unauthorized access. To address this concern, RV manufacturers often include securing members on the storage area doors. In a typical embodiment, a RV has multiple storage area doors, and each door comprises at least one securing member. Each securing member can move between a locked position, in which the securing member fixes the storage area door in place over the openings in the storage area, and an unlocked position, in which the storage area door can be moved and the RV can access the interior of the storage area through the opening. Typically, each securing mechanism is coupled to a lock, widely known in the art, such that a key is required for moving the securing mechanism between its locked position and unlocked positions. As such, the RV user can lock the storage area to thereby prevent unauthorized access to the cargo.
When the user wants to lock or unlock the lockable storage area doors, the RV owner must perform the act on each of the lockable doors. Unfortunately, having to spend time walking around the RV locking or unlocking the lockable storage area doors prolongs an already time-consuming loading and unloading process. Also, when the RV user wants to drive the RV somewhere, it is preferable to secure every door; however, the user can easily forget to lock one of the doors. Thus, the RV user sometimes spends additional time double checking each and every lock, or sometimes, the user might drive off with the contents of the unlocked storage area compromised. Furthermore, if the storage area doors have uncommon locks, an additional problem arises; namely, each lock requires a different key, and as such, the user becomes encumbered with multiple keys and must often spend time at each lock trying multiple keys until the correct one is found. Therefore, current multi-lock designs can inconvenience the user of the RV in a number of ways.
Furthermore, the locks of the storage area doors are almost always located on the outside surface of the RV, requiring the user to get out of the RV to lock and unlock the storage area doors. This can be quite an inconvenience, especially during inclement weather because the user will be exposed to the elements or will have to spend time putting on protective gear to avoid exposure. This is also an inconvenience during the nighttime hours because the darkness often requires the user to awkwardly fumble with a flashlight and the keys as the user tries to find the locks, find the correct key, and guide the key into the lock.
Hence from the foregoing, there is an ongoing problem with current RVs in that RV users ordinarily must individually lock and unlock the storage area doors, which is exacerbated because the RV user must do so from outside the vehicle. It will be appreciated that there is need to eliminate these inconveniences.