Growing up in a small town, I had the opportunity to work various odd jobs. Most of them consisted of manual labor for my dad and grandfather. I started mowing my grandpa’s lawn in elementary school and maintaining his yard was a responsibility I had into my first 2 years of college. When I turned 16 my grandpa allowed me to use his John Deere riding lawn mower to mow several yards that I maintained during the spring and summer months.
At least once a week, I would drive to my grandpa’s house south of town to get his lawnmower. I had a small pickup and he let me borrow his trailer to transport the riding mower to my other customers. This is where I encountered a need for a sensor that is still applicable today. Without a spotter, I discovered that it usually took me several minutes to back up and position the ball on the hitch directly under the trailer. I found myself getting in and out of my vehicle to check alignment and distance to get the ball into the correct position.
A steel sensor would be the perfect solution to this dilemma. A threaded sensor could be utilized by machining out a hold in the standard ball for a trailer. The sensor would then be placed inside of the ball and wired to a LED indicator that was in the cabin of the vehicle. This application could also serve as an indicator to let the operator know that the trailer was still attached to the receiver hitch during the tow.
I discussed this idea with my grandpa and he would be interested in a device like this today even with the backup camera he has on his new pickup. Pairing the backup camera with a steel sensor would ensure perfect alignment while trying to back up and attach to his stock trailer. It would eliminate him repeatedly getting in and out of his vehicle to move the pickup only a few inches in any direction. Our line of steel sensors can be used in a wide range of applications. Learn more about our steel sensors here.
