Fifth wheel coupling
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The fifth wheel coupling provides the link between a semi-trailer and the towing truck, tractor unit, leading trailer or dolly. Some recreational vehicles RVs are in a fifth wheel configuration, requiring the coupling to be installed in the bed of a pickup truck as a towing vehicle. The coupling consists of a coupling pin (or king pin) on the front of the semi-trailer and a horseshoe-shaped coupling device called a fifth wheel on the rear of the towing vehicle.
The term fifth wheel comes from a similar coupling used on four-wheel horse-drawn carriages and wagons. The device allowed the front axle assembly to pivot in the horizontal plane, to improve turning.
One of the largest European manufacturers of fifth wheel couplings is a German company called Jost Automotive Germany.
The world's biggest manufacturer of fifth wheel couplings is Holland Hitch in the United States.[citation needed]
It was invented in the UK by Clive Henderson[citation needed]
