EP0024996B1 - Container for a platform lorry and lorry equipped to receive such a container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a container particularly suitable for being received on a platform truck, as well as a truck intended to receive such a container.

A number of platform trucks are known which are equipped with containers and provided with autonomous means making it possible to load and unload containers without the aid of external lifting means. Such assemblies have the advantage of allowing the handling of containers in locations not equipped with lifting means.

However, in presently existing assemblies, the means for loading and unloading the containers generally comprise jacks or stands mounted on the truck. The containers can therefore in no case be loaded on trucks with unsuitable platforms. In addition, due to the particular structure of the known assemblies, the containers are generally asymmetrical and non-reversible, which sometimes complicates their loading and unloading. The containers forming part of the known assemblies also have the drawback of not allowing their height to be adjusted after removal from the truck. As a result, the unloaded container is generally not located at the quay opposite which it is parked, which considerably complicates handling.

In order to solve this problem, there has been proposed in patent GB-A-985323 a container corresponding to the preamble of claim 1. Such a container is equipped with four lifting cylinders capable of bearing on the ground on either side. of the platform of the truck, these jacks being further mounted on movable members by which they are removed from the truck during their implementation.

Another particularly important drawback of existing assemblies lies in the difficulties of maneuvering the truck, in particular when it is placed under the container. Indeed, the centering of the container relative to the truck must be carried out during the maneuver of the latter and the spacing between the crutches supporting the container is generally only a few centimeters greater than the wheelbase of the truck. This results in a risk of the container or the truck slipping during the maneuver, which can lead to accidents and damage to the truck or container. In patent GB-A-985,323, the container is centered on the truck by means of complementary guide rails formed on the container and on the platform. However, there are then the disadvantages common to all existing assemblies in which the centering must be carried out during the maneuvering of the truck, the container being in abutment on the ground, with the risks of skidding of the latter and the accidents which can result. Finally, in some of the known assemblies, the chassis of the truck must be cut in order to allow the loading and unloading of the container, which prohibits any possibility of hooking a trailer.

The object of the invention is to produce a container capable of being loaded onto a truck with a conventional platform or having undergone a minimum of transformations, the centering of the container on the platform of the truck being able to be carried out, after placing in place the truck under the container, without having to maneuver the truck and avoiding any risk of the container slipping on the ground during the centering operation.

To solve this problem, there is provided according to the invention a container for a platform truck, comprising independent lifting means capable of bearing on the ground on either side of the platform of the truck to lift the container above the latter and allow the removal of the truck, these lifting means being carried by movable members in a direction transverse to the truck, between a retracted position corresponding to the size of the truck and a spread position allowing the placing using lifting means, and means for moving said movable members between the retracted position and the separated position, this container being characterized in that it comprises centering means comprising suitable centering surfaces formed on the movable members, which are intended to cooperate with suitable centering surfaces formed on the platform of the truck opposite the centering surfaces formed on gold mobile ganes, said centering surfaces being complementary and coming to bear on one another when the mobile members occupy said retracted position.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the lifting means comprise at least four double-acting cylinders arranged at the four corners of the container. Locking means can then be associated with each of the jacks to keep them in the position they occupy, regardless of the pressure prevailing in the jacks.

According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the means for moving the movable members between the retracted position and the separated position comprise at least four jacks aligned in pairs in a transverse direction relative to the truck are disposed between the floor of the container and moving parts.

Locking means can also be associated with the centering means to prevent their loosening.

According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the container comprises an autonomous control unit capable of being powered by a source of electric current carried by the truck.

The invention also relates to a platform truck intended to transport at least one container of the type defined above and comprising centering means, characterized in that it comprises at least two transverse plates fixed to the chassis and defining said platform. form on which the container is received, centering surfaces being formed at the ends of at least two of the transverse plates.

A particular embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of nonlimiting example, with reference to the appended figures in which:

Figures 1a to 1c schematically show, in side view for Figure 1a, and in top view for Figures 1b and 1c, a platform truck and a container made in accordance with the present invention; FIG. 2 represents the rear of a platform truck and of a container, the latter being placed on the platform on the left part of the figure, and lifted from this platform on the right part of the figure;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing part of the lifting and centering means arranged at one of the four corners of the container, and

Figure 4 is a schematic view showing one of the lifting cylinders and the locking means associated therewith.

In Figures 1a and 1b, there is shown a truck 10 equipped with a platform 12 defined by three transverse plates 26 resting on the chassis of the truck. The platform 12 is partly arranged under a container 14 resting on the ground 16 by means of lifting means 18. As illustrated in FIG. 1a, the container 14 is placed in front of a platform 20 from which it can be unloaded or loaded, for example by means of a handling trolley 22. The lifting means 18 are constituted by four jacks arranged two by two on either side of the container 14 and at the four corners thereof. They will be described in more detail later. The jacks 18 are controlled by an autonomous control unit 24 arranged, for example, on the roof of the container 14. The power supply to the unit 24 is effected from the accumulator battery of the truck 10. Each cylinder 18 is mounted in a member 28 movable in a radial direction relative to the truck.

As illustrated in FIG. 1a, the stroke of the jacks 18 is such that the bottom of the container 14 is at a level higher than that of the platform 12 of the truck 10 when the jacks rest on the ground.

FIG. 1b shows that the members 28 then occupy a separated position for which the spacing E between the jacks 18 arranged on either side of the container 14 is substantially greater than the gauge G of the truck. The clearance thus defined between the platform and the jacks can be, for example, about 30 cm.

As shown in FIG. 1c, when the container 14 is mounted on the truck 10, the members 28 carrying the jacks 18 are retracted so that the size of the container 14 is at most equal to the gauge G of the truck 10.

As will be seen below, the movement of the movable members 28 is controlled by four jacks 32 (Figure 3) aligned in pairs in a transverse direction relative to the truck and arranged in the same horizontal plane.

The container 14 further comprises centering means. These centering means comprise four wedge-shaped centering surfaces 36 (FIG. 2) formed on the movable members 28 and capable of coming to bear against four V-shaped centering surfaces 30 formed at the ends of the plates 26 arranged at the front and back of the platform. The surfaces 30 and 36 are complementary. The implementation of the centering means is therefore carried out by moving the movable members 28 between their separated and retracted positions by means of the jacks 32. To this end, the stroke of each of the jacks 32 is preferably identical. Of course, the distance D separating the wedge-shaped surfaces 36 formed on the members 28 at each end of the container 14 must be equal to the distance D separating the front and rear plates 26. Thus, and as illustrated in particular FIG. 1 c, the container 14 can be precisely centered on the platform 12 thanks to the centering means when the truck 10 has been placed under the container 14 and when the lifting cylinders 18 have been raised.

As illustrated in particular in Figure 3, each of the cylinders 32 is a single acting cylinder. The body of the jacks 32 is secured to the bottom 38 of the container 14, while the rod of the jacks 32 is secured to the corresponding movable member 28, so as to move the latter transversely relative to the truck, away from and in proximity to the plate 26. Each movable member 28 is disposed under the bottom 38 of the container 14 and supported and guided by a guide integral with the bottom 38 and shown schematically at 40 in FIG. 2. This configuration allows the movable members 28 to directly support the jacks of lifting 18 as illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 4.

In order to allow the release of the centering cylinders 32 when the container 14 is mounted on the platform of the truck, locking means are provided between the members 28 and this platform. In the embodiment shown in Figure 3, these locking means are mechanical. They include a stud 42 integral with the member 28 and extending vertically downward from the underside thereof, and a hook 44 capable of being maneuvered by a crank 46 and carried by the truck chassis. These locking means also make it possible to keep the container on the platform in the event of jolts.

As illustrated in particular in FIG. 4, the jacks 18 are double-acting jacks, controlled by the pressure prevailing in an upper chamber 50 and in a lower chamber 52, this pressure coming from a compressor 64 of the control unit 24. Preferably, the lifting cylinders 18 are controlled independently of each other. Locking means are associated with each of the jacks 18 in order to prevent the rod 48 of the latter from retracting in the event of a leak in the upper chamber 50 when the container 14 is supported by the jacks, and in order to prevent the accidental exit of the rod 48 in the event of a leak in the lower chamber 52 when the container 14 rests on the platform of the truck. In the embodiment shown, these locking means comprise a rack 54 formed directly on the rod 48, and a pawl 56. The pawl 56 is constituted by the beveled end of a piston mounted in the body of the jack 18. This end normally comes to engage in the teeth of the rack 54, under the action of a spring 58. A chamber 60, connected to the compressor 64 by a distributor 62 can be filled with pressurized fluid when it is necessary to stress the pawl 56 away from the rack 54, against the spring 58.

Note that the container according to the invention is reversible, that is to say that it has a door at each of its ends and that it can be loaded on the platform of the truck in one or the 'other way.

It will also be noted that the modifications to the platform truck are minimal, and in particular that its chassis is not modified, so that it can possibly tow a trailer.

• Lorsque le conteneur 14 est disposé en vis-à-vis d'un quai de chargement et de déchargement 20, comme l'illustrent les figures la et 1 b et la partie droite de la figure 2, les vérins de centrage 32 sont en position d'extension, ce qui laisse entre les vérins de levage 18 disposés à l'avant et à l'arrière du conteneur 14, un passage de largeur E égale au gabarit G du camion augmenté de la somme des courses c de chacun des vérins de centrage 32. L'extension des vérins de levage 18 est alors ajustée de telle sorte que le fond 38 du conteneur 14 est disposé au niveau du quai 20, ce qui permet de charger et de décharger facilement le conteneur 14, par exemple au moyen du chariot de manutention 22.

Lorsque le conteneur 14 doit être monté sur un camion 10, la batterie de celui-ci est d'abord branchée sur la centrale de commande 24 duThe loading and unloading of a container 14 on a platform truck 10 equipped with the appropriate plates 26 is carried out as follows:

• When the container 14 is placed opposite a loading and unloading quay 20, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 a and 1 b and the right part of FIG. 2, the centering jacks 32 are in position extension, which leaves between the lifting cylinders 18 disposed at the front and rear of the container 14, a passage of width E equal to the gauge G of the truck increased by the sum of the strokes c of each of the cylinders of centering 32. The extension of the lifting cylinders 18 is then adjusted so that the bottom 38 of the container 14 is disposed at the platform 20, which makes it possible to load and unload the container 14 easily, for example by means of the industrial truck 22.

When the container 14 is to be mounted on a truck 10, the battery thereof is first connected to the control center 24 of the

container, so as to allow the implementation of the various jacks carried by it. If the platform 20 is at a level lower than that of the platform 12 of the truck, the jacks 18 are then implemented so as to bring the bottom 38 of the container 14 substantially above the platform, as illustrated in Figure 1a. The truck 10 is then maneuvered in reverse, as illustrated in FIGS. 1a and 1b, so as to bring the platform 12 under the container 14. It will be noted that this maneuver is facilitated by the fact that the transverse distance E separating the lifting cylinders 18 is then appreciably greater than the gauge G of the truck, due to the extension of the centering cylinders 32. The truck 10 can thus be engaged obliquely below the container 14 without this having any consequence for the rest of the maneuver.

When the platform 12 is sufficiently engaged under the container 14 so that the wedge-shaped surfaces 36 formed on the movable members 28 are substantially aligned with the V-shaped surfaces 30 formed at the ends of the front and rear plates 26, the truck is stopped. The chambers 60 of the locking systems of the jacks 18 are pressurized in order to release the pawls 56 from the racks 54. The double-acting jacks 18 are then actuated so as to lower the container 14 onto the platform 12 of the truck, then to retract the rods 48 inside the body of the lifting cylinders. The entire load of the container then rests on the truck. The pressure in the jacks 18 can be released if the locking system of these jacks is implemented by releasing the pressure in the chambers 60.

The centering cylinders 32 are then implemented so as to move the movable members 28 in a transverse direction towards the V-shaped surfaces 30. Preferably, the controls of the cylinders 32 are grouped two by two, so as to successively carry out the centering from the front, then from the back, of the container on the platform, or vice versa. The stroke of the jacks 32 vis-à-vis being the same, the abutment of one of the wedge-shaped surfaces 36 on the corresponding V-shaped surface 30 causes the container 14 to slip on the platform 12, until the opposite corner 36 comes to bear against the corresponding V-shaped surface 30. The centering of the other end of the container 14 is carried out in exactly the same way.

It will be noted that the centering of the container 14 on the platform 12 of the truck is carried out without difficulty and with precision, even when the platform of the truck is biased under the container, and without any risk of damaging the container. or the truck. During the centering of the container on the platform of the truck, the lifting cylinders 18 which are carried by the movable members 28 are retracted under the container 14, so that the size thereof, after its setting in place on the truck, is not greater than the size of a conventional container and does not exceed the size of the truck.

When the centering of the container 14 is finished, the cranks 46 can be maneuvered so as to bring each of the hooks 44 around the studs 42, corresponding. The centering and holding of the container 14 on the truck platform are then ensured, even after the pressure in the jacks 32 has been released. When the container 14 must be placed on the ground 16, for example in front of a quay 20, the operations are carried out in the reverse order to those which have just been described. Thus, the hooks 44 being unlocked, the centering cylinders 32 are first implemented in order to separate the members 28 from the V-shaped surfaces 30 formed on the plates 26 of the truck. The chambers 60 are then pressurized in order to separate the pawls 56 from the racks 54. The lifting cylinders 18 can then be actuated so as to bring the rods 48 bearing on the ground 16, and to lift the container 14 from the truck platform 12. It will be noted that each of the jacks 18 is preferably controlled independently in order to compensate for possible unevenness of the soil 16 on which it is desired to deposit the container. The truck 10 can then be removed.

After removal of the truck, the jacks 18 can optionally be maneuvered in order to bring the bottom 38 of the container to the level of the quay 20 to facilitate loading and unloading of the container. This maneuver can be carried out by keeping the truck 10 nearby, so that the latter's accumulator battery can be used to supply the control unit 24.

Although the implementation of the centering means 28 requires the use of a truck, the platform of which includes surfaces 30 adapted to receive the corners 36, the container according to the invention can also be loaded on a flatbed truck -conventional form, the centering means 28 not being used.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment which has just been described by way of example, but covers all its variants, the scope of protection being defined by the claims. Thus, the containers can be of variable dimensions, so that two or more containers can be carried by the same truck or loaded on a trailer. In addition, the locking means of the centering and lifting cylinders are not essential to the invention and they can also be replaced by any other known means fulfilling this function. Finally, the shape of the centering surfaces can of course be modified.

Claims (9)

1. Container for flat-bed lorry comprising independent lifting means (18) adapted to bear on the ground (16) on either side of the bed (12) of the lorry to raise the container (14) above the latter and to permit removal of the lorry (10), said lifting means being carried by members (28) movable transversely with respect to the lorry between a retracted position, corresponding to the overall width (G) of the lorry, and an extended position (E) enabling the lifting means to be operated, and means (32) for moving said movable members (28) between the retracted portion and the extended position, said container being characterized in that it comprises centring means having centring surfaces (36) formed on the movable members (28) for cooperating with centring surfaces (30) formed on the bed of the lorry facing the centring surfaces (36) formed on the movable members, said centring surfaces (30, 36) being complimentary and bearing on one another when the movable members (28) are in the said retracted position.

2. Container according to Claim 1 characterized in that the lifting means comprise at least four double-acting jacks (18) located at the four corners of the container.

3. Container according to Claim 2 characterized in that each of the lifting jacks (18) is independently controllable.

4. Container according to either of Claims 2 or 3, characterized in that locking means (54, 56) are associated with each of the jacks (18) to hold them in position whatever the pressure within the jacks.

5. Container according to any one of the preceding Claims characterized in that the means for moving the members (28) between the retracted position and the extended position comprise at least four jacks (32) aligned in pairs in a transverse direction with respect to the lorry and located between the deck (38) of the lorry and the movable members (28).

6. Container according to Claim 5 characterized in that each pair of jacks (32) aligned in a transverse direction with respect to the lorry is independently controllable.

7. Container according to any one of the preceding Claims characterized in that locking means (42, 44) are associated with the centring means (36) to prevent disengagement thereof.

8. Container according to any one of the preceding Claims characterized in that it comprises an autonomous control unit (24) adapted to be energized by a source of electrical current carried by the lorry (10).

9. Flat-bed lorry for transporting at least one container according to any one of the preceding Claims characterized in that it comprises at least two transverse bearing members (26) fixed on its chassis and defining its bed (12) for supporting the container, centring surfaces (30) being provided at the ends of at least two of the transverse bearing members.

Images