GB2286576A - An automatically adjusting support device for a container - Google Patents

Abstract

An automatically adjusting support device for a barrel or cask (B) comprises a cradle (12a, 12b) mounted on a support rack (11) for pivoting between a horizontal position and a tilted position. The tilting of the cradle is effected automatically by resilient biasing means comprising a horizontal torsion spring acting via a radial arm and roller on the cradle. The cradle is also slidable on telescopic guides out of the rack to facilitate loading and unloading and is latchable in the closed position. Preferably the cradle moves between two end stops. <IMAGE>

Description

AN AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTING SUPPORT DEVICE FOR A CONTAINER The present invention relates to supports for containers, particularly for containers for liquids. Even more particularly the invention is concerned with the storage of casks and barrels for ales and the like which are dispensed from the container over a period of time.

A major problem with the dispensing of ales and the like is that they throw a sediment and, as the level of the liquid in the container falls, there is a greater likelihood of the sediment being drawn off with the drink, particularly if the barrel contents are disturbed in any way. This problem is aggravated as the liquid level in the container falls both because of the greater quantity of sediment which has accumulated by that stage and the greater disturbance caused by the drawing off of the liquid itself.It is known to tilt such containers in order to concentrate the sediments in the lower end of the container to achieve a greater height of liquid above it and to maximise the amount of liquid which can be withdrawn without contamination by sediment but the act of tilting the container itself disturbs the contents and time must be allowed for the sediment to resettle before the drink can again be drawn off.

A further problem which occurs with the current use of casks and barrels is that, as the containers are emptied they must be replaced by full containers. With the storage racks in current use, the empty container must be pulled forwardly out of the rack before it can be moved away and then the full container must be pushed back into its place which, bearing in mind the weight concerned, is a particularly awkward manoeuvre.

An object of the invention is to provide a device for supporting a container such as a cask or barrel, which is able to adjust the attitude of the barrel automatically, in a gradual manner, so that the sediment is not disturbed and so as to enable the contents to be fully utilised without any loss of time due to a need to allow any sediment to resettle. A further object of the invention is to provide an alternative support for barrels or the like which facilitates the replacement of an empty container by a full one.

Accordingly, in one aspect, the invention provides an automatically adjusting support device for a container comprising support means having at least one supporting member for receiving the weight of the container and biasing means acting on the support means in opposition to the direction of a weight force thereon, the supporting member or members being displaceable, or mutually displaceable, between first and second end positions in which a container supported thereby is held in different orientations and the biasing means being such as to cause the displacement of the supporting member or members from the first towards the second position when the weight bearing thereon passes through a predetermined threshold and to continue the displacement in a gradual manner as the weight continues to change beyond the threshold.

It will be appreciated that the support device may be adapted for use with any container but particularly one whose contents are withdrawn gradually over a period of time and is therefore suitable for use with ale barrels and the like and this specific use will be referred to below. Moreover the support device may be adapted to change the orientation of the container about any axis but the invention is particularly concerned with the tilting of a cask or barrel about a horizontal axis perpendicular to its longitudinal axis so as to enable any sediment deposited to collect in the lowest part of the barrel beneath the barrel spigot. The biasing means, in this case, are arranged to displace the supporting member or members in order to tilt the barrel as the weight bearing thereon falls through the predetermined threshold.

In view of the curved shape of a barrel, the support device of the invention, in its simplest form, could comprise a compression spring located between the rear end of a barrel and a flat supporting surface; the biasing means would be arranged to raise the rear end of the barrel as the contents thereof were removed, such that, effectively, the barrel tilts about a horizontal transverse axis through the centre of its curved surface resting on the supporting surface which acts as a fulcrum. In preferred embodiments of the invention, however, the support device includes a fixed framework or rack providing support at a convenient height above floor level and at least one support member for the barrel carried by the framework or rack and displaceable relative thereto by means of the biasing means.The displaceable support member may simply support the rear end of the barrel, the front end being carried by a fixed part of the rack but more preferably the barrel is supported on a cradle the entirety of which is movable relative to the rack.

Various ways may be envisaged of effecting the displacement of the cradle: it may, for example, be slidable on a curved track between a position in which it supports the barrel with its axis horizontal, when full, and a position in which the barrel is tilted with the spigot end lower. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, however, the cradle is itself arranged to tilt about a horizontal axis to tilt the barrel. Although it would be possible to arrange the support with the tilt axis near the rear end of the barrel so that the front end with the spigot is lowered relative to the rear end, it is preferred for the tilt axis to be adjacent the front end and for the rear end of the cradle and barrel carried thereon to be raised.

Various forms of biasing means may be envisaged for supporting the rear end of the cradle from the fixed support rack, such as a pneumatic chamber, tension or compression springs or suitable combinations of resilient biasing means but a preferred embodiment of the invention employs a torsion spring.

Whatever biasing means are employed, it is convenient for them to be calibrated so as to start displacing the barrel from its first orientation, in which its longitudinal axis is substantially horizontal, towards its second orientation when the barrel is approximately half-full of liquid. Once the biasing means start to displace the support member, and hence the barrel, the displacement should be effected slowly and gradually as the barrel contents are withdrawn so as not to cause any sediment which has been formed to mix with the remaining liquid although the increased tilt will cause the sediment to creep gradually to the lowermost end of the barrel beneath the spigot.

Clearly, in the case of an ale barrel or cask, this should not be tilted to too great an angle from the horizontal or the whole object- of tilting it would be negated in that the spigot would be lowered to a level beneath the sediment which it is wished to retain in the barrel. It is found that for a barrel designed to contain from 9 to 11 gallons of liquid it is suitable to raise the rear end of the barrel through approximately 70 - 80mm to enable almost the entire liquid content of the barrel to be withdrawn without substantial risk of the withdrawal of sediment with the liquid. Moreover it is found that it is convenient for the supporting member, preferably a cradle, to reach its second end position in which it supports the barrel at this inclination when the barrel is approximately one third full. Suitable stops for stopping the movement of the cradle in the first and second end positions may readily be provided depending upon the type of biasing means and form of cradle used in any particular embodiment. Moreover the actual degree of tilt allowed may of course be varied according to the type of container, whether it be a barrel or any other form of container, the dimensions of the container and location of the outlet opening, and the nature of the contents.

Again, particularly in the case of ale barrels or other containers containing liquids which need to be allowed to settle before use, the support device of the present invention is preferably adapted to support two such containers either alongside each other or one above the other so that, when the container in one location has just been replaced and is resting waiting for its contents to settle, the container in the other location may be in use and vice versa. Clearly the support device should be provided with associated displaceable support means and associated biasing means at each container location.

The other problem with barrel storage is that of access to the barrels for replacement. In another aspect the invention provides a support rack particularly for barrels or like containers, comprising a supporting structure and cradle means for carrying the container, the cradle means being movable between a retracted position in which it supports the container within the structure with an outlet of the container accessible at the front of the structure and an extended position in which it projects forwardly of the structure to facilitate loading of a container thereonto or unloading therefrom.

The cradle means of the support rack are preferably carried on a telescopic structure which is slidable in and out of the support rack and, in its extended position, is readily available to receive a new, full container, particularly a cask or barrel, or presents an empty barrel to be removed from the rack in front of the rack itself. The cradle preferably is so arranged that the arms of a fork-lift truck can be inserted beneath a barrel for it to be removed.

The movable cradle and the fixed structure of the rack are preferably provided with releasable locking means for locking the cradle in its retracted position. Preferably the locking means are automatically snap-engagable as the cradle is moved from its extended into its retracted position.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the cradle is supported in the support rack for automatic tilting adjustment in order to alter the orientation of a barrel supported thereon in use, as described above.

One embodiment of the invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a two-tier barrel rack according to the invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of a lower tier of the rack of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on line III-III of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a perspective view of a detail of the rack of Figure 1; and Figure 5 is a part-sectional plan view of a further detail of Figure 2.

With reference to the drawings a two-tier barrel rack is generally indicated 10 and comprises a supporting framework of welded construction formed from steel box, angle and flat sections, generally indicated 11 which carries two identical barrel-support frames of similar construction, one above the other and indicated 12a and 12b. The support frames 12a, 12b support respective barrels B.

The supporting framework 10 includes a rear, upright support frame 13 comprising two uprights 14 interconnected by horizontal members 15 and 16 at their upper and lower ends respectively and by three intermediate horizontal members 17,18,19. The rear frame 13 carries upper and lower pairs of arms 20a,20b respectively, each arm projecting forwardly from an upright 14 and each pair supporting a respective barrelsupport frame 12a,12b. The arms 20a,20b are identical except in that the upper arms 20a are cantilevered from the uprights 14 but provided with additional support in the form of struts 21 whereas the lower arms 20b are supported at their forward ends by additional uprights 22.

Each barrel support frame 12a,12b is effectively housed between the respective arms 20a,20b of the supporting framework and includes an outer frame portion 23 comprising a pair of outer longitudinal members 24 interconnected at their rear ends by a horizontal connecting member 25 and an inner frame or cradle part 33 provided with supports for a barrel B which will be described more fully below. The outer longitudinal frame members 24 are pivoted at their forward ends on respective pivot pins 26 projecting towards each other from the forward ends of the support arms 20a,20b respectively. Each barrel support frame 12a,12b is thus pivotable about a horizontal axis defined by the pivot pins 26 at its forward end, the pivoting movement being limited by stop means at their rear ends.

In this embodiment the stop means are best seen in Figure 3 and comprise projecting stop plates 27 which project rearwardly from the rear ends of the outer longitudinal members 24, beyond the horizontal connecting member 25 and into the space between the uprights 14 of the rear support frame. The plates 27 contact respective intermediate horizontal members 17 and 19 of the rear support frame to limit downward pivoting of the respective barrel support frame 12a,12b and the upper connecting member 15 and the intermediate member 18 respectively to limit upward pivoting. The positions and dimensions of the horizontal members and of the projecting plates 27 are selected such that the frames 12a,12b are substantially horizontal in their lower limit positions, as shown by the position of the upper frame 12a in Figure 3.The upper limit positions may be selected according to the size of frame 12a,12b and barrel B to be supported thereby but, for 9-11 gallon barrels, the dimensions are preferably selected such that the rear end of the frame rises through approximately 75mm from its lower limit position to its upper limit position: the lower frame 12b is shown in the tilted position in Figures 1 and 3 in which is plates 27 contact its upper stop member 18.

Each outer frame portion 23 is further supported at its rear end from the rear support frame 13, as best seen in Figures 3 and 4, through a respective biasing spring 28 which biases it to its upper limit position. Each spring 28 is in practice a double-coil helical torsion spring having two portions 28a,28b coiled to opposite hands and attached at a central, interconnecting portion 29 to a respective horizontal member 17 or 19 of the rear support frame 13 with its axis horizontal and parallel to the plane of the rear support frame 13. Two end portions 30 of the coil 28 are bent at right angles from the axis of the coil to form forwardly-projecting arms which support a nylon roller 31 between them at their free ends, the roller being freely rotable about an axis parallel to but spaced from the spring 28. The roller 31 is arranged to contact the underside of a bearing plate 32 which projects downwardly and forwardly from the horizontal member 25 of the outer barrel frame portion 23 of the respective barrel support frame 12a,12b.

Each coil spring 28 is torsionally stressed such that it exerts an upward force on the respective bearing plate 32 through its arms 30 and roller 31 but is so calibrated that this force is fully overcome by the weight of a full barrel B of ale placed on the respective barrel-support frame 12a,12b. When a full barrel B is located on a support frame 12a,12b, the frame is thus pivoted downwards about its front pivot pins 26 until its stop plates 27 contact the respective horizontal stop member 17 or 19 with the frame in its horizontal position as shown for the upper frame 12a in Figure 3. The force of each spring 28 is in fact balanced by the weight of a barrel when it is approximately half full; the operation of the barrel rack in this respect will be described more fully below.

Returning now to the inner cradle 33 of each barrel support frame, each cradle part 33 has two longitudinal members 34 slidingly engaged with the longitudinal members 24 of the outer frame 23 by means of mutually cooperating runners (not shown) on their facing surfaces which are of generally known type and will not be described further. The runners enable the cradle 33 to slide longitudinally between a retracted storage condition shown for the lower frame 12b in Figure 1, in which it is housed completely within the outer frame 23, and an extended loading/unloading condition shown for the upper frame 12a in Figure 1, in which it projects forwardly of the frame 23 and of the supporting framework 11.

The longitudinal cradle members 34 are interconnected by two transverse members 36 intermediate their ends and these in turn each support two wedge-shaped blocks 37 which together define a cradle in which a barrel B may be located; the barrel B is held securely by the shaping of the blocks 37 without the need for clamps or other fixing members.

The cradle 33 further includes a central longitudinal member 38 pivoted to the transverse members 36 and extending forwardly and rearwardly thereof. The forwardly extending part has a downwardly-bent front end portion 38a which serves as a handgrip for purposes which will be explained below, while the rearwardly extending portion has an upwardly-cranked end portion 39 terminating in a latch member, best seen in Figure 5 constituted by a rectangular notch 40 in a lateral edge of the end portion. The end portion 39 is so arranged that, when the cradle 33 is in its retracted condition, the end portion 39 projects through an aperture 41 in the transverse connecting member 25 of the outer frame portion 23 and the notch 40 houses an edge portion of the member 25 defining the aperture 41.The notch 40 is kept in engagement with the transverse member 25 by a tension spring 42 connected between the longitudinal member 38 and the longitudinal member 34 on the same side as the notch 40 so as to prevent the cradle 33 from sliding accidentally relative to the outer frame portion. The handgrip can be moved manually to one side, as shown by the double arrow A in Figure 2, to release the latch 40 from the edge of the aperture 41 thereby allowing the cradle to slide forwardly.

Finally, the end portion 39 has a bevelled end indicated 43, which enables the end 39 to enter the aperture 41 in the transverse member 25 easily, the arrangement being such that when the tray 33 is slid from its extended to its retracted condition, the notch 40 snap-engages with the transverse member 25.

In use of the barrel rack 10 indicated above, the rack 10 will normally contain two barrels B, one in each frame 12a, 12b; one will normally be in use while the other is waiting to be used. When the in-use barrel is emptied, after release of the cradle latch 40 as described above, its cradle 33 may be pulled, for example, by means of the handgrip 38a, to its extended position in which the barrel B is still fully supported but located in front of the rack 10 proper. In this position it may easily be removed, for example by a fork lift truck whose arms can be inserted between the cradle frame members 34 and the barrel B.

With the empty barrel removed, a full barrel may readily be placed on the waiting cradle 33 which may then be pushed back into the rack 10, its latch member 39 snapengaging the aperture 41 in the outer frame member 25 to retain it securely. Once the full barrel is inserted its weight will overcome the biasing force of the coil spring 28 to pivot the barrel support frame 12a or 12b as a whole down into its horizontal position.

While the contents of the new barrel are settling, the other barrel will be used. As its contents are withdrawn its weight is reduced until it reaches a point where the spring gradually starts to lift the rear end of the frame 12a or 12b upwards. When the barrel is about two thirds empty, its movement is stopped by the abutment of the stop plates 27 with the underside of the respective transverse frame member 15 or 18. This movement is sufficiently slow not to disturb any sediment which may have accumulated in the bottom of the barrel B and is sufficiently limited in angular extent not to raise the normal amount of sediment formed to the level of the barrel outlet spigot, indicated 44.

In the embodiment just described, each barrel is supported on a cradle part 33 which is slidable relative to an outer frame 23 by means of mutually cooperating longitudinal members 34, 24 respectively. In an alternative, simpler embodiment of the invention, not shown, the inner cradle part 33 is formed integrally with the outer frame 23, essentially by the integration of each pair of cooperating longitudinal members 34, 24 in a single longitudinal member. This embodiment does not, therefore, have the facility for enabling the cradle part to be slid forwardly of the rack 10 for loading and unloading. The tilting facility and tilting mechanism are, however, substantially identical to those described above.

Claims (23)

1. An automatically adjusting support device for a container comprising support means having at least one movable supporting member for receiving at least part of the weight of the container located in a predetermined position on the device and biasing means acting on the supporting member or members in opposition to the weight force thereon, the supporting member or members being displaceable between first and second end positions in which the container is held in respective first and second orientations on the device and the biasing means being such as to cause the displacement of the supporting member or members from the first towards the second position when the weight bearing thereon passes through a predetermined threshold and to continue the displacement in a gradual manner as the weight continues to change beyond the threshold.

2. A support device as claimed in Claim 1 for supporting a container for a fluid substance and having an outlet in a lower part of one wall thereof, in which the device is adapted to support the container in the first orientation when it contains more than a predetermined weight of the substance and to displace it towards the second orientation when the weight bearing on the at least one supporting member falls through the predetermined threshold, the outlet being at a lower level relative to the body of the container in the second orientation than in the first orientation.

3. A support device as claimed in Claim 2, in which the supporting member or members are arranged to act on the container to pivot it about a substantially horizontal axis to change its orientation.

4. A support device as claimed in Claim 3, in which the supporting member or members act on a part of the container remote from the outlet to pivot it upwardly about the said axis to displace the container from its first to its second orientation.

5. A support device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the biasing means comprise at least one resilient biasing spring.

6. A support device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the support means include a substructure which can rest on a supporting surface and the or each movable supporting member is carried by the substructure for movement relative thereto, the biasing means acting between the fixed structure and the or each movable supporting member.

7. A support device as claimed in Claim 6 as dependent on Claim 3 or Claim 4, in which the biasing means comprise at least one torsion spring mounted on the support substructure with its axis substantially horizontal and having a radially projecting arm acting on a respective movable supporting member to cause its displacement from the first to the second position.

8. A support device as claimed in Claim 7, in which the projecting arm of the torsion spring carries a roller freely rotatable about an axis parallel to the spring axis and located in rolling contact with a cooperating surface of the supporting member for transmitting force between the spring and the supporting member.

9. A support device as claimed in any one of Claims 5 to 8, in which the support substructure is adapted to support the movable support member and container spaced above the support surface.

10. A support device as claimed in any one of Claims 6 to 9, in which the or each movable support member is part of a movable support structure adapted to support the entire weight of the container and to be carried on the support substructure for displacement relative thereto between the said first and second positions.

11. A support device as claimed in Claim 10, in which the movable support structure comprises a cradle for supporting a barrel or cask.

12. A support device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which a travel-limit stop is provided for preventing the displacement of the movable member beyond the first position and/or beyond the second position.

13. A support device as claimed in Claim 2 and in any one of Claims 3 to 12 as dependent on Claim 2, in which the second position of the supporting member is selected such that the outlet of a container supported in its second orientation on the device is above the lowest part of the container such that a proportion of the contents is below the outlet.

14. A support device as claimed in Claim 10 or Claim 11, in which the movable support structure is displaceable not only between the first and second positions but also between a retracted condition, in which it is housed substantially within the plan of the support substructure, and an extended condition in which at least part of it projects outside the plan of the substructure to facilitate loading of a container thereonto or unloading therefrom.

15. A support device as claimed in Claim 14, in which the movable support structure is carried on the substructure in such a manner that, when it is in the said second position its movement from its retracted to its extended condition is downward, at an angle to the horizontal.

16. A support rack for a container, comprising a supporting substructure and a movable structure carried on the substructure for supporting the container, the movable structure being movable between a retracted condition in which it lies substantially within the plan of the supporting substructure and an extended condition in which at least part thereof projects out of the substructure to facilitate loading of a container thereonto or unloading therefrom.

17. A support rack as claimed in Claim 16, in which the movable structure of part thereof is slidable between the retracted and extended conditions.

18. A support rack as claimed in Claim 16 or 17, in which the movable structure is pivotable on the supporting substructure between a substantially horizontal orientation and an inclined orientation in which the movement of the movable structure from its retracted to its extended condition occurs in a downwardly inclined direction.

19. A support rack as claimed in Claim 18, in which the movable structure is adapted to pivot automatically from the substantially horizontal orientation towards the inclined orientation as the weight of a container and its contents bearing on the movable support structure, in use, falls through a predetermined threshold due to the withdrawal of contents from the container.

20. A support rack as claimed in Claim 19, in which the movable support structure includes telescopic guide means having at least one memeber pivotally mounted on the supporting substructure for movement between the horizontal and inclined orientations and a cooperating member telescopically engaged with the pivoted member for movement between the retracted and extended conditions of the movable structure.

21. A support rack as claimed in any one of Claims 16 to 20 in which the movable support structure includes a handgrip whereby it can be moved manually between its retracted and extended positions.

22. A support rack as claimed in any one of Claims 16 to 21, in which retaining means are provided for retaining the movable support structure in its retracted condition and/or in its extended condition.

23. A rack for barrels substantially as herein described with reference to, and as shown in, the accompanying drawings.