JP2547575Y2 - Forklift traveling mode selection display device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a traveling mode selection display device for a forklift, and more particularly to a device for facilitating the operation of a forklift capable of selecting various traveling modes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, as represented by Japanese Patent Application No. 3-306767 previously proposed by the present applicant, a reach type forklift has been improved and various traveling modes (hereinafter referred to as "traveling modes"). There has been proposed a forklift capable of performing the following.

As shown in FIG. 5, the forklift 1 supports a main body 2 and left and right straddle arms 20, 20 projecting from the main body 2 so as to steer road wheels 5, 6, respectively. The section 2 includes a drive wheel 4 that can be steered by a handle 3.

[0004] The drive wheel 4
Swivel swing gear 17 mechanically linked to handle 3
The turning gear 17 is provided with a potentiometer 18 capable of detecting the amount of rotation of the turning gear 17, whereby the steering angle of the drive wheel 4 can be detected. Although not shown, caster wheels are arranged beside the drive wheel 4 in order to secure running stability.

[0005] A cargo handling device 7 is mounted between the straddle arms 20 so as to be able to slide back and forth and to be able to move up and down by a lift cylinder (not shown).

The load wheels 5 and 6 are rotatably supported by pivot brackets 8 and 9 that can pivot with respect to the straddle arm 20. The pivot brackets 8 and 9 have a transmission tool 10 such as a chain or a belt. The steering motors 11 and 12 are mounted via the motors 10 and 10, respectively. Therefore, the left and right road wheels 5, 6 can be steered by rotating the steering motors 11, 12, respectively.

The output shafts of the steering motors 11 and 12 have a potentiometer 1 capable of detecting the amount of rotation.
3 and 14 are attached so that the steering angles of the left and right road wheels 5 and 6 can be detected.

The forklift 1 constructed as described above
Is configured such that a desired traveling mode can be selected by operating the switches A, B, and C of the traveling mode selection device 15. For example, when the switch A is selected, the omnidirectional mode is set, and the steering angles θD, θ of the drive wheel and the left and right road wheels are set as shown in FIG.
L and θR are both controlled equally, so that a traveling mode that enables skew traveling is provided.

When the switch B is selected, a spin turn mode is set, and as shown in FIG. 6 (b), a running mode in which the vehicle can make a small turn with the turning center substantially at the center of the forklift. Further, when the switch C is selected, a so-called reverse-phase mode is set, and the driving mode is controlled such that an axis having a continuous turning center is located below an axis connecting the left and right road wheels.

[0010]

However, each of the above-mentioned driving modes depends on the driving mode.
There is a restriction due to the steering angle of the vehicle. In other words, the left and right steering ends of the drive wheel 4 are mechanically limited, and the drive wheel 4 cannot be continuously steered by 360 degrees, and there are certain restrictions due to the calculation processing of the control device.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 6C, in the reverse phase mode, when the steering angle of the drive wheel 4 is within the range α shown in FIG. The mode is set so that it cannot be selected.

However, since the driver of the forklift 1 cannot normally recognize this, when the steering angle of the drive wheel 4 is within the range α, the switch C is selected and the reverse phase mode is desired. However, the reverse phase mode cannot be executed, and there is a case where it is puzzled to cope with the problem.
In addition, in order to execute the reverse phase mode, the steering angle of the drive wheel can be selected by steering the steering wheel out of the range of α. However, the driver of the forklift always faces the current direction of the drive wheel. However, it is extremely difficult to know the limited angle of the steering angle of the drive wheel or the like in the reverse phase mode, and there is a problem that a skilled driving technique is required.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and has as its object to display a currently selected driving mode and calculate a selectable driving mode from the current drive wheel steering angle. Another object of the present invention is to provide a traveling mode selection display device for a forklift capable of easily selecting the traveling mode by displaying the traveling modes that can be selected.

[0014]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention comprises a load wheel steerably supported at the tip of each of left and right straddle arms, and driving means capable of steering the load wheel. A drive wheel provided at the rear of the vehicle body, and a steering angle detecting means for detecting a steering angle of the left and right road wheels and the drive wheel, and a steering control of the left and right road wheels by using a steering angle of the drive wheel as a command. In a forklift capable of arbitrarily selecting a plurality of possible driving modes, a means for storing a steering angle range of a drive wheel capable of selecting each driving mode in advance, and a selection mode display means capable of displaying a currently selected driving mode And a selectable mode table capable of displaying other drive modes selectable from the current drive wheel steering angle. A structure formed by and means, is obtained by solving the above problems.

[0015]

According to the present invention, the lamp of the currently selected driving mode is turned on, and the lamp of the selectable driving mode is blinked based on the current steering angle of the drive wheel. Further, for a traveling mode that cannot be selected, an effect is obtained in which the lamp corresponding to the traveling mode is turned off, and the traveling mode that can be selected can be visually recognized.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. The forklift is the same as that shown in FIG. 5, but a driving mode selection device 15 is provided as shown in FIG. 3 at a position near the driver's seat where the driver can see, specifically, at the instrument panel.

The travel mode selection device 15 has push buttons 21, 22, and 23 for selecting and instructing a plurality of travel modes.
Are mounted, and lamps 24, 25, and 26 such as light-emitting diodes are provided therein.

In the present embodiment, the push button 21 is an omnidirectional mode (hereinafter referred to as "md1").
Indicates a spin turn mode (hereinafter, referred to as “md2”), and the push button 23 indicates a reverse phase mode (hereinafter, referred to as “md3”).
An example in which the three traveling modes can be selected is described, but the present invention is not limited to this. Therefore, it goes without saying that various settings can be made according to the forklift employing the present invention.

When the push buttons 21, 22, and 23 are pressed, the traveling control in each traveling mode is performed according to a processing procedure stored in advance, but the description of the control contents in each traveling mode is omitted here. .

Referring now to the block diagram of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, a potentiometer 18 for detecting the steering angle of the drive wheel 4, and push buttons 21, 22, and 23 for selecting and instructing the respective driving modes. Is input to the input port 30.

The CPU 27 determines R based on the input signal.
The lamp controller 32 is configured to be controlled via the output port 31 by a processing procedure stored in the OM 29 in advance. Further, the lamp controller 32, which has received an instruction from the CPU 27, controls the lamps 24, 25, and 26 to turn on, blink, and turn off. The ROM 29
As shown in FIG. 4, left and right limit angles θDL and θDR of the steering angle of the drive wheel 4 are stored in advance for each traveling mode. The RAM 28 is a working volatile memory.

Next, the processing procedure of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, first, the steering angle θD of the drive wheel 4 is read into the RAM 28 (Step S).
1).

Next, it is determined whether or not md1 is currently selected (step S2).
4 is turned on (step S6).

If md1 is not selected (N in step S2), the current steering angle θ of the drive wheel 4 is set.
By comparing D with the limit steering angles θDL and θDR of the drive wheel 4 of md1 stored in the ROM 29, it is determined whether or not md1 can be selected at present (step S3).

In the above processing, if md1 is selectable, the lamp 24 is turned on and off (step S5), and if md1 is not selectable (N in step S3), the lamp 24 is turned off (step S4).

Similarly, for lamp 25, step S
7 to S11 are performed, and the lamp 26 is performed by steps S12 to S16.

According to the above-described processing, for the currently selected driving mode, the lamp provided inside the push button for selecting the driving mode is turned on, and the driving mode is selected from the current steering angle of the drive wheel. For possible driving modes, the corresponding lamp flashes. Further, for a traveling mode that cannot be selected, the lamp corresponding to the traveling mode is turned off, so that it is clear at a glance which traveling mode can be selected, and the selection operation can be performed extremely easily.

In the above-described embodiment, the lamp of the selected driving mode is turned on and the lamp of the selectable driving mode is blinked. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Can be configured to blink, and the lamp of the selectable driving mode can be turned on. Further, the push button for selecting the driving mode and the lamp can be disposed separately.

In addition to the above, an example using a lamp as the display means has been described. However, the present invention can also be configured to be able to display a currently selected driving mode and a selectable driving mode on a liquid crystal display or the like. Needless to say.

[0030]

According to the present invention, even if the driver does not always recognize the steering angle of the drive wheel, the driver can see at a glance the currently selected driving mode and selectable driving modes by looking at the display means. Thus, it is possible to more easily select the driving mode, and the problem that the driving requires skill is solved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the traveling mode selection device.

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the contents of a ROM.

FIG. 5 is a plan view for explaining a conventional forklift.

FIGS. 6 (a) to (c) are plan views for explaining each traveling mode.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Forklift 15 Travel mode selection device 18 Potentiometer 21 Push button 22 Push button 23 Push button 24 Lamp 25 Lamp 26 Lamp 32 Lamp controller

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A road wheel, which is steerably supported at the tip of each of left and right straddle arms, and driving means capable of steering the road wheel, and a drive wheel steered by a steering wheel is provided at the rear of the vehicle body. A steering angle detecting means for detecting steering angles of the left and right road wheels and the drive wheel; and a plurality of traveling modes capable of controlling the steering of the left and right road wheels by using the steering angle of the drive wheel as a command. In a forklift that can be selected at any time, a means for storing in advance a steering angle range of a drive wheel in which each driving mode can be selected, a selection mode display means for displaying a currently selected driving mode, and a steering of current drive wheel Selectable mode display means capable of displaying another drive mode selectable from a corner. Clift driving mode selection display device.