AU2010202068A1

AU2010202068A1 - Access Ladder for Vehicles

Info

Publication number: AU2010202068A1
Application number: AU2010202068A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Dante Mario Travaglini
Original assignee: DANTENG Pty Ltd
Current assignee: DANTENG Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2009-05-26
Filing date: 2010-05-21
Publication date: 2010-12-16
Anticipated expiration: 2030-05-21
Also published as: AU2010202068B2; ZA201003657B

Description

Pool Section 29 Regulation 3.2(2) AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT application Number: Lodged: Invention Title: Access Ladder for Vehicles The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1 ACCESS LADDER FOR VEHICLES FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to access ladders for plant, mining and service vehicles, such as water carts used in the resources and mining industries. 5 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Service, mining and plant vehicles such as water carts, earth moving equipment and large service trucks (lubrication and fuelling trucks are examples of these vehicles), generally include a chassis, a protective driver cab and cab access walkway, a body behind the cab (e.g. a dumper body or water tank) for 10 transporting liquid or solid material, and a ladder to provide access from the cab access/engine platform level to the top of the body in order to allow an operator to work on or at the upper body level or for maintenance. For example, access may be required in order to check on the fill funnel and/or pumping equipment and/or to clean lights on the body or tank. 15 It has been known to use a ladder beside or behind the cab to provide access to the top of the body. The ladder is normally located on the front end of the body above the engine of the truck. This arrangement necessitates the provision of a walkway on top of the engine leading to the bottom of the ladder. The driver operates the vehicle from the protective driver cab. The ladder creates 20 a blind spot for the driver/operator by restricting his view to the side. This arrangement also creates a potential hazard in that a person standing on the engine platform may be struck by the ladder when the body is lowered from the tipped position. Where a vertical ladder is provided, it must have a protective surrounding cage just in case the person climbing the vertical ladder should slip 25 or fall. This cage adds substantial cost and weight to the vehicle, as well as climbing risk for the user. The driver operates the vehicle from the protective driver cab. However, a vertical ladder behind or beside the cab creates a driver blind spot, partly due to the additional safety cage that is required around the vertical ladder. 30 It is also difficult to negotiate up and down a vertical ladder, requiring two hands free all of the time. There is therefore an increased risk of a fall from a vertical ladder, and this is on partly obviated by a safety cage. There is still a strong likelihood of a fall from a vertical ladder even with a safety cage. The 2 safety cage only prevents the user from falling backwards not from falling downwards. In the case of a vehicle for carrying liquid, such as a water cart (water carts are large tankers of water often used to dampen down dusty conditions on roads 5 or work areas), the water can escape from the filling point at the top of the vehicle e.g. a funnel opening on a water cart to allow high volume filling under heavy braking or downhill travel/braking, which can result in water spilling over the cab roof and down the windscreen, creating a visibility hazard. With the aforementioned in mind, it would be desirable to provide an 10 access ladder to the upper body of a large plant and earth moving vehicle that provides improved location and safer access to the top of the vehicle compared to ladders located above the truck engine and/or vertical vehicle ladders. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION With the aforementioned in view, one form of the present invention 15 provides an access ladder for a service vehicle, the vehicle having a cab and a body, wherein the access ladder is mounted to the body and extending upwardly at an angle inclined from vertical in the form of a step-ladder. The access ladder may include at least one handrail behind the cab of the truck. 20 A non-vertical ladder reduces fall hazard and reduces driver blind spot, and can obviate the need for a safety cage. The step treads may be wide providing a better surface for the foot to stand on thereby increasing safety for a user. Inclining the ladder in this way also reduces driver blind spot areas behind 25 the cab because the inclination of the ladder creates a larger useable rear window area compared with a vertical ladder. The ladder is preferably arranged to extend laterally across a front to rear axis of the vehicle. The ladder may be mounted to the vehicle body. For example, the ladder 30 may be fixed to the front of the tank of a water cart or the bucket of a dumper body. Thus the ladder may be arranged to lift with the front of the body when the body is tipped, such as for maintenance access to the underside of the body/ vehicle chassis or for the rear of the cab, or when emptying the body.

3 Preferably the bottom landing area of the ladder may be a continuation of the cab platform, which provides a safer walking and access area for an operator to the rear of the cab and deletes the requirement to provide a separate walkway access elsewhere on the truck. 5 The ladder may be inclined at an angle in the range 20 degrees to 30 degrees from vertical. More preferably the ladder is inclined at approximately 20 degrees from vertical. Inclining the ladder laterally across the vehicle can assist in taking the top of the ladder and associated handrails away from certain equipment or features at the top of the vehicle. For example, in the case of a 10 vertical ladder on a water cart, the top of the ladder would typically appear adjacent the filling funnel. The top of the ladder and any safety cage and handrails at the top could be damaged by or cause damage to a filling standpipe. By having the ladder inclined laterally with respect to the vehicle it is possible to have the top of the ladder towards the front to rear midline of the 15 vehicle, thereby reducing risk of collision damage. Also, a user climbing to or descending from the top of the ladder would emerge more towards the midline of the vehicle for greater safety compared with emerging towards the outer edge of the vehicle. The front of the vehicle body behind the cab may include a cut-out or 20 recess to provide space for the inclined ladder. This cut-out assists to direct any water spilling from the funnel of a water cart to behind the driver's cab rather than onto the roof and windscreen. The ladder may include handrails that are continuous with hand or safety rails at the top of the vehicle, such as around the upper part of the body, and the 25 ladder handrails may be continuous with handrails around the cab access platform. The ladder may be attached to the vehicle body, and the vehicle body may lift and lower such that the ladder lifts and lowers with the body portion it is attached to. 30 A further aspect of the present invention provides a vehicle including a ladder inclined laterally with respect to the vehicle at an angle from the vertical and across the rear of the vehicle cab.

4 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows a water cart vehicle in perspective with an access ladder according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 shows a front view of a vehicle access ladder according to an 5 embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 shows a top view of a vehicle including an access ladder according to an embodiment of the present invention. PARTICLUAR DESCRIPTION Figure 1 shows a watercart vehicle 10 wit a cab 12 and a body 14. For a 10 watercart the body is essentially a water tank. With other variations of the vehicle encompassed by this application, the body may be for a lubrication or fuel truck. Other vehicles are also envisaged to which the present application is considered applicable. The water cart includes a filling funnel 16. A ladder 18 extends upwardly at a non-vertical angle across the rear of the cab. Access to the foot of 15 the ladder is via the cab walkway or platform 20 extending alongside and behind the cab. The ladder is mounted to the water cart body within a recess or cut-out 22 in the front panel of the water tank. The inclined ladder can avoid the need for a safety cage around the ladder. The ladder side handrails 24 extend to meet with handrails extending around the upper platform 26 on top of the water cart 20 tank, thereby increasing user safety. The top of the ladder is positioned inboard of the tank filling funnel 16. Thus, when positioning the vehicle adjacent a standpipe for filling the tank, there is reduced risk of collision because the ladder will not damage the standpipe and likewise the standpipe will not be damaged by the top of the ladder. This is a 25 significant difference and improvement over vertical ladder arrangements that otherwise result in the top of the ladder being immediately in front of the filling funnel. Figure 2 shows a front end view of the vehicle 10. The ladder 18 is mounted to the body within the recess 22 shown immediately behind the ladder in 30 this view. Here it can be clearly seen that the ladder inclines upwardly and inboard with respect to the vehicle such that the filling funnel 16 is clearly visible and not obscured by the top of the ladder. Also, because the ladder inclines from 5 vertical, increased driver vision to the rear is created, thereby further increasing safety. Figure 3 shows a plan view of the embodiment shown in figures 1 and 2, with the ladder extending upwardly and inboard behind the cab 12. The 5 increased landing area at the foot of the ladder on the driver access platform can be clearly seen. Also this view shows the additional clearance gained by having the top of the ladder moved away from the filling funnel 16. The ladder can preferentially be inclined at an angle of approximately 200, which would provide climbing/descending safety and comfort whilst maintaining 10 the ladder within a safe and practical space on the vehicle without overly compromising vehicle load capacity. 15

Claims

1. An access ladder for a service vehicle, the vehicle having a cab and a body, wherein the access ladder is mounted to the body behind the cab and extending upwardly at an angle inclined from vertical. 5

2. The access ladder according to claim 1, the access ladder including at least one handrail which extends behind the cab of the truck.

3. The access ladder according to claim 1 or 2, the access ladder extending laterally across a front to rear axis of the vehicle.

4. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein 10 the ladder is mounted to the vehicle body.

5. The access ladder according to claim 4, wherein the ladder is attached to the front of the tank of a water cart or the bucket of a dumper body.

6. The access ladder according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the ladder is arranged to lift with a front portion of the body when the body is tipped, such as 15 for maintenance access to the underside of the body/ vehicle chassis or for the rear of the cab, or when emptying the body.

7. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a bottom landing area for the ladder is a continuation of the cab platform of the vehicle. 20

8. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ladder is inclined at an angle in the range 20 degrees to 30 degrees from vertical.

9. The access ladder according to claim 8, wherein the ladder is inclined at approximately 20 degrees from vertical. 7

10. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a top of the ladder is inclined towards the front to rear midline of the vehicle.

11. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein ladder is mounted within a cut-out or recess behind the cab of the vehicle body. 5

12. The access ladder according to any one of the preceding claims, including at least one handrail continuous with hand or safety rails at the top of the vehicle.

13. The access ladder according to claim 12, wherein the at least one handrail is continuous with handrails around the cab access platform.

14. A vehicle including a ladder according to any one of the preceding claims. 10 WATERMARK PATENT & TRADE MARK ATTORNEYS