AU764222B2 - Tippable trailer - Google Patents

Description

I' P/00/0011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for service in Australia: Invention Title: PETER VICTOR SMITH PETER VICTOR SMITH CARTER SMITH BEADLE 2 Railway Parade Camberwell Victoria 3124 Australia TIPPABLE TRAILER Details ofAssociated Provisional Application: PP9493 filed 30 March 1999 PQ0514 filed 24 May 1999 PQ0939 filed 11 June 1999 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us 2 TIPPABLE TRAILER Technical Field This invention relates to a tippable trailer used in road transport.

Background of the Invention It is common in commercial road transport to have a configuration known as B-double. This is in the form of two trailers having multiple rear axles coupled in a train to a prime mover. The front trailer is coupled directly to the prime mover.

The second or rear trailer is coupled to the rear of the front trailer. This coupling is effected by means of a turntable mounted above the back wheels of the front trailer :°oooo and which extends rearwardly from the trailer. The turntable engages with a mating portion on the front of the rear trailer. These trailers are used for the transport of So:" flowable material such as agricultural grains, mineral sands and gravel and fertilizer prills or pellets.

To unload the rear trailer, its tailgate is released and the trailer is then tipped about its rearmost axle by means of a hydraulic hoist near the front of the trailer. In this tipped position, the flowable material slides from the trailer under gravity.

oo However, the unloading of the front trailer is more difficult because of the presence of the rearwardly protruding turntable and the axle assembly. Simply tipping the front trailer in a conventional fashion will cause the load to flow over the axles and turntable, and possibly bog the vehicle. It is also undesirable for the load to contact the road wheels, axle assembly, or in particular, the turntable which is often heavily greased since this contaminates both the load and the lubricating grease.

One method of unloading which avoids some of these problems has been to tip the front trailer sideways about its longitudinal axis. However, the flowable material still tends to run back under the wheels and chassis of the trailer.

Furthermore, it is difficult to accurately control the flow of the material into a storage container or other controlled area.

Another method of unloading the front trailer has been to provide it with a sliding axle assembly moveable between an extended and a retracted position. To unload the front trailer incorporating this system, the rear trailer is first uncoupled in the usual way. The slidable axle assembly, which includes the turntable, is then DVG:JMD:#34107-SPC 30 March 2000 ID004198617 moved to the retracted position where the rearmost axles are forward of the trailer.

The trailer can then be tipped about its rearmost axle in a similar fashion to the rear trailer without interference from the turntable. However, this system has disadvantages in terms of the complexity and cost of the sliding axle assembly and the extra handling time needed to slide it between the extended and retracted positions.

Summary of the Invention In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a leading trailer for transporting flowable material, said leading trailer including a trailer tipping means and a rearwardly located turntable to releasably couple an additional trailer to the leading trailer wherein the leading trailer includes a bin and a chute movable between a stored position and an operative position, whereby in the stored position said chute assembly is remote from said turntable to enable coupling of the additional trailer to the leading trailer and whereby in the operative position said chute shields said turntable from said flowable material as the leading trailer is unloaded and wherein the leading trailer is adapted to tip selectively about a first pivot axis or a second pivot axis which is the rearmost axle of the leading trailer.

Preferably the leading trailer includes a selecting means to select the required pivot axis and more preferably the selecting means is a pair of removable pins that selectively secure the bin chassis to the trailer chassis.

In a form of the invention, the trailer also includes a trailer chassis, a bin chassis, a hydraulically operated hoist operatively connected to a forward end of the bin chassis to selectively raise the forward end of the bin and a drawpole pivotally connected to a rear S"portion of the trailer chassis and extending forwardly toward the base of the hoist.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention there is provided a leading trailer for transporting flowable materials, the trailer having a bin, a trailer chassis and a bin .chassis wherein the trailer chassis comprises a rear section and a forward section pivotally connected to each other and adapted to support the bin chassis in generally horizontal position, and a selective locking means operable to selectively lock the bin chassis to the rear section of the trailer chassis so that in the locked position, the forward S 30 section of the trailer is pivotable about the connecting pivot point to the rear section of the trailer chassis.

ID004198617 Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation view of a leading trailer in the untipped position.

Figure 2 is a side elevation view of a leading trailer in a first tipped position.

Figure 3 is a side elevation view of leading trailer in a second tipped position.

Figure 4 is a side elevation view of a locking pins engaged and disengaged.

Figure 5 is a side elevation view of an alternative leading trailer in a second tipped position.

Detailed Description of the Drawings While the leading trailer of the present invention may take many different forms, a particularly preferred form of the invention is detailed with reference to Figures 1 to Referring to Figure 1, a leading trailer 1 is shown coupled to a prime mover 2 via turntable 3. The leading trailer 1 is shown with a tipping axle 9 and a coupling turntable The leading trailer 1 has a bin 4 mounted on a bin chassis rail 6. The leading trailer has a trailer chassis rail 5, a hydraulically operated hoist 7, and a drawpole 8. One end of the drawpole 8 is pivotally connected towards the rear of the chassis rail 5 onto an upright portion of the trailer chassis 13. A locking pin 11 is releasably located between the forward section of the bin chassis rail 6 and the forward section of the trailer chassis rail The bin chassis rail 6 is connected to the trailer chassis rail 5 by means of pivot 12.

20 The operation of the leading trailer 1 in a first tipping mode is shown in Figure 2. In this mode pin 11 is disengaged and the raising of hoist 7 causes the bin 4 and bin rail chassis 6 to pivot about pivot axis 12 and to allow the discharge of the contents of the bin over the rear wheel assembly.

An alternative second tipping mode is illustrated in Figure 3. In this configuration 25 locking pin 11 is engaged. The raising of the hoist 7 causes the bin 4 and bin chassis rail 6 to pivot about the rearmost axle 14. A chute 15 may be released from the bin 4 to prevent tipped material from fouling the turntable Referring to Figure 4 the locking pins 11 are pneumatically moveable from an :engaged position 16 to a retracted disengaged position 17. The pins may be also activated by hydraulic means or electrically by means of a solenoid. With the rearmost pins engaged as in position 16 the bin will tip over the axle. The locking pin 18 is ID004198617 diameter hardened steel. Its movement to the locked position in bushes in the bin chassis rail 6 is regulated by compressed air as in cylinders 19. A locking pin bush 20 is shown in the trailer chassis rail and a similar bush 21 in the bin chassis rail.

Referring to Figure 5, an alternative tippable leading trailer is shown. The trailer chassis 8 has a forward section 22 pivotally connected to a rear section 23 about pivot point 24. The forward and rear sections have mating sections near the pivot point 24 so that they cannot pivot beyond a generally horizontal position. A pin assembly 11 is shown in the locked position. This alternative form has the advantage that the pivotally connected chassis functions as a drawpole, thereby saving weight.

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Claims (10)

1. A leading trailer for transporting flowable material, said leading trailer including a trailer tipping means and a rearwardly located turntable to releasably couple an additional trailer to the leading trailer wherein the leading trailer includes a bin and a chute movable between a stored position and an operative position, whereby in the stored position said chute assembly is remote from said turntable to enable coupling of the additional trailer to the leading trailer and whereby in the operative position said chute shields said turntable from said flowable material as the leading trailer is unloaded and wherein the leading trailer is adapted to tip selectively about a first pivot axis or a second pivot axis which is the rearmost axle of the leading trailer.

2. The leading trailer as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first pivot axis is disposed at the bottom rear of the bin.

3. The leading trailer as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 having a trailer chassis, a bin chassis, a hydraulically operated hoist operatively connected to a forward end of the bin chassis to selectively raise the forward portion of the bin and a drawpole pivotally connected to a rear portion of the trailer chassis and extending forwardly toward the base of the hoist.

4. The leading trailer as defined in claim 3 further including a selecting means to select the required pivot axis. :°oooo 20

5. The leading trailer as defined in claim 4 wherein the selecting means is operable to selectively secure the bin chassis to the trailer chassis.

6. The leading trailer as defined in claim 4 or 5 wherein the selecting means comprises one or more movable pins.

7. The leading trailer as defined in claim 6 wherein the or each pin is actuated by air pressure.

8. The leading trailer as claimed in claim 1 further including a trailer chassis comprising a rear section and a forward section pivotally connected to each other and adapted to support a bin chassis in generally horizontal position.

9. A leading trailer for transporting flowable materials, the trailer having a bin, a trailer S. 30 chassis and a bin chassis wherein the trailer chassis comprises a rear section and a forward section pivotally connected to each other and adapted to support the bin chassis ID004198617 7 in generally horizontal position, and a selective locking means operable to selectively lock the bin chassis to the rear section of the trailer chassis so that in the locked position, the forward section of the trailer is pivotable about the connecting pivot point to the rear section of the trailer chassis.

10. A leading trailer substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to figures 1 to 4 or as modified by figure FREEHILLS CARTER SMITH BEADLE Patent Attorneys for the Applicant: PETER VICTOR SMITH 18 June 2003 e