FR2473023A1 - LOADING DOCK PANEL - Google Patents

Abstract

THE INVENTION CONCERNS STRUCTURES ENSURING THE JUNCTION BETWEEN A TRUCK AND A LOADING DOCK. A DOCK PANEL CORRESPONDING TO THE INVENTION ESSENTIALLY INCLUDES A TRAFFIC PLATE 24 WHICH IS PIVOTALLY COUPLED TO THE UPPER PART OF A FRAME 16 MOUNTED SO AS TO SLIDE VERTICALLY IN SLIDES 15 FIXED IN THE DOCK FRONT OF THE DOCK. THE PLATE IS MOUNTED SO AS TO BE ABLE TO TILT LATERAL TO THE PASSING OF A LOAD WHEN ITS FRONT EDGE DOES NOT EXTEND ITS ENTIRE LENGTH ON THE PLATE 3 OF A TRUCK. APPLICATION TO GOODS HANDLING FACILITIES.

Description

Loading dock panel U.S. Patent 3,596,303 relates to a

  dock panel to be mounted at the front of a loading dock. As

  it is described in this patent, a ramp or circulation plate

  tion is normally stored in a vertical position at

  the front of the loading dock and the side edges of the

  circulation systems are pivotally coupled to

  guide bars mounted so as to move in sliding

  which are located on the front surface of the wharf.

  When a truck or transport vehicle comes into position at the front of the loading dock, the ramp or circulation plate is manually raised to a level higher than that of the dock, it is rotated around the guide bars to bring it to a practically horizontal position, then move it down until it comes into contact with

  the platform and the platform of the transport vehicle.

  As indicated in the aforementioned patent, to facilitate the manual lifting of the circulation plate to the upright position, a counterweight system is employed in which a series of weights are coupled to the

  lower ends of the guide bars, by means of

  cable and pulley device.

  Because the ramp panel traffic plate or ramp described above is relatively short in the fore-aft direction, and because the ramp normally has a hump or ridge that extends side to side, the circulation plate is relatively rigid and

not flexible.

  In most loading operations, the truck bed is not parallel to the upper surface of the loading dock and, on the contrary, it is normally

  slightly inclined to the wharf due to a

  unequal load in the truck, the slope of the ground, etc. Thus, in most cases, the front edge of the ramp does not fully carry on the truck bed. When a forklift passes over the traffic plate during its journey between the platform and the truck bed, the relatively rigid and non-flexible nature of the traffic plate

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  -2- fact that it does not bend or deform under the weight of the forklift passing over it, although

  that the circulation plate may be subject to

important.

  An improved dock panel, intended to be mounted at the front of a dock, which operates in

  gently and safely and which includes a mechanism

  both at the ramp or at the traffic plate to tilt to compensate for misalignment between the truck bed and the upper surface of the dock. More specifically, the dock panel of the invention comprises a ramp or circulation plate whose lateral edges are pivotally coupled to guide bars which can slide in slides formed in the portion corresponding to the upper edge of a frame of rectangular general shape. The

  chassis is itself mounted so as to move vertically

  in guides that are mounted on the front surface of the wharf.

  To facilitate manual lifting of the cir-

  In order to move it from the lower vertical storage position to a higher position, a balancing system is used in which a series of counterweights are coupled to the chassis via a mechanism.

  chain drive and synchronized toothed wheels.

  2z5 The circulation plate is normally stored in the upright position below the dock level and once a truck or transport vehicle has come into position

  at the front of the wharf, the circulation plate is manually raised

  to an upright position, above the level of the wharf, and then pivoted to a substantially horizontal position and lowered by gravity to bring it

  in contact with the truck bed and the loading dock.

  When the truck moves away from the dock once the loading operation is complete, the circulation plate pivots toward an approximately vertical position and the frame descends by gravity so as to bring the

  circulation at the lower storage position.

  Because the traffic plate is mounted

3 - 2473023

  pivotally on the guide bars which are themselves mounted to slide vertically relative to the rectangular frame, the circulation plate can tilt in a diagonal direction when a forklift passes over it, to compensate for the lack of alignment between the truck deck and the top surface of the dock. Since the circulation plate can tilt, the front edge of the circulation plate is brought into continuous contact with the truck bed, if it is not already there, when the weight of the forklift is applied to this front edge. This

  significantly reduces the stresses to which the circuit board

  culation and its supporting structure are subject to use.

  The drive mechanism with chains and wheels den-

  synchronized tees that couple the balancing weights to the rectangular frame prevents the frame from skewing during its vertical movement in the guides, which ensures a gentler vertical movement and makes it easier to lift the plate up to the position

higher.

  The invention will be better understood on reading the

  description that follows of an embodiment and in

  Referring to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a front elevational view of the

  dock panel of the invention, mounted on a loading dock-

  with some parts torn off and shown in section; Figure 2 is a vertical section of the dock panel mounted on the loading dock, showing the circulation plate in the lower storage position; Figure 3 is a representation similar to that of Figure 2 showing the circulation plate in the upper raised position; FIG. 4 is a representation similar to that of FIG. 2 showing the circulation plate in the horizontal circulation position in which it

  spans the space between the. loading dock and the

truck water; ^

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  FIG. 5 is a top view, partial and enlarged, of the dock panel, with some parts broken away;

  Figure 6 is an enlarged horizontal section

  trant mounting of the shaft for the balancing mechanism; Figure 7 is a view along line 7-7 of Figure 6; and FIG. 8 is a front view in elevation,

  partial and enlarged, showing the mounting of the

gular-on the guide structure.

  - The drawings show a platform panel 1 which is attached to the front surface of a loading dock 2 and which, when used, spans the space between the upper surface of the loading dock and the deck 3 'a truck

  or a transport vehicle in front of the wharf.

  The platform panel 1 comprises a support structure 4 which is mounted in the front wall 5 of the platform 2.

  support structure consists of a pair of vertical beams

  the 6, of generally rectangular shape, which are located along the sides of the quay panel and the upper ends of the beams 6 are mutually coupled by a horizontal angle 7. As Figure 2 shows it most clearly, the horizontal wing of the angle 7 is flush with the surface

  upper part of the wharf, while the vertical wing of the

  7 is mounted on the vertical front face 5 of the wharf.

  Buffers 9 are mounted on the front faces of

  vertical beams 6 and upper plates 10 are

  to the upper surface 8 of the quay and extend forward above the upper ends of the respective beams 6. The plates 10 have forward curved front edges 11 which overhang the upper part of the respective pad 9 and prevent the bumper of the truck from

  climbs on the pads 9 and hangs on them.

  The support structure 4 also comprises a pair of supports 12 which extend downwards from the beams 6, and a front plate 13 is fixed between the supports 12. Two vertical and remote guide pieces 14 are attached to the inner surface of each beam 6 and 5-

  corresponding brackets, and each pair of guiding pieces

  14 defines a vertical slide 15.

  A frame 16 of generally rectangular shape is mounted to perform a vertical movement in the slides 15 and, as can be seen most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 8, the frame comprises an upper beam 17,

  Rectangular overall shape, an inferior horizontal beam

  18, a generally rectangular shape, and a pair of side bars 19 which couple the ends of the beams 17 and 18. The side bars 19 are slidably mounted in the slides 15 to thereby allow the frame 16 to move vertically by relation to the wharf

loading 2.

  As shown more particularly in FIG. 5, guides 20, having the general shape of box girders, are mounted in the upper beam 17, near the edges

  side of the rectangular frame 16, and guide bars

  21 are mounted so as to slide vertically inside the guides 20. To limit the downward movement of the guide bars 21 relative to the guides 20, a stop 22 is mounted at the upper end of each guide bar and is designed to come into contact with the upper end of the guide 20, thus limiting the downward movement of the guide bar 21 relative to the guide 20. Similarly, the upward movement of each guide bar 21 to the interior of the guide 20 is limited by a pin 23 which passes through a formed opening

  at the lower end of the guide bar.

  A ramp or circulation plate 24 of generally rectangular shape is pivotally coupled to the upper ends of the guide bars 21. To ensure the pivotal coupling, each side edge of the plate

  circulation comprises a tab 25 which is coupled to the end

  upper half of the respective guide bar 24 by means of an axis 26. This pivoting coupling allows the plate of

  24 to pivot relative to the rectangular frame

re 16.

  The front edge of the circulation plate is

  quoted downwardly so that this plate normally takes an approximately vertical storage position, as shown in Figure 2. The circulation plate can very conveniently be biased towards this position by placing the pivoting coupling between the tabs 25 and the pins 26 in

  a position behind the center of gravity before-

  back of the circulation plate. Thus, when the circulation plate is not retained, it falls by gravity to the approximately vertical storage position, as shown in FIG. 2. According to one variant, it is possible to use springs or other means of action for solicit the plate

  from circulation to the vertical position.

  To facilitate manual lifting of the cir-

  culation from the vertical storage position shown in Figure 2 to the raised position shown in Figure 3, a hole 27, for the passage of the hand, is formed

  at the rear edge of the traffic plate.

  A balancing system is incorporated to

  partially offset the weight of the circulation plate

  24 and the frame 16, to reduce the manual force required to raise the circulation plate. For this purpose, a series of balancing weights 28 are placed near the front wall of the dock and chains 29 are coupled

  at the ends of the weights 28, they pass on

  2. T5es 30 and they are anchoredL on-legs 31 located near the ends of the lower beam 18 of the rectangular frame 16. With this structure, the weights 28 partially offset the weight of the frame 16 and the

  plate 24, to lift this last

with less force.

  The chains 29 that couple the counterweights and

  the circulation plate are synchronized so as to

  in synchronism to prevent and the rectangular frame gets stuck in the slides 15 when the

  up and down. As shown more particularly

  6, each gear wheel 30 is mounted on a horizontal axis 32 and each horizontal axis 32 is rotatably mounted in a pair of bearings 33. Each bearing 33 is mounted in a V-shaped cavity 34 formed in a bearing plate 35, and the bearing plates 35 are interposed between plates 36 and 37 which extend forwardly from the horizontal flange of the bracket 7. The plates 35, 36 and 37 are mutually coupled with bolts 38. In addition,

  spacing bushes 39 and 40 are mounted on the axle and

  hold the gear wheels 30 in the correct position on the

axes 32.

  To train the chains 29 in synchronism, the

  inner ends of the pins 32 are coupled to the ends

  respectively with a tube 41 by means of pins 42. With this structure, the axes 32 rotate in synchronism when the counterweights move vertically relative to the dock. The pins 42 pass through aligned slots 43 which are formed at the respective ends of the tube 41 and clamps 44 are fixed around the ends of the tube to prevent the slots from opening. The slots allow limited longitudinal movement of the pins 32 and compensate for any misalignment in the panel installation

quay.

  To facilitate the vertical movement of the frame 16 in the slides 15, rollers 45 are mounted on roller axes 46 which are fixed to the lower portions of the side bars 19 and the rollers are designed to roll on the front surfaces of the guides. respective back

  14. Because the center of gravity of the circulation plate.

  In the front of the chassis plane 16, the moment of gravity tends to pivot the chassis forward around the lower ends of the bars 19, and the rollers 45 thus provide a smooth, non-locking movement of the frame 16.

in the slides 15.

  The ramp or circulation plate 24 is stored in the vertical position, shown in FIG. 2, with the rear or upper edge of this plate situated slightly below the upper surface of the platform. The truck 3 or any other transport vehicle moves back towards the dock until the truck bed comes into contact with the buffers

  9. To place the circulation plate in the operating position

  In this case, the operator pulls the circulation plate upwards, using the hole 27 allowing the passage of the hand, and he moves the circulation plate to an upright vertical position, shown in FIG. this position, the lower edge of the traffic plate is above the truck bed, which allows you to rotate

  then the circulation plate to place it in a posi-

  approximately horizontal. When the circulation plate has been pivoted to the horizontal position, this plate falls by gravity and the lateral bars 19 of the rectangular frame 16 slide downwards in the slides 15, until the rear edge of the circulation plate comes into contact with the upper surface of the wharf and that the front edge of the circulation plate

  in contact with the platform of the transport vehicle 3.

  As previously indicated, it is often the case that the platform of the transport vehicle is not parallel to the upper surface of the wharf, but is tilted or inclined

  relative to this surface. Thus, when the circuit board

  culation moves by gravity to the circulating position

  tion, it may be only part of the edge. before the traffic plate comes in contact with the plateau

3 of the transport vehicle.

  During the loading operation, a forklift

  The driver can pass on the traffic plate causing a shock from front to rear. When the weight of the forklift passes over the front edge of the circulation plate, which is on the tray of the transport vehicle, the sliding coupling between the guide bars 21 and the guides 20 allows the circulation plate of the tilting in a diagonal direction to bring the entire leading edge of the circulation plate into contact with the tray

  from the transport vehicle, when the forklift passes.

  This pivoting action considerably reduces the

  which the circulation plate is subject to

  referred to the case in which part of the circulation plate

  tion is not in contact with the shelf when the

  forklift goes on this plate.

  The sliding coupling between the chassis 16 and the platform allows the circulation plate 24 to tolerate significant variations in height between the upper surface of the platform and the platform 3 of the transport vehicle. For example, in the case where the truck is unloaded, are tray can ride

  significantly as the load is removed from

  tray, while in other cases the truck tray

  can be lowered by the movement of a forklift

  moving on the board or by placing an additional load on the board. In either case, the sliding coupling allows the plate or ramp to follow these relative height variations

between the plateau and the wharf.

  When the loading operation has been completed, the

  truck moves away from the dock and that the traffic plate

  24 is heavy from the front, its front edge pivots down. To cushion the shock, a pair of elastic buffers 47 are mounted on the upper beam 17 of the frame 16, by means of bolts 48 and spacers 49. Because the weight

  of the circulation plate is greater than the balancing force

  weight 28, the circulation plate and the frame

  descend by gravity until the lower extremities

  guides 19 come into abutment at the bottom of the

slides 15.

  The dock panel of the invention is an economical device that can be installed on the front surface of the dock

without modification of the latter.

  The sliding coupling between the guide bars

  21 and the guides 20 allows the ramp or the traffic plate

  to rotate diagonally to compensate for a lack of

  angle between the truck bed and the upper surface of the dock. By allowing the traffic plate to tilt when a forklift or other load passes over it, the constraints are greatly reduced.

in this circulation plate.

  The use of the rectangular frame 16 maintains

  precise alignment between the sides of the circulation plate

  to ensure smoother operation. The mechanism

- 10 -

  chain and gear drive ensures synchronization

  between the balancing forces applied on opposite sides of the chassis and helps to avoid

  through or jamming the chassis in the slides.

  In addition, rollers 45 also contribute to ensuring

  gentle vertical movement of the rectangular frame.

  It goes without saying that many modifications can be made to the device described and shown, without leaving

of the scope of the invention.

-. he -

Claims (13)

  Dock panel (1) intended to be mounted on a loading dock which has an upper surface (8) and a front wall (5), characterized in that it comprises a frame (16) of generally rectangular shape which is placed near the front wall of the wharf; guide means (14,) for mounting the frame so as to enable it to move vertically with respect to the platform; a pair of guides (20) disposed on the frame near the sides thereof; a guide bar (21) mounted to be vertically slidable in each guide; and a circulation plate (24) coupled with   pivoting at the upper ends of the guide bars.   This plate can be lifted vertically   from a first storage position, vertical and inferior, in which the circulation plate is placed approximately vertically along the front wall of the wharf, to a second upper vertical position   in which the lower end of the circulation plate   t 20 is located above the platform (3) of a transport vehicle placed near the front wall of the wharf, so that the circulation plate can be   guide bars to approximately horizontal position   zontal, and that it can be lowered to a posi-   circulation in which it spans the space between the platform and the platform of the transport vehicle,   the rear end of the circulation plate being supported   the forward end of the platform is supported by the transport vehicle, the forward end of the traffic plate being biased downwardly so that the circulation plate takes a position approximately   when the transport vehicle leaves its location.   near the front wall of the wharf, the circulation plate   then descending by gravity to the storage position   the pivoting coupling between the circulation plate and the   and the guide bars allowing the circulation plate to   to bow when a charge passes over it then 2473023. - 12 -   that it is in the position of -circulation.   2. Dock panel according to claim 1, characterized   in that the guides (20) are placed at the edge upper frame (16).   3. A dock panel according to claim 1, characterized in that the frame (16) comprises an upper frame member (17), a lower frame member (18) and a pair of side members (19) which the upper and lower frame members are coupled, and the guide means (14, 15) comprises a pair of vertical rails mounted on the platform, the side members being slidable in the respective slides.   4. Dock panel according to claim 1, characterized   in that it comprises balancing means (28, 29) which are coupled to the frame (16) so as to counterbalance   partially the weight of the circulation plate (24).   5. Dock panel according to claim 4, characterized   in that the balancing means comprise a weight (28) and a pair of chains (29) which connect the weight and the side edges of the frame.   6. Dock panel according to claim 5, characterized   in that it comprises a pair of gears (30)   rotatable and mounted in mutual positions   distantly near the upper edge of the platform, each tooth gear meshes with a chain (29), with one end of each chain coupled to the weight (28) while the opposite end of each chain is coupled to the lower part of the frame (16).   7. Quay panel according to claim 6, characterized   characterized in that it comprises an axle (32) for carrying each gear wheel, and means (41, 42) which couple the axes to produce a synchronous movement of the chains when the weight moves vertically.   8. Dock panel according to claim 3, characterized   characterized in that each slide (15) is formed by a   pair of vertical walls (14) separated from a certain   in the front-to-back direction, and the dock panel comprises a guide roller (45) mounted on each side of the chassis and placed so as to roll against the front surface of the vehicle.   the vertical rear wall of each pair.   9. Dock panel (1) for mounting on a loading dock (2) having an upper surface (8) and a front wall (5), characterized in that it comprises a support structure (4) mounted on the front wall of the wharf; a generally rectangular frame (16) which is placed along the front wall of the dock; guide means (14,) mounted on the support structure and placed against the front wall of the dock to mount the frame so that it can perform vertical movement, which frame comprises an upper frame member (17), a lower frame member (18) and a pair of side members (19) coupling the upper and lower members, the side members being slidably mounted in the guide means; a generally rectangular circulation plate (24) having a leading edge and a trailing edge; and means (25, 26) pivotally coupling the   side edges of the circulation plate at the top   chassis, this circulation plate can be lifted vertically from a first storage position,   vertically and inferiorly, in which the circulation plate   is placed approximately vertically along the front wall of the wharf, to a second upper vertical position in which the lower end of the circulation plate is above the bed of a transport vehicle placed near the front wall the platform, so that the traffic plate can be rotated around the   the upper part of the chassis to bring it into a posi-   approximately horizontal and can be lowered to a traffic position in which it spans the distance between the platform and the platform of the vehicle.   the rear end of the traffic plate,   tion supported by the transport vehicle, the forward end of the circulation plate being biased downwardly so that the circulation plate takes an approximately vertical position when the vehicle of - 14 -   transport leaves the location it occupies near the front wall of the wharf, the circulation plate then descending by gravity to the storage position, the pivoting coupling of the circulation plate to the upper part of the frame allowing the - circulation plate to bow when a load passes over it while it is in the position of circulation.   10. Dock panel according to claim 9, characterized   characterized in that it comprises a guiding element (45) mounted at the bottom of each frame side member, the guiding means (14, 15) comprises a slideway (15) which is defined by a pair of vertical walls ( 14)   located at a distance from each other in the forward direction   back of the wharf; and each guide member is disposed to move on the front surface of the vertical wall back of each pair.   11. Dock panel according to claim 10, characterized in that the guide elements are rollers (45). 12. Dock panel (1) intended to be mounted on a   loading platform (2), this platform having a larger surface area   upper (8) and a front wall (5), characterized in that it comprises a support structure (4) mounted on the wall   before the wharf; a frame (16) of generally rectangular shape   which is placed against the front wall of the wharf; guiding means (14, 15) for mounting the frame so that it can perform a vertical movement on the   support structure; a circulation plate (24) comprising   both a leading edge and a trailing edge as well as a pair of side edges; means (25,26) pivotally coupling the side edges of the circulation plate to the upper portion of the frame; counterweight means (28) disposed along the front wall of the dock; a pair of chains (29); a pair of gears (30) mounted at the upper end of the support structure and meshing with the respective chains, one end of each chain   being coupled to the counterweight means while the end   the opposite side of each chain is coupled to the lower   The chassis; an axle (32) for carrying each gear, said axes being generally in axial alignment and a coupling part (41) which couples the   adjacent ends of the axes, whereby the function chains   in synchronism when the counterweight means are moving vertically, to prevent the chassis from   cross in the guide means.   13. Dock panel according to claim 12, characterized in that it comprises means (42, 43, 44) which allow limited relative axial movement between each axis. and the coupling piece.