FR2864053A1 - Bulk objects e.g. household products, transporting terrestrial vehicle e.g. truck, has case receiving carriages, and coupling unit coupling carriages with respect each other for forming unitary train of carriages - Google Patents

Abstract

The vehicle has a solid wall case (18) and a set of carriages (16) with wheels for containing bulk objects e.g. household products. A case receives the carriages. A coupling unit couples the carriages with respect to each other for forming a unitary train of carriages. The carriages are displaceable inside and outside of the case which includes an intermediate floorboard (24) delimiting two reception spaces of carriage trains. Independent claims are also included for the following: (A) a bulk object transport installation (B) a process of transporting bulk articles.

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle for transporting objects in bulk,

  a bulk goods transport facility and a bulk transport method.

  Postal services, courier services or mail order companies are required to transport in the same transport vehicle such as a truck, a very large number of objects of different shapes and sizes. These objects consist for example of cardboard packaging household products, clothing or bookstore objects. These objects can have dimensions of a few centimeters to a few tens of centimeters.

  It is known to carry these objects directly in bulk inside the body of a truck such as a semi-trailer. For the loading of objects, a conveyor belt is introduced inside the truck body, from its open rear end. The objects are conveyed inside the box by the conveyor and are released at its downstream end where they fall loose inside the truck. The filling of the semi-trailer begins with the end opposite to that by which the conveyor is introduced. The conveyor gradually recedes as the crate is filled.

  After filling the box, the objects are arranged in bulk against each other over a relatively large height, which can reach more than two meters.

  In addition, to ensure the unloading of the truck, a conveyor belt is installed permanently on the bottom of the vehicle body. It allows to transport and release from the open rear end of the truck all the bulk objects that it supports.

  It is found that the objects thus transported in bulk in a very large volume are often deteriorated, especially the objects placed in the lower part of the pile.

  Furthermore, it is known, particularly in the postal services to transport objects in bulk, placing them in independent trolleys, having a bottom for example of 1.2 m by 80 cm and a height of 1.54 m. . For transporting objects over a long distance, the carts are individually loaded into the body of a truck. To do this, the carts are pushed one by one inside the truck from a loading dock. Once in place, the carriages are moored to prevent them from moving when the vehicle is moving.

  The carriages are manually moved in turn inside the truck body, which makes loading the truck relatively long and difficult.

  The object of the invention is to propose means of transporting loose objects, which allow fast loading and transport of the objects 10 without these being damaged.

  For this purpose, the subject of the invention is a terrestrial bulk goods transport vehicle comprising a box with solid walls and a set of trolleys equipped with wheels and suitable for containing said objects in bulk, said trolleys being received in the box. , characterized in that it comprises means for coupling the carriages to each other to form a unitary train of carriages generally movable between the outside and the inside of the body.

  According to particular embodiments, the vehicle comprises one or more of the following characteristics: the carriages are rigidly connected one after the other to form a train of carriages which are not laterally deformable; the coupling means of the carriages are releasable; the box comprises an intermediate floor delimiting two superimposed spaces for receiving each of at least one set of trolleys; the carriages have a height of between 1 m and 1.4 m, a width of between 1 m and 1.4 m and a length of between 0.7 m and 2.6 m; and the trolleys comprise racks aligned along the length of the train of trolleys suitable for co-operating with drive gears of the trolley train arranged outside the body.

  The invention also relates to a bulk goods transport facility, characterized in that it comprises at least one vehicle as described above and at least one loading / unloading station, the or each station comprising at least one least one way of collecting the train of carts out of the vehicle body, motor means of overall displacement of the train of carts relative to the vehicle body between a retracted position where the carts train is completely inside the crate and a position out of the box where the train of trolleys is completely received on a collection channel.

  Advantageously, it is such that: - said drive means comprise at least one motorized rotary gear carried by the track and adapted to cooperate with the carriages of the carriages.

  the or each station comprises a conveyor for feeding objects and filling the carriages in bulk while they are on said track; the or each station comprises means for lateral tilting of the carriage train collection path between a generally horizontal position and a tilted emptying position of the carriages, and in that the track comprises means for retaining the train of carriages against the track when tilting the track; said means for retaining the train of carriages against the track comprise rails each delimiting a U-shaped yoke for receiving the wheels of the carriages train, which rails have a rolling face and a retaining face disposed facing the rolling face, the two bearing faces and retaining being adapted to grip the wheels of the carriages when the carriage train is in the extended position; the or each station comprises at least one evacuation conveyor 25 arranged along the collection path of the trolley train; the or each station comprises means for raising the track adapted to move the track between a lowered position and a raised position spaced apart by a gap greater than the height of a carriage; and the or each station comprises at least one elevator gangway 30 for observing the train of carriages on the track, the or each gangway being movable between a lowered position and a raised position.

  Finally, a subject of the invention is a method for transporting bulk articles, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: loading the objects in bulk into a train of carriages, comprising at least two carriages coupled together for a global displacement; - Overall introduction of the train of carts loaded in a vehicle by moving concomitant carts; - move the vehicle containing the train of loaded carriages to a destination; - Generally leaving the carriages out of the vehicle by moving concomitant carts; and - remove the loose objects from the carts.

  The invention will be better understood on reading the description which follows, given solely by way of example and with reference to the drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a loading installation and unloading trucks according to the invention; FIG. 1A is a view on a larger scale of a detail of FIG. 1; - Figure 2 is a top view of the installation of Figure 1; FIG. 3 is an end view of the installation of FIGS. 1 and 2; - Figure 4 is a side view of a carriage used in the installation of Figure 1; - Figures 5 and 6 are views respectively in cross section along the line V-V and partial end of the carriage of Figure 4; and FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic elevational view of an alternative embodiment of means for coupling two successive carriages.

  The transport facility illustrated in Figures 1 to 3 is intended for the bulk transport of small objects such as packages, or small packages, including postal packages.

  It comprises one or more trucks 12 and stations 14 loading / unloading trucks installed at the points of loading and unloading trucks.

  More specifically, these stations 14 are distributed in several parts of the territory to be served by the delivery service. These stations are installed for example in warehouses or sorting centers.

  The stations 14 are adapted for loading and unloading 5 coupled truck trains 16 in the trucks 12, as well as the filling and emptying of these trolleys.

  The trucks 12 are for example semi-trailer type trucks, having a full-walled box 18 supported at the rear by axles 20 and at the front by a tractor 22.

  The body 18 has at the rear, considering the advance-ment direction of the truck, an opening closable by two hinged doors. The truck body has an interior height of approximately 2.6 m and an interior width of approximately 2.45 m.

  The body 18 is separated longitudinally in its median portion by a horizontal floor 24 located above a bottom 25 of the body. The intermediate floor 24 defines, inside the body of the truck, two superposed spaces 26A, 26B of the same volume for the carriage of trolley trains.

  The truck 12 is devoid of any means of moving the train 20 of carriages 16 relative to the body 18.

  The loading station 14 comprises a platform 30 defining a platform 32 raised relative to the running surface of the truck 12. The platform 32 extends exactly to the height of the bottom of the body 18 when the rear of the truck is attached to the platform 30, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

  In the extension of the body 18, when the truck is at the end of the dock, is installed a loading bridge 34. This bridge has a horizontal plate 36 forming a running surface and driving two trains of carriages 16 adjacent. It further comprises at least four columns 38 for supporting and guiding the plate 36. These columns 38 comprise unrepresented bridge lifting means such as motorized screw and worm gear arrangements. Thus, the plate 36 is movable between a lowered position against the platform 32 in the extension of the bottom of the body 18 of the truck and a raised position as shown in Figure 1 in which the plate extends the intermediate floor 24 of the body of the truck. The two positions are offset by a height greater than the height of a carriage 16.

  The plate 36 consists of a rigid perimeter frame 40 of generally rectangular shape visible in Figure 3. Its length is slightly greater than the length of the body 18 of a truck.

  This frame supports two tracks 42 for collecting trains of carriages 16. These two tracks extend side by side along the length of the plate, on either side of its median axis. As illustrated on a larger scale in FIGS. 4 and 5, the tracks 42 are each formed of two parallel rails 44 supported by a frame 46. The rails 44 delimit in section a U-shaped yoke and are adapted to fully encase the wheels. carriages 16, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 5. Thus, the rails 44 have a lower bearing surface 44A above which extends a retaining face 44B extending parallel, the running surface of the wheels being housed in the range delimited between the lower surfaces 44A and 44B upper.

  Each of the tracks 42 is articulated on an outer longitudinal edge of the frame 40 about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the bridge. An actuating cylinder 50 is interposed between the frame 40 and the frame 46 of each track, in order to move the latter between a horizontal position in the extension of the intermediate floor 24 or the bottom 25 of the body and a tilted position such as illustrated in Figure 3 wherein the channels are inclined more than 90 outwardly of the frame 40 to cause the gravity emptying of the carriages through their open upper end.

  Each lane 42 has, at its connecting end with the truck body, two sprockets 62A, 62B driving the train of busses visible in FIGS. 1A and 2. These sprockets are arranged successively along the length of the plate. . A pair of sprockets 62A, 62B is provided for each track. These gears have at their periphery a drive gear adapted to cooperate with racks fixed longitudinally on the bottom of each of the carriages 16.

  The pinions 62A, 62B are jointly driven in rotation by a geared motor unit not shown.

  The bridge 34 has laterally on each side, outside the space delimited by the columns 38, a movable gangway 70 movable between a lowered position at the base of the columns and a raised position substantially in the upper part of the columns. These bridges are suitable to allow the passage of handlers for the surveillance of loading activities.

  In addition, the loading station 14 comprises along the bridge 34, beyond the bridges 70, two unloading belt conveyors 80 installed on the platform 32. These conveyors each consist of a conveyor belt closed in a loop around two rollers end of which one is motorized. They extend along the entire length of the loading station and are suitable for receiving the packages dumped carts during their tilting. Auxiliary transport conveyors 81, 82 are arranged at the outlet of the conveyors 80 for the evacuation of objects to a sorting center.

  The loading station 14 also comprises a loading conveyor 90 disposed above the bridge 34 at a height greater than the height of the box 18 of the truck in order to delimit, between the loading conveyor 90 and the plate 36, when the latter it is in the raised position, sufficient space for the passage of trains of carriages 16.

  The loading conveyor 90 consists of a belt conveyor comprising a band folded in a loop between two end rollers, one of which is motorized. It extends along the length of the bridge 34. Its length is greater than that of the bridge 34. The conveyor is movable between an advanced position in which its unloading end extends in the vicinity of the connection end of the tracks 42 to truck and a retracted position in which its unloading end extends substantially at the opposite end of the plate 36.

  The conveyor 90 is, for this purpose, supported by a fixed gantry not shown with respect to which it is movable to slide.

  In addition, a conveyor 100 for supplying the bulk objects is placed above the loading conveyor 90. The output end of the supply conveyor 100 extends in the vicinity of the upstream end of the loading conveyor 90, when this one is in its advanced position.

  As illustrated in Figures 4 to 6, the carriages 16 are identical and each have generally the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped. The carriages have a height of between 1 m and 1.4 m, a width of between 1 m and 1.4 m and a length of between 0.7 m and 2.60 m. Preferably, they have a length of 1.2 m, a width of 1.2 m and a height of 1.2 m. They each comprise a box 110 consisting of a solid bottom 112 and four solid walls 114 substantially parallel in pairs. The latter delimit, at their upper end, an opening 116 for loading and unloading objects.

  In its lower end, the body 110 has external clearances 118 in which are received four wheels 120 independent and non-motorized. These four wheels are coaxial two by two, the axes of the two pairs of coaxial wheels extending parallel. The wheels 120 extend in the overall size of the box 110. The diameter of the wheels 120 is substantially equal to and very slightly less than the distance separating the opposite faces 44A, 44B of the rails.

  In addition, in its middle part, the bottom 112 of each body presents a channel 122 open to the outside in which is fixed a cremail25 124 extending along the entire length of the carriage.

  In their lower part, the carriages have, in the vicinity of their four corners, coupling means 130 to each other to form a carriage train not laterally articulated.

  According to a first embodiment, the carriages each have at one end, in their opposite lateral corners, a tab 132 pierced with a hole. They have at their other end, on each side, two superposed plates 134 pierced with coaxial holes. The two plates 134 delimit between them a receiving interval of the tab 132 corresponding to a following carriage. In addition, the coupling means comprise, for each lug 132, a pin 136 adapted to be received in the coaxial bores of the plates 132, 134 to ensure the axial attachment and rotation of the successive carriages.

  As a variant, and as illustrated in FIG. 7, the linkage means of the carriages comprise, associated with the opposite ends of two consecutive carriages, two generally horizontal arms 160, 162 equipped at their free ends with abutments 164, 166 oriented towards the head. spade. Thus, each arm forms a square.

  Each train of carriages 16 has a length very slightly less than the length of the body 18 of the truck. The coupling means 130 are such that the space between the carriages is as small as possible, so that the successive racks 124 of the carriages substantially form a continuous rack along the entire length of the carriages train. The two drive gears 62A, 62B adapted to drive the trolley train cooperating with the racks 124 are separated by a distance less than the length of a rack 124.

  In addition, an end carriage of a train of carriages comprises a removable drive arm 150 consisting of a rack section adapted to be secured to the end carriage in the extension of the alignment of the racks 124 integral with the bottom of carts. The length of this arm 150 is sufficient to be engaged with at least one of the pinions 62A, 62B, when the trolley train is fully engaged in the truck.

  Finally, a photocell is provided at the entrance of the truck to control the stopping of the drive gears 62A, 62B if an object protrudes from a carriage during the movement of the carriages train.

  The transport facility operates as follows.

  While the truck 12 is parked with the open end of the body in the extension of the platform 32, two empty carriages trains are arranged on the plate 36, while the latter is in its raised position. The conveyor 90 is in its advanced position as illustrated in FIG. 1. The objects to be transported are progressively brought by the feed conveyor 100 and run on the loading conveyor 90 until they are released from the end 92 of the conveyor. this conveyor. The objects then fall into the immobile carts. As the trolleys are filled, the loading conveyor 90 is moved rearward, thus causing a filling of all the carriages of the train arranged on the plate 36.

  After loading the carriages and stopping the conveyors 90 and 100 and after controlling the loading of the carriages by an operator traveling on the footbridge 70, the carriages trains are moved into the upper space 26B of the body by the action of the drive sprockets 62A , 62B acting on the racks 124. The carriages then gradually move on the intermediate floor 24, unless the photocell detects an object protruding from a carriage.

  The bridge 34 is then lowered and two new trolley trains are placed on the bridge 34. These are derived for example from the lower space 26A of the body, as will be discussed later. The two carriages trains being assumed to be empty, these are filled, as explained above, from the discharge end of the loading conveyor 90 moved from its advanced position to its retracted position.

  After loading, the carriages trains are introduced into the lower space 26A of the body. Once loaded with four sets of carts each filled with loose objects, the doors of the truck are closed. The truck then travels to another loading / unloading station 14 where the objects are unloaded from the truck.

  For this purpose, the truck is replaced at the end of the platform 30. Assuming that the plate 36 is in its lowered position, the two trains of carriages present in the lower space 26A are released from the truck simultaneously by action of the drive gears. 62A, 62B. To do this, while the carriages are all inside the truck, a drawbar 150 is secured to each carriages train and the rack formed by the drawbar is applied against the drive sprockets 62A, 26B thus allows to initiate the movement of the trolleys.

  Once the carriages are completely transferred to the tracks 42, the gateways 70 are brought if necessary in the low position. The plate 36 is brought into its raised position and the carriages are tilted laterally under the action of the cylinders 50. For this purpose, the tracks 42 are tilted, carrying with them the train of carriages which are retained thanks to the wraparound rails 44. During the tilting, the objects fall from the open end 116 of each carriage under the action of their own weight. The carriages are held by their wheels embedded in the rails.

  The objects thus released are received on the conveyors 80 and are conveyed to the sorting center.

  After being emptied, the carriages are brought back to horizon-tal position bearing on their wheels. They are eventually loaded with other objects and are reintroduced into the lower space of the truck, as previously discussed.

  The bridge 34 is then raised and the two trolley trains present in the upper space 26B are extracted from the truck and emptied by tilting, as explained above. After emptying and eventually filling, they are reintroduced into the upper space 26B of the truck.

  It is understood that with such a transport facility, the objects transported in bulk are little damaged since they are arranged in a small number and on a reduced height inside carts in which they are maintained. In addition, the carriages being connected together to form trains, the loading of the trolleys is very easily carried out in the truck and without the need for manipulations for each of the trolleys. In addition, each loading station handles the carriage trains, as well as the filling and emptying of each truck, so that the placing of bulk objects in the truck is done without manual intervention.

  Alternatively, means for initiating the movement of the train of carts out of the crate while it is completely contained in the body are installed in the truck body. These means are formed for example of motorized gears in engagement with the racks.

Claims (15)

  1. A land vehicle (12) for conveying bulk objects comprising a box with solid walls (18) and a set of carriages (16) equipped with wheels and suitable for containing said bulk objects, said carriages being received in the crate (18), characterized in that it comprises means (130) for coupling the carriages (16) to each other to form a unitary train of carriages (16) movable globally between the outside and the inside of the box (18).   2.- Vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the carriages (16) are rigidly connected one after the other to form a carriage train not laterally deformable.   3.- Vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the means (130) for coupling the carriages are releasable.   4.- Vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the box (18) has an intermediate floor (24) defining two superposed spaces (26A, 26B) for receiving each of at least one set of carriages ( 16).   5.- Vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the carriages (16) have a height of between 1 m and 1.4 m, a width of between 1 m and 1.4 m and a length of between 0.7 m and 2.6 m.   6. Vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the carriages (16) comprise racks (124) aligned along the length of the train of carriages (16) adapted to cooperate with pinions (62A, 62B). driving the train of trolleys arranged outside the body (18).   7.- Bulk goods transport facility, characterized in that it comprises at least one vehicle (12) according to any one of the preceding claims and at least one loading / unloading station (14), the or each station (14) comprising at least one track (42) for collecting the carriage train (16) from the vehicle body (18), driving means (62A, 62B) for overall displacement of the carriage train (16) by relative to the vehicle body between a retracted position where the train of trolleys (16) is completely inside the body (18) and a position out of the box where the train of trolleys (16) is completely received on a collection channel (42).   8.- Installation according to claim 7, wherein the vehicle is according to claim 6, characterized in that said drive means comprise at least one motorized rotary gear (62A, 26B) carried by the track (42) and suitable for cooperate with the racks (124) of the carriages.   9.- Installation according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the or each station (14) comprises a conveyor (90, 100) for supplying objects and bulk filling carts while they are on said track (42).   10.- Installation according to any one of claims 7 to 9, characterized in that the or each station (14) comprises means (50) lateral tilting of the track (42) for collecting the train of carriages (16) between a generally horizontal position and a tilted emptying position of the carriages, and in that the track (42) comprises means (44A, 44B) for retaining the train of carriages (16) against the track (42) during the tilting of the carriages (16). the track (42).   11.- Installation according to claim 10, characterized in that said retaining means of the train of carriages (16) against the track (42) comprise rails (44) each defining a U-shaped screed receiving the wheels of the train of carriages (16), which rails have a rolling face (44A) and a retaining face (44B) arranged facing the rolling face (44A), the two bearing faces (44A) and retaining surfaces (44B) being adapted to grip the wheels of the carriages when the train of carriages is in the out position.   12.- Installation according to any one of claims 7 to 11, characterized in that the or each station (14) comprises at least one conveyor (80) for evacuation of objects disposed along the track of collection of the train of trolleys (16).   13.- Installation according to any one of claims 7 to 12, characterized in that the or each station (14) comprises means (38) for lifting the track (42) adapted to move the track (42) between a lowered position and a raised position spaced apart by a gap greater than the height of a carriage.   14.- Installation according to claim 13, characterized in that the or each station (14) comprises at least one lifting bridge (70) allowing a. observing the trolley train on the track (42), the or each bridge (70) being movable between a lowered position and a raised position.   15.- A method of transporting bulk articles, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: - loading the bulk objects in a train of trolleys, comprising at least two trolleys coupled together for a global displacement; - Overall introduction of the train of carts loaded in a vehicle by moving concomitant carts; move the vehicle containing the train of loaded carriages to a destination; - Generally leaving the carriages out of the vehicle by moving concomitant carts; and - remove the loose objects from the carts.