GB2148216A - Hydraulic jacking device with driven wheel - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a novel hydraulic lifting apparatus comprising a hydraulic cylinder (2) and a piston (4) associated therewith, a drive casing (1) including a road wheel (5) said drive casing being co-operable with said cylinder and moveable thereby between an operative and an inoperative position. The drive casing incorporates a means of motive power, preferably an electric motor (11) which is adapted to drive the road wheel when in the operative position. Further the reversible electric motor (11) may also drive a hydraulic pump to provide the necessary motive power for the hydraulic unit (2). The hydraulic lifting apparatus may be utilised as a permanent feature of an automotive vehicle to assist manoeuvring in very limited spaces, or may be readily removeably affixed to heavy industrial machinery or similar items for steerable translation. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Driven hydraulic lifting apparatus The present invention relates to driven hydraulic lifting apparatus particularly for industrial machinery and motor vehicles.

The method of utilising hydraulic power to lift vehicles, for example tractors, off the ground has long been incorporated into the art. Such hydraulic means have been built integrally with the motor vehicle or industrial machine with which they are to be used and, while useful, are not generally removable and transferable to other machines and/or motor vehicles.

The present invention seeks to provide, therefore, a hydraulic unit adapted to lift a machine from the ground and provide it with a driven road wheel with which translation may be effected. The invention comprehends, in one aspect, the provision of a plurality, often four, of said units interlinked to provide a steerable translationable lifting means, each element of which is capable of providing its own lifting and motive power.

In another aspect of the invention there is provided a hydraulic lifting device particularly for motor vehicles wherein hydraulic power is provided by a suitably positioned pump associated with the power unit of the motor car or the translational movement if not provided by this motive power is provided by an electrically operated motor. When applied to a motor car the arrangement is such that the motor car can be manoeuvred into very small spaces.

According to the present invention, therefore, there is provided a hydraulic lifting apparatus comprising a hydraulic cylinder and piston associated therewith, a drive casing including a road wheel; said drive casing being co-operable with said cylinder and movable thereby between an operative and an inoperative position, said drive casing incorporating a means of motive power which is adapted to drive the road wheel when in the operative position.

The means of motive power may be in part, or wholly, an electric motor which is preferably adapted to be reversible. Where the electric motor is the sole source of power it may incorporate a small hydraulic pump which is in operative connection with a reservoir associated with the hydraulic cylinder. The pump may then be provided with the usual by-pass arrangements so that when the electric motor is switched on, the drive casing is moved to its operative position and held there until the electric motor is switched off. In a preferred feature the switch automatically disenables the road wheel drive means until the, or all, hydraulic units have reached their operative positions. This arrangement prevents drive being applied to one unit when others are incompletely engaged.When the, or all, units are in their operative position the control switch, enabled by the automatic disenabling switch, can be operated to drive the, or all, road wheels. Steering may be effected by controlling the, or one, set of units to advance while controlling another or second set to remain stationery or to reverse. The units are usually attached via the hydraulic cylinder to the unit to be lifted. Such an attachment may be permanent or temporary, but where temporary the unit may be removed from one machine and transferred to a second thereby being particularly useful for occasional movements of heavy machinery.

The control of the hydraulic units in accordance with the invention may be effected by a control console attached by an armoured cable to the individual industrial units. Thus in the case of an industrial machine having four units disposed towards its corners two such consoles would be required, one associated with each set of two units. It will be appreciated that by engaging one set of units to drive while the other is held stationery a necessary degree of steering can be achieved.

It will also be appreciated that where the electric motor is also being utilised to drive a hydraulic pump the electric motor must be allowed to run continuously in order to provide the necessary degree of hydraulic power. Accordingly, an electrically operable clutch means may be provided between a sprocket drive means for the drive wheel and the motor, controlled by the control console being effected by engagement and disengagement of the electric clutch means.

In a particular feature of the present invention there is also provided means whereby the units of the present invention can be applied to a motor vehicle. It is often desirable to provide means whereby a motor car, for example, can be manoeuvred into a very small space. One aspect of this invention envisages the provision of four hydraulic units in accordance with the present invention positioned respectfully adjacent to each of the four extremities of a motor car chassis. Motive power can be provided on an individual basis as hereinbefore set forth, or may be provided by the engine of the motor vehicle itself. Such motive power may be purely hydraulic in all respects or may be a mixture of hydraulic/electric as desired.A central control console is provided on the dash-board of the motor car whereby when the units are in an operative position one or other of the units may be driven in order to position the car translationally sideways, for example, as required. In a further embodiment of this type the motor vehicle is provided with a pair of hydraulic units positioned towards the rear extremity of the motor car only. It is then possible to steer the motor car front first into a very narrow parking space and to shift the rear of the motor car translationally sideways thereby to effect parking without the necessity of raising the entire car from the ground.

Aspects of the present invention will now be described by way of illustration only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 shows a side view in part section of a hydraulic unit of the present invention in the retracted condition. Figure 2 shows a side view of the hydraulic unit of the present invention in the extended, or operable, condition; Figure 3 shows a cross section along the line A-A of Figures 1 and 2 part cross section, Figure 4 shows diagrammatically the hydraulic units of the present invention applied to a motor vehicle and Figure 5 shows a plan view from beneath of the arrangement of Figure 4.

With reference particularly to Figures 1 to 3 a cylindrical hydraulic unit (3) is conjoined along its length to a bearing plate (7). The hydraulic unit is provided with a piston (4) which acts upon the drive casing (1).

The drive casing (1) is of a generally rectangular cross section and is provided with a pair of inturned flanges (8) which accommodate and retain the plate (7) and are slidable with respect thereto.

The slide extensions (6) form part of the casing (1) which extends downwardly of the hydraulic unit (2). The casing is provided at its lower extremity with a road wheel (5) supported in a cavity (12) by suitably positioned roller bearings. A shaft (13) passing through said roller bearings is provided generally horizontally. A sprocket (14) is provided on said shaft, said sprocket (14) being driven by a chain (17) which in turn is driven by a sprocket (9) set upon a shaft (10) driven by an electric motor (11). The electric motor (11) is affixed to the uppermost portion of the drive casing (1) and may operate via a clutch (not shown). In one form of the invention the hydraulic unit is also provided with a hydraulic fluid reservoir and the electric motor is provided with a hydraulic fluid pump.As previously explained this arrangement allows motive power for the hydraulic lifting step and the motive power for the road wheel (5) to be provided by the reversible electric motor (11) without the requirement for additional connections. Where the hydraulic unit may be conveniently driven by a secondary source of hydraulic power obviously the clutch mechanism is not required for driving the road wheel (5) since steering etc. can be effected merely by switching the motor on and off. If desired a brake mechanism my be positioned adjacent the road wheel. In Figure 2 the arrangement is shown in its operative configuration with the piston (4) fully extended thereby raising the object to be lifted associated with the hydraulic unit relative to the road wheel (5).

In the arrangement shown in Figures 4 and 5 a motor vehicle is provided at the extremities of its chassis with units A, B, C and D. It will be appreciated that units by road wheels set perpendicular to the axis of the motor vehicle and that units C and D and respectfully A and B are driven together. Alternatively either of A and B or C and D may be formed of units which are not driven, but merely effect lifting; driving them being effected by the other of said units. Further, if desired units A and B can be dispensed with since it is usually only necessary to translate the rear of the motor vehicle sideways in order to park in a very small space since it is usually always possible to insert the front end of a motor car very closely against an end position.

The present invention relates, therefore, to hydraulic units of the type described and to industrial machines andfor motor vehicles incorporating the lifting units in accordance with the present invention and to a method of translational movement of industrial machines utilising the devices in accordance with the present invention.

Claims (13)

1. A hydraulic lifting apparatus comprising a hydraulic cylinder and a piston associated therewith, a drive casing including a road wheel, said drive casing being co-operable with said cylinder and moveable thereby between an operative and an inoperative position, said drive casing incorporating a means of motive power which is adapted to drive the road wheel when in the operative position.

2. An apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein the means of motive power is a reversible electric motor.

3. An apparatus according to either of Claims 1 or 2 wherein the means of motive power includes means for driving the hydraulic piston within said cylinder.

4. An apparatus according to Claim 3 wherein the means for motive power includes a hydraulic pump in operative connection with a hydraulic reservoir.

5. An apparatus according to any preceeding Claim including an enabling switch adapted to enable the means of motive power only when the piston is in its operative position.

6. An apparatus according to any preceeding Claim adapted to be readily removeably affixed to an object to be translated.

7. An apparatus according to any of Claims 2 to 6 including a clutch means disposed between a sprocket drive means for the road wheel and an electric motor.

8. A motor vehicle provided with a chassis, said motor vehicle comprising an apparatus as claimed in any of Claims 1 to 7.

9. A motor vehicle according to Claim 8 provided with an apparatus adjacent each motor vehicle road wheel.

10. A motor vehicle according to Claim 8 provided with an apparatus adjacent each rear motor vehicle road wheel only.

11. A motor vehicle according to any of Claims 8 to 10 wherein the motive power for the, or each, apparatus is provided by the motor vehicle engine.

12. An apparatus substantially as hereinbefore set forth with reference to, and/or as illustrated in, Figures 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings.

13. An assembly of a motor vehicle and an apparatus substantially as hereinbefore set forth with reference to, andlor as illustrated in, Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings.