GB2262727A

GB2262727A - Container attitude adjustment in container transport equipment.

Info

Publication number: GB2262727A
Application number: GB9226436A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Herbert Steiner
Original assignee: MAN Gutehoffnungshutte GmbH
Current assignee: MAN Gutehoffnungshutte GmbH
Priority date: 1991-12-23
Filing date: 1992-12-18
Publication date: 1993-06-30
Anticipated expiration: 2012-12-18
Also published as: GB2262727B; JPH05286690A; DE4142778A1; GB9226436D0; NL9202076A; DE4142778C2

Description

1 CONTAINER ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT IN CONTAINER TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT 2262727

The present invention relates to container transport equipment, particularly equipment with a facility for adjusting the attitude Of 'a transported container, and to methods of operating such equipment.

In the case of container cranes with a movable crane carriage, the known arrangement of the cable drums and fixed points of cables on the carriage, as well as of cable rollers in a roller crossbeam and the usual cable guidance between crane carriage and roller crossbeam, permits only a small possibility of movement of the crossbeam and thereby of a container fixed at a spreader. Thi s restricted possibility, evident on the movement of the spreader into a ship's hold, is due to the limitation of the spacing of the fixed points of the cable on the frame of the crane carriage.

The cables usually run from the cable drums almost vertically downwards to the cable rollers on the crossbeam and then nearly vertically upwards to the fixed points. - The horizontal spacing of the centre of each roller from the centre of the fixed point or from the cable run-off point at the drum is small. The horizontal movement of the crossbeam and thus the rotation of the spreader is limited, on a change of height of a fixed point, to the amount of this spacing.

The desired angle of rotation of, for example, +5' cannot be achieved and a complete load redisposition into the half of the cable runs occurs even at small angles. In order to achieve the desired angle of rotation and to limit the load redisposition, the spacing between the fixed points can be arranged to be adjustable horizontally. However, this is possible only with an appreciable mechanical complication.

Similarly, construction of the spreader as a rotary spreader is, when only small angles of rotation are required, an unsatisfactory solution when the container crane is operated for loading and unloading of containers, for example in the case of container ships.

There is thus a need for an arrangement of cables and associated guidance and fixing points in which desired angles of rotation of container carrying means may be able to be achieved with relatively little mechanical effort and the load redisposition in the cables kept smal 1. The arrangement shall preferably allow different movements about three axes of displacement and also reduce pendulating of the container during travel by the carriage.

According to the present invention there is provided a device for the spreader positioning during transshipment of containers by a container crane with a crane carriage, which is arranged to be movable on the container crane bridge, with motor-driven hoist drums and with cables, cable rollers and deflecting rollers, adjusting devices and cable fastenings arranged at the crane carriage and at a roller crossbeam, wherein the cable drums arranged on the carriage are constructed to be single-threaded and arranged in one axial line or ar e constructed to be double-threaded and arranged parallelly displaced, the fixed points of the cables are constructed as the adjusting devices, one set of adjusting devices is associated with one cable drum and another set of adjusting devices is associated with the other cable drum, the cables emanating fromone cable drum run over cable rollers mounted at the crossbeam of the spreader and are connected in tension-proof manner with the associated adjusting devices, the cables emanating from the other cable drum run over further cable rollers mounted at the crossbeam and are connected in tension-proof manner with the associated adjusting devices, and the setting members are constructed as hydraulic cylinders or geared spindle drives.

The cable rollers associated with each drum can be arranged displaced or inclined relative to each other on the crossbeam. In one embodiment, the adjusting devices of the cables are mounted in substantially vertical position at the carriage and additional deflecting rollers are provided for the cable guidance. In another embodiment, the adjusting devices are mounted in substantially horizontal position at the carriage and additional deflecting rollers as well as cable rollers are provided for the cable guidance.

Through the specified arrangement of the cable drums, the fixed points of the cables as adjusting devices, the deflecting rollers and the cable rollers at the carriage or the arrangement of the cable rollers on the crossbeam of the spreader and thus the format of cable guidance between the carriage and the crossbeam, the spreader may be able to be rotated through, for example, +T' about vertical and longitudinal axes (slewing and listing) and through, for example, +P about a transverse axi s (trimming), whereby a matching of the container to the plane of a deposit surface can be achieved during reloading or unloading.

In one method of operating such equipment, by lowering of the cables by an adjusting device associated with the one cable drum and a diagonally opposite adjusting device associated with the other cable drum, while tightening of the cables by the other adjusting device, a rotation of the spreader about the vertical axis (slewing) is achieved.

In another such method, by lowering of the cables by the adjusting devices, which lie on the same side, of both cable drums and simultaneous tightening of the adjusting devices on the other side of both cable drums, an inclination of the spreader can be achieved in tr an sv er se direction, i e.

longitudinal axis (listing).

the spreader is rotated about its In yet further methods, by mutual ly opposite rotation of the two cable drums, or by lowering (or raising) of the adjusting device pair of one cable drum and raising (or lowering) of the adjusting device pair of the other cable drum, rotation of the spreader about the transverse axis is achieved (trimming).

Embodiments of the equipment and examples of the method of the present invention will now be more particularly described by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of first container transport equipment embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is an end view of the equipnment of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view of second container transport equipment embodying the invention; and Fig. 4 is a schematic perspective view of third container transport equipment embodying the invention.

1 Referring now to the drawings, there is shown in Fig. 1 container transport equipment applied to a container crane. The equipment comprises two single-threaded cable drums 6a, 6b arranged in one axial line on a carriage of the crane, cables 7a, b and 7c, 7d partially wound around the drums, and adjusting devices 8a, 8b, 8c and 8d respectively connected to fixed ends of the cables 7a, 7b, 7c and 7d, respectively, the adjusting devices being arranged on the frame of the carriage 1. The cables 7a, 7b, 7c and 7d are respectively guided around cable guide rollers 5a, 5b, 5c and 5d mounted on a roller crossbeam 2. The rollers 5a to 5d have substantially parallel axes and are so arranged that rollers 5a, 5b and 5c, 5d are disposed on opposite sides of a generally vertical plane containing the transverse axis of the crossbeam and rollers 5a, 5c and 5b, 5d are disposed on opposite sides of a generally vertical plane containing the is longitudinal axis of the crossbeam cables 7a and 7b depart the associated drum 6a at the same side thereof, pass around the rollers 5a and 5b and then continue to the adjusting devices 8a and 8b in the manner shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The same cable guidance and disposition of adjusting devices applies to the drum 6b.

A spreader 3 for the transport of a container 12 is mounted underneath the crossbeam 2.

Fig. 2 shows an end view of the equipment of Fig. 1. On the crane carriage 1, the cable drums 6a, 6b are arranged one behind the other and the adjusting devices 8b, 8d and 8a, 8c are arranged on both sides at a spacing 9. The drums, together with the cables 7b, 7d and 7a, 7c and the deflecting rollers 5b, 5d and 5a, Sc form a system for the rotation of the spreader 3 through substantial lyl5' about each of the vertical, longitudinal and transverse axes.

Fig. 3 shows equipment with double-threaded cable drums 6a, 6b, which are arranged displaced parallelly, and with horizontally arranged adjusting devices 8a, 8b, 8c, 8d. Additional deflecting rollers 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d and 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d are required for the cable guidance between the carriage and the crossbeam. The cable guidance arrangement is otherwise analogously to that of Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 4 shows a further variant with double-threaded cable drums 6a, 6b arranged to be displaced parallelly. For constructional reasons, the adjusting devices 8a, 8b, 8c, 8d are here arranged in substantially vertical positions at the frame of the crane carriage 1. Only the deflecting rollers 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d are required for the cable guidance.

In operation of the equipment of Fig. 1, operation of the devices 8a, 8d to reduce the lengths of the associated cables 7a, 7d and operation of the devices 8b, 8c to extend the lengths of the associated cables 7b, 7c rotates the spreader about its vertical axis in one direction. Rotation in the opposite direction is achieved by reversed operation of the adjusting devices.

Operation of the devices 8a, 8b to reduce the lengths of the associated cables and of the devices 8c, 8d to extend the lengths of the associated cables rotates the spreader about the transverse axis in one direction. Again, rotation in the opposite direction is achieved by reversed operation of the devices.

Finally, operation of the devices 8a, 8c to reduce the lengths of the associated cables and of the devices 8b, 8d to extend the lengths of the associated cables rotates the spreader about the longitudinal axis in one direction, with rotation in the opposite direction achieved by reversed operation of the devices.

The equipment of Figs. 3 and 4 can be operated in analogous manner.

Claims

1. Container transport equipment comprising a carriage provided with two motor-driven hoist drums, container carrying means provided with a respective pair of cable guide rollers associated with each drum, a respective pair of cables partially wound around each drum and each guided around a respective one of the guide rollers of the associated pair, and a respective adjusting device connected to one end of each cable and operable to adjut the effective length of that cable, the cables being so wound around the drums and guided around the rollers that the adjusting devices are operable to cause rotation of the carrying means around at least one axis thereof.

2. Equipment as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adjusting devices are operable to cause rotation of the carrying means around two mutually perpendicular axes thereof.

3. Equipment as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adjusting devices are operable to cause rotation of the carrying means around three mutually perpendicular axes thereof.

4. Equipment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each adjusting device comprises a piston-cylinder unit.

5. Equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each 1 adjusting device comprises a spindle drive.

6. Equipment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the drums are coaxial and have a single thread winding.

7. Equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the drums are displaced relative to each other with substantially parallel axes and have a double thread winding.

8. Equipment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the guide rollers of each pair are displaced or inclined relative to each other.

9. Equipment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the adjusting devices are each adjustable in a substantially vertical direction and each cable is guided over a deflecting roller between the associated guide roller and associated adjusting device so as to be deflected into a substantially vertical path.

10. Equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the adjusting devices are each adjustable in a substantially horizontal direction and each cable is guided over two deflecting rollers between the associated guide roller and associated adjusting device so as to be deflected into a substantially horizontal path.

11 Equipment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

- 10

12. Equipment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 3 of the accompanying drawings.

13. Equipment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 4 of the accompanying drawings.

14. A container crane comprising equipment as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, the carriage being mounted to be movable on a bridge of the crane.

15. A method of operating equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13 to rotate the carrying means about a substantially vertical axis thereof, the method comprising the step of operating the adjusting devices to reduce the effective lengths of cables guided around two diagonally opposite guide rollers respectively of the two roller pairs and to extend the effective lengths of cables guided around another two diagonally opposite guide rollers respectively of the two roller pairs.

16. A method of operating equipment as.; claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13 to rotate the carrying means about a substantially horizontal axis generally parallel to axes of rotation of the guide rollers, the method comprising the step of operating the adjusting devices to reduce the effective lengths of cables guided around two guide rollers, which are disposed on one side of a generally vertical plane containing that axis, respectively of the two roller pairs and to extend the effective lengths of cables guided around another two guide rollers, which are disposed on the other side of that plane, 25 respectively of the two roller pairs.

17. A method of operating equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13 to rotate the carrying means about a substantially horizontal axis generally perpendicular to axes of rotation of the guide rollers, the method comprising the step of operating the adjusting devices to reduce the effective lengths of cables guided around two guide rollers, which are disposed on one side of a generally vertical plane containing that axis, respectively of the two roller pairs and to extend the effective lengths of cables guided around another two guide rollers, which are disposed on the other side of that plane, 10 respectively of the two roller pairs.

18. A method of operating equipment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13 to rotate the carrying means about a substantially horizontal axis generally perpendicular to axes of rotation of the guide rollers, the method comprising the step of so driving the drums as to raise one pair of guide rollers and lower the other pair of guide rollers.

19. A method as claimed in any one of claims 15 to 18 substantially as hereinbef ore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.