GB2392417A

GB2392417A - Trolley

Info

Publication number: GB2392417A
Application number: GB0305728A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David William Radford; Nadia Radford
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-08-27
Filing date: 2003-03-13
Publication date: 2004-03-03
Anticipated expiration: 2023-03-13
Also published as: GB2392417B; GB0305728D0; GB0219854D0

Abstract

A trolley (1) for transporting a load comprises a frame (2) having at least one handle (3) at a first end and one or more wheels at a second end (5); wherein the frame supports at least two load gripping arms (10) that are moveable towards and away from one another to be positioned abutting either side of a load to be transported. Preferably, the trolley is adapted to transport garden accessories such as plant pots, tubs, barrels or ornaments. The frame may support a mounting member (7) comprising a cross bar on the frame for supporting the load gripping arms; the frame preferably has one or more locating means, e.g. apertures (9), to move the mounting member up and down the frame. Ideally, the load gripping arms have a mounting piece (8), in the form of a hook or tube, that can slide along the mounting member of the frame to allow the arms to be moved back and forth.

Description

Trolley The present invention relates to a trolley, and in particular, but not exclusively to a trolley that can be used to lift and transport containers for plants.

However, the trolley of the invention could be used to carry other articles such as garden ornaments, kegs, butts, drums etc.

Devices for transporting plants are known in the art. For example, SE454501 discloses a transport trolley having a frame with handgrips at one end and wheels at the other. The frame includes guides which support adjustable lifting units which can be pushed under a load and the units are then raised so that the load is clear of the ground before moving the trolley.

DE29613076U discloses a hand operated trolley which is formed of a wheeled frame having parallel resting surfaces projecting from the frame. The height of the resting surfaces are movable, but again the surfaces support a load from beneath and so the trolley either has to be pushed underneath the load so that it can be lifted, or alternatively the load has to be lifted and placed on the parallel resting surfaces.

FR1208218 discloses a trolley having an upright frame, which has a base for sliding under a cask to support the weight of a cask. There is a curved support surface towards the top of the trolley which simply holds the cask upright and helps to prevent it from rocking from to side to side but the curved support does not take act as a main support for the weight of the cask.

These known arrangements have the disadvantage that the support which takes the weight of the load needs to be manoeuvred underneath the load before the trolley can be tipped back so that the load can be transported. This

has the disadvantage in that there has to be some manoeuvring of the load, for example tilting or lifting of the load before the support can be pushed under it.

Also in some circumstances, where the load is particularly heavy, it may not possible to move a support under the load without physically having to at least partially lift the load onto the support, which has the disadvantages that the person lifting the load may suffer back damage and indeed in some circumstances, the load may be so heavy that an individual cannot lift it and so several people are required to manoeuvre a load onto a trolley which has implications in cost of personnel when transporting goods.

According to the present invention, there is provided a trolley for transporting a load, said trolley comprising a frame having at least one handle at a first end and one or more wheels at a second end to allow the trolley to move along a surface, characterised in that the frame supports at least two load gripping arms moveable towards and away from one another and which can be moved to be positioned either side of a load to be transported until said arms abut against the load, such that when the frame of the trolley is tilted back, the arms hold and support lift the load as it is lifted by the tilting of the trolley so that the weight of the load hangs down from arms.

Preferably, the trolley is adapted to be used to transport garden accessories, such as pots, tubs, barrels or ornaments.

In a preferred embodiment, the frame supports a mounting member said mounting member comprising a cross bar on the frame for supporting said load with the gripping arms laterally forward of the axis of the frame.

Preferably, the frame has one or more locating points, whereby the

mounting member can be moved up and down the frame and held at a locating point on the frame to enable the arms to be positioned at a desired height relative to a load to be lifted.

In a preferred arrangement, each of the load gripping arms has a mounting piece at one end in the form of a hook or tube, which can slide along the mounting member of the frame to allow the respective arms to be moved back and forth.

Preferably the mounting bar includes a series of predefined locators with which locators on the mounting piece for the arms can be aligned to allow the arms to be moved to one or more predefined positions.

It is preferred that the locators on the mounting bar and the mounting arm comprise apertures that can be aligned so that a pin can be inserted between both sets of apertures to hold the arms in said predefined position.

It is envisaged that the arms are profiled, an ideal profile being a substantially curvilinear profile where the arms extend in a linear or slightly downwardly curved manner fashion from the mounting member, the arms then curving upwards to provide a load support surface. It is envisaged that the upward curve may flatten out or curve downwards again to provide a defined area for supporting a load held by the arms, which allows for some movement of the load as it is being lifted, so the load can find its own centre of gravity.

Preferably, the handle on the frame is angled relatively to the main body of the frame to allow ease of movement of the trolley.

Further, it is envisaged that the frame includes on the axle between the wheels, a frame support extending down from the axle so that when the trolley is

in the upright position, the trolley is supported by said frame support.

It is further envisaged that the trolley of the invention may be adapted by adding attachments to support tools to be carried or for example, when used in the garden, a collection sac may be supported on the arms for collecting weeds or leaves.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures in which: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a lifting trolley according to an embodiment of the invention, Figure 2 shows a front view of a lifting trolley, as shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 shows a side view of a lifting trolley as shown in Figures 1 and 2, Figure 4 shows a further embodiment of the lifting trolley according to the invention, and Figures 5 and 5a show the movement of a lifting trolley according to the present invention when lifting a load.

A lifting trolley according to an embodiment of the invention is shown generally as 1 in Figure 1. The trolley comprises a main frame 2 which is formed of an upright member having a grip handle 3 at its upper end and at its lower end, a cross piece 4 which provides an axle to support wheels 5 on either side of the cross piece. The cross piece 4 also has steadying support feet 6 which rest on the ground when the trolley is substantially upright so that the trolley can be supported and remain in the upright position when at rest. The upright frame 2 includes apertures 9 along its length.

The frame has along its length an arm mounting member or support 7,

which forms a cross member on the frame. The support 7 comprises a lateral bar that is slideable up and down the frame 2. The support shown has an aperture in the region that contacts with the frame. When the support 7 is at a required position on the frame and the aperture on the support is lined up with one of the apertures 9 in the frame 2 a peg or fixing member 9a can be pushed through both the support 7 and frame 2, to hold them at a required position relative to one another. Preferably, the height of the support is adjusted to that of the load to be carried is at an optimum height for a person to push down on the handle so that the load can be lifted with minimum effort. Although both the frame and support are shown to have square cross sections, it is envisaged that member having other cross sections may be used, for example curved or circular, The support 7 also has apertures along its length, which provide predetermined locations for positioning the arms. The arms 10 each have at one end, a mounting piece 8, which attaches to the support 7 so that the arm 10 extends out forward from the frame. The mounting pieces are hooked members that latch onto the support and which can also slide along the length of the arm support 7 either outwardly or inwardly so that the arms 10 abut against an object to be lifted.

The arms 10 are profiled in that a first part of the arm, which extends from the mounting piece is substantially horizontal so that it extends laterally outward from the support 7 but is then curved upwards after which the arm levels out to provide an abutment area 11 which is the area of the arm 10 which takes the weight of an object to be lifted. By providing a defined of the arm for holding the

load, this helps to reduce contact with the rest of the arm, which could cause the load to be held at an angle, rather than the load finding its centre of gravity and hanging down, so helping to reduce tipping of the load, which could make it unstable.

Figure 2 shows a front view of a lifting trolley according to the invention, which clearly shows the apertures 9 along the length of the frame 2 so that the arms support 7 can be moved up and down the frame. Arms 10 can move along the length of the arms support 7 and there are pins 12 for holding the arms in the desired position on the arms support. There may also be hooks 13 for holding a bag on the frame of the trolley which can be used to receive implements used in the garden or possibly weeds or other devices that can be fixed to the trolley such as tool holders.

Figure 3 shows a side view of the lifting trolley according to the invention with a profile of the left arm on the frame being clearly shown. The profile comprises a lower portion B extending from the arms support 7 there is then an upward area C which then flattens out to an area A which is substantially parallel to the lower portion B of arm 10. The profile of the arm is a substantially flattened S shape. Portion A is the part of the arm that receives the weight of a load to be lifted and ideally, this portion can be slightly curved upwards to that when a pot is lifted by arm portion A, the pot can pivot on the arm so that the centre of gravity of the pot is kept substantially vertical. This arrangement allows the pot to be maintained in the upright position when the frame 2 of the lifting trolley is pivoted backwards so that the wheels 5 can roll along a surface without obstruction from the load or parts of the trolley to allow the load to be easily lifted

and transported.

Figure 4 shows a front perspective view of the lifting trolley according to a further embodiment of the invention where the handle 3 is offset from the main frame 2 via an angled area 3a between the handle 3 and the frame 2. This arrangement allows for ease of lifting a device as a smaller angle of movement is required to lift the arms 10. In fact, the weight of the arm is placed on the handle 3, the tilt of the frame will occur around a pivot provided by the wheels 5 with a minimum of force on the handle. Ideally, the angle between the upper surface of the profile and the handle 3a is 45 degrees when the frame 2 is in the upright position. When the pot is lifted, the angle between the upright as it would be in the static position and the upper profiled surface of the arm reduces to 30 degrees, so that in effect the bar lifts by 15 degrees when the pot is picked up.

Ideally, the angle between the handle portion 3a and the support 6 is roughly 55 degrees.

Figures 5a and 5b show the movement of the lifting trolley and the movement of the pot when being picked up relative to one another. As shown in Figure 5a, when a trolley is in the static position, the arm 10 is positioned so that part A which is the upper surface of the profiled arm rests against an upper portion or the side of the pot so that it can take the weight of the pot when the trolley is tilted backwards. The longitudinal length of the arm B projects slightly downwards as shown in the figure.

As shown in Figure 5b, when the lifting trolley is tilted backwards on the wheel 5, the trolley support 6 is lifted clear from the ground and also frame 2 tips back. This causes the arm 10 to be lifted upwards so lifting pot 14 so that the

arms 10 are abutting against are clear from the ground. As this happens, the arm 10 comes into alignment whereby the longitudinal length of the arm is substantially parallel to the ground as is the support surface A. The weight of the pot will cause it to swing down from the support surface A with the centre of gravity of the pot being substantially vertical so that the contents contained in the pot are less likely to tip out from the sides of the pot or be damaged. Although a single upright is shown for the frame, it could be that two uprights form the frame, each supporting an arm that can be pivoted inwards so that it contacts with a load.

As shown, the shape and relative positioning of the arms 11, the handle parts 3 and 3a and the support lends the trolley of the present invention to providing a trolley that can lift weighty objects with the minimum of effort. The grip arms ideally abut against an inclined or protruding surface of the load, such as on the rim of a plant pot such that when the trolley is tipped back, the load is supported at this point by the arms and lifted clear of the ground so the trolley can be wheeled along the ground.

It is to be understood that the above detailed description is an embodiment of the invention and is provided by way of example only. Various details of the invention may be modified without departure from the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A trolley for transporting a load, said trolley comprising a frame having at least one handle at a first end and one or more wheels at a second end to allow the trolley to move along a surface, characterised in that the frame supports at least two load gripping arms moveable towards and away from one another and which can be moved to be positioned either side of a load to be transported until said arms abut against the load, such that when the frame of the trolley is tilted back, the arms hold and support lift the load as it is lifted by the tilting of the trolley so that the weight of the load hangs down from arms.

2. A trolley according to claim 1 adapted to be used to transport garden accessories, such as pots, tubs, barrels or ornaments.

3. A trolley according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the frame supports a mounting member said mounting member comprising a cross bar on the frame for supporting said load gripping arms laterally forward of the axis of the frame.

4. A trolley according to any preceding claim, wherein the frame has one or more locating points, whereby the mounting member can be moved up and down the frame and held at a locating point on the frame to enable the arms to be positioned at a desired height relative to a load to be lifted.

5. A trolley according to any preceding claim, wherein the load gripping arms have a mounting piece at one in the form of a hook or tube, which can slide along the mounting member of the frame to allow the arms to be moved back and forth.

6. A trolley according to any preceding claim, wherein the mounting

bar includes a series of predefined locators with which locators on the mounting piece for the arms can be aligned to allow the arms to be moved to one or more predefined positions.

7. A trolley according to claim 6, wherein the locators on the mounting bar and the mounting arm comprise apertures that can be aligned so that a pin can be inserted between both sets of apertures to hold the arms in said predefined position.

8. A trolley according to any preceding claim, wherein the load gripping arms have a substantially curvilinear profile.

9. A trolley according to claim 8, wherein the profile comprises a first part extending from the mounting member which is linear or which has a slightly downward curve, a second part wherein the arm curves upwards and a third part, formed of a flat or curved surface, being stepped from the first part, said third part providing a defined area for supporting a load held by the arms.

10. Preferably, the handle on the frame is angled relatively to the main body of the frame to allow ease of movement of the trolley.

11. A trolley according to any preceding claim, wherein the axle between the frame includes a frame support comprising one or more feet extending down from the axle such that said feet can rest on the ground and support said trolley when the trolley is in the upright position.

12. A trolley as substantially described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying figures.