JP2005112275A - Steering device for low lift truck - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a steering device for a low lift truck by which a handle operation diameter can be made longer to a handle length exceeding the limit of a conventional technology. <P>SOLUTION: A fulcrum pin 12 which makes a support member 11 swingably support the proximal end section of a handle 13 is provided to be movable to the support member 11 in the horizontal component direction of the swinging of the handle 13. A transfer mechanism 17 which transfers the fulcrum pin 12 in the horizontal component direction of the swinging of the handle 13 while interlocking with the swinging of the handle 13 is provided. The transfer mechanism 17 is equipped with a guiding means 18 which guides the transfer of the fulcrum pin 12, and a driving means 19 which drives the fulcrum pin 12 in the horizontal component direction while interlocking with the swinging of the handle 13. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a steering device for a low lift truck.

  As a steering device for a low lift truck, a support member is fixed to a predetermined longitudinal axis of the vehicle body, that is, an upper part of a drive unit that can be rotated 180 ° around the steering axis, and a horizontal fulcrum pin is attached to the support member. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228688 discloses a structure having a structure in which a handle is rotatably connected through an upright posture in which the handle rises substantially vertically and a horizontal posture in which the handle lies substantially horizontally.

In the prior art described in Patent Document 1, the fulcrum pin is biased from the steering axis in the direction of the horizontal component of the swing of the steering wheel, so that when the steering wheel is laid down horizontally, the steering axis is The distance from the steering axis to the tip of the handle (hereinafter referred to as handle operating diameter) by the horizontal distance from the fulcrum pin to the fulcrum pin is determined from the length from the fulcrum pin to the handle tip (hereinafter referred to as the handle length). The operating force required for steering is reduced more than the steering device in which the fulcrum pin is positioned on the steering axis.
JP 2002-145073 A

  However, according to this prior art, the length from the steering axis to the fulcrum pin when the handle is set up and when the handle is laid down is the same, and the handle operating diameter is increased to operate the handle. It can be said that there is a certain limit from the viewpoint of reducing power.

  Also, since the distance between the front end of the steering wheel and the vehicle body during traveling is short, the distance between the vehicle body and the front end of the steering wheel becomes shorter during forward traveling, especially when moving forward with the rudder turned to the left and right, and the ground is about to be stepped forward. The driver's heel raised from the car sometimes touched the car body.

  In addition, if the handle length is increased to increase the distance between the vehicle body and the handle tip during driving, the handle position may be too high when the handle is in an upright state, making operation difficult. .

  The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and provides a steering device for a low lift truck that can increase the steering wheel operating diameter beyond the limit of the prior art with respect to the steering wheel length. Objective.

  In order to achieve this object, according to the present invention, a support member that supports a proximal end portion of a handle is supported by a support member so as to be swingable around a horizontal axis center in an upright posture and a horizontal posture via a fulcrum pin. A guide means for guiding the movement of the handle in the horizontal component direction, wherein the fulcrum pin is movably provided in the horizontal component direction of the swing of the handle with respect to the support member in the steering device of the low lift truck, A moving mechanism is provided that includes driving means for moving the fulcrum pin in the horizontal component direction in conjunction with the swing of the handle.

  According to the present invention, when the handle is swung from the upright posture, the fulcrum pin moves in the horizontal component direction in which the handle is swung, and the distance from the steering axis to the fulcrum pin is that in the upright posture. More than enlarged.

  As a result, it is possible to obtain an effect that the handle operating diameter can be made longer than the conventional one by the distance that the fulcrum pin moves in the horizontal component direction with respect to the handle length. This effect also enables steering with the handle tip positioned farther away from the steering axis than the conventional steering wheel height. It is possible to obtain an effect that the distance between the vehicle body and the front end of the steering wheel can be made longer than before to prevent the driver's bag from coming into contact with the vehicle body.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, FIG. 1 is a view for explaining a mechanism of a steering apparatus for a low lift truck according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view of a low lift truck provided with the steering apparatus.

  In this specification, the words “front” and “rear” are used as the direction words, but when the entire low lift truck is viewed from the side, the direction on the base frame 2 side is referred to as the front, and the fork 3 side. The direction is after.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the low lift truck has a fork 3 supported by a base frame 2 that supports the drive unit 1 so that the fork 3 can be raised and lowered, and a load wheel 5 supported by the fork 3 via a lift mechanism 4, and the drive unit 1. The drive wheel 6 and the caster wheel 7 for preventing tilting supported by the base frame 2 are grounded as necessary.

  The drive unit 1 includes a drive wheel 6, a motor that drives the drive wheel 6, a transfer device that interlocks the drive wheel 6 with the motor, the rotation shaft of the motor and the drive wheel 6 via the transfer device. FIG. 2 shows only a part of the drive wheel 6, which is a known device including a braking device for braking.

  The drive unit 1 may be supported directly on the base frame 2 or may be supported via an elastic body such as a vibration isolator or a spring.

  The low lift truck further includes a lift drive means (not shown) for raising and lowering the fork 3 via the lift mechanism 4, a lift drive means and a battery (not shown) as a power source of the motor, and the lift drive. The means is housed in a base cover 8 supported by the base frame 2 together with the drive unit 1. Further, the battery is housed in a battery case 9 provided on the fork 3.

  The drive unit 1 is supported by the base frame 2 so as to be capable of turning 180 ° about the vertical axis passing through the center of contact of the drive wheel 6, that is, the steering axis, and the steering device 10 is used to turn the drive unit 1. 1 is connected to the upper end.

  The steering device 10 includes a support member 11 fixed to the upper end of the drive unit 1, a fulcrum pin 12 arranged in parallel to the wheel axis of the drive wheel 6, and the support member 11 via the fulcrum pin 12. A handle 13 supported so as to be swingable over an upright posture almost upright above the fulcrum pin 12 as shown by a two-dot chain line and a horizontal posture lying almost horizontally in front of the fulcrum pin 12 as shown by a solid line. With.

  The handle 13 includes an arm 14 whose base end is supported by the support member 11 via the pin 12, and a steering unit 15 fixed to the tip of the arm 14. Is provided with a grip 16 to be held by the driver.

  When the handle 13 is located within a predetermined angle from the upright posture to the horizontal posture direction, and when the handle 13 is located within a predetermined angle from the horizontal posture to the upright posture direction, the brake device of the drive unit 1 is activated. At the same time, energization of the motor is prohibited, and travel of the low lift truck is prohibited. When the handle 13 is positioned between the two angular ranges, the operation of the brake device is released, and an accelerator provided in the steering unit 15 is operated to supply a controlled current to the motor. Thus, the low lift truck can be driven.

  In order to facilitate the swinging of the handle 13 around the fulcrum pin 12, the weight of the handle 13 is shared between the support member 11 and the arm 14, and the handle 13 is attached in the upright posture direction. A supporting means 28a made of, for example, a gas spring is provided.

  By the way, in this embodiment, the fulcrum pin 12 is provided so as to be movable in the horizontal component direction of the swing of the handle 13, and the fulcrum pin is interlocked with the swing of the handle 13 around the fulcrum pin 12. A moving mechanism 17 for moving the handle 12 in the horizontal component direction of the swing of the handle 13 is provided.

  Hereinafter, the moving mechanism 17 will be described on the assumption that the handle 13 is in a neutral position with respect to steering.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the moving mechanism 17 of this embodiment includes a guide means 18 for guiding the movement of the fulcrum pin 12 and the fulcrum pin 12 in conjunction with the swing of the handle 13. Drive means 19 for moving in the direction.

  The guide means 18 only needs to be configured to guide the movement of the fulcrum pin 12 in the horizontal component direction. Here, the guide means 18 is formed on the support member 11 and is in the horizontal component direction of the swing of the handle 13. That is, the guide means 18 is constituted by a long guide groove 18a which is long in the front-rear direction and is inserted so that the fulcrum pin 12 is slidable and rotatable around the axis of the fulcrum pin 12.

  The guide long groove 18a may be a straight groove, an arc groove, an elliptical groove, or a composite-shaped long groove in which two or more of them are appropriately continuous. In the embodiment, a straight groove is used to simplify the operation.

  When the guide long groove 18a is formed by an arc groove or an elliptical arc groove, the upper end portion of the handle 13 that swings between the upright posture and the horizontal posture is not higher than the upper end portion of the handle 13 in the upright posture. It is preferable to form the guide long groove 18a in a shape in which the fulcrum pin 12 is guided.

  The fulcrum pin 12 may be fixed to the arm 14 of the handle 13. However, from the viewpoint of reducing the resistance to rotation of the handle 13 and preventing the guide long groove 18 and the fulcrum pin 12 from being worn, It is preferable that the fulcrum pin 12 is supported by the arm 14 so as to be rotatable about the axis of the arm. Further, from this point of view, it is preferable that the fulcrum pin 12 is supported by the arm 14 via a roller made of a bush, a rolling bearing, and the like so as to be rotatable around the axis of the fulcrum pin 12.

  The drive means 19 may be configured to be able to drive the fulcrum pin 12 in the horizontal component direction in conjunction with the swing of the handle. In this embodiment, the drive long groove formed in the support member 11 20 and a drive pin 21 supported by the handle 13 and slidably inserted into the drive long groove 20.

  The drive pin 21 is provided on the opposite side of the grip 16 with respect to the fulcrum pin 12 and at a position higher than the guide long groove 18a when the handle 13 is positioned in a horizontal posture.

  On the other hand, the driving long groove 20 is moved from the position where the driving pin 21 is positioned when the fulcrum pin 12 is positioned at the rear end of the guiding long groove 18a and the handle 13 is positioned in the upright posture. A straight groove 20b that rises vertically up to the height of the guide long groove 18a is provided.

  According to this drive means 19, when the swing angle of the handle 13 from the upright posture to the horizontal posture direction is from the upright posture to the predetermined angle where the drive pin 21 is horizontally aligned with the fulcrum pin 12, While the horizontal distance from the fulcrum pin 12 increases corresponding to the increase in the swing angle from the upright posture of the handle 13, the drive pin 21 is held at a fixed position in the horizontal direction by the straight groove 20b. Therefore, the fulcrum pin 12 is pushed forward in response to an increase in the swing angle from the upright posture of the handle 13, and the entire handle 13 is pushed forward. When the drive pin 21 and the fulcrum pin 12 are horizontally aligned, the handle 13 is pushed forward most greatly.

  In the above-described configuration, various aspects of the fulcrum pin 12, the guide long groove 18a, the drive pin 21, and the drive long groove 20 can be considered. However, as described above, the handle 13 is moved from the upright position to the horizontal position. If the fulcrum pin 12 is guided by the guide long groove 18a and pushed forward, any configuration can be adopted.

  In this embodiment, an arc groove 20a centering on the fulcrum pin 12 located at the front end of the guide long groove 18a is formed continuously from the upper end of the linear groove 20b, and the fulcrum pin 12 is the largest. The handle 13 is held at the position pushed forward, that is, the vertical distance between the fulcrum pin 12 and the drive pin 21 in the upright position.

  As described above, according to the steering device 10 of this embodiment including the moving mechanism 17, when the handle 13 is tilted from the upright posture, the distance from the steering axis to the fulcrum pin 12 is fixed. Since the steering operation diameter is longer than that of the technology, the steering operation force can be made smaller than that in the prior art.

  Further, according to the steering device 10, since the distance between the side surface of the vehicle body and the tip of the handle becomes long, it is possible to prevent the driver's heel from coming into contact with the vehicle body when traveling forward, and to improve safety.

  Further, in this embodiment, the fulcrum pin 12 is supported by the handle 13 and the guide long groove 18a is formed in the support member 11. However, the fulcrum pin 12 is supported by the support member 11 and the guide long groove 18a is supported by the handle 13. You may form in. Further, the drive pin 21 is supported by the handle 13 and the drive long groove 20 is formed in the support member 11. However, the drive pin 21 is supported by the support member 11 and the drive long groove 20 is formed in the handle 13. It may be adopted.

  FIG. 3 is a view for explaining a mechanism of a steering device for a low lift truck according to another embodiment of the present invention.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the guide means 18 is constituted by a guide rail 18b fixed to the support member 11, and is supported by the guide rail 18b so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction, and the fulcrum pin 12 is used. A slider 22 is provided to support the handle 13 so as to be swingable around an axis of the fulcrum pin 12 in an upright posture and a horizontal posture.

  Between the slider 22 and the handle 13, there is provided a supporting means 28b comprising a coiled spring that is wound around the fulcrum pin 12 and biases the handle 13 in the upright posture direction.

  The guide rail 18b may be formed by machining the support member 11, or the machined guide rail 18b may be assembled to the support member 11.

  Other configurations, operations, and effects of this embodiment are the same as those in the above-described embodiment.

  The handle 13 may be supported on the guide rail 18b via the fulcrum pin 12, and the slider 22 assembled to the guide rail 18b so as to be slidable back and forth may be fixed to the support member 11.

  FIG. 4 is a view for explaining a mechanism of a steering device for a low lift truck according to still another embodiment of the present invention. In the moving mechanism 17 according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the driving means 19 has one end at the support member 11 and the other end at the portion of the handle 13 opposite to the grip 16 with respect to the fulcrum pin 12 of the handle 13. Each of the link members 23 is pivotally mounted around an axis parallel to the axis of the fulcrum pin 12.

  The handle 13 is urged in the upright posture direction by a supporting means 28a comprising a gas spring attached over the handle and the support member 11.

  In this embodiment, when the swinging angle of the handle 13 from the upright posture is increased, the included angle between the handle 13 and the link member 23 is increased, and the connection point 24 and the fulcrum pin 12 of the link member 23 to the support member 11 are increased. As a result, the fulcrum pin 12 moves forward from the position of the upright posture, and the handle operating diameter is expanded.

  Other configurations, operations, and effects of this embodiment are the same as those in the above-described embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 5 is a view for explaining a mechanism of a low lift truck according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

  The driving means 19 of this embodiment shown in FIG. 5 is fixed to the handle 13 via a fulcrum pin 12 and rotates around the axis of the fulcrum pin 12 in conjunction with the tilt of the handle 13. And a driving rail 26 fixed to the support member 11 and in contact with the wheel 25.

  The wheel 25 may be a friction wheel. In this embodiment, the wheel 25 is constituted by a pinion gear to ensure the operation, and the driving rail 26 is a rack that meshes with the wheel 25 correspondingly. The rack rail is formed.

  Furthermore, although the wheel 25 may be constituted by a partial gear, in this embodiment, it is constituted by all gears.

  In addition, the handle 13 is urged in the upright posture direction by a supporting means 28a made of a gas spring that is stretched over the handle 13 and the support member 11.

  According to this embodiment, the wheel 25 rolls back and forth on the driving rail 26 in conjunction with the tilting of the handle 13, and the fulcrum pin 12 moves back and forth with the guide long groove 18 as a guide. The diameter is enlarged.

  Other configurations, operations, and effects of this embodiment are the same as those of the above-described embodiment of the present invention.

  The steering device of the present invention has an effect of automatically increasing the steering wheel operating diameter and reducing the steering operating force by setting the steering wheel to a running state, and is useful for a steering device such as a low lift truck. .

It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism of this invention. It is a side view of the low lift truck to which the present invention is applied. It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Steering device 11 Support member 12 Support point pin 13 Handle 16 Grip 17 Movement mechanism 18 Guide means 19 Drive means 20 Long groove for drive 21 Drive pin 22 Slider 25 Wheel 26 Drive rail

Claims (7)

In a steering apparatus for a low lift truck in which a support member that supports a base end portion of a handle is supported so as to be swingable between an upright posture and a horizontal posture around a horizontal axis through a fulcrum pin.
The fulcrum pin is provided so as to be movable in the horizontal component direction of the swing of the handle with respect to the support member, and guide means for guiding the movement of the handle in the horizontal component direction is interlocked with the swing of the handle. And a driving mechanism for moving the fulcrum pin in the horizontal component direction. 2. The steering apparatus for a low lift truck according to claim 1, wherein the guide means is formed on a support member and comprises a long guide groove which is long in the horizontal component direction. The steering apparatus for a low lift truck according to claim 2, wherein the fulcrum pin is inserted in the guide long groove so as to be slidable in the horizontal component direction. In a steering apparatus for a low lift truck in which a support member that supports a base end portion of a handle is supported so as to be swingable between an upright posture and a horizontal posture around a horizontal axis through a fulcrum pin.
The support member is provided with a guide rail extending in the horizontal component direction and a slider that moves along the guide rail, the handle supported on the slider via the fulcrum pin, and interlocked with the swing of the handle And a moving mechanism including a driving means for moving the slider in the horizontal component direction. The drive means comprises a fulcrum pin supported on one of the handle and the support member, and a drive long groove formed on the other side into which the drive pin is slidably inserted. 4. A steering apparatus for a low lift truck described in any one of 4 above. The drive means includes a ring body or a partial ring body fixed to the handle via the fulcrum pin, and a drive rail fixed to the support member and to which the ring body or the partial ring body is in rolling contact. The steering apparatus for a low lift truck according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The low lift truck according to claim 6, wherein the ring body or the partial ring body is formed of a full circumference gear or a partial gear, and the rail is formed of a rack rail that meshes with the full circumference gear or the partial gear. Steering device.

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