JP7193123B2 - grapple and backhoe - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to grapples and backhoes.

Patent Literature 1 discloses a grapple that includes a pair of gripping portions and grips an object by bringing the pair of gripping portions closer to each other. This grapple is provided with a pair of blade plates that are integrally supported and fixed to the tips of a pair of gripping portions, respectively. For this reason, the grapple disclosed in Patent Document 1 can grip even an extremely thin sheet-like object with a pair of blade plates.

Japanese Patent No. 6192313

Here, with a grapple as shown in Patent Document 1, for example, a flexible container bag (object) whose bottom surface has been broken by a bag breaking machine on a belt conveyor is grasped, lifted and rocked, and the flexible container It is assumed that all the contents of the bag, such as earth and sand, are dropped. At this time, for example, when the flexible container bag is gripped and lifted only by a pair of blade plates, the gripping force of the pair of blade plates dams up earth and sand, and the inner part of the gripped flexible container bag There is a risk of leaving part of the earth and sand behind. If the gripping force of the pair of blade plates is reduced in order to drop the earth and sand, the flexible container bag itself may drop. In other words, even with the grapple disclosed in Patent Document 1, even if the sheet shape is formed as a result, it may be difficult to stably grip the grapple if the shape of the sheet changes during the process. rice field.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a grapple and a backhoe that have a simple structure and are capable of stably gripping even a sheet-like object. Make it an issue.

The present invention relates to a grapple that has a pair of gripping portions and grips an object by the pair of gripping portions approaching each other. A pair of blade plates and a plurality of claw members protruding outward from each of the pair of blade plates so as to form a pair, and when the pair of gripping portions are closest to each other, each of the blades The problem is solved by contacting the tips of the pair of blade plates with the plurality of claw members supported by the plates intersecting each other.

That is, in the present invention, a pair of blade plates integrally supported and fixed to the respective ends of a pair of gripping portions, and a plurality of claws protruding outward in pairs from each of the pair of blade plates. and a member. When the pair of gripping portions are closest to each other, the tips of the pair of blade plates are brought into contact with each other while the plurality of claw members supported by the respective blade plates cross each other. there is For this reason, the object is temporarily held appropriately by the plurality of claw members, and then gripped by the pair of blade plates. Therefore, the object held appropriately by the plurality of claw members can be stably gripped by the pair of blade plates. Conversely, even if an object cannot be gripped by a pair of blade plates, it can be held by the claw members. Since the pawl member from one blade plate and the pawl member from the other blade plate form a pair, the paired pawl members intersect to form one pawl member and the other pawl member. The gap between them is narrow, and even thin and small objects can be held accordingly. Since the blades are the ones that come into contact with each other at the closest point, even very thin objects can be gripped.

In addition, each of the gripping portions is composed of one or more fork members arranged in the width direction thereof, and each of the plurality of claw members is positioned in the width direction of the gripping portion having the greater number of fork members. When arranged so as to overlap the fork members, the plurality of claw members can stably hold even a wide object that is stably gripped by the fork members.

In addition, when the fork members of the pair of gripping portions are arranged at intervals so as to be able to intersect with each other, and the thickness of the claw members is smaller than the thickness of the fork members, the claw members on the blade plate is wider than the gap between the fork members. For this reason, it is possible to avoid holding an object that is unintentionally held due to the narrow gap between the fork members when the fork members are used, but is held by the pawl member.

When the thickness of the claw member is tapered toward the tip, for example, the claw member can be easily inserted into and removed from the object, and the object can be securely held and released.

Incidentally, when the claw members are bent so that the claw tip portions of the claw members face the direction in which the pair of grasping portions approach each other, the operation for grasping the object by the blade plate is performed. The action of holding the object by the claw member can be performed as a series of actions without being particularly conscious of it, which facilitates the operation of the grapple.

If the claw member is detachable from the blade plate, the claw member can be easily repaired or replaced.

In addition, when a turning device for integrally rotating the pair of gripping portions is provided, the width direction of the blade plate and the shape of the object can be matched easily and quickly.

It should be noted that the present invention can also be regarded as a backhoe having the grapple, characterized in that the grapple can be moved in the vertical direction, the front-rear direction, and the left-right direction.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, although it is a simple structure, as a result, it becomes possible to hold even the thing which becomes a sheet form stably.

Schematic diagram showing a backhoe according to an embodiment of the present invention Schematic diagrams showing a grapple used for the backhoe shown in FIG. 1 (front view (A), side view (B)) Enlarged side view of the periphery of a pair of blade plates of the grapple shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged bottom view of the periphery of a pair of blade plates of the grapple shown in FIG. 2 with the pawl members crossed;

An example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

First, the configuration of the backhoe BH according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The backhoe BH can be widely used in the building demolition industry, the forestry industry, the scrap industry, the waste disposal industry, and the like.

The backhoe BH includes a vehicle body 120, an arm body 127, and a grapple 140, as shown in FIG. The vehicle body 120 includes a crawler type traveling body 122 , a turning mechanism 124 and a turning body 126 . That is, the revolving body 126 is rotatable with respect to the traveling body 122 by the revolving mechanism 124 . A driver's seat 126A is provided on the revolving body 126 . The driver's seat 126A has a structure that can be sealed, can block rain and wind, and can be temperature-controlled by an air conditioner. That is, the driver can stably operate the backhoe BH regardless of the weather. In addition, the driver may be an autonomous or remote-controlled robot, or may simply be equipped with an automatic driving system or an autonomous driving system in the driver's seat instead of being a driver. An arm body 127 that can swing up and down is attached to the revolving body 126 .

The arm body 127 includes a boom 128 attached to the revolving body 126 and an arm 132 attached to the tip of the boom 128, as shown in FIG. Arm 132 is swingable by cylinder mechanism 130 . A grapple 140 for gripping an object is attached to the tip of the arm 132 . The grapple 140 is swingable by the cylinder mechanism 134 via the link mechanism 136 . That is, the backhoe BH enables the grapple 140 to move in the vertical direction and the front, rear, left, and right directions.

Next, the grapple 140 will be schematically described with reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, and 4. FIG.

The grapple 140 includes a pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 each configured by one or more fork members 164 arranged in the width direction P, and the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 approaching each other to grip the object. It is designed to be grasped. The grapple 140 is paired with a pair of blade plates 174, 176 integrally supported and fixed to the tips of the pair of grips 160, 162, respectively. A plurality (here, three) of claw members 178 and 180 projecting outward are provided. When the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 are closest to each other, the pair of blade plates 174 are held while the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 supported by the respective blade plates 174 and 176 intersect each other. , 176 are brought into contact.

The grapple 140 will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, and 4. FIG.

2A and 2B, the grapple 140 includes an upper frame 146, a lower frame 150, grips 160, 162, blade plates 174, 176, and claw members 178, 180. . A swing shaft 142 and a link shaft 144 are provided on the upper frame 146 . The rocking shaft 142 engages the arm 132 described above, and the link shaft 144 engages the link mechanism 136 described above. Therefore, the upper frame 146 is driven to swing around the swing shaft 142 . A swivel device 148 is provided at the tip of the upper frame 146 , and the lower frame 150 is rotatably attached to the upper frame 146 via the swivel device 148 . That is, the grapple 140 includes a pivoting device 148 that rotates the pair of grippers 160, 162 together.

Two mounting shafts 152 and 154 are provided at the tip of the lower frame 150 as shown in FIG. 2(A). Mounting shafts 152, 154 rotatably mount grips 160, 162, respectively. As shown in FIG. 2B, a link mechanism 158 is provided on the root side of the grips 160 and 162 (on the side of the lower frame 150). A cylinder mechanism 156 is provided on the lower frame 150 , and a piston 156 A of the cylinder mechanism 156 also constitutes a link mechanism 158 . That is, by driving the cylinder mechanism 156, the tips of the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 can move toward and away from each other with the attachment shafts 152 and 154 as fulcrums. In other words, the gripping portion 162 faces the gripping portion 160 and can be relatively moved toward and away from the gripping portion 160 .

The gripping portions 160 and 162 are composed of three fork members 164 and two fork members 164, respectively, as shown in FIG. 2(B). The fork member 164 has a shape tapered at the tip and a shape curved so that the tip is directed inward. A plurality (here, three) of protrusions 164A are provided on the inner side surfaces of the fork member 164 facing each other. As shown in FIG. 2(B), three fork members 164 are arranged in the grip portion 160 in the width direction P, and are connected at the ends by connecting members 166 and at the intermediate portions by intermediate connecting members 170 (by welding or the like). ) are integrated. In the grip portion 162, two fork members 164 are arranged in the width direction P, and are integrated (by welding or the like) at the ends by a connecting member 168 and at the intermediate portion by an intermediate connecting member (not shown). there is The fork members 164 of the grips 160 and 162 are arranged in a staggered manner, and if the blade plates 174 and 176 are not present, the fork members 164 are configured to intersect alternately and be movable to the position of the intermediate connecting member 170 (that is, the fork members 164 are spaced so that they can intersect each other). Blade plates 174 and 176 are integrally attached (by welding or the like) to the ends of grips 160 and 162 (the ends of fork member 164), respectively. In other words, the pair of blade plates 174, 176 has all of the fork members 164 in each of the pair of gripping portions 160, 162 (that is, in this embodiment, there are three fork members 164 with gripping portions 160 and two gripping portions 162). It is composed of a book fork member 164, and the fork member is integrally supported and fixed at the tip of each of the gripping portions. That is, only the tips of the pair of grips 160 and 162 (only the tips of the fork members 164) are covered with the blade plates 174 and 176. As shown in FIG.

The blade plate 174 (176) includes an outer plate portion 174A (176A) and a connecting plate portion 174C (176C), as shown in FIGS. In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the length L1 and the width W of the outer plate portions 174A and 176A are made equal. The outer plate portions 174A and 176A are composed of substantially straight planes (the outer plate portions may be curved to follow the shape of the outer surface of the fork member. In this case, the rigidity of the outer plate portions as a whole is increased. can be increased). Then, the blade plate 174 is arranged outward from the three fork members 164 in the direction P in which the three fork members 164 are arranged (the vertical direction in FIG. 2B and also the width direction P of the blade plates 174 and 176). is designed to protrude. That is, the connecting plate portion 174C (176C) protrudes outward from the fork member 164 in the direction (width direction) P in which the fork members 164 are arranged when viewed from the side of the grapple 140 shown in FIG. (176A)) to increase the rigidity of the protrusion. The outer plate portions 174A and 176A are joined to the outer surface of the tip of the fork member 164 by welding or the like. At the same time, the inner end face of the connecting plate portion 174C (176C) is joined (by welding or the like) in contact with the outer end face of the fork member 164 located at the end. Therefore, this structure resulting from the integration of the blade plate 174 (176) with the grip portion 160 (162) can have a high stiffness.

Note that the tip portion 174AA (176AA) of the outer plate portion 174A (176A) protrudes from the tip of the fork member 164 (protrusion length L), as shown in FIG. 3(A). Therefore, when viewed from the front of the grapple 140 in FIG. Only tip portions 174AA and 176AA of 174 and 176 are made to be in linear contact. The side portions of the blade plates 174 and 176 remain in a non-contact state (FIGS. 3A and 3B). In other words, the grapple 140 is always open in the direction (width direction) P in which the fork members 164 are arranged. That is, in the grapple 140 , the gripping portion 160 and the gripping portion 162 approach each other so that the inner surface of the gripping portion 160 and the inner surface of the gripping portion 162 , the tip portions 174 AA and 176 AA of the blade plates 174 and 176 , or the claw members 178 , 180 allows gripping of the object. The material of the blade plates 174 and 176 is preferably a steel material (for example, tungsten carbide) that is the same quality as or harder than the fork member 164, but is not necessarily limited thereto.

The pawl members 178, 180 project outward in pairs from the outer plate portions 174A, 176A of the blade plates 174, 176, respectively. The thickness of claw members 178 and 180 is smaller than the thickness of fork member 164 . The blade plates 174, 176 each support three pawl members 178, 180, respectively. As shown in FIG. 4, the claw member 178 (180) here includes a support portion 178A (180A) and a claw portion 178B (180B). The outer plate portion 174A (176A) is provided with a support portion 178A (180A), to which a claw portion 178B (180B) is detachably attached with a bolt BT (that is, the claw member 178 (180) is detachable from the blade plate 174 (176)). The support portions 178A and 180A are arranged so as to overlap the fork members 164 of the grip portion 160 at positions in the width direction P, as shown in FIGS. That is, it can be said that each of the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 is arranged so as to overlap with the fork member 164 of the gripping portion 160 having the greater number of fork members 164 at the position in the width direction P, respectively. Specifically, the claw members 178 and 180 form a pair outside each of the three fork members 164 in FIG. , and the paired claw portions 178B and 180B are close to each other.

Further, the thickness of the claw portions 178B and 180B becomes thinner toward the tip, whether viewed from the side as shown in FIG. 2(A) or from the bottom as shown in FIG. In other words, the thickness of the claw members 178 and 180 tapers toward the tip. At the same time, as shown in FIG. 3A, the claw portions 178B and 180B are bent such that the claw tip portions 178BB and 180BB face the direction O in which the pair of grip portions 160 and 162 approach each other. That is, the claw members 178 and 180 are bent so that the claw tip portions 178BB and 180BB of the claw members 178 and 180 face the direction O in which the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 approach each other.

Next, the action of the backhoe BH will be described with particular focus on the action related to the grapple 140. FIG.

In this embodiment, a pair of blade plates 174, 176 integrally supported and fixed to the respective tips of a pair of grips 160, 162, and a pair of blade plates 174, 176 each forming a pair and a plurality of outwardly projecting pawl members 178, 180. When the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 are closest to each other, the pair of blade plates 174 are held while the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 supported by the respective blade plates 174 and 176 intersect each other. , 176 are brought into contact. For this reason, the object is temporarily held appropriately by the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 and then gripped by the pair of blade plates 174 and 176 . Therefore, the pair of blade plates 174 and 176 can stably grip the object held appropriately by the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 . Conversely, even if the pair of blade plates 174 and 176 cannot grasp the object, the claw members 178 and 180 can hold it accordingly. Since the pawl member 178 from one blade plate 174 and the pawl member 180 from the other blade plate 176 form a pair, the paired pawl member 178 and pawl member 180 intersect with each other. The gap between the pawl member 178 and the pawl member 180 is narrow, and even thin and small objects can be held accordingly. Since the blade plates 174 and 176 come into contact with each other at the closest distance, even very thin objects can be gripped.

Here, as a specific example, a case will be described in which a flexible container bag whose bottom surface has been broken on the conveyor is gripped and lifted by the grapple 140, and the contents such as earth and sand are dropped and accumulated in a specific place.

For example, in this embodiment, the flexible container bag can be gripped and lifted by a pair of blade plates 174 and 176 and claw members 178 and 180 . However, as the flexible container bag is broken, the contents in the flexible container bag (for example, earth and sand) fall over time, and the form of the flexible container bag changes from the beginning. For this reason, if the grapple 140 as shown in Patent Document 1 is provided with only a pair of blade plates 174 and 176 without the crossing claw members 178 and 180 (for example, the grapple shown in Patent Document 1), the flexible container back There is a risk that it will slip through the blade plates 174 and 176 and fall. However, in this embodiment, so to speak, the flexible container bag is double-held by the grapple 140, so even if the gripping force of the pair of blade plates 174 and 176 on the flexible container bag is reduced, the claw member 178 , 180 can hold the flexible container bag (e.g., by pinching or stabbing to cradle at least a portion of the flexible container bag).

Then, for example, after holding an object such as a French container bag that has been once broken with the claw members 178 and 180 and holding it with the blade plates 174 and 176, the earth and sand below the blade plates 174 and 176 are removed. let it drop. Then, while maintaining the intersecting state of the claw members 178, 180, the gap between the blade plates 174, 176 is changed to loosen or strengthen the gripping force, thereby removing the earth and sand above the positions of the blade plates 174, 176. can also be dropped. In addition, by varying the interval between the blade plates 174 and 176, it is possible to press the earth and sand in the flexible container bag to accelerate the fall.

Further, in this embodiment, each of the gripping portions 160 and 162 is composed of one or more fork members 164 arranged in the width direction P, and the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 are each arranged at a position in the width direction P, and each of the fork members 178 and 180 It is arranged so as to overlap the fork members 164 of the gripping portion 160 having the larger number of members 164 . Therefore, the plurality of claw members 178 and 180 can stably hold even a wide object that is stably gripped by the fork member 164 . Note that the position and number of the plurality of claw members are not limited to this, and may be irrelevant to the position and number of the fork members.

In addition, in this embodiment, the fork members 164 of the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 are arranged at such intervals that they can intersect with each other, and the thickness of the claw members 178 and 180 is made smaller than the thickness of the fork members 164. . Therefore, the gap between the pawl members 178 and 180 on the blade plates 174 and 176 is wider than the gap between the fork members 164 . Therefore, when the fork members 164 are used, the claw members 178 and 180 can avoid holding something that is unintentionally held due to the narrowness of the gap between the fork members 164. can be done. Specifically, when an object such as a torn flexible container bag is gripped by the blade plates 174 and 176, even if the claw members 178 and 180 are present, solidified earth, sand, sticks, etc. in the flexible container bag can be dropped smoothly. Note that the positions and thicknesses of the fork member and the claw member are not limited to the above relationship.

Also, in this embodiment, the thickness of the claw members 178 and 180 is tapered toward the tip. Therefore, for example, the claw members 178 and 180 can be easily inserted into and removed from the object, and the object can be securely held and released. Note that the thickness of the claw member is not limited to this, and the thickness of the claw member may be constant, or conversely, a portion thereof may be thickened.

Further, in this embodiment, the claw members 178 and 180 are bent so that the claw tip portions 178BB and 180BB face the direction O in which the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 approach each other. Therefore, the operation for gripping the object by the blade plates 174 and 176 and the operation for holding the object by the claw members 178 and 180 can be performed as a series of operations without particular awareness. is easy to operate. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the tip portions of the claws do not have to be in the direction in which the pair of gripping portions approach each other.

Also, in this embodiment, the claw members 178 and 180 are detachable from the blade plates 174 and 176 . Therefore, the claw members 178 and 180 can be easily repaired or replaced. In addition, the claw member may be directly joined to the blade plate by welding or the like.

Further, in this embodiment, a turning device 148 is provided for integrally rotating the pair of grips 160 and 162 . Therefore, the width direction P of the blade plates 174 and 176 and the shape of the object can be matched easily and quickly. That is, the grapple 140 can easily grip a directional object. In addition, it is not limited to this, and the turning device may be omitted.

That is, in this embodiment, thin objects such as flexible container bags, galvanized iron, corrugated cardboard, blue sheets, cylindrical objects such as logs, rectangular lumber, and fine mixtures can be gripped. Moreover, it is also possible to prevent small objects from falling from the grapple 140 . In addition, it is possible to grip even a sheet-shaped object that cannot be reliably gripped with only one pair of blade plates 174 and 176, but whose form changes. Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is possible to stably grip even a sheet-like object as a result, although the structure is simple.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. That is, it goes without saying that improvements and design changes are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, a broken flexible container bag is used as a sheet, but it may be used to hold a plurality of empty flexible container bags at once.

In the above embodiment, each of the pair of blade plates 174 and 176 has a width W that protrudes outward from the fork members 164 in the direction P in which the fork members 164 are arranged. The width of the pair of blade plates is not limited, and the width of each blade plate does not have to be the width that protrudes as described above.

In the above embodiment, the fork members 164 of the pair of gripping portions 160 and 162 are arranged alternately, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the fork members may face each other. .

Further, in the above embodiment, the turning device 148 for integrally rotating the pair of grips 160 and 162 is provided, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the turning device may not be provided.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be widely applied to the building demolition industry, the forestry industry, the scrap industry, the waste disposal industry, and the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 120... Vehicle body 122... Traveling body 124... Revolving mechanism 126... Revolving body 127... Arm body 128... Boom 130, 134, 156... Cylinder mechanism 132... Arm 136, 158... Link mechanism 140... Grapple 142... Swing shaft 144... Link Axis 146 Upper frame 148 Rotating device 150 Lower frame 152, 154 Mounting shaft 156A Piston 160, 162 Grasping portion 164 Fork member 164A Convex portion 166, 168 Connecting member 170, 172 Intermediate connecting member 174 , 176... Blade plate 174A, 176A... Outer plate portion 174AA, 176AA... Tip part 174C, 176C... Connection plate part 178, 180... Claw member 178A, 180A... Support part 178B, 180B... Claw part 178BB, 180BB... Claw tip part BH... Backhoe BT... Bolt L, L1... Length O... Direction P... Width direction W... Width

Claims (8)

A grapple that includes a pair of gripping portions and grips an object by the pair of gripping portions approaching each other,
a pair of blade plates integrally supported and fixed to the tips of the pair of gripping portions, and a plurality of claw members protruding outward from the pair of blade plates in pairs,
When the pair of gripping portions are closest to each other, the tip portions of the pair of blade plates are brought into contact with each other while the plurality of claw members supported by the respective blade plates are kept crossing each other. A grapple characterized by: In claim 1,
Each of the gripping portions is composed of one or more fork members arranged in the width direction thereof, and each of the plurality of claw members is a fork member of the gripping portion having a greater number of fork members at positions in the width direction. A grapple characterized in that it is arranged so as to overlap with the In claim 2,
The grapple is characterized in that the fork members of the pair of gripping portions are arranged at such intervals that they can intersect with each other, and the thickness of the claw member is smaller than the thickness of the fork members. In any one of claims 1 to 3,
A grapple, wherein the thickness of the claw member is tapered toward its tip. In any one of claims 1 to 4,
The grapple, wherein the claw member is bent such that a claw tip portion of the claw member is directed in a direction in which the pair of gripping portions approach each other. In any one of claims 1 to 5,
The grapple, wherein the claw member is detachable from the blade plate. In any one of claims 1 to 6,
A grapple, comprising: a turning device for integrally rotating the pair of gripping portions. A backhoe comprising the grapple according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
A backhoe, characterized in that the grapple can be moved vertically, forward, backward, leftward, and rightward.

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