JP7253858B1 - Traction device and vehicle with same - Google Patents

Abstract

A towing device that connects a towed vehicle to a tow vehicle so that the towed vehicle follows substantially the same trajectory as the towed vehicle when the towed vehicle is in reverse or reverse motion. A towing device (300) used by a towing vehicle (100) to tow a towed vehicle (200). An arm 324 extending toward the vehicle to be towed is attached to the rear end of the towing vehicle, and a pin member 326 extending upward or downward is provided at the tip of the arm. The towed vehicle includes a plate-like plate-like member 310 extending forward from the towed vehicle, and the tip of the plate-like plate-like member can abut against the towed vehicle and is narrower than the towed vehicle. forming a width abutment surface; A connection hole 316 into which the pin member can be fitted is formed in the plate member, and the connection hole is an elongated hole extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to be towed. [Selection drawing] Fig. 4

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to towing vehicles such as passenger cars, pickup trucks, and AGVs, and to a towing device used when towing a towed vehicle such as a pleasure boat or an goods camping cabin, and a vehicle equipped with the towing device.

A vehicle comprising a towing vehicle having a drive source and a towed device that is towed by the towing vehicle without a power source via a towing device is used, for example, for land transportation of pleasure boats and delivery of goods. In these land transportation and deliveries, the vehicles also pass through public roads, so the vehicles are required to make curving motions along the bends of the public roads.

For this reason, the traction device is designed to allow the towed vehicle with insufficient steering capability to be moved with as little resistance as possible. At the same time, in order to reduce the time required to connect the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle, a simple configuration is adopted to give flexibility to the towing means.

Typically, there is a structure consisting of a hook and a ring or hole that engages with it. An example of such a traction device is described in US Pat.

When a towed vehicle is towed by a hook provided on a towed vehicle, the movement of the towed vehicle with a steering system and the movement of the towed vehicle without an active steering system are linked, and the towed vehicle becomes the towed vehicle. The vehicle advances by being swung around.

When the towing vehicle moves forward, the towed vehicle is towed by the towing vehicle, so there is little deviation from the predetermined track (public road). Since the towed vehicle that does not have a track travels while being pushed by the towed vehicle, there is a possibility that the towed vehicle deviates greatly from the track (public road) depending on the attitude of the wheels of the towed vehicle.

When unloading a pleasure boat at a site of use, it is desired that the driving vehicle should be driven straight back to enter the water's edge, and the driven vehicle should be driven back straight accordingly, in order to smoothly unload the boat to the water's edge. .

Examples of controlling the trajectory of a towed vehicle when reversing or reversing in articulated vehicles are described in US Pat.
In Patent Document 2, a vehicle to be towed is connected to the rear part of a motorcycle-type work vehicle (towing vehicle) so that the towed vehicle can swing left and right, and bending of the towed vehicle and the towed vehicle (commonly known as the jackknife phenomenon) when the machine body moves backward is disclosed. In order to prevent this, either one of the couplers C and C' that couple the towing vehicle A and the towed vehicle B is provided with a coupling C that can move up and down between an operating posture and a non-operating posture and that is capable of both couplings. It is disclosed to provide a lock fitting 11 which can be engaged with the other connector C' when the connectors C and C' are aligned.
As a result, both couplers C and C' can be prevented from swinging to the left and right.

Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a self-propelled towing vehicle and a towing vehicle towed by the towing vehicle in order to automatically and stably control the direction of the towed vehicle when the towed vehicle such as a trailer truck or a premises electric vehicle moves backward. A connecting arm that connects the towing vehicle and the self-propelled towing vehicle, an actuator provided between the connecting arm and the towing vehicle, a reverse control device for the actuator, and an angle between the towing vehicle and the connecting arm. It is disclosed that the towing vehicle has a first angle sensor for sensing and a second angle sensor for sensing the angle between the connecting arm and the towed vehicle.

Only when reversing, the actuator is controlled using the reversing control device that operates according to the angle signals from the first and second angle sensors, the amount of steering operation, the travel speed, and the turning radius during reversing.

Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 61-138752 (Description of Japanese Utility Model Application No. 60-23363) JP-A-5-310018 JP-A-8-272444 JP 2014-193668 A

In Patent Document 1, in order to reduce the time to connect the towed vehicle to the towing vehicle, a trailer rubber that connects the towed vehicle is attached to the rear facing surface of the bumper body, and the bumper stay attachment part that bolts the bumper stay is towed. Located at the rear of the vehicle. The trailer rubber has a hook-like shape as a whole, and has a substantially spherical tip, into which the connecting portion of the vehicle to be towed is fitted. That is, it is a ball-and-hole fit.

By the way, in the backward movement of a towing vehicle in land transportation such as a pleasure boat, the towed vehicle without an active steering mechanism is pushed by the towed vehicle's pushing motion. The towed vehicle may be pushed diagonally and travel in an unintended direction. If it is at the water's edge, more effort is required to properly lower the boat into the water. This Patent Document 1 does not consider avoiding such a problem.

Patent Document 2 discloses a working vehicle in which a vehicle to be towed such as a trailer is connected to the rear portion of a towing vehicle such as a small electric vehicle so as to swing left and right. Even if the trajectory of the towed vehicle is slightly different from the trajectory of the towing vehicle located in front, there is no problem as long as it does not deviate from the public road.

However, if the distance between the towed vehicle and the towed vehicle is excessively bent when backing up infrequently, the towed vehicle or the towed vehicle may overturn. A locking means is provided to restrict bending.

However, when switching from forward to reverse or vice versa, this locking means requires the occupant of the tow vehicle to get out of the tow vehicle and manually switch, which is troublesome and avoids interference with other vehicles on public roads in rainy weather. It is troublesome to have to.

US Pat. No. 6,200,003 discloses placing sensors and actuators on the towing vehicle and/or the towed vehicle to control the position of the towed vehicle during operation. Since position control is possible even when the towing vehicle is moving backward, the accuracy of the positioning control is high.

However, the position control of the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle requires the installation of sensors, controllers, etc., which complicates control and increases the cost of additional devices required for control.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art described above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a towing device that connects a towed vehicle to a towed vehicle so that the towed vehicle is substantially connected to the towed vehicle when the towed vehicle is reversing or reversing. To follow the same trajectory and/or to position the towed vehicle exactly at the source of demand when reversing.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a towing device that allows the tow vehicle and towed vehicle combination or the towed vehicle alone to follow substantially the same trajectory.

A feature of the present invention that achieves the above objects is a towing device used by a towing vehicle to tow a towed vehicle, wherein the towing vehicle has an arm that extends toward the towed vehicle at its rear end. A pin member extending upward or downward is provided at the tip of the arm, and the vehicle to be towed includes a plate-shaped member extending forward from the vehicle to be towed. a rear end surface of an attachment member attached to a rear end surface of the towing vehicle is in contact with a front end surface of the plate-like member, and when the towing vehicle is reversed, the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle face each other; The direction of travel of the vehicle and the direction of travel of the vehicle to be towed are the same, a connection hole is formed in the plate-like member into which the pin member can be fitted, and the connection hole extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to be towed. The connecting hole is a hole position of the pin member when the towing vehicle moves forward, and includes a small diameter portion having a hole width larger than the diameter of the pin member and a towed vehicle side of the small diameter portion. and a transition portion that smoothly transitions from the small diameter portion to the large diameter portion, and the pin member moves out of the hole when the towing vehicle moves backward. It exists in the said large diameter part.

Moreover, in the above characteristics, the towing vehicle may be an automobile or a pickup truck, and the towing vehicle may be an AGV.

Another feature of the present invention is that a towed vehicle connected to a towing vehicle is provided with any one of the towing devices described above.

According to the present invention, when the vehicle is backing up, the towed vehicle can move along the same straight line locus as the towing vehicle. Therefore, the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle can move along substantially the same trajectory when traveling forward and backward. Further, when backing up, the towed vehicle can only move linearly and moves linearly together with the driving vehicle, so that the towed vehicle can be accurately positioned at the source of demand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure of one Example of the vehicle based on this invention, the figure (a) is a top perspective view, and the figure (b) is a top view. It is a figure explaining the advance state of the vehicle shown in FIG. 1, the figure (a) is a side view, the figure (b) is a top view. It is a figure explaining the reverse state of the vehicle shown in FIG. 1, the figure (a) is a side view, the figure (b) is a top view. FIG. 2 is a top view of the vehicle for explaining the transition of the vehicle shown in FIG. 1 to a reverse state, in which FIG. It is a diagram of the part. FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a traction device provided in the vehicle shown in FIG. 1, where (a) is a top view and (b) is a side view;

According to the present invention, as will be described below, the towing device interposed between the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle has an elongated hole portion with a small diameter and a large diameter portion in the traveling direction, and the towed vehicle of the towing device The front end surface of the side and the rear end surface of the traction device on the side of the towing vehicle are contact surfaces that can contact each other.

As a result, when the vehicle consisting of the towing device and the towed device is moving forward, the towed vehicle is capable of sharp turning, and when the vehicle is reversing, the towed vehicle can move along the same straight line as the towing vehicle. .

Therefore, the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle can move along substantially the same trajectory when traveling forward and backward. Further, when backing up, the towed vehicle can only move linearly and moves linearly together with the driving vehicle, so that the towed vehicle can be accurately positioned at the source of demand.

An embodiment of a vehicle according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) placed behind the towing vehicle 100 (pickup truck) is towed using the towing device 300, but the towing vehicle 100 is limited to the pickup truck. It may be an automobile (general passenger car) or an AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) instead of a vehicle.
Also, the towed vehicle 200 is not limited to a trailer, and may be a trolley on which a pleasure boat is mounted, a trolley towed by an AGV, or the like. A combination of the towing vehicle 100 with the towing device 300 and the towed vehicle 200 or the towed vehicle 200 alone with the towing device 300 constitutes the vehicle 50 in the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view showing a vehicle 50 traveling forward (F) or backward (R) on a public road. FIG. The towed vehicle 200 is a trailer and indicates that it is moving forward or backward. FIG. 1(b) is a top view showing how the vehicle 50 shown in FIG. 1(a) advances (curves) along a curved portion of a public road.

A pickup truck as a tow vehicle has a loading platform 110 and a cabin 120 in which a driver can ride, and moves forward or backward with a pair of left and right front wheels 132 and a pair of left and right rear wheels 134 . Since the towing vehicle 100 is generally rear-wheel drive, the driving force of an engine (not shown) is transmitted to the rear wheels to drive the vehicle 50 forward or backward. A mounting member 322 forming part of the towing device 300, which will be described later in detail, is arranged on the rearmost end surface of the towing vehicle 100. As shown in FIG. The widthwise length of the mounting member substantially spans the width of the cargo bed 110 of the towing vehicle 100, and may exceed the width of the cargo bed 110 within the limits of legal regulations.

A towed vehicle 200 (trailer) arranged behind the towing vehicle 100 has a trailer body 210 and a pair of wheels 220 arranged on both side lower portions of the trailer body 210 . The wheels 220 are fixed in orientation to the trailer body 210 and do not have so-called active steering. The trailer body 210 has a box-like configuration that can accommodate, for example, tools, fertilizers, and harvests required for agricultural work. A plate-like member 310 constituting a traction device 300 is attached near the box-shaped bottom surface on the front surface of the trailer body 210 so as to extend forward.

Details of the traction device 300 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the traction device 300, FIG. 5(a) is its top view, and FIG. 5(b) is its side view. Parts arranged on the towing vehicle 100 side are shown on the left side in FIG. 5, and parts arranged on the towed vehicle 200 side are shown on the right side.

The parts arranged on the towing vehicle side (the rear end of the towing vehicle) are the mounting member 322 made of a plate-shaped member extending in the width direction of the towing vehicle 100 as described above, and the mounting member 322 substantially in the width direction of the towing vehicle 100. A rod-shaped or narrow plate-shaped arm 324 attached to the bottom surface of the mounting member 322 at the center and extending toward the trailer, and a cylindrical pin disposed at the tip of the arm 324 opposite to the mounting side and extending upward. and a member 326 . An upper end portion 326a of the pin member 326 is hemispherical so that the traction device 300 can be assembled smoothly. The mounting member 322 is arranged on the rear end surface of the towing vehicle 100 using fastening means such as bolts (not shown). When the towing vehicle 100 is a passenger car, the mounting member 322 is mounted instead of the bumper or overlaid on the bumper. A side end surface of the attachment member 322 facing the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) constitutes an abutment surface 328 .

A plate-like member 310 attached near the bottom surface of the trailer body 210 at a widthwise central portion of the front surface of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) is formed by cutting out a part of a rectangular plate. . One side of the rectangular plate is cut off to form attachment 312 to trailer body 210 .

Therefore, the mounting portion 312 has a width narrower than the width of the rectangular plate. The mounting portion 312 is fixed to the trailer body 210 by welding or the like. Inside the plate-like member 310, a connection hole 316, which is an elongated hole (a hole cut out in the shape of a table tennis racket) extending in the front-rear direction, is formed.

That is, the connecting hole 316 is located on the towing vehicle side and has a groove-like small diameter portion 304 with a narrow width, a large diameter portion 306 located on the mounting portion 312 side and wider than the small diameter portion 304, and the small diameter portion 304. It has a transition section 308 that smoothly transitions (enlarges) to the larger diameter section 306 . Here, the hole width of the small diameter portion 304 is slightly larger than the diameter of the pin member 326 . The large diameter portion 306 is located closer to the towed vehicle 200 than the small diameter portion 304 and has a larger diameter than the pin member 326 .

The tip of the small diameter portion 304 is formed in an arc shape so that when the pin member 326 is fitted, the contact is close to surface contact. The end surface of the plate member 310 on the side opposite to the mounting portion forms a contact surface 302 .

The forward movement of the vehicle 50 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1(b) and 2. FIG. 2 shows a state in which a vehicle 50 comprising a towing vehicle 100 and a towed vehicle 200 moves forward (F), FIG. 5(a) is a side view of the vehicle 50, and FIG. It is a top view.

A towing vehicle 100 and a towed vehicle 200 (trailer) are connected by a towing device 300 . Specifically, the pin member 326 of the towing device 300 attached to the rear end surface of the towing vehicle 100 is inserted into the connecting hole 316 of the plate-like member 310 fixed to the front end surface of the trailer body 210, thereby connecting the towing vehicle 100 and the target. Both towing vehicles 200 (trailers) are connected.

When moving forward (F), the pin member 326 on the towing vehicle 100 side moves the small diameter portion 304 of the connecting hole 316 formed in the plate-like member 310 on the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) side, particularly the small diameter portion 304 at the extreme end thereof. , and the tractive force of the towing vehicle 100 acts on the contact portion, dragging the towed vehicle 200 (trailer). The towed vehicle 200 (trailer) rotates the wheels 220 by this tractive force and follows the trajectory of the towed vehicle 100 with little resistance (see FIG. 2).

When the towing vehicle 100 approaches a curved portion of the road, or when the towing vehicle 100 draws a curved track and moves forward (FIG. 1(b)), the small diameter portion 304 of the connecting hole 316 formed in the plate member 310 is opened. The towed vehicle 200 (trailer) moves so that the towing vehicle 100 side tip rolls around the pin member 326 while contacting it. In other words, towed vehicle 200 (trailer) is swung around pin member 326 by towing vehicle 100 .

As the tow vehicle 100 travels around the curve, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) pulls toward the towed vehicle 100 until one front corner of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) abuts an attachment member 322 attached to the towed vehicle 100 . Move forward while being swung at an angle different from the direction of travel. In other words, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) can move with a sharp turning radius together with the towing vehicle 100 . Therefore, the width direction length of the mounting member 322 and the traveling direction length of the plate member 310 and the arm 324 correspond to the minimum turning radius required for the towed vehicle 200 (trailer).

As described above, when the vehicle 50 moves forward, the traveling direction of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer), or more precisely, the direction of the wheels 220, can be different from the traveling direction of the towing vehicle 100. It is possible to move the vehicle 50 with a small turning radius without having a drive source or a steering function.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, how the vehicle 50 moves backward will be described. 3A and 3B are a side view (FIG. 3(a)) and a top view (FIG. 3(b)) of the vehicle 50 in reverse (R). In these figures, the difference from FIG. 2 is that a contact surface 328, which is the rear end surface of an attachment member 322 attached to the rear end surface of the towing vehicle 100, has a plate-shaped attachment attached to the front portion of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer). This is because the contact surface 302, which is the front end face of the member 310, is in contact.

When the two contact surfaces 328 and 302 contact each other, the towed vehicle 100 and the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) face each other, and the direction of travel of the towed vehicle 100 and the direction of travel of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer), that is, the wheels 220 , the driving force of the towing vehicle 100 is transmitted to the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) as a pressing force between the contact surfaces 328 and 302, pushing the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) backward. At this time, since the towed vehicle 100 and the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) face each other, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) accurately guides the traveling direction (reverse direction) of the towed vehicle 100 .

A state in which the vehicle 50 transitions from a stationary state after traveling on a curved road or a state in which the vehicle has moved forward on a curved road to a reversed state will be described with reference to FIG. 4 . FIG. 4(a) is a top view of the vehicle 50 showing a state almost after the start of reverse, and FIG. 4(b) is a top view showing the essential parts of the vehicle 50 after a short time from FIG. 4(a). .

When the vehicle 50 moves forward, as shown in FIG. 3B, the pin member 326 of the traction device 300 is positioned at the front end of the small-diameter portion 304 of the connecting hole 316 formed in the plate member 310. When the vehicle 50 moves from the state to the reverse state, the pin member 326 first moves rearward in the small diameter portion 304, that is, toward the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) side. While the pin member 326 is moving within the small diameter portion 304, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) does not move even if the towing vehicle 100 moves rearward. However, this time is very short and instantaneous.

When the towing vehicle 100 further moves backward, the pin member 326 moves to the large diameter portion 306 of the connecting hole 316, the towing vehicle 100 approaches the towed vehicle 200 (trailer), and finally, at least one of the plate-like members 310 abuts on the abutting surface 328 of the mounting member 322 .

Of course, in the vehicle 50 after going straight on the straight road, the towing vehicle 100 and the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) were traveling in almost the same direction, so even if the vehicle moves backward, the direction does not change. The front end surface of the plate-like member 310 and the contact surface 328 of the mounting member 322 are in front contact with each other as shown in FIG. 4(b).

When the towing vehicle 100 and the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) start to move in different directions, one front corner of the plate member 310 contacts the contact surface 328 of the mounting member 322 as described above. contact (Fig. 4(a)).

When the towing vehicle 100 moves further backward in this state, the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) is pushed toward the towing vehicle 100 centering on the front end surface corner portion by the pressing force of the towing vehicle 100 applied to the front end surface corner portion which is the contact portion. Rotate against. Finally, as shown in FIG. 4(b), the contact surface 302 of the plate-like member 310 contacts the contact surface 328 of the mounting member 322, and the towing vehicle 100 moves straight back on the towed vehicle 200 (trailer). Let

Here, the connecting hole 316 formed in the plate member has a large diameter portion 306 in addition to the small diameter portion 304 which is a small diameter groove, and the small diameter portion 304 and the large diameter portion 306 are connected by a gentle transition portion 308. is due to the following reasons.

Since the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) is designed to be able to turn in a small radius, the traveling direction of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) may differ significantly from the traveling direction of the towing vehicle 100 immediately before moving to the reverse state.

For example, the traveling direction of the towed vehicle 200 (trailer) or the orientation of the wheels 220 may reach 60° with respect to the traveling direction of the towing vehicle 100 . If only the small diameter portion 304 is provided, the driving force of the towing vehicle 100 may concentrate on the pin member 326 from a direction different from the groove direction of the small diameter portion 304, and the pin member 326 may be damaged.

Even if a driving force acts on the pin member 326 from a direction different from the groove direction, a space for escaping in the direction of the driving force is secured to reduce the action of the driving force on the pin member 326 . A gentle transition 308 is also provided to guide the pin member 326 from the large diameter portion 306 to the small diameter portion 304 in a smooth transition from the retracted or initial mounted condition to the forward motion.
As a result, the pin member 326 having substantially the same size as the small diameter portion 304 can be easily fitted into the small diameter portion 304 narrower than the large diameter portion 306 .

As described above, according to this embodiment, the towed vehicle without active steering means is connected to the towing vehicle via the towing device, so that it is possible to travel on public roads. Of course, the vehicle to be towed can be moved straight back to the water's edge or to the delivery destination, and the occurrence of shaking and shaking of the vehicle to be towed can be reduced, thereby improving the positioning accuracy when moving backward.

In general, the towed vehicle is loaded with goods to be delivered, pleasure boats, and various other goods. It is desirable to bring the bed side of the towed vehicle closer to the demand source. According to this embodiment, in the case of unloading, the vehicle to be towed can be accurately positioned at the unloading position by going straight to deliver the goods to the demand source. The same is true for loading.

In the above embodiment, the pin member is inserted through the hole formed in the plate-like member from below, but it goes without saying that the pin may be inserted through the plate-like member from above like a general king pin. stomach.

50 Vehicle 100 Towing vehicle 110 Bed 120 Cabin 132 Front wheel 134 Rear wheel 200 Towed vehicle (trailer) 210 Trailer body 220 Wheel 300 Traction device 302 Contact surface 304 Small diameter portion 306 Large diameter portion 308 Transition portion 310 Plate member 312 Attachment portion 314 Frame portion 316 Connection hole 322 Attachment member 324 Arm , 326... pin member, 326a... tip portion, 328... contact surface

Claims (4)

In a traction device for use by a towing vehicle to tow a towed vehicle,
An arm extending toward the vehicle to be towed is attached to the rear end of the towing vehicle, and a pin member extending upward or downward is provided at the tip of the arm,
The vehicle to be towed includes a plate-shaped member extending forward from the vehicle to be towed,
a rear end surface of an attachment member attached to a rear end surface of the towing vehicle is in contact with a front end surface of the plate-shaped member when the towing vehicle moves backward;
When the towing vehicle moves backward, the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle face each other, and the direction of travel of the towing vehicle and the direction of travel of the towed vehicle match;
A connecting hole into which the pin member can be fitted is formed in the plate-like member, and the connecting hole is an elongated hole extending in the longitudinal direction of the towed vehicle ,
The connection hole is a hole position of the pin member when the towing vehicle moves forward, and includes a small diameter portion having a hole width larger than the diameter of the pin member and a portion closer to the towed vehicle than the small diameter portion. It has a large diameter portion wider than the small diameter portion and a transition portion smoothly transitioning from the small diameter portion to the large diameter portion, and when the towing vehicle moves backward, the pin member moves from the large diameter portion of the hole. A traction device, characterized in that : 2. The towing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the towing vehicle is an automobile or pickup truck. 2. The towing apparatus of claim 1, wherein said towing vehicle is an AGV. A towed vehicle connected to a towing vehicle, characterized in that it comprises the towing device of claim 1 .

Images