JPH10218590A - Industrial vehicle with mast - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an industrial vehicle, such as a forklift truck, which has the same strength and functions as existing industrial vehicles of the same class despite its simpler body structure and fewer number of component parts for its lighter weight and lower manufacturing costs. SOLUTION: An industrial vehicle with a mast at the front of its body involves an outer mast 17, as a part of the mast, for vertically moving a fork 5. The outer mast 17 is fixedly integrated into a body frame 18 including a chassis 8 and a head guard 11, and is used also as a front pillar. The outer mast 17 is preferably inclined backward by a predetermined angle.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an industrial vehicle having a vertical mast at the front of a vehicle body, such as a forklift for cargo handling.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional example of an industrial vehicle provided with a mast, FIG.
00 is shown. In the forklift 100,
A substantially vertical outer mast 1 composed of a pair of right and left column-shaped U-shaped members is pivotally attached to a front portion of the vehicle body frame 2 at the center of a mast support portion 1a formed at a lower end thereof. The tilt cylinder 3 is supported by one end of a tilt cylinder 3 that can be extended and contracted by hydraulic pressure so that it can be tilted back and forth by a small angle. The other end of the tilt cylinder 3 is pivotally attached to a tilt cylinder bracket 2a attached to the vehicle body frame 2.
In the drawing, reference numeral 1b denotes a mast tie beam which is one of the strength members for connecting the left and right columnar members of the outer mast 1 in the lateral direction. Inside the outer mast 1, a pair of left and right vertical members and an inner mast 4 composed of a plurality of strength members for connecting the vertical members in the horizontal direction are slidably guided and supported. A loading fork 5 is attached to 4 via a lift bracket or the like.

A conventional counter-type forklift 10
The vehicle body frame 2 includes a chassis 8 supported by a pair of left and right front wheels 6 and a rear wheel 7, and a pair of left and right columnar members standing upright at a front portion of the vehicle body with a slight rearward inclination from the chassis 8. 9 and a rear pillar 10 composed of a pair of left and right columnar members standing slightly inclined forward from the chassis 8 at the rear of the vehicle body, and a ceiling frame connecting the upper ends of the four front pillars 9 and the rear pillars 10 in total. And a counterweight 12 is attached to the rear end of the chassis 8. In the drawing, reference numeral 13 denotes a driver's seat, and reference numeral 14 denotes a steering handle. The head guard 11 of the conventional forklift 100 shown in FIG.
The four corners are supported by being connected to the upper ends of a total of four front pillars 9 and rear pillars 10, respectively. In another conventional example (not shown), the head guard 11 is integrally formed as an extension of the front pillar 9. In some cases, the upper end of the rear pillar 10 supports the rear end of the head guard 11 or has no rear pillar, and the head guard 11 is supported at the front by only the front pillar 9. .

[0004] Like a conventional counter-type forklift, an industrial vehicle generally provided with a mast at a front portion of a vehicle body is for moving a movable member such as an inner mast with a fork attached thereto in a vertical direction. A mast member such as an outer mast and a front pillar for protecting a driver by supporting a head guard as a part of a body frame are naturally provided separately as independent members. This makes it possible for the mast member to tilt back and forth with respect to the body frame including the front pillar, and when transferring the load on the pallet picked up by the fork, the mast is tilted backward to slightly reduce the center of gravity of the load. By moving the load to the rear and raising the tip of the fork, the load can be supported on the fork and traveled in a stable state where the load is unlikely to collapse.

[0005]

As described above, in the conventional industrial vehicle having a mast, since the mast and the front pillar are generally provided independently of each other, a large force is applied to the mast in various directions. Assuming that the outer mast will work, the outer mast uses two sturdy vertical members and multiple horizontal members connecting them, and independently of that, the front pillar that is part of the body frame is also used To protect the driver from falling objects from the front and above,
It is designed to have great strength by something like a strong column. However, in an industrial vehicle having a conventional mast, although the mast and the front pillar are provided relatively close to the front of the vehicle body,
They are not designed to work together. Since both require high strength, they have a large weight and a complicated structure, so that their proportion in the weight and cost of the whole vehicle is considerably large.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention focuses on the structure of industrial vehicles having a conventional mast and the above-mentioned problems which are contained therein and which are not generally recognized. An industrial vehicle with an improved mast that has a simple body structure, has a remarkably small number of parts, has the same strength and functions as the conventional one, is lightweight, and can be manufactured at low cost. It is intended to provide.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention focuses on the point that in a conventional industrial vehicle having a mast, the mast and the front pillar are provided independently of each other and close to the front of the same vehicle body. The mast also serves as a front pillar, thereby omitting the front pillar and simplifying the structure related to the mast itself to improve the strength against torsional force and the like, while at the same time, the functional restrictions caused by them Therefore, by taking countermeasures, it is intended to provide substantially the same functions as those having both the mast and the front pillar.

More specifically, the present invention relates to an industrial vehicle having a mast at a front portion of a vehicle body, in which an outer mast, which is a part of the mast, is incorporated and fixed as a part of a vehicle body frame, and the outer mast is fixed. Provide industrial vehicles that also use masts as front pillars. The vehicle body frame may include at least an outer mast, a chassis, and a head guard, and may be integrated by being connected thereto. In this case, the outer mast is desirably inclined backward by a predetermined angle.

[0009]

In the industrial vehicle having the mast of the present invention,
Since the outer mast, which is a part of the mast, is incorporated and fixed as a part of the body frame, and the outer mast is also used as a front pillar,
As a result, there is no need to provide a separate front pillar, so that the number of parts is reduced, the structure is simplified, and the weight of the vehicle is reduced. If the target industrial vehicle is one that performs cargo handling work such as a forklift, if the outer mast is tilted backward by a predetermined angle in advance, there is no need to provide a mechanism for tilting the mast. The fork supported movably in the direction and the center of gravity of the cargo on it move rearward when they are lifted, so the overall center of gravity of the whole vehicle also moves rearward, and the balance between the front and rear improves, Driving stability is improved. Also,
The vehicle weight can be further reduced.

[0010]

FIG. 1 shows a counter-type forklift 200 as a first embodiment of the present invention. Also in the embodiment of the present invention, the same reference numerals are given to substantially the same parts as those in the conventional forklift 100 shown in FIG. 3 and described above, and the detailed description is omitted. That is, 4 is an inner mast, 5 is a fork that is tiltably attached to the inner mast 4 via a lift bracket (not shown), 6 is a front wheel, 7 is a rear wheel, 8 is a chassis, 10 is a rear pillar, and 11 is a driver's seat 1.
Reference numeral 3 denotes a head guard that covers the upper part, 12 denotes a counterweight, and 14 denotes a handle.

Forklift 20 as a first embodiment
The main feature of O is that the front pillar is omitted and the generally vertical outer mast 15 is fixedly attached to the front of the chassis 8 by rigid means such as welding or screwing.
However, it also serves as a front pillar at the same time. Therefore, the front end of the head guard 11 is
Of the forklift 200
Body frame 16 of chassis 8, outer mast 1
5, a rear pillar 10 and a head guard 11.

In the first embodiment of the present invention, as a result of the outer mast 15 being integrated with the body frame 16,
Since the mast 15 also serves as the front pillar,
Since there is no need to provide a front pillar separately and since the outer mast 15 is fixed so as not to tilt, not only important parts such as the tilt cylinder 3 and the tilt cylinder bracket 2a in the conventional forklift 100 but also a mast Since the beam 1b and the like are not required, the number of parts can be reduced by that amount, and the weight and cost can be greatly reduced. The outer mast 15 shown in FIG. 1 supports the head guard 11 instead of the front pillar 9 shown in FIG. 3 which is generally formed of a columnar member, so that the strength of the body frame 16 including the head guard 11 is reduced. There is also the advantage of a significant increase.

The forklift 20 of the first embodiment
At 0, since the outer mast 15 is a fixed member and does not tilt, for the purpose of supporting a load on a fork in a stable state unlike a conventional forklift 100 in which the load is unlikely to collapse, By tilting the outer mast 1 backward, the tip of the fork 5 cannot be lifted, but instead, for example, as is performed in a conventional reach type forklift, the inner mast 4 and the fork 5 If the fork 5 is tiltably supported by incorporating a tilt mechanism into a lift bracket provided therebetween, the fork 5 can be tilted with respect to the outer mast 15 and the inner mast 4. Also, in the forklift 200 of the first embodiment, this is achieved by relatively simple means. Get. In other respects, the forklift 200 of the first embodiment has the same function as the conventional counter-type forklift 100.

The forklift 20 of the first embodiment
At 0, the front pillar as a separate body from the outer mast 15 is not provided, so that a part of the front view is not obstructed by the front pillar, and there is an additional effect that the driver can easily drive. is there.

FIG. 2 shows a forklift 300 as a second embodiment of the present invention. Also in the forklift 300 of the second embodiment, the front pillar is omitted as in the case of the forklift 200 of the first embodiment, and the outer mast 17 is fixed to the front portion of the chassis 8 by a rigid means such as welding or screwing. Although the outer mast 17 is fixedly attached and the outer mast 17 is a part of the body frame 18 and the outer mast 17 also functions as a front pillar at the same time, the forklift 300 of the second embodiment has the following features. And the outer mast 17 is fixed to the chassis 8 in a state of being inclined backward.

According to the forklift 300 of the second embodiment, a fork 5 carrying a load (not shown) is provided so that the forklift 5 can easily travel with the load supported by the fork 5.
Is lifted upward as shown by the broken line in FIG.
Since the outer mast 17 is inclined backward from the beginning, the load and the center of gravity G of the fork 5 move to the position G 'at the rear by the distance d. As a result, the overall center of gravity of the vehicle body and the load is moved rearward, and the balance between the front and rear weights is improved. As a result, the running stability is increased as compared with vehicles of the same class.

Needless to say, in the forklift 300 of the second embodiment, since the outer mast 17 is fixed in a state of being inclined backward from the beginning, the outer mast 17 is inclined backward as in the conventional forklift 100 shown in FIG. There is no need to provide the mast support portion 1a, the tilt cylinder 3, the tilt cylinder bracket 2a, and the like for performing this, and the overall structure is extremely simple. In particular, in the case of a small forklift having a small lift (for example, 2000 mm or less), the weight of the counterweight 12 and the body frame 18 can be reduced by implementing the means of the second embodiment.

[0018]

According to the present invention, the structure of the vehicle body is simpler than that of a conventional industrial vehicle of the same class, the number of parts is remarkably small, and the strength and the function are the same as those of the conventional industrial vehicle. The present invention provides an industrial vehicle that is lightweight and can be manufactured at low cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a forklift as a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a forklift as a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a conventional forklift.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Outer mast (conventional example) 1a ... Mast support part 2 ... Body frame 3 ... Tilt cylinder 5 ... Fork 8 ... Chassis 9 ... Front pillar 11 ... Head guard 12 ... Counterweight 15 ... Outer mast of the first embodiment 16 ... Body frame 17 of the first embodiment 17 Outer mast of the second embodiment 18 Body frame of the second embodiment 100 Conventional forklift 200 Forklift 300 of the first embodiment 300 Forklift of the second embodiment

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An industrial vehicle having a mast at a front portion of a vehicle body, wherein an outer mast which is a part of the mast is incorporated and fixed as a part of a vehicle body frame, and
An industrial vehicle having a mast, wherein the outer mast is also used as a front pillar. 2. The mast according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle body frame includes at least the outer mast, a chassis, and a head guard, and is integrated by being connected thereto. Having industrial vehicles. 3. The industrial vehicle having a mast according to claim 1, wherein the outer mast is inclined backward by a predetermined backward inclination angle.