Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60P—VEHICLES ADAPTED FOR LOAD TRANSPORTATION OR TO TRANSPORT, TO CARRY, OR TO COMPRISE SPECIAL LOADS OR OBJECTS
  • B60P3/00—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects
  • B60P3/06—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects for carrying vehicles
  • B60P3/066—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects for carrying vehicles specially adapted for carrying bulky agricultural material, e.g. combines

Definitions

• the US-3142394 patent publication shows a transporter bed design where part of the bed acts as a ramp when loading or unloading.
• This type of solution may be effective when transporting dry goods or similar freight.
• it is expensive and is not adapted to the transportation of forest machinery.
• the solution described in the publication requires a separate hydraulic system in order to operate.
• the solution does not take into account the demands set by terrain configuration to bring down the center of gravity of the combined forest machine and transportation bed. to the greatest extent, and it does not take advantage of the high manoeuvrability of a forest machine during a loading or unloading stage.
• the heavy weight of forest machinery sets strict requirements to the strength of the structures, and yet the dead weight of a transporter bed should be minimised to facilitate operations under off-road conditions.
• the transporter bed design described in the US-3675800 patent publication is adapted to the transportion of lighter vehicles, such as automobiles, and will be useful when the vehicle carrying or drawing the transporter bed already has a hydraulic system.
• the absence of a lock sets high demands on the hydraulic system supporting the back end of the transportation bed.
• the design does not take into account off-road operation of the transport vehicle and of the forest machine thereon, nor does it take advantage of the manoeuvrability of the forest machine during the loading and unloading stages.
• the linkaged design presented in the EP-0040542 patent publication is best adapted to conditions where loading may take place from the side of the transporter bed, or the opportunity exists to detach the trailer and all its attachments from the tractor during the loading and unloading stages.
• the most suitable domains of application seem to be the transport of caterpillar vehicles.
• the solution presented in this invention avoids the disadvantages of the solutions presented earlier. It permits safe operation without any fear of the vehicle front end rising during a loading operation and the loading ramp can be easily used even in difficult terrain.
• the loading ramp forms part of the transporter bed during the transport stage, thereby minimising the increase in transporter bed weight.
• the design of the transporter bed reduces significantly the torque applied to the transporter bed during loading, when the weight of the vehicle being driven onto the bed bears strongly against the back end of the bed. This design permits full use of the terrain handling characteristics of forest machinery, thereby arriving at a light and economical solution extremely well adapted to the conveyance in all types of terrain of the transporter bed and any vehicle thereon.
• the bellows used to power the raisable transporter bed extension are compatible with the air brake systems found on transport vehicles.
• the design of the ramp lock becomes extremely safe.
• the position of the loading ramp slopes slightly upwards, thereby increasing manoeuvrability on off-road terrain and providing additional security, as the upwards slope of the ramp locks the vehicle carried onto the transporter bed.
• the present design offers total weight savings compared to solutions using removable or raisable loading ramps.
• Figures 1 and 2 describe one particular solution based on the present invention, where Figure 1 shows a four-axle vehicle fitted for the transport of forest machinery in driving and transport position, and where Figure 2 displays the operating mechanism of the loading ramp.
• the transportation bed of the vehicle should be designed so that the wheels or tracks of the forest machine are located on both sides of the transport vehicle frame and explicitly below the top level of the vehicle frame, indications 1 and 7 on Figure 1.
• the higher sections 3 and 4 of the bed required by the transport vehicle wheels will not cause any difficulties when loading forest machinery, since they are easier to negotiate than normal terrain obstacles, and they fit within the spacings between the forest machine wheels or tracks. Under certain circumstances the elevation 3 will receive the load holder of the forest machine, under other circumstances the load holder will rest against the loading ramp 2.
• the rear end of the transporter bed consists of a fixed section 7 so dimensioned that the center of gravity of the front wheels of a forest machine driven unto the transporter bed will be located ahead of the line A-A, thereby reducing to a minimum the stresses applied to the locking mechanism during transport, and of a rotating section 2 functioning as loading ramp.
• the rotating section 2 functioning as loading ramp slopes slightly upwards relative to the fixed section 7, thereby significantly improving the terrain manoeuvrability characteristics of the transport vehicle and simultaneously locking the wheels of the forest machine in transport position.
• this kind of design allows an extremely low location of the center of gravity of the vehicle being transported, which in turn makes the transport vehicle more manoeuvrable and utilisable under difficult conditions.
• the transporter bed is commonly fitted with a strong screen 5.
• Figure 2 shows the same vehicle in loading or unloading configuration.
• the bed platform 2 is connected through a pivot 2 to the fixed structure of the vehicle transporter bed and frame.
• the platform is designed to rotate until it rests against the ground and thereby provides a ramp on which forest machinery may be driven unto the transportation bed.
• the rotating platform 2 of the bed is designed to withstand the stresses caused by loading or unloading vehicles when it rests against the ground, and to simultaneously provide a sturdy support to the transportation bed and to the transport vehicle.
• the bellows 9 bear against a beam 10 permanently located at the top side of the vehicle frame.
• a valve is opened which lets compressed air flow to the bellows 9.
• the control valves are connected so as to prevent motion of the transport vehicle whenever the platform is not locked in transport position, and also to prevent loss of air pressure in the brake circuits should there be a loss of air pressure in the pneumatic system of the platform.
• a solution in accordance with this invention may also be easily adapted to situations where the transportation bed has been designed self-supporting.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Agronomy & Crop Science (AREA)
• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Transportation (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Vehicle Body Suspensions (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=8529740

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Cited By (1)

Citations (5)

• 1990
  • 1990-01-19 FI FI900305A patent/FI97039C/fi not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1990-12-28 WO PCT/FI1990/000316 patent/WO1991010578A1/en unknown

Patent Citations (5)

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