WO1995011810A1 - Hitching device - Google Patents

Abstract

A hitching device comprises a main body portion including an upright (12), a beam (14) extending perpendiculary to the upright (12) and a pair of parallel spaced apart plates (16) to which both the upright (12) and beam (14) are connected. A hand operated winch (24) having a handle (25) is bolted to an end of the upright (12) and is operatively connected to a hook (20) by a chain (26). A pair of spaced apart and facing flanges (27) extend from the sides of the upright (12) at a location so as to receive an upper portion of the hook (20) when the hook (20) is in a hitched position (shown in phantom). Spaced apart legs (28) are provided on the plates (16) and form a surface on which a towing lug (22) can be supported when coupled to the hook (20). Each leg (28) includes an adjoining ramp (30). A pair of rollers (34, 38) are demountably and rotatably connected between the plate (16) beneath the legs (28). When the towing lug (22) is coupled to the hook (20) and the winch (24) operated to wind in the hook (20), the hook (20) is guided by the rollers (34, 38) so as to drag or pull the towing lug (22) onto the legs (28) thereby supporting the towing lug (22). The towing lug (22) is effectively captured or entrapped between the hook (20), upright (12), flanges (27) and legs (28).

Description

HITCHING DEVICE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a hitching device and, in particular, but not exclusively, to a hitching device for hitching a towed vehicle to a towing vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known to couple vehicles together, particularly for towing, by use of a tow-bar and a tow-ball connected to one vehicle (the towing vehicle) and a tow- ball coupling member connected to the other vehicle (the towed vehicle) . This arrangement for vehicle coupling is commonly used for example, in coupling trailers or caravans to motor cars, and farm equipment such as grain silos and boom sprays to tractors.

When using this arrangement, the towing vehicle must be manoeuvred into a position so that the tow bar is as close as possible to the vehicle to be towed. The vehicle to be towed is then physically manoeuvred by a combination of lifting and pulling so as to engage the tow- ball coupling member on the tow-ball.

Except in cases where the vehicle to be towed is light in weight or at least the weight of the vehicle and/or load carried thereon is evenly distributed, it is often very difficult if not impossible for a single person to manoeuvre the vehicle to be towed so as to engage the tow-ball coupling member on the tow-ball. This problem may be compounded in circumstances where a wheel of the vehicle to be towed is located in a rut in the ground which is a distinct possibility in agricultural applications.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a hitching device which allows the easy hitching of towed vehicles . According to the invention there is provided a hitching device for hitching a first vehicle to a second vehicle, said hitching device adapted for connection to said second vehicle and comprising: a main body portion; a winch attached to said main body portion; coupling means for coupling to a towing lug attached to said first vehicle, said winch operatively connected to said coupling means; guiding means coupled to said main body portion for guiding said coupling means and towing lug when said winch is operated to wind in said coupling means; whereby, in use, when said coupling means is coupled to said towing lug and said winch operated to wind in said coupling means, said guiding means can guide said coupling means to a hitched position in which said towing lug is supported on said main body portion and said second vehicle hitched to said first vehicle.

Preferably said guiding means comprises an arcuate surface over which said coupling means travels for guiding said towing lug onto said main body portion.

Preferably said first arcuate surface comprises the circumferential surface of a first roller, said roller adapted for rotation about its central axis . Preferably said first roller is the first of first and second spaced apart rollers located side by side and between which a line connecting said coupling means to said winch passes.

Preferably said first roller is demountably connected to said hitching device, whereby, in use, said first roller can be removed from said hitching device to release said coupling from said hitched position.

Preferably said main body portion includes a land disposed above said guiding means on which said towing lug can be supported when said coupling means is in said hitched position. Preferably said land comprises two spaced apart legs between which said coupling means can pass when travelling towards said hitched position.

Preferably said land comprises a ramp portion adjoining said legs between which said coupling means initially passes when travelling in a direction toward said hitched position, said ramp portion being inclined upwardly in said direction of travel.

Preferably said main body portion is configured so that in said hitched position said coupling means bears against said main body portion, whereby a towing lug coupled to said coupling means is captured or entrapped between said coupling means and said main body portion.

Preferably said main body portion further includes an upright extending from adjacent said land against which said coupling means bears when in said hitched position to capture or entrap a coupled towing lug.

Preferably said hitching device further comprises releasable locking means for locking said coupling means in said hitched position.

Preferably said releasable locking means comprises a pair of spaced apart and facing flanges extending from opposite sides of said upright and disposed so that a portion of said coupling means is located between said flanges when in said hitched position, and a releasable pin adapted to pass through said flanges at a location to prevent said portion of said coupling means from moving from out between said flanges.

In an alternate configuration of the hitching device, the main body portion includes first and second parts which are vertically movable relative to each other, wherein said winch is attached to said first part and said guiding means is coupled to said second part, whereby, in use, when said coupling means is in said hitched position, winding of said winch can cause said first part to move relative to said second part so that said towing lug can be raised or lowered. Preferably said first part and second part are slidably coupled together.

Preferably said hitching device further comprises means for releasably locking said first part to said second part to prevent relative vertical movement between said first part and second part.

Preferably said means for releasably locking said first part and said second part is adapted to allow said first and second parts to be locked at a plurality of different positions with respect to each other.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a side view of the hitching device;

Figure 2 is a front view of the device along line A-A shown in Figure 1; and,

Figure 3 is a part section view from the side of a second embodiment of the hitching device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED DRAWINGS

As shown in the accompanying drawings, a hitching device 10 comprises a main body portion including an upright 12, a beam 14 extending perpendicularly to the upright 12 and a pair of parallel spaced apart plates 16 to which both upright 12 and beam 14 are connected. A hole 18 is formed through the beam 14 to facilitate connection of the hitching device 10 to a tow bar of a towing vehicle (not shown) .

In order to hitch a towed vehicle (not shown) to the towing vehicle, the hitching device 10 is provided with a coupling means in the form of hook 20 for coupling to a towing lug 22 of the towed vehicle. Hand operated winch 24 of conventional construction having a handle 25 is bolted to an end of upright 12 distant plates 16 and is operatively connected to the hook 20 by a line in the form of a chain 26 .

A pair of spaced apart and facing flanges 27 extend from the sides of upright 12 at a location so as to receive an upper portion of the hook 20 when the hook is in a hitched position (shown in phantom in Figure 1) . The flanges 27 are mutually divergent so that the distance between the free ends of the flanges is greater than that of their respective opposite ends which are attached to the upright 12. A hole is formed in each of the flanges 27 at a location so that a releasable locking pin 29 passing therethrough can secure the hook 20 in the hitched position.

A land taking the form of spaced apart legs 28 is provided on the plates 16 and forms a surface on which the towing lug 22 is supported when the towed vehicle is hitched to the towing vehicle. Each leg 28 is connected with and extends for a portion of the length of an upper edge of each plate 16. Each leg 28 includes an adjoining ramp portion 30. The hook 20 initially passes between the ramp portions 30 when travelling in a direction H toward a hitched position. Each ramp portion 30 is inclined upwardly in the direction of travel H.

The upright 12, flanges 27 and land 28 cooperate to engage the hook 20. The hook can be secured in the first position by the releasable locking pin 29.

Guiding means in the form of an arcuate surface 32 is provided for guiding the travel of the hook 20 and chain 26 in a manner so that the towing lug 22 when engaged by the hook 20 can be dragged or pulled by the hook 20 onto and over the land 28 when the winch 24 is operated to wind in the hook 20. The arcuate surface 32, comprises the circumferential surface of a first roller 34 which is rotatably connected about its central axis to and between the plates 16. The central axis of roller 34 coincides with the centre of curvature of the arcuate surface 32 about which the hook 20 pivots while in contact with the roller 32 as it moves in direction H toward the hitched position. During this movement, the hook 20 drags or pulls the lug 22 up ramp 30 and onto legs 28. Roller 34 is demountably and rotatably connected between plates 16 by a removable pin 36 extending along its central longitudinal axis.

A second roller 38 is located along side and spaced from the first roller 34. The second roller 38 is also demountably and rotatably connected to the plates 16 by a removable pin 40 extending along its central axis. The pin 40 is retained in the roller 38 by an R pin 42. Rollers 34 and 38 are spaced by a distance sufficient to allow the links of chain 26 to pass therebetween. An example of ^'the operation of the hitching device 10 will now be described with reference to an agricultural application. In this application, the hitching device 10 is connected to a tow bar of a tractor

(not shown) by passing a pin (not shown) through holes 18 and lugs or other attachment means on the tow-bar of the tractor. In the case where the hook 20 is in the hitched position, in order to use the hitching device 10, the hook 20 must first be released. This is done by removing locking pin 29 and releasing a pawl (not shown) of the winch 24 to release any tension -that may be in the chain 26. The hook 20 can then be pulled out and connected onto a towing lug 22 of, for example, a grain silo. If for some reason the hook 20 is wedged in the hitched position it can be released by removing pin 36 so as to decouple roller 34. The hook 20 will then drop by its own weight and release itself from the hitched position. Thereafter, the roller 34 can be recoupled to the hitching device 10.

With the hook 20 coupled to the towing lug 22, the winch 24 can now be operated to wind in the hook 20. In the case where the grain silo to be towed has a single axle only and the weight distribution of the silo about the axle is uneven, the towing lug will either be resting on the ground (if there is more weight in front of the axle then behind) or elevated up in the air (if there is more weight behind the axle than in front) . In either case, winding in of the hook 20 will result in a compound movement with the silo being pivoted about its axle so that the towing lug 22 is placed in a substantially horizontal plane and the silo pulled toward the hitching device 10. When the hook 20 contacts the surface 32 of roller 34, it pivots or moves about the central axis of the roller 34 and effectively drags the towing lug 22 up ramp 30 and onto legs 38. When in the hitched position the hook 20 bears against upright 12 and has its upper portion received between flanges 27. This effectively closes the hook 20 and captures or entraps the lug 22 which now rests on legs 28.

The tension in chain 26 may be sufficient to maintain the hook 20 in the hitched position when the tractor is towing the silo. However, in order to positively lock the hook 20 in place, locking pin 29 is passed through the flanges 27. Once the silo has been towed to a desired location, it can then be decoupled by removing the locking pin 29 and releasing a pawl on the winch 24. Thereafter, if physically possible, the silo can be pushed away from the towing tractor which will effectively pull the hook 20 away from the hitched position allowing the hook to be disengaged from the lug 22. Alternatively, the towing tractor can be driven a short distance forward which will achieve the same effect. Again if for some reason the hook 20 becomes wedged, it can be positively released by decoupling roller 34.

A second embodiment of the hitching device 10 will now be described with reference to Figure 3 in which the same reference numbers refer to the same features as illustrated and described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. The main difference between the embodiments is that in the second embodiment, the main body portion of the latching device 10 is made of two separate parts 44 and 46 which are vertically movable relative to each other. The first part 44 includes an upright 48 attached at the end of beam 14. Winch 24 is attached to the end of upright 48 opposite the beam 14. The second part 46 includes an elongate sleeve 50 which is mounted over and can slide along upright 48. The plates 16 and flanges 27 are connected to the sleeve 50. Rollers 34 and 48 are attached between plates 46 in the same manner as described hereinbefore. A releasable locking means in the form of a spring loaded pin 52 is attached to sleeve 50 for releasably locking the upright 48 and sleeve 50 against relative vertical movement. A series of holes 54 is formed along the length of upright 48 through which spring loaded pin 52 can pass to allow the upright 48 to be locked to the sleeve 50 at a plurality of different positions. Slot 56 is cut out of sleeve 50 at a side adjacent beam 14 to accommodate the beam 14 when the sleeve 50 travels in a downward direction.

The operation of this embodiment of the hitching device insofar as hitching and releasing a towing lug 22 is concerned, it is identical to that for the first embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2. However, when the hook 20 is pulled into the hitching position and the spring loaded pin 52 released to allow relative movement of upright 48 and post 50, further winding in of the winch 24 will raise the second part 46 thereby raising the height of the towing lug 22. Once a desired height is reached, the spring loaded pin 52 can be operated to engage the nearest one of holes 54 to lock sleeve 50 relative to upright 48. Alternatively, when in the hitched position, the winch can be unwound thereby lowering the second part 46 and thus effectively lowering the height of the towing lug 22. Again when the desired height is reached, pin 52 can be operated to engage the nearest whole 54 to prevent further relative movement of the first and second parts 44 and 46.

By virtue of this embodiment, the level of the towing lug and thus the disposition of the vehicle being towed can be varied to the optimum for any particular application.

Now that embodiments of the invention has been described in detail it will be apparent that it enjoys numerous advantages over the prior art. In particular, there is no need to manoeuvre the towing vehicle to a precise location in relation to the vehicle to be towed in order to achieve hitching. Hitching can be easily achieved notwithstanding the distance between the towing vehicle and the towed vehicle. In addition, irrespective of the weight distribution of the towed vehicle, the lug 22 will always be dragged by the hook 20 onto land 28. There is no possibility of the lug 22 being caught beneath the plates 16. Furthermore, a single person will always be able to hitch the towed vehicle by virtue of the characteristics of the hitching device 10 even if wheels of the towed vehicle are located in a rut and irrespective of the weight of the towed vehicle.

It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous modifications and variations can be made to the hitching device 10 without departing from the basic inventive concepts. For example, the winch 24 while shown as being manually operated can be electrically or otherwise powered. Furthermore, rollers 34 and 38 can be replaced by static arcuate or otherwise profiled surfaces which guide the travel of the chain 26 and hook 20. In addition, the hook 20 can be made of other shapes and configurations the only limitation being that it is able to engage a towing lug 22. For example, the end of the hook 20 opposite that attached to the chain 26 can be turned upwardly so that when in the hitched position the upturned portion extends parallel to and bears against the upright 12. In this variation, the hook 20 is in a shape similar to that of the Greek letter omega (upper case) . All such variations and modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the present invention the nature of which is to be determined from the foregoing description.

Claims

THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:-

1. A hitching device for hitching a first vehicle to a second vehicle, said hitching device adapted for connection to said second vehicle and comprising: a main body portion; a winch attached to said main body portion; coupling means for coupling to a towing lug attached to said first vehicle, said winch operatively connected to said coupling means; guiding means coupled to said main body portion for guiding said coupling means and towing lug when said winch is operated to wind in said coupling means; whereby, in use, when said coupling means is coupled to said towing lug and said winch operated to wind in said coupling means, said guiding means can guide said coupling means to a hitched position in which said towing lug is supported on said main body portion and said second vehicle hitched to said first vehicle.

2. A hitching device according to claim 1, wherein said guiding means comprises an arcuate surface over which said coupling means travels for guiding said towing lug onto said main body portion.

3. A hitching device according to claim 2, wherein said first arcuate surface comprises the circumferential surface of a first roller, said roller adapted for rotation about its central axis.

4. A hitching device according to claim 3, wherein said first roller is the first of first and second spaced apart rollers located side by side and between which a line connecting said coupling means to said winch passes .

5. A hitching device according to claim 4, wherein said first roller is demountably connected to said hitching device, whereby, in use, said first roller can be removed from said hitching device to release said coupling from said hitched position.

6. A hitching device according to claim 1, wherein said main body portion includes a land disposed above said guiding means on which said towing lug can be supported when said coupling means is in said hitched position.

7. A hitching device according to claim 6, wherein said land comprises two spaced apart legs between which said coupling means can pass when travelling towards said hitched position.

8. A hitching device according to claim 7, wherein said land comprises a ramp portion adjoining said legs between which said coupling means initially passes when travelling in a direction toward said hitched position, said ramp portion being inclined upwardly in said direction of travel.

9. A hitching device according to claim 1, wherein said main body portion is configured so that in said hitched position said coupling means bears against said main body portion, whereby a towing lug coupled to said coupling means is captured or entrapped between said coupling means and said main body portion.

10. A hitching device according to claim 9, wherein said main body portion further includes an upright against which said coupling means bears when in said hitched position to capture or entrap a coupled towing lug.

11. A hitching device according to claim 10, wherein said hitching device further comprises releasable locking means for locking said coupling means in said hitched position.

12. A hitching device according to claim 11, wherein said releasable locking means comprises a pair of spaced apart and facing flanges extending from opposite sides of said upright and disposed so that a portion of said coupling means is located between said flanges when in said hitched position, and a releasable pin adapted to pass through said flanges at a location to prevent said portion of said coupling means from moving from out between said flanges.

13. A hitching device according to claim 1, wherein said main body portion includes first and second parts which are vertically moveable relative to each other, wherein said winch is attached to said first part and said grading means is coupled to said second part, whereby, in use, when said coupling means is in said hitched position, winding of said winch can cause said first part to move relative to said second part so that said towing lug to be raised or lowered.

14. A hitching device according to claim 13, wherein said first part and said second part are slidably coupled together.

15. A hitching device according to claim 14, further comprising means for releasably locking said first part to said second part to prevent relative vertical movement between said first part and second part.

16. A hitching device according to claim 15, wherein said means for releasably locking said first part and second part is adapted to allow said first part and second part to be locked at a plurality of different positions with respect to each other.