WO2004001138A1

WO2004001138A1 - Compact, high-tipping, self-propelled road sweeper

Info

Publication number: WO2004001138A1
Application number: PCT/IT2002/000415
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dario Bussolotti
Original assignee: Unieco Costruzioni Meccaniche Srl
Priority date: 2002-06-25
Filing date: 2002-06-25
Publication date: 2003-12-31
Also published as: AU2002317489A1

Abstract

The self-propelled road sweeper comprises: a chassis (2), a drive unit (7), a hydraulic unit for traction and movement control, one or more collecting devices furnished with a brush or brushes (3) and at least one inlet close to the ground for aspirating the rubbish into a collecting bin (5, 6) that is tipped when emptying by means of a hoisting and tipping mechanism (8, 9) of said bin; and has said hoisting and tipping mechanism consisting of at least two telescopic devices (9, 10, 11) with travel limited (25, 26) to an equal amount and in a direction vertical, sub-vertical or inclined direction in association, each one, with the said two telescopic devices (9, 10, 11). Furthermore, it has a device (17) for blocking the telescopic movement at its maximum extension, advantageously interlocked only with the rotation phase governing the tipping of the bin (5) and connected mechanically by means of relay levers (28, 29, 30) to the rotation of the bin (5).

Description

COMPACT, HIGH-TIPPING, SELF-PROPELLED ROAD SWEEPER

DESCRIPTION

Field of application

The invention concerns: a self-propelled road sweeper, that is, a land vehicle equipped with devices for collecting and aspirating rubbish, paper waste, leaves and so on littering the surface of roads, squares and open spaces, and with a bin for collecting and subsequent dumping; furthermore, said road sweeper is of modest dimensions in relation to the load capacity of said bin and offers easy dumping of the rubbish collected thanks to the bin's height of tip, which is at least equal to that of the skips for collection and/or disposal whether permanently located or carried on lorries.

Prior art

Prior art comprises known road sweepers with a tipping bin connected at the rear by means of a pair of pins on a horizontal axis so as to allow the bin to be tipped at the desired height.

Furthermore, the height necessary for the dumping of the rubbish collected is readily attained in the case of road sweepers of considerable size, while in the case of compact machines, extremely useful in that they enable rubbish to be collected in places of difficult access. The required height is not attained or, if it is, it is achieved with parallelogram mechanisms or hoists that markedly reduce the rubbish- collecting capacity of the bin.

Thus, prior art does not comprise compact, self-propelled road sweepers that allow for the contemporaneous high-level off-loading of the rubbish collected and its dumping directly into the skip; also, said road sweepers cannot have a high-capacity collecting bin, said capacity being limited by the eventual mechanism used to raise the bin to the desired height.

Such prior art may be subject to considerable improvement with a view to the possibility of constructing a road sweeper which retains its modest dimensions while enabling the rubbish to be off-loaded from the collection bin at the requisite height and be dumped directly into the skip for collection and/or disposal, whether permanently located or carried on a lorry, and which affords a capacity comparable to that available on the vehicle.

Summary of the invention

From the foregoing emerges the need to resolve the technical problem of inventing a conformation of the off-loading mechanism of the rubbish collecting bin such as to ensure compact size, high-level offloading and also high load capacity of said bin.

The invention resolves said technical problem by adopting a self- propelled road sweeper comprising: a chassis, a drive unit, a hydraulic unit for traction and movement control, one or more devices with a brush or brushes and at least one inlet close to the ground for aspirating the rubbish into a collecting bin that is tipped when emptying, by means of a hoisting and tipping mechanism of said bin, characterised in that said hoisting and tipping mechanism is constituted by at least two telescopic devices with travel limited to an equal amount and in a direction vertical, sub-vertical or inclined with respect to the vertical, for the purpose of raising up the tipping pin of said bin.

Adopting also, in a further preferred embodiment, a self-propelled road sweeper having at least one pair of hydraulic actuating cylinders connected to said connecting bin and to a fixed element or directly to the chassis so as to constitute a parallelogram extensible in a direction vertical, sub-vertical or inclined in association, each one, with the two telescopic devices.

Adopting also, in a further form of embodiment, said telescopic devices set flush with the rear panel of the collecting bin: said tipping pin being located transversally to the road sweeper in its rear section.

Adopting also, in a further preferred form of embodiment, said telescopic devices consisting each of two guides, one fixed to the chassis of the road sweeper and one upwardly mobile with said collecting bin; in addition, at the points of maximum concentration of stress in said telescopic device or guides, one or more anti-friction elements.

Adopting also, in a further form of embodiment, the telescopic device or guides with prismatic conformation, advantageously, with rectangular section and the wider side in line with the prevalent direction of stress.

Adopting also, in a further form of embodiment, in the proximity of said hydraulic actuating cylinders for hoisting and tipping the bin, at least one device to contain any lateral give of the cylinders as a safety device.

Adopting also, in a further preferred form of embodiment, said device blocking the telescopic movement at its maximum extension being interlocked only with the rotation phase governing the tipping of the bin; furthermore, said locking device connected mechanically by means of relay levers to the rotation of the bin.

Adopting also, in a further preferred form of embodiment, to constitute the locking device, a transverse cursor, on the telescopic device or guides, sliding with the mobile telescopic section and which engages with a slot in the fixed telescopic section; said locking device is connected with the tipping movement of the bin by means of connecting organs located inside the telescopic device.

Brief description of the drawings

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated, purely by way of example, in the eight tables of drawings attached in which: Figure 1 is the side view of the road sweeper according to the invention with the collecting bin in initial position; Figure 2 is the side view of the road sweeper of the previous Figure with the collecting bin in the position of maximum height for off-loading the rubbish; Figure 3 is the rear view of the road sweeper showing the transverse width of the mechanism and of the collecting bin; Figures 4 to 9 are side views of the collecting bin and of the hoisting and tipping mechanism in various intermediate positions; Figure 10 is an enlarged lateral view of the mechanism and of the collecting bin in initial position; Figure 11 is the lateral view analogous to the previous one, but with the hoisting and tipping mechanism in the position of locking of the telescopic arms engaged; Figure 12 is the enlarged view of the previous Figure only of the area of the tipping pin of the bin; Figure 13 is the enlarged view of the previous Figure 11 only of the area of the locking mechanism of the telescopic extension.

Detailed description

Figure 1 shows the road sweeper 1 comprising a chassis 2 on which are mounted the organs 3, known in the art for the collection of rubbish, an apparatus 4 for aspirating the air from the inside of the collection bin 5 which discharges said rubbish into the bin by means of an inclined tube 6 to facilitate the accumulation of said rubbish on the floor of the bin.

The Figure also shows the drive unit 7, mounted to the rear of said bin, and the mechanism 8 for hoisting and tipping the collecting bin 5; said mechanism consists of a pair of inclined telescopic guides 9, comprising a fixed guide 10 and a mobile guide 11 at the upper extremity of which there is the horizontal pin 12 for rotating the bin 5 prior to off-loading.

A hydraulic cylinder 13, one for each of the two guides 9, is coupled at its lower extremity to a horizontal pin 14 connected to the fixed guide 10 and, at its upper extremity, to an analogous horizontal pin 15 connected to the bin 5, advantageously in the reinforced zone 16, in the vicinity of said horizontal pin 12 for the rotation of said bin.

Said guides, advantageously of prismatic section are furnished with an extension-locking mechanism 17 governed by the angular position of the bin 5 during off-loading; finally, a restraint 18 is situated on the opposite side, in the oscillation of said hydraulic actuating cylinder in relation to said corresponding guide 9, to contain any possible give during its extension: on the other three sides there are the side of the bin 5, the bracket 19 supporting said restraint and, on the third side, the telescopic guide itself; said restraint and bracket are located in an intermediate position with respect to the maximum extension of said hydraulic actuating cylinder 13.

Figure 1 also shows the front cover 20, carrying the suction apparatus 4, and the rear cover 21 coupled to and rotating on the horizontal pin 22, located on said bin 5, but very close to said horizontal pin 12, as well as being limited in the opening rotation of said cover 21, governed by an apposite pair of hydraulic actuating cylinders, not shown; said covers, when closed, make the collecting bin 5 airtight for the aspiration of the rubbish, by vacuum effect, through the inclined tube 6.

Figures 2 to 9 show the same elements referred to above in different reciprocal positions depending on the movement of said mechanism 8 for hoisting and tipping the collecting bin 5.

Figure 10, on the other hand, shows clearly the parts constituting said guides 9 and said locking mechanism 17.

The mobile guide 11 has at its lower extremity 23 pads 24 in antifriction material to withstand the powerful thrust generated in the extension of the same inside the fixed guide 10; similarly, at the upper extremity 25 of said fixed guide there are identical anti-friction pads on the back of said guide 10, together with the end-stops 26 in said mobile guide that prevent said mobile guide from sliding out of the fixed guide.

In said lower extremity 23 there is also a cursor 27 transverse to the axis of said guides 9, governed in its movement by the relay lever 28 and by the rod 29 connecting with the pin 30, located in the vicinity of said horizontal pin 12, connected and mobile with the angular position of said collecting bin 5.

Said transverse cursor, with the extension motion of said guide 9 and with the consequent retroactive motion of the connecting rod 29 and of the relay lever 28, engages, only when the extension travel of the guides is complete, with the slot 31, present in the front of said fixed guide 10 at a height corresponding with the said complete extension travel of the mobile guide 11. Said relay lever 28 and connecting rod 29 are located inside said mobile guide 11.

The operation of the novel self-propelled road sweeper is as follows.

Having completed the job of gathering the rubbish, the operator drives the road sweeper to the rubbish off-loading point. Once in the correct position for off-loading, the operator alights and operates the hydraulic cylinders 13 to actuate hoisting; the position of said cylinders, the centre of gravity of the collecting bin 5 and the inclination of said telescopic guides 9 allow the bin to be hoisted in the direction of said guides, as is seen in Figures 3 to 9, to the point of maximum extension, which corresponds to the height of off-loading.

Continuing in the extension of said actuating cylinders, the guides 11 cannot extend beyond the height reached because of the end- stops 26 blocking the travel of said mobile guides; the extension is therefore transformed into a motion rotating the collecting bin 5 around the horizontal axis 12 until the final position of off-loading of Figure 9 is reached.

Once the pin 15 has passed beyond the vertical of the centre-of- gravity, the mechanism could adopt a retrograde motion, but the presence of the locking mechanism 17 with the transverse cursor 27, present in each telescopic guide 9, prevents such an eventuality. In fact, the rotation of the bin 5 governs the transverse motion of said cursor 27 by means of the pin 30, the connecting rod 29 and the relay lever 28. Consequently, the rotation of the bin 5 ensures the engagement of the locking cursor in the slot 31 present on the fixed guide 10, thereby blocking the descent of mobile telescopic guide 11.

Tests show that the most advantageous inclination of the telescopic guides 10, 11 is between 15 and 30 degrees from the vertical, in that it represents the best compromise between the volumes available and the masses involved; nevertheless, the parts composing the road sweeper could be distributed differently so as to make it possible to adopt a steeper inclination.

The advantages deriving from this invention are the high capacity achieved without increasing the size of the vehicle; the telescopic guides 10 and 11, an essential part of the hoisting and tipping mechanism 8, are housed behind the inclined rear panel of said bin 5, necessarily inclined to facilitate the emptying of the rubbish and intruding into the engine bay, that is, without significantly reducing the load capacity of said bin. Furthermore, the mechanism 8 is fitted with a device 17 blocking the possible retrograde motion of the mobile guides 11; said device is advantageously governed by the rotation of the bin and not by its being hoisted: said hoisting thus takes place free of possible constraints and the blocking is assured with the locking cursor 27 engaging with the slot 31 on the fixed guides 10; then, the possible oscillation with flexing of the actuating cylinders 13 is limited by the bracket 19 and restraint 18. The telescopic guides are advantageously prismatic in section the better to withstand the forces developed in the mechanism, which are largely unidirectional; finally, the pads in antifriction material are located where said forces develop their maximum concentration.

In practice, the materials, the dimensions and details of execution may be different from, but technically equivalent to, those described without departing from the juridical domain of the present invention. Thus, if less advantageously, said guides can be circular or whatever in section, even though the most advantageous is rectangular tubing with the widest side facing the side of the bin. Again, if less advantageously, off-loading of the bin can take place from one side rather than from the back of the vehicle. Finally, if less advantageously, operation of the hoisting and tipping of said bin 5 could take place other than by the hydraulic actuating cylinders 13, for example, with a single actuating cylinder or with cable mechanisms, again actuated by a single actuating cylinder or by other known mechanisms such as winches or windlasses.

Claims

1. A self-propelled road sweeper comprising: a chassis (2), a drive unit (7), a hydraulic unit for traction and movement control, one or more collection devices furnished with a brush or brushes (3) and at least one inlet near the ground for aspirating the rubbish into a collecting bin (5, 6) that is tipped when emptying, by means of a hoisting and tipping mechanism (8, 9) of said bin; characterised in that, said hoisting and tipping mechanism is constituted by at least two telescopic devices (9, 10, 11) with travel limited to an equal amount and in a direction vertical, sub-vertical or inclined with respect to the vertical, for the purpose of raising up the tipping pin (12) of said bin.

2. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in the previous claim, characterised in that it has at least one hydraulic actuating cylinder for extending said telescopic devices (9, 10, 11).

3. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in the previous claim 2, characterised in that it has a pair of hydraulic actuating cylinders (13) connected (15) to said collecting bin and to a fixed element (10, 14) or directly to the chassis (2) so as to constitute a parallelogram extensible in a direction vertical, sub-vertical or inclined in association, each one, with the two telescopic devices (9, 10, 11).

4. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 1, 2 or 3, characterised in that it has said telescopic devices (9, 10, 11) set flush with the rear panel of the collecting bin (5): said tipping pin (12) being located transversally to the road sweeper (1) in its rear section.

5. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 1,2,3 or 4 characterised in that it has said telescopic devices (9, 10, 11) consisting each of two guides, one fixed (10) to the chassis (2) of the road sweeper and one upwardly mobile (11) with said collecting bin (5).

6. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims from 1 to 5, characterised in that, at the points of maximum concentration of stress, it has in said telescopic device (9, 10, 11) or guides (10, 11) one or more anti-friction elements (24).

7. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims from 1 to 6, characterised in that the telescopic device (9, 10, 11) or guides are of prismatic conformation.

8. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in the previous claim 7, characterised in that said prismatic conformation is rectangular in section and the widest side is in line with the prevalent direction of stress.

9. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 2, 3, 4 or 5, characterised in that, in the vicinity of said hydraulic actuating cylinders (13) for hoisting and tipping the bin (5), it has at least one device (18, 19) containing any lateral give of the cylinders, as a safety device.

10. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims from 1 to 4, characterised in that it has a device (17) for blocking the telescopic movement at the point of maximum extension.

11. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in the previous claim 10, characterised in that said locking device (17) is interlocked only with the rotation phase governing the tipping of the bin (5).

12. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 10 or 11, characterised in that said locking device (17) is connected mechanically by means of relay levers (28, 29, 30) to the rotation of the bin (5).

13. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 10, 11 or 12, characterised in that, constituting the locking device (17), it has a cursor (27), transverse to the telescopic device (9, 10 or 11) or guides and sliding with the mobile telescopic section (11), that engages with a slot (31) in the fixed telescopic section (10).

14. Self-propelled road sweeper, as claimed in one of the previous claims 10, 11, 12 or 13, characterised in that the connection of said locking device (17) with the movement of hoisting and tipping the bin (5) is achieved by means of connecting elements (28, 29) situated inside the telescope device (9, 10, 11).