WO2012114003A1

WO2012114003A1 - Device for moving a load around by pushing and pulling and handling vehicle equipped with such a device

Info

Publication number: WO2012114003A1
Application number: PCT/FR2012/000067
Authority: WO
Inventors: Pierre Marcelli
Original assignee: Rotobloc-Psp Sarl
Priority date: 2011-02-25
Filing date: 2012-02-22
Publication date: 2012-08-30
Also published as: EP2678264A1; FR2972003B1; FR2972003A1; EP2678264B1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device (10) for moving a load around by pushing and pulling in the same plane, this device being intended to be mounted on a handling vehicle (30) comprising lifting means (33, 34). It is characterized in that it comprises two mutually parallel telescopic actuators (11) separated from one another by a distance (D) that allows them to be mounted at the outside of the said handling vehicle and secured to a lifting cross member (16) intended to be coupled to the said lifting means, the said handling device comprising two handling arms (12) that extend the actuators (11) and are connected to one another by a strut (13) bearing coupling means (14) that complement those provided on the load that is to be moved around.

Description

DEVICE FOR TRANSFERRING A PUSHED LOAD AND

TRACTION AND HANDLING EQUIPMENT EQUIPPED WITH SUCH

DEVICE Technical field:

The present invention relates to a device for transferring a load by pushing and pulling in the same plane, called a transfer plane, this device being intended to be mounted on a handling machine for transferring a tool, a mold, a metal mass or similar, of said handling machine to a table and vice versa, said handling machine comprising load-bearing means, and said device comprising at least one handling arm provided at its free end with coupling means intended to cooperate with means of transport. complementary coupling provided on said load, said handling arm being coupled to actuating means for being displaced between at least one retracted position and an extended position and vice versa, between which said coupling means move in a plane parallel to said transfer plan. The present invention also relates to a handling machine comprising load-bearing means and equipped with a transfer device.

Prior art:

Publication WO 97/38934 by the same applicant proposes a rickshaw device provided with an articulated arm which moves from a folded position to an extended position, the joints of which are synchronized in order to guarantee a rectilinear and stable trajectory without guidance, this arm which can be lodged inside the mast of a forklift truck so as to lie on one ^'back of the slide deck to avoid penalizing the effective length of the truck forks. However, this device, although greatly improving the known push-pull devices, still has certain disadvantages: in particular, the load is nevertheless deported to the front of Forks with a value of 200 to 300 mm, the visibility through the deck is difficult since the rickshaw arm is implanted in this area, and the thrust force is variable as it depends on the angle of opening of the arm. The publication GB 651 215 proposes a handling machine provided with a pusher in the form of a vertical plate disposed at the front of the mast and moved horizontally, parallel to the forks, by two parallel cylinders arranged outside the the handling machine, above guide rails in which rollers circulate, for guiding horizontal translation of said pusher. This solution is not optimal for many reasons. The pusher penalizes visibility through the apron. It is also limited to the unloading mode of the forks because it is not coupled to the load to be able to work in loading mode. Its stroke is limited to the length of the rod cylinders which are simple cylinders not telescopic. Finally, the need to combine cylinders and guide rails increases the manufacture of such a configuration and creates a hyperstatic system.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention aims to provide a solution to the problems mentioned above by proposing a transfer device of simple and economical design, adaptable to any standard deck and easily integrated into any handling gear, ergonomic and leaving the the driver of the handling machine all the visibility through the deck, this device can also deploy a large and constant force allowing it to push loads on both forks and tables not provided with rolling members, on a race that can extend beyond the length of the forks.

For this purpose, the invention relates to a transfer device of the kind indicated in the preamble, characterized in that the actuating means comprise at least one telescopic actuator carried by at least one fastening flange, said fastening flange being intended to be coupled to said load-bearing means so that said telescopic actuator extends substantially parallel to the transfer plane and is disposed outside said engine of handling, in that said telescopic actuator comprises at least two stages nested one inside the other so as to develop a total stroke equal to at least twice the length of each stage and in that said telescopic actuator constitutes the means translational guiding said handling arm in said plane parallel to said transfer plane.

Thus, the transfer device is disposed entirely outside the handling machine. It penalizes only very little the load volume of the load carrier means and does not obstruct the visibility of the operator through said machine. In addition, the fact of using a telescopic actuator makes it possible to have a large stroke as a function of the number of stages with a reduced overall size actuator.

In a preferred embodiment, the device comprises at least two telescopic actuators each carried by at least one fastening flange, said actuators being parallel to each other and spaced from each other by a distance enabling them to be mounted. outside said handling machine, and at least two handling arms each coupled to an actuator, said handling arms being interconnected by a force cross member carrying the coupling means.

Advantageously, the corresponding stages of the two telescopic actuators may be interconnected by connecting crosspieces. In this case, the cross member and the connecting cross members have complementary shapes allowing their nesting nesting in the retracted position. In a first embodiment, the telescopic actuators are telescopic cylinders with double telescopic effect at least two stages and the handling arms are merged with the rods of said cylinders. In a second embodiment, the telescopic actuators are double-acting cylinders and the handling arms are rails coupled to said cylinders by a transmission arranged to constitute a muffling system and selected from the group comprising the gears and chain, the pulleys and toothed belt. The fastening flanges can be mounted on a common mounting beam intended to be fixed to said load carrier means of the handling machine, these fastening flanges being arranged to hold said actuators by means of a rigid connection, pivoting or rotary . According to the variant embodiments, each fastening flange may constitute a rotation axis hinge parallel to said transfer plane. In this case, said fixing flange is intended to be fixed to said load carrier means of the handling machine. According to the applications, the transfer device may comprise hooking means for coupling said transfer device to said table. It can also carry load forks.

For this purpose also, the invention relates to a handling machine of the type indicated in the preamble and characterized in that it is equipped with said transfer device as defined above, arranged so that each telescopic actuator is disposed at the outside of said handling machine and extends substantially parallel to the transfer plane. In a first embodiment, the load-bearing means of the handling machine comprise a mast carrying a load-bearing apron and the transfer device is fixed to the load-bearing apron. Depending on the case, this transfer device can carry load forks directly.

In a second embodiment, the load carrier means of the handling machine comprise a lifting table and the transfer device is fixed to said lifting table. In a third embodiment, the load-bearing means of the handling machine comprise a motorized carriage and the transfer device is fixed to said motorized carriage.

Brief description of the drawings:

The present invention and its advantages will become more apparent from the following description of an embodiment given by way of nonlimiting example, with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a first type of handling machine without a fork, equipped with a transfer device according to the invention, and FIG. 1B is a front view showing the implantation of said handling machine. accosted to a press table,

FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a second type of handling machine with forks, equipped with a transfer device according to the invention, and FIG. 2B is a front view showing the implantation of said handling machine. in front of a press table,

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a third type of handling machine with lifting table, equipped with a transfer device according to the invention, and FIG. 3B is a front view showing the implantation of said handling before a press table, FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the transfer device according to the invention, and FIG. 4B is a perspective view showing the implantation of said transfer device on a forklift truck,

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the implantation of a second variant embodiment of the transfer device on a forklift truck,

FIG. 6 is a side view of a forklift truck in front of a press table, equipped with a third embodiment of the transfer device,

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of the transfer device implanted on the machine of FIG. 6, and

FIG. 7B is an enlarged view of detail B of FIG. 7A. Illustrations of the Invention and Different Ways of Carrying Out the Invention:

With reference to the figures, the transfer device 10, 20, 60, 100 is arranged to transfer a load 1, a tool, a mold, a metal mass or the like, of a handling machine 30, 40, 50 to a table 2 belonging or not to a machine 3 such as a press, a console 4 or the like, and vice versa. These examples are not limiting.

The handling machine 30, 40, 50 may be of different types and comprises, in basic version, a technical compartment 31 supported by wheels 32 and load carrier means generally movable at least in the vertical direction. Depending on the type of handling equipment and its applications, these load-bearing means may comprise either a vertical mast 33 integral with the technical compartment 31, carrying a load-carrying deck 34 alone (see Fig. 1A and 1B, 4A, 4B) or a load carrying deck 34 associated with forks 35 (see Fig. 2A and 2B, 6), either a lifting table 36 (see Fig. 3A and 3B), or a motorized horizontal carriage (not shown ). This machine handling 30, 40, 50 can be moved by an operator by means of a handle 37 or constitute a self-propelled vehicle driven by an operator (not shown). The transfer device 10, 20, 60, 100 of the invention is an accessory that can be mounted on any type of handling machine 30, 40, 50 and adapted to any type of use and application. It makes it possible to move a load 1 by pushing and pulling in the same plane, called the transfer plane P, generally confused with the plane of the table 2, making it possible to unload and load the load 1. It includes, for this purpose, the minus one and, in the examples shown, two parallel actuators 1 1, 21, which have the particularity of being telescopic, and which are coupled to the load carrier means of the handling machine 30, 40, 50 so that extend substantially parallel to said transfer plane P. A telescopic actuator is any actuator comprising at least two stages nested one inside the other and capable of deploying a total stroke equal to at least twice the length of a stage. Thus, by moving between at least one retracted position and an extended position and vice versa, they move the load 1 in the transfer plane P with a constant thrust and traction force, per stage, since the force exerted by these actuators is parallel to the transfer plane P. The thrust force can be very high, especially to move a load 1 on a table 2 not equipped with rolling members, and can easily reach 10 tons. These actuators January 1, 21 are further arranged parallel to each other and spaced from each other by a distance D allowing them to be mounted outside the handling equipment, on both sides of the technical compartment 31. Depending on the application, a single actuator may be sufficient to move a load. In this case, the load must be guided either laterally or in the thrust axis of the actuator.

The transfer device 10, 20, 60, 100 is completed by two handling arms 12, 22 extending the actuators 11, 21 or forming an integral part of said actuators as explained below, and interconnected by a cross beam of force 13. The free ends of the handling arms 12, 22 are fixed to said crossbar 13 by a rigid mechanical connection, so without play, to ensure a synchronous movement of the actuators 11, 21 without phase shift or offsetting. The crossbar 13 carries the coupling means 14 complementary to the coupling means 5 fixed to the load 1. In the examples shown, these coupling means 14 form a hooking system provided with cylindrical bayonets 15, tenons shoulders or the like, which are housed in hooks double opening, that is to say open upwards and downwards, coupling means 5 of the load 1. These coupling means 14, 5 are advantageous since they allow to hang and unhook the load 1 during the rising and falling phases of the load carrier means of the handling machine with respect to said load. Thus, they do not require any specific mechanism and do not require any source of energy. In addition, they guarantee the safety of the operators, since the displacement of the load 1 can be done only if the coupling means 14 and 5 are hooked.

In the examples shown, the transfer device 10, 20, 60, 100 is carried by a mounting beam 16, 160 intended to be fixed on the load-bearing means, such as the deck 34 of the handling machine 30, 40 (see Fig. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6), the lifting table 36 of the handling machine 50 (see Fig. 3) or the motorized trolley in a variant not shown. The mounting cross-member 16, 160 has at its lateral ends two fastening flanges 17 in which the actuators 11, 21 are mounted. Depending on the needs and variant embodiments, these fastening flanges 17 can ensure that the actuators 11, 21 are held by a rigid link, rotating or spherical depending on the degrees of freedom that one wishes to give them. The mounting beam 16, 160 may have different sections according to the load carrier means. When the transfer device 10, 20 is to be mounted on a load carrying deck 34, it may have a flat C-shaped section to be able to hook on the standard horizontal sections 38 of said deck 34. When the transfer device 10 , 20 must be mounted on a lifting table 36 or a motorized trolley (not shown), the mounting crosspiece 16 may have a single flat section fixed by welding or any other rigid fixing means on the edge of the table. It is also possible to directly mount the fastening flanges 17 on the load-bearing means of the handling machine, without resorting to the cross mounting 16.

In the examples illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, 6 and 7, the actuators 1 1 consist of double-acting telescopic double-acting cylinders. The number of stages is of course not limited and more than two stages can be provided depending on the travel of the load 1. The body of the cylinder 11 is fixed in the mounting bearings 17 of the mounting crosspiece 16, 160 and the free end of the rod of the cylinders 11 is fixed on the crossbar force 13. The rod of the cylinders 11 forms, in this case, said handling arms 12. This type of actuator has several advantages: in the retracted position the actuators 11 occupy a reduced space corresponding substantially to the length of the body of the cylinders; in extended position, they deploy a stroke substantially equal to X times that of the length of the body of the cylinders, X corresponding to the number of stages of the actuators; and their pushing and pulling force is large and constant on the stroke deployed by each stage of the actuators. These actuators January 1 are fed hydraulically by the hydraulic reserve and the control box of the handling equipment or by a dedicated central and embedded on said machine.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the handling machine 30 comprises only its load carrying deck 34, without a fork, in order to be able to engage directly at the edge of a press table 2 by means of hooks 18. which fit into a groove 6 provided in the table 2, so as not to move during transfers of the load 1. Of course any other equivalent coupling means is possible. In this configuration, the transfer device 10 is hooked to the load carrying deck 34 and can be brought to a height such that the coupling means 14 are aligned with the complementary coupling means 5 of the load 1. This device is otherwise located opposite a console 4 and allows to move the load 1, for example a press tool, in the transfer plane P, from the table 2 to the console 4 and vice versa, in the direction of the double arrow F, the actuators 11 passing through the press 3. The table 2, the 3, the console 4 and the load 1, as well as the actuators 11 in extended position, are shown in short broken lines in Figure 1B. This handling machine 30 equipped with its transfer device 10 can be versatile and thus be suitable for several presses to change the press tools for example.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the handling machine 40 has forks 35 associated with the load carrying deck 34, in order to be able to transport a load 1, for example between a magazine and a press 3 and vice versa. In this configuration, the transfer device 10 is hooked on the load carrying deck 34 just above the forks 35 and only impinges on the useful surface of the forks 35 of a value limited to the depth of the crossbar of force 13, about five centimeters, which is quite acceptable. To load and unload the press 3, the handling machine 40 is moved in the axis of the machine 3 and the forks 35 in the transfer plane P, their free ends against the edge of the table 2. The transfer device 10 can thus move the load 1 in the transfer plane P of the forks 35 to the press table 2 and vice versa, in the direction of the double arrow F, the actuators 11 remaining outside the press 3. The table 2, the press 3 and the load 1, as well as the actuators 11 in the extended position, are shown in short broken lines in FIG. 2B.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the handling machine 50 comprises a scissor lift table 36, in place of the forks 35 and the load carrying deck 34, in order to be able to transport a load 1, for example between A magazine and a press 3. In this configuration, the transfer device 10 is fixed to the edge of the lifting table 36 and only impinges on the useful surface of this table by a value corresponding to the depth of the cross bar 13. To load and unload the press 3, the handling machine 50 is brought into the axis of the machine 3 and the lifting table 36 in the transfer plane P. It is coupled to the edge of the table 2 by hooks 39 nested in a groove 6, or by any means, equivalent, so as not to move during transfers. The transfer device 10 can thus move the load 1 in the transfer plane P of the lifting table 36 to the press table 2 and vice versa, in the direction of the double arrow F, the actuators 11 remaining outside the The press 3. The table 2, the press 3 and the load 1, as well as the actuators 11 in extended position, are shown in short broken lines in FIG. 3B. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the transfer device 100 substantially corresponds to that of FIGS. 2A and 2B, except that the mounting beam 160 carries the forks 35.

FIG. 5 illustrates another embodiment of the transfer device 20 mounted on a forklift truck 35. The actuators 21 are no longer, as in the preceding examples, double-acting telescopic jacks, but double jacks effect coupled to telescopic handling arms 22 at least one stage and, in the example shown, two stages, by means of a transmission arranged to form a hauling system. This transmission may comprise a chain 23 and two pinions 24, a toothed belt and two pulleys, or any other similar transmission. The number of gears varies according to the number of stages of the telescopic handling arm 22.

The result obtained is the same, namely in the retracted position, the actuators 21 occupy a reduced space limited substantially to the length of the body of the cylinders and, in extended position, these actuators 21 combined with the telescopic handling arms 22 deploy a stroke substantially equal to twice that of the length of the body of the cylinders. Each actuator 21 comprises a fixed part fixed to the deck 34 by fixing clamps (not shown), formed by the body of the jack 210, a fixed rail 220 and the fixed attachment point 230 of the chain 23. It comprises a part intermediate, movable relative to the fixed part, formed by the cylinder rod 211, an intermediate telescopic rail 221 and the two pinion pins 24. It comprises a distal portion, movable relative to the intermediate portion, formed by a telescopic rail mobile 222, the force cross member 13 carrying the coupling means 14 and the movable attachment point 231 of the chain 23. Thus, when the rod 211 of the cylinder 21 exits the body 210, it causes the rotation of the chain 23 which moves a double stroke the telescopic handling arm 22.

Figures 6 and 7 show another embodiment of a transfer device 60 according to the invention providing improvements to the transfer devices 10, 20 described above. To ensure the synchronized movement of the different stages of two telescopic actuators 11 operating in parallel, without providing for the mounting of complex and expensive accessories such as hydraulic flow dividers, electronic counting (stroke) and comparison systems, the corresponding stages two actuators 11 are interconnected by connecting crosspieces 61, 62 so as to make each relevant stage rigid. In the example shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the ends of the rods or the handling arms 12 of the first stage are fixed together by the crossbar 13 which carries the coupling means 14, the ends of the rods 12 ' of the second stage are fixed together by a first crossmember 61, and the ends of the body of the actuators 1 1 are fixed between them by a second crossmember 62 not fixed to the deck 34. In retracted or retracted position of the actuators 11, these various crosspieces 13, 61, 62 engage one another in a trundle so as to occupy a minimum of space (see Fig. 7B).

In this embodiment, the body of each actuator January 1 is pivotally mounted about a horizontal axis of rotation A and parallel to the transfer plane P for the purpose to be able to unhook and hook the load by simply lifting the actuators 11, without moving the deck 34 vertically. In the illustrated example, this axis of rotation A is defined by a hinge 63 provided on a fastening flange 64 arranged to fix the body of the actuator 11 on the deck 34 at the rear of the second connecting beam 62. The lifting movement of the actuators 11 can be performed manually by the operator or by means of a lifting actuator 65 hooked on the one hand to a fixed point of the deck 34 and at a central point 66 of the second connecting beam 62 (see Fig. 6). Possibilities of industrial application:

It is clear from this description that the invention achieves the goals, namely a simple load transfer device, economical, efficient, compact and ergonomic, can easily adapt to any type of handling equipment and for any type of application.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described but extends to any modification and variation obvious to a person skilled in the art while remaining within the scope of protection defined in the appended claims.

Claims

claims

1. Device for transferring (10., 20, 60, 100) a load (1) by pushing and pulling in the same plane, called the transfer plane (P), this device being intended to be mounted on a machine of handling (30, 40, 50) for transferring a tool, a mold, a metal mass or the like from said handling machine to a table (2, 3) and vice versa, said handling machine comprising load carrying means (33- 36), and said device comprising at least one handling arm (12, 22) provided at its free end with coupling means (14) intended to cooperate with complementary coupling means (5) provided on said load (1). ), said handling arm being coupled to actuating means (11, 21) to be displaced between at least one retracted position and an extended position and vice versa, between which said coupling means (14) moves in a plane parallel to said transfer plane (P), characterized in that said means actuating means comprise at least one telescopic actuator (11, 21) carried by at least one fastening flange (17, 64), said fastening flange being intended to be coupled to said load-bearing means so that said telescopic actuator is extends substantially parallel to the transfer plane (P) and is disposed outside said handling machine, in that said telescopic actuator (11, 21) comprises at least two stages interlocked into one another so as to be able to developing a total stroke equal to at least twice the length of each stage and in that said telescopic actuator (11, 21) constitutes the translational guiding means of said handling arm (12, 22) in said plane parallel to said plane of transfer (P).

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises at least two telescopic actuators (1 1, 21) each carried by at least one fastening flange (17, 64), said actuators being parallel to each other and spaced apart. one of the other by a distance (D) enabling them to be mounted outside said handling machine, and in that said transfer device comprises at least two handling arms (12, 22) each coupled to a telescopic actuator (11, 21), said arms of handling being interconnected by a crossbar force (13) carrying said coupling means (14) complementary to those provided on the load (1) to move.

3. Device according to claim 2, characterized in that the corresponding stages of the two telescopic actuators (1 1, 21) are interconnected by connecting crosspieces (61, 62) and in that said cross member (13) and said connecting struts (61, 62) have complementary shapes allowing their nesting nesting in the retracted position.

4. Device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that each telescopic actuator (1 1) consists of a telescopic jack double-acting at least two stages and in that each handling arm (12 ) is merged with the rod of said cylinder.

5. Device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that each telescopic actuator (21) consists of a double-acting cylinder and in that each handling arm (22) consists of at least a rail coupled to said jack by a transmission (23, 24) arranged to constitute a hauling system and selected from the group comprising the pinions (24) and chain (23), the pulleys and toothed belt.

6. Device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that each fastening flange (17) is mounted on a common mounting beam (16, 160) intended to be fixed to said load-bearing means of the handling equipment.

7. Device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that each fastening flange (64) is a hinge (63) axis of rotation (A) parallel to said transfer plane (P) and is intended to be fixed to said load bearing means of the handling machine.

8. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises hooking means (18) for temporarily coupling said transfer device to said table (2).

9. Device according to claim 6, characterized in that said mounting crossbar (160) carries forks (35) load carrier.

10. A handling machine (30, 40, 50) comprising load-bearing means, characterized in that it is equipped with a transfer device (1, 20, 60, 100) according to any one of the preceding claims. , arranged so that each telescopic actuator (January 1, 21) is disposed outside said handling machine and extends substantially parallel to said transfer plane (P).

1 1. A handling vehicle according to claim 10, characterized in that the load-bearing means comprise a mast (33) carrying a load-bearing apron (34) and in that said transfer device (10, 20, 60, 100) is attached to said load carrying deck (34).

12. A handling device according to claim 1 1, characterized in that said transfer device (100) carries load forks (35).

13. A handling device according to claim 10, characterized in that said load-bearing means comprise a lift table (36) and in that said transfer device (10) is fixed to said lifting table (36).

14. A handling machine according to claim 10, characterized in that said load carrier means comprise a motorized carriage and in that said transfer device is attached to said motorized carriage.