Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01G—WEIGHING
  • G01G19/00—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups
  • G01G19/08—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups for incorporation in vehicles
  • G01G19/12—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups for incorporation in vehicles having electrical weight-sensitive devices
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01G—WEIGHING
  • G01G19/00—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups
  • G01G19/08—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups for incorporation in vehicles
  • G01G19/083—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups for incorporation in vehicles lift truck scale
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B66—HOISTING; LIFTING; HAULING
  • B66F—HOISTING, LIFTING, HAULING OR PUSHING, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, e.g. DEVICES WHICH APPLY A LIFTING OR PUSHING FORCE DIRECTLY TO THE SURFACE OF A LOAD
  • B66F17/00—Safety devices, e.g. for limiting or indicating lifting force
  • B66F17/003—Safety devices, e.g. for limiting or indicating lifting force for fork-lift trucks
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B66—HOISTING; LIFTING; HAULING
  • B66F—HOISTING, LIFTING, HAULING OR PUSHING, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, e.g. DEVICES WHICH APPLY A LIFTING OR PUSHING FORCE DIRECTLY TO THE SURFACE OF A LOAD
  • B66F9/00—Devices for lifting or lowering bulky or heavy goods for loading or unloading purposes
  • B66F9/06—Devices for lifting or lowering bulky or heavy goods for loading or unloading purposes movable, with their loads, on wheels or the like, e.g. fork-lift trucks
  • B66F9/075—Constructional features or details
  • B66F9/12—Platforms; Forks; Other load supporting or gripping members
  • B66F9/122—Platforms; Forks; Other load supporting or gripping members longitudinally movable
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01G—WEIGHING
  • G01G23/00—Auxiliary devices for weighing apparatus
  • G01G23/18—Indicating devices, e.g. for remote indication; Recording devices; Scales, e.g. graduated
  • G01G23/36—Indicating the weight by electrical means, e.g. using photoelectric cells

Definitions

• a mobile weighing solution in a telescopic forks unit which utilize technology for weighing forks, telescoping forks, and weighing sleeves, for application with a crown designed turret head narrow aisle truck with a limited stroke telescopic fork.
• This solution offers cost efficiencies, by utilizing as few parts as possible, while still providing the desired results.
• the telescoping weigh fork unit comprises a fork having a base fork with an integrated hydraulic cylinder and an outer shoe slidably parallel to the base fork, at least two load cells supported by the outer shoe, where the outer shoe has a load surface and is configured to permit contact between a subject load and the outer shoe.
• the unit may include an outside telescopic fork shoe to which the load cells are mounted and which supports the outer shoe.
• the solution may use standard telescopic forks base fork, rods, pistons and seals; specialize shoe to support load cells; and a bridge plate to support load on load cells.
• the exterior dimensions would not exceed 175mm x 75mm.
• An embodiment may use existing weigh forks display or provide a custom display adaptation.
• the display may be capable of wirelessly receiving signal from sensors.
• the solution may be battery operated with hardwired option.
• the solution would be cable of communication with off-the-shelf computer, tablet or phone.
• the load cells provide a subject load weight, which subject load weight is adjusted by a telescoping factor, which factor is dependent on a telescoping distance, a telescoping time, and hydraulic displacement measured at two or more points in time.
• FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a weighing telescoping fork unit in a retracted position.
• FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a weighing telescoping fork unit.
• Fork arm extensions are used as an economic means of extending the effective blade length of fork arms on fork-lift trucks. They are available with either a closed rectangular cross-section or an open inverted-channel cross-section.
• Telescopic fork arms replace standard fork arms and provide the truck operator with the means of adjusting the fork arm blade length. They are available either as simple variable length fork arms for handling loads of varying dimensions or, alternatively, for reaching out or retracting palletized loads in double-deep stacking and destacking operations.
• this weighing solution for telescopic forks utilizes technology for weighing forks, telescoping forks, and weighing sleeves, for application with a crown designed turret head narrow aisle truck with a limited stroke telescopic fork.
• This solution offers cost efficiencies, by utilizing as few parts as possible, while still providing the desired results.
• the solution may use standard telescopic forks base fork, rods, pistons and seals; specialize shoe to support load cells; and a bridge plate to support load on load cells.
• the exterior dimensions would not exceed 175mm x 75mm.
• An embodiment may use existing weigh forks display or provide a custom display adaptation.
• the display may be capable of wirelessly receiving signal from sensors.
• the solution may be battery operated with hardwired option.
• Preferably the solution would be cable of communication with off-the-shelf computer, tablet or phone.
• parent fork arm refers to a fork arm having the rated capacity at the rated load center distance, blade length and blade cross-section for which a fork-arm extension is specifically designed.
• the rated capacity (CE) and rated load center distance (DE) for each fork-arm extension shall be proportional to the rated capacity (C) and rated load center distance (D) for the parent fork arm, i.e.: CE £ [C * D] / DE.
• the blade length I of the parent fork arm for open- section and closed-section fork-arm extensions shall conform to the following formula: I > 750 mm, I > 0.6 h , where h is the blade length of the fork arm extension.
• a weigh fork includes at least two load cells supported on an outer shoe, where the load to be picked up and weighed only contacts the outer shoe.
• the outer shoe must only contact the load cells otherwise inaccurate measurements will be made.
• Telescopic forks have a cylinder built into the base fork and an outer shoe that slides along the length of the fork to change fork length hydraulically.
• the load cells are mounted to the outside of a telescopic fork shoe, which then supports a secondary shoe for weighing loads, while the base fork has integrated hydraulic cylinder, and inner shoe slides longitudinally and supports external load cells, and the outer shoe is the surface used for picking up loads and weighing them.
• a safety module is installed on the display to alert a user to adverse conditions, such as that weighing is counter-indicated because forks are telescoped too far; that a weigh load is above load conditions for a fork truck; that at least one of a pair of load cells is inoperable due to mechanical or electrical failure such that inaccurate data would result.
• data from the load cells is adjusted by a telescoping factor which is dependent on extension or retraction distance, time, or hydraulic displacement measured at two or more points in time.
• an interface is provided with TFT / Color Display and with Software / Firmware capable of working with several daisy chained sensors. This may be accomplished in part via an intelligent junction box with blue tooth capability.
• Missing in the art of telescoping forks and weighing forks is a good combination of both technologies that is integrated into a fork truck display system, is lower cost to produce, and integrates into the fork truck safety features.
• the present system will permit a user to not over extend and damage the next pallet or under extend topple off and will facilitate loading primarily from one side of a load while minimizing repositioning of the fork truck. This will allow a user to use one set of forks to pick up both very long pallets and very short pallets.
• the present system will permit a user to use weighing both for confirming that a load is within the capacity of a fork truck and also for legal purposes such as customs and billing.
• the specifications of the present system will match the user’s system by type of truck, size of fork, and hydraulic attachment specifications for pressure and flow.
• the system may utilize integrating that a fork truck display or a separate display module.
• the display module will have the ability to communicate with other devices, so display module can communicate with other displays or computers.
• the integration of the weighing feature with the telescoping forks involves including load cells with base forks which support an outer shoe.
• the outer shoe contacts the loads to be pick up and weighed, and must be the only contact the load cells, otherwise inaccurate measurements will be made.
• the outer shoe has to be isolated, so anything that touches that outer shoe is going to be weighed or affect the weighing, so it needs to be isolated to contact only the load itself.
• the present disclosure envisions mounting a telescoping shoe to the base fork and have another, outer shoe on top of it, such that there are a couple layers of on the fork, limited in that the outer shoe only touches the load cells.
• the outer shoe is capable of telescoping.
• the system will only weigh a load when the forks retracted to promote accuracy or have less than 3 degrees of deflection. In a telescoped configuration, the system could only weigh with an adjustment to account for deflection along the telescoped of forks.
• the system may optionally include a feature which disables weighing in a telescoped configuration.
• Fig. 1 illustrates the telescoping weigh fork unit (100) comprising a fork (1 10) having a base fork (120) having an integrated hydraulic cylinder (130) and an outer shoe (140) slidably parallel to the base fork, at least two load cells (150) supported by the outer shoe, where the outer shoe has a load surface (160) and is configured to permit contact between a subject load (not shown) and the outer shoe.
• Fig. 2 shows optionally the unit may include an outside telescopic fork shoe (170) to which the load cells are mounted and which supports the outer shoe.
• the load cells provide a subject load weight, which subject load weight is adjusted by a telescoping factor, which factor is dependent on a telescoping distance, a
• a display (not shown) and a safety module (not shown) which work with the telescoping weigh fork unit to improve safe operation by monitoring distance of telescoping, alerting on the display if distance of telescoping exceeds a threshold distance, weighing a subject load, alerting on the display if a subject load weight exceeds a threshold weight, and alerting on the display if a load cells is inoperable.
• the safety module could work with operate an audible alarm if thresholds are exceeded or a weigh cell is inoperable.
• the weighing cells on an outer shoe will operatively work with telescoping forks which have a cylinder built into the base fork, and an outer shoe that slides along the length of the fork to change the fork lengths hydraulically.
• the load cell may be a separate clamp module capable of being mounted the outside of the telescoping fork shoe in a position lateral to the direction of the telescoping motion, so the load cells will be on the outside and be within the thickness of the fork, while remaining in compliance with current ISO regulations, including ISO 13284, or any updates thereto.
• the load cells would be on either side of the fork though, usually presented in pairs of two on each fork, such as four on each fork total, two in back, two in the front.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Structural Engineering (AREA)
• Transportation (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Geology (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Civil Engineering (AREA)
• Forklifts And Lifting Vehicles (AREA)

Priority Applications (9)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Publications (1)

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Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

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Citations (6)

Family Cites Families (9)

• 2019
  • 2019-12-13 CA CA3122702A patent/CA3122702A1/en active Pending
  • 2019-12-13 US US16/714,416 patent/US20200264034A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2019-12-13 JP JP2021533855A patent/JP7332088B2/ja active Active
  • 2019-12-13 WO PCT/US2019/066375 patent/WO2020124031A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2019-12-13 AU AU2019397171A patent/AU2019397171B9/en active Active
• 2022
  • 2022-11-21 US US18/057,641 patent/US20230085508A1/en not_active Abandoned
• 2023
  • 2023-11-03 US US18/501,213 patent/US20240077353A1/en not_active Abandoned
• 2024
  • 2024-08-15 US US18/806,475 patent/US20240401999A1/en active Pending

Patent Citations (6)

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