WO1989011982A2

WO1989011982A2 - Tipper assembly

Info

Publication number: WO1989011982A2
Application number: PCT/GB1989/000606
Authority: WO
Inventors: Cole Marshall Ruby
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-06-01
Filing date: 1989-06-01
Publication date: 1989-12-14
Anticipated expiration: 1990-12-01
Also published as: AU3766089A; WO1989011982A3

Abstract

A transferable tipper assembly adapted to be fitted to a vehicle (174) comprises a dumper box (170) carried by a lifting frame mounted above a lower, fixed frame (101). The lifting frame is controllably displaceable by a hydraulic power unit (120) between a substantially flat position and a raised position. Preferably, the motion of the lifting frame includes both displacement axially and also a pivoting displacement. The axial displacement is preferably both rearwardly and upwardly. The assembly is demountable and can be transferred from vehicle to vehicle.

Description

TIPPER ASSEMBLY

SPECIFICATION

This invention relates generally to vehicle tipping mechanisms, and is particularly concerned with a tipper assembly which can be fitted to and detached from vehicles and which can be transferred from vehicle to vehicle. The tipper assembly of the present invention is such that it can be fitted to most pick-up trucks, or to trailers, or indeed to any vehicle or part-vehicle which has a flat bed capacity.

Vehicles equipped with integrated tipping mechanisms are well-known, but these are built into the vehicle and are not detachable or transferable. The tipper assembly of the present invention on the other hand is removable from the vehicle and can be transferred to another vehicle, as required. The adaptability of the tipper assembly of the present invention also means that it can be fitted to any existing vehicle which has the necessary flat bed capacity.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a transferable tipper assembly adapted to be fitted to a vehicle, the assembly comprising fixed frame means arranged to be secured to the vehicle and lifting frame means arranged to be controllably displaceable between a substantially flat position and a raised position or positions.

Preferably, the lifting frame means includes receptacle means as part of the assembly, to receive a load to be carried and subsequently tipped.

The basic tipper assembly may be provided with various optional accessories to extend the range of applications of the assembly. These may include for example the provision of means to load cable drums, a winch, and ramps which can be used to extend the lifting frame means to the ground. It is a further object of the invention to provide both rearward movement as well as upward tipping of a dumper box or like container, as well as keeping the depth of the tipper assembly as small as possible.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention there is provided a transferable tipper assembly adapted to be fitted to a vehicle, the assembly comprising fixed frame means arranged to be secured to the vehicle and lifting frame means arranged to be controllably displaceable between a substantially flat position and a raised position by a motion which includes both displacement axially, preferably rearwardly and upwardly, relative to the fixed frame means and also a pivoting displacement.

Preferably, the forward end of the lifting frame means is arranged to be guided initially up an inclined ramp and the rearward end thereof is provided with pivot linkage means connecting the two frame means.

Preferably, the lifting frame means is arranged to leave the ramp when the pivot linkage means is in a substantially vertical position.

The tipper assembly is preferably such that the dumper box and the lifting frame means on which it is mounted can be moved to a fully vertical position for the emptying of the contents of the box. Among the advantages of the tipper assembly of the present invention are that it will fit all available one ton pick-ups or any flat bed/drop side/trailer with load capacity. Also, only the tipper unit per se actually performs the tipping operation, with the remainder of the truck bed being available for use for other items such as tools, wheelbarrows et .

Moreover, the tipper assembly can be controlled by a push-button unit, controlling the hydraulic power system, on a roving lead. The dumper box which is part of the assembly is readily demountable, which means that the vehicle can be used at any time as a basic vehicle without the assembly. The tipper assembly requires little maintenance, being made from simple, strong, all steel construction. By protecting the body of the associated vehicle and keeping the load within the truck capacity the life of the truck or other vehicle is prolonged. The tipper assembly of the present invention saves labour, time and money, because it provides an efficient load discharge system and can save on commercial skip hire for example. It is also an important feature of the tipper assembly that it is transferrable to other vehicles, which means that when the basic vehicle is sold the tipper assembly can be removed and installed on another vehicle. Preferably, the tipper assembly incorporates a dumper box which can carry over 0.5 cubic metres and preferably has a double pivoted tail-gate. The term "dumper box" is used herein to mean any unit or assembly which would utilise the tipping action as part of or the whole of its function.

In order that the invention may be more fully understood, two embodiments of transferrable tipper assembly in accordance with the invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a first embodiment of tipper assembly;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the tipper assembly of

Fig. 1, illustrating the movement of the lifting frame; Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a second embodiment of tipper assembly;

Fig. 4 is a side view of the tipper assembly of Fig. 3, in the rest position;

Fig. 5 is a top plan of the bottom frame of the tipper assembly of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the tipper assembly of Fig. 3 mounted upon a flat-bed truck;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line

VII - VII in Fig. 4; and Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line

VIII - VIII in Fig. 4.

As shown in the drawings, the tipper assembly comprises a fixed frame, a lifting frame and one or more actuating cylinders to provide the powered lift for the lifting frame. In the embodiment shown in Figs. 1 and 2 the fixed frame comprises a head-beam 10, a tail-beam 12, and a centre-beam 14. These three beams 10, 12, 14 are parallel to each other and are spaced along the length of the assembly. Running longitudinally of the assembly, above the head-beam 10 and centre-beam 14, are a pair of support struts 16 and 18 which are parallel and spaced apart. A short support strut 20 is connected between the tail ends of the support struts 16 and 18. At the rearward end of each of the support struts 16, 18 there is fitted an offset leg 22, 24 which is welded or bolted or otherwise secured fixedly to the rearward end of the respective support struts 16, 18 on the outside of each support strut. As can most clearly be seen from Fig. 2, the head-beam 10, tail-beam 12 and centre-beam 14 are positioned below the support struts 16, 18, and offset legs 22, 24 respectively, to provide spaced support for these components of the frame. As can be seen most clearly from Fig. 1, the head-beam 10, tail-beam 12 and centrebeam 14 each extend laterally beyond those components of the fixed frame which they carry above them. The lifting frame of the tipper assembly comprises a front-beam 26 which extends at right-angles to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, a pair of parallel side-beams 28 and 30 which extend from the front-beam 26 rearwardly as far as the rearward end of the support struts 16, 18 of the fixed frame, and a pair of offset lifting frame legs 32 and 34 which lie side-by-side with the offset legs 22 and 24 of the fixed frame when the tipper assembly is in its closed position. The offset legs 32 and 34 of the lifting frame are bolted or welded or otherwise, secured fixedly to the lifting frame side-beams 28 and 30 respectively. Pivot pins, indicated schematically at 36, are fitted through the rearward end portions of the pairs of offset legs 22, 32 and 24, 34 respectively. The front-beam 26 of the lifting frame is fitted with a pair of top brackets 38 which are connected by pivot pins to respective fork arms of a pair of actuating cylinders 40 and 42. The actuating cylinders 40 and 42 are each connected at the other end by pivot pins to respective lower brackets 44 which are mounted on the portions of the centre-beam 14 which lie between the fixed frame support struts 16, 18 and the lifting frame side-beams 28, 30.

Fig. 2 illustrates how the tipper mechanism operates in practice, the lifting frame and actuating cylinders being shown in a raised position by broken lines. In the closed or lowered position of the lifting frame and actuating cylinders the actuating cylinders 40, 42 lie at a shallow angle to the horizontal, as shown in Fig. 2, so that when the cylinders are energised to raise the lifting frame they will act through the top brackets 38 to raise the lifting frame. A maximum tipping angle ofapproximately 60° is preferred.

Preferably the lifting frame is fitted with a flat plate (not shown) on top of the lifting frame to receive the load. Alternatively, the flat loadreceiving plate could be replaced by a box-shaped structure or by some alternative means to receive the load. In the case of a box-shaped structure this would either be open to the rear or incorporate a top and/or bottom pivot door to control the discharge.

The fixed frame is preferably arranged to be bolted to the floor of a vehicle, for example by a plurality of U-bolts, so that the tipper assembly is readily removable from the vehicle.

The pivot pins 36 at the rear of the assembly may be extended laterally beyond the offset legs, with arms being fitted to the pin extensions in order to enable the tipper assembly to be used to load cable drums for example. This mechanism would enable the assembly to be used to lift items such as cable drums inboard.

A further optional accessory is the provision of a winch on the head-beam 10, preferably positioned centrally of the beam. One could also attach ramps to the pivot pins 36 in order to provide a ramp surface from the rear of the tipper assembly down to the ground. Using a winch it would then be possible to haul a tipper box on to the tipper assembly, thus enabling the assembly to function as a small skip. Although in the illustrated embodiment the fixed frame and lifting frame are each provided with offset legs 22, 24 and 32, 34 towards the rear of the assembly, one could alternatively provide rectilinear support struts and side-beams for the respective frames, i.e. without offset. In this case the support struts and side-beams would be continuous.

The various frame components of the tipper assembly may be made from rolled hollow sections, or alternatively from any other suitable material having the necessary strength and rigidity.

The tipper assembly is preferably equipped with an independent electrical/hydraulic power supply. This can be based for example on a d.c. modular power pack. Referring now to Figs. 3 to 8, the fixed-position bottom frame 101 which is shown most clearly in Fig. 5 comprises a head-beam 110, a tail-beam 112, and a pair of parallel side beams 114. Each of the side beams 114 carries a pair of fixing plates 116 by means of which the bottom frame can be bolted down or otherwise secured fixedly to the floor or bed plate of the truck or other vehicle which is to carry the tipper assembly. For this purpose, each of the fixing plates 116 is provided with for example a pair of bolt holes. The head beam 110 is provided with a mounting bracket 118 for a hydraulic cylinder 120 (Fig.3). The end of each side beam 114 adjacent to the head beam 110 is provided with a ramp 122. In the illustrated embodiment the ramps 122 are inclined at an angle of 30° to the horizontal. As shown most clearly in Fig. 4, the upper, free end of each of the ramps 122 lies above the general level of the upper surface of the bottom frame. The ramps 122 are preferably formed by ramp plates which are welded to the side beams 114. Referring now particularly to Fig . 3 together with Fig. 4 , these show details of the displaceable top frame of the tipper assembly. The top frame 123 comprises a head beam 124, a tail beam 126, two parallel side beams 128 and a reinforcing beam 130 which extends between the side beams 128 and which carries a mounting bracket 132 for one end of the hydraulic cylinder 120. This mounting bracket 132 is positioned on the longitudinal axis of the tipper assembly. The parallel side beams 128 are also each provided with lateral extension beams 134 which project outwardly thereof to the same extent that the head beam 124 and tail beam 126 extend laterally outwardly from the side beams. Thus, as can be seen most clearly from Fig. 3 , the top frame defines a flat top surface, indicated at 136, on to which a sheet.steel cover 148 with skirts is fitted and to which the dumper box or other cont_ainer is arranged to be fitted. Each of the side beams 128 is provided at its end adjacent to the head beam 124, on the outside face thereof, with a downwardly projecting support plate 138. Each support plate 138 is fitted with a wheel or roller 40, as is shown in Fig. 4. These rollers 140 rest on and ride on the ramp plates 122 of the bottom frame. Towards the tail end of the top frame, each side beam 128 is provided on each side with a reinforcement plate 142 welded to the side beam 128. A hole 144 is provided through the reinforcement plates 142 and side beam 128 to receive a pivot spindle, to be described hereinafter. On the outside of each of the reinforcement plates 142 is welded a downwardly projecting stop plate 146 which has the particular shape which is shown most clearly in Fig. 4.

Referring now to Figs. 3,4, and 8, it will be seen that the hydraulic cylinder 120 is positioned centrally of the tipper assembly, and that in the rest position where the top frame lies upon and parallel to the bottom frame, the hydraulic cylinder is contained within the contour of the top and bottom frames. The top frame and bottom frame are connected together for movement of the top frame relative to the bottom frame by a special linkage mechanism towards the tail end of the tipper assembly. This linkage mechanism comprises a pair of elongate pivot links 150 at each side of the tipper assembly. Each pair of pivot links 150 has one link positioned outwardly of the side beams 114 of the bottom frame and of the side beam 128 of the top frame, and the other pivot link positioned inwardly of those side beams. Each pivot link 150 is fitted towards each end with a bush 152 which enables it to be a running fit on the spindle. The respective spindles on which the pivot links move are indicated at 153 and 154. At their upper ends the respective pivot links 150 abut the outer face of the reinforcing plate 142. At their lower ends the respective pivot links 150 abut the outer face of reinforcement plates 156 which are provided at the tail end of the side beams 114 of the bottom frame. As indicated at 158 in Fig. 7, the spindles 153, 154 have a straight knurl on one end to act as a spline. They are pressed/driven into the frame to form a spline in the frame/reinforcement plates.

The dumper box 170 or other container or equipment adapted to be fitted to the top frame is shown in Fig. 6. This dumper box is preferably provided with a tail gate 171 which has a double swing latching system 172 so that the tail gate 171 can pivot freely either about its top edge or about its bottom edge, as desired. It is also provided with an appropriate hold-down system 173, including quarter-turn fasteners, by means of which it is fixedly, but easily removably, retained on the top frame cover 148 of the tipper unit. The method of operation of this embodiment of tipper assembly of the present invention is most easily understood from Fig. 4. Fig. 4 shows the rest position in which the top frame lies immediately above and parallel to the bottom frame, with the hydraulic cylinder 120 fully retracted. In this position the rollers 140 at the head end of the top frame are positioned at the bottom of the ramps 122, and the pivot links 150 are inclined towards the head end of the assembly at an angle of approximately 30° to the horizontal. The tipper assembly is controlled by an associated hydraulic pack and control of the operation of the assembly is effected by a simple double pushbutton switch. When the tipper assembly is first actuated from the position shown in Fig. 4 the piston of the hydraulic cylinder 120 begins to extend and, acting through the mounting bracket 132, pushes the top frame rearwards. As this occurs, the wheels or rollers 140 travel up the ramps 122 and the pivot links 150 simultaneously rotate in the anti-clockwise direction as shown in Fig. 4 about the lower spindle 154. This movement continues until the top frame reaches the position in which the rollers 140 are at the top of the ramps 142 and the pivot links 150 extend vertically. The dimensions of the tipper assembly are arranged to be such that the rollers 140 reach the top of the ramps at the same time as the pivot links 150 reach their vertical position and come into abutting engagement with stop plates 146. At this point in the lift the top frame has been raised and moved slightly towards the rear while maintaining a generally horizontal attitude. This means that the dumper box on top of the top frame is also maintained in a substantially horizontal attitude during this first part of the lift. Then, as the extension of the hydraulic piston/cylinder unit 120 continues, the head end of the top frame is lifted away from the ramps and the pivot links 150 at the tail of the assembly rotate further in the anticlockwise direction as shown in Fig. 4, thus causing the top frame and the dumper box mounted thereon to tilt through an increasing angle until finally the top frame is, if necessary, in the fully vertical position as shown in chain-dotted lines in Fig. 4. In this vertical position of the top frame the pivot links 150 extend horizontally and the hydraulic piston/cylinder unit lies at a shallow angle to the horizontal, as indicated at 160 in Fig.4. Also, in this fully tilted position of the top frame the stop plates 146 maintain abutting engagement with the pivot links 150 as shown by chain-dotted lines at the left-hand side of Fig. 4, thus defining the completion of the lifting and pivoting movement of the top frame.

As will be appreciated, this movement of the top frame relative to the bottom frame has the particular advantage that it incorporates not just a tilting movement of the top frame but also a rearward movement thereof, so that the actual tipping operation is effected to the rear of the fixed-position bottom frame and therefore clear of the rear end of the vehicle, i.e. truck 174. This is of particular advantage when tipping materials such as sand where one wishes to ensure that there is a free fall clear of the vehicle itself.

Also, the rearward end of the top frame, when tilted to the vertical, is at a level below the rear edge of the vehicle.

After completion of the tipping movement, the top frame can be returned to its rest position simply by actuation of the "reverse" push-button, whereupon the movement of the top frame will be effected in the reverse sense until it returns to the rest position as shown in Fig. 4.

One advantgage of this embodiment of tipper assembly of the present invention is that the whole tipper assembly is accommodated within a relatively shallow depth dimension overall. This means that the tipper assembly is a compact unit within the pick-up truck or other vehicle. It also leaves maximum space for the dumper box or other container mounted above the top frame. A further advantage of this embodiment is that the top frame can be tilted into a completely upright position at the end of the lifting movement.

The tipper assembly is also provided with an associated proximity switch device so that the lifting movement of the top frame cannot begin unless the vehicle tail-gate (or side-gate if the tipper assembly is mounted on the vehicle 174 so as to tip sideways) has first been lowered. For example, as indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 6, the tail-gate 175 carries a magnet 176 which, when the tail-gate is fully lowered, closes a reed switch 177 fixed to the vehicle bodywork below the tail-gate and arranged in the electrical control circuity of the tipper assembly. Fig. 6 clearly shows the tipper assembly occupying only part of the flat bed 178 of the truck 174, so that the remainder of the flat bed is available for non-tipping carriage of other material and/or equipment. Moreover, removal of the dumper box 170, which has its own base wall 179, leaves the flat cover 148 available as a tippable flat bed to carry material and/or equipment. The fixed frame 101 is releasably attached to the flat bed 178 by bolts 180 extending through the fixing plates 116 and the flat bed 178. To enable the user to supervise the tipping closely, an electrical press-button control box 181 is arranged at the end of a roving electrical lead 182.

The tipper assembly is not restricted to use on any particular type of vehicle, but is usable upon and transferrable amoung a wide variety of flat-bed and even non-flat-bed vehicles.

FOR THE PURPOSES OF INFORMATION ONLY

Codes used to identify States party to the PCT on the front pages of pamphlets publishing international applications under the PCT.

AT Austria ES Spain MG Madagascar

AU Australia Ft Finland ML MaU

BB Barbados FR France MR Mauritania

BE Bclgύm GA Gabon MW Malawi

BF Burkina Fasx) GB United Kingdom NL Netherlands

BG Bulgaria HU Hungary NO Norway

BJ Benin IT Italy RO Romania

BR Brazil JP Japan SO Sudan

CA Canada KP Democratic People's Republic SE Sweden

CF Central African Republic of Korea SN Senegal

CG Congo KR Republic of Korea SU Soviet Union

CH Switzerland U Liechtenstein TD Chad

CM Cameroon LK Sri Lanka TG Togo

DE Germany. Federal Republic of UU Luxembourg US United States of America

DK Denmark MC Monaco

Claims

CLAIMS :

1. A tipper assembly comprising fixed frame means (10 etc.; 101) arranged to be secured to a vehicle (174) and lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123) articulated to said fixed frame means (10 etc.; 101) by way of pivot means (36; 153, 154) and controllably displaceable relative to said fixed frame means (10 etc.; 101) by drive means (40,42; 120) between a substantially horizontal position and a raised position, characterized in that releasable connecting means (116,180) serves to connect said fixed frame means (10 etc.; 101) to said vehicle (174).

2. An assembly according to claim 1, in which the lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123) comprises a flat cover (148) which is substantially horizontal when said lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123) is substantially horizontal.

3. An assembly according to claim 1 or 2, and releasably mounted on said vehicle (174) at a flat bed (178) of said vehicle (174). 4. An assembly according to claim 3, wherein said assembly extends over only part of the plan area of said flat bed (178).

5. An assembly according to any preceding claim, in which the lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123) includes receptacle means (170) to receive a load to be carried and tipped.

6. An assembly according to claim 5 as appended to claim 2, wherein said receptacle means (170) lies above said flat cover (148). 7. An assembly according to claim 5 or 6, wherein said receptacle means (170) comprises a dumper box (170) demountable from said lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123).

8. An assembly according to any preceding claim, in which the lifting frame means (123) can be moved to a substantially fully vertical position by said drive means (120).

9. An assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the motion of said lifting frame means (123) between said substantially horizontal position and said raised position includes both displacement substantially axially relative to the fixed frame means (101) and a pivoting displacement about said pivot means (153,154). 10. An assembly according to claim 9, in which the substantially axial displacement is both towards said pivot means (153, 154) and upwardly.

11. An assembly according to claim 9 or 10, wherein means (146, 150) converts said pivot means (153, 154) from a dual pivot action to a single pivot action at a change from said substantially axial displacement to said pivoting displacement.

12. An assembly according to claim 9, 10, or 11, in which an end zone of the lifting frame means (123) further from said pivot means (153, 154) is arranged to be guided initially upwards by an inclined ramp (122) and said pivot means (153, 154) comprises pivot linkage means (150) connecting the two frame means (101; 123).

13. An assembly according to claim 12 as appended to claim 11, in which the lifting frame means (123) is arranged to leave the ramp (122) when said pivot linkage means (150) is in a substantially vertical position.

14. An assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein said drive means (120) comprises telescopically displaceable means (120) to raise the lifting frame means

(123), said telescopically displaceable means (120) having one end secured to the lifting frame means (123) in the region of an end of the lifting frame means (123) nearer the pivot means (153, 154) and having its other end secured to the fixed frame means (101) in the region of an end of the fixed frame means (101) further from the pivot means (153, 154). 15. An assembly according to claim 14, in which, in a rest condition with the lifting frame means (123) upon the fixed frame means (101) the telescopically displaceable means (120) is contained within the contour of the two frame means (101; 123). 16. An assembly according to claim 12 or 13, in which (a) in a rest position the lifting frame means (123) lies above and parallel to the fixed frame means (101) with telescopically displaceable power means (120) constituting said drive means (120) fully retracted, (b) as the power means (120) extends, said end of the lifting frame means (123) further from said pivot means (153,. 154) is guided upwardly by the ramp (122) and the opposite end zone of the lifting frame means (123) is guided by the pivot linkage means (150), whereby the lifting frame means (123) is raised and moved horizontally while maintaining a substantially horizontal attitude, and (c) as the power means (120) extends further, the pivot linkage means (150) turns into contact with a stop (146), the lifting frame means (123) leaves the ramp (122) and the pivot linkage means (150) rotates further, whereby the lifting frame means (123) is turned to at maximum a substantially vertical position in which the lifting frame means (123) is spaced from the fixed frame means (101). 17. An assembly according to any preceding claim, in which in the maximum pivoted position of the lifting frame means (123) that end of the lifting frame means (123) nearer the pivot means (153, 154) is at a level below the adjacent end of the fixed frame means (101).

18. A vehicle having a tipper assembly comprising fixed frame means (10 etc; 101) fixed to the vehicle (174) and lifting frame means (26 etc; 123) articulated to said fixed frame means (10 etc.; 101) by way of pivot means (36; 153, 154) and controUably displaceable relative to said fixed frame means (10 etc; 101) by drive means (40, 42; 120) between a substantially horizontal position and a raised position, characterized in that said assembly is mounted at a flat bed (178) of said vehicle (174).

19. A vehicle according to claim 18, wherein said assembly extends over only part of the plan area of said flat bed (178). 20. A vehicle according to claim 18 or 19, wherein the lifting frame means (26 etc; 123) comprises a flat cover (148) which is substantially horizontal when said lifting frame means (26 etc; 123) is substantially horizontal. 21. A vehicle according to claim 18, 19, or 20, wherein the lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123) includes receptacle means (170) to receive a load to be carried and tipped.

22. A vehicle according to claim 21 as appended to claim 20, wherein said receptacle means (170) lies above said flat cover (148).

23. A vehicle according to claim 22, wherein said receptacle means (170) is demountable from said lifting frame means (26 etc.; 123). 24. A vehicle according to claim 23, wherein said receptacle means (170) is a dumper box (170).