Conveyors: power-driven – Conveyor or accessory therefor specialized to convey people
Patent
1995-04-27
1997-04-22
Terrell, William E.
Conveyors: power-driven
Conveyor or accessory therefor specialized to convey people
198333, 1984651, 1984652, B65G 1700, B66B 2100
Patent
active
056222467
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a continuous transportation apparatus, such as an escalator, moving footway, etc., in which the direction of its steps themselves cannot be changed when the steps are transversely transferred after being disengaged from the terminal end of a forward-stroke track and switched to the starting end of a backward-stroke track which extends parallel to the forward-stroke track, and more particularly, to a continuous transportation apparatus in which a plurality of steps, adjoining one another in front and in rear, are formed into one unit step group by means of a connecting mechanism, and the entire unit step group is transferred and switched from the terminal end of the forward-stroke track to the starting end of the backward-stroke track without changing the direction of itself.
BACKGROUND ART
Disclosed in Japanese Patent Applications published as KOKOKU Nos. 46-33107, 46-33108 and 46-33109 are continuous transportation apparatuses which are arranged as follows: When one step traveling on a first stroke track reaches the terminal end of the track, the step is disengaged from this stroke track and transported toward the starting end of a second stroke track which extends parallel to the first stroke track. Then, the transferred step is set on the second stroke track, and travels on the second stroke track in the direction opposite to the direction of the travel on the first stroke track. These apparatuses are designed so that the direction of the step itself cannot be changed during the travel of the step on the first and second stroke tracks.
As described above, however, all these conventional continuous transportation apparatuses are constructed in a manner such that steps are allowed to travel one by one on the stroke track, and the steps at the terminal end of the first stroke track are transferred one by one from this stroke track to the starting end of the second stroke track via a curved connecting track.
Incidentally, a large-sized object, such as a wheelchair, cannot be carried by means of only one step, requiring use of a plurality of continuous steps, e.g., three in number, adjoining in front and in rear. In the aforementioned conventional continuous transportation apparatuses, however, each three adjacent steps on the first and second stroke tracks are oriented oppositely in the vertical direction, with the result that such a mechanism for loading a wheelchair cannot be incorporated into the above transportation apparatus for inappropriateness in order of step arrangement.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a continuous transportation apparatus in which an object to be transferred, such as a wheelchair, is carried on a unit step group which is formed of a plurality of steps adjoining one another in front and in rear, runs in one direction on a first stroke track is then disengaged from this stroke track at the terminal end thereof, and further the unit step group is fed transversely, is transferred to a second stroke track which extends parallel to the first stroke track, and runs on this stroke track in the direction opposite to the aforesaid direction, in a manner such that the order of vertical arrangement of the steps which constitute the unit step group is maintained so as not to be changed.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a continuous transportation apparatus travelling forward and backward of a type such that a first stroke track (forward-stroke track) and a second stroke track (backward-stroke track), adapted to travel in opposite directions, are arranged parallel to each other, and the steps are transferred from the stroke track end on the one side to the track end on the other side without changing the direction of the steps themselves. In this apparatus, two or more steps are successively connected by means of a parallel link mechanism to form one unit step group to be transferred, the step at each end of each unit step group is fit
REFERENCES:
patent: 3547286 (1970-12-01), LeBlond
patent: 4641583 (1987-02-01), Harrington
patent: 5201405 (1993-04-01), Noshi
patent: 5226524 (1993-07-01), Cuttinger et al.
Terrell William E.
Tran Khoi H.
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