Aircraft towing vehicle

Material or article handling – Wheel and wheel-type article handler and transporter – Vertically swinging article engager

Patent

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Details

414429, 180904, 244 50, B64F 122

Patent

active

053082125

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a national phase application of PCT/DE92/00057 filed 30 Jan. 1992 and based upon German National Applications P4102861.9 filed 31 Jan. 1991 and P4131649.5 filed 23 Sep. 1991 under the International Convention.


FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an aircraft towing vehicle provided with a chassis having a receiving device formed on a rear end of the chassis for supporting and securing a nose wheel of an aircraft.


BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In aircraft towing vehicles without a towbar the nose wheel is supported and secured on a support surface designed as a platform, cradle, ramp or the like, provided in the fork-shaped, rearward open recess of the towing vehicle. In order to place the nose wheel on the support surface a take-up operation occurs, consisting mainly of two motion courses. In one variant, the nose wheel is gripped from behind by a gripping and traction device travelling back and forth on the towing vehicle in longitudinal direction and pulled onto the support surface which is basically stationarily mounted on the towing vehicle, such as known from German open specifications 33 18 077, 37 01 971 and 18 01 855. During this take-up operation the aircraft and the towing vehicle have to move relatively to each other, whereby due to the big difference in mass the aircraft stands still, preferably with set landing-gear brakes, while the towing vehicle moves in reverse during the take-up, until the support surface is positioned under the nose wheel In the other variant of the take-up operation both the aircraft and the towing vehicle are stationary relatively to each other and the support surface is moved backwards with respect to the towing vehicle and slipped under the nose wheel. A countersupport reaching behind the nose wheel takes care of the securing of the nose wheel with respect to the towing vehicle and prevents strain on the nose wheel gear due to horizontal forces acting on the nose wheel while the support surface is slipped under the latter. Towing vehicles of this kind are known from DE-OS 39 17 255 and EP 0 331 363 A1.
The invention relates to a towing vehicle of the kind first mentioned, wherein the nose wheel is gripped from the rear by a gripping device and pulled onto the support surface. A towing vehicle is known particularly from EP 0 276 779 A1. In this known towing vehicle the lifting cradle having the support surface is supported on the chassis so that it is swingable about a horizontal transverse axis and the traction arms carrying the gripping members are rigidly connected with the lifting cradle, so that when the lifting cradle is raised or lowered they will be moved up or down to the same extent, and that especially when the lifting cradle is raised they will move together with the same and the nose wheel. Since in this known towing vehicle the position of the gripping members does not change with respect to the lifting cradle during the raising and lowering operation, the gripping member presses against the same location on the nose wheel circumference when the lifting cradle is lowered, as well as when the lifting cradle is raised. If this location is above the axis of rotation of the nose wheel, the gripping member can exert a downwardly oriented holding force on the nose wheel, however there is the disadvantage that the downwardly oriented force component already exists when the nose wheel is supposed to be pulled onto the lowered lifting cradle. This is a drawback, since during the take-up it is desirable to have a force component which is again upwardly oriented, helping to overcome the difference in height between the runway and the lowered lifting cradle. From DE-OS 39 17 255 a towing vehicle is known which has an actively rearward slidable lifting cradle and therefore pertains to the above-mentioned second variant of the take-up operation, wherein traction arms bearing the gripping members reaching behind the nose wheel can be swung vertically independently from the lifting cradle, so th

REFERENCES:
patent: 4632625 (1986-12-01), Schuller et al.
patent: 4810157 (1989-03-01), Schopf
patent: 4911603 (1990-03-01), Pollner et al.
patent: 4911604 (1990-03-01), Pollner et al.
patent: 4917563 (1990-04-01), Pollner et al.
patent: 4917564 (1990-04-01), Pollner et al.
patent: 4950121 (1990-08-01), Meyer et al.
patent: 4997331 (1991-03-01), Grinsted et al.
patent: 5051052 (1991-09-01), Franken et al.

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