Buckles – buttons – clasps – etc. – Freight container to freight container fastener
Patent
1997-04-09
1998-08-25
Brittain, James R.
Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.
Freight container to freight container fastener
B65D 9000
Patent
active
057971692
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a coupling piece for the detachable connection of corner fittings of adjacent containers, especially of containers stacked one above the other on board ships, according to the preamble of claim 1.
Coupling pieces of the type stated at the beginning are usually referred to in the jargon of the trade as "twistlocks". These coupling pieces are predominantly used in the transport containers on board ships. With the coupling pieces, the containers are connected one to another and to the ship. Relative displacements of the containers during marine transport are thereby intended to be prevented.
In order to reduce the lay times of the ships in connection with the loading and unloading of containers, semi-automatically working coupling pieces are used. These minimize the manual activities involved in locking and unlocking the coupling pieces.
By way of example, a semi-automatic coupling piece is known from DE 37 10 419 A1. In this coupling piece, the locking bolt can be actuated both manually and by a pretensioned spring. Consequently, the coupling piece only needs to be manually coupled to one container. This is realized by the respective coupling piece being pre-locked to a container, whereupon the spring serving the subsequent automatic twisting of the locking bolt is simultaneously pretensioned. Following manual pre-locking, the containers to be connected are placed one on top of the other and the coupling piece is automatically thereupon locked by virtue of the pretensioned spring.
This known coupling piece demands a very complex spring mechanism and a twistable actuating lever. In addition, the spring mechanism and the twistable actuating lever lead to functional impairments in the known coupling piece. In particular, the locking bolt, in its relative position to the housing which is necessary for the intended operation of the coupling piece, cannot or cannot accurately be fixed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Starting from this basis, the object of the invention is to refine a coupling piece of the type stated at the beginning such that it has a simple structure and is functionally reliable.
For the achievement of this object, the coupling piece according to the invention displays the features defined in claim 1. The pressure element assigned to the locking bolt and at least one stop means both on the locking bolt and on the pressure element produce the effect that a stop means on the locking bolt comes to bear against a corresponding stop means of the pressure element and consequently the locking bolt with the crossbolts is able to be reliably fixed in a certain relative position to the housing. On the middle part of the crossbolt there can be disposed an optional number of stop means, which number is chosen such that each relative position which occurs in practice of the crossbolts to the housing is assigned a stop means. As a minimum, two stop means are assigned to the locking bolt. Where the locking bolt displays a plurality of stop means, the pressure element needs only to display one (single) stop means. It is alternatively conceivable to dispose on the pressure element a plurality of stop means, whilst the middle part displays only one (single) stop means.
The stop means are preferably configured such that, if they are not located in their corresponding relative position to one another in which the crossbolts are fixed, they make their way automatically into such a position when the locking bolt with the crossbolts is twisted. It is thereby ensured that the locking bolt makes its way automatically into a position in which a reliable fixing of the crossbolt is secured against further twisting.
By way of example, this can relate to the locking position (with both locked crossbolts), the pre-locking position (with only one locked crossbolt) and the unlocked position (with a different unlocked crossbolt).
The automatic twisting of the locking bolt into the respective position is effected, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, by the pressure elemen
Donner Julius
Niemann Thomas
Wilk Wilhelm
Brittain James R.
MacGregor-Conver GmbH
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