Material or article handling – Self-loading or unloading vehicles
Patent
1996-02-09
1999-04-06
Keenan, James W.
Material or article handling
Self-loading or unloading vehicles
414346, 414347, B66F 906
Patent
active
058908668
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a transporter for lifting equipment to an elevated surface and for lowering the equipment therefrom, and more particularly to a self-loading and unloading transporter which includes a support assembly and a lift assembly for raising or lowering both the transporter and the load from one level to another as a complete self-contained unit.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Heavy and bulky material or equipment are difficult to handle both from different heights and different locations. The equipment used, however, must be readily transportable from one location to another. For instance, a tool box may be used at a variety of different job sites and will typically be hauled from one site to the next by a pickup truck or van.
One problem with loading such equipment as a conventional tool box is the loading and unloading of the box into and out of the vehicle. Often, the tool box is too heavy to manually load and unload without risk of injury or it takes numerous trips to move the equipment between the vehicle to a work location. Consequently, a hoist or forklift will be used to load and unload the equipment. This, of course, requires such additional machinery at the job site.
On the other hand, the tool box is left loaded on the vehicle. However, this presents additional problems since the vehicle and the tools are often required at separate locations.
There are many other situations where a relatively heavy load must be raised to an elevated surface or platform or lowered to a surface. This typically requires some type of separate equipment at the designated site for handling such heavy loads. It would be advantageous to have a self-contained assembly which included the equipment and a mechanism for independently loading and unloading the equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The present invention features a transporter having a support assembly for moving the transporter between different locations and a lift assembly to move a load such as a storage container or platform between a lower level and a higher level. The transporter is self-loading and unloading. In other words, both the transporter and the load move from one level to another level as a complete self-contained unit.
The storage container may be in the form of a tool box or a platform for supporting various types of loads or equipment. The transporter generally includes a support assembly for transporting the storage container and/or load to various job sites and a lift assembly for elevating the storage container and/or load as required at the work site. According to a particular preferred embodiment of the invention, the support assembly is generally C-shaped.
The lift assembly is mounted on the support assembly to transport the container or platform between work or storage positions. The lift assembly is configured to facilitate movement of the container or platform between a lower level and a surface disposed at a higher level. The lift assembly also is used to raise the support assembly to a storage position with respect to the lift assembly. In one embodiment, the support assembly is pivoted about the lift assembly and lowered onto the raised surface for transporting the container on the raised surface. In another embodiment the support assembly is slid or shifted laterally with respect to the lift assembly after the load is deposited on the higher surface. The support assembly is then raised to an elevated position, slid or shifted back to its original position, and lowered onto the higher surface for moving the load on that higher surface. The lift assembly raises the container to the higher level and preferably with the container supported over the raised surface. The lift assembly also allows these movements to be reversed so that the equipment may be moved from the higher level to the lower level.
One of the primary objects of the invention is to provide a transporter which has the capability to transport and elevate heavy equipment over surfaces at different elev
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Gear-Rig, LLC
Keenan James W.
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