Freight accommodation on freight carrier – Particular article accommodation – Wheeled vehicle
Patent
1998-05-14
2000-02-22
Gordon, Stephen T.
Freight accommodation on freight carrier
Particular article accommodation
Wheeled vehicle
410 4, 187215, 187253, B60P 102
Patent
active
060272902
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns an assembly for vehicles in the form of a loading mechanism with a movable platform attached to the floor of the movable base of a vehicle such as a tractor-trailer, a semi-trailer, a flatbed truck, a railway car, or the like, which carries merchandise or specialized freight, especially freight packed in units; the assembly can be modified at will to form either a second vertically movable loading deck or conventional empty loading space.
A vehicle which transports cargo or general freight, particularly a truck, a semi-trailer, or a trailer truck, is equipped with a loading deck which holds the containers, boxes, cartons, or other receptacles protecting the products being carried.
Such containers are packed as well as possible in the free interior space, arranged in stacks or piles juxtaposed within the cargo space available, in a fairly cohesive, compact unit for the sake of stability and efficient use of space.
If necessary, the containers are secured so they are not jostled as the truck travels along the road or due to acceleration, braking or centrifugal force.
It is generally recognized that having two loading surfaces not only increases freight capacity, but also facilitates loading the vehicle.
Providing a second loading deck that is movable and can be lowered to ground level also simplifies loading, as both loading and unloading can take place in the usual way from this position.
While these features are appealing, the posts supporting the movable intermediate loading deck interfere with loading operations.
In actuality, these supports interfere with both side and rear access. Optimum access during loading/unloading operations is essential, but the dual configuration systems with movable intermediate loading platforms which are presently in use do not provide good access, as they have fixed posts.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
With the present invention, each of these features is available simultaneously, that is, the advantages of the movable intermediate loading platform described above, as well as the inherent advantages of a movable transportation base with only one loading platform that is completely accessible from both the side and the rear.
To achieve this, the invention provides an assembly for a road vehicle formed of one movable intermediate loading surface, with a supplemental deck that is vertically movable along a plurality of vertically collapsible posts which can be stored in the inoperative position within the additional movable deck; it further provides a drive member for this additional deck integrated within the movable deck so it can be converted at will into either a second, vertically movable loading surface or, once the posts are collapsed, into conventional cargo space.
In this way, the cargo can be divided between the original deck and the supplemental movable deck. The containers can be arranged in shorter stacks for greater stability, and the bottommost container will no longer be crushed by the weight of too many containers piled on top of it, as such containers are not designed to withstand this treatment.
The movable supplemental deck is quite thin, so the unit maintains approximately the same cargo capacity as a conventional deck.
The vehicle remains easy to load because of the collapsible posts, which can be folded and stored to provide easy access from the side and the rear.
Furthermore, according to the present invention, one simple operation converts the vehicle from a single cargo deck configuration to a dual deck configuration, and conversely.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING(S)
Other characteristics and features of the invention will be apparent from the following description, given by way of example, taken in conjunction with the drawings, which represent:
FIG. 1: a general perspective view of the loading unit when assembled, with the movable deck raised half way;
FIG. 2: a general perspective view of the locating unit when assembled, showing the movable deck as transparent;
FIG. 3: a general perspe
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Gordon Stephen T.
Lohr Industrie
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