Land vehicles – Body elevation or tilt – Terrain slope compensation
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-07
2001-10-09
Boehler, Anne Marie (Department: 3618)
Land vehicles
Body elevation or tilt
Terrain slope compensation
C180S418000, C280S404000, C280S124128, C280S093504
Reexamination Certificate
active
06299181
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates generally to vehicle steering and more particularly to a steering system which improves performance of log haulers operating on rough terrain or in forests.
BACKGROUND ART
Highway vehicles and many off-highway vehicles have used stub axles to support steerable wheels. Typically, in such a construction, a pair of stub axles are pivotally connected on nearly vertical axes to opposite ends of a transverse axle. The U.S. Pat. No. 3,903,983 issued to Laurel R. Yeske for Steering System for Vehicles shows a vehicle having four stub axle supported steerable wheels together with a control system for selectively choosing front steering, rear steering, front and rear steering, crab steering and parallel steering. Some off-highway vehicles are provided with central steering wherein front and rear sections of a vehicle are pivoted about a central vertical pivot. The previously used or suggested steering arrangements are not satisfactory for steering a multiple section log hauler or forwarder in a serpentine fashion through a tree harvesting area. Also they do not provide satisfactory adjustment of the support wheels of a multiple section log hauler to maintain a satisfactory load center as the various sections of the log hauler traverse the uneven terrain usually associated with wood lands and forests.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems or disadvantages associated with the prior art.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
A steering arrangement is provided for a log hauler having a tractor and a plurality of log trailers joined by central vertical pivot connections. The steering arrangement includes steering mechanism for causing steering about the central vertical pivots and steering mechanism for steering each of the support wheels. All the support wheels are steerable relative to a chassis of the tractor or the log trailer they support, thereby providing a very maneuverable vehicle for moving in serpentine fashion over irregular terrain often found in wooded areas. The lateral stability of the log hauler is greatly enhanced by also making the steerable support wheels vertically adjustable relative to the chassis of the log hauler sections. Each of the steerable support wheels is rotatably supported on one end of a pendulum arm which has its other end pivotally connected to a chassis through a connector which allows the pendulum arm to swing vertically relative to the connector. The connector is pivotally connected to the chassis of the tractor or one of the log trailers for pivotal steering movement about a vertical pivot axis. Power operated actuators are used to control the swinging movement of the pendulum arm and to control the pivotal steering movement of the carrier relative to the chassis structure.
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patent: 5366337 (1994-11-01), Eriksson
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Boehler Anne Marie
Caterpillar S.A.R.L.
Nexsen Pruet Jacobs & Pollard LLP
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