Moving device for counterweight

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10407283-B2
Application number	US-201615555599-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 2, 2016
Priority date	Mar 2, 2015
Publication date	Sep 10, 2019
Grant date	Sep 10, 2019

Abstract

An apparatus for moving a counterweight includes an attachment fixed to a frame of a machine, a supporting member that includes a supporting face for placing a counterweight thereon when the counterweight is mounted on the machine, and a link mechanism that moves the counterweight. The link mechanism includes an arm and a rotating cylinder that rotates the arm. One end of the arm is pivotally supported by the attachment while the other end of the arm is pivotally supported by the upper inner portion of a recess of the counterweight. One end of the rotating cylinder is pivotally supported by the upper inner portion of the recess of the counterweight. The supporting face is shaped so as to coincide with the arc locus drawn by a contact face arranged on the side of the counterweight, as the counterweight moves. The contact face comes into contact with the supporting face when the counterweight is mounted on the machine. The apparatus has a simple structure that avoids interference between the counterweight and supporting member when the counterweight is moved.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A moving device for a counterweight, the moving device moving the counterweight between a mounted state on a machine body frame and a ground, the moving device comprising:
an attachment member fixed to the machine body frame;
a supporting member fixed to the machine body frame and including a supporting surface on which the counterweight is placed in the mounted state, the supporting surface having an inclined surface that faces an upward and backward direction relative to the machine body;
a step section defined on the counterweight, the step section projects axially forward relative to a front surface of the counterweight;
a contact surface defined along a lower portion of the step section, the contact surface being complimentary to the supporting surface of the supporting member, and the contact surface and the supporting surface being in contact with each other when the counterweight is in the mounted state; and
a link mechanism attached to the attachment member and configured to move the counterweight, wherein the link mechanism includes:
an arm member, a proximal end of which is axially supported by the attachment member and a distal end of which is axially supported in an upper portion of a recessed place on the front surface of the counterweight; and
a turning cylinder, one end of which is axially supported by the attachment member and another end of which is axially supported in the upper portion of the recessed place, the turning cylinder being provided to be extendable and retractable and turn the distal end of the arm member about the proximal end of the arm member to move the counterweight along an arcuate track that extends along a single arcuate track entirely between a ground state and the mounted state, and

wherein the supporting surface in contact with the contact surface of the step section in the mounted state is formed in a shape based on the arcuate track corresponding to the movement of the contact surface of the step section.

2. The moving device for a counter weight according to claim 1 , wherein the arcuate track does not extend through a plane that is perpendicular with the ground.

3. The moving device for a counterweight according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting surface is an inclined surface obtained by linearly approximating the arcuate track.

4. The moving device for a counterweight according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting surface is a curved surface extending along the arcuate track.

5. The moving device for a counterweight according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting surface has a shape based on a track at a time when an edge portion on the contact surface on a side opposite a moving direction of the counterweight moves between a position in the mounted state and a position where the edge portion overlaps, in a vertical direction, an edge portion on the supporting surface on a side of the moving direction.

6. The moving device for a counterweight according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting member is a support block configured to be detachable from the machine body frame and to support the counterweight from a downward direction below the contact surface.

7. The moving device for a counterweight according to claim 1 , further comprising an adjusting mechanism for adjusting upper and lower positions of the counterweight during mounting of the counterweight.

8. The moving device for a counter weight according to claim 1 , wherein the link mechanism is disposed substantially at a center in a left-right direction of the machine body frame, and
the supporting member includes a pair of supporting members disposed on the attachment member with one supporting member of the pair of supporting members being positioned on a left side of the link mechanism and the other supporting member of the pair of supporting members being positioned on a right side of the link mechanism.

9. The moving device for a counter weight according to claim 1 , wherein the link mechanism includes only one turning cylinder.

Assignees

• Caterpillar Sarl

Inventors

• Mori Kenichi
• Iguchi Ryo
• Hashimoto Hirokazu

Classifications

• B66C23/74 Primary

  separate from jib · CPC title

• E02F9/18 Primary

  Counterweights {(for cranes B66C23/72, for tractors B62D49/085)} · CPC title