Carrying apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11097933-B2
Application number	US-201916517972-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 22, 2019
Priority date	Sep 20, 2018
Publication date	Aug 24, 2021
Grant date	Aug 24, 2021

Abstract

A swivel base is provided on a trolley so as to be able to swivel around a vertical axis, and a fork can be slid in a horizontal direction between an advanced position and a retracted position by a sliding mechanism capable of moving up and down along a pillar erected on the swivel base. Thus, it is possible to realize a configuration in which an empty-box skid is loaded in one direction and unloaded in another direction by means of the swiveling swivel base, without employing a configuration in which a plurality of members is supported so as to be able to swivel around different vertical axes. A movable range of the sliding mechanism (a movable range of the fork) in a vertical direction is therefore not significantly limited, and a transfer position of the empty-box skid in the vertical direction can be set to a lower position.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A carrying apparatus for carrying a load placed on the carrying apparatus, the carrying apparatus comprising:
a trolley configured to travel in a front-rear direction;
a swivel base provided on the trolley so as to be able to swivel around a vertical axis;
a pillar erected on the swivel base and extending in a vertical direction;
a holding member configured to hold the load; and
a sliding mechanism capable of moving up and down along a first extension direction of the pillar and configured to slide the holding member in a horizontal direction between an advanced position at which the load is handed over and a retracted position at which the load is located above the swivel base,
wherein the sliding mechanism includes a guide member that has an upper guide and a lower guide that extend laterally outward from the pillar in the horizontal direction, wherein both the upper guide and the lower guide are disposed on a first side and a second side of the pillar while moving up and down along the first extension direction of the pillar, and the holding member is configured to be able to slide in the horizontal direction along a second extension direction of the guide member between the advance position and the retracted position,
wherein a portion of the guide member that extends on the first side of the pillar has a leading end which extends beyond a first side of the trolley,
wherein the holding member includes: (i) a pair of prongs extending in the horizontal direction and (ii) a coupling part extending in the front-rear direction and that couples together base ends of the pair of prongs, and a rear end of the coupling part, in the front-rear direction, is engaged with the leading end of the guide member, so that guide member is engaged with the holding member, and
wherein, in the retracted position, the pair of prongs are located so that each one of the pair of prongs is located on an opposite side of a center of swiveling of the swivel base.

2. The carrying apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising
a control unit that controls the sliding mechanism, wherein:
the pillar is erected at a position offset from a center of swiveling of the swivel base;
when the holding member is at the retracted position, the load held by the holding member is located above the center of swiveling; and
the control unit is configured to control the sliding mechanism so as to move the holding member to the retracted position before the swivel base swivels.

3. The carrying apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein:
the trolley has a bottom plate and a vertical wall extending vertically upward from an outer edge of the bottom plate;
the carrying apparatus includes a swivel driving mechanism installed on the bottom plate;
the swivel base is mounted on an upper side of the swivel driving mechanism and configured to be able to swivel by receiving power directed around the vertical axis from the swivel driving mechanism; and
a lower surface of the swivel base is located at a level higher than an upper end of the vertical wall of the trolley by a predetermined dimension.

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Nagasawa Katsuhiko
• Suzuki Rui
• Sone Daiji

Classifications

• B66F9/14

  laterally movable, e.g. swingable, for slewing or transverse movements · CPC title

• B66F9/125

  rotatable about a longitudinal axis · CPC title

• B66F9/122

  longitudinally movable · CPC title

• B66F9/06 Primary

  movable, with their loads, on wheels or the like, e.g. fork-lift trucks (vehicle aspects B60 - B62; vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading or unloading B60P1/00; low-lift hand trucks for transporting goods B62B3/06) · CPC title

• B66F9/07513

  Details concerning the chassis · CPC title