Transport device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9764903-B2
Application number	US-201414903407-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 30, 2014
Priority date	Jul 10, 2013
Publication date	Sep 19, 2017
Grant date	Sep 19, 2017

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to suppress rise in running resistance with increases in weight of a transport vehicle group, and prevent higher energy consumption and manufacturing cost. A transport device transports a transport vehicle ( 1 ) carrying an article (E) along a transport path including a curved path and forms a continuous floor (B) on the transport vehicle ( 1 ) in the entire or partial transport path. The transport device includes: running rails (R) that are laid along the transport path to support running wheels ( 4, 5 , and 6 ) of the transport vehicle ( 1 ); guide rails that guide the transport vehicle ( 1 ) along the transport path; a drive unit that drives the transport vehicle ( 1 ); and a water way (WW) that is formed along the transport path to reserve water (W).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A transport device transporting a non-self-propelled transport vehicle carrying an article along a transport path including a curved path and forming a continuous floor on the transport vehicle in the entire or partial transport path, the transport device comprising:
running rails that are laid along the transport path to support running wheels of the transport vehicle;
guide rails that guide the transport vehicle along the transport path;
a drive unit that drives the transport vehicle; and
a water way that is formed along the transport path to reserve water, wherein
the transport vehicle is formed such that a plurality of frame bodies with upper surfaces approximately flush with each other is coupled together so as to be bendable relatively in the horizontal direction, and
a float body partially or entirely immersed in the water reserved in the water way is fixed to a lower part of each or any of the frame bodies.

2. The transport device according to claim 1 , wherein
the transport vehicle includes a friction surface, and
the drive unit driving the transport vehicle is a friction-type drive unit including a friction roller to be in abutment with the friction surface.

3. The transport device according to claim 1 , wherein
a guided member drooping from an article support base supporting the article is supported in an ascendible and descendible manner by a guiding member provided at one of the frame bodies, and
the float body partially or entirely immersed in the water reserved in the water way is fixed to the guided member positioned under the guiding member.

4. The transport device according to claim 3 , comprising a height holding means that, in the state in which the article support base supports the article, holds the height of the article support base relative to the frame bodies at a constant value.

5. The transport device according to claim 1 , wherein
a work line is configured such that a plurality of the transport vehicles is coupled together by a coupling means to form a transport vehicle group and the transport vehicle group is arranged in the transport path including the curved path,
a return line is provided such that the transport vehicle at a front end of the transport vehicle group in the transport direction is separated and transported at a high speed and is coupled to a back end of the transport vehicle group, and
on the return line, the article is unloaded from one of the transport vehicles that is separated from the transport vehicle group and a new article is loaded onto the same.

6. The transport device according to claim 1 , wherein
a section between a pair of the frame bodies adjacent to each other at the front and back sides of the transport direction is set as an arc-shaped convex portion at one side and as an arc-shaped concave portion at the other side in a plane view,
the curvature radiuses of the arc-shaped convex portion and the arc-shaped concave portion are approximately identical, and
the center of rotation around which the pair of the frame bodies bends relatively in the horizontal direction is approximately identical to the centers of curvatures of the arc-shaped convex portion and the arc-shaped concave portion.

7. The transport device according to claim 6 , wherein
one of the front end and the back end of the transport vehicle is set as the arc-shaped convex portion and the other is set as the arc-shaped concave portion,
the coupling means coupling the transport vehicles positioned at the front and back sides of the transport direction is composed of an arc-shaped guide groove formed in the arc-shaped convex portion at the coupling side of the transport vehicle positioned at the front and back sides of the transport direction and an engagement body for engagement with the arc-shaped guide groove provided at the arc-shaped concave portion at the coupling side of the same such that they are engageable with each other into a coupled state and are disengageable from each other into a decoupled state, and
the center of curvature of the arc-shaped guide groove is approximately identical to the center of curvature of the arc-shaped convex portion.

8. The transport device according to claim 6 , wherein
one of the front end and the back end of the transport vehicle is set as the arc-shaped convex portion and the other is set as the arc-shaped concave portion,
the coupling means coupling the transport vehicles positioned at the front and back sides of the transport direction is composed of an arc-shaped guide groove formed in the arc-shaped concave portion at the coupling side of the transport vehicle positioned at the front and back sides of the transport direction and an engagement body for engagement with the arc-shaped guide groove provided at the arc-shaped convex portion at the coupling side of the same such that they are engageable with each other into a coupled state and are disengageable from each other into a decoupled state, and
the center of curvature of the arc-shaped guide groove is approximately identical to the center of curvature of the arc-shaped concave portion.

9. The transport device according to claim 1 , comprising a water flow generation unit that generates a forward water flow in the transport direction in the water reserved in the water way to apply thrust to the transport vehicle via the float body in the transport direction.

Assignees

• Nakanishi Metal Works Co
• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Okazaki Yoshihiro
• Uchibori Toshiyuki
• Kobayashi Takahisa

Classifications

• B65G17/34

  having flat surfaces, e.g. platforms, grids, forks · CPC title

• B65G35/08 Primary

  comprising trains of unconnected load-carriers, e.g. belt sections, movable in a path, e.g. a closed path, adapted to contact each other and to be propelled by means arranged to engage each load-carrier in turn · CPC title

• B65G35/06 Primary

  comprising a load-carrier moving along a path, e.g. a closed path, and adapted to be engaged by any one of a series of traction elements spaced along the path (effecting drive at two or more points spaced along the length of an endless conveyor B65G23/32) · CPC title

• B61F9/00

  Rail vehicles characterised by means for preventing derailing, e.g. by use of guide wheels · CPC title

• B65G17/22

  with oppositely-moving parts of the conveyor located in a common plane {and being formed by individual load carriers only} · CPC title