Patent Application
20090110524
This invention generally relates to land vehicles, including but not limited to systems for unloading cargo carried by the vehicles.
Land vehicles are commonly used for transportation of aggregate materials. For example, materials such as seed for planting crops may be transported over large distances between a distributor and a client by trucks travelling on public highways. Typically, seed is packaged in bags arranged on pallets or contained within large plastic bins loaded onto trucks by forklifts for distribution to customers. When a customer purchases seed from a distributor, the packaged seed is typically loaded onto a truck or band (or semi) trailer for transportation. Once the seed arrives at its destination, the pallets or bins are unloaded from the truck for use in the field.
After the seed has been unloaded, the aggregate seed material is taken out of its packaging and reloaded onto farm carts having conveyor delivery systems capable of gradually unloading the aggregate onto an advancing seed planting machine. One example of such a farm cart is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,888,044 titled “Seed Cart With Loading/Unloading Conveyor System,” issued to G. Baskerville on Mar. 30, 1999.
This method of handling aggregate seed material and other similar materials, for example, grain or feed, is effective for transportation from the source to the user. However, the successive loading and unloading of the aggregate, as well as the removal of the aggregate from its packaging for transportation by cart to the site of use in the field, are both time consuming and wasteful (inasmuch as some of the aggregate is lost during the various loading and unloading procedures).
The disclosure describes, in one aspect, a land vehicle capable of transporting and unloading aggregates via a conveyor system. The conveyor is included in a moveable boom that can be stowed completely within the side edges of the vehicle. The aggregate is typically packaged in bags or large bins loaded onto the vehicle with a forklift. The vehicle has an opening formed in the floor portion of a cargo area. A funnel rotatably connected to a bottom side of the floor portion, beneath the opening, communicates with a receiving end of a boom having a conveyor. The boom is hingeably connected to the funnel and stowable completely beneath the floor portion of the chassis when not in use. During operation, the boom is extended and a flow of aggregate material enters the funnel through the opening in the floor portion, where it is transferred off the vehicle by the conveyor. The delivery system, including the funnel and boom, is advantageously modular and suited for connection to any type of vehicle, including rail cars. Moreover, placement of the delivery system beneath the floor of the vehicle provides a flat work surface around the opening such that a multitude of packaging forms for the aggregate can be used.
In another aspect, the disclosure provides a method for unloading aggregate material from a land vehicle. The method includes rotating a funnel rotatably connected to a floor portion of the vehicle about a vertical axis. The boom pivots with respect to the funnel to a desired material deposition location adjacent to the vehicle. The conveyor is activated and a flow of aggregate passes through an opening formed in the floor portion of the vehicle into the funnel, routed to a receiving end of the boom such that the flow of aggregate falls onto the conveyor, and transported along the conveyor to a delivery end of the boom.
The present disclosure describes, in one aspect, a delivery system for use with a flat-bedded vehicle, for example, a truck, trailer, band trailer, or rail car. The delivery system is advantageously configured for directly unloading an aggregate material carried by the vehicle in a multitude of packaging configurations. The delivery system is well suited for applications requiring unloading of the aggregate by conveyor or, in general, gradual unloading of the aggregate while the vehicle is in motion. The embodiments described herein use an application for transporting aggregate seed for planting for illustration and by way of example but, as can be appreciated, the apparatus and methods described herein may be used for any other type of aggregate material.
A side view of a truck 100 comprising a cab 102 and band trailer 104 is shown in
A delivery system 200 is connected on the bottom side 118 of the floor 108 between the wheels 114 and the hinge 112. In general, the delivery system 200 may be connected anywhere along the bottom of the trailer 104 between features supporting or dragging the trailer along. The delivery system includes two main portions, a funnel portion 202 connected to the trailer 104, and a boom portion 204 pivotally connected to the funnel 202. As can be seen in the partial cutaway of
A partial breakaway of the trailer 104, from a rear perspective, is shown in
The funnel 204 is advantageously offset to permit a greater range of tilting motion and improved reach for the boom 204 relative to the sides of the band trailer 104. More specifically, a centerline, A, of the mouth opening 311 is offset from a centerline, B, of the spout opening 321 by a distance, C. As can be appreciated, the offset distance C will bring the spout opening 321 of the funnel 204 closer to the edge of the trailer 104 when the funnel 204 is rotated. By positioning the spout opening 321 closer to the edge of the trailer 104, the range of motion of the boom 204 is increased, and the distance within which the boom 204 may extend and deposit material is increased.
The boom 204, shown here in cross section, includes a support structure 316 rotatably supporting rollers 318 on either end. One of the rollers 318 may be free rolling and the other may be powered by a motor (not shown). In the embodiment presented, the roller 318A disposed on the distant end of the boom 204 is connected to a motor acting to rotate the roller 318A and advance a conveyor belt 320. The conveyor 320 is capable of motion along the length of the boom 204 and may be any type of conveyor belt known. Selection of an appropriate type should be made according to the type of aggregate material being transferred; in the case of aggregate seed material, for example, a conveyor made of nylon and/or wire reinforced rubber belting material having “scoop” protrusions 322 formed along its length may be selected to promote efficient motion of the aggregate along the boom 204.
A pair of support hinges 324 pivotally connect the support structure 316 of the boom 204 to the funnel 202 such that the conveyor belt 320 is located beneath the spout opening 321 of the funnel 202. Each support hinge 324 advantageously allows pivoting motion of the boom 204 with respect to the funnel 202. Motion of the boom 204 is controlled by a hydraulic cylinder 326 connected between the funnel 202 and the support structure 316. The cylinder 326 is one of many examples of linear actuators suitable for pivoting the boom 204. Other examples of linear actuators include pneumatic pistons, electrical solenoids, rack and pinion drives, and so forth. In the embodiment shown, the cylinder 326 receives hydraulic fluid under pressure from a fluid supply line or hose 328, which acts to selectively extend or retract the cylinder 326. As the cylinder 326 extends, the support structure 316 pivots around the support hinges 324 to raise the boom 204. Conversely, retraction of the cylinder 326 lowers the boom 204.
A partial breakaway of the trailer 104 showing the boom 204 in a stowed position beneath the floor 108 is shown in
More specifically, storage of the boom 204 under the trailer 104 may be accomplished by retracting the cylinder 326 to an appropriate extent, bringing the boom 204 in a generally horizontal position. Subsequently, the funnel 202 may be rotated such that the boom 204 swings under the floor 108 in a position generally parallel to the centerline 208 of the trailer 104 (the centerline visible in
A partial cross section of the trailer 104 is shown in the segmented view of
The control valves 510 are configured for selectively supplying pressurized hydraulic fluid to various actuators in the delivery system 202. A first or lift control valve 512 may be arranged for two-way gating of pressurized fluid flow to and from the hydraulic cylinder 326 via first and second hoses 514 and 516. During operation, the lift control valve 512 may selectively connect either side of a piston included in the cylinder 326 with either a source of fluid or a drain, causing the piston to move within the cylinder 326 in the desired direction. In a similar fashion, a second or steer control valve 518 may selectively gate a pressurized fluid flow through the hydraulic motor 402 via third and fourth hoses 520 and 522 to cause rotation of the funnel 202 in either direction. Finally, a third or supply control valve 524 may selectively gate a flow of pressurized fluid to a conveyor motor (not shown) operating to sustain rotation of the conveyor belt (described above and shown in
A hydraulic diagram for a system 600 is shown in
The first outlet port 612 of the control valve 608 is connected to a two-position four-port lift control valve 618. The lift control valve 618 is arranged to fluidly connect either side of a lift piston 620 with the fluid supply from the control valve 608 and a drain to the reservoir 606. A user can selectively raise or lower the lift piston 620 by appropriately setting the lift control valve 618 either mechanically or electrically to a desired position. An optional needle valve 622 may be connected between the lift control valve 618 and the piston 620 to permit fine control and unpowered lowering of the piston 620.
The second outlet port 614 of the control valve 608 is connected to a two-position two-port supply control valve 624. The supply control valve 624 selectively connects a hydraulic motor 626 operating the conveyor, as described above, to a flow of actuating fluid from the pump 604. Fluid passing through the conveyor motor 626 operates to rotate the conveyor before returning to the reservoir 606.
The third outlet port 616 of the control valve 608 is connected to a two-position four-port control valve 628. The control valve 628 is arranged to fluidly connect either side of a reversible hydraulic motor 630 with the fluid supply from the control valve 608 and a drain to the reservoir 606. A user can selectively cause the motor 630 to reorient the funnel with respect to the truck, as described above, by appropriately setting the position of the control valve 628 either mechanically or electrically.
The delivery system for unloading aggregate material from a truck finds special advantage when used for the transportation and delivery of aggregates between a source or distributor directly to the location of use by the customer. For example, transporting aggregate seed material from a source or distributor to a farm typically involves travel over public roads and highways. Thereafter, the customer has to unpack the seed and subsequently reload the seed into a field cart used for gradually depositing the seed into a planter machine. One example of a planting machine is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,584,322 titled “Mechanized Seed Distributor,” issued on Feb. 5, 1952 to H. J. Baldwin et al. This patent describes a mechanical planting vehicle coupled to a truck or cart. The cart gradually transfers the seedling material via conveyor to the vehicle spreading and planting the seedlings across the field. In contrast, use of the present system is efficient in labor and time because the truck carrying the seed to the customer can also be used in place of a seed cart to supply the aggregate seed material directly to a mechanical planter. Thus, the aggregate seed need only be loaded onto a truck once, at the distributor, and be off loaded directly at the point of use by the customer. Moreover, use of the band trailer is flexible in as much as different packaging arrangements for the seed material can be used with ease.
Returning now to
As can be appreciated, the modular nature of the delivery system 200 lends itself for attachment to any type of truck or other vehicles having cargo transportation areas with generally flat floors. Exemplary implementations of the delivery system 200 for use with land and rail vehicles are shown in
In the embodiment of
In the embodiment of
All references, including publications, patent applications, and patents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicated to be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entirety herein.
The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, but not limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. The inventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
