Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6513404
-
Patent Number
6,513,404
-
Date Filed
Thursday, November 2, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, February 4, 200321 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Bucci; David A.
- McAnulty; Timothy
Agents
- Fasse; W. F.
- Fasse; W. G.
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 074 471 XY
- 074 47323
- 074 47328
- 074 527
- 074 531
- 074 491
- 188 267
- 188 2672
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International Classifications
-
Abstract
A device for controlling the driving movements of a tracked vehicle includes a control lever 2 which can pivot about at least one pin 3, and a magnet arrangement by which any manually established position of the control lever 2 can be magnetically fixed. The strength of the magnetic fixing force is selected so that the control lever can be manually moved to a new position while overcoming the magnetic fixing force, and then the control lever is again magnetically held at the new position.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a device for controlling, and in particular for controlling the driving movements of a tracked vehicle, having a control lever which can pivot and/or rotate about at least one pin.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Control levers of the type involved here are known and can be used in tracked vehicles for the direct control of servo devices. These are in this case a servocontrol for the actual hydraulic control system, which is required, for example, for driving forwards and backwards and for contrarotation of the tracks in order to pivot the tracked vehicle. In the known devices, the driver has to continuously hold the control lever in the position into which it has been pressed. As soon as he releases the control lever, it automatically returns to its neutral, central position. This is for many applications inappropriate, so that the invention is based on the object of providing measures which are simple and inexpensive to realize and which enable the control lever to remain in a position into which it has been pressed even when the driver removes his hand from the control lever.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To achieve this object, the invention provides for the position of the control lever to be magnetically fixable. Therefore, the driver can release the control lever without the driving movements which have been set changing as a result.
Preferably, the control lever can be fixed electromagnetically and against at least one restoring force acting on it, the level of force used for fixing being such that the control lever can nevertheless be adjusted at any time by hand.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is described in more detail below with reference to an exemplary embodiment which is illustrated in the drawing and in which:
FIG.
1
: shows a side view, partially in section, of the device for controlling;
FIG.
2
: shows a plan view of the device shown in
FIG. 1
, approximately on line II—II, and
FIG.
3
: shows a section through important parts of the device on a larger scale.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with
FIG. 1
, a device
1
comprises a control lever
2
which is arranged so that it can pivot about a pin
3
. A control bell
4
is rigidly connected to the control lever
2
via a rod
5
and transmits the movements of the control lever
2
to control pins
6
and
7
which belong to a servo device
8
, which is of no further interest here, such as for example a hydraulic servocontrol device for driving forwards and backwards or for contrarotation of tracks of a tracked vehicle.
A driver
9
which is able to transmit the movements of the control lever
2
about the pin
3
to a link rod
10
is also rigidly connected to the control lever
2
. In accordance with the exemplary embodiment, the driver
9
is in the form of a sleeve and engages around the control bell
4
. A first end of the link arm
10
is articulatedly mounted on or connected to the driver
9
, for example with the aid of a spherical head. A protective enclosure
11
engages around the parts
3
,
4
,
5
,
6
and
7
, and
9
.
At its second end
12
which is remote from the driver
9
, the link rod or link arm
10
is connected to a drag element
13
, also called a clutch element
13
herein. The clutch element
13
comprises a ring disc
14
having an arm
15
which protrudes radially from the disc
14
, and on which the second end
12
of the link arm
10
is directly articulated.
The clutch element
13
is assigned an electromagnet
16
. Via electrical conductors
17
and
18
, a coil or an electrical winding
19
in a housing
20
is excited so as to generate an electromagnetic field. Then, on account of this electromagnetic field, an end face
21
of the housing
20
which faces towards the clutch element
13
is also magnetic, and is non-magnetic after the current has been switched off. The housing
20
of the electromagnet
16
is attached to an angle bracket
24
by means of a flange
22
and attachment elements
23
. The clutch element
13
and the electromagnet
16
are fundamental parts of a holding device
26
for the control lever
2
.
In accordance with the exemplary embodiment illustrated in
FIG. 3
, the angle bracket
24
has a passage opening
25
through which parts of the holding device
26
, which includes the electromagnet
16
and the clutch element
13
, pass.
In accordance with the exemplary embodiment illustrated in
FIG. 3
, there is a further passage opening
27
in the housing
20
, which serves to accommodate a sleeve
28
which has a flange. The sleeve
28
expediently consists of a non-magnetic material.
In the interior of the sleeve
28
there is a bearing shell
29
which serves to accommodate a shaft
30
which, in accordance with the exemplary embodiment, is a bolt. The shaft
30
or bolt engages through the ring disc
14
of the clutch element
13
and therefore rests in the bearing shell
29
, and is secured against axial displacement in the housing
20
with the aid of a washer and a nut
31
. Flanges on the sleeve
28
and the bearing shell
29
, which engage behind the housing
20
on the side which is remote from the clutch element
13
, also contribute to this securing effect.
On the housing side, the clutch element
13
also has an annular body
32
which bears against the end face
21
of the housing
20
and is fixedly connected to the clutch element
13
.
In the at-rest position shown in
FIG. 3
, there is an air gap between the end face
21
of the housing
20
and the annular body
32
. This air gap
33
may amount to 0.5 mm.
Expediently, the annular body
32
consists of the same material as that used for brake shoes of vehicles.
As soon as the control lever
2
has been pushed out of the central position illustrated in
FIG. 1
into a different position, the clutch element
13
also correspondingly adopts a different position due to the movement of the control lever
2
being transmitted through the link rod
10
to the arm
15
protruding from the disc
14
, whereby the arm
15
transforms the generally linear movement of the link rod
10
into a rotation motion of the disc
14
about the shaft or bolt
30
.
The coil
19
or winding of the electromagnet
16
is connected to a battery and is under current. It can be switched on and off. The electromagnet
16
, when it is switched on, therefore generates an electromagnetic field, which attracts the clutch element
13
, which thus, by means of its annular body
32
, can be fixed due to friction between the annular body
32
and the housing
20
in the position which is reached as a result of the movement of the control lever
2
. The intensity of the electromagnet
16
is selected in such a manner that the control lever
2
can still be moved manually from any fixed position. Generally, the control pins
5
and
7
exert a restoring force on the control lever
2
. As soon as the engine of the tracked vehicle is stopped or the current is switched off, the electromagnet
16
is also currentless once again, so that at the latest at this point the clutch element
13
and its annular body
32
are released from the end face
21
of the housing
20
so that the control lever
2
also automatically moves out of a magnetically fixed position into its neutral position by the above mentioned restoring force of the control pins
5
and
7
.
The invention is not definitively limited to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in the figures, but rather it is also possible to make modifications without departing from the fundamental concept of the invention. These changes include using a plurality of electromagnets instead of a single electromagnet.
Claims
- 1. A control arrangement comprising:a manually operable control lever arranged to pivot and/or rotate about at least one first axis so that said control lever is manually movable to any selected position among plural positions; a driver connected to said control lever so as to move with said control lever; a magnetic holding device including a drag element, an arm protruding from said drag element, and a magnet arrangement that generates a magnetic holding force which holds said drag element relative to said magnet arrangement; and a link rod having a first end articulately connected to said driver, and having a second end articulately connected to said arm protruding from said drag element; wherein said driver, said link rod, and said arm together couple said control lever with said drag element, so that said drag element being held by said magnetic holding force relative to said magnet arrangement further holds said control lever at said selected position through said arm, said link rod, and said driver.
- 2. The control arrangement according to claim 1, being a drive control arrangement for controlling the track drive of a tracked vehicle, further comprising a servo device that is connected to said control lever to receive movements of said control lever as control input commands.
- 3. The control arrangement according to claim 1, further comprising a biasing element that exerts a restoring force on said control lever to urge said control lever toward a particular position among said plural positions, wherein said magnetic holding force is stronger than said restoring force so that said drag element can hold said control lever at said selected position despite said biasing element exerting said restoring force on said control lever.
- 4. The control arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said magnetic holding force has a magnitude that can be overcome by a manual adjusting force applied to said control lever, so that said control lever can be manually moved away from said selected position, and through said driver, said link rod and said arm, said drag element can thereby be moved relative to said magnet arrangement despite said magnet arrangement exerting said magnetic holding force on said drag element.
- 5. The control arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said magnet arrangement comprises an electromagnet that can be selectively electrically energized to generate said magnetic holding force.
- 6. The control arrangement according to claim 5, wherein said electromagnet comprises a housing with an end face that faces said drag element, and an electrical winding arranged with respect to said housing so that said end face is magnetically active to exert said magnetic holding force on said drag element when said electrical winding is electrically energized.
- 7. The control arrangement according to claim 6, wherein said drag element comprises an annular disc.
- 8. The control arrangement according to claim 7, wherein said drag element further comprises an annular body of friction material arranged on said annular disc on a side thereof facing said end face of said housing.
- 9. The control arrangement according to claim 6, wherein said drag element is arranged with play relative to said housing so that an air gap is formed between said drag element and said end face of said housing when said electrical winding is de-energized, and so that said air gap is closed and said drag element contacts said end face of said housing when said electrical winding is electrically energized.
- 10. The control arrangement according to claim 6, wherein said housing has an opening therein passing through said end face of said housing, further comprising a shaft extending in said opening through said end face of said housing, and wherein said drag element is rotatably mounted to said shaft so that said drag element can rotate about said shaft relative to said housing.
- 11. The control arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said drag element is rotatable about a second axis, and a pivoting and/or rotating movement of said control, lever about said at least one first axis causes, through said driver, a longitudinal linear movement of said link rod, which causes, through said arm, a rotating movement of said drag element about said second axis relative to said a magnet arrangement.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
199 52 709 |
Nov 1999 |
DE |
|
US Referenced Citations (9)