Patent Application
20160289057
This invention pertains to a clip for a fork lift attachment that includes a clip wear indicator that provides a visible indication of wear.
The following drawings illustrate the concepts of the present invention, and are not necessarily drawn to scale.
While the present invention is susceptible of embodiment in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described some embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated or described.
There are a variety of fork lift attachments that are intended to be attached to a fork lift carriage. The largest part of a fork lift attachment is a load-engaging portion that engages a load being moved, but a fork lift attachment typically also includes clips are used to at least temporarily mount the fork lift attachment on a fork lift carriage.
The illustrated clip 20 includes a base portion 21 and an extension portion 31. The base portion 21 is designed to adjoin the clip 20 to a load-engaging portion of a fork lift attachment 10. For example, the base portion 21 may be permanently welded to a load-engaging portion of a fork lift attachment 10.
The extension portion 31 may be integral with the base portion 21, but is not in direct physical contact with a load-engaging portion of the fork lift attachment 10 even when the base portion 21 adjoins or is secured to the load-engaging portion of the fork lift attachment 10.
As illustrated in the figures, the extension portion 31 extends beyond the base portion 21 in a generally vertical direction. The extension portion 31 comprises an inside wear/bearing surface 35 that faces the load-engaging portion of the fork lift attachment 10 across a gap that is formed between the extension portion 31 and the load-engaging portion of the fork lift attachment 10. The extension portion 31 also comprises a generally horizontal peripheral wear/bearing surface 34 at a peripheral end of the extension portion 31. When a fork lift attachment 10 is mounted on a fork lift carriage, and especially when it is carrying a load, the peripheral and inside wear/bearing surfaces 34 and 35 are points of contact between the fork lift attachment 10 and the fork lift carriage. Those wear/bearing surfaces 34 and 35 are the most likely surfaces to get worn, and wearing of those surfaces can lead to diminished load bearing capacity and failure of the fork lift attachment 10.
The clip 20 comprises two opposing, generally vertical, side surfaces 32. The side surface 32 comprises a wear indicator 33 that is visually distinguishable from a remainder of the side surface 32. Wear indicator 33 provides an intuitive and quickly observed indication of the current performance and safety limitations of the fork lift attachment 10, resulting from clip wear caused by normal use and/or abuse.
Each of the side surfaces 32 meets the peripheral wear/bearing surface 34 at a peripheral edge, and meets the inside wear/bearing surface 35 at an inside edge. The wear indicator 33 is offset from the peripheral edge by a peripheral offset amount 36, and is offset from the inside edge by an inside offset amount 37. The peripheral offset amount 36 is an amount of wear of the peripheral wear/bearing surface 34 beyond which the clip 20 should no longer be used as a safety precaution, and the inside offset amount 37 is an amount of wear of the inside wear/bearing surface 35 beyond which the clip 20 should no longer be used as a safety precaution.
The wear indicator 33 may be, for example, stamped, painted or embossed in the side surface 32. It may be built into clip 20 as part of the same material as extension portion 31, or it may be of a different material. It may be a different color than the remainder of side surface 32.
As the offset amounts 36 and 37 get partially worn down, they are providing a visual indication of the remaining useful life of the clip 20. When wear extends through an offset amount 36 or 37 and into wear indicator 33, the clip 20 is fully worn and should be replaced. It is useful that some of wear indicator 33 is still visible in the fully worn condition, and that it is readily distinguishable from an offset amount 36 or 37 that may no longer be seen. The wear indicator 33 and the offset amounts 36 and 37 comprise a means for indicating when the clip is sufficiently worn that it should no longer be used for temporarily mounting the fork lift attachment 10 to the fork lift carriage.
From the foregoing, it will be understood that numerous modifications and variations can be effectuated without departing from the true spirit and scope of the novel concepts of the present invention. It is to be understood that no limitation with respect to the specific embodiments illustrated and described is intended or should be inferred.
