Patent Application
20230202816
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The disclosure relates to pallet jack devices and more particularly pertains to a new pallet jack device for facilitating a manual pallet jack to be powered with a motor. The device includes a motor that is mountable to a planar surface of a pallet jack and a drive unit that angles downwardly from the motor. The drive unit includes a friction wheel which frictionally engages a wheel of the pallet jack for urging the wheel to rotate in a forward direction or a rearward direction.
The prior art relates to pallet jack devices including a variety of self propelled pallet jacks. The prior art discloses a power unit for a pallet jack that includes a motor which is mounted next to a wheel of a pallet jack and a friction wheel that is directly driven by the motor and which frictionally engages the wheel of the pallet jack for driving the pallet jack. The prior art discloses a method of robotically controlling a motorized pallet jack. The prior art discloses a pallet jack motor that includes a plurality of adapter sleeves for mounting the pallet jack motor to a pallet jack.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a motor unit that is attachable to a planar surface of a pallet jack. A drive unit is coupled to and angles downwardly from the motor unit and the drive unit is in mechanical communication with the motor unit. The drive unit includes a friction wheel which frictionally engages a wheel on the pallet jack. The friction wheel rotates the wheel on the pallet jack when the motor is turned on thereby facilitating the pallet jack to be powered. In this way the pallet jack can transport a pallet without requiring a user to manually push the pallet jack. A control is removably attachable to a handle of the pallet jack for controlling the drive unit.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The motor unit 12 includes a battery housing 34 that is positioned on the top surface 24 of the plate 20. The battery housing 34 is positioned adjacent to the front side 28 of the perimeter edge 26 of the plate 20. The motor unit 12 includes a battery 36 that is positioned within the battery housing 34. A charge port 38 is recessed into an outer wall 40 of the battery housing 34 to receive a charge cord 42 and the charge port 38 is electrically coupled to the battery 36 for charging the battery 36.
The motor unit 12 includes a motor housing 44 that has a lower wall 46 and an outer wall 48 extending upwardly from the lower wall 46. The outer wall 48 of the motor housing 44 has a top side 50 and a first lateral side 52, and the top side 50 is concavely arcuate with respect to the lower wall 46. The lower wall 46 is attached to the top surface 24 of the plate 20 having the motor housing 44 being positioned adjacent to the back side 30 of the perimeter edge 26 of the plate 20. Additionally, the first lateral side 52 of the outer wall 40 is aligned with the first lateral side 32 of the perimeter edge 26 of the plate 20.
The motor unit 12 includes a motor 54 that is positioned within the motor housing 44. The motor 54 extends outwardly through the first lateral side 32 of the outer wall 40 of the motor housing 44. The motor 54 is actuatable to rotate in a first direction or a second direction, and the motor 54 is electrically coupled to the battery 36. The motor 54 may comprise a two direction electric motor or the like.
A drive unit 56 is coupled to and angles downwardly from the motor unit 12 and the drive unit 56 is in mechanical communication with the motor unit 12. The drive unit 56 includes a friction wheel 58 that is rotatably disposed on the drive unit 56 such that the friction wheel 58 is rotated by the motor unit 12. The friction wheel 58 is distally positioned with respect to the motor unit 12 thereby facilitating the friction wheel 58 to frictionally engage the wheel 18 on the pallet jack 16. The friction wheel 58 rotates the wheel 18 on the pallet jack 16 when the motor 54 is turned on thereby facilitating the pallet jack 16 to be powered. In this way the drive unit 56 facilitates the pallet jack 16 to transport a pallet without requiring a user to manually push the pallet jack 16.
The drive unit 56 comprises a drive housing 60 that has a first end 62, a second end 64 and an outside wall 66 extending between the first end 62 and the second end 64, and the drive housing 60 is elongated between the first end 62 and the second end 64. The outside wall 66 has a first sidelong side 68, a second sidelong side 70, and an upper portion 72 extending laterally away from the second sidelong side 70, and the upper portion 72 is aligned with the first end 62. The upper portion 72 has a top surface 74, a bottom surface 76 and a distal surface 78 with respect to the second sidelong side 70, and the top surface 24 is concavely arcuate with respect to the bottom surface 22. The distal surface 78 engages the first lateral side 32 of the outer wall 40 of the motor housing 44 such that the drive housing 60 extends downwardly from the motor housing 44. Additionally, the motor 54 extends into the upper portion 72 such that a drive shaft 80 of the motor 54 is positioned within the upper portion 72. The drive housing 60 is oriented to angle away from the back side 30 of the perimeter edge 26 of the plate 20.
The friction wheel 58 is rotatably disposed on the second sidelong side 70 of the outside wall 66 at a point located adjacent to the second end 64. The friction wheel 58 rotates about an axis extending through the first sidelong side 68 and the second sidelong side 70. A first pulley 82 is rotatably positioned within the drive housing 60. The first pulley 82 is rotatably coupled to the drive shaft 80 of the motor 54 such that the first pulley 82 rotates about an axis extending through the first sidelong side 68 and the second sidelong side 70 of the outside wall 66 of the drive housing 60. A second pulley 84 is rotatably positioned within the drive housing 60. The second pulley 84 is rotatably coupled to an axle 86 that is coupled to the friction wheel 58 such that the second pulley 84 has a common rotational axis with respect to the friction wheel 58.
A belt 88 extends around the first pulley 82 and the second pulley 84 such that the second pulley 84 is rotated when the motor 54 rotates the first pulley 82 thereby facilitating the second pulley 84 to rotate the friction wheel 58. The friction wheel 58 is rotated in a first direction when the motor 54 is actuated to rotate in the first direction thereby facilitating the friction wheel 58 to urge the pallet jack 16 in a forward direction. Conversely, the friction wheel 58 is rotated in a second direction when the motor 54 is actuated to rotate in the second direction thereby facilitating the friction wheel 58 to urge the pallet jack 16 in a rearward direction.
A control 90 is removably attachable to a handle 91 of the pallet jack 16 such that the control 90 is accessible to a user. Furthermore, the control 90 is in communication with the motor unit 12. The motor unit 12 is actuated in a forward condition when the control 90 is actuated in a forward condition thereby facilitating the pallet jack 16 to be driven forwardly. Conversely, the motor unit 12 is actuated in a rearward condition when the control 90 is actuated into a rearward condition thereby facilitating the pallet jack 16 to be driven rearwardly.
The control 90 comprises a clamp 92 that has a central portion 94 extending between a pair of outward portions 96. The outward portions 96 are spaced apart from each other and are perpendicularly oriented with the central portion 94 such that the clamp 92 has a U-shape. Each of the outward portions 96 has a distal end 98 with respect to the central portion 94. Additionally, each of the outward portions 96 is curved adjacent to the distal end 98 such that the distal end 98 of each of the outward portions 96 is directed toward each other. In this way each of the outward portions 96 can wrap partially around the handle 91 for removably retaining the clamp 92 around the handle 91.
The control 90 unit includes a switch 100 that is movably integrated into the clamp 92 such that the switch 100 can be manipulated by the user. The switch 100 is positionable in a forward position, a rearward position or an off position. The control 90 unit includes a conductor 102 which extends between the clamp 92 and the motor housing 44. The conductor 102 is electrically coupled between the switch 100 and the motor 54 such that the switch 100 is in electrical communication with the motor 54. The motor 54 rotates in the first direction when the switch 100 is positioned in the forward position, the motor 54 rotates in the second direction when the switch 100 is positioned in the rearward position and the motor 54 is turned off when the switch 100 is in the off position.
In use, the plate 20 is fastened to the pallet jack 16 with fasteners, such as screws or bolts, and the clamp 92 is positioned around the handle 91. In this way the motor unit 12 and the drive unit 56 can be retrofitted to the pallet jack 16. The switch 100 is positioned in the forward position to facilitate the drive unit 56 to urge the pallet jack 16 in a forward direction. In this way the pallet jack 16 can transport a pallet without requiring the user to manually push the pallet jack 16. The switch 100 is positioned in the rearward position to facilitate the drive unit 56 to urge the pallet jack 16 in a rearward direction. In this way the pallet jack 16 can transport the pallet without requiring the user to manually pull the pallet jack 16. The switch 100 is positioned in the off position to facilitate the pallet jack 16 to remain stationary.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
