The present invention relates to a power winch, and more particularly to a power winch capable of completing an electric connection quickly when the installation positions of an electric control box and a power source are changed, while maintaining good water resistance and safety to provide a wide scope of applicability.
Power winch is a power tool used to hang and move a load up and down or drag the load to a nearer or farther position. In a common example, a hoist installed at a tall building for hoisting and vertically elevating heavy loads or goods is a power winch, or a rope hoist installed onto a jeep or an off-road vehicle for towing other vehicles for self-rescue (or escape) rope is also a power winch. In the operating principle of the power winch, a power source (such as a power motor or an electric motor) outputs a power to control and change the transmission in a forward direction or a reverse direction. After a deceleration mechanism is operated, a rope wheel is driven to perform a forward rotation or a reverse rotation to release or retract a rope (including but not limited a wire rope or a synthetic rope), and a front end of the rope (wire rope or synthetic rope) has a hoist hook for hooking a load (such as a heavy object, another car, or another object, etc.) in order to move the load. Since the deceleration mechanism must accept the transmission of the power source and the rope wheel must accept the transmission of the deceleration mechanism, and the rope must be wound on the rope wheel, therefore the power source, the deceleration mechanism, the rope wheel and the rope are coupled together by a support frame to form a “winch host”. When the winch host is moved, the power source, the deceleration mechanism, the rope wheel, and the rope and the support frame are moved altogether, and when winch host is installed, the power source, the deceleration mechanism, the rope wheel, the rope and the support frame are locked together to a selected position.
At present, the power winch is mainly operated in a remote mode, so that the power winch must be equipped with an electric control box and a remote control, and the electric control box is electrically coupled to the power source of the winch host and the remote control, and the transmission of signals between the remote control and the electric control box may be performed in a wireless remote control mode or a cable remote control mode selectively. The electric control box mainly receives a control signal transmitted from the remote control and further controls the ON/OFF of the power source and control a rotating direction and a rotation speed for outputting the force of the power source. To facilitate operators to know the overall conditions of the power winch, a display panel (or display screen) is generally installed in front of the front of the electric control box or on a slight slop and the display panel is mainly provided for displaying the operating status and related information of the power winch, such as a power-on display (indicating the power source in a conducting status), a power level display (indicating the power level of a power source connected to a car), a temperature warning display (showing the temperature of the power source), a rope direction display (showing a release or retraction of a rope) and a wireless operation display (indicating a connection with a wireless remote control), etc.
Therefore, it can be seen that the conventional power winch is comprised of a winch host, an electric control box and a remote control. To facilitate operators to observe the display panel, the electric control box is usually installed at the top of the power winch. In other words, safety is most essential in the mind of manufacturers, so that the electric control box is configured to be combined with the winch host. What is more, the power winch installed to a car is generally used outdoors and in a field. In order to avoid the risk of having water or electricity leakage, a connection line (including an electrical control line and an induction line) between the electric control box and the winch host is concealedly-installed inside the outer cover wall, so that users cannot find the connection line from the appearance of the power winch. In addition to the purpose of avoiding the risk of water and electricity leakage, the concealedly-installed connection lines can prevent users from disassembling or changing components on their own that leads to a concern of safety.
In the conventional power winch, manufacturers have already consolidated the electric control box and the winch host together, so that after a user has bought a power winch, the user can only install (lock) the power winch onto a car for use. The early power winch was mostly installed (locked) at the bottom of the front of the car, so that it was fixed on the top of the front of the chassis or fixed to the front bumper. Later, the manufacturers developed the power winch to be installed (locked) on the bottom of the rear of the car, so that it can be fixed to the top of the rear of the chassis or fixed to the rear bumper. However, whether the power winch is installed at the bottom of the front of the car or the bottom of the rear of the car, the display panel must be exposed appropriately for viewing. When a user wants to use the power winch, the user takes out the remote control (usually placed in the car for backup) and runs to the front or rear of the car to unhook the hoist hook which is originally hooked to avoid impact, so as to pull the rope to the place where the user needs to hook the car, people or object, and then the operator holding the remote control can control the rope wheel to retract the rope by the remote control in order to pull back the hooked car, people or object. While the operator is operating and controlling the remote control, the operator, it is still necessary to watch the display panel on the electric control box frequently in order to know about the operating status and related information of the power winch, such as the power-on status of the power source, the power level of the car, the too-high temperature of the power source temperature, the correct or wrong releasing/retracting direction, and the connection/disconnection of remote signals, etc. in order to suspend the action when needed or change to a different car for rescue.
Since the cars that will install the power winch are mostly jeeps or off-road vehicles, and these kinds of cars have more spaces therefore the manufacturers have developed the power winch with an installation of at least one battery for the use of the power winch. In other words, the power winch does not use the electric power of the original battery of the car, but it just uses the electric power of the at least one battery installed at an appropriate position of the rear of the car, and such arrangement can avoid the embarrassment of running out of the original battery of the car and causing the car unable to start.
With the evolution and advancement of global technologies, as well as the growth of industrial knowledge and skills, the use of objects is often self-expanded or changed. As to the use of the power winch, the manufacturers and users gradually find out that the conventional assembly mode of consolidating the electric control box and winch host has some inconvenience is use, and the manufacturers mainly believe that it is not necessary to consolidate the electric control box and the winch host together for use, but the manufacturers attempt to install the electric control box inside the car for use (in order to keep the electric control box warm) in a cold area or install the electric box to a side of the car (in order to resist wind), so that the manufacturers come up with a design of allowing the electric control box and the winch host to be detached and keeping the winch host to be installed to the original position (which is the bottom of the front of the car or the bottom of the rear of the car), and the installation position of the electric control box is changed to the interior of the cockpit (such as being locked to the front of the cockpit) or the exterior of the cockpit (such as being locked onto the outer surface of the car body), and a connection line with an appropriate length is bought and used for electrically connecting the electric control box and the winch host. However, after changing different installation positions by oneself, the original concealed connection is ruined frequently, resulting in a poor water resistance, and giving rise to safety concerns of electric shock and fire.
In view of the aforementioned drawbacks of the conventional power winch, the inventor of the present invention has an idea to base on the conventional power winch to create a novel power winch capable of electrically connecting the electric control box and the power source quickly when the users change the installation positions of the two while taking the water resistance and safety into account, so as to provide a broader scope of applicability of the power winch.
Therefore, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide a power winch with changeable connection position that can electrically connect the electric control box and the power source quickly when the users change the installation positions of the two while taking the water resistance and safety into account, so as to provide a broader scope of applicability of the power winch.
To achieve the above-mentioned objective, the present invention provide a power winch with changeable connection position, comprising a power source capable of driving a rope wheel to rotate the power winch in a forward rotation or a reverse rotation to release or retract a rope after the power source outputs a power transmission to a reduction gear; and an electric control box electrically coupled to the power source for controlling the ON/OFF of the power source and the rotating direction for an output force of the power source; characterized in that the electric control box comprises a plurality of waterproof power connection rods protruding from a side thereof, and an inner section of the power connection rods inside the electric control box is electrically coupled to an external electric power, and a protruding outer section of the power connection rods is exposed from a side of the electric control box; a plurality of first connection lines, with a quantity equal to the quantity of the power connection rods, and an end of the first connection line is coupled to the respective power connection rod; a plurality of waterproof protruding power connection rods formed on the power source and having a quantity equal to the quantity of the first connection lines, and an inner section of the power connection rod of the power source being electrically coupled to the interior of the power source, and an outer protruding section of the power source being exposed from the power source, and the other end of the first connection line being coupled to the respective power connection rod of the power source.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, the power connection rods protrudes from a side of the electric control box come with a quantity of three.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, the electric control box comprises a plurality of locking holes formed on a side thereof; a first outer cover, having an open inner side, a plurality of hole columns with quantity and position corresponding to those of the locking hole, and a through slot formed on the front side of the first outer cover, and the first outer cover covers the range of the power connection rods by the open inner side, and the first connection line is extended out from the through slot, and then a locking member is passed through the hole column from the outside and then locked to the locking hole, and the first outer cover is mounted onto a side of the electric control box to cover the power connection rods.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, the power connection rods of the power source are arranged and partitioned to form a protruding edge around the power connection rods, and the protruding edge has two locking holes downwardly formed thereon; and the power winch further comprises a second outer cover configured to be corresponsive to the protruding edge and having a marginal wall formed inside the second outer cover and provided for partition, a through slot formed on the front side of the second outer cover, a hole column formed on a rear side of the second outer cover and configured to be corresponsive to the locking hole of the protruding edge and the second outer cover covers the protruding edge from top to bottom, and the marginal wall partitions the power connection rods of the power source, and the first connection line is passed out from the through slot, and a locking member is passed through the hole column of the second outer cover from top to bottom and then locked to the locking hole of the second outer cover, and the second outer cover is mounted onto the power source to cover the power connection rods of the power source.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, one power connection rod is protruded and extended from the front of the electric control box, and the power winch further has a second connection line with an end coupled to the power connection rod protruded and extended from the front of the electric control box, and the other end of the second connection line is coupled to a positive electrode of the electric power.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, one connecting rod is protruded and extended from the front of the electric control box, and the power winch further has an induction line with both ends coupled to the connecting rod protruded and extended from the front of the electric control box and the connecting rod protruded and extended from the front side of the power source respectively.
According to the above-mentioned power winch with changeable connection position, one power connection rod is protruded and extended from the front side of the power source, and the power winch further has a third connection line with an end coupled to the power connection rod protruded and extended from the front side of the power source, and the other end of the third connection line is coupled to a negative electrode of the electric power.
The objectives, technical measures and effects of the present invention will become clearer in light of the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment of this invention described in connection with the drawings.
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The key improvement made by the present invention resides on that the first connection line 22 and the induction line 51 are connected outside the electric control box 15 and the power source 11, so that the electric control box 15 is not necessarily fixed to the power source 11. As long as the first connection line 22, the second connection line 43 and the induction line 51 with an appropriate length are selected, the installation position of the electric control box 15 can be changed to a different place while maintaining the effect of connecting and using the first connection line 22, the second connection line 43 and the induction line 51 conveniently. In
Besides the electric control box 15 can be removed from the support frame 14 to facilitate its installation at a different position, the viewing angle of the display panel 151 of the electric control box 15 can be changed as shown in
After the electric control box 15 is removed from the support frame 14, the electric control box can be installed at a different position for use as shown in
As disclosed above, the present invention mainly installs the first connection line 22, the induction line 51, the second connection line 43 and the third connection line 61 outside the electric control box 15 and the power source 11 to facilitate a quick separation of the electric control box 15 and the power source 11, and after the installation positions of the electric control box 15 and the power source 11 are switched, the two can be reconnected quickly, so that the power winch 1 provides a convenient way of changing the installation positions of the electric control box 15 and the power source 11 and broadens the scope of applicability. In the meantime, the junction of the first connection line 22 and the electric control box 15 and the junction of the first connection line 22 and the power source 11 are covered by the first outer cover 23 and the second outer cover 33 respectively, so that both water resistance and safety are ensured.
In summation of the description above, the power winch with changeable connection position in accordance with the present invention is novel and can really achieve the expected creative purpose. Apparently, the invention complies with patent application requirements, and is thus duly filed for patent application.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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20030021662 | Ramsey | Jan 2003 | A1 |
20080001132 | Huang | Jan 2008 | A1 |
20180201488 | Zheng | Jul 2018 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20220281725 A1 | Sep 2022 | US |