DEVICE FOR HANDLING AND MOVING CYLINDRICAL UNITS

DISPOSITIF DE LEVAGE ET DE DEPLACEMENT DE GROS OBJETS CYLINDRIQUES

English Abstract

CANADIAN PATENT APPLICATION
OF
BENGT LINDELL
FOR
DEVICE FOR HANDLING AND MOVING
CYLINDRICAL UNITS
Abstract of the Disclosure
A device for handling and moving generally cylindrical
loads, such as cable reels, rolls of paper, sheet metal, and
the like, comprising a frame supported by wheels or the like
and provided with vertically pivotable, laterally movable
telescoping arms for retentive engagement with the load to
move said load toward and away from a load-supporting sur-
face of said frame.
The device is characterised in that said load-supporting
surface is a part of a cradle having a wedge-shaped roll-on/
roll-off portion at its free edge and a downwardly curved
surface portion forming the actual load-supporting surface;
that said cradle is tiltable about a shaft, mounted beneath
the downwardly curved portion between a position in which
its wedge-shaped portion connects to the floor, and a trans-
port position in which it is spaced from said floor; and
that said arms are individually or jointly telescopically
movable past and beyond said cradle and are provided with
engagement means adapted to engage with the load, the cable
reel or the like during loading and unloading thereof.

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an
exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined
as follows:
1. A device for handling and moving generally cy-
lindrical loads, such as cable reels, rolls of paper,
sheet metal etc., comprising a frame supported by
wheels and provided with vertically pivotable, later-
ally movable telescoping arms for retentive engage-
ment with the load to move said load toward and away
from a load-supporting surface of said frame, charac-
terised in that said load-supporting surface is a
part of a cradle having a wedge-shaped roll-on/roll-
off portion at a free edge of the cradle and a down-
wardly curved portion forming the actual load suppor-
ting surface; that said cradle is tiltable about a
shaft, mounted beneath the downwardly curved portion
between a position in which the cradle connects to
the floor, and a transport position in which the cra-
dle is spaced from said floor; and that said arms are
individually or jointly telescopically movable past
and beyond said cradle and are provided with engage-
ment means adapted to engage with the cable reel during
loading and unloading thereof.
2. A device as claimed in claim 1, characterised
in that control means, preferably in the form of hy-
draulic piston and cylinder assemblies, are mounted
between the cradle and the frame; and that said cradle
is mounted between two freely extending beams of the
frame.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, c h a r a c -
t e r i s e d in that the shaft about which said cradle
is liftable, is located adjacent the vertical plane
extending through the center of a cylindrical load resting
on said downwardly curved load-supporting surface.
4. A device as claimed in claim 1, c h a r a c -
t e r i s e d in that telescoping movement of said
arms is accomplished by means of piston and cylinder
assemblies that can be operated individually or jointly.

Description

I
The present invention relates to a device for handling
and moving generally cylindrical loads, such as gable reels,
rolls of paper, sheet metal, and the like, comprising a
frame supported by wheels or the like and provided with
vertically pivot able, laterally movable telescoping arms
for retentive engagement with the load to move said load
toward and away from a load-supporti.ny surface of said frame.
Moving large cable reels, rolls of paper, sheet metal
and the like causes much difficulty in narrow spaces or
other premises where conventional materials handling de-
vices cannot be used. The object of the present invention
is to provide an apparatus for simply and conveniently
moving cable reels or the like also in passages insignifi-
gently larger than the reel itself
To achieve this object, the device according to the
invention is essentially characterized in that said load-
supporting surface is a part of a cradle having a wedge-
shaped roll-on/roll-off portion at its free edge and a
downwardly curved surface portion forming the actual
load-supporting surface; that said cradle is liftable
about a shaft, mounted beneath the downwardly curved port
lion, between a position in which its wedge shaped portion
connects to the floor, and a transport position in which
it is spaced from said floor; and that said~arms~are
individually or jointly telescopically movable-past and
beyond said cradle and are provided with engagement means
adapted to engage with the load, the cable reel or the
like during loading end unloading thereof
An embodiment ox the invention will be described Lo
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more detail below, reference being had to -the accompanying
drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the device according
to the invention;
Fig. is a lateral view of the device; and
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the said device.
Mounted on a frame 1 are arms 2 and and a cradle 3.
The frame is supported by a number of wheels 4 or the like
which may be of the castor type or may otherwise permit
steering of the device in any desired direction.
One end portion S of the frame is provided with guides
for brackets 7 in which the arms 2 are pivot ably mounted,
and with corresponding guides for hydraulic piston and Cal-
inter assemblies 8 (Fig 2 ! controlling the pivotal move-
mint of said arms.
Extending from said end portion 5 are a pair of frame
beams 9 with bearings for a shaft 10 about which the cradle
3 is liftable.
The arms 2 are telescopically mounted and can be ox-
tended and retracted by means of piston and cylinder asset
bites not shown. Fixed or axially displaceable pins 11 or
the like are provided at the outer ends of said arms for
engaging with, for example, the center hole of a cable
reel X. Instead of a pin, there may be provided at each
arm end transverse rollers or the like for engaging with
the periphery of a sheet metal roll or the like having no-
pronounced center hole suitable for the pin.
The telescopic arm movement may be synchronized such
that the free ends of said arms move in unison with the
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same speed. Separate actuation of each piston and cylinder
assembly is also possible so that the arm ends will be disk
placed relative to one another, thereby to facilitate grip-
ping of cable reels standing at an angle to the handling
device so that they can be turned right prior to loading.
The cradle 3 has a planar portion 12, the free edge
13 of which tapers in the form of a wedge so that it can
hug the base on which the device is standing, and an
arcuately curved portion 14 forming the supporting surface
and having a radius of curvature which is at least equal
to the radius of the largest unit to be moved.
The shaft 10 of the cradle 3 is mounted near the
deepest part of the curved portion 14 so that but a slight
force is required to tilt the cradle when a cable reel or
the like has been pulled up to the curved portion 14 by
means of the arms 2. To tilt the cradle, piston and Cal-
inter assemblies 15 are used.
The requisite propulsion motors, hydraulic pumps etc.
are accommodated by the frame portion 5 which may also
house the controls.
In its preferred embodiment, the device according to
the invention is self-propelled, although it may, of
course, also be towed by another vehicle.
When a unit, such as a cable reel, is to be loaded
for transport, the device is driven up to the reel, as
shown in jigs. 1 and 2.
Depending upon the position of the reel relative to
the cradle 3, the arms 2 are displaced in one or the
other direction so that they can be extended on either
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side of the reel, whereupon they are moved together such
that the pins 11 extend in-to the center hole of the reel.
The arms 2 are then retracted by means of the synchronized
piston and cylinder assemblies, and the reel X which, if
necessary, has first been correctly aligned, is rolled
up on the cradle 3 which has already been tilted into the
position shown in Fig. 2 in which the edge 13 engages the
floor. When the reel reaches the downwardly curved portion
14, the arms are relieved because the reel will then remain
in position without assistance, The cradle is now tilted
into the broken-line position illustrated in Fig. 3 by Myers
of the piston and cylinder assemblies 15, and the device is
now freely movable.
Unloading is carried out in-the reverse order. First
the cradle is tilted so that its edge 13 engages the floor,
whereupon the reel is pushed away from the cradle by means
of the arms 2.
The piston and cylinder assemblies 8 serve to set
the arms in correct vertical position for fitting the
pins 11 into the center holes. When this is done, the
piston and cylinder assemblies 8 may be deactivated be-
cause the arms will then be controlled by the engage-
mint of the pins 11 with the center hole. However for
handling units without center holes, vertical control of
the arms is required.
By suitable dimensioning of the piston and cylinder
assemblies 8, the arms 2 and the pins 11, the device
according to the invention may be utilized also for lit-
in rolls of paper and the like.
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