A tipping mechanism for trailer unloading

Abstract

The present invention discloses a tilting mechanism for trailer unloading, which relates to the technical field of transport vehicles. The mechanism comprises a main body and a carriage rotatably connected to the main body. The main body is provided with a driving mechanism, which comprises a connecting rod assembly. The driving mechanism has a first stroke for directly driving the carriage to rotate and a second stroke for driving the carriage to rotate via the connecting rod assembly. The tilting mechanism for trailer unloading provided by the present invention can directly drive the carriage to rotate to a certain angle through the first stroke of the driving mechanism. At this time, the torque of the driving mechanism is relatively large to accommodate a large amount of cargo in the carriage. Subsequently, the driving mechanism drives the carriage to rotate to a larger angle through the connecting rod assembly. At this time, the driving mechanism sacrifices some torque in exchange for a larger stroke, thereby driving the carriage to rotate to a larger angle, thereby minimizing the possibility of cargo residue in the carriage.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of transport vehicles, and in particular to a tipping mechanism for trailer unloading. Background Art

[0002] Trailers are categorized as full trailers and semi-trailers based on how they connect to the towing vehicle. A full trailer is pulled by the tractor and bears its entire weight, while a semi-trailer is pulled by the tractor and bears a portion of its weight. The trailer's carriage is typically mounted on a frame and can be tilted when needed to unload cargo (such as sand and gravel).

[0003] For example, the patent document entitled "A Flatbed Trailer Rear Bracket for Facilitating Loading and Unloading" with authorization announcement number CN219989086U and announcement date November 10, 2023, includes a trailer body, a bracket, a support plate, an articulated frame, and a cylinder. The bracket is hingedly connected to the trailer body, the support plate is fixedly connected to the bracket, the articulated frame is fixedly connected to the trailer body, and the articulated frame is articulated to the cylinder. The patent allows the output end of the cylinder to drive the bracket to move, causing the bracket to tilt, allowing sand to slide off the bracket on its own, facilitating unloading of the bracket.

[0004] In the existing technology, when the cylinder directly drives the car to flip, its output torque is large, but the final flipping angle of the car is limited, which can easily cause cargo residue; when the cylinder drives the car to flip through the connecting rod structure, the flipping angle of the car is large, but the output torque is small, which can easily cause the cylinder to overload. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a tipping mechanism for trailer unloading to solve the above-mentioned deficiencies in the prior art.

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] A trailer unloading turning mechanism comprises a main body and a carriage rotatably connected to the main body, wherein the main body is provided with:

[0008] The driving mechanism includes a connecting rod assembly, and the driving mechanism has a first stroke for directly driving the carriage to rotate and a second stroke for driving the carriage to rotate through the connecting rod assembly.

[0009] The above-mentioned turning mechanism for trailer unloading has a plurality of driving mechanisms arranged on the main body along its length or width.

[0010] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, the connecting rod assembly includes a first connecting rod hinged on the main body and a second connecting rod hinged on the carriage, and the first connecting rod and the second connecting rod are hinged to each other.

[0011] The above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading comprises a driving mechanism including a driving member, one end of which is hinged to the main body.

[0012] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, the first connecting rod is a telescopic rod, and the other end of the driving member is hinged to the second connecting rod.

[0013] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, the first connecting rod includes an inner rod hinged on the main body and a sleeve rod hinged on the second connecting rod, and the sleeve rod is configured with a movable groove adapted to the inner rod.

[0014] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, in the first stroke, the second connecting rod and the carriage are locked with each other.

[0015] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, a locking block is slidably connected to the second connecting rod, and a locking groove is constructed at the bottom of the carriage.

[0016] The above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading further comprises a third connecting rod, and both ends of the third connecting rod are hinged to the sleeve rod and the locking block respectively.

[0017] In the above-mentioned tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, an elastic member is provided in the movable groove, and the elastic member is used to force the inner rod to be retracted into the movable groove.

[0018] In the above technical solution, the present invention provides a turning mechanism for trailer unloading, which can directly drive the carriage to turn over a certain angle through the first stroke of the driving mechanism. At this time, the torque of the driving mechanism is relatively large to accommodate more cargo in the carriage. Subsequently, the driving mechanism drives the carriage to turn over a larger angle through the connecting rod assembly. At this time, the driving mechanism sacrifices part of the torque in exchange for a larger stroke, thereby driving the carriage to turn over a larger angle to avoid any cargo residue in the carriage as much as possible. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments described in the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the overall structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the driving mechanism structure provided in yet another embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of the sleeve rod and the inner rod provided in yet another embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of a carriage after flipping provided by yet another embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the locking block structure provided by another embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of a third connecting rod provided in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of an elastic member provided in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 8 Another embodiment of the present invention provides Figure 7 Enlarged structural diagram at point A in the middle.

[0028] Description of reference numerals:

[0029] 1. Main body; 2. Carriage; 3. First connecting rod; 31. Inner rod; 32. Sleeve rod; 4. Second connecting rod; 5. Driving member; 6. Locking block; 7. Locking groove; 8. Third connecting rod; 9. Elastic member; 10. Movable block; 11. Linkage rod. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] Reference Figure 1-8 An embodiment of the present invention provides a tipping mechanism for trailer unloading, comprising a main body 1 and a carriage 2 rotatably connected to the main body 1, wherein the main body 1 is provided with a driving mechanism comprising a connecting rod assembly, and the driving mechanism has a first stroke for directly driving the carriage 2 to rotate and a second stroke for driving the carriage 2 to rotate through the connecting rod assembly.

[0032] Specifically, the trailer compartment 2 ( Figure 1 The carriage 2 in the figure is the overall structure diagram. Figure 2-7Carriage 2 (only the floor is shown for illustration) is typically loaded with sand and gravel, among other goods. To unload, the door on one side of carriage 2 is first opened, and then the tilting mechanism drives carriage 2 to tilt. This is prior art and will not be described in detail. The innovation of this embodiment of the present invention lies in the provision of a drive mechanism on main body 1. This drive mechanism can utilize two sets of pneumatic cylinders (or hydraulic cylinders) as known in the prior art: one set of cylinders is directly connected to carriage 2, and the other set of cylinders is connected to carriage 2 via a connecting rod assembly. The connecting rod assembly amplifies the cylinder's output stroke and feeds it back to carriage 2, thereby increasing the tilting angle of carriage 2. The advantage of such a setting is that when unloading, the carriage 2 is first driven directly through the first stroke of the driving mechanism, so that the driving mechanism maintains a large torque to drive the carriage 2 to flip. After the carriage 2 flips to a certain angle, the driving mechanism runs the second stroke to drive the carriage 2 to flip to a larger angle through the connecting rod assembly, so as to avoid any cargo residue in the carriage 2 as much as possible; after unloading through the first stroke, the sand and gravel cargo in the carriage 2 is reduced, so that the second stroke can sacrifice part of the torque in exchange for a larger stroke.

[0033] An embodiment of the present invention provides a turning mechanism for trailer unloading, which can directly drive the carriage 2 to turn over a certain angle through the first stroke of the driving mechanism. At this time, the torque of the driving mechanism is relatively large to accommodate the large amount of cargo in the carriage 2. Subsequently, the driving mechanism drives the carriage 2 to turn over a larger angle through the connecting rod assembly. At this time, the driving mechanism sacrifices part of the torque in exchange for a larger stroke, thereby driving the carriage 2 to turn over a larger angle, thereby avoiding any cargo residue in the carriage 2 as much as possible.

[0034] In another embodiment provided by the present invention, further, the main body 1 is provided with multiple sets of drive mechanisms along its length or width. Specifically, in the prior art, the carriage 2 can be tilted sideways or backwards on the main body 1 for unloading. Accordingly, if the carriage 2 is tilted sideways for unloading, the unloading door and the rotating shaft of the carriage 2 are both located on the side, and multiple sets of drive mechanisms are provided along the length of the main body 1; if the carriage 2 is tilted backwards for unloading, the unloading door and the rotating shaft of the carriage 2 are located at the rear, and multiple sets of drive mechanisms are provided along the width of the main body 1.

[0035] Furthermore, the connecting rod assembly includes a first connecting rod 3 hinged on the main body 1 and a second connecting rod 4 hinged on the carriage 2, and the first connecting rod 3 and the second connecting rod 4 are hinged to each other. Specifically, the end of the first connecting rod 3 away from the main body 1 and the end of the second connecting rod 4 away from the carriage 2 are hinged to each other, as shown in FIG. Figure 2 As shown, when the first connection or the second link 4 is subjected to an upward driving force, the end of the first link 3 away from the main body 1 will rotate upward, and the second link 4 will rotate relative to the carriage 2 while moving upward with the first link 3, thereby driving the carriage 2 to rotate upward, thereby amplifying the stroke of the driving force and driving the carriage 2 to flip to a larger angle.

[0036] Preferably, the driving mechanism includes a driving member 5, one end of which is hinged to the main body 1. Specifically, the driving member 5 can be a pneumatic cylinder or hydraulic cylinder structure in the prior art, one end of which is hinged to the main body 1, and the other end of which can directly drive the carriage 2 to rotate or drive the carriage 2 to rotate through a connecting rod assembly. Optionally, the other end of the driving member 5 abuts against the carriage 2 or the second connecting rod 4, so that when the driving member 5 is in operation, the carriage 2 can be directly turned over or the carriage 2 can be turned over through the first connecting rod 3 and the second connecting rod 4.

[0037] Furthermore, the first connecting rod 3 is a telescopic rod, and the other end of the driving member 5 is hinged to the second connecting rod 4. The first connecting rod 3 includes an inner rod 31 hinged on the main body 1 and a sleeve rod 32 hinged on the second connecting rod 4, and the sleeve rod 32 is constructed with a movable groove adapted to the inner rod 31. Specifically, the first connecting rod 3 is a passive telescopic structure, and the movable groove is constructed along the length of the sleeve rod 32. The inner rod 31 is inserted into the movable groove, and the inner rod 31 has a certain sliding stroke in the movable groove, that is, the first connecting rod 3 has a certain telescopic stroke. In the above embodiment, the end of the driving member 5 away from the main body 1 needs to change the interference position to switch the stroke of the driving mechanism. In this embodiment, the other end of the driving member 5 is directly hinged to the second connecting rod 4, such as Figure 2 As shown, when the carriage 2 is fitted with the main body 1, the second connecting rod 4 is fitted with the bottom wall of the carriage 2, and the second connecting rod 4 is in a retracted state; when the driving member 5 is extended, it contacts the bottom of the carriage 2 through the second connecting rod 4 to directly force the carriage 2 to flip. During this process, the first connecting rod 3 is passively extended to adapt to the movement of the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2. This is the first stroke of the driving mechanism, and the first stroke ends when the first connecting rod 3 is extended to the limit (as shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown, the first connecting rod 3 is extended to the limit); as Figure 4 As shown, when the driving member 5 continues to extend, the first connecting rod 3 cannot continue to extend, so that a connecting rod drive structure is formed between the first connecting rod 3, the second connecting rod 4 and the driving member 5. When the driving member 5 extends, the carriage 2 continues to flip on the main body 1. This is the second stroke of the driving mechanism. The advantage of this arrangement is that by setting the first connecting rod 3 as a telescopic structure, the driving mechanism can passively switch states during operation, so that the first stroke with a larger torque is selected at the beginning of the flipping of the carriage 2, and passively switches to the second stroke with a smaller torque and a larger stroke during the subsequent flipping process of the carriage 2.

[0038] In another embodiment provided by the present invention, further, in the first stroke, the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2 are locked to each other. Specifically, in the above embodiment, when the driving mechanism runs the first stroke, the carriage 2 is in contact with the second connecting rod 4 under the action of its own weight. If the carriage 2 is subjected to an upward force under unexpected circumstances, the carriage 2 will deflect upward without restriction. Obviously, this method is not stable enough. Therefore, the relative positions of the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2 are locked in the first stroke. Preferably, a locking block 6 is slidably connected to the second connecting rod 4, and a locking groove 7 is constructed at the bottom of the carriage 2. The locking block 6 is slidably arranged along the length direction of the second connecting rod 4 (a sliding groove can be constructed on the side surface of the second connecting rod 4 for the locking block 6 to slide). The second connecting rod 4 can be provided with an electric push rod or other structure to drive the locking block 6 to move on the second connecting rod 4. The locking block 6 and the locking groove 7 are constructed in an L-shape that adapts to each other. The locking block 6 can move in the locking groove 7. When the locking block 6 is on one side of the locking groove 7, the L-shaped structures of the two are engaged with each other (such as Figure 5 As shown), to lock the carriage 2 and the second connecting rod 4, when the locking block 6 is on the other side of the locking groove 7, the two release the lock of the carriage 2 and the second connecting rod 4 (as shown). Figure 6 The advantage of such an arrangement is that, before the car 2 is flipped over, the locking block 6 is controlled by the electric push rod to move to one side of the locking groove 7 so that the locking block 6 and the locking groove 7 are engaged, thereby locking the relative position of the second connecting rod 4 and the car 2. When the first connecting rod 3 is extended to its maximum length, the locking block 6 is controlled by the electric push rod to move from one side of the locking groove 7 to the other side to release the lock of the car 2 and the second connecting rod 4. In this way, the relative position of the car 2 and the second connecting rod 4 is locked in the first stroke without affecting the operation of the second stroke.

[0039] As an alternative to the above-mentioned electric push rod driving the locking block 6 to slide along the second link 4, it is preferred that a third link 8 is further included, and the two ends of the third link 8 are hinged to the sleeve rod 32 and the locking block 6 respectively. Specifically, one end of the third link 8 is hinged to the side of the first link 3, and the other end is hinged to the locking block 6; in the process of the driving mechanism running the first stroke and the second stroke successively, the angle between the first link 3 and the second link 4 gradually increases. Since the locking block 6 can slide along the second link 4, when the angle between the first link 3 and the second link 4 becomes larger, the third link 8 can drive the locking block 6 to slide along the second link 4 (slide to the hinge point of the first link 3 and the second link 4). The advantage of such a setting is that when the driving mechanism runs the first stroke, the second link 4 is in contact with the carriage 2. At this time, the locking block 6 is located on one side of the locking groove 7, and the two are engaged with each other (such as Figure 5 As shown in FIG1 ), as the first stroke runs, the locking block 6 gradually moves from one side of the locking groove 7 to the other side until the first stroke ends and the locking block 6 is disengaged from the locking groove 7 (as shown in FIG1 ). Figure 6As shown), the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2 can be locked when the driving mechanism runs the first stroke, and the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2 can be passively released when the driving mechanism runs to the second stroke.

[0040] In another embodiment provided by the present invention, an elastic member 9 is further disposed within the movable groove, and is used to force the inner rod 31 into the movable groove. Specifically, the elastic member 9 is disposed within the movable groove, and can employ a spring structure known in the art. A movable block 10 is disposed within the movable groove (the movable block 10 can be fixed within the movable groove). One end of the elastic member 9 is fixed to the movable block 10, and the other end is fixed to the inner rod 31. When the first connecting rod 3 extends, the inner rod 31 relatively moves out of the movable groove to stretch the elastic member 9. That is, when the drive mechanism operates in the first stroke, the first connecting rod 3 extends and stores elastic potential energy. In this embodiment, the inner rod 31 has a longer moving stroke in the movable groove (compared with the above embodiment). When the driving mechanism runs between the first stroke and the second stroke, the first connecting rod 3 still has a certain extension stroke. When the driving mechanism runs the second stroke, the driving member 5 can force the first connecting rod 3 to continue to extend through the second connecting rod 4, and the elastic potential energy stored in the elastic member 9 can force the first connecting rod 3 to contract, that is, when the driving member 5 drives the car 2 to flip through the connecting rod assembly, the connecting rod assembly has a certain buffer stroke. The advantage of such an arrangement is that in the first stroke of the driving mechanism, the relative position of the second connecting rod 4 and the carriage 2 is locked, so that the first connecting rod 3 is passively extended and stores elastic potential energy, and at the same time, part of the cargo is unloaded in the carriage 2 to reduce the overall weight of the carriage 2; in the second stroke of the driving mechanism, the first connecting rod 3 has a tendency to contract under the action of the elastic member 9, so as to buffer the driving force of the driving member 5 through the elastic member 9. At the same time, the reaction force of the carriage 2 on the connecting rod assembly can also be buffered by the elastic member 9, especially when a large amount of cargo is suddenly unloaded in the carriage 2 or is subjected to other external forces, the connecting rod assembly is suddenly subjected to a sudden change in the force of the carriage 2. At this time, the connecting rod assembly can buffer the interaction force between the driving member 5 and the carriage 2 under the action of the elastic member 9. During the buffering process of the connecting rod assembly, the carriage 2 will shake slightly on the main body 1, which is conducive to the unloading of goods such as sand and gravel, and tries to avoid any cargo residue in the carriage 2.

[0041] In the above embodiment, the movable block 10 can be fixed within the movable groove. Obviously, as the inner rod 31 gradually extends out of the movable groove, the tensile force exerted by the elastic member 9 on the inner rod 31 gradually increases until the first connecting rod 3 is extended to its limit, at which point the elastic force of the elastic member 9 reaches its maximum and remains constant. In this embodiment, the movable block 10 is slidably disposed within the movable groove, allowing its position within the groove to be adjusted to vary the elastic force of the elastic member 9. Preferably, during the second stroke, the movable block 10 gradually approaches the inner rod 31, thereby gradually reducing the tensile force exerted by the elastic member 9 on the inner rod 31. Specifically, the sleeve rod 32 is configured with a connecting groove that communicates with the movable groove (with the third connecting rod 8 located within the connecting groove). The end of the third connecting rod 8 distal to the locking block 6 is hingedly connected to a linkage rod 11. The linkage rod 11 resides in both the connecting groove and the movable groove, and the end of the linkage rod 11 is hingedly connected to the movable block 10, enabling the third connecting rod 8 to slide within the movable groove via the linkage rod 11 when the third connecting rod 8 rotates. When the driving mechanism runs the first stroke and the second stroke successively, the angle between the first connecting rod 3 and the second connecting rod 4 gradually increases, and the third connecting rod 8 passively rotates and drives the linkage rod 11 to approach the inner rod 31, thereby driving the movable block 10 to move along the movable groove toward the inner rod 31. The advantage of such a setting is that, at the beginning of the first stroke, the elastic member 9 is in a compressed state, which can force the inner rod 31 to be retracted into the movable groove; in the first stroke, the inner rod 31 moves away from the movable block 10 along the movable groove, and at the same time, the movable block 10 gradually approaches the inner rod 31 along the movable groove, and the moving stroke of the inner rod 31 is greater than the moving stroke of the movable block 10, so that the elastic member 9 is stretched and stores elastic potential energy in this process (that is, the elastic member 9 changes from a compressed state to a stretched state), until the first connecting rod 3 is stretched to its limit length, and the elastic force of the elastic member 9 reaches its peak (such as Figure 7As shown in the figure); in the second stroke, the first connecting rod 3 is basically in the ultimate elongation state (the length of the first connecting rod 3 changes slightly when buffering is performed by the connecting rod assembly), that is, the position of the inner rod 31 relative to the movable groove remains basically unchanged, and the movable block 10 continues to approach the inner rod 31 under the action of the linkage rod 11, so that the elastic member 9 gradually contracts to reduce its stored elastic potential energy (in the second stroke, the elastic member 9 is always in the stretched state), that is, the pulling force of the elastic member 9 on the inner rod 31 is gradually reduced, so as to adapt to the gradually decreasing cargo in the carriage 2 in the second stroke; in the early part of the first stroke, when the driving member 5 is running, the elastic member 9 is first released The elastic force can assist the driving member 5 (in the first stroke, the extension of the first connecting rod 3 can assist the carriage 2 in unloading). In the latter part of the first stroke, the cargo in the carriage 2 is reduced, and the driving member 5 can force the elastic member 9 to become a stretched state when forcing the carriage 2 to rotate. Until the second stroke, the driving member 5 forces the carriage 2 to rotate through the connecting rod assembly, so that the elastic member 9 can continue to assist the driving member 5 in operation (in the second stroke, the contraction of the first connecting rod 3 can assist the carriage 2 in unloading, that is, the driving force of the driving member 5 in the first stroke is stored through the elastic member 9 in disguise and the driving member 5 in the second stroke is assisted). To sum up, in the first stroke, there is a lot of cargo in the carriage 2, and the driving member 5 directly drives the carriage 2 to flip over. At this time, the elastic member 9 is stretched by the inner rod 31 to store elastic potential energy; at the beginning of the second stroke, the driving member 5 drives the carriage 2 to flip over through the connecting rod assembly. At this time, the elastic force of the elastic member 9 is relatively large, so that the elastic member 9 has sufficient elastic force to buffer the gravity of the carriage 2 and the driving force of the driving member 5; in the second stroke, the driving member 5 always drives the carriage 2 to flip over through the connecting rod assembly, but the elastic force of the elastic member 9 gradually decreases to adapt to the gradually decreasing cargo in the carriage 2, and to avoid damage caused by the spring maintaining high load operation.

[0042] The above description is merely illustrative of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. It goes without saying that those skilled in the art will be able to modify the described embodiments in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the above drawings and description are illustrative in nature and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A trailer unloading turning mechanism, comprising a main body and a carriage rotatably connected to the main body, characterized in that: The main body is provided with: A driving mechanism including a connecting rod assembly, wherein the driving mechanism has a first stroke for directly driving the carriage to rotate and a second stroke for driving the carriage to rotate via the connecting rod assembly; The connecting rod assembly includes a first connecting rod hinged on the main body and a second connecting rod hinged on the carriage, wherein the first connecting rod and the second connecting rod are hinged to each other; The driving mechanism includes a driving member, one end of which is hinged to the main body; The first connecting rod is a telescopic rod, and the other end of the driving member is hinged to the second connecting rod; The first connecting rod comprises an inner rod hinged on the main body and a sleeve rod hinged on the second connecting rod, wherein the sleeve rod is configured with a movable slot adapted to the inner rod; A locking block is slidably connected to the second connecting rod, and a locking groove is configured on the bottom of the carriage; It also includes a third connecting rod, the two ends of which are hinged to the sleeve rod and the locking block respectively; An elastic member is provided in the movable groove, and the elastic member is used to force the inner rod to be retracted into the movable groove; A movable block is provided in the movable groove, one end of the elastic member is fixed on the movable block, and the other end is fixed on the inner rod. When the first connecting rod is extended, the inner rod moves out of the movable groove to stretch the elastic member.

2. The trailer unloading turning mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The main body is provided with a plurality of driving mechanisms along its length or width.

3. The trailer unloading turning mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the first stroke, the second link and the carriage are locked to each other.

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