Pre-assembled unit with mounting bracket and connectors for industrial vehicles

Abstract

A preassembled unit comprises a mounting bracket (10) to which a plurality of connectors (23) is firmly attached. Respective cables (24) for electrical and / or pneumatic and / or hydraulic lines are conn

Description

5 The present invention relates to the field of installations on board industrial vehicles for transporting goods having a tractor and a trailer, and refers, in particular, to a preassembled unit with a mounting bracket and connectors. Prior art 10 Brackets are known to be used, located on the rear of the tractor of an industrial vehicle, in the shape of metallic elements in the form of transversely elongated angular plates that are provided with seats for accommodating electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic connectors. In these connectors terminate the cables of electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic lines 15 connected to respective devices, mounted on the tractor, forming part of the relevant electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic systems of the vehicle. Removably connected to such connectors are plugs and couplings leading to respective electrical, pneumatic, and hydraulic line cables that serve a plurality of devices mounted on board the trailer. 2 0 Each mounting bracket is mounted on a vertical metallic support frame, arranged at the rear of the tractor. The various connectors are fastened into seats, generally in the form of circular through openings, formed through the bracket. The mounting and fastening of the connectors to the bracket are traditionally performed by the vehicle manufacturer on an assembly line during the final stage of vehicle production with considerable effort in terms 2 5 of time and cost. This practice also places the burden of testing the functionality of the connector on the vehicle manufacturer. Summary of the invention 30 The object of the present invention is to remedy the drawbacks discussed above. The invention proposes to provide a preassembled unit to be supplied to the manufacturer of industrial vehicles, incorporating therein connectors and related cables belonging thereto, wherein the unit may be easily and quickly mounted by means of a single mounting operation. The provision of connectors that are already connected to the cables thereof, and that have been tested beforehand, relieves the manufacturer of the burden of testing the electrical or pneumatic functionality of such connectors. The aforesaid and other objects and advantages, which will be better understood in the following, are achieved, according to one aspect of the present invention, by a preassembled unit having the features set out in claim 1. According to another aspect, the present invention proposes to provide a preassembled assembly having the features set out in claim 8. Preferred embodiments of the device are defined in the dependent claims. Brief description of the drawings A few preferred, but non-limiting embodiments of a preassembled unit and a preassembled assembly according to the invention will now be described. Reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mounting bracket adapted to be part of a preassembled unit according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the rear side of a preassembled unit according to the present invention, mounted on a support frame, forming a preassembled assembly according to the present invention; FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view similar to FIG. 2, with the addition of spiralshaped cables mounted to connectors of the preassembled unit; FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a mounting bracket with connectors and mechanical fastening elements for fastening the plate to a support frame; FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are, respectively, a perspective view and a top view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 4 with fastening elements associated with corresponding fastening elements of the support frame; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a preassembled assembly with an adjustable support frame; and FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of some parts of the adjustable support frame of FIG. 7. Detailed description With reference to the drawings, a mounting bracket is indicated with reference numeral 10, shown separately in FIG. 1 and configured to be constrained to a vertical support frame 11 (FIG. 2) attachable at the rear of the tractor of an industrial vehicle or heavy commercial vehicle used for transporting goods, typically a trailer truck or articulated truck. The support frame 11, made of a metallic material, is known per se and has an overall shape with an upper portion which, in the example shown, is tapered upwards and two vertical and parallel lateral uprights 12, 13. The upper portion of the support frame 11 may have a pair of bars 14, 15, inclined in the example shown, and rigidly connected by one or two horizontal crosspieces 16, 17. The mounting bracket 10, made of a rigid plastics material or metallic material, may have a transversely elongated angular shape with an upper vertical plate portion 18 and a lower horizontal bracket portion 19 having two opposite ends, left and right, wherefrom two respective lower appendages 20, 21 extend, which may be inclined and divergent downwards. In the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, the mounting bracket 10 provides a plurality of seats 22, for example in the form of circular through openings, adapted to house a plurality of connectors 23 for a corresponding plurality of cables 24 (Fig. 3) for electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic lines, which, in use, connect members of the electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic systems situated on the tractor with corresponding members of the same systems, situated on the trailer. The electrical lines typically comprise 7-pole or 15-pole lines. In this context, the term “connectors” is intended to refer to both electrical connectors and adapters, and compressed air and / or other fluid intakes. The plurality of connectors 23 is firmly attached to the mounting bracket 10, so as to form a preassembled unit that may subsequently be supplied to the vehicle manufacturer to be mounted on the support frame 11, with the connectors 23 each advantageously already connected to a first end of a corresponding cable of the cables 24, wherein the opposite ends thereof are then connected to devices, installed on the trailer and / or the tractor, forming part of the electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic systems of the vehicle. A single assembly may thus be made comprising the mounting bracket 10, preassembled to the support frame 11 and to the connectors 23, whereto the cables 24 are already coupled that are to be connected to electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic devices on the tractor and / or trailer. As is known, the cables 24 to be connected to the trailer (Fig. 3) are normally spiralshaped. This is in order to be able to extend and shorten them thereby adapting to the instantaneous distance between the tractor and the trailer which are sometimes in relative movement (e.g. when the vehicle travels along a curve). The positions of the connectors of the preassembled unit, once installed on the vehicle, do not differ substantially from traditional installation positions comprising brackets made of metallic material whereupon the connectors are installed on the final production line of the vehicle. Standardized or customized configurations may be provided for connector positions according to the needs of the end user. According to some embodiments, the mounting bracket 10 may have mechanical fastening means or seats 25 for constraining the mounting bracket 10 to the support frame 11. According to an embodiment, the connectors 23 may be constrained to the mounting bracket 10, if made of a plastics material, by overmolding the bracket onto the connectors 23 prearranged within the mold where the bracket is formed. Alternatively, the connectors 23 may be overmolded onto the mounting bracket 10 in such a way that a monobloc body is formed therewith. According to an embodiment, the connectors 23 may be fastened, by mechanical fastening means, to a previously formed mounting bracket 10. The mechanical fastening means may include, for example, screws, rivets, interlocking formations, quick-snap mounting means, etc. Alternatively, or additionally, the connectors 23 may be rendered integral with the mounting bracket 10 by means of an adhesive or by welding (e.g., ultrasonic, hot-blade, vibration, etc.). According to an alternative embodiment, the connectors 23 may be formed by molding together, and simultaneously, with the mounting bracket 10, thus forming a single one-piece body. According to a further embodiment, the mounting bracket 10, if made of a plastics material, may be overmolded onto the support frame 11 made of a metallic material, so as to form a monolithic assembly comprising the support frame 11, the mounting bracket 10, the connectors 23 and the respective cables 24 of the electrical and / or pneumatic and / or hydraulic lines. According to such an embodiment, the shape of the mounting bracket may differ from that shown herein, for example, in FIGs. 2 and 3, where mechanical fastening means or seats 25 for constraining the mounting bracket 10 to the support frame 11 are schematically shown. According to some embodiments (FIGs. 4-7), the mounting bracket 10 may be mounted on the support frame 11 in an adjustable manner based upon the positioning needs (vertical and horizontal) of a specific vehicle, and based upon different formats of the mounting bracket 10 and / or the support frame 11 and, in particular, the geometry of the fastening points, encumbrances, and available spaces. The mechanical fastening means 25 may therefore comprise adjustable fastening elements 25a, 25b comprising a first plurality of fastening elements 25a that are integral with the mounting bracket 10 at different points thereof, and a corresponding second plurality of fastening elements 25b attachable to the support frame and couplable to a respective one of the fastening elements 25a in a vertically or horizontally adjustable manner. The adjustable fastening elements may have through slots 25c, 25d (FIG. 5) that are elongated in horizontal and vertical directions to allow each fastening element 25a, which is integral with the mounting bracket 10, to be fastened by means of a respective bolt (not shown) to an associated fastening element 25b that is integral with the support frame 11. In the example shown in FIG. 5-7, the slots are formed along the fastening elements 25b which may be fastened to the support frame 11. Preferably, each fastening element 25b forms a pair of parallel wings, each having a slot that is horizontally or vertically aligned with the slot on the opposite wing. In this embodiment, the fastening elements 25a, which are integral with the mounting bracket, have two parallel tabs that are spaced apart by a distance corresponding to the distance between the two wings of the fastening elements 25b. The tabs of the fastening elements 25a each have a hole adapted to receive a bolt (not shown) which passes through the holes and slots of each pair of fastening elements 25a, 25b. Alternative embodiments may provide for the fastening elements 25b to be integral with the mounting plate 10 and the fastening elements 25a to be integral with the support frame 11. The fastening elements 25a on the mounting plate are preferably distributed on two left and right sides and at positions spaced apart vertically, for fastening the mounting plate to an upper part of the support frame at four distinct fastening points. The fastening elements 25a may be rendered integral with the mounting plate, for example by means of nuts and bolts, which are not visible in the example shown. Alternatively, the mounting plate 10, if made of a plastics material, may be overmolded onto the fastening elements 25a, so as to partially incorporate them embedded therein. According to a further embodiment, the fastening elements 25a, if made of metallic material, may be welded to the mounting plate 10. With reference to FIG. 7 and 8, the support frame 11 may be implemented in an adaptable manner for being mounted according to configurations of variable heights and widths, depending upon the mounting requirements of a specific vehicle. The support frame may be composed of a plurality of complementary parts which together form a general configuration with two vertical lateral uprights joined by at least one upper horizontal crosspiece. The two vertical lateral uprights 12, 13 each comprise two vertical segments 12a, 12b that are partially side by side and mutually attachable therebetween in a selective manner, in a plurality of relative vertical positions. The upper horizontal crosspiece 17 comprises two horizontal segments 17a, 17b that are partially side by side and mutually attachable therebetween in a selective manner, in a plurality of relative horizontal positions. Those segments that comprise the vertical lateral uprights and the upper horizontal cross member of the support frame may be made using shaped sections so as to slide inside each other in a telescopic manner, in order to lengthen / shorten the structure in height and width in such a way as to adapt to the geometric requirements of differing vehicles. Alternatively, in order to reduce production costs, the segments may have equal rectangular cross sections, which may be locked therebetween by means of connecting devices 27 (FIG. 7) arranged at points where two segments are partially side by side. The fastening of the support frame 11 to the vehicle may be accomplished by means of a plurality of attachments 26. As will be appreciated, having the connectors preassembled on the mounting bracket (and optionally also on the support frame) reduces the operations required on the part of the vehicle manufacturer thereby allowing a preassembled unit or assembly to be quickly installed that will be free of assembly or quality problems regarding the connectors, said connectors being advantageously already qualitatively tested and certified. Various aspects and embodiments of a preassembled unit and a preassembled assembly have been described. It is understood that each embodiment may be combined with any other embodiment. Furthermore, the invention is not limited to the described embodiments, but may be varied within the scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A preassembled unit comprising:a plurality of connectors (23) with a corresponding plurality of cables (24) for electrical and / or pneumatic and / or hydraulic lines, each cable (24) having one end connected to one of said connectors (23),a mounting bracket (10) whereto said connectors (23) are firmly attached,wherein the mounting bracket (10) provides mechanical fastening means or seats (25) for mounting the preassembled unit to a vertical support frame (11) on the rear of a tractor of an industrial vehicle.

2. A preassembled unit according to claim 1, wherein the mounting bracket (10) provides a plurality of seats (22) in which said connectors (23) are housed and fastened.

3. A preassembled unit according to claim 1, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is made of a plastics material.

4. A preassembled unit according to claim 3, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is overmolded to the connectors (23) in such a way that the connectors are rendered integral with the mounting bracket (10) and partially embedded therein, so as to form a monobloc body.

5. A preassembled unit according to claim 1 or 3, wherein the connectors (23) are overmolded to the mounting bracket (10) in such a way that the connectors are rendered integral with the mounting bracket (10) so as to form a monobloc body.

6. A preassembled unit according to claim 3, wherein the mounting bracket (10) and the connectors (23) are formed together in a single piece made of a plastics material.

7. A preassembled unit according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said connectors (23) comprise electrical connectors and / or hydraulic connectors and / or connectors or intakes for compressed air.

8. A preassembled assembly comprising:a plurality of connectors (23) with a corresponding plurality of cables (24) for electrical and / or pneumatic and / or hydraulic lines, each cable (24) having one end connected to one of said connectors (23),a mounting bracket (10) to which said connectors (23) are firmly attached,a vertical support frame (11) mountable on the rear of a tractor of an industrial vehicle, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is mounted to the support frame (11).

9. A preassembled assembly according to claim 8, wherein the mounting bracket (10) provides a plurality of seats (22) in which said connectors (23) are housed and fastened.

10. A preassembled assembly according to claim 8, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is made of a plastics material.

11. A preassembled assembly according to claim 10, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is overmolded to the connectors (23) in such a way that the connectors are rendered integral with the mounting bracket (10) and partially embedded therein, so as to form a monobloc body therewith.

12. A preassembled assembly according to claim 8, wherein the connectors (23) are overmolded onto the mounting bracket (10), so as to form a monobloc body therewith.

13. A preassembled assembly according to claim 10, wherein the mounting bracket (10) is overmolded to the support frame (11).

14. A preassembled assembly according to claim 10, wherein the mounting bracket (10) and the connectors (23) are formed together in a single piece of a plastics material.

15. A preassembled assembly according to claim 8, whereinthe mounting bracket (10) and the support frame (11) have respective pluralities of mechanical fastening means or seats (25a, 25b) for mounting the mounting bracket (10) tothe support frame (11) in an adjustable manner, whereinthe mechanical fastening means (25a, 25b) comprise a first plurality of fastening elements (25a) integral with the mounting bracket (10) at different points spaced apart therebetween and a corresponding second plurality of fastening elements (25b) integral with the support frame (11), so as to form a plurality of pairs of fastening elements, whereinin each pair of fastening elements at least one of the two fastening elements is elongated in a vertical direction or in a horizontal direction, and the other fastening element of said pair of fastening elements may be constrained to the elongated fastening element at a position selected from a plurality of fastening positions that are available along said elongated fastening element.

16. A preassembled assembly according to any of claims 8 to 15, wherein the support frame (11) comprises a plurality of complementary parts which together form a general configuration with two vertical lateral uprights joined by an upper horizontal crosspiece, whereinthe two vertical lateral uprights each comprise two segments that are partially side by side and mutually attachable therebetween in a selective manner, in a plurality of relative vertical positions;the upper horizontal crosspiece comprises two segments that are partially side by side and mutually attachable therebetween, in a selective manner, in a plurality of relative horizontal positions.

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