Caster fitting mechanism

Abstract

To provide a caster fitting mechanism which is formed below a fitted part, and can easily fit a caster.SOLUTION: A caster fitting mechanism, which is formed below a fitted part 2 and fits a top plate part 7 of a caster 5, comprises: a regulation piece part 19 which overlaps a part of a marginal edge 7a of the top plate part 7 of the caster 5 in the vertical direction; a fitting insertion part 16 which is fitting-inserted in an open hole 8b formed in the top plate part 7 in the vertical direction; and a screw 15 and a screw hole 14 which is coupling means that is coupled through a fitting hole 8a in the top plate part 7 of the caster 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a caster mounting mechanism for mounting a caster to a lower part of a mounting base. [Background technology]

[0002] Known examples of mounting parts with casters attached to the bottom include movable fixtures on which articles are placed, such as the movable fixture described in Patent Document 1, which is used in supermarkets, convenience stores, and other stores to transport and stock merchandise stored in the back yard into the store. Casters include swivel casters and fixed casters, but in any case, casters with the same structural specifications are almost always used for such movable fixtures.

[0003] For example, the caster shown in Patent Document 1 has a top plate (tabletop portion), a pair of wheel support parts extending below the top plate, and wheels journaled between the pair of wheel support parts. The caster attachment mechanism in Patent Document 2 is composed of multiple spaced-apart through-holes formed on the edge of the top plate, screw holes formed on the underside of the fixture body to which the top plate is attached, and screws that are screwed into the screw holes through the through-holes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] CD-ROM (page 6, Figure 4) of Utility Model Application No. 62-169564 (Utility Model Application No. 1-73463) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] As with the caster mounting mechanism described in Patent Document 1, by adopting a configuration in which the top plate and the underside of the fixture body are screwed together through multiple through holes formed in the edge of the top plate, the top plate and the underside of the fixture body can be brought into even proximity over the entire opposing surface, resulting in excellent mounting strength. However, there are problems in that screwing with multiple screws is not possible unless the positions and processing accuracy of the multiple through holes and screw holes are accurate, and installation requires aligning the multiple through holes and screw holes and multiple screwing steps, making the installation work complicated.

[0006] The present invention has been made in response to these problems, and has as its object to provide a caster attachment mechanism that is formed at the bottom of the mounting portion and allows casters to be attached easily. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the caster mounting mechanism of the present invention comprises: A caster mounting mechanism is formed on the lower part of the mounting portion and is used to mount the top plate of the caster, The mounting mechanism is characterized by having a regulating piece portion that overlaps in the vertical direction with a portion of the edge of the top plate portion of the caster, an insertion portion that is inserted in the vertical direction into a through hole formed in the top plate portion, and a fastening means that is fastened through an mounting hole in the top plate portion of the caster. According to this feature, the mounting mechanism has a regulating piece that overlaps in the vertical direction with part of the edge of the top plate of the caster, thereby regulating the vertical separation between the mounted part and the caster, and the insertion part that is inserted in the vertical direction into a through hole formed in the top plate prevents horizontal misalignment between the mounted part and the caster.Since the caster can be attached to the bottom of the mounted part using fastening means such as a small number of screws and screw holes, the fastening process can be minimized and the installation work can be greatly simplified.

[0008] The fastening means is a screw and a screw hole, and the screw hole is disposed on the opposite side of the regulating piece portion across the wheel of the caster. According to this feature, the screw and screw hole are fastened through the through hole in the top plate portion of the caster on the opposite side of the regulating piece and the wheel, thereby regulating and fixing both opposing edges of the top plate portion of the caster, and maintaining a stable installation state.

[0009] The regulating piece portion is characterized in that both widthwise ends thereof are provided with side wall portions which face both opposing edges of the top plate portion of the caster. According to this feature, the rotation of the top plate portion is restricted by the side wall portions provided at both widthwise ends of the restricting piece portion, making it easy to perform the fastening operation of the fastening means.

[0010] The mounting portion above the regulating piece is characterized in that an opening is formed into which the edge of the top plate portion of the caster can be inserted. According to this feature, since the tip of the edge can be temporarily retracted into the opening, the edge can be inserted between the restricting piece and the underside of the attached part while the top plate of the caster is tilted to avoid the fitting-in part, so that the restricting piece can be disposed close to the underside of the attached part, and the separation between the attached part and the caster in the vertical direction can be reliably restricted. Also, the fitting-in part can be easily fitted into the through hole formed in the top plate.

[0011] The restricting piece portion is characterized in that it is continuous with the lower surface of the mounting portion by an inclined surface portion. According to this feature, the tip of the edge of the top plate portion of the caster inserted above the regulating piece portion is close to the inclined surface portion at the rear side, making it easy to align the caster with the mounting portion. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a movable fixture in which a caster mounting mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention is used. [Diagram 2] 1 is a perspective view showing a rod member which is the mounting portion having a caster mounting mechanism. FIG. [Diagram 3] 13 is a partially enlarged view of the rod member showing the caster mounting mechanism and the wheels. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the caster mounting mechanism and the wheels. [Diagram 5] 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 4. [Figure 6] 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 4. [Figure 7] (a) is a diagram showing the state in which the edge of the top plate of the caster is inserted into the opening of the engagement part, and (b) is a diagram showing the state in which the other edge side of the top plate is rotated upward and the convex part is inserted into the through hole. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a modified example of the caster mounting mechanism. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a bottom view showing the caster mounting mechanism in the second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A caster mounting mechanism according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. EXAMPLES

[0014] The caster attachment mechanism of the present invention is applied to a movable fixture M as shown in Fig. 1. This movable fixture M is used in stores such as supermarkets and convenience stores to transport and stock products stored in the back yard into the store.

[0015] The loading platform 31 of the mobile fixture M is composed of a base plate 33 formed in an approximately rectangular plate shape with a loading surface on which items can be placed, and a base frame (not shown in detail here) arranged on the underside of the base plate 33.

[0016] The pillars 32, 32, ... are connected to one another by a base frame, and each protrudes upward from a hole formed in the four corners of the base plate 33. A plurality of casters 5, 6 are fixed to the base frame.

[0017] 2 indicates a rod member which constitutes a part of the base frame and serves as a mounting portion to which casters 5 and 6 are attached. The casters 5 and 6 are attached to both ends of the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 in the longitudinal direction, respectively.

[0018] One of the casters 5 in the longitudinal direction is a fixed caster, and the other caster 6 is a swivel caster. The fixed caster 5 and the swivel caster 6 each have two through holes 8 for attachment formed in edges 7a, 7b (see FIG. 4) of two opposing short sides of a substantially rectangular top plate portion 7 (see FIG. 3), and the only difference between them is whether the wheels 9 (see FIG. 2) can swivel with respect to the top plate portion 7. Therefore, only the attachment mechanism between the fixed caster 5 and the rod member 2 will be described here, and the attachment mechanism between the swivel caster 6 and the rod member 2 will be omitted. The longitudinal direction of the fixed caster 5 of the top plate portion 7 is parallel to the rotation direction of the wheels 9, i.e., the traveling direction.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 4, the fixed caster 5 is mainly composed of a rectangular top plate portion 7, a pair of forks 10 hanging down from the top plate portion 7, and wheels 9 journaled on the forks 10.

[0020] As shown in Fig. 2, the rod member 2, which is the mounting portion, is cut out from a metal plate and formed into a rod shape by bending the front, back, left and right. As shown in Fig. 3, an engagement portion 11 is formed at the longitudinal end of the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2, with which an edge portion 7a constituting one of the longitudinal short sides of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5 engages. The engagement portion 11 will be described in detail later.

[0021] 4, a hole 12 is formed in the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 at a position corresponding to one of two through holes 8a formed on the edge 7b side constituting the other short side in the longitudinal direction of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5. A metal piece 13 having a female screw portion 13a is welded to the opposite side of the hole 12 from the fixed caster 5, in other words, the upper surface side of the lower plate 3, and the hole 12 and the metal piece 13 form a screw hole 14 into which a screw 15 used to attach the fixed caster 5 to the rod member 2 can be screwed. A spring washer 17 is interposed between the screw 15 and the top plate portion 7. The screw hole 14, the screw 15, and the spring washer 17 form a fastening means.

[0022] Further, near the hole 12, a convex portion 16 (insertion portion) having a circular outer edge shape is formed at a position corresponding to the other through hole (mounting hole) 8b of the two through holes 8 formed in the other edge portion 7b of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5. The convex portion 16 is formed by burring processing applied to the metal plate, and its outer diameter is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the through hole 8b formed in the top plate portion 7.

[0023] The caster mounting mechanism in this embodiment (hereinafter simply referred to as the "mounting mechanism") is composed of an engagement portion 11, a screw hole 14, a protrusion 16, a through hole 8a at one edge portion 7a and the other edge portion 7b in the longitudinal direction of the top plate portion 7, a through hole (mounting hole) 8b, a screw 15, and a spring washer 17, which are provided on the rod member 2 that is the mounting portion.

[0024] 5 and 6, the engagement portion 11 is formed by louver processing applied to a metal plate, and is configured to have a flap-shaped restricting piece portion 19 that covers the opening 18 from below, and left and right restricting side wall portions 20. The restricting piece portion 19 and the side wall portions 20 are formed simultaneously by louver processing, and both are continuous with the lower plate 3, and the restricting piece portion 19, the side wall portions 20, and the lower plate 3 define an opening 11a that faces the center of the rod member 2 in the longitudinal direction.

[0025] The width dimension of the opening 11a is slightly larger than the widthwise outer dimension of the edge 7a (7b) that constitutes the short side of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5, and the vertical dimension of the opening 11a is slightly larger than the thickness of the edge 7a (7b) that constitutes the short side of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5.

[0026] 6, the portion constituting the engagement portion 11 by louver processing is cut out from a metal plate, so that the portion of the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 that overlaps with the engagement portion 11 vertically forms an opening 18. This opening 18 has approximately the same width as the opening 11a of the engagement portion 11.

[0027] When attaching the fixed caster 5 to the rod member 2, which is the mounting portion, first, one edge 7a of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5 is inserted into the opening 11a of the engagement portion 11, as shown in Fig. 7(a). At this time, the edge 7a of the top plate portion 7, which is inclined with respect to the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2, is inserted into the opening 11a of the engagement portion 11 so that the top plate portion 7 does not interfere with the protrusion 16 protruding from the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2.

[0028] Next, the edge 7a of the top plate portion 7 is inserted into the opening 11a of the engagement portion 11 until the through hole 8b formed in the top plate portion 7 comes within a predetermined distance of the convex portion 16 protruding from the lower plate 3. Then, as shown in Figure 7(b), the other edge 7b side of the top plate portion 7 is rotated upward with the one edge 7a side as a fulcrum, and the convex portion 16 is inserted into the through hole (mounting hole) 8b of the top plate portion 7.

[0029] In this way, the mounting mechanism has a regulating piece portion 19 that overlaps in the vertical direction with a portion of the edge 7a of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5, thereby restricting the movement of the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5 away from each other in the vertical direction, and the convex portion 16 that is inserted in the vertical direction into the through hole 8b formed in the top plate portion 7 prevents horizontal misalignment between the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5.Since the fixed caster 5 can be mounted to the lower part of the rod member 2 with a small number of screws 15 and screw holes 14 (only a pair in this embodiment), the process of aligning the through hole 8 of the fixed caster 5 with the screw holes 14 and screwing the screws 15 can be minimized, making the mounting work significantly easier.

[0030] Furthermore, since the screw hole 14 is arranged on the opposite side of the regulating piece portion 19 across the wheel 9 of the fixed caster 5, when the screw 15 and the screw hole 14 are fastened through the through hole 8a of the top plate portion 7, the edge portions 7a and 7b on both opposing sides (here, both longitudinal sides) of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5 are respectively held down, and the installation state can be maintained stably.

[0031] In addition, since the side wall portions 20 provided at both widthwise ends of the regulating piece portion 19 face both edges of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5, the relative rotation of the top plate portion 7 is regulated and the through hole 8 and the screw hole 14 are temporarily held in an aligned state, making it easy to screw the screw 15 into the screw hole 14.

[0032] Furthermore, an opening 18 is formed in the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 that overlaps vertically with the regulating piece 19, into which the edge 7a of the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5 can be inserted. With this, the tip of the edge 7a can be temporarily retracted into the opening 18 (see FIG. 7(a)), and the edge 7a can be inserted between the regulating piece 19 and the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 with the top plate portion 7 of the fixed caster 5 tilted to avoid the protrusion 16. This allows the regulating piece 19 to be disposed as close as possible to the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2, in other words, the difference between the vertical dimension of the opening 18 and the thickness of the top plate portion 7 to be made as small as possible, and the separation between the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5 in the vertical direction can be reliably regulated.

[0033] 6, the restricting piece 19 is continuous with the lower plate 3 at the inclined surface 21. This allows the tip of the edge 7a of the top plate 7 of the fixed caster 5 inserted into the opening 11a to be guided toward the opening 18 along the inclined surface 21 at the rear side. Also, since the inclined surface 21 and the edge 7a are close to each other, the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5 can be easily aligned.

[0034] Furthermore, since the protrusion 16 is formed integrally with the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 by burring, it is highly durable and the attached state between the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5 can be reliably maintained.

[0035] Similarly, since the regulating piece portion 19 is formed simultaneously with the side wall portion 20 from the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 by louver processing, it is highly durable and the attachment state between the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5 can be reliably maintained.

[0036] 8, the engaging portion may be provided with a restricting piece 39 fixed by welding to the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 via an upright piece 39a, and the side wall portion may be omitted. In this case, the fixed caster 5 is restricted from rotating in the horizontal direction relative to the rod member 2 by fastening through the through hole 8a into which the protrusion 16 is inserted, and through the through hole 8b by the screw hole 14 and the screw 15 (both not shown), and the restricting piece 39 restricts the vertical separation between the rod member 2 and the fixed caster 5. EXAMPLES

[0037] Next, a caster attachment mechanism according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 9. Note that a description of the same configuration as in the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0038] 9 has through holes 48a, 48b for attachment formed in edges 47a, 47b (see FIG. 4) of two opposing short sides. In the caster attachment mechanism of the second embodiment, an engagement portion 41 and a protrusion (insertion portion) 46 are formed at the longitudinal end of the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2, and a screw hole (not shown here) is formed toward the longitudinal center from the engagement portion 41.

[0039] A recess 49a is formed in the restricting piece 49 constituting the engaging portion 41 so as to avoid the protruding portion 46. As in the first embodiment, the top plate portion 47 of the fixed caster 45 is attached to the lower plate 3 of the rod member 2 by inserting one edge portion 47a obliquely into the opening of the engaging portion 41, fitting the protruding portion 46 into the through hole 48a, and finally fastening the screw 15 through the through hole 48b of the screw hole.

[0040] In this way, in the caster mounting mechanism of Example 2, the through hole 48a into which the protrusion 46 is inserted and the through hole 48b into which the screw 15 is inserted are configured to be positioned on either side of the wheel of the fixed caster 45 in the traveling direction, thereby effectively restricting the horizontal relative rotation of the fixed caster 45 with respect to the rod member 2.

[0041] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the specific configurations are not limited to these embodiments, and additions and modifications that do not deviate from the gist of the present invention are also included in the present invention.

[0042] For example, in the above embodiment, a configuration was described in which one of the longitudinal edges 7a of the top plate portion 7 sandwiching the wheel 9 in the running direction is inserted into the opening 11a of the engagement portion 11, but this is not limited thereto, and for example, a configuration in which a regulating piece portion is superimposed on one of the lateral edges, or, for example, in the case where the top plate portion of the caster is circular, a configuration in which a regulating piece portion is superimposed on part of the peripheral edge, may also be used.

[0043] Furthermore, the mounting portion is not limited to the rod member 2 described above, but may be, for example, a resin base plate at the bottom of the movable fixture to which the mounting mechanism as described above is formed.

[0044] In the above embodiment, the through hole 8b formed in the top plate 7 into which the protrusion 16 (46) is inserted and the through hole 8a into which the screw 15 is inserted are configured separately, but the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a configuration in which a hole or a female screw portion through which a screw can be inserted may be formed in the protrusion 16 inserted into the through hole 8b. In this case, although it becomes necessary to regulate the relative rotation in the horizontal direction between the caster and the lower plate by the side wall portion 20 of the engagement portion 11, it is possible to omit one through hole on the caster side and one through hole on the lower plate side corresponding to each other.

[0045] Moreover, the projection 16 (46) serving as the fitting portion is not limited to being formed by burring, but may be formed by being fixed by welding or the like.

[0046] Furthermore, the central portions of the restricting piece portion 19 and the inclined surface portion 21 of the engaging portion 11 may be omitted by being hollowed out.

[0047] Furthermore, the engaging portion 11, the protruding portion 16, and the screw hole 14 may be formed as separate members from the rod member 2 and the lower plate 3. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 2 Rod members 3 Lower plate 5 Fixed casters 6 Swivel casters 7 Top plate 7a,7b Edge 8a through hole 8b Through hole (mounting hole) 9 wheels 11 Engagement part 11a opening 12 holes 13 metal piece 13a Female thread 14 Screw holes (fastening means) 15 Screw (fastening means) 16 Convex portion (insertion portion) 18 Openings 19 Regulating piece 20 Side wall 21 Slope section 39 Regulation piece part 39a Standing piece 41 Engagement part 45 Fixed caster 46 Convex 47a,47b Edge 47 Top plate 48a,48b through hole 49a Recess 49 Regulation piece part M Mobile fixtures

Claims

1. A caster mounting mechanism is formed on the lower part of the mounting portion and is used to mount the top plate of the caster, The mounting mechanism is characterized in that it comprises a regulating piece portion that overlaps in the vertical direction with a portion of the edge of the top plate portion of the caster, an insertion portion that is inserted in the vertical direction into a through hole formed in the top plate portion, and a fastening means that is fastened through an mounting hole in the top plate portion of the caster.

2. The caster mounting mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that the fastening means is a screw and a screw hole, and the screw hole is arranged on the opposite side of the regulating piece portion across the wheel of the caster.

3. The caster mounting mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that side wall portions are provided at both widthwise ends of the regulating piece portion so as to face opposite edges of the top plate portion of the caster.

4. The caster mounting mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that an opening is formed in the mounting portion above the regulating piece portion, into which an edge of the top plate portion of the caster can be inserted.

5. 5. The caster mounting mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the regulating piece portion is continuous with the lower surface of the mounting portion via an inclined surface portion.

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