Transport cart with canvas cover

Abstract

This invention provides a transport trolley with a canvas cover that allows a single user to compress and unfold the accordion-style canvas cover by pushing or pulling either of the vertical parts of the canvas cover support member, even when the distance between the left and right sides of the loading platform is large. [Solution] The transport trolley 10 with a canopy is equipped with an accordion-type canopy 12 and rails 14. The end canopy support 13a of the accordion-type canopy 12 is equipped with a vertical rolling wheel 20 and a second horizontal rolling wheel 21 located at a predetermined distance from the vertical rolling wheel 20. Furthermore, the vertical thickness of the second horizontal rolling wheel 21 is 10% to 90% of the vertical length inside the rails 14. With this configuration, even if the user pushes or pulls one end canopy support 13a, the frictional force generated between the other member and the rails 14 can be reduced, and the accordion-type canopy 12 can be compressed and unfolded by a single user.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a canopy-covered transport cart. More specifically, the present invention relates to a canopy-covered transport cart used for transporting and storing heavy metal products such as steel plate coils to warehouses in ironworks, port facilities and the like. [Background Art]

[0002] When heavy metal products such as freshly manufactured steel plate coils are exposed to wind and rain during storage, transportation or shipping operations, rust and scratches may occur on these heavy metal products. To prevent these problems, an accordion-type canopy is provided on a loading platform such as the carrier bed of a transport cart for heavy metal products. A canopy-covered transport cart provided with this accordion-type canopy is described in Patent Document 1. In the canopy-covered transport cart of Patent Document 1, a canopy support that maintains its shape in the folding direction when the accordion-type canopy is compressed is used. The canopy support of Patent Document 1 has a structure in which a pair of inverted U-shaped frame members are joined by a plurality of beams along the compression and expansion direction of the accordion-type canopy. Since the canopy support has such a high-rigidity configuration, a user of the canopy-covered transport cart can compress and expand the accordion-type canopy alone by pushing and pulling the vertical portion of the canopy support located on either the left or right side of the loading platform. [Prior Art Documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2015-91677 [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention]

[0004] Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of a conventional transport trolley with a canvas cover from a plan view, and Figure 6 shows an enlarged side view of the area around the longitudinal rolling wheels. The transport trolley with a canvas cover has rails 52 on each side of the loading platform, aligned with the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type canvas cover, i.e., the direction indicated as front and rear in Figure 5. Guided by these rails 52, the longitudinal rolling wheels 53 provided at the bottom of the end canvas cover support 51 operate, compressing and deploying the accordion-type canvas cover. Figure 5(A) shows the ideal posture of the end canvas cover support 51 that constitutes the accordion-type canvas cover. When a user of an accordion-type canopy compresses the canopy by pushing one side of the vertical portion of the end canopy support 51 in the direction indicated by the arrow 55 in Figure 5(B), the end canopy support 51 will move forward as shown in Figure 5(B), with the vertical rolling wheel 53 on the right side moving forward, while the vertical rolling wheel 53 on the left side remaining on the rear side.

[0005] Figure 6 shows a state in which a portion of the rail 52 has been cut out to facilitate understanding of the configuration around the longitudinal rolling wheels 53. In conventional transport trolleys with tarpaulins, the longitudinal rolling wheels 53 move inside rails 52 provided on both the left and right sides of the loading platform. These rails 52 are made of so-called C-shaped steel, with the open end facing upwards, and the longitudinal rolling wheels 53, provided below the end tarpaulin support 51, are positioned inside the rails 52 through this open end. There are two longitudinal rolling wheels 53, one at the front and one at the back, and the distance between these longitudinal rolling wheels 53 does not change due to the compression and unfolding operation of the accordion-type tarpaulin. In addition, each of the two longitudinal rolling wheels 53 has a bracket 56 above it to prevent the longitudinal rolling wheels 53 from directly contacting each other, and a lateral rolling wheel 57 that provides horizontal guidance within the rails 52.

[0006] Here, as the size of the heavy metal product increases and the distance between the left and right sides of the loading platform increases, the length of the tarpaulin support 51 across the loading platform also increases. As shown in Figure 5(B), when a user pushes on one side of the vertical portion of the tarpaulin support 51 on the right side of the loading platform, the frictional force at the contact point 54 between the member of the tarpaulin support 51 on the left side and the rail 52 of the loading platform increases, creating a problem where a single user cannot compress and unfold the accordion-type tarpaulin. There are several reasons for this increased friction, but most of them are that the orientation of the lateral rolling wheel 57 no longer fits within the horizontal plane, and it contacts the rail 52 in that orientation. Specifically, the thickness of the lateral rolling wheel 57 is 5 mm.

[0007] To address the above issues, it is possible to position users on both sides of the loading platform, but this would increase the number of workers required and reduce overall work efficiency in the workplace. It is also possible to install electric motors on each of the rolling components of the tarpaulin support on both sides of the loading platform, but this would increase the cost of the tarpaulin-covered transport cart and increase the number of parts, leading to a higher failure rate.

[0008] In view of the above circumstances, the present invention aims to provide a transport trolley with a canvas cover that allows a single user to compress and unfold the accordion-type canvas cover by pushing or pulling either of the vertical parts of the canvas cover support located on either the left or right side of the cargo bed, even when the distance between the left and right sides of the cargo bed is large. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The first invention's transport trolley with a tarpaulin comprises a platform on which heavy metal products are placed, an accordion-type tarpaulin for covering the heavy metal products on the platform, and rails provided on both the left and right sides of the platform along the compression and unfolding direction of the accordion-type tarpaulin, wherein the accordion-type tarpaulin comprises an inverted U-shaped tarpaulin support, a tarpaulin sheet attached to the tarpaulin support, and longitudinal rolling wheels provided at the bottom of the tarpaulin support for compressing or unfolding the accordion-type tarpaulin by rolling with the rails as guides, and among the tarpaulin support, the accordion The end bellows support provided at the end of the accordion-type bellows in the compression and deployment direction is equipped with a longitudinal rolling wheel, a first transverse rolling wheel provided above the longitudinal rolling wheel, and a second transverse rolling wheel provided at a predetermined distance from the longitudinal rolling wheel in the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type bellows, the predetermined distance of which does not change due to the compression and deployment operation of the accordion-type bellows, and the vertical thickness of the second transverse rolling wheel is 10% to 90% of the vertical length inside the rail. The second invention, a transport trolley with a canvas cover, is characterized in that, in the first invention, the upper end of the second lateral rolling wheel is located below a position 10% of the vertical length of the inner side of the rail from above the inner side of the rail, and the lower end of the second lateral rolling wheel is located above a position 90% of the vertical length of the inner side of the rail from above the inner side of the rail. The third invention, a transport trolley with a canvas cover, is characterized in that, in the first invention, the end canvas cover support is composed of two inverted U-shaped main canvas cover ribs and sub-canvas cover ribs that join these two main canvas cover ribs in the compression and unfolding direction of the accordion-type canvas cover, and is not compressed by the compression operation of the accordion-type canvas cover. The fourth invention, a transport trolley with a canvas cover, is characterized in that, in the first invention, the second lateral rolling wheel is a rolling bearing. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the first invention, the end tarpaulin support is provided with a longitudinal rolling wheel, a first transverse rolling wheel located above the longitudinal rolling wheel, and a second transverse rolling wheel located at a predetermined distance away in the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type tarpaulin, the predetermined distance of which does not change due to the compression and deployment operation of the accordion-type tarpaulin. The vertical thickness of this second transverse rolling wheel is 10% to 90% of the vertical length inside the rail. As a result, even when a user pushes or pulls either one of the vertical parts of the end tarpaulin support located on either the left or right side of the loading platform, the posture of the second transverse rolling wheel remains within the horizontal plane. This reduces the frictional force generated between the second transverse rolling wheel and the rail, allowing a single user to compress and deploy the accordion-type tarpaulin. This improves work efficiency in workplaces where tarpaulin-equipped transport trolleys are used and provides a low-cost tarpaulin-equipped transport trolley with fewer malfunctions. According to the second invention, since the upper and lower ends of the second lateral rolling wheel are located in predetermined positions, the second lateral rolling wheel does not come into contact with the lip surface on the upper part of the rail, thereby further reducing the frictional force generated between the second lateral rolling wheel and the rail. According to the third invention, the end canopy support is composed of two main canopy ribs and a sub-canopy rib, which allows the weight of the end canopy support to be reduced while maintaining its rigidity. This reduces the burden on the user when compressing and deploying the canopy. According to the fourth invention, since the second lateral rolling wheel is a rolling bearing, the lifespan of the second axial rolling wheel is extended, and the burden of bearing replacement work is reduced. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This is an enlarged side view of the area around the longitudinal rolling wheels of a covered transport trolley according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view of a transport trolley with a canvas cover according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] Figure 2 is a side view of a transport trolley with a canvas cover. [Figure 4]Figure 1 is an enlarged view from an oblique angle of the area around the longitudinal rolling wheels. [Figure 5] This is a schematic diagram of a conventional transport trolley with a canvas cover, viewed from the planar direction. (A) shows the ideal position of the end canvas support, and (B) shows the position when one end canvas support is pushed by the user. [Figure 6] This is a side view enlarged of the area around the longitudinal rolling wheels of a conventional transport trolley with a canvas cover. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. However, the embodiments shown below are illustrative examples of a covered transport trolley for realizing the technical concept of the present invention, and the present invention does not limit covered transport trolleys to the following. Note that the size or positional relationship of the members shown in each drawing may be exaggerated for the sake of clarity in the explanation. In this specification, front and rear, left and right, and up and down are defined based on the state in which a driver is riding in and driving the transport trailer 16 in Figure 2. In this specification, the expressions vertical, parallel, horizontal, and perpendicular are not strictly interpreted literally, but rather mean substantial verticality, etc., to the extent that the effect is achieved by that configuration. In addition, "vertical direction" means "vertical," and "horizontal direction" means any direction in the horizontal plane.

[0013] (Embodiment) Figure 2 is a perspective view of a covered transport trolley 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 3 is a side view thereof. The covered transport trolley 10 comprises a loading platform 11 and an accordion-type tarpaulin 12. Heavy metal products 15, such as rolled thin steel sheets or structural steel, are placed on the loading platform 11. The accordion-type tarpaulin 12 is provided to cover the top and left and right sides of the heavy metal products 15 on the loading platform 11.

[0014] The covered transport carriage 10 is provided with a plurality of tires 17 below the loading platform 11. Three of these tires 17 are provided respectively near the left and right ends of the loading platform 11. The rear part of the transport trailer 16 is joined to the covered transport carriage 10, and the transport trailer 16 can transport the heavy metal product 15 together with the covered transport carriage 10.

[0015] In the covered transport carriage 10, rails 14 are provided respectively on both the left and right sides of the loading platform 11. The rails 14 are provided along the compression and expansion direction of the accordion-type cover 12, that is, along the front-rear direction.

[0016] The configuration of the accordion-type cover 12 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3, FIG. 1 and FIG. 4. FIG. 1 is an enlarged view from the side direction around the vertical rolling wheels 20 of the covered transport carriage 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged view from the perspective direction thereof. In both FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, a state in which a part of the rail 14 is cut away is shown to facilitate understanding of the configuration of the vertical rolling wheels 20. As shown in FIG. 3, the accordion-type cover 12 is configured to include an inverted U-shaped cover support 13, a cover sheet 12a attached to the cover support 13, and vertical rolling wheels 20. The "vertical direction" of the vertical rolling wheel 20 means the "vertical direction", and refers to a rolling wheel whose rotation axis is horizontal so that rolling facilitates movement in the horizontal direction.

[0017] The top support 13 is configured to include a single inverted U-shaped main top frame 30, or a plurality of inverted U-shaped main top frames 30. When adjacent main top frames 30 approach each other in the front-rear direction, the accordion-type top 12 is compressed; when adjacent main top frames 30 separate from each other in the front-rear direction, the accordion-type top 12 is deployed. Note that not all main top frames 30 need to approach and separate as described above. There may also be cases where adjacent main top frames 30 are not compressed during the compression operation of the accordion-type top 12. In the present embodiment, the end top support 13a located at the rear end of the accordion-type top 12 is formed by joining two inverted U-shaped main top frames 30 and a sub top frame 31 that joins these main top frames 30 in the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type top 12, thereby configuring the end top support 13a.

[0018] Since the end top support 13a is configured by two main top frames 30 and one sub top frame 31, the weight of the end top support 13a can be reduced while maintaining its rigidity. This reduces the work burden on the user when performing compression and deployment operations.

[0019] The top sheet 12a is a known sheet that uses flexible synthetic fiber as a material. This top sheet 12a is attached to the top support 13.

[0020] The longitudinal rolling wheels 20 move inside rails 14 provided on both left and right sides of the cargo bed 11, that is, roll with the rails 14 as guides, enabling compression and deployment of the accordion-type top 12. In the present embodiment, the rails 14 are so-called C-shaped steel with an open portion facing upward, and the longitudinal rolling wheels 20 provided below the top support 13 are arranged inside the rails 14 through this open portion. In the present embodiment, the longitudinal rolling wheels 20 are steel casters, and a first rod 23 provided on the caster is fitted into a first support 24 provided on the sub top frame 31 that constitutes the top support 13.

[0021] Furthermore, above the vertical rolling wheels 20, there is a bracket 25 to prevent the vertical rolling wheels 20 from directly contacting each other, and a first lateral rolling wheel 26 that provides horizontal guidance within the rail 14. This first lateral rolling wheel 26 is a plastic ring. In this specification, "lateral" in the first lateral rolling wheel 26 means "horizontal," and its axis of rotation is vertical so that it can easily move horizontally by rolling.

[0022] In this embodiment, the end tarpaulin support 13a is equipped with a second lateral rolling wheel 21 positioned at a predetermined distance d from the longitudinal rolling wheel 20. The second lateral rolling wheel 21 has a vertical axis and is provided on the end tarpaulin support 13a so as to be able to receive loads from the horizontal direction. The second lateral rolling wheel 21 is fitted onto a second rod 22, which is inserted into the inside of the main tarpaulin frame 30 and then fixed. Since the end tarpaulin support 13a is equipped with both the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 and the second lateral rolling wheel 21, the distance d between the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 and the second lateral rolling wheel 21 does not change due to the compression and unfolding operation of the accordion-type tarpaulin 12. The predetermined distance d is appropriately selected depending on the size of the tarpaulin-equipped transport trolley 10, but specifically it is between 50 mm and 300 mm.

[0023] In this embodiment, the vertical thickness s of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is 10% to 90%, more preferably 10% to 50%, and even more preferably 10% to 20%, of the vertical length h inside the rail 14. In this embodiment, the vertical thickness s of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is 14 mm. Specifically, the rail 14 is composed of a bottom surface 14a, two vertical surfaces 14b provided at both ends of the bottom surface 14a, and a lip surface 14c provided at the upper end of the vertical surfaces 14b. The vertical length h inside the rail 14 is the length from the top surface of the bottom surface 14a to the bottom of the lip surface 14c, and in this embodiment, it is 85 mm. If the vertical thickness s of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is less than 10% of the vertical length h inside the rail 14, the orientation of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 will often deviate from the horizontal plane, and the rotation of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 will not be performed properly. Also, if the thickness s is greater than 90% of the length h, it will often come into contact with the lip surface 14c or the bottom surface 14a of the rail 14, and in this case as well, the rotation of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 will not be performed properly.

[0024] The end tarpaulin support 13a is equipped with a longitudinal rolling wheel 20, a first transverse rolling wheel 26 located above the longitudinal rolling wheel 20, and a second transverse rolling wheel 21 located at a predetermined distance d away in the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type tarpaulin 12, the predetermined distance d not changing due to the compression and deployment operation of the accordion-type tarpaulin 12. The vertical thickness s of the second transverse rolling wheel 21 is 10% to 90% of the vertical length inside the rail 14. As a result, even if the user pushes or pulls either one of the vertical parts of the end tarpaulin support 13a located on either the left or right side of the cargo bed 11, the posture of the second transverse rolling wheel 21 remains within the horizontal plane. This reduces the frictional force generated between the second transverse rolling wheel 21 and the other member and the rail 14, allowing the accordion-type tarpaulin 12 to be compressed and deployed by a single user. This improves work efficiency in workplaces where the covered transport trolley 10 is used, and also provides a low-cost covered transport trolley 10 with fewer malfunctions.

[0025] In this embodiment, the upper end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is located below 10% of the vertical length h on the inside of the rail 14, from the top of the inside of the rail 14. The lower end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is located above 90% of the vertical length h on the inside of the rail 14, from the top of the inside of the rail 14. When the upper end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is located above 10% of the vertical length h on the inside of the rail 14, from the top of the inside of the rail 14, the possibility of the upper end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 contacting the lip surface 14c increases. Also, when the lower end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is located below 90% of the vertical length h on the inside of the rail 14, from the top of the inside of the rail 14, the possibility of the lower end of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 contacting the bottom surface 21a increases.

[0026] Because the upper and lower ends of the second lateral rolling wheel 21 are positioned in predetermined locations, the second lateral rolling wheel 21 does not come into contact with the lip surface 14c on the upper part of the rail 14, thereby further reducing the frictional force generated between the second lateral rolling wheel 21 and the rail 14.

[0027] In this embodiment, the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is a rolling bearing. Furthermore, it is a sealed deep groove ball bearing within the rolling bearing category. Because the second lateral rolling wheel 21 is a rolling bearing, its lifespan is extended, and the burden of bearing replacement work is reduced.

[0028] In this embodiment, the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 and the second transverse rolling wheel 21 located on the left side of the loading platform 11 have been described. However, in this embodiment, with the left-right center of the loading platform 11 as the axis of symmetry, the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 and the second transverse rolling wheel 21 are provided on the right side of the loading platform 11, just as on the left side.

[0029] (Other embodiments) In the above embodiment, in the end hood support 13a, the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 is located behind the second transverse rolling wheel 21, and the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 is at the rearmost end. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the second transverse rolling wheel 21 may be located behind the longitudinal rolling wheel 20.

[0030] Figure 2 shows a configuration of the covered transport trolley 10 equipped with tires 17, but the covered transport trolley 10 is not limited to this form. For example, a configuration in which the covered transport trolley 10 is equipped with multiple legs on its lower part is also included in the covered transport trolley 10.

[0031] Furthermore, although the end canopy support 13a is configured to include a main canopy frame 30 and a sub-canopy frame 31, the configuration of the end canopy support 13a is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to construct the end canopy support 13a from an inverted U-shaped thin steel plate.

[0032] Furthermore, although the second lateral rolling wheel 21 was a rolling bearing in the above embodiment, it is not limited to this. For example, the second lateral rolling wheel 21 can be a sliding bearing.

[0033] Furthermore, although the above embodiment provided only the second lateral rolling wheel 21 on the second rod 22, the configuration is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to provide both the second lateral rolling wheel 21 and the longitudinal rolling wheel 20 on the second rod 22.

[0034] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, longitudinal rolling wheels 20 and second transverse rolling wheels 21 are provided on both the left and right sides of the loading platform 11, with the left-right center of the loading platform 11 as the axis of symmetry, but the invention is not limited to this. For example, longitudinal rolling wheels 20 and second transverse rolling wheels 21 may be provided on only one side of the loading platform 11. It is also possible to arrange combinations of longitudinal rolling wheels 20 and second transverse rolling wheels 21 on both the left and right sides of the loading platform 11, with the intersection of the left-right center and the front-rear center of the loading platform 11 as the center point. [Industrial applicability]

[0035] Although the tarpaulin-covered transport trolley 10 according to the present invention has been described above, the configuration of the accordion-type tarpaulin 12 used in this tarpaulin-covered transport trolley 10 can be used in any equipment that uses an accordion-type tarpaulin 12. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0036] 10. Transport cart with canopy 11. Cargo bed 12 Accordion-style canopy 12a Canopy Sheet 13 Canopy support 13a End hood support 14 rails 15 Metal weight products 20 Longitudinal Rolling Wheels 21. Second lateral rolling wheel 26. First lateral rolling wheel d Distance between the longitudinal rolling wheel and the second transverse rolling wheel h: The vertical length inside the rail. s Thickness of the second lateral rolling wheel

Claims

1. A loading platform on which heavy metal products are placed, An accordion-type tarp for covering the heavy metal products on the cargo bed, The cargo bed is provided with rails on both the left and right sides, which are arranged in the direction of compression and unfolding of the accordion-type canvas cover. The aforementioned accordion-type canopy is An inverted U-shaped canopy support, A canvas sheet to be attached to the canvas support, It is configured to include longitudinal rolling wheels provided at the lower part of the canopy support, which roll using the rail as a guide to compress or unfold the accordion-type canopy, Of the aforementioned canopy supports, the end canopy support provided at the end of the accordion-type canopy in the compression and unfolding direction, The aforementioned longitudinal rolling wheels, A first transverse rolling wheel is provided above the longitudinal rolling wheel, In the compression and deployment direction of the accordion-type canopy, a second lateral rolling wheel is provided, which is located at a predetermined distance from the longitudinal rolling wheel, and this predetermined distance does not change due to the compression and deployment operation of the accordion-type canopy. The vertical thickness of the second lateral rolling wheel is 10% to 90% of the vertical length on the inside of the rail. A transport trolley with a canvas cover, characterized by the following features.

2. The upper end of the second lateral rolling wheel is Located below a point 10% of the vertical length of the inner side of the rail, from the top of the inner side of the rail, The lower end of the second lateral rolling wheel is From the upper inner side of the rail, it is located above the point that is 90% of the vertical length of the inner side of the rail. A transport trolley with a canvas cover as described in Feature 1.

3. The end cover support is Two inverted U-shaped main canopy frames, These two main canopy frames are connected to sub-canopy frames that join them in the compression and unfolding direction of the accordion-type canopy, The accordion-type canopy is not compressed by the compression operation, A transport trolley with a canvas cover as described in Feature 1.

4. The aforementioned second lateral rolling wheel is a rolling bearing. A transport trolley with a canvas cover as described in Feature 1.

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