Outrigger device and vehicle

Abstract

To provide an outrigger device capable of securing stability of a travelling vehicle.SOLUTION: An outrigger device comprises: a pair of outrigger units. Each of the outrigger units comprises: an arm extending outward from a vehicle in a vehicle width direction; a post 6 extending downward from the arm; and a caster 7 fitted to a lower end part 63 of the post 6. The caster 7 comprises: a connection part 8 connected to the lower end part 63 of the post 6; a revolving part 9 which is fitted to the connection part 8 so as to revolve around a first axis line A1 along a vertical direction VD, as a center line; and a wheel 11 fitted to the revolving part 9 so as to rotate around a second axis line A2 along a horizontal direction HD as a center line, the second axis line being provided at a skew position of the first axis line A1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an outrigger device. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art When loading a container onto a trailer frame or unloading a container from the trailer frame, an outrigger device may be used to ensure the stability of the trailer. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2021-133865 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, there are cases where the stability of a trailer connected to a tractor (towing vehicle) must be ensured even when the trailer is traveling (including when the trailer is moving forward and backward). For example, there are cases where the tractor connected to the trailer, with a container loaded on the trailer stand, travels up a slope while turning right or left.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide an outrigger device that can ensure the stability of a traveling vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The outrigger device of the present invention is an outrigger device [1] comprising "a pair of outrigger units, each of the pair of outrigger units having an arm extending outward from the vehicle in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle, a post extending downward from the arm, and a caster attached to the lower end of the post, the caster including a connecting portion connected to the lower end of the post, a swivel portion attached to the connecting portion so as to be rotatable about a first axis along the vertical direction as a center line, and a wheel attached to the swivel portion so as to be rotatable about a second axis that is twisted with respect to the first axis and along the horizontal direction as a center line."

[0007] In the outrigger device described in [1] above, a caster is attached to the lower end of the post in each of the pair of outrigger units. This allows the vehicle to travel with the outrigger device attached, with each caster of the pair of outrigger units in contact with the ground. Therefore, the outrigger device described in [1] above can ensure the stability of the traveling vehicle.

[0008] The outrigger device of the present invention may be [2] "the outrigger device described in [1] above, in which the connecting portion is connected to the lower end of the post so that the first axis can tilt within a predetermined angle range in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle with respect to the vertical direction." According to the outrigger device described in [2], when the vehicle moves forward, the second axis of the wheel is located rearward of the first axis of the swivel part, and is inclined with respect to the vertical direction so that the first axis of the swivel part is located further rearward as it approaches the bottom, and when the vehicle moves backward, the second axis of the wheel is located forward of the first axis of the swivel part, and is inclined with respect to the vertical direction so that the first axis of the swivel part is located further forward as it approaches the bottom, thereby further improving the stability of the traveling vehicle.

[0009] The outrigger device of the present invention may be [3] "the outrigger device described in [1] or [2] above, in which the post is constituted by a cylinder and a rod of a hydraulic actuator." According to the outrigger device described in [3], for example, even when a vehicle is traveling on a slope while turning right or left, the post in each of the pair of outrigger units can be extended and retracted to ensure that each caster of the pair of outrigger units is grounded.

[0010] The outrigger device of the present invention may be [4] "the outrigger device described in the above [3], further comprising a generator for supplying driving power to the hydraulic actuator." According to the outrigger device described in [4], driving power can be supplied to the hydraulic actuator regardless of the installation positions of the pair of outrigger units. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an outrigger device that can ensure the stability of a traveling vehicle. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a side view of a trailer equipped with an outrigger device according to one embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a front view of the outrigger device shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is an exploded front view of a portion of the outrigger device shown in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a side view of a portion of the outrigger device shown in FIG. 2. [Diagram 5] FIG. 3 is a side view of a portion of the outrigger device shown in FIG. 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated explanations will be omitted.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 1, a trailer (vehicle) 100 is coupled to a tractor 200. Two sets of outrigger devices 1 are attached to the trailer 100. Hereinafter, the vehicle width direction of the tractor 200 and the trailer 100 will be referred to as the "vehicle width direction WD", and the front-to-rear direction of the tractor 200 and the trailer 100 will be referred to as the "front-to-rear direction LD". The vertical direction will be referred to as the "vertical direction VD", and the horizontal direction will be referred to as the "horizontal direction HD". Note that when the road on which the tractor 200 and the trailer 100 are traveling is a flat road, the vehicle width direction WD and the front-to-rear direction LD are included in the horizontal direction HD.

[0015] The trailer 100 includes a rear wheel house 110 and a frame 120. The frame 120 is composed of a floor 121, a front coupling part 122, a front wall part 123, a rear coupling part 124, and a rear wall part 125. The floor 121 is a portion on which a container is placed. The front coupling part 122 is coupled to the tractor 200 via a turntable (not shown). The rear coupling part 124 is coupled to the rear wheel house 110 via a turntable (not shown). The front end part of the floor 121 is connected to the lower end part of the front wall part 123, and the rear end part of the front coupling part 122 is connected to the upper end part of the front wall part 123. The rear end part of the floor 121 is connected to the lower end part of the rear wall part 125, and the front end part of the rear coupling part 124 is connected to the upper end part of the rear wall part 125.

[0016] The outrigger devices 1 are attached to the front wall portion 123 and the rear wall portion 125, respectively. Each outrigger device 1 includes a pair of outrigger units 2 and a generator 3. In this embodiment, the generator 3 of the front outrigger device 1 is installed on the floor portion 121, and the generator 3 of the rear outrigger device 1 is installed on the rear coupling portion 124, but the installation position of each generator 3 is not particularly limited as long as it is a position on the trailer 100. Since the configuration of the pair of outrigger units 2 of the rear outrigger device 1 is similar to the configuration of the pair of outrigger units 2 of the front outrigger device 1, the configuration of the pair of outrigger units 2 of the front outrigger device 1 will be described below, and a description of the configuration of the pair of outrigger units 2 of the rear outrigger device 1 will be omitted.

[0017] 2, in the front outrigger device 1, each of the pair of outrigger units 2 has a bracket 4, an arm 5, a post 6, and a caster 7. Since the pair of outrigger units 2 have a left-right symmetrical configuration in the vehicle width direction WD, the following describes the configuration of the right outrigger unit 2, and a description of the configuration of the left outrigger unit 2 is omitted.

[0018] The bracket 4 is fixed to the front wall portion 123. The bracket 4 is, for example, a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section with a center line parallel to the vehicle width direction WD. The arm 5 extends from the trailer 100 to the outside in the vehicle width direction WD by disposing a part of the arm 5 inside the bracket 4. The arm 5 is, for example, a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section with a center line parallel to the vehicle width direction WD. The bracket 4 and the arm 5 have a plurality of through holes formed at the same pitch along the vehicle width direction WD. The arm 5 is moved in the vehicle width direction WD relative to the bracket 4, and a pin 51 is inserted into the mutually aligned through holes of the bracket 4 and the arm 5, thereby adjusting the length of the arm 5 protruding outward from the bracket 4. A stopper 52 is provided at the base end 5a of the arm 5 on the inside in the vehicle width direction WD to prevent the arm 5 from falling off the bracket 4.

[0019] The post 6 is fixed to a tip 5b of the arm 5 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction WD. In this embodiment, the post 6 extends upward and downward from the arm 5, but it is sufficient that the post 6 extends at least downward from the arm 5. The post 6 is composed of a cylinder 61 and a rod 62 of a hydraulic actuator 60. The tip 5b of the arm 5 is fixed to an intermediate portion of the cylinder 61. The cylinder 61 is, for example, a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section with a center line parallel to the vertical direction VD. A hydraulic pump (not shown) that operates by power supplied from the generator 3 is connected to the cylinder 61. That is, the hydraulic actuator 60 is supplied with driving power from the generator 3. The rod 62 extends downward from the inside of the cylinder 61. The rod 62 is, for example, a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section with a center line parallel to the vertical direction VD. The cylinder 61 is provided with a handle 61a for moving the arm 5 in the vehicle width direction WD relative to the bracket 4.

[0020] The caster 7 is attached to the lower end 63 of the post 6, which is the lower end of the rod 62. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the caster 7 includes a connecting portion 8, a swivel portion 9, and a wheel 11. The connecting portion 8 is connected to the lower end 63 of the post 6. The swivel portion 9 is attached to the connecting portion 8 so as to be rotatable about a first axis A1 as a center line. The first axis A1 is a straight line along the vertical direction VD. The wheel 11 is attached to the swivel portion 9 so as to be rotatable about a second axis A2 as a center line. The second axis A2 is in a twisted position with respect to the first axis A1 and is a straight line along the horizontal direction HD. In other words, the second axis A2 along the horizontal direction HD does not intersect with the first axis A1 along the vertical direction VD.

[0021] The connecting portion 8 is composed of a main body portion 81, a pair of plates 82, and a pair of elastic members 83. The pair of plates 82 are fixed to the upper surface of the main body portion 81. The pair of plates 82 are arranged in the vehicle width direction WD with the thickness direction of each plate 82 coinciding with the vehicle width direction WD. The pair of plates 82 are disposed inside the rod 62 at the lower end portion 63 of the post 6. In this state, a pin 84 extending in the vehicle width direction WD is disposed in the through hole 82a formed in the pair of plates 82 and the through hole 63a formed in the lower end portion of the rod 62. The pair of elastic members 83 are fixed to the upper surface of the main body portion 81 so as to be located on the front and rear sides of the pair of plates 82.

[0022] With the connecting portion 8 configured as described above, the first axis A1 of the turning portion 9 can tilt within a predetermined angle range in the front-rear direction LD with respect to the vertical direction VD. In other words, the first axis A1 of the turning portion 9 can swing within a predetermined angle range with the pin 84 extending in the vehicle width direction WD as the center line. The predetermined angle range is preferably an angle range of -10° to +10° with respect to the vertical direction VD, and more preferably an angle range of -5° to +5° with respect to the vertical direction VD. As an example, the predetermined angle range is an angle range of -4.5° to +4.5° with respect to the vertical direction VD. When the first axis A1 of the swivel part 9 is inclined with respect to the vertical direction VD so that it is positioned further forward as it goes downward, the front elastic member 83 prevents contact between the lower end 63 of the post 6 and the main body 81 of the connecting part 8, and when the first axis A1 of the swivel part 9 is inclined with respect to the vertical direction VD so that it is positioned further rearward as it goes downward, the rear elastic member 83 prevents contact between the lower end 63 of the post 6 and the main body 81 of the connecting part 8.

[0023] The swivel unit 9 is composed of a main body 91 and a pair of plates 92. The main body 91 is connected to the main body 81 of the coupling unit 8 via bearings (not shown) so as to be rotatable about the first axis A1. The pair of plates 92 are fixed to the lower surface of the main body 91. The pair of plates 92 are aligned in a direction parallel to the second axis A2 with the thickness direction of each plate 82 coinciding with a direction parallel to the second axis A2. The wheel 11 is disposed between the pair of plates 92 and attached to the pair of plates 92 via bearings (not shown) so as to be rotatable about the second axis A2.

[0024] As described above, in the outrigger device 1, the casters 7 are attached to the lower ends 63 of the posts 6 in each of the pair of outrigger units 2. This allows the trailer 100 to which the outrigger device 1 is attached to travel with the casters 7 of each of the pair of outrigger units 2 in contact with the ground. Therefore, the outrigger device 1 can ensure the stability of the traveling trailer 100.

[0025] In the outrigger device 1, the connecting portion 8 is connected to the lower end portion 63 of the post 6 so that the first axis A1 of the swivel portion 9 can be tilted within a predetermined angle range in the front-rear direction LD of the trailer 100 with respect to the vertical direction VD in each of the pair of outrigger units 2. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5(a), when the trailer 100 moves backward, the second axis A2 of the wheel 11 of each of the pair of outrigger units 2 is positioned forward of the first axis A1 of the swivel portion 9, and the first axis A1 of the swivel portion 9 is tilted with respect to the vertical direction VD so as to be positioned more forward toward the lower side. Also, as shown in FIG. 5(b), when the trailer 100 moves forward, the second axis A2 of the wheel 11 of each of the pair of outrigger units 2 is positioned rearward of the first axis A1 of the swivel portion 9, and the first axis A1 of the swivel portion 9 is tilted with respect to the vertical direction VD so as to be positioned more rearward toward the lower side. Therefore, the outrigger device 1 can further improve the stability of the traveling trailer 100.

[0026] Furthermore, in the outrigger device 1, in each of the pair of outrigger units 2, a post 6 is formed by a cylinder 61 and a rod 62 of a hydraulic actuator 60. As a result, even when the tractor 200 and the trailer 100 are traveling on a slope while turning right or left, the post 6 in each of the pair of outrigger units 2 can be extended or retracted, so that the casters 7 of each of the pair of outrigger units 2 can be reliably grounded.

[0027] Furthermore, in the outrigger device 1, driving power is supplied to the hydraulic actuator 60 by the generator 3. This allows driving power to be supplied to the hydraulic actuator 60 regardless of the installation positions of the pair of outrigger units 2.

[0028] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in each of the pair of outrigger units 2, the arm 5 may be configured to be attached to the trailer 100 by means other than the bracket 4. Also, in each of the pair of outrigger units 2, the arm 5 does not have to extend parallel to the vehicle width direction WD as long as it extends outward from the trailer 100 in the vehicle width direction WD.

[0029] Furthermore, in each of the pair of outrigger units 2, the post 6 is not limited to being formed by the cylinder 61 and rod 62 of the hydraulic actuator 60, and may be, for example, configured to be manually extendable or retractable, or may not be configured to be extendable. Furthermore, in each of the pair of outrigger units 2, the post 6 does not have to extend parallel to the vertical direction VD as long as it extends downward from the arm 5.

[0030] Furthermore, the outrigger unit 1 does not necessarily have to include the generator 3. Furthermore, the outrigger unit 1 may be attached to a vehicle other than the trailer 100. Furthermore, the number of outrigger units 1 attached to a vehicle including the trailer 100 only needs to be at least one set. [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] 1...outrigger device, 2...outrigger unit, 3...generator, 5...arm, 6...post, 7...caster, 8...connection part, 9...swivel part, 11...wheel, 60...hydraulic actuator, 61...cylinder, 62...rod, 63...lower end, 100...trailer (vehicle), A1...first axis, A2...second axis, HD...horizontal direction, VD...vertical direction, WD...vehicle width direction.

Claims

1. A vehicle including a tractor and a trailer, comprising a pair of outrigger units attached to the trailer and used when the vehicle is traveling, Each of the pair of outrigger units is An arm extending from a vehicle to an outer side in a vehicle width direction of the vehicle; a post extending downwardly from the arm; a caster attached to a lower end of the post; The caster is a connecting portion connected to the lower end of the post; a rotating part attached to the connecting part so as to be rotatable about a first axis line along a vertical direction; a wheel attached to the swivel section so as to be rotatable about a second axis that is in a twisted position with respect to the first axis and aligned along a horizontal direction.

2. 2. The outrigger apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the connecting portion is connected to the lower end of the post so that the first axis is tiltable within a predetermined angle range in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle relative to the vertical direction.

3. The outrigger device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the post is constituted by a cylinder and a rod of a hydraulic actuator.

4. The outrigger apparatus according to claim 3 , further comprising a generator that supplies power for driving the hydraulic actuator.

5. A tractor and a trailer, a pair of outrigger units attached to the trailer; Each of the pair of outrigger units is An arm extending from a vehicle to an outer side in a vehicle width direction of the vehicle; a post extending downwardly from the arm; a caster attached to a lower end of the post; The caster is a connecting portion connected to the lower end of the post; a rotating part attached to the connecting part so as to be rotatable about a first axis line along a vertical direction; a wheel attached to the swivel section so as to be rotatable about a second axis that is in a twisted position with respect to the first axis and aligned along a horizontal direction.

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