Floating Saddle Container Yoke for Misaligned Twin-Lift
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing container yokes struggle to efficiently and automatically grip, lock, and lift two containers placed one after the other that are rotated or displaced in relation to each other, requiring manual fine maneuvering and increasing handling time.
Innovation Solution
A twin-lift container yoke with freely movable saddles and lock members, utilizing mechanical search levers and hydraulic actuators to automatically align and center containers during lifting, allowing for simultaneous lifting and correct placement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual fine maneuvering is used to align lock members with corner boxes, then gripping accuracy is improved, but handling time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The container yoke is equipped with automatic alignment devices including search levers and hydraulic actuators that enable the lock members to automatically align with and engage the corner boxes without manual fine maneuvering. The system self-adjusts to container position variations, eliminating the need for operator intervention and achieving both high precision and fast operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical maneuvering with an automated system combining hydraulic actuators and search levers. The hydraulic system provides powered adjustment of the saddles and lock members, while search levers mechanically detect container positions and trigger automatic engagement, substituting human-operated mechanical control with an automated electromechanical system.
2Adaptability or versatility
If saddles are fixed in position, then structural simplicity is maintained, but the ability to automatically align with misaligned containers is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The saddles are designed with dynamic positioning capability through hydraulic actuators that enable lateral movement and angular adjustment. This dynamic configuration allows the lock members to automatically align with corner boxes even when containers are misaligned, transforming the rigid fixed structure into an adaptable dynamic system that responds to container position variations.
Solution Approach 2:
Search levers act as intermediary elements between the containers and the saddle positioning system. These levers detect container positions and transmit mechanical signals that trigger hydraulic actuation, serving as a mediator that translates container geometry into automated saddle adjustment without requiring direct complex sensing systems.
3Reliability
If containers are placed on uneven substratum causing rotation or displacement, then handling challenges increase, but the invention enables automatic correction during lifting
Solution Approach 1:
The container yoke performs preliminary alignment actions before lifting through the automatic engagement sequence. Search levers detect container positions in advance, trigger saddle adjustment via hydraulic actuators, and position lock members for automatic engagement with corner boxes, ensuring reliable gripping even when containers are initially misaligned due to uneven substratum.
Solution Approach 2:
The search levers provide mechanical feedback about container positions to the saddle positioning system. This feedback mechanism enables the hydraulic actuators to automatically adjust saddle positions based on actual container alignment, creating a closed-loop system that ensures reliable engagement despite initial misalignment from uneven ground conditions.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a container yoke for simultaneous lifting of two containers placed in a row one after the other, i.e., containers that are placed with end portions facing each other, comprising a base frame coupled to a lifting device, for instance a crane or an industrial truck, outer cross beams arranged on the base frame and provided with outer lock members for engagement in, and locking of, the outer end portions of the two containers facing away from each other, essentially centred saddles arranged on the base frame and having lock members for engagement in, and locking of, the two containers at the end portions thereof facing each other. The invention is achieved by the fact that the saddles (10,11) of the container yoke are arranged to be floatingly and auto-seekingly movable laterally in relation to the base frame (4) of the container yoke, that members are arranged to automatically aim the locking members at, and bring them into engagement with, the corner boxes of the containers, and that members are arranged for the steering of the containers laterally in connection with the lifting of the same.