Lifting Support With Intermediate Pins for Snow-Blocked Containers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing container lifting supports face difficulties in accessing and lifting containers when the lower front corners are covered with snow, ice, or mud, as the lower pins cannot be securely engaged without clearing the obstructions, leading to laborious and potentially impossible operations.
Innovation Solution
A container lifting support system featuring two upper pegs, two lower pegs, and two intermediate pegs that can be inserted into upper orifices, allowing the support to be positioned without accessing the lower corners, with intermediate pins capable of locking into place using a bayonet-type mounting and counterweights for stability, enabling hydraulic displacement and movement of the container.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the lifting support uses conventional lower pins engaged in lower corners, then secure locking of the container is achieved, but the operation becomes impossible or laborious when lower corners are covered with snow, ice, or mud
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces intermediate pins as a mediator between the upper pins and lower pins. These intermediate pins engage with upper holes in the container body when lower corners are inaccessible, allowing the lifting support to function without direct access to the lower corners. This intermediary mechanism resolves the contradiction by providing an alternative engagement path that maintains reliability while improving ease of operation in adverse conditions
2Ease of operation
If only upper pins are used without lower pins, then access to upper holes is maintained, but the lifting support cannot securely move or lift the container as upward force causes disengagement and longitudinal force causes tilting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the lifting support into three distinct pin types with different functions: upper pins for engagement in upper corners, lower pins for engagement in lower corners, and intermediate pins for engagement in upper holes when lower access is blocked. This segmentation allows the system to adapt to different operational conditions while maintaining secure engagement, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and reliability
3Device complexity
If the lifting support is designed with fixed dimensions, then structural simplicity is maintained, but the support cannot comply with bulk constraints for transport by rail in tunnels or air transport in airplanes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a telescopic structure that allows the lifting support to dynamically change its dimensions. The support can extend to its full working length for container handling operations and retract to a compact size for transport by rail in tunnels or air in airplanes. This dynamic adaptability resolves the contradiction between structural simplicity and transport compatibility by introducing controlled complexity only when needed
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention describes a lifting support (1) for a container (4), comprising: - two upper pins (11) and two lower pins (12), adapted to be inserted into complementary openings (46, 47) in the container (4) when the lifting support (1) is in a first position relative to the container (4), - two intermediate pins (13), positioned between the two upper pins (11) and the two lower pins (12), and adapted to be inserted into two complementary upper openings (48) in the container (4) when the lifting support (1) is in a second position relative to the container (4). The invention also describes a hydraulic lifting apparatus comprising such a lifting support, and a method for hydraulically lifting a container using such a lifting support.