Road-Rail Excavator Support Linkage for Constant Rail Support Width
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing road-rail vehicles face challenges in designing a support device that provides stable support in both rail-bound driving positions, where the center section is at different distances from the ground, requiring significant lateral space and risking collisions with rails.
Innovation Solution
A road-rail vehicle with an undercarriage featuring steerable and drivable wheel axles, and a support device with movable support legs that maintain a constant support width across different driving positions, using guide members and actuators to ensure stable support without colliding with rails.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional pivoting support legs are used to provide support for both rail-bound driving positions, then support stability is improved, but lateral space requirement increases and risk of collision with rails occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The support leg employs a dynamic parallelogram linkage mechanism that automatically adjusts its configuration based on the vehicle's position. The linkage includes movable connections between the support leg, center section, and rail chassis, allowing the support foot to pivot and extend laterally only when needed for support, while retracting when not in use. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by providing stable support when required while minimizing lateral space occupation during normal operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The support leg structure is nested within the vehicle's undercarriage framework. The support leg can be retracted into a compact position within the space between the center section and rail chassis when not in use, and only extends outward when support is needed. This nesting approach allows the support function to be integrated without permanently increasing the vehicle's lateral footprint, resolving the space requirement contradiction.
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional pivoting support legs are used to support both rail-bound driving positions, then support coverage for different positions is improved, but collision risk with rails increases
Solution Approach 1:
The support leg's lateral extension is dynamically controlled through the parallelogram linkage mechanism, which automatically positions the support foot at an optimal distance from the rail. The movable connections allow the support leg to adapt its position based on the vehicle's configuration, providing support coverage for both rail-bound driving positions while maintaining a safe distance from the rails to prevent collisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The parallelogram linkage acts as an intermediary mechanism between the support leg and the vehicle body. It mediates the support function by providing a controlled, adjustable lateral extension that can reach the necessary support position without the support foot directly contacting the rails, thus preventing collisions while maintaining support capability.
3Adaptability or versatility
If support legs are extended further to support the third driving position with greater center section distance, then support reach is improved, but lateral space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The parallelogram linkage mechanism provides dynamic adjustability that allows the support leg to reach multiple positions (first, second, and third driving positions) without requiring a permanently extended structure. The movable connections enable the support foot to extend laterally only to the extent needed for each specific position, and retract when not in use, thus providing versatile support reach while minimizing lateral space requirements.
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3a
AI summary
The invention relates to a road-rail vehicle, in particular a road-rail excavator, comprising an undercarriage comprising a wheeled chassis with at least two wheel axles for road travel and a rail chassis with front and rear rail axles for rail travel. The undercarriage comprises a centerpiece on which the wheel axles are arranged, wherein the rail axles are movable relative to the centerpiece between a first driving position for road travel, a second driving position in which the road-rail vehicle is guided on rails via the rail axles and is drivable via the wheel axles, and a third driving position in which the road-rail vehicle rests on rails and is drivable only via the rail axles.According to the invention, the road-rail vehicle comprises a support device with at least two support feet arranged on the middle section, which are each movable between a first support position, a second support position for supporting the road-rail vehicle in the second driving position and a third support position for supporting the road-rail vehicle in the third driving position, wherein the support feet comprise a support member with a foot piece, a first guide member articulatedly coupled to the support member and the middle section and a second guide member articulatedly coupled to the support member and the middle section, which are arranged and designed such that a defined point of the foot piece occupies the same lateral distance from the middle section in the second and third support positions.