Straddle Carrier Rocker Steering for Load Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing straddle carriers for container terminals face issues with uneven load distribution and potential wheel overloading due to spring-supported chassis, which affects steerability and mechanical robustness.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a rocker construction that allows each wheel or wheel carrier to be steered separately, with pivot pins at the free end of an intermediate carrier on the traveling beam, enabling even load distribution and eliminating the need for complex spring assemblies and expensive steering components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If spring-supported chassis are used in straddle carriers, then the carrier can absorb terrain irregularities, but significant differences in load distribution occur between individual wheels and wheel overloading cannot be ruled out
Solution Approach 1:
The chassis is divided into multiple independently steerable wheels (first and second wheels on first carriage, third and fourth wheels on second carriage), each capable of separate steering motion. This segmentation allows each wheel to independently adapt to terrain irregularities, preventing load concentration on single wheels while maintaining overall chassis stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The wheels are equipped with steering mechanisms that enable dynamic adjustment of wheel orientation relative to the chassis. The first and second wheels can be steered separately from the third and fourth wheels, allowing the system to dynamically respond to terrain variations and achieve balanced load distribution across all wheels.
2Ease of operation
If complex spring assemblies and steering shafts with toothed geometry are used, then steering functionality is achieved, but the design becomes expensive and mechanically complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex spring assemblies and toothed geometry steering shafts from the design. Instead, it uses a simplified steering mechanism where the first and second wheels are steered separately from the third and fourth wheels through a more straightforward mechanical arrangement, reducing component complexity while maintaining steering functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs simpler, more cost-effective steering components that achieve the required functionality without expensive mechanisms. The separate steering of wheel pairs allows for simpler mechanical linkages compared to traditional synchronized steering systems, reducing manufacturing costs and maintenance requirements.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
AI summary
A straddle carrier (1) for use in container terminals and for general transport tasks has a frame (2), a load handling means (4), which hangs between the frame (2) and can be locked together with a load, preferably a container (7), hoisting winches (8), by means of which the load handling means (4) is vertically movable, and carriage beams (3), which are arranged at the lower region of the frame (2) and each have a plurality of wheels (11) arranged in a row; wherein two wheel carriers (12), which are arranged next to or behind each other on a carriage beam (3) and on each of which a wheel (11) of the straddle carrier (1) is mounted, are each mounted on a rocker (13), which is pivotable in relation to the carriage beam (3) about a horizontally arranged pivot pin (16). Each wheel (11) and each wheel carrier is separately steerable on its rocker.