WHEELBARROW

Abstract: In a wheelbarrow having a bin (1) for the load, a ground wheel (2) at a front end of the bin and a handle (3) at a rear end, the bin has a deep convex botton surface which forms a rear support when the wheelbarrow is stationary. For loading the bin, the handle (3) is movable on a pivot (4) and can be secured at the front end of the bin. The barrow can then be rolled rearwardly on the bin bottom surface so that the bin rear end is brought near ground level and the barrow is stable in this position. The bin can now be used as a scoop or material for loading can be pushed into the bin. The bin can then be rolled back and the handle replaced for carrying the load. This construction reduces the work needed to fill the bin and it can enable a bin of very large volume to be used.

Description: WHEELBARROW This invention relates to wheelbarrows. In this specification, a wheelbarrow is considered to be a handbarrow having a single axis for the load-bearing ground wheels, a bin for the load, and means serving as handles. The conventional wheelbarrow with a bin for the load, a single wheel mounted in front of this bin and two legs and two handles at the rear of the bin has remained unchanged for many years. This construction however is not an ideal one for many purposes. Thus the conventional barrow is very suitable for carrying a small volume of comparatively dense material but the bin size does not allow a large volume of low density material to be accommodated. Sometimes one can see makeshift extensions that are fitted to raise the sides of the bin of a conventional wheelbarrow but these have the disadvantage that the material to be loaded has to be lifted higher than usual and this increases the work required to fill the bin of the barrow. In addition, if material has to be lifted on a shovel to a height greater than that usually required to fill the wheelbarrow bin there is a greater risk of spilling the materia from the shovel and thus increasing the number of shovel loads necessary to achieve a full bin. The present invention was devised to provide a wheelbarrow bin of larg capacity that makes use of space that is usually wasted with a conventional wheelbarrow. In addition, the invention can allow the filling of the bin to be achieved without significant lifting of the load material from ground level. According to the invention, there is provided a wheelbarrow having a bin for the load, a ground wheel at a front end of the bin and a handle O PI ^ ° _ at a rear end of the bin, the bin having a bottom surface which forms a rear support when the wheelbarrow is stationary, in which the handle is attached to the bin by a pivot allowing movement from the rear end of the bin to an alternative position at the front end, the handle in the said alternative position permitting the bin to be rolled rearwardly on the bottom surface to bring the bin rear end near ground level and assist loading the bin, the bin when loaded being then rolled back to its original position and the handle being returnable to the bin rear end to restore the barrow to its working condition. Preferably, in the working condition of the wheelbarrow, the handle is secured by a first releasable lock. The lock may comprise a bolt carried on the wheelbarrow handle, which bolt may be passed through a hole in the bin to effect the locking action. In its alternative position, the handle may have means securing it at the front end of the bin. Where the ground wheel is attached to the bin by a bracket» the bracket may be mounted on a second pivot associated with a second releasable lock, the movement of the handle to the alternative position causing disengagement of said second lock so that the rearward rolling movement may be .effected whilst the ground wheel remains in contact with the ground surface. The first and second releasable locks may be actuated by a common bolt carried on the handle. By way of example, particular embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figures 1 to 4 show a first embodiment of the wheelbarrow in side view, Figures 5 to 9 are similar views of a second embodiment, Figures 10 to 14 are side views of a third embodiment, and Figures 15 to 19 are further views of the wheelbarrow of Figure 10 with minor modifications. The wheelbarrow shown in Figure 1 had a bin 1 with a ground wheel 2 rigidly fixed at a front end thereof. The bin had a shape that at the botto was generally convex, in this embodiment the bottom was semicircular in sha The wheel 2 was mounted as usual on a shaft and this was carried in two end pieces that were attached to a bracket 5 and the bracket was secured to the bin 1 by screw and nut fixings. A rear end of the bin 1 was provided with a pair of handles 3 (only on of which can be seen in the Figure) which were secured to the bin by pivots that enabled the handles to be moved in a plane parallel to that of the Fig A bolt (not shown) on each handle 3 served to lock the handle in a working position with respect to the bin although the bolts could be released when required. The pivots 4 were carried on the bracket 5 and the bolts in the locked position entered sockets 13 (Figure 2) in the bin 1. This arrangement ensured that the handles 3 and the bracket 5 were securely fastened together in the working condition of the wheelbarrow so that a strong and rigid construction would be provided. As shown in the Figures, the wheelbarrow is depicted standing on a ground surface 9. When it was required to adapt the wheelbarrow to a loading condition, the two handles were sprung a short distance apart from each other which released the bolts from the sockets 13 in the bin 1 and the handles 3 could then be moved over in to the position shown in Figure 2. In this position the bolts could be reengaged in further sockets (not shown) in the bracket 5. With the handles 3 locked and now lying alongside the wheel the whole wheelbarrow could be rolled anticlockwise through a right upon the semicircular base of the,bin 1. This action brought the rear end of the bin 1 down to the level of the ground surface 9 to enable material for loading to be pushed or swept into the bin (Figure 3). No significant lifting of the material was necessary in order to get it into the bin and the barrow was stable in this position since the side of the bin that is now lowermost was flat. An alternative position for the handles 3 is shown by the dotted outline in this Figure. When the bin was sufficiently loaded, the wheelbarrow was rolled back clockwise through a right angle into the position depicted in Figure 4. This operation was not difficult to carry out because the barrow was support on the semicircular base of the bin 1 and the length of the handles 3 allowed a useful leverage to be applied. Movement of the handles 3 back to the position of Figure 4 allowed the bolts to become engaged again in their respective sockets 13 on the sides of the bin 1 and the wheelbarrow was then in its working condition for transporting the loaded material. It will be clear that the loading of the bin had been carried out without any need to manually raise the load material a significant height. If necessary, the same operation can be used in reverse for the unloading of the barrow. The wheelbarrow thus aids in lifting and lowering its load by giving a mechanical advantage through leverage. Since the arrangement of the bin makes use of space that would normally be wasted underneath the bin of a conventional wheelbarrow, the capacity of the bin can be rather large without making the construction unwieldy. The fact that the centre of gravity of the bin has been made very much lower than with a conventional barrow can give increased safety in use. Figures 5 to 9 depict an alternative construction that can still give a robust wheelbarrow even though the bin may be made of a lightweight material. OM ^KNA In this embodiment, the bin 1 was formed of a fibreglass-reinforced plastics material which was partially supported by a mild steel casing 17. Attached by welding to the casing 17 was a wheel mounting bracket 18 that carried the wheel 2. The wheel mounting bracket 18 was also secured to the bin 1 by a strut 19 located over the wheel 2. The wheel mounting bracket 18 further carried a pivot 4 which enabled each handle 3 to be fastened securely in either one of two positions where it could lie substantially alongside the bracket 18. To do this, each one of the two handles 3 carried an inwardly-directed bolt (not shown) and in the view of Figure 5 this bolt has been engaged in a socket carried on a first lug 21 attached to the bracket 18. In the view of Figure 6, the handles 3 have been sprung apart to free the bolts from th sockets in the first lugs 21 and the handles have been moved until they lie on either side of the wheel 2 so the bolts can be engaged again in different sockets carried on second lugs 22 also attached to the bracket 1 Since in the positions of both Figure 5 and Figure 6 the handles 3 are rigi fixed in positions where they are parallel to the bracket 18, this allows a very robust construction of wheelbarrow even with a bin made of lightweig material. Figure 7 ' shows how the casing 17 serves to protect the side of the bin 1 which comes into contact with the ground surface 9 during the operation of loading the bin. In addition, since the outer side of the casing 17 can be provided with a sharpened edge which can lie in contact with the ground surface, this can enable loose material which has been swept along the ground to be readily pushed into the bin 1. Figures 8 and 9 show further stages in operation of the wheelbarrow which enable the handles to be returned to the position of Figure 5 after the bin 1 has been loaded. _._ -^JRE OMP &*NA Figures 10 to 14 show a further embodiment where the wheel is intended to remain in contact with the ground surface throughout the loading operation and which may thus be suitable for a wheelbarrow of a particularly heavy construction. The bin 1 had a handle 3 secured at a first pivot 4. The ground wheel 2 was mounted by means of a wheel mounting bracket 18 carried on a second pivot 23 (Figure 11). In addition to the fixing provided by the first pivot 4, each handle carried an inwardly-directed bolt (not shown) which passed through a lug 21 (Figure 11) mounted on the bracket 18 which supported the ground wheel 2. After passing through the lug 21, the bolt entered a first socket 24 (Figure 12) located on the side of the bin 1. The bolt and the first pivot 4 thus served to fix the handle 3 rigidly to the bin 1. In addition, the bolt with the lug 21 enabled the handle 3 and the bracket 18 to be firmly fixed together in the arrangement of Figure 10 so that a strong support for the bin would be provided. The side of the bin 1 also carried a second socket 26 (Figure 10) which could be used to lock the bolt and thus secure the handle 3 when the handle was moved to a forward position as depicted in Figure 11. In operation, from a working position depicted in Figure 10, the two wheelbarrow handles 3 could be moved slightly apart from one another in order to release the inwardly-directed bolts on each handle from the lug 21 on the bracket 18 and also from the first socket 24 in the side of the bin. The handles 3 were then moved on either side of the bin until they lay alongside the wheel 2 and the bolts could be re-engaged in the second sockets 26 (Figure 10). This position is shown in Figure 11. The handles 3 could then be moved anticlockwise to take up a vertical attitude as shown in Figure 12. Tfiis movement caused the bin 1 to be rolled about its semicircular base and since the lug 21 no longer served to fix the bracket 18 to the side of the bin, the bracket 18 was able to move about the pivot 23 and the wheel 2 remained in contact with the ground surface. In this position, the wheelbarrow was able to be pushed in a direction towards the left as seen in the Figure and the rear end of the bin 1 would then act as a scoop or shovel for picking up material from a heap on the ground surface. Figure 12 shows the bin having picked up a heavy bale 27 of gardening material. The position of the wheel 2 gives extra stability to the wheelbarrow in this attitude and the wheel also assists the scooping movement. In addition, the side of the bin that came into contact with the ground surface had been provided with skids (not shown) to further aid the scooping movement. An alternative position for the handles 3 is shown by the dotted outline in Figure 12 and this position may be used to apply additional pressure for the scooping movement if this is required. Figure 13 shows an intermediate position of the handle that was required to restore the wheelbarrow to its working condition (Figure 14), and the bale 27 may then be tipped from the bin after having been moved to the required storage site. Figures 15 to 19 show further details of the embodiment of Figure 10 with some minor modifications. Figure 15 is a perspective view and it shows that between the handles 3 is located a rectangular frame 28 to which each handle is secured in two places by a spring joint 29. The spring joints 29 allow each handle to be moved outwards a short distance away from the frame 28 so that the inwardly-directed bolts on the handles can be moved from their places when the barrow is in the working condition to the second holes 26 to allow the loadin to the frame 28 in two places as well as to the pivot 4 on the bin 1, the handles remain fixed securely at three points so that they are held squarely together to give a strong construction. Figure 16 is a view from the front and Figure 17 is a view from the rear of the wheelbarrow. Figure 18 is a plan view and Figure 19 a view from below. It will be observed (Figure 16) that the bin 1 is shaped on its base so that it has a foot portion 31 at each side. The provision of two foot portions 31 ensures that together with the wheel 2 there are three places where the barrow will come into contact with the ground surface so that there will be little tendency for the barrow to stand insecurely even when it is in the loaded condition. The foregoing description of embodiments of the invention has been given by way of example only and a number of modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the accompanying claims. For instance, the single wheel at the front end of the wheelbarrow might be replaced by two wheels located on one axis and possibly the front wheel or wheels could be provided with a motor to give some mechanical assistance in the movement of material with the wheelbarrow. The side of the bin that comes into contact with the ground surface for loading has been described as fitted with skids but in a different embodiment the skids might be replaced by small wheels or rolle to assist the possible scooping movement. Although the wheelbarrow has been described particularly for use in the garden, it is clear that it will have many other uses such as in industry, on building sites and in the laying of pavements. Since many workers in these occupations eventually suffer from strains in the lower part of the back the possibility offered by the wheelbarrow of the invention in reducing the manual effort needed for loading can help to comb fatigue and contribute to industrial safety. The possibility of using the wheelbarrow as a wide scoop mounted on wheels is an additional operational benefit for which one would formerly have had to provide a separate scooping tool. In the garden, the scoop can be used for picking up fallen leaves or grass cuttings etc. and in winter it can be used in a snow clearing operation since the scooping action enables a layer of fallen snow to be readily picked up from a footpath surface. With a full load of snow and the handles restored to the wheelbarrow working position, the snow may be carried to the side of the footpath and then tipped out in a place where the snow residues are unlikely to be a danger to pedestrians or vehicles. Many of the snow clearing tools currently available have no provision for carrying the removed volume of snow to the side of a path where it can be allowed to melt without causing further inconvenience. j iRE OM ^

Claims: 1 A wheelbarrow having a bin for the load, a ground wheel at a front end of the bin and a handle at a rear end of the bin, the bin having a bottom surface which forms a rear support when the wheelbarrow is stationary in which the handle is attached to the bin by a pivot allowing movement from the rear end of the bin to an alternative position at the front end, the handle in the said alternative position permitting the bin to be rolled rearwardly on the bottom surface to bring the bin rear end near groun level and assist loading the bin, the bin when loaded being then rolled back to its original position and the handle being returnable to the bin rear end to restore the barrow to its working condition. 2 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 1, in which in the working condition of the wheelbarrow, the handle is secured by a first releasable lock. 3 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 2, in which the lock comprises a bolt which is capable of entering a socket in the bin. 4 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 3, in which the said bolt is carried on the wheelbarrow handle. 5 A wheelbarrow according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, in which the bin bottom surface has a generally convex shape. 6 A wheelbarrow according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, in which the ground wheel is supported on a bracket attached to the bin. 7 A wheelbarrow according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, in which in its alternative position the handle has means securing it at the front end of the bin. 8 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 6, in which the bracket supporting the ground wheel is attached to the bin by a second pivot associated with a second releasable lock, the movement of the handle to the alternative position causing disengagement of said second lock so that the rearward ^^R rolling movement may be effected whilst the ground wheel remains in contact with the ground surface. 9 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 8, in which the first and second releasable locks are operated by a common bolt carried on the handle. 10 A wheelbarrow according to any one of Claims 1 to 9, in which a handle is located at each side of the bin, the two handles being linked together by a joining member which is located between the bin' and the handle ends. 11 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 10, in which the joining member has a resilient connection with the handles such that the handles are pulled towards one another. 12 A wheelbarrow according to Claim 10 or 11, in which each handle is connected to the other handle in at least two spaced points by a joining member. 13 A wheelbarrow substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the accompanying drawings.

Inventors: STEER CLIVE ALLEN, STEER, CLIVE, ALLEN
Applicants: STEER CLIVE ALLEN, STEER, CLIVE, ALLEN
Application year: 1984
Main classification: B62B1
IPC codes: B62B1