A device for hooking, lifting and unloading a dustbin for use on a side loading garbage truck

Abstract: A device for hooking, lifting and dumping a dustbin, of the type for use on a truck having sidewise loading, comprising two arms (3) and (6), a third arm (16) provided with means for hooking the dustbin and hinged to said arm (6), wherein a lever (19) is secured to said arm (16) and means (20) are provided that are hinged, on one side, to said lever (19) and, on the other side, to said arm (3) at a pivot point (21) so as to achieve, together with said arm (3) and said lever (19), a four-bar linkage, wherein said means (20) consist of an extensible arm such as to cause said four-bar linkage to assume two different configurations, one during progressing towards a dustbin, the other during lifting and rotating thereof.

Description: This invention provides a device for use on a side-loading garbage truck, for hooking, lifting and unloadig a dustbin, by means of a pivotable, compass type arm which is capable of extending to a position close to the dustbin pins, for hooking, lifting and maintaining the dustbin in a substantially vertical position and to cause it to tip after the dustbin has passed the threshold of the truck body loading opening. Due to the peculiar features of kinematic motion used, all of the above movements can be carried out in a restrained space, to thereby permit the motor vehicle to further approach a dustbin during operation, and also, due to restricted strokes of actuators, to minimize the maneuvering time. Furthermore, devices are provided by means of which the arms for gripping a dustbin are capable of self-centering in relation to the loading opening, so as to facilitate maneuvering by the operator, who has, thus, greater tolerance availability for hooking, while due to said self-centering capability of the dustbin with respect to a loading opening, this loading opening may be restrained in width. In order to perform dumping of a dustbin, a garbage truck is generally used which has a refuse collection body and is provided with plungers designed for hooking a dustbin resting sidewise on the road, and for lifting and tipping the dustbin to drop refuses down into the truck body. These motor vehicles have gripping means in the form of a telescopic arm capable of hooking a dustbin, and plungers that are able of lifting the dustbin and causing it to tip for discharging. Many types of kinematic motions have been designed for this purpose. By means of them the dustbin gripping means are caused to translate in two orthogonal directions or to perform a roto-translational motion to move the dustbin up to above the refuse collection body of vehicle. Particularly, a device for gripping, lifting and rotating a dustbin is known from Italian Patent Application N. MI92A 001906, which comprises dustbin gripping arms, dustbin lifting plungers and rotating means which are associated to a slide, the slide being movable towards and away from the dustbin and being mounted inboard the truck, said gripping means being a pair of pivoting arms hinged to the slide and carrying at their opposed ends a tubular element being rotatable about its own axis, having arms attached thereto for hooking the dustbin. However this solution is rather intricate and, thus, expensive in construction, and, furthermore, it requires that arms of considerable length are used in order that a desired height is reached and a restricted inclination of the dustbin is achieved. Finally, said long arms cause the truck to maintain a considerable distance to the dustbin during hooking operation. The object of this invention is to provide a device for hooking, lifting and tipping a dustbin, which is simple in construction and which can operate in a restrained space wherein the dustbin can be maintained substantially verticaly oriented during lifting thereof so as to perform rotation only near an end portion of its stroke i.e. when the dustbin will have passed the threshold of the truck body loading opening. It is preferred when this device is shaped so that it is completely enclosed within the gauge of the vehicle under road running condition and is provided with arms restrained in length, such that gripping of the dustbin is permitted even in a position of the dustbin very close to the vehicle and in a situation permitting the dustbin to be put into a downwardly rest position, underneath the platform of the vehicle body. These and other objects of this invention are achieved by a device to be described hereinbelow in greater details by way of an example only, reference being to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 shematically shows a device for hooking, lifting, and rotating a dustbin according to this invention, the device being in its rest (closed) position; Figure 2 shows the device in figure 1 in a position enabling hooking and gripping a dustbin on the ground in an area of mimimum distance of the dustbin to the right side of the truck; Figures 3 and 4 show the device in figure 1 in positions of pre-lifting and lifting, respectively, of the dustbin, before its rotation is started; Figure 5 shows the device in figure 1 after the dustbin has been rotated for unloading; Figura 6 schematically shows the dynamics of dustbin lifting and rotating motions, with outlining of the two circular arcs of path as described by the two linkage arms; Figures 7 and 8 show the device in figure 1 in an intermediate position of the device while moving towards the dustbin and a position of maximum extension of the device for hooking the dustbin; Figure 9 is a front view of the device according to the invention along with the entire outline of the truck; Figure 10 is a front view of the device according to the invention; Figure 11 is a plan view of the dustbin-gripping arms with the associated driving means, according to the invention; Figure 12 is a diagram of a hydrulic circuit for operating the gripping arms according to the invention; Figures 13a to 13d show the hydraulic supply blocks and duct lines inside the rotatable tubular support according to the invention. In figure 5, reference numeral 1 designates a truck body to which a device according to the invention for hooking and lifting a dustbin designated at 2 is associated. This device (figures 4 and 5) comprises a first arm 3 the lowermost end of which is hinged at 4 to a support secured to the truck frame while a second arm 6 is hinghed to the other end of arm 3, at 5. The arms 3 and 6 are connected by means of a pair of connecting rods, as shown at 7 and 8, respectively, which are, on their opposite side, connected to the end of a plunger 9 hinghed ad 10 to a lower part of the first arm 3. A second pair of plungers 13 are hinghed to the vehicle frame and the arm 3 at 14 and 35, respectively. When extension of plunger 13 is operated, the arm 3 is caused to pivot in a clockwise direction about the axis 4, whereas extension of the plunger 9 causes the connecting rods 7 and 8 to open apart, whereby the arms 3 and 6 are spread apart from one other. Hinghed to the lowermost end of arm 6 is a tubular support 15 to which a pair of arms 16 are secured and are provided with a recess 17 (figure 2) for enabling engagement with hooking pins 18 on the dustbin. Secured to the tubular support 15 and, thus, the arms 16, is also a lever 19 which is hinghed to a plunger 20 having its opposite end hinged at 21 to the upright or arm 3. Accordingly, the arm 6 and plunger 20 form the corresponding links of a four-bar linkage, which links are connected at one end of lever 19 and, at the other end, are hinged to the upper end of the upright or arm 3, at pivot points 5 and 21. One feature of the invention is that the line joining the hinging points 5 and 21 of arm 6 and plunger 20, respectively, is orthogonal to first arm 3 and is substantially aligned in a substantially horizontal direction, when said first arm 3 is in a retracted (vertical) position as seen figure 1. Furthermore, said plunger 20 consists of an extensible arm so as to cause said four-bar linkage to assume two different configurations providing for two distinct functions of the device, in relation to sequences of the operating cycle: a first configuration resulting from a first partial extension of said plungers (20) causing the arms 16 to be pivoted from a rest position underneath the platform of the truck body to a pre-lifting position with respect to a hooking pin on the dustbin, which configuration besides supporting said arms 16 is contributive in keeping their ends 17 at a same level above the ground during translation towards the dustbin for hooking it. A second configuration is achieved as a result of said plungers (20) having performed a complete extension (end of stroke), causing the arms 16 to be further pivoted to produce a first small elevation of the bin from the ground, configuration by means of which said linkage is such that the ends of the arm 6 and the plunger 20 will describe circular arcs with the centers 5 and 21 aligned on the horizontal, this particular conformation of the linkage achieving the desired purpose of maintaining the dustbin in a substantially vertical position during lifting to only perform one rotation in the final part of the path (see figure 6). During all of these movements, the plunger 20 remains unchanged in length and, therefore, the plunger 20 will operate such as if it were a rigid rod. The plungers 9 and 13 are supplied via one and the same circuit, on which a flow distributor, not shown, is disposed and is adjusted so that the amounts of fluid conveyed to the two cylinders are such as to ensure a predetermined ratio between rotation of arm 3 about point 4 and rotation of arm 6 about point 5, whereby the end 17 of arm 16 will move to follow a substantially horizontal path. Provided on arm 16 is also an abutment member 21 against which the surface of the dustbin will come to rest, and which may cause an increment of rotation to be performed at the end of dustbin lifting stroke, if it is desired so. The arms 16 are mounted to the tube support 15 in a rotatable manner on an horizontal plane about an orthogonal axis to the axis of the support itself. In particular, with reference to figures 10-11, a wing 22 or the like is welded to each of the arms 16 and is hinged at 23 to a strap 24 mounted to the tubular rim 15. Thereby, the arms 16, with their associated wings 22, will provide corresponding centrally pivoted levers, which are hinged, at one end thereof, to a pair of plungers 42 and 43. By operation of these plungers, the arms 16 may be caused to open from around the dustbin and then to close again around it. According to a further feature of the invention, one of these plungers, the plunger 42 for example, can drive the movements of an associated arm from an open position to a closed position thereof in which the arm is substantially orthogonal to support 15. On the contrary, the second plunger, the plunger 43 in this case, has twice the stroke of the preceding one, and it can thus control the movements of the associated arm between an open and a closed position, which are both symmetrical in relation to the position in which the arm is orthogonal to support 15. Therefore, while the first of the two arms may be shifted from a position that could be defined as an "open" position, such as shown by discontinuous line in figure 4, to a "closed" position in which the arm is orthogonal to the support, the second arm may be driven from an open position, symmetrical to the position of the first arm, to an orthogonal position to support 15 and then, in continuing its closure stroke, to a closed position in which the arm assumes a position being parallel to what is the open position of the adjoining arm. This configuration permits the positioning operation to be considerably facilitated by the vehicle driver, because a perfect aligning of the bin with the gripping devices is no longer necessary. In fact, it is only necessary for the driver to set the vehicle so as to have one arm, in particular the one having less magnitude in movement, placed close to an edge of the bin. The driver moves the arms 16 until one arm 16 engages the bin edge, whereafter the driver causes the arm to close with the aid of the pistons 42 and 43. The first arm securely engages a respective pin provided on the bin wall, and this as a result of the positioning of the vehicle in relation with the bin. Now, by operation of the cylinder 43, the second arm can be rotated until this second arm having passed its orthogonal position to the associated support it becomes parallel with the other arm, so as to engage the pin provided on the opposite wall of the bin. Once the bin is lifted off the ground, both arms can be rotated in a same direction so as to bring the bin back to the center with respect to the loading opening on the vehicle, which is in fact obtained at the end of of the cylinder 42 stroke. The hydraulic circuit driving the pistons 42 and 43 is schematically shown figure 8. A pump 30 pumps pressurized fluid into a distributor 31 and from here to the pistons 42 and 43. The piston 42 is extended to close the associated arm 16 until this encounters the wall of the bin. Similarly, the piston 43 is extended to close the associated arm 16 against the opposite bin wall. When the bin is off the ground and is thus able to freely move in a direction parallel to the axis of the tubular support 15, the deflectors are acted upon in order to pump fluid into plunger 42 until the associated arm is moved to an orthogonal direction to the direction of the support, whereas oil out of the plunger 42 is now conveyed towards plunger 43 in order to cause the plunger to retract thereby to bring the associated arm also in a position orthogonal to the support and oil out of plunger 43 goes to a collecting tank. Oil from piston 42 goes, on the contrary, to a storage tank. Operation is as follows: The conductor drives the vehicle close to the dustbin and, at this time, a reference mark painted on the bin is displayed within a frame on a camera, to permit the driver to position the vehicle with sufficient approximation (this visualized system of position sensing is well known to the state of the art and does not requires, therefore, any further explication). With the truck stopped, the driver starts approaching the arms 16 to bin. Firstly, the operator acts on plunger 20 to cause the arm 16 to move out of the vehicle outline to operative position shown figure 2. When this position is reached, operation of the plunger 20 is stopped and the plunger 20 is maintained at its attained length until approach of arms to the bin is completed. Now, the plunger 13 is acted upon and its extension causes the upright arm 3 to rotate clockwise about the hinging point 4. At the same time, a portion of the same fluid supplied to the plunger 13 flows into plunger 9 via the hydraulic distributor. Extension of the plunger 9 causes the connecting rods 7 and 8 to spread apart, as a result of which arm 6 is rotated in an opposite direction to arm 3. During this movement, the arm 16, that is secured to lever 19, is caused to rotate about the axis of tubular support 15 as a result of the plunger 20 (which, as remembered, does not extend during this step) being acting on lever 19, thereby contributing in keeping the ends 17 of arms 16 to a same height from ground during translation. According to the invention, the hydraulic distributor is calibrated so that rotation ratio between arms 3 and 6 is such that during movement the end 17 of arm 16 will be always substantially maintained at a same height, so as to securely engage the projecting pins on bin walls. When this position is reached, the plunger 20 is further extended right to the end of stroke thereby to cause the lever 19 and arm 16 to rotate about the support 15 to have the bin slightly lifted off the ground. Extension of piston 20 is again stopped, the plunger 13 is retracted, whereby the plunger 13 brings the upright or arm 3 back to vertical position to approach in part the bin to the vehicle and, at the same time, to move it to a lifted position, whereafter the plunger 9 is extended further to complete lifting of the bin up to the dumping area, where tipping is performed. According to a further advantageous feature of the invention, the supply to the different hydraulic actuators provided at the ends of the tubular support 15 and the two gripping arms 16 takes place through ducts lines inside the tube support 15 itself (figure 9). It should be in fact considered that for said plungers to be supplied in the embodiment shown, as many as eight conducts for pressurized fluid are necessary, and if hoses were to be used, their bulky volume would not permit them to pass through the interior of the tubular support (15). Due to this support 15 having to rotate about its own axis together with the two arms 16 secured thereto, whereupon to describe an arc of a circle with a radius correponding to arm (6), the above-mentioned hoses would clearly imply a great hindrance problem. For this reason, a plurality of conducts are advantageously provided inside the tubular support 15, these conducts being coupled, on one side, to a supply block provided with eight connections for a corresponding number of hoses which are thus joined together in the middle part of the device and, on the other side, to a set of connections provided at the ends of support 15, to which connections flexible unions are coupled whose length is restricted, but sufficient to provide supply for the differents actuators. Though a preferred embodiment of this invention has been described herein above by way of an example only, it should be understood that number of modifications and variations may be conceived and made thereto by any person of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the scope of the claims.

Claims: A device for use in a truck having a side loading arrangement, for hooking, lifting and unloading a dustbin, by means of a pivoting "compass" type arm which is capable of extending right to lifting pins (18) on the bin, for hooking and lifting the bin to maintain it in a susbstantially vertical position and then causing it to tip after the bin has passed the threshold of the loading opening of a refuse-collecting truck body, said device comprising : a first arm (3) having a lower end hinged to a support secured to the frame of the vehicle and being subject to the action of means (13) capable of causing said arm to pivot about its hinging point; a second arm (6) hinged to a pivot point (5) at the top end of said first arm (3) and subject to the action of second means (9) capable of causing said second arm (6) to pivot with respect to said first arm; a third arm (16) fixed by secured to a tubular support (15), hinged to the free end of the second arm (6) and provided with devices (17) for hooking a dustbin; a lever (19) secured at a first end of said tubular support (15) carrying said third arm (16) and elongated means (20) hinged on one side to the second end of said lever (19) and on the other side to said first arm (3) at a pivot point (21), so that in cooperation with the second arm (6) hinged to said first arm (3) at the pivot point (5) joining the first and second arms a four-bar linkage will be constructed, characterized in that said elongated means (20) comprise an arm that can be extended so as to cause said four-bar-linkage to take at least two different configurations corresponding to two distinct functions of the device in relation with the sequences of an operative cycle, that is: a first configuration, resulting from said elongated means (20) having performed a first partial extension causing the arms (16) to rotate from a rest position underneath the loading platform to a pre-lifted position at a level with respect to a pin of a bin, which conformation besides supporting the arms (16) secured to the tubular support (15) cooperates in maintaining the end (17) to the same height from ground during translation towards the bin for hooking the same, and a second configuration, resulting from said means (20) having performed a total extension (end of stroke) causing said arms (16) to rotate further to provide a first slight lifting of the bin off the ground, configuration whereby said four-bar-linkage is such that the ends of the arm (6) and said means (20) describe arcs of circles with the centers (5) and (21) aligned on the horizontal, and this particular conformation of said linkage achieving the desired purpose of maintaining the bin in a position subastantially vertical during lifting, to perform a rotation only in the final portion of the path. The device according to claim 1 wherein the line joining said hinging points (5 and 21) joining the first and second arms (3, 6), and the first arm (3) and the elongated means (20), respectively, placed at the uppermost end of said first arm (3) is orthogonal to said first arm (3) and is, thus, substantially horizontal when said first arm (3) is in a retracted (vertical) position. The device according to claims 1 and 2, wherein means are provided to maintain a substantially constant distance to ground of said bin-hooking means (17) during outwardly extension of hooking device. The device according to claim 3, wherein said means are an hydraulic fluid distributor capable of distribute the hydraulic fluid flow between said first means (13) and second means (9) according to a preset ratio so as to achieve, as a result, a ratio between rotations of said first and second arms (3-6) which is such as to cause said distance to ground of said hooking means (17) to be maintained constant.

Inventors: GASPARINI FILIPPO, GASPARINI GIORGIO, GASPARINI LUCA, GASPARINI, FILIPPO, GASPARINI, GIORGIO, GASPARINI, LUCA
Applicants: ECOLOGY SYSTEM INTERNATIONAL S, ECOLOGY SYSTEM INTERNATIONAL S.R.L.
Application year: 1995
Main classification: B65F3
IPC codes: B65F3