Patent GB-474362-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in freight handling systems
IPC: B60P1/64
Filed: 1936-02-26
Abstract: 474,362. Vehicles with removable bodies. TENNANT, W. J. (Motor Terminals Co.) Feb. 26, 1936, No. 5774. [Classes 103 (iv) and 108 (i)] [Also in Group XXX] Relates to a freight transport system wherein containers, positioned on rails or guideways on vehicles &c. are transferable from one vehicle to another or to or from a loading platform by means of chains, cables or the like operated by winding or propelling mechanism on the vehicles, and comprises an arrangement wherein the containers are provided on their under surfaces with elongated rails which engage guideways on the vehicle &c., without the interposition of any rolling elements. The guideways, or some of them, may be channel members resiliently constrained laterally to absorb shocks during transport and to compensate for inaccuracies of location. Various means for locking or securing the containers in the guideways during transport are described, also arrangements of bridging members for connecting vehicles to one another or to a platform during transfer operations. The rails attached to the container may be of dumb-bell- or U-section. Fig 6 shows in plan a road trailer vehicle provided with transverse guide channels 14a and power operated winding drums 27 from which cables pass over guide rollers 25 for effecting transfer of the container. Figs. 17 and 18 show, on a flat railway waggon, similarly spaced but differently constructed guide channels 14 and cable sheaves or guide pulleys 112. Fig. 24 shows a loading platform with guide channels 14b and cable sheaves 112b adapted to be temporarily fitted in position. On the semi-trailer, Fig. 6, the guide channels 14a are formed between backed channel plates 22, the winding drums and guide rollers being mounted between channel plates 21 facing inwardly. The guide channels on the railway waggon may be of similar form but, as shown in Figs. 17, 18, comprise V-shaped troughs 95 with flanges 96 let into the floor 93 and resting directly on the frame longitudinals. To absorb shocks in transport and facilitate alignment with guideways on another vehicle &c., the channel members 95 are mounted between springs 100 located by seatings 102 and bearing against angle bars 101 which, together with a bottom plate 97, reinforce the channel member. Upper and lower plates 103, 104 enclose the springs 100 and flanges 96, and the reinforcing plates 97, lying between the frame longitudinals, act as guide members, preventing displacement transverse to the vehicle. The cable guides on the rail waggon comprise grooved pulleys 112 in shallow trays 110 furnished with end rollers 111. In the case of the loading platform, Fig. 24, the guide channels 14b and cable sheaves 112b are transportable members provided with pins 115, 118 or the like adapted to be inserted in holes or sockets in the platform when required for use. In effecting transfer to or from the road vehicle, the cables from the winding drums are passed over the appropriate pulleys or sheaves according to the direction of transfer and finally attached to the container, the power for winding being derived from the tractor engine. For this purpose the drums 27 are secured on front and rear sleeves 41, 42 mounted on and-by means of clutches 47-adapted to be coupled to a shaft 40 running the length of the vehicle and flexibly connected by a sleeve coupling 70 and universally jointed shaft sections 66, 68 to a shaft 34 driven by a chain from the power take-off shaft of the tractor. The clutches 47, which are formed with inclined teeth to yield on overload and are normally pressed into engagement by a spring 49, are adapted to be individually controlled by forked levers 52 connected by wires 55 to pull handles 59 at the front of the vehicle. As shown in Fig. 8, the cable guide drums 25 may be arranged to be extended when desired beyond the sides of the trailer, being mounted on bars 81 carrying cross-pins 82, 83 adapted to seat in appropriate slots 84, 87 in side plates 85 fixed to the channel plates 21. Various means are described for securing the container against movement on the vehicle during transport. The simplest means comprises pins inserted through brackets attached to the channel plates 22 and through holes in the rails on the container. In the form shown in Fig. 23, chocks 205 engage the inclined ends of the container rail 11, being secured in position by lugs 208, 210 engaging holes in the bed of the guide channel 14, a chain 212 preventing loss of the chock when loose. On the rail vehicle shown in Figs. 17 and 18, claws 194 pivoted to brackets 192 pass through openings in the channel members and are caused to engage the flanges of the container rail 11, by means of a cam or eccentric 200 engaging the forked lower ends 201 thereof. The eccentric 200 is rotatable by means of articulated shafts 196, Fig. 17, extending to the sides of the vehicle where they are provided with handles 197. In Fig. 27, wherein the container B is fitted with U-section rails 221 terminating at each end in a cross-pin 222, the securing means comprises a block 223 provided with hooked lugs 224, 227 engaging apertures in the channel member 14 or 95 and its reinforcing plate 97. One of the lugs 227 is rotatable in the block 223 and provided with a pivoted handle 230 which after being turned as shown to key the block in position, can be secured by a wire loop passed through a hole 239, a seal being placed on the wire. Another locking arrangement for a U-section rail, in this case carried by the container, is shown in Fig. 39, and comprises, at each end of the rail, a pivoted hook-member 252 operated by a projection 265 on a non-rotary nut 263 riding on a threaded spindle 262 adapted to be rotated by a detachable crank-handle 255. The spindles 262 at the two ends of a rail are of opposite thread and are connected by a sleeve 261 for simultaneous control from either end. Bridging means or ramps holding the vehicles together and allowing for changes of level as the weight is transferred are shown in Fig. 29, these being located in line with the channels 14 on the respective vehicles and being themselves provided with guide channels 14d. Each bridging member comprises a pair of flanged side plates 120 connected by cross members 121 supporting the channel member 14d. At one end a cross-pin 126 is provided, adapted to seat in a hook 127 formed on a beam 150 slidably mounted in the trailer frame so that it may be projected to a desired extent and then secured by a locking pin. At the other end, the bridging member carries pairs of pins 129, 130, adapted to engage slots formed in a block 131 secured to the side of the other vehicle frame as shown in Fig. 23. The block 131 may be hollow to serve as a stake holder. Buffers 155, Fig. 29, may be placed between the trailer frame and the wheels to prevent impact during transfer of a container. A modification is described, Figs. 35-37 (not shown), in which the guideways are arranged longitudinally along each side of the road vehicle, and the transfer cable is arranged centrally in a longitudinal channel member being connected to a transverse winding drum on the tractor. In this form, the bridging members are provided with riding rollers instead of guide channels and are simply connected by cross-pins at each end engaging hooks on the respective vehicles.