Patent Publication Number: US-7717218-B2

Title: Swiveling work machine

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a swiveling work machine having a swivel base pivotally mounted on a traveling apparatus to be pivotable about a pivot axis. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   There is known a swiveling work machine, such as a construction machine, having a swivel base pivotally mounted on a traveling apparatus to be pivotable about a vertical pivot axis, a hood accommodating an engine and disposed at a rear portion of the swivel base, a support frame disposed inside the hood so as to extend over across the engine, a ROPS (rollover protection structure) provided at a front side of the hood and exemplified by a cabin, a canopy, a safety frame, etc., the front side of the cabin being fixedly mounted on the swivel base and an upper portion of the rear end of the cabin being fixedly mounted on an upper portion of the support frame. 
   With this type of conventional swiveling work machine, the support frame includes a plurality of support legs and a support plate connected between upper ends of the support legs, the plurality of support legs including a front leg member which is inclined downward on its front side. However, this front leg member (support leg) does not project largely so as to be located laterally of the ROPS such as the cabin—it terminates at a position slightly forwardly of the engine. (see JP-A-10-331195, JP-A-2003-074085 and JP-A-2003-064724, for example). 
   Therefore, the above conventional construction has room for improvement in the respect of the load resistance of the front leg member (support leg) when the upper portion of the ROPS is subjected to a significant load from behind toward the front side. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   In view of the above, an object of this invention is to provide a swiveling work machine with improvement in the above-described respect. 
   For accomplishing the above object, a swiveling work machine, according to the present invention, comprises: 
   a traveling apparatus; 
   a swivel base mounted on the traveling apparatus to be pivotable about a vertical axis; 
   a hood disposed at a rear portion of the swivel base, the hood accommodating therein an engine, a support frame being disposed across over the engine; and 
   a rollover protection structure (ROPS) having a front end thereof fixed to the swivel base and a rear end thereof fixed to an upper portion of the support frame; 
   wherein said support frame includes a front leg member disposed on one lateral side of said ROPS, said front leg member extending to the vicinity of a front end of the swivel base. 
   With the above construction, as the front leg member projects more forwardly to be located on one lateral side of the ROPS, this front leg member extends by greater span in the fore and aft direction than the conventional construction. Therefore, even when the upper portion of the ROPS is subjected to a significant load from behind toward the front side, this front load can be sufficiently supported by the stiff projection of the front leg member, thus avoiding development of looseness of the support frame to the front side. 
   According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, said swivel base includes a vertical rib disposed erect thereon, a front end portion of said front leg member being fixed to a forward upper face of said vertical rib. To this end, for example, an upper plate can be fixed to the forward upper face of the vertical rib and the front end portion of the front leg member can be fixed to an upper face of said upper plate. 
   According to one preferred embodiment, a swing bracket for pivotally supporting an implement is connected to a front end of said vertical rib, a front end of said front leg member being fixed to the vicinity of an upper end of said swing bracket. 
   According to one preferred embodiment, said ROPS is provided at a front portion on one lateral side of the swivel base, and a side hood is provided at a front portion on the other lateral side of the swivel base, said front leg member extending between said side hood and said ROPS. 
   According to one preferred embodiment, a cover member is provided for covering, from an upper side of the front leg member, a region between said ROPS and said side hood, a first inspection window is provided in a rear end upper face of the cover member, a second inspection window corresponding to said first inspection window is provided in a front wall of said hood, and a lid member for closing said first inspection window and said second inspection window is detachably attached to said cover member. A first lid plate portion for covering said first inspection window from the upper side thereof and a second lid plate portion for covering said second inspection window from the front side thereof are provided, with the first lid plate portion and the second lid plate portion extending normal to each other. 
   According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, said engine includes an alternator, said second inspection window being disposed at a position corresponding to said alternator, said alternator being inspectable through said first inspection window and said second inspection window, when said lid member is detached from said cover member. 
   Further and other features and advantageous effects resulting therefrom will become apparent upon reading the following detailed disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
   Next, respective preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described, based on a backhoe as an example of a swiveling work machine. In the following discussion, unless indicated explicitly otherwise, a fore and aft direction, right/left direction and vertical direction will be used all relative to a forward traveling direction of the vehicle body as the fore and aft direction. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a view showing a swiveling work machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 1  being an overall side view of a backhoe as one specific example of the swiveling work machine, 
       FIG. 2  is a plan view of the swiveling work machine (backhoe), 
       FIG. 3  is a rear view of the swiveling work machine, 
       FIG. 4  is a plan view of a swivel deck with a cabin detached therefrom, 
       FIG. 5  is a left side view of the swivel deck with an implement detached therefrom, 
       FIG. 6  is a rear view of the swivel deck with an implement detached therefrom, 
       FIG. 7  is a plan view of a swivel base portion, 
       FIG. 8  is a left side view of the swivel base portion, 
       FIG. 9  is a plan view of the swivel base portion and a support frame, 
       FIG. 10  is a left side view of the swivel base portion and a support frame, 
       FIG. 11  is a rear view of the swivel base portion and the support frame, 
       FIG. 12  is a plan view of a rear end portion of the swivel deck, 
       FIG. 13  is a rear view of the rear end portion of the swivel deck, 
       FIG. 14  is a front view of the rear end portion of the swivel deck, 
       FIG. 15  is a left side view of the rear end portion of the swivel deck, 
       FIG. 16  is a plan view of the support frame, 
       FIG. 17  is a left side view of the support frame, 
       FIG. 18  is a right side view of the support frame, 
       FIG. 19  is a rear view of the support frame, 
       FIG. 20  is a right side view in section of an engine section, 
       FIG. 21  is a rear view of a lid member, 
       FIG. 22  is a rear view in section of a pipe holding member, 
       FIG. 23  is a plan view of an air conditioning pipe holding portion, 
       FIG. 24  is a left side view of the air conditioning pipe holding portion, and 
       FIG. 25  is a right side view of a support frame of a swiveling work machine (backhoe) relating to a second embodiment of the invention. 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Next, preferred embodiments of a swiveling work machine relating to the present invention will be described respectively with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
   First Embodiment 
   As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , a backhoe (an example of “swiveling work machine”)  1  includes a traveling apparatus  3  having a pair of right and left crawler traveling members  2  and a swivel deck  4  mounted atop the traveling apparatus  3 , with the swivel deck  4  being pivotable about a vertical pivot axis X via a swivel bearing  13 . To the front end of the swivel deck  4 , there is attached an implement  5 . 
   The implement  5  can be an excavator having a swing bracket  12  attached to the front end of the swivel deck  4  to be pivotable to the right/left, a boom  6  connected to the swing bracket  12  to be vertically pivotable, an arm  7  connected to the leading end of the boom  6  to be vertically pivotable, and a bucket  8  connected to the leading end of the boom  6  to be vertically pivotable. The swing bracket  12 , the boom  6 , the arm  7  and the bucket  8  are hydraulically operated by a boom cylinder  9 , an arm cylinder  11  and a bucket cylinder  10 , respectively. This implement  5  can include other work attachment than the bucket  8 , such as a breaker. 
   At a rear portion of the swivel deck  4 , there is mounted a rear hood (corresponding to “hood”)  15 , and forwardly of this rear hood  15 , there is provided an operating section having a driver&#39;s seat, operational levers, operational pedals, etc. This operating section is surrounded by a cabin (an example of ROPS (rollover protection structure))  17  provided at a front portion on the swivel deck  4 . 
   As shown in  FIGS. 4-11 , at the bottom of the swivel deck  4 , there is provided a swivel base  19  in the form of a plate. On this swivel base  19 , there are disposed erect a pair of right and left vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L extending substantially along the fore and aft direction. More particularly, the two vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L are diverged or flared from the front side to the rear side of the swivel base  19 . To the forward upper faces of the pair of right and left vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L, an upper plate  21  is fixed by e.g. welding. To the bottom faces of the front ends of the vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L, a lower plate  22  is fixed by e.g. welding. Between the front end of the upper plate  21  and the front end of the lower plate  22 , a support cylinder  23  is fixed by e.g. welding. The front portions of the pair of vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L, the front portion of the upper plate  21 , the lower plate  22  and the support cylinder  23  together constitute a mounting bracket  24  for mounting the implement  5 . This mounting bracket  24  extends forwardly from the swivel base  19 . To the front end of the mounting bracket  24 , the swing bracket  12  (see  FIG. 1 ) is connected via a vertical shaft (not shown), so that in association with extension/contraction of the swing cylinder (not shown), the swing bracket  12  and the implement  5  can be pivoted to the right/left about a vertical axis. 
   At a fore and aft intermediate portion of the swivel base  19 , there is disposed erect a partitioning wall  26  extending in the right/left direction. As shown in  FIGS. 12-15 , on the rear side of the partitioning wall  26 , there is formed an engine room  27  in which an engine  29 , a radiator, etc. are disposed. At the rear end of the swivel base  19 , an arcuate attaching wall  31  projects upwardly. At a front portion of the swivel base  19 , there are formed a plurality of openings  32   a ,  32   b ,  32   c  and at a rear portion of the swivel base  19  too, a plurality of openings  33   a ,  33   b ,  33   c  are provided. 
   As shown in  FIGS. 7-10 , at the left front portion of the swivel base  19 , there are provided a pair of right and left front cabin support members  35  for fixing thereto the front lower end of the cabin  17  and a pair of right and left rear cabin support members  36  for fixing thereto the rear lower end of the cabin  17 . The right and left front cabin support members  35  are fixed respectively to the right and left sides of a support wall  37  disposed erect at the left front end portion of the swivel base  19  and the right and left rear cabin support members  36  are attached to the swivel base via stays (not shown). 
   As shown in  FIGS. 1-8 , at the rear end of the swivel base  19 , there is provided a counter weight  41 . On the right and left opposed sides of this counter weight  41 , there are provided side protectors  42  for protecting right and left corners of the rear end of the swivel deck  4 . The cabin  17  is disposed at a front portion of one lateral side (the left front side thereof in this embodiment) of the swivel base  19 , and the rear hood  15  is disposed at the rear portion of the swivel base  19 . Further, at the front portion of the other lateral side of the swivel base  19  (the right front side thereof in this embodiment), a side hood  47  is provided. 
   The rear hood  15  is disposed upwardly and forwardly of the counter weight  41  and on the right/left inner side of the pair of right and left side protectors  42 . The counter weight  41 , the pair of side protectors  42  and the rear hood  15  together constitute an engine room  27  surrounding the engine  29  over the rear end portion of the swivel base  19 . 
   On the front side of the partitioning wall  36  and on the left side of the swivel base  19 , there are disposed such components as a working oil tank a fuel tank, etc., with these components being covered by the side hood  47 . 
   The rear hood  15  comprises a front cover  49 , a rear cover  50 , a left side cover  51  and a right side cover  52  and the front side and the front upper side of the engine room  27  are covered by the front cover  49 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 6 ,  FIG. 10 ,  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 19 , to a left cover member  61  and a right cover member  62  of a support frame  55  which will be described later, a front upper portion of the rear cover  50  is supported via a hinge member  53  to be pivotable about a right/left axis, so that the rear cover  50  can be flipped up about its front end upper portion (right/left axis). 
   As shown in  FIGS. 4-19 , within the rear hood  15 , the support frame  55  is provided. This support frame  55  consists mainly of a left leg member  56 , a right leg member  57 , a rear leg member  58 , a front leg member  59  and a support plate  60  connected to the respective upper ends of these leg members  56 ,  57 ,  58 ,  59  and the support frame  55  extends across and over the engine  44 , i.e. striding over the engine  44 . The support frame  55  includes, at upper portions thereof, the left cover member  61  and the right cover member  62  constituting the front cover  49  of the rear hood  15 . 
   The left leg member  56  of the support frame  55  is formed of an angular pipe or the like. The right leg member  57  is formed of a metal rod having an L-shaped cross section. The lower ends of the left leg member  56  and the right leg member  57  are fixedly attached, by attaching plates  64 ,  65 , via the partitioning wall  36 , etc., to the swivel base  19 . The lower end of the rear leg member  58  is fixedly attached to the swivel base  19  by an attaching plate  66  via the attaching wall  31 . 
   The support plate  60  is a laterally elongate band plate-like member and the left end of this support plate  60  and the upper end of the left leg member  56  are fixedly connected to each other by e.g. welding. The right end of the support plate  60  and the upper end of the right leg member  57  are fixedly connected to each other by e.g. welding. The upper end of the rear leg member  58  is fixedly attached, via connecting plates  67 ,  68 , to the rear end of the support plate  60  and the upper end of the right leg member  57 . The upper end of the front leg member  59  is fixedly attached via the right cover member  62  to the upper end of the right leg member  57 . 
   The front leg member  59  of the support frame  55  is disposed on one lateral side (the right side in this embodiment) of the cabin  17  and extends forwardly along this lateral side to the vicinity of the front end of the swivel deck  4  (swivel base  19 ). The front leg member  59  is formed of a metal rod having a C-shaped cross section and projects forwardly from the upper end of the right leg member  57  of the support frame  55 . The front leg member  59  extending upwardly of the vertical rib  20 L is bent in a forwardly downward direction and projects significantly forwardly, with its front end being bent downward. And, the lower end portion (front end portion) of the front leg member  59  is fixed, via an attaching plate  71  and a connecting plate  72 , to the upper face of the upper plate  21  attached to the forward upper faces of the vertical ribs  20 R,  20 L. With this, the front portion of the front leg member  59  is disposed on the right outer side of the cabin  17  and the lower end portion (front end portion) of the front leg member  59  is fixed to the front end region of the swivel base  19  and the front leg member  59  is arranged between the cabin  17  and the side hood  47 . 
   The cabin  17  is mounted on the left side of the swivel base  19 , with the rear end of the cabin  17  being placed on the rear hood  15 . That is, as shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 5 , at the rear end portion of the cabin  17 , there is provided a mounting recess  63  which is formed concave from the lower side to the upper side so as to be placed on the rear hood  15 . 
   Though not shown, the cabin  17  is formed like a box having an open bottom and a lower end opening is provided at the lower end of the cabin  17  forwardly of the rear hood  15 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , a step (bottom plate)  69  is detachably attached, by means of bolts or the like, to the lower end opening edge of the cabin  17  so as to close the lower end opening of the cabin  17 . 
   Right and left two portions at the front end of the cabin  17  lower end (step  69 ) are fixedly attached via anti-vibration elements to the front cabin support members  35 . Right and rear two portions at the rear end of the cabin  17  lower end (step  69 ) are fixedly attached via anti-vibration elements to the right and left cabin support members  36 . Further, right and left two portions of the mounting recess  63  of the cabin  17  (rear end of the cabin  17 ) are fixedly attached, via the front cover  49  (right cover member  62 ) of the hood  15  and a pair of right and left anti-vibration elements  70 , to the upper face of the support plate  60  of the support frame  55 . 
   A cover member  73  is provided for covering, from an upper side of the front leg member  59 , a region between the cabin  17  and the side hood  47 . A first inspection window  75  is provided in a rear end upper face of the cover member  73 . And, as shown in  FIG. 20 , a second inspection window  76  corresponding to the first inspection window  74  is provided in a front wall  15   a  of the rear hood  15  (front cover  49 ), and a lid member  78  for closing the first inspection window  75  and the second inspection window  76  is detachably attached to the cover member  73  by means of fixing members such as bolts. 
   The rear wall  15   a  of the rear hood  15  is vertically disposed immediately forwardly of the support frame  55  and immediately rearwardly of the rear end of the cover member  73 . The upper end of the front wall  15   a  is connected to e.g. the left cover member  61  or the right cover member  52  of the support frame  55 , thereby to close the front side of the interior of the rear hood  15  (engine room  27 ). The front leg member  59  of the support frame  55  projects much more forwardly than the front wall  15   a  of the rear hood  15 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 20  and  FIG. 21 , the lid member  78  includes a first lid plate portion  79  for covering the first inspection window  75  from the upper side thereof and a second lid plate portion  80  for covering the second inspection window  76  from the front side thereof, with the first and second plate portions  79 ,  80  together forming an L shape. The first lid plate portion  79  and the second lid plate portion  80  extend normal to each other to present an inverse L-shape in the side view. Further, the first lid plate portion  79  includes a grip portion  81 . 
   As shown in  FIGS. 8-14 , on the upper face of the rear portion of the swivel base  19  inside the rear hood  15  (engine room  27 ), the engine  29  is mounted with a lateral orientation (i.e. with its crankshaft extending along the right and left direction). This engine  29  is fixedly mounted, via anti-vibration elements or the like, to the partitioning wall  26  and the attaching wall  31 . Further, the engine  29  is disposed forwardly of the counter weight  41  and on the right side of the engine  29 , a cooling fan  83  and the radiator are disposed. The cooling fan  83  is rotatably driven by power of the engine  29 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 14  and  FIG. 20 , at a front upper end of the right side of the engine  29 , an alternator  84  is provided. The second inspection window  76  is disposed at the position corresponding to the alternator  84 . So that, with detachment of the lid member  78  from the cover member  73 , the alternator  84  can be inspected through the first inspection window  75  and the second inspection window  76 . At the lower end of the second lid plate portion  80  of the lid member  78 , there is provided a cutout recess  86 , into which a heater hose  87  projecting from the engine  29  is inserted and the heater hose  87  is drawn out to the front side through the cutout recess  86  from the rear hood  15  (engine room  27 ). 
   As shown in  FIGS. 12-15 , on the left side of the engine  29 , there is provided a flywheel  89 , and on its lateral side, there are disposed a first hydraulic pump  91 , a second hydraulic pump  92  and a third hydraulic pump  93  for feeding working oil to the various hydraulic components (the hydraulic cylinders,  9 ,  10 ,  11 , the hydraulic motor, control valves of the traveling apparatus  3 , etc.). The first hydraulic pump  91  includes two LP pumps. These hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93  are rotatably driven by the power of the engine  29 . Inside the rear hood  15  and on the left side of the engine  29 , there are provided, as further hydraulic components, a line filter  95 , a check valve  96  and an accumulator  97 . Further, at an upper portion of the left side of the engine  29 , an air cleaner  98  is provided. This air cleaner  98  is attached to the support plate  60  of the support frame  55  via an attaching stay  99 . 
   Though not shown, an unload valve for unloading the working oil discharged from the third hydraulic pump  93  is provided adjacent the lid member  78  disposed at the front portion of the rear hood  15 . Further, though not shown, a signal block for transmitting signaling working oil to the various hydraulic components is provided, together with the unload valve, adjacent the lid member  78  disposed at the front portion of the rear hood  15 . 
   At a front lower portion of the rear hood  15 , there is disposed a hydraulic pipe  102  along the right/left direction. This hydraulic pipe  102  is connected to the working oil tank disposed inside the side hood  47  and also to the hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93  so as to feed the working oil from the working oil tank to the hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93 . 
   Further, though not shown, on the right side etc. of the engine  29  inside the rear hood  15 , there are provided various air conditioning components such as an air conditioning condenser, an air conditioning compressor, etc., and at a front portion etc. of the rear hood  15 , an air conditioning unit (air conditioning body) is provided. 
   As shown in  FIGS. 12 and 13 , at the right lower portion inside the rear hood  15 , there are disposed air conditioning pipes  101  ( 101   a ,  101   b ). Via these air conditioning pipes  101   a ,  101   b , the air conditioning components inside the rear hood  15  and the air conditioning body outside the rear hood  15  are connected for circulating cooling medium between the air conditioning components and the air conditioning unit. 
   Inside the rear hood  15 , there is provided an air conditioning pipe holding member  100 . This pipe holding member  100  is disposed on the left outer side of the engine  29  and adjacent the hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93 , so as to concentrate and hold the plurality of air conditioning pipes  101  ( 101   a ,  101   b ) and a plurality of hydraulic pipes  104  ( 104   a ,  104   b ,  104   c ,  104   d ,  104   e ) all together. 
   Referring also to  FIGS. 22-24 , this pipe holding member  100  includes an air conditioning pipe holding portion  103  for holding the plurality of air conditioning pipes  101  ( 101   a ,  101   b ) and a hydraulic pipe holding portion  105  for holding the plurality of hydraulic pipes  104  ( 104   a ,  104   b ,  104   c ,  104   d ,  104   e ), with the two holding portions  103 ,  105  being vertically superposed with each other. 
   The air conditioning pipe holding portion  103  includes a pair of right and left support tables  107  fixed on the swivel base  19 . And, between and upwardly of this pair of support tables  107 , the hydraulic pipe holding portion  105  is provided, and the plural air conditioning pipes  101   a ,  101   b  are inserted between the pair of support tables  107  downwardly of the hydraulic pipe holding portion  105 . 
   The hydraulic pipe holding portion  105  includes a lower pipe holding member  108  and an upper pipe holding member  109 , with the lower pipe holding member  108  being fixedly mounted on the air conditioning pipe holding portion  103  and the upper pipe holding member  109  being fixedly mounted on the lower pipe holding member  108 . 
   The lower pipe holding member  108  includes a pair of upper and lower pipe clamping members  111 ,  112 , which are formed of rubber or synthetic resin having elasticity. And, these pipe clamping members  111 ,  112  form therebetween a plurality of insertion holes  113  for inserting the hydraulic pipes  104   a ,  104   b ,  104   c . The upper and lower pair of pipe clamping members  111 ,  112  are vertically clamped with each other by means of an upper clamping plate  115  and a lower clamping plate  116 , respectively, and are vertically fastened to each other via the upper and lower pair of clamping plates  115 ,  116  by means of fasteners  119 . 
   At the right and left opposed ends of the pair of upper and lower pipe clamping members  111 ,  112 , cylindrical members  121  are inserted and held. And, the pair of fasteners  119  are provided on the right and left. Each fastener  119  can comprise a bolt  117  and a nut  118 , for example. The nut  118  is fixedly attached to each support table  112  by means of welding or the like. Each fastener  119  is inserted through the pair of pipe clamping members  111 ,  112  and also through the cylindrical member  121 , thus being inserted through the pair of upper and lower clamping plates  115 ,  116 . Further, the pair of fasteners  119  are inserted into the support tables  107 . So that, when the fasteners  119  are fastened, the pair of upper and lower pipe clamping members  111 ,  112  are vertically fastened to each other as described above and at the same time the lower pipe holding member  108  is fastened and fixed to the support tables  107 . 
   The upper pipe holding member  109  includes a pipe holding body  124  defining a plurality of insertion holes  123  for inserting hydraulic pipes  104   d ,  104   e  and a press plate  125  disposed on the pipe holding body  124 , so that the pipe holding body  124  may be vertically clamped by a fastener  127  between the press plate  125  and the upper clamping plate  115  of the lower pipe holding member  108 . The fastener  127  includes a threaded cylinder  128  projecting upwardly from the upper clamping plate  115  and a bolt  129  to be threaded on the threaded cylinder  128 . The threaded cylinder  128  is inserted and engaged through the insertion hole  131  of the pipe holding body  124  within this pipe holding body  124 . The bolt  129  is inserted from above into the press plate  125  and threaded on the threaded cylinder  128 . As the fastener  127  is fastened, the pipe holding body  124  is vertically clamped between the press plate  125  and the upper clamping plate  115  as described above. 
   The hydraulic pipes  104   a ,  104   b  are pipes connected to a discharging side of the first hydraulic pump  91 . These pipes  104   a ,  104   b  project from the first hydraulic pump  91  and are inserted and held in the lower pipe holding member  108  through the insertion holes  113  and then extend forwardly therefrom and are drawn out to the front side of the rear hood  15 , thereby feeding working oil from the first hydraulic pump  91  to the various hydraulic components (the boom cylinder  9 , the bucket cylinder  10 , the arm cylinder  11 , the hydraulic motor and control valves of the traveling apparatus  3 , etc.). 
   As shown in  FIGS. 12-15 , the hydraulic pipe  104   c  is a pipe connected to a discharging side of the second hydraulic pump  92 . The hydraulic pipe  104   c  projects from the second hydraulic pump  92  and then is inserted and held within the lower pipe holding member  108  through the insertion hole  123  and then extends forwardly to be drawn out to the front side of the rear hood  15 , feeding working oil from the first hydraulic pump  91  to the various hydraulic components (the boom cylinder  9 , the bucket cylinder  10 , the arm cylinder  11 , the hydraulic motor and control valves of the traveling apparatus  3 , etc.). 
   The hydraulic pipe  104   d  is a pipe for signaling connecting between the signal block with the line filter  95  or the check valve  96 . This pipe  104   d  projects from the line filter  95  or the check valve  96  and is inserted through and within the upper pipe holding member  109  through the insertion hole  123  and then extends forwardly to be drawn out to the front side of the rear hood  15  to be connected with the signal block. 
   The hydraulic pipe  104   e  is a pipe connected to the check valve  96  and the unload valve. This pipe  104   e  projects from the check valve  96  and is inserted through and within the upper pipe holding member  109  through the insertion hole and then extends forwardly to be drawn out to the front side of the rear hood  15  to be connected with the unload valve. 
   Incidentally, a discharging side of the third hydraulic pump  93  and the line filter  95  are connected to each other via an unillustrated hydraulic pipe, and the line filter  95  and the check valve  96  are connected to each other via an unillustrated hydraulic pipe. 
   As described above, according to the present invention, as the front leg member  59  projects forwardly to be located on one lateral side of the cabin  17 , this front leg member  59  extends by greater span in the fore and aft direction than the conventional construction. Therefore, even when the upper portion of the cabin  17  is subjected to a significant load to the front side, this front load can be sufficiently supported by the stiff projection of the front leg member  59 , thus avoiding development of looseness of the support frame  55  to the front side. 
   Further, as this front leg member  59  is formed of a metal rod having a C-shaped cross section, the nut or the like for attaching the cover member  73  can be readily and conveniently affixed to the rear side (lower side) of the front leg member  59 . 
   For inspecting the alternator  84  disposed inside the rear hood  15 , by detaching the lid member  78  from the cover member  73 , the first inspection window  75  provided at the rear end upper portion of the cover member  73  and the second inspection window  76  provided in the front wall  15   a  of the rear hood  15  can be opened and exposed at one time, thus allowing an operator&#39;s hand access to the alternator  84  through the first inspection window  75  and the second inspection window  76 . And, it is also possible to draw out the alternator  84  altogether through the first inspection window  75  and the second inspection window  76  to the front side of the rear hood  15 , whereby the inspection or maintenance of the alternator  84  can be carried out easily. 
   Further, as the pipe holding member  100  for concentrating and holding the plural air conditioning pipes  101  and the plural hydraulic pipes  104  all together is disposed inside the hood  15 , these air conditioning pipes  101  and the hydraulic pipes  104  can be held in a concentrated manner at one position inside the hood  15 . Hence, the handling and laying out operations of these hydraulic pipes  104  and the air conditioning pipes  101  can be carried out easily as well. Moreover, as the pipe holding member  100  includes the air conditioning pipe holding portion  103  for holding the plurality of air conditioning pipes  101  and the hydraulic pipe holding portion  105  for holding the plurality of hydraulic pipes  104 , with these two holding portions  103 ,  105  being vertically superposed with each other, the entire pipe holding member  100  can be formed compact and also the plurality of air conditioning pipes  101  and the plurality of hydraulic pipes  104  can be laid out and fixed in a compact manner in a plurality of stages. 
   Further, as the openings  33   a  of the swivel base  19  are provided adjacent the hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93  and the pipe holding member  100 , heat radiated from the hydraulic pumps  91 ,  92 ,  93  and the plurality of air conditioning pipes  101  and the plurality of hydraulic pipes  104  can be smoothly discharged through these openings  33   a  to the outside of the rear hood  15 , thus effectively preventing accumulation and stagnation of such heat inside the rear hood  15 . 
   Second Embodiment 
     FIG. 25  shows a swiveling work machine according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 
   In the first embodiment described above, the front leg member  59  of the support frame  55  is provided as a one-piece member. Instead, in this second embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 25 , the front leg member  59  is constructed as an inter-bonded assembly of three metal rods  135 ,  136 ,  137  each having a C-shaped cross section and a linear shape, with the rods  135 ,  136 ,  137  being bonded together by means of welding or the like. 
   The rest of this second embodiment is identical to the first embodiment. 
   Other Embodiments 
   In the foregoing respective embodiments, on the front side of the hood  15 , the cabin  17  as an example of ROPS is provided and the front portion of the cabin  17  is fixedly mounted on the swivel base  19  and the rear end of the cabin  17  is fixedly mounted on the upper portion of the support frame  55 . However, the ROPS is not limited to such a cabin  17 . Instead of the cabin  17 , any other type of ROPS such as a canopy, a safety frame, can be provided on the front side of the hood  15 , and the front portion of this ROPS may be fixedly mounted on the swivel base  19  and the rear end of the ROPS may be fixedly mounted on the upper portion of the support frame  55 . 
   Further, the arrangements of the components to be mounted on the swivel deck  4  (swivel base  19 ) can be reverse in the right/left direction. For instance, the ROPS such as the cabin  17  may be arranged on the right side of the swivel base  19  and the side hood  47  may be arranged on the left side thereof. 
   Moreover, instead of the single front leg member  59  provided in the support frame  55  in the foregoing embodiments, a plurality of front leg members can be provided to extend respectively upwardly of a plurality of vertical ribs.