Patent ID: 7284946

Claim:
A mobile skid turner for inverting skid loads of paper and the like, comprising: an H-shaped base frame portion having wheel means at approximate ends of each leg of said base frame portion for facilitating movement of the mobile skid turner in any desired directions, said wheel means being adapted to allow for swivel motion on at least two of said wheel means; at an intermediate position of said base frame portion are opposing upright structural members; Rotatable shaft means for inverting a skid of product about an axis of rotation, said axis of rotation being transversely oriented and aligned perpendicularly to a vertical plane extending vertically from side members of said H-frame portion, said side members being spaced-apart so as to be outside a load inversion operating envelope during operation of said skid turner; a first fork means for engaging an underlying side of a skid pallet located under a product to be inverted and a second fork means for engaging an overlying side of another skid pallet overlying the product to be inverted; means for activating said first and second fork means to engage or disengage from contact with said skid pallets; sensor and limit switch means located on at least one member of each of said first and second fork means for stopping a clamping action of the fork means at a predetermined clamping setting; power assist means for rotating the clamped product about the axis of rotation of the rotatable shaft means; controller means for selectively controlling the clamping action and the rotation action of the product; handle means for guiding and maneuvering the skid turner, said handle means extending vertically from either side of a plane of the axis of the rotatable shaft to accommodate accessibility to said handle means by an operator; and at least two of said wheel means include means for locking said wheel means to prevent movement of the skid turner.