US3680653A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Self-driven carriage
Assignee: Hitachi Ltd
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Filing: 1969-08-21
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Granted: 1972-08-01
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Expires: 1989-08-21
Abstract
Abstract Two pairs of driven wheel units and a pair of driving wheel units are rotatably mounted on the underside of a loading bed at the front, rear and the intermediate positions of the bed, each wheel unit including at least a pair of wheels mounted on an axle which is pivotally mounted to the loading bed and operatively rotated by a hydraulic mechanism. A travel mode designating mechanism is operatively associated with the hydraulic mechanism so as to set the respective wheel units in a desired direction individually providing for travelling of the carriage in longitudinal, transverse or gyratory movement and for steering of the individual wheel units during travelling of the carriage.
Inventors
- 👤 Norio Murata
- 👤 Toshihiko Takeda
- 👤 Hirochika Sakai
- 👤 Akio Utsumi
- 👤 Nobuyuki Matsuda
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-24 10:45
CPC Classifications
B; B62; B62D; B62D7/00; B62D7/02; B62D7/04; B60; B60G; B60G21/00; B60G21/02; B60G21/06; B60G3/00; B62D33/00; B62D33/06; B62D61/00; B62D61/10; B62D7/06; B62D7/14; B62D7/142; B62D7/144
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 22
Claim 1
Independent Claim
516 words
A self-driven carriage comprising: a loading bed; at least four driven wheel units pivotally mounted to said loading bed of said carriage, at least two of said units being positioned at the front sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed and at least two of said units being positioned at the rear sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed, each of said driven wheel units including an axle, a mounting means supporting said axle pivotally mounted to said bed so as to permit the rotation thereof about a pivotal center of each said unit, at least one pair of driven wheels rotatably mounted on said axle at the opposite ends thereof in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the pivotal center, and a rotating mechanism to pivotally rotate said mounting means; at least two driving wheel units pivotally mounted to said bed and positioned at an intermediate position between said front and said rear sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed, each of said driving wheel units including an axle, a mounting means supporting said axle pivotally mounted to said bed so as to permit the rotation thereof aboUt a pivotal center of each said driving wheel unit, at least one pair of driving wheels rotatably mounted on said axle at the opposite ends thereof in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the pivotal center, and a rotating mechanism for pivotally rotating said mounting means; means for transmitting drive force to said driving wheels of said driving wheel units; a travel mode designating mechanism including a longitudinal travel mode designating link mechanism which temporarily connects said respective driven and driving wheel units with said corresponding rotating mechanism so as to allow the wheels of all of said wheel units to be oriented in a longitudinal direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of said bed; a transverse travel mode designating link mechanism which temporarily connects said respective driven and driving wheel units with said corresponding rotating mechanisms so as to orient the wheels of all of said wheel units in a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said bed; and selection means for selectively actuating said longitudinal and transverse travel mode designating link mechanisms whereby said carriage possesses a longitudinal and a transverse travel mode; manual steering means adapted to permit the coordinated steering of the carriage; and longitudinal traveling steering means operatively associated between said manual steering means and said driven wheel units when said longitudinal travel mode designating link mechanism is actuated, said longitudinal traveling steering means adapted to permit the steering of the wheels of only said driven wheel units during traveling of the carriage in the longitudinal direction in such a manner that the imaginary extensions of the respective wheel axles of all said wheel units intersect each other in a center point of curvature of the carriage.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
516 words
A self-driven carriage comprising: a loading bed; at least four driven wheel units pivotally mounted to said loading bed of said carriage, at least two of said units being positioned at the front sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed and at least two of said units being positioned at the rear sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed, each of said driven wheel units including an axle, a mounting means supporting said axle pivotally mounted to said bed so as to permit the rotation thereof about a pivotal center of each said unit, at least one pair of driven wheels rotatably mounted on said axle at the opposite ends thereof in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the pivotal center, and a rotating mechanism to pivotally rotate said mounting means; at least two driving wheel units pivotally mounted to said bed and positioned at an intermediate position between said front and said rear sides of said bed in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the longitudinal center line of said bed, each of said driving wheel units including an axle, a mounting means supporting said axle pivotally mounted to said bed so as to permit the rotation thereof aboUt a pivotal center of each said driving wheel unit, at least one pair of driving wheels rotatably mounted on said axle at the opposite ends thereof in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to the pivotal center, and a rotating mechanism for pivotally rotating said mounting means; means for transmitting drive force to said driving wheels of said driving wheel units; a travel mode designating mechanism including a longitudinal travel mode designating link mechanism which temporarily connects said respective driven and driving wheel units with said corresponding rotating mechanism so as to allow the wheels of all of said wheel units to be oriented in a longitudinal direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of said bed; a transverse travel mode designating link mechanism which temporarily connects said respective driven and driving wheel units with said corresponding rotating mechanisms so as to orient the wheels of all of said wheel units in a transverse direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said bed; and selection means for selectively actuating said longitudinal and transverse travel mode designating link mechanisms whereby said carriage possesses a longitudinal and a transverse travel mode; manual steering means adapted to permit the coordinated steering of the carriage; and longitudinal traveling steering means operatively associated between said manual steering means and said driven wheel units when said longitudinal travel mode designating link mechanism is actuated, said longitudinal traveling steering means adapted to permit the steering of the wheels of only said driven wheel units during traveling of the carriage in the longitudinal direction in such a manner that the imaginary extensions of the respective wheel axles of all said wheel units intersect each other in a center point of curvature of the carriage.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
101 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 1, in which said longitudinal traveling steering means is so designed as to set the driving wheels always in the longitudinal direction of the carriage and steer only the driven wheels of the front and rear driven wheel units in such a manner that the axles of the front driven wheel units and those of the rear driven wheel units are rotated in reverse rotating directions to each other, whereby imaginary extensions of the axles of the respective driven wheel units intersect in imaginary extensions of the axles of the respective driving wheel units.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
163 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 1, which further comprises transverse traveling steering means operatively associated between said manual steering means and all of said driven and driving wheel units when said transverse travel mode designating link mechanism is actuated, said transverse traveling steering means adapted to permit the steering of all of the wheels of said driven and driving wheel units during traveling of the carriage in the transverse direction, which is so designed as to rotate the wheel axles of the driven and driving wheel units positioned at one side of said bed with respect to the longitudinal axis of said bed and the axles of the driven and driving wheel units positioned at the other one side of said bed with respect to the longitudinal axis of said bed in reverse directions to each other in such a manner that imaginary extensions of all the wheel axles intersect each other in a center point of curvature of the carriage.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
50 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 1, in which the driving power transmitting mechanism for the driving wheel units is provided with a spline mechanism, so that the loading bed may be held in an elevated position by said jack-constituting hydraulic pressure balancing mechanism during travelling of the carriage.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
71 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 1, in which said travel mode designating mechanism further includes a gyration mode designating link mechanism which is adapted to set all the wheels in such directions that imaginary extensions of the wheel axles of all said units intersect with each other at the center of gyration of the carriage, said selection means further adapted to selectively actuate said gyration mode designating link mechanism.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
96 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 5, in which the respective driven wheel units are positioned in symmetrical relation to each other with respect to a point of symmetry located in the vicinity of the center of the carriage and said gyration mode designating link mechanism is so designed as to set all of the driving wheels always in the longitudinal direction of the carriage and to set all of the driven wheels in such directions that imaginary extensions of the axles of all said units intersect with each other in said point of symmetry.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
33 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 5, in which said drive force transmitting means operatingly drives the driving wheel units in opposite directions to each other during the gyration of the carriage.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
29 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 5, in which said drive force transmitting means comprises individual driving power transmitting mechanisms provided each for the respective driving wheel units.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
31 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 8, in which said driving power transmitting mechanism is of such construction that the direction of rotation of the driving wheel can be reversible.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
23 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 8, in which each said driving power transmitting mechanism is provided with an independent drive source.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
53 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 10, in which said driving sources of the respective driving wheel units rotate the associated driving wheels in the same direction during the travelling of the carriage in a longitudinal or transverse direction, but in opposite directions to each other during the gyration of the carriage.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
77 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 1, which further comprises a hydraulic pressure balancing mechanism for providing hydraulic pressure balance within each of three groups of wheel units consisting of a first group comprising the front driven wheel units, a second group comprising one of the rear driven wheel units and one of the driving wheel unit, and a third group comprising the rest of the wheel units, so as to constitute a three-point suspension system.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
32 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 12, which further comprises a pump means for cooperation with said hydraulic pressure balancing mechanism, whereby said hydraulic pressure balancing mechanism acts as a jack.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
421 words
A self-driven carriage comprising: a loading bed; at least six wheel units rotatably connected to said loading bed and including at least two driven wheel units positioned at the front sides of said loading bed, at least two driven wheel units positioned at the rear sides of said loading bed and at least two driving wheel units positioned between the front and rear pairs of said driven wheel units, each of said wheel units being rotatable about a vertical axis to said loading bed through 180* and having an axle rotatable therewith and at least two wheels rotatably mounted on said axle; means for transmitting a drive force to said driving wheels of said driving wheel units; a travel mode designating mechanism including engageable longitudinal, transverse and gyration travel mode means for setting the carriage in longitudinal, transverse and gyration travel modes, respectively; rotating means, positioned adjacent each of said wheel units and operably associated with said travel mode designating mechanism, for rotating said wheel units to orient said wheels in a longitudinal travel mode, a transverse travel mode at an angular difference of 90* from said longitudinal travel mode or a gyration travel mode intermediate said longitudinal and said transverse travel modes; and a manually actuatable steering means for the coordinated steering of said wheels in such a manner that, when said longitudinal travEl mode means is engaged, said driven wheel units positioned at the front side of said loading bed and said driven wheel units positioned at the rear side of said bed are rotated in the reverse directions to each other but said driving wheel units are set to be oriented in a longitudinal direction of said bed so that the imaginary extensions of all of said axles of said driven wheel units intersect together at a point on imaginary transverse extensions of the axles of said driving wheel units and that, when said transverse travel mode means is engaged, a set of said driven and driving wheel units positioned at one side with respect to a longitudinal axis of said bed and another set of said driven and driving wheel units positioned at the other side with respect to the longitudinal axis of said bed are rotated in the reverse directions to each other so that the imaginary extensions of all said axles of said driven and driving wheel units intersect together at a point in the longitudinal axis of said loading bed, whereby said carriage is steered in both of the longitudinal and transverse travel modes.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
421 words
A self-driven carriage comprising: a loading bed; at least six wheel units rotatably connected to said loading bed and including at least two driven wheel units positioned at the front sides of said loading bed, at least two driven wheel units positioned at the rear sides of said loading bed and at least two driving wheel units positioned between the front and rear pairs of said driven wheel units, each of said wheel units being rotatable about a vertical axis to said loading bed through 180* and having an axle rotatable therewith and at least two wheels rotatably mounted on said axle; means for transmitting a drive force to said driving wheels of said driving wheel units; a travel mode designating mechanism including engageable longitudinal, transverse and gyration travel mode means for setting the carriage in longitudinal, transverse and gyration travel modes, respectively; rotating means, positioned adjacent each of said wheel units and operably associated with said travel mode designating mechanism, for rotating said wheel units to orient said wheels in a longitudinal travel mode, a transverse travel mode at an angular difference of 90* from said longitudinal travel mode or a gyration travel mode intermediate said longitudinal and said transverse travel modes; and a manually actuatable steering means for the coordinated steering of said wheels in such a manner that, when said longitudinal travEl mode means is engaged, said driven wheel units positioned at the front side of said loading bed and said driven wheel units positioned at the rear side of said bed are rotated in the reverse directions to each other but said driving wheel units are set to be oriented in a longitudinal direction of said bed so that the imaginary extensions of all of said axles of said driven wheel units intersect together at a point on imaginary transverse extensions of the axles of said driving wheel units and that, when said transverse travel mode means is engaged, a set of said driven and driving wheel units positioned at one side with respect to a longitudinal axis of said bed and another set of said driven and driving wheel units positioned at the other side with respect to the longitudinal axis of said bed are rotated in the reverse directions to each other so that the imaginary extensions of all said axles of said driven and driving wheel units intersect together at a point in the longitudinal axis of said loading bed, whereby said carriage is steered in both of the longitudinal and transverse travel modes.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
41 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 14, wherein the respective driving wheel units are driven by a single engine whose power is transmitted through a transmission mechanism which selectively drives the respective driving wheel units in the desired relative directions.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
25 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 14, wherein the respective driving wheel units are respectively driven by individual power sources which are reversibly operable.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
174 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 14, which further comprises: control valve means which activate and control said rotating means; and wherein said travel mode designating mechanism which sets said carriage in one of said longitudinal transverse and gyration travel modes is adapted to temporarily engage one of said travel mode means with said control valve means to actuate said rotating means so that said wheel units are set in the corresponding one of said travel modes; and said steering means includes a steering handle and a steering link mechanism operatively engaging said steering handle and said control valve means, said steering link mechanism adapted to regulate said control valve means so that, when said longitudinal travel mode means is engaged, the front and rear pairs of said driven wheel units are rotated in reverse directions with respect to each other, and when said transverse travel mode means is engaged, the right and left side sets of said driven and driving wheel units are rotated in reverse directions with respect to each other.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
60 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 17, wherein said travel mode designating mechanism is adapted to operatively engage said gyration travel mode means to set all of said wheels in such directions that the imaginary inward extensions of said wheel axes intersect with each other at a center point to thereby set said carriage in said gyration travel mode.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
30 words
A self-driving carriage as defined in claim 18, wherein said driving wheel of the respective driving wheel units are driven in opposite directions to each other, thereby gyrating said carriage.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
89 words
A self-driven carriage as defined in claim 17, wherein said travel mode designating mechanism is adapted to operatively engage said gyration travel mode means to set said wheel axles of said driving wheel units in a transverse direction of said carriage and said wheel axles of all said driven wheel units in such directions that their imaginary inward extensions intersect together at a center point on the imaginary inward extensions of said wheel axles of said driving wheel units to thereby set said carriage in said gyration travel mode.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US3280931A
Cited
US3404746A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-08-01 | 1976-01-31 | 1976-08-01 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-08-01 | 1980-01-31 | 1980-08-01 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-08-01 | 1984-01-31 | 1984-08-01 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |