Tractor vehicle having material handling subframe

Claim 2

A tractor vehicle and material handling subframe, in combination, comprising a tractor body defined in part by side walls on opposite sides of thE tractor centerline, by end walls at opposite ends of the side walls and by a bottom wall all partially enclosing a compartment area, an engine, hydraulic drive means powered by said engine contained within said compartment, a plurality of spaced stub axles projecting from the side walls on opposite sides of said compartment, wheels driven by said hydraulic drive means rotatably mounted on said stub axles, a subframe mounted on said tractor body comprising laterally spaced, longitudinally extending side beams, support means mounted on said stub axles, said side beams secured to said stub axles on said support means and defining an interior space for receiving said tractor body, upright members projecting upwardly from adjacent the rear of each side beams on each side of said engine and providing at the upper ends thereof a pair of pivotal mountings, a pair of lift arms pivotally attached at said pivotal mountings and extending forwardly along each side and downwardly at the front in the lowered position mounting a material handling means whereby material handling loads are contained predominately in said subframe and transferred to said stub axles directly.

Claim 3

A tractor vehicle and material handling subframe as defined in claim 1 wherein said side, end and bottom walls define an upper compartment area joining a lower compartment area, said engine being mounted on the rear of said body and driving into said upper compartment area, said hydraulic drive means including first and second variable displacement pumps each of which has a series of revolving pistons and cylinders rotatably driven on a common shaft connected to said engine in said upper compartment area and first and second hydraulic motors operatively connected with said first and second pumps situated in said lower compartment area and drivably connected to said wheels.

Claim 4

A tractor vehicle and material handling subframe as defined in claim 2 wherein first and second gear reduction cases are mounted on opposite sides of said side walls, each having an input shaft driven by said first and second motors respectively and an output shaft drivably connected to said wheels.

Claim 5

A tractor vehicle and material handling subframe as defined in claim 3 wherein said stub axles sealably project through said side walls into said lower compartment area and have a drive sprocket on the inner ends thereof, first and second chain drive means drivably connected to said sprockets and being driven by said output shafts of said first and second gear reduction cases.

Claim 6

A skid steered loader vehicle comprising a body defined in part by side walls on opposite sides of the vehicle center line, by end walls at opposite ends of the side walls and by a bottom wall partially enclosing a compartment area, a pair of stub axles spaced, one axle behind the other, at opposite ends of the compartment and projecting outwardly from each side, tubular axle housings rigidly secured to said side walls and surrounding said stub axles, a mounting boss on each of said tubular axle housings, an operator''s compartment intermediate the end walls above said compartment area a loader subframe comprising laterally spaced, longitudinally extending side beams and cross members at each end defining a generally interior rectangular space for receiving and partially surrounding said body, said side beams having longitudinally spaced mounting locations for mounting on said mounting bosses for securing said subframe onto the body, upright members projecting upwardly from adjacent the rear of each side beam providing at the upper ends thereof a pair of pivotal mountings, a pair of lift arms pivotally attached at said pivotal mountings and extending forwardly along each side and downwardly at the front in the lowered position mounting a material handling means whereby material handling loads are contained predominately in said subframe and transferred to said tubular axle housings directly.

Claim 7

A skid steered loader vehicle comprising a body defined in part by side walls on opposite sides of the vehicle center line, by end walls at opposite ends of the side walls and by a bottom wall partially enclosing a compartment area, a pair of stub axles spaced, one axle behind the other, at opposite ends of the compartment and projecting outwardly from each side, tubular axle housings rigidly secured to said side walls and surrounding said stub axles, a mounting boss on each of said tubular axle housings, an operator''s compartment intermediate the end walls above said compartment area a loader subframe comprising laterally spaced, longitudinally extending side beams and cross members at each end defining a generally interior rectangular space for receiving and partially surrounding said body, said side beams having longitudinally spaced mounting locations for mounting on said mounting bosses for securing said subframe onto the body, upright members projecting upwardly from adjacent the rear of each side beam providing at the upper ends thereof a pair of pivotal mountings, a pair of lift arms pivotally attached at said pivotal mountings and extending forwardly along each side and downwardly at the front in the lowered position mounting a material handling means whereby material handling loads are contained predominately in said subframe and transferred to said tubular axle housings directly.

Claim 8

A skid steered loader as defined in claim 5 wherein a pair of lAterally spaced, pivotal mounting locations are provided on the subframe and a protective structure for the operator''s compartment is mounted at said pivotal mounting locations capable of pivoting out of the way for access to said compartment area of the body.

Claim 9

A skid steered loader comprising in combination separate tractor and loader subframe assemblies, said tractor assembly including a body defined in part by side walls on opposite sides of the loader center line and by end walls at opposite ends of the side walls and a bottom wall enclosing at least partially a lower compartment area having a length less than the distance between wheels on opposite sides of the loader, additional side and end walls spaced from said first mentioned side and end walls defining a smaller upper compartment area medially of said tractor body so as to provide an engine space at the rear thereof and a space for the operator''s legs at the front, a pluarlity of stub axles projecting from the sides of the lower compartment area and spaced apart less than the width across between the wheels, a support mounting on each stub axle said loader subframe assembly comprising a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending side beams generally defining therebetween a space longer than it is wide to receive and partially surround said tractor body and secured to said support mountings on the stub axles, a pair of upright members joined at the bottom by a cross member, said upright members being formed of metal plate elements wider at the bottom than at the top so as to protectively enclose a portion of said engine space, a shoulder plate secured inwardly of and spaced from said upright plate and generally conforming to the configuration of the upper portion thereof providing a pivotal mounting location at the upper end thereof between said shoulder and upright plates, a pair of lifting arms, one connected between each upright and shoulder plate at the pivotal mounting location and extending forwardly and downwardly therefrom alongside the operator''s space and supported in the lowermost position on the front portion of the subframe and said arms extending downwardly immediately at the front of said loader and mounting a material handling member on the ends thereof whereby said upright members and side beams protectively surround the tractor and loader forces are contained and transferred to the stub axles directly.

Claim 10

A skid steered loader comprising in combination separate tractor and loader subframe assemblies, said tractor assembly including a body defined in part by side walls on opposite sides of the loader center line and by end walls at opposite ends of the side walls and a bottom wall enclosing at least partially a lower compartment area having a length less than the distance between wheels on opposite sides of the loader, additional side and end walls spaced from said first mentioned side and end walls defining a smaller upper compartment area medially of said tractor body so as to provide an engine space at the rear thereof and a space for the operator''s legs at the front, a pluarlity of stub axles projecting from the sides of the lower compartment area and spaced apart less than the width across between the wheels, a support mounting on each stub axle said loader subframe assembly comprising a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending side beams generally defining therebetween a space longer than it is wide to receive and partially surround said tractor body and secured to said support mountings on the stub axles, a pair of upright members joined at the bottom by a cross member, said upright members being formed of metal plate elements wider at the bottom than at the top so as to protectively enclose a portion of said engine space, a shoulder plate secured inwardly of and spaced from said upright plate and generally conforming to the configuration of the upper portion thereof providing a pivotal mounting location at the upper end thereof between said shoulder and upright plates, a pair of lifting arms, one connected between each upright and shoulder plate at the pivotal mounting location and extending forwardly and downwardly therefrom alongside the operator''s space and supported in the lowermost position on the front portion of the subframe and said arms extending downwardly immediately at the front of said loader and mounting a material handling member on the ends thereof whereby said upright members and side beams protectively surround the tractor and loader forces are contained and transferred to the stub axles directly.

Claim 11

A tractor vehicle comprising a body defined in part by spaced side walls, end walls and a bottom wall partially enclosing a compartment area, four ground-engaging wheels, two on each side, front and rear axles rotatably supporting said wheels on one end spaced from said side walls, four openings, two on each side, through said side walls into said compartment area through which the opposite ends of said axles extend, right and left gear reduction means in said compartment area each having wheel sprockets, one on the said opposite end of each axle within said compartment area, an output drive sprocket intermediate the front and rear wheel sprockets for driving the wheels and endless chain means driven by said output drive sprockets and traveling around said wheel sprockets for driving the wheels independently in either forward or reverse directions, a power source, hydrostatic transmission means transmitting power from said power source independently at variable speeds to said right and left gear reduction means, said vehicle being propelled and steered by driving the wheels on one side independently of the wheels on the opposite side, and said wheels being spaced apart on axes perpendicular to a vertical center plane through the compartment area a distance greater than the distance between said axes in said plane, and a material handling subframe comprising a separate fabricated assembly including a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending beams mounted on the axles in the space between the tractor body side walls and the wheels, a pair of uprights, one on each side, adjaCent the rear thereof providing at the upper ends a pivotal mounting location, a pair of lift arms, one on each side, pivotally mounted at the rear on said mounting locations of the uprights and extending forwardly and downwardly in the lowered position for mounting a material handling member at the front, hydraulic cylinder means carried on said material handling subframe for raising and lowering said lift arms and pivoting a material handling member when mounted on the forward ends of the lift arms whereby material handling loads are contained in said subframe and transferred to said stub axles directly.

Claim 12

A tractor vehicle comprising a body defined in part by spaced side walls, end walls and a bottom wall partially enclosing a compartment area, four ground-engaging wheels, two on each side, front and rear axles rotatably supporting said wheels on one end spaced from said side walls, four openings, two on each side, through said side walls into said compartment area through which the opposite ends of said axles extend, right and left gear reduction means in said compartment area each having wheel sprockets, one on the said opposite end of each axle within said compartment area, an output drive sprocket intermediate the front and rear wheel sprockets for driving the wheels and endless chain means driven by said output drive sprockets and traveling around said wheel sprockets for driving the wheels independently in either forward or reverse directions, a power source, hydrostatic transmission means transmitting power from said power source independently at variable speeds to said right and left gear reduction means, said vehicle being propelled and steered by driving the wheels on one side independently of the wheels on the opposite side, and said wheels being spaced apart on axes perpendicular to a vertical center plane through the compartment area a distance greater than the distance between said axes in said plane, and a material handling subframe comprising a separate fabricated assembly including a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending beams mounted on the axles in the space between the tractor body side walls and the wheels, a pair of uprights, one on each side, adjaCent the rear thereof providing at the upper ends a pivotal mounting location, a pair of lift arms, one on each side, pivotally mounted at the rear on said mounting locations of the uprights and extending forwardly and downwardly in the lowered position for mounting a material handling member at the front, hydraulic cylinder means carried on said material handling subframe for raising and lowering said lift arms and pivoting a material handling member when mounted on the forward ends of the lift arms whereby material handling loads are contained in said subframe and transferred to said stub axles directly.

Claim 13

A tractor vehicle according to claim 8 wherein the tractor body comprises upwardly extending wall portions defining an upper compartment area, an opening in the rear wall of said upper compartment area, said power source being mounted behind said rear wall of the upper compartment area, a shaft driven by said power source extending through said opening, said hydrostatic transmission means including a pair of variable displacement hydrostatic pumps mounted in said upper compartment area aligned with each other and said shaft, each said pump comprising revolving piston and cylinder groups driven in unison and in the same direction of rotation by said shaft.

Claim 14

A tractor vehicle according to claim 8, wherein said tractor body includes front and rear axle housings secured to said side walls within which the front and rear axles are journalled and mounting means for removably securing said material handling subframe to said axle housings.

Claim 15

A tractor vehicle according to claim 8, wherein said uprights of the material handling subframe each comprises an outer plate wider at the bottom and tapering upwardly toward the top providing one side of said pivotal mounting location and an inner plate secured to the outer plate and spaced therefrom providing the other side of said mounting location and each of said lift arms being pivotally mounted between said plates.

Claim 16

A tractor vehicle according to claim 9, wherein said right and left gear reduction means each includes a gear case mounted on the opposite side walls within said compartment area and having identical configurations in reverse relationship on opposite sides of said vertical center plane viewed in a horizontal plane thereabove, input shafts into gear cases perpendicular to said center plane on spaced axes and, said hydrostatic transmission means including a pair of hydrostatic motors, one mounted on each gear case connected with said input shaft and driven by one of said variable displacement hydrostatic pumps.

Claim 17

A tractor vehicle according to claim 12, wherein each gear case includes said output drive sprocket and a plurality of gears are in meshing relationship connecting said input shaft and sprocket including a first gear driven by said input shaft, an intermediate shaft spaced from said input shaft axially shiftable between first and second positions perpendicular to the vertical center plane, an intermediate gear rotatably mounted on said intermediate shaft and being shiftable therewith between said first and second positions, an output shaft connected to the output drive sprocket, a gear driving the output shaft and meshing with said intermediate gear in the first position and being disengaged therefrom in the second position in which latter case said hydrostatic transmission means is disconnected from driving relationship with said wheels.