US4015680A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Automatic railless ground conveyor installation
Assignee: Buro Patent AG
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Filing: 1976-03-25
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Granted: 1977-04-05
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Expires: 1996-03-25
Abstract
Abstract An automatic railless ground conveyor installation comprising a passive guide track determining the route network and individual driverless or unmanned traveling conveyor cars, each of which possesses a steering mechanism scanning in a contactless manner the guide track. The steering mechanism comprises a central scanning element which during straight ahead travel of the conveyor car is located over the guide track and after turning of the conveyor car onto the guide track serves to reset the steering deflection of the conveyor car and at least two scanning elements arranged to each side of the central scanning element at a progressively increasing distance therefrom. The outermost scanning elements when activated by the guide track serve to trigger a greater steering deflection than the inner situated scanning elements.
Inventors
- 👤 Herbert Pircher
- 👤 Johannes Hambuch
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-28 08:37
CPC Classifications
B; B62; B62D; B62D1/00; B62D1/24; B62D1/28; G; G05; G05D; G05D1/00; G05D1/02; G05D1/021; G05D1/0231; G05D1/0244; G05D1/0259; G05D1/0263
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
188 words
An automatic railless ground conveyor installation comprising a guide track for defining a route network having branches, a number of individual driverless traveling conveyor cars, each of said conveyor cars possessing steering mechanism for the contactless scanning of the guide track and a work control mechanism, said work control mechanism including code reading means for the contactless scanning of individual code markings identifying the branches and directly influencing the steering mechanism in the sense of reaching a destination determined by a target code set at the work control mechanism, the steering mechanism comprising a central scanning element which during straight ahead travel of the conveyor car is located over the guide track and after turning of the conveyor car onto the guide track serves to reset the steering deflection of the conveyor car, and at least two scanning elements arranged to each side of the central scanning element at progressively increasing distance therefrom and transversely arranged with respect to the direction of conveyor car travel, the outermost scanning elements when activated by the guide track serve to trigger a greater steering deflection than the inner situated scanning elements.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
188 words
An automatic railless ground conveyor installation comprising a guide track for defining a route network having branches, a number of individual driverless traveling conveyor cars, each of said conveyor cars possessing steering mechanism for the contactless scanning of the guide track and a work control mechanism, said work control mechanism including code reading means for the contactless scanning of individual code markings identifying the branches and directly influencing the steering mechanism in the sense of reaching a destination determined by a target code set at the work control mechanism, the steering mechanism comprising a central scanning element which during straight ahead travel of the conveyor car is located over the guide track and after turning of the conveyor car onto the guide track serves to reset the steering deflection of the conveyor car, and at least two scanning elements arranged to each side of the central scanning element at progressively increasing distance therefrom and transversely arranged with respect to the direction of conveyor car travel, the outermost scanning elements when activated by the guide track serve to trigger a greater steering deflection than the inner situated scanning elements.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
141 words
The ground conveyor installation as defined in claim 1, wherein the steering mechanism comprises a steering drive including a steering motor, a cam switching mechanism operatively coupled with the steering drive and movable proportional to the steering movement, each scanning element having operatively associated therewith a cam disk cooperating with switching elements, the scanning elements having switching cam means, the switching cam means of the central scanning element during its activation by the guide track and with turned steering closing a resetting current circuit for the steering motor and interrupting the resetting current circuit when the steering is turned back, and the switching cam means of the remaining scanning elements are arranged such that for limiting the steering deflection they interrupt a drive current circuit of the steering motor which is closed upon activation of one of the outermost scanning elements.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
52 words
The ground conveyor installation as defined in claim 1, wherein the steering mechanism comprises a crank guide drive means including crank pin mens, loop means cooperating with said crank pin means, said crank pin means being located at the center of said loop means when the conveyor car travels substantially straight ahead.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
42 words
The ground conveyor installation as defined in claim 1, wherein the steering mechanism is coupled with the target code mechanism such that for branching off of the conveyor car at a branch the outermost scanning element associated with the branch is activated.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
125 words
The ground conveyor installation as defined in claim 1, wherein the steering mechanism comprises a steering drive including a steering motor, a mechanism operatively coupled with the steering drive and movable proportional to the steering movement each scanning element having operatively associated therewith switching means, the switching means of the central scanning element during its activation by the guide track and with turned steering closing a resetting current circuit for the steering motor and interrupting the resetting current circuit when the steering is turned back, and the switching means of the remaining scanning elements are arranged such that for limiting the steering deflection they interrupt a drive current circuit of the steering motor which is closed upon activation of one of the outermost scanning elements.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1980-04-04 | 1980-10-04 | 1981-04-05 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1984-04-04 | 1984-10-04 | 1985-04-05 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1988-04-04 | 1988-10-04 | 1989-04-05 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |