JP7729635B2 - Bogie bracket and bogie equipped with same - Google Patents

Description

Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Act applies. A prototype model will be provided at TRUSCO NAKAYAMA CORPORATION Osaka Head Office (1-34-15 Shinmachi, Nishi-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture) on November 18, 2022.

The present invention relates to a bracket that connects the handle and top panel of a cart, and a cart equipped with the bracket.

In conventional carts, brackets connecting the handle and top plate were often made of metal. While these brackets were durable, they had drawbacks such as being difficult to assemble and being heavy. Furthermore, metal brackets are difficult to mold and process, making it difficult to manufacture brackets with specific shapes and strengths. Furthermore, when attaching the brackets, special structures or secondary processing were required to prevent the bolts and nuts from rotating together.

JP 2006-76428

In Patent Document 1, the bracket of the carriage is formed by bending a single metal plate formed into a predetermined shape by punching or the like (paragraph 0013).
As described above, the bracket of the trolley is made from a single metal plate, which has the disadvantage of being heavy. Also, when attaching the bracket to the top plate, the bolts and nuts often rotate together.

The object of the present invention is to provide a trolley bracket that is easy to assemble, lightweight yet maintains adequate strength, and has the function of preventing the bolts and nuts from rotating together, as well as a hand truck equipped with such a bracket.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a bracket that connects the handle and top plate of a push cart, characterized in that the bracket body is made of resin and comprises two parts, a first member and a second member, and ribs are formed on the inner surfaces of the first member and the second member.
The first and second members each have a bolt mounting hole on the inside thereof, and when the bolt mounting hole of the first member is located at the rear of the tabletop, the bolt mounting hole of the second member is located at the front of the tabletop, and conversely, when the bolt mounting hole of the first member is located at the front of the tabletop, the bolt mounting hole of the second member is located at the rear of the tabletop, so that the bracket has an alternating front-to-back arrangement.

This invention provides a lightweight bracket that is easy to assemble. In particular, the unique component arrangement and rib formation improve strength and durability, and also prevents the bolt and nut from rotating together. Furthermore, the use of such a bracket contributes to the weight reduction of the entire bogie, making it easier to handle and move, and is expected to improve overall durability and lifespan.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 shows an overview of the handcart of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes a top plate, 2 to 5 wheels, 6 a handle, and 7 a bracket connecting the handle to the top plate. Wheels 2 to 5 are attached to the four corners of the bottom of top plate 1. Handle 6 is U-shaped, with both ends of handle 6 attached to two corners of top plate 1. The handcart can be moved by loading luggage or the like onto top plate 1 and manually pushing handle 6.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bracket 7 when the handle is connected.
Reference numeral 1 denotes a top plate, 6 denotes a handle, and 13 denotes a lever shaft. When an operator steps on the lever shaft 13, the handle 6 can be tilted forward.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the bracket 7 before assembly, as seen from the front of the top plate.
The bracket 7 is made of resin and has two parts, a first member 12a and a second member 12b. These first member 12a and second member 12b are shell-shaped members each with an outer peripheral wall. When combined with each other, they form a single housing, forming a hollow space and a lattice-like rib structure inside . The bracket 7 has an opening 19 through which the handle 6 passes.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the bracket 7 when the handle 6 is connected.
Reference numeral 1 denotes a tabletop, 6 denotes a handle, 12a denotes a first member of the bracket, 13 denotes a lever shaft, 14a denotes a torsion spring, and 15 denotes a support shaft. In Figure 4, the right side is the operator's side (hereinafter referred to as the rear side of the tabletop), and the left side is the front side of the tabletop.

The bracket body is made of resin and is attached to the top surface of both corners of the rear end of the tabletop 1. The bracket 7 and the end of the handle 6 are axially attached by a support shaft 15. The handle 6 is rotatable, but because it interferes with the upper end 20 of the bracket opening 19, the handle 6 can only be tilted forward.

The lever shaft 13 passes through an elongated guide hole 8a provided in the first member 12a of the bracket 7. Note that the second member 12b does not have a guide hole, so the lever shaft 13 does not pass through it.
The lever shaft 13 is supported by a pair of brackets 7 .

The torsion spring 14a is attached to the locking portion 16a of the first member 12a. Because the guide hole 8a is elongated in the vertical direction, the lever shaft 13 is pushed upward by the bias of the torsion spring 14a. As a result, the handle 6 is clamped between the lever shaft 13 and the rivet 22, and is normally unable to be tilted forward. When the operator steps on the lever shaft 13 and holds it at the bottom end of the guide hole 8a, the handle 6 can be tilted forward.

Next, the bracket according to the present invention will be described.
Figure 5 is an oblique view of the first member 12a of the bracket 7 when the handle is connected, as viewed from the inside; Figure 6 is an oblique view of only the first member 12a of the bracket 7 when viewed from the inside; and Figure 7 is an oblique view of the first member 12a of the bracket 7 with a bolt fixed thereto, as viewed from the inside.
The first member 12a has a rib formed on its inner surface. Reference numeral 16a denotes a locking portion for attaching the torsion spring 14a, 17a denotes a bolt mounting hole, and 18a denotes a fixing portion for the head of the bolt.

The bracket 7 of the trolley is made of resin. Specific materials should preferably be 100% polycarbonate, a plastic with high impact resistance.

By using resin instead of conventional metal brackets, assembly is easier and the overall weight is reduced. Furthermore, while metal brackets consist of one part, the bracket of this invention has a two-part structure. This two-part structure is designed to make it easier to process the inside of the bracket, and the ease of processing resin in particular is a major advantage.

In order to reduce the weight of this bracket, it is preferable that the bracket body be designed to be thin, but a rib structure is used inside to ensure strength.
The bracket is characterized in that the ribs can be formed more easily by being separated into two parts than when it is molded as a single piece.

The bracket body is made of resin and comprises two parts: a first member and a second member, with ribs formed on the inner surfaces of the first member and the second member.

Figure 8 is a perspective view from the inside showing how the bolt 9 is fixed to the second member 12b of the bracket 7. The second member 12b has a bolt mounting hole 17b. The first member 12a and the second member 12b have symmetrical shapes, but what is particularly noteworthy is the position of the bolt mounting hole. The bolt mounting hole is located behind the top plate for the first member 12a (Figure 7), while it is located in front of the top plate for the second member 12b (Figure 8).

The reason for this arrangement is that by providing the mounting holes at different positions in the front and back, the connection between the top plate and the bracket receives a uniform force, resulting in improved overall balance.
Furthermore, the alternating front-to-back mounting hole arrangement also has the effect of dispersing the stress and torque that the bracket receives, which disperses the force and stress that would otherwise be concentrated in one place, reducing the risk of damage to the bracket or tabletop.
Therefore, by arranging the mounting holes alternately front to back, it is possible to make the connection between the bracket and the top plate more stable and strong.

In other words, the first and second members each have a bolt mounting hole on the bottom surface, and when the bolt mounting hole of the first member is located behind the top plate, the bolt mounting hole of the second member is located in front of the top plate, and conversely, when the bolt mounting hole of the first member is located in front of the top plate, the bolt mounting hole of the second member is located behind the top plate, so the bracket is characterized by an alternating front-to-back arrangement.

In FIG. 6, the first member 12a has a fixing portion 18a above the bolt mounting hole 17a.
The shape of the fixing portion 18a corresponds to the shape of the hexagonal bolt head 10. That is, the fixing portion 18a has a semi-open hexagonal shape, which is designed to securely hold the hexagonal bolt head 10 in place and prevent unexpected movement. This shape makes it possible to prevent the bolt and nut from rotating simultaneously when attaching or detaching from the trolley.

If the bolt is an octagonal bolt, it is preferable that the fixing portion 18a be semi-open octagonal.

In other words, the fixing portion above the bolt mounting hole corresponds to the shape of the bolt head, and the bolt mounting hole functions to prevent the bolt and nut from rotating simultaneously when attaching or detaching from the trolley. It is preferable that the shape of the fixing portion be an open hexagon or octagon to match the shape of the nut.

In this way, bracket 7 makes the most of the properties of polycarbonate resin, offering the excellent benefits of being lighter and easier to process than conventional metal brackets.

1 is a schematic view of a hand truck according to the present invention; FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the bracket when the handle of the present invention is connected. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bracket before assembly, seen from the front of the top plate of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the bracket when the handle of the present invention is connected. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the first member of the bracket when the handle of the present invention is connected. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of only the first member of the bracket of the present invention, as viewed from the inside. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a bolt being fixed to a first member of the bracket of the present invention, as seen from the inside. FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the second member of the bracket of the present invention being fixed by a bolt, as seen from the inside.

1 Top plate 2 to 5 Wheels 6 Handle 7 Bracket 8a Guide hole 9 Bolt 10 Bolt head 12a First member 12b Second member 13 Lever shaft 14a Torsion spring 15 Support shaft 16a Locking portion 17a 17b Bolt mounting hole 18a Fixing portion 19 Bracket opening 20 Upper end 21 Lower end 22 Rivet

Claims (5)

A bracket that connects the handle and the top plate of a hand truck.
The bracket is made of resin and includes two parts, a first member and a second member, which are shell-shaped members facing each other . The first member and the second member are combined to form a single housing, which is placed on the top surface of the tabletop and attached so as to sandwich the handle.
A bracket characterized in that ribs are formed on inner surfaces of the first member and the second member. The bracket according to claim 1,
The first member and the second member each have a bolt mounting hole on a bottom surface thereof,
A bracket characterized by having an alternating front-to-back arrangement in which, when the bolt mounting holes of the first member are located at the rear of the top plate, the bolt mounting holes of the second member are located at the front of the top plate, and conversely, when the bolt mounting holes of the first member are located at the front of the top plate, the bolt mounting holes of the second member are located at the rear of the top plate.
The bracket according to claim 2 ,
A bracket characterized in that the fixing portion at the top of the bolt mounting hole has a shape corresponding to the shape of the bolt head, and has a function of preventing the bolt and nut from rotating simultaneously when mounting and dismounting the bracket from the trolley.
4. The bracket according to claim 3, wherein the shape of the fixing portion is a semi-open hexagonal or octagonal shape that matches the shape of the head of the bolt.
A hand truck comprising the bracket according to any one of claims 1 to 4.