JPH0117908B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a vehicle coupling machine for towing a vehicle, and more specifically, the locking/unlocking operation of a coupling hook that clamps a kingpin can be performed not only manually but also automatically. This invention relates to a manual and automatic operating device for a vehicle coupling machine that can be used in a variety of ways.

[Conventional technology]

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle coupling machine includes, for example, a coupler base 1 provided on the vehicle to be towed, and a pair of coupling hooks 3, 3 that rotate around a shaft 2 against a spring (not shown). is installed. The connecting hooks 3, 3 grip the king pin 4 of the towed vehicle with the clamping portions 5, thereby making it possible to connect the vehicles. In such a vehicle coupling machine, in order to prevent the king pin 4 from coming off the coupling hook 3 while the vehicle is in motion, a lock plunger is provided which can move forward and backward into the engagement groove 6 at one end of the coupling hooks 3, 3. 7 is engaged.

By the way, in order to remove the king pin 4 from the connecting hook 3, the operation of disengaging the lock plunger 7 from the engagement groove 6 is performed using a guide portion 8 provided on the lock plunger 7 (see FIG. 3) as shown in FIG. and an elongated hole 11 into which the pin 10 on the coupler base 1 is loosely fitted.
Pull the manual operation lever 12 guided by the spring 13 in the direction of the arrow 14 to remove the engagement pin 15 on the manual operation lever 12 from the engagement part 17 provided on the rib 16 of the coupler base 1. This is done by That is, when the manual operation lever 12 is moved linearly as described above, the manual operation lever 1
A lock guide 18 protruding from the coupler base 1 rotates the stopper link 20 in the direction of the arrow 23 about a shaft 22 fixed to the coupler base 1 against a spring 21. The lock plate 25 moves in the direction of the arrow 26 via the rod 24 connected to its tip, and the hole 28 formed in the rib 27 of the coupler base 1 opens. A spring 30 is interposed in the plunger rod 29 of the lock plunger 7, and the spring 30 constantly urges the lock plunger 7 toward the engagement groove 6 of the connecting hook 3.
Against this, the manual operation lever 12 is moved to the pin 10.
When the lock plunger 7 is rotated in the direction of arrow 31 around , the lock plunger 7 is moved in the direction of arrow 32 via the guide portion 8, and the tip of the plunger rod 29 passes through the hole 28 and protrudes from the rib 27.
is removed from the engagement groove of the pair of connecting hooks 3. At this time, the lock lever 35 shown in FIG.
a, and its engaging protrusion 35b engages with the engaging surface 7a carved in the lock plunger 7, and the lock plunger 7 is not restored by the spring 30 in the direction of the engaging groove 6. state. Therefore, each connecting hook 3 is rotatable on its own axis 2, and when the towing vehicle is moved forward, the king pin 4 of the stopped vehicle moves each connecting hook 3 against a spring (not shown). Rotate it and it will come off from the clamping part 5 of the pair of connecting hooks 3.
At this time, the lock lever 35 is moved to the spring 33 by the pin 9 implanted in the rotating connecting hook 3.
The lock lever 35 and the lock plunger 7 are unlocked. The locking plunger 7 is restored by the spring 30 in the direction of the engagement groove 6, the manual operating lever 12 returns to the original position shown in the figure via the guide part 8, and at the same time the hole 28 is also closed by the locking plate 25.

Conversely, when the king pin 4 is to be held by the connecting hook 3, the manual operation lever 12 is operated in the directions of arrows 14 and 31 in the same manner as in the case of disengagement described above, and the lock plunger 7 is disengaged from the engagement groove 6. At this time, the lock plunger 7 attempts to be restored toward the engagement groove 6 by the spring 30, but the engagement protrusion 35b of the lock lever 35 engages with the engagement surface 7a of the lock plunger 7, preventing its movement. be done. When the towing vehicle is moved backward in this state, the king pin 4 guided by the guide surface 1a (see FIG. 1) of the coupler base 1 fits between the pair of connecting hooks 3. When it is inserted, the connecting hook 3,
As 3 rotates, pin 9 moves to lock lever 35.
to release the lock plunger 7. As a result, the lock plunger 7 is fitted into the engagement groove 6 of the pair of connecting hooks 3, 3 by the spring 30, and the release of the king pin 4 is prevented. As the lock plunger 7 is restored, the manual operation lever 12 also moves via the guide part 8, and the engagement pin 15 is fitted into the engagement part 17 by the spring 13 and locked. is also closed by a locking plate 25. The movement of the lock plunger 7 that locks the connecting hook 3 is doubly prevented by the lock plate 25 and the engaging portion 17 to ensure safety. That is, unless the manual operating lever 12 is operated in the directions of arrows 14 and 31, the locking of the connecting hook 3 by the lock plunger 7 will not be released.

Incidentally, when the spring 30 for restoring the lock plunger 7 is not provided, the lock lever 35 described above is also unnecessary. In this case, the state in which the plunger rod 29 protrudes from the hole 28 is maintained unless the manual operation lever 12 is operated, but the spring 13 causes the engagement pin 15 of the manual operation lever 12 to press against the sliding surface 34. It is also maintained by However, when fitting the lock plunger 7 into the engagement groove 6 of the connecting hook 3, it goes without saying that the manual operation lever 12 must be operated in the opposite direction of the arrow 31.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

As described above, vehicles can be connected and disconnected from each other using a manually operated lever, but this operation must be performed by an operator outside the vehicle. The driver who brings the vehicle close to another vehicle must get out of the vehicle or another worker must perform the operation, which has the drawback of requiring time and labor.

By the way, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 58-22773 describes a device for automatically locking or releasing a coupling hook in a vehicle coupling machine manually or by an actuator. This is the rear end of the lock plunger that engages and disengages from the engagement groove of the connecting hook.
A piston rod of an air cylinder fixed to the edge of the coupler base is attached, and the air cylinder is operated remotely.

However, since the air cylinder must be installed so that it protrudes greatly from the coupler base,
The vehicle coupling machine itself becomes bulky. and,
When rotating the manual operating lever to disengage the lock plunger from the engagement groove of the connecting hook, the piston in the air cylinder must also be displaced, and a large operating force is required to rotate the manual operating lever. This poses a problem of increasing the burden on the worker. Further, the lock plunger and the piston rod of the air cylinder are integrated, and the piston at the end thereof is not restrained within the cylinder due to the function of the air cylinder. As a result, when the lock plunger is fitted into the engagement groove of the connecting hook, if an undesired force is applied to the manual operation lever or the like, a situation occurs in which the lock plunger is displaced and disengaged from the engagement groove.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to enable vehicle coupling to be performed using a manual operation lever, and to enable remote and automatic operation independent of that operation. The vehicle coupler should be made more compact by considering the mounting position of the actuator necessary for operation, and it should be possible to easily operate it manually without applying operating force to the actuator when operating with a manual operation lever, and furthermore, it should be possible to operate it automatically. While achieving this, it mechanically prevents or releases the displacement of the lock plunger that fits into the engagement groove of the coupling hook and maintains the locked state of the coupling hook, improving the safety and reliability of the vehicle coupling machine. It is an object of the present invention to provide a manual and automatic operating device for a vehicle coupling machine that realizes the following.

[Means for Solving the Problems] As shown in FIG. 4, the manual and automatic operation device for the vehicle coupling machine of the present invention has the following functions:
A pair of connecting hooks 3, 3 (see Figure 1) are rotatably attached to the coupler base 1, and in order to lock the rotation of the connecting hooks, the lock plunger 7 is displaced and attached to one end of the connecting hook 3. A lock plunger 7 is inserted into the formed engagement groove 6 (see Fig. 1).
A manual operating lever 41 that engages and disengages the lock plunger 7 and a stopper link 20 that rotates as the manual operating lever 41 moves linearly via a lock guide 18 provided on the manual operating lever 41 prevent or displace the lock plunger 7. Locking means 1 to release blocking
9 is applied to an operating device for a vehicle coupling machine.

The feature is that the rotation shaft 22A of the stopper link 20 attached to the coupler base 1
[See Figure 5] is provided with an auxiliary link 42 whose proximal end is fixed and rotates together with the stopper link 20, and a rotatable main link 43 whose intermediate portion is supported on the distal end of the auxiliary link 42. It is arranged. A piston rod of a hydraulic cylinder 44, which is swingably mounted on the coupler base 1, is rotatably connected to one end of the main link 43. On the other hand, a plunger guide body 45 is provided protrudingly from the lock plunger 7.
A plunger pushing part 46 is formed on the other end side of the main link 43, which contacts the main link 5 and pushes the lock plunger 7 in a direction to disengage it from the engagement groove 6 by the operation of the hydraulic cylinder 44. .

[Effect]

When the lock plunger 7 is remotely disengaged from the engagement groove 6 using the hydraulic cylinder 44, the hydraulic cylinder 44 is slightly extended from its initial state. The main link 43 tries to rotate, but since the plunger pushing part 46 contacts the plunger guide 45 and the movement of the lock plunger 7 is restricted by the lock means 19, only the auxiliary link 42 rotates. However, the main link 43 moves while slidingly contacting the plunger guide body 45. At this time, the stopper link 20 also rotates due to the rotation of the auxiliary link 42, and the prevention of displacement of the lock plunger 7 by the lock means 19 is released, and the stopper link 20 moves the manual operation lever 41 linearly. When the hydraulic cylinder 44 is further extended, only the main link 43 is rotated, and the plunger pushing part 46 is moved to the plunger guide body 4.
Press 5. The lock plunger 7, whose displacement prevention has already been released, moves and engages the engagement groove 6 of the connecting hook 3.
come off from Therefore, each of the connecting hooks 3, 3 becomes rotatable, and the king pin 4 held therebetween can be released.

When the king pin 4 is to be held between the connecting hooks 3, 3, the king pin is inserted into the holding portions of the pair of connecting hooks, and then the hydraulic pressure of the hydraulic cylinder 44 is released. When the lock plunger 7 is restored, the connecting hook is locked by the lock plunger 7, and the manual operation lever 41 and the main link 4 are locked.
3 is also rotated in the restoration direction. Manual operation lever 41
is further restored by linear movement, the lock plunger 7 is also prevented from being displaced by the locking means 19 via the stopper link 20.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the lock plunger is moved by a manual operation lever, and the hydraulic cylinder is arranged so as to overlap the manual operation engagement/disengagement mechanism having the lock means for blocking and releasing the movement of the lock plunger, and so as not to interfere with each other. Since the automatic locking/unlocking mechanism is provided, the vehicle can be connected using a manual operation lever, but it can also be performed automatically and remotely independently of the manual operation. Therefore, if an automatic locking/unclosing mechanism is used to clamp and release the kingpin from the coupling hook of the coupler base,
This eliminates the need for a driver who brings the towing vehicle close to another vehicle to get out of the vehicle and performs the operation, and there is no need for other workers to operate the vehicle, and the efficiency of the coupling operation can be greatly improved.

In addition, the hydraulic cylinder is not arranged to protrude from the coupler base, and the bulk of the vehicle coupler can be reduced. Furthermore, although automatic operation using the hydraulic cylinder is possible, no operating force is applied to the hydraulic cylinder during manual operation, making manual operation extremely easy. Since the lock plunger and the hydraulic cylinder are not integrated, it is possible to install a locking means for blocking and releasing the block from displacement of the lock plunger in conjunction with the operation of the manual operating lever or the hydraulic cylinder.
As a result, even if an undesired force is applied to the lock plunger, the lock plunger can be restrained by the lock means, and the safety and reliability of the vehicle coupler are improved.

〔Example〕

The present invention will be described in detail below based on examples thereof.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the coupler base 1 showing the main parts of the manual and automatic operation device 40 in the vehicle coupling machine of the present invention. A pair of rotatable connecting hooks are provided for clamping. In order to lock the rotation of this connecting hook, there is a lock plunger 7 that fits into an engaging groove at one end of the connecting hook, a manual operation lever 41 that displaces the plunger to engage and disengage it from the engaging groove, and a lock plunger such as a pin. Through the guide body 18, the arrow 1 of this manual operation lever 41
A manually operated engagement/disengagement mechanism is installed which includes a locking means 19 and an engaging portion 17 for blocking or releasing the blocking of displacement of the lock plunger 7 by means of a stopper link 20 which rotates as it moves linearly in four directions.

By the way, an auxiliary link 42 is attached to the stopper link 20 so as to overlap the above mechanism. As shown in FIG. 5, this auxiliary link 42 has its proximal end fixed to the rotating shaft 22A of the stopper link 20 that is fitted onto the shaft 22 erected on the coupler base 1, and is always integrated with the stopper link 20. It is designed to rotate. As shown in FIG. 4, at the tip of this auxiliary link 42, for example, a dogleg-shaped main link 43, which is supported via a shaft 48 at the intermediate portion, is rotatably attached. It is being A support shaft 4 provided on the coupler base 1 is attached to one end side of the main link 43.
The tip of the piston rod of a hydraulic cylinder 44, which is swingably mounted on the hydraulic cylinder 4a, is rotatably connected to the piston rod. On the other hand, the plunger rod 29 of the lock plunger 7 is engaged and disengaged from the engagement groove 6 of the connecting hooks 3, 3.
A plunger guide 45, such as a pin, is provided protrudingly. A plunger pushing part 46 that comes into contact with the plunger guide 45 and pushes the lock plunger 7 in a direction to disengage it from the engagement groove 6 by the extension operation of the hydraulic cylinder 44 is connected to the other end of the main link 43. formed on the side. In addition, the plunger pushing part 46 is formed with a linear sliding surface that can slide on the plunger guide body 45, and when the hydraulic cylinder 44 is initially slightly extended, the plunger guide body 45 and the main link 43 are connected to each other. Consideration has been given to making it possible to change the relative positions of the two. By the way,
The main link 43 is not limited to a dogleg shape, but may be a linear link supported at its intermediate portion (not shown). In any case, the hydraulic cylinder 44 is located on the lower surface of the coupler base 1 and does not protrude to the outside, so that the bulk of the vehicle coupler is kept to a minimum. 47 in the figure is another lock guide such as a pin protruding from the manual operating lever 41. When the stopper link 20 is rotated by the hydraulic cylinder 44, the manual operating lever 41 also moves in the direction of the arrow 14. It is meant to be moved. Therefore, although not shown, if a slightly arcuate long guide hole is provided in the stopper link 20 and a lock guide such as a pin protruding from the manual operation lever 41 is loosely fitted into the guide hole, the lock guide 47 and 1
8 can be one lock guide.

According to such a configuration, it can be operated as follows.

First, when disengaging the lock plunger 7 from the engagement groove using the manual operation lever 41 in order to remove the king pin from the connecting hook, the hydraulic cylinder 4
4 is reduced in size as shown in FIG. 4, and is operated according to the procedure explained in FIG. First, when the manual operation lever 41 is pulled in the direction of arrow 14, the stopper link 20 rotates in the direction of arrow 23 about the shaft 22 against the spring 21 via the lock guide 18, and as a result, the auxiliary link 42 It also rotates. However, the main link 43 is
The main link 43 is rotatably connected to the auxiliary link 42 around the main link 42, and although not shown, the main link 43 is slightly rotated around the connection point at the tip of the piston rod of the hydraulic cylinder 44. However, since the plunger guide body 45 is not pushed by the plunger pushing part 46, it maintains the same position. Next, when the manual operation lever 41 is rotated in the direction of arrow 31, the lock plunger 7 moves in the direction of arrow 32 via the guide part 8, and the plunger guide 45 moves away from the plunger pushing part 46, causing the lock plunger 7 to move in the direction of arrow 32. comes off from the engagement groove of the connecting hook. Thereafter, the kingpin is released in the same manner as described in the conventional example.

On the other hand, when the kingpin is to be held between the connecting hooks, first, with the main link 43 held in position by the hydraulic cylinder 44 (the state indicated by the solid line in FIG. 4), the manual operation lever 41 is moved as described above. As in the case of disengagement, operate in the directions of arrows 14 and 31 to remove the lock plunger 7 from the engagement groove. At this time, the lock plunger 7 attempts to be restored in the direction of the engagement groove by the spring 30, but its movement is prevented by the lock lever 35 shown in FIG. 1, allowing the connecting hook to rotate. Therefore, when the king pin fits into the clamping part, the lock lever 35
The lock plunger 7 is unlocked by the lock plunger 7. As a result, the lock plunger 7 is restored by the spring 30, and its plunger guide 45
is returned to its original position where it contacts the plunger pushing portion 46 again. When the lock plunger 7 is fitted into the engagement groove 6, the manual operation lever 41 is also restored in the direction opposite to the arrow 31 via the guide portion 8 and returned to its original position by the spring 13. At this time, due to the movement of the lock guide body 47 and the spring 21, the lock plate 25 is moved through the stopper link 20.
closes the hole 28, and the manual operation lever 41
The engaging pin 15 is locked by the engaging portion 17, and movement of the lock plunger 7 is prevented.

Next, when disengaging the lock plunger 7 from the engagement groove remotely from the driver's seat using the hydraulic cylinder 44 in order to remove the king pin from the connecting hook, move the hydraulic cylinder 44 from the initial solid line position to the fourth position. Slightly extend it to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line in the figure. At this time, the main link 43 tries to rotate around the shaft 48, but the plunger pushing part 46 of the main link 43 comes into contact with the plunger guide 45, and the movement of the lock plunger 7 is restricted by the lock plate 25. Since the auxiliary link 42 is
2, the main link 43 slides on the stationary plunger guide 45 and moves substantially parallel to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line. At this time, since the auxiliary link 42 is rotating around the shaft 22, the stopper link 20 also rotates, opening the hole 28, and the stopper link 20 pushes the lock guide 47, causing the manual operation lever 41 to open. is moved in the direction of arrow 14, and the engagement pin 15 is disengaged from the engagement portion 17. In this state, hydraulic cylinder 4
4 further extends from the two-dot chain line position to the solid line position shown in FIG.
9, further rotation of the auxiliary link 42 is prevented, and only the main link 43 is regulated by the shaft 4.
Rotates around 8. Therefore, the plunger pushing part 46 pushes the plunger guide body 45 in the direction of the arrow 32, so that the plunger rod 29 penetrates the already opened hole 28 against the spring 30.
The lock plunger 7 is disengaged from the engagement groove of the connecting hook 3. At this time, as the lock plunger 7 moves, the manual operation lever 41 is also rotated in the direction of the arrow 31 via the guide portion 8. Therefore, each connecting hook 3 becomes rotatable on its respective shaft 2, and the king pin 4 becomes able to be released. Note that unless the hydraulic pressure of the hydraulic cylinder 44 is released, the lock plunger 7 will not be restored in the direction of the engagement groove 6 by the spring 30, but if the lock lever 35 described in FIG. 1 is provided. Ba,
Even if the hydraulic pressure is released, the lock plunger 7 is prevented from returning to its original state. In this state, when the towing vehicle moves forward, the king pin 4 of the stopped vehicle comes off from the clamping portion 5 of the pair of connecting hooks 3, 3 while rotating each of the connecting hooks 3, 3.

On the other hand, when the lock plunger 7 is remotely inserted into the engagement groove 6 from the driver's seat using the hydraulic cylinder 44 in order to hold the kingpin between the connecting hooks, the kingpin is inserted into the holding portions of the pair of connecting hooks. After that, the working pressure of the hydraulic cylinder 44 is released in the state shown by the solid line in FIG. The lock plunger 7, together with the manual operating lever 41 and the main link 43, is restored by the spring 30 to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line, and the engaging pin 15 of the manual operating lever 41 reaches the engaging portion 17 from the sliding surface 34, and the manual operating lever 41 is restored to the solid line position shown in FIG. 4 by the spring 13. At this time, the lock plate 25 is moved through the stopper link 20 by the movement of the lock guide body 47.
closes the hole 28, and the manual operation lever 41
The engaging pin 15 is locked by the engaging portion 17. As a result, the locking of the connecting hook by the lock plunger 7 is maintained, and the lock plunger 7 is also placed in a restrained state.

Note that when the spring 30 for restoring the lock plunger 7 is not provided, for example, a double-acting cylinder is adopted as the hydraulic cylinder 44, and the lock plunger is first reduced from the solid line position to the two-dot chain line position shown in FIG. The plunger 7, manual operation lever 41, and main link 43 are restored to the positions indicated by the two-dot chain line. Then, when the hydraulic cylinder 44 is further reduced to the solid line position shown in FIG. 4, the manual operation lever 41 is restored by the spring 13. Other operations are the same as described above.

As can be seen from the above description, while the connection of the vehicle can be performed using a manual operation lever, it can also be performed remotely from the driver's seat independently of the operation. Therefore, when using an automatic locking/unlocking mechanism, the driver may get out of the vehicle and operate it.
There is no longer a need for other workers, and the efficiency of the connection operation is greatly improved. In addition, when a problem occurs in the hydraulic mechanism that operates the hydraulic cylinder, the manual engagement/disengagement mechanism can be used to operate the hydraulic cylinder, thereby ensuring operational safety. Furthermore, the hydraulic cylinder is not arranged to protrude from the coupler base due to its structure, and the vehicle coupling machine can be made more compact.
Although automatic operation using the hydraulic cylinder 44 is possible, the operating force is not applied to the hydraulic cylinder in the case of manual operation, making the manual operation simple and easy. Further, since the lock plunger and the hydraulic cylinder are only indirectly connected, a lock means may be provided to prevent and release the lock plunger from displacement in conjunction with the operation of the manual operation lever or the hydraulic cylinder. Even if an undesired force acts directly or indirectly on the lock plunger, the lock plunger can be restrained by the locking means, and the safety and reliability of the vehicle coupler can be ensured.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a bottom view of the coupler base showing the overall outline of the vehicle coupler, Figure 2 is a plan view of a manual operation device for a vehicle coupler having a conventional manual operation lock engagement/disengagement mechanism, and Figure 3 is the figure 2. FIG. 4 is a main part diagram showing the operating states of the manual and automatic operating devices in the vehicle coupler of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a view taken along the - line in FIG. 4, and FIG. It is an explanatory diagram of an operating state. 1...Coupler base, 3...Connection hook, 4...
... King pin, 6 ... Engagement groove, 7 ... Lock plunger, 18, 47 ... Lock guide body, 19 ...
Locking means, 20...Stopper link, 22A...
... Rotation shaft, 41 ... Manual operation lever, 42 ... Auxiliary link, 43 ... Main link, 44 ... Hydraulic cylinder, 45 ... Plunger guide body, 46 ... Plunger pushing part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A pair of connecting hooks rotatably attached to the coupler base in order to clamp the king pin of the towed vehicle, and a lock plunger being displaced to lock the rotation of the connecting hooks. a manual operating lever that engages and disengages the lock plunger from an engagement groove formed at one end of the connecting hook; and a lock guide provided on the manual operating lever that rotates as the manual operating lever moves linearly. In an operating device for a vehicle coupler, which is provided with a locking means for blocking or releasing the blocking of displacement of the lock plunger by a stopper link, the proximal end side is fixed to a rotating shaft of the stopper link attached to the coupler base, and the stopper link is integrated with the stopper link. A rotating auxiliary link is provided, and a rotatable main link whose intermediate portion is supported on a shaft is provided at the distal end of the auxiliary link, and one end of the main link is swingably attached to the coupler base. A piston rod of a hydraulic cylinder is rotatably connected to the lock plunger, and a plunger guide is protruded from the lock plunger, and comes into contact with the plunger guide, and the operation of the hydraulic cylinder moves the lock plunger into the engagement groove. 1. A manual and automatic operating device for a vehicle coupling machine, characterized in that a plunger pushing part that pushes in a direction to release from the main link is formed on the other end side of the main link.