JPH027876B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device for centering the upper part of a separable crane with respect to the lower part, ie the carrier.

According to the invention, there is provided a crane having an upper part supported by retractable legs above a carrier, the crane having complementary rotating elements in which said carrier and said upper part must be substantially aligned. A lowering centering device for the upper part of the crane, comprising: a plurality of recessed members mounted on the carrier; vertical centering pins slidably carried by the upper part and provided in a number equal to the number of recessed members; a centering pin having a convex end complementary to said concave member; said convex end contacting said concave member such that said upper part and said rotating element of said carrier are vertically spaced apart from each other; and a retaining pin selectively retaining the centering pin in a position with the upper portion fully resting on the carrier and the convex end vertically spaced from the concave member. ;
and the leg is configured to seat the convex end fully within the concave member when the leg retracts when the retention device holds the centering pin in an extended condition. a float attached to enable said upper part to move laterally with respect to said carrier, said rotating element being substantially centered when said convex end is fully seated within said corresponding concave member; A crane upper lowering centering device is provided, wherein said concave member is disposed on said carrier so as to be aligned.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 and 2, the crane with reference numeral 10 has an upper part 12 which is connected by means of bearings 16 to a lower part or carrier 14.
It is pivotably mounted on the top. The bearing 16 is removably secured to a ring 18 attached to the top 12, and when the locking ring is expanded it locks the bearing 16 and ring 18 together and when the locking ring is retracted the bearing 16 is released from the ring 18. and top 1
It is now possible to separate the two. The preferred device used to removably secure rings and bearings in this manner is the 1975
No. 3,923,407, issued Dec. 2 to L.B. Jensen and R.E. Soon. As can be seen from this patent, the ring must be positioned in alignment with the bearing so that the rotating pinion can also engage a ring gear provided on the outer race of the bearing to rotate the upper part. Must be familiar. The problem encountered in re-lowering the upper part onto the carrier is that these components must be aligned within relatively small tolerances.

The upper part 12 is preferably provided with a plurality of legs 20, one at each corner thereof, and a double-acting hydraulic jack 2.
2 is fixed to or incorporated into the free end of each leg 20. Hydraulic jack 22 with ring 18 and bearing 16 released
When extended, the upper portion 12 rises from the carrier 14, as shown in FIG. When these hydraulic jacks 22 are retracted, the upper part 12 is lowered onto the carrier 14. A float 24 is pinned to the end of the rod of each jack 22, the float distributing the load over a relatively large area, thereby maintaining a moderate amount of ground pressure. There is. Four centering pins 26 carried in the upper portion 12 and corresponding recessed members or sockets 28 secured to the carrier 14 provide alignment or centering of the aforementioned elements. Two pins 26 are arranged at each end of the upper part 12. Since all four pins 26 and their cooperating elements are identical, a complete understanding will be achieved by describing only one of these elements.

Referring now to FIGS. 3-6, centering pin 26 is slidably mounted within a tube-shaped member or sleeve 30 secured to upper portion 12. Referring now to FIGS. The pin 26 itself is preferably a tube-shaped member to reduce weight, and a hardened frusto-conical cap 32 is secured to its lower end. A handle 34 is attached to the upper end of pin 26. The handle 34 is preferably rigidly constructed and its lateral dimensions are larger than the inside diameter of the sleeve 30 to prevent the pin 26 from falling through the sleeve 30. The pin 26 is provided with a lateral hole 36, and the sleeve 30 is also provided with a lateral hole 38 similar to the lateral hole 36. A retaining pin 40 can be inserted through these lateral holes 36,38. As shown in FIG. 3, the centering pin 26 is lifted by grasping the handle 34 by hand, and the holding pin 40 is passed through the side hole 38 to place the convex end, that is, the cap 32, on the holding pin 40. It can also be placed in a storage position. As shown in FIG. 4, by lowering the centering pin 26,
38 and inserting the retaining pins 40 into both side holes, the pins 26 are placed in the operating position, that is, the centering position. Holding pin 40, side hole 36,3
8 constitutes a holding device that holds the centering pin 26.

a concave surface 44 complementary to the conical surface of the cap 32;
Attached to the carrier 14 is a socket 42 having a diameter approximately twice that of the pin 26 and preferably circular in plan view. The angle between the concave conical surface 44 and the cap 32 is selected such that the tangent to this angle is approximately equal to the coefficient of friction between the parts when both parts are lubricated. By setting such an angle, centering can be performed effectively without applying a large lateral load to the structure.

In order to first place the recessed member or socket 42 on the carrier 14, the upper part 12 and the carrier 14 are assembled with the upper part 12 facing the rear of the carrier 14 and in longitudinal alignment with the carrier 14. Once upper portion 12 and carrier 14 are in this position, centering pin 26 is lowered into contact with socket 42, which is not yet secured. Next, the position of the socket 42 is adjusted so that the center lines of the pin 26 and the socket 42 are aligned, and then the socket is fixed.

The alignment procedure for re-lowering is illustrated in FIGS. 4 to 6. As shown in FIG. 1, upper portion 12 is lifted from carrier 14 and centering pin 26 is retained by pin 40 in the down, or use, position.
The carrier 14 is adjusted sufficiently to position the pin 26 so that at least a portion of the sloped surface of the cap 32 is directly above the concave surface 44. As indicated by reference numeral 50 in FIG. 4, the centerline 46 of pin 26 is offset from the centerline 48 of socket 42. Next, slowly contract the jack 22, lower the upper part 12, and tighten the pin 2 as shown in FIG.
6 into contact with the socket 42. Further retraction of the jack 22 forces the pin 26 by the socket 42 toward the center of the socket.
Thus, the upper portion 12 moves horizontally with respect to the stationary carrier 14, as shown by arrow 52 in FIG. Then, the pins 26 and sockets 42 are aligned, and since there are four pins 26 and four sockets 42 each, the upper part 1
2 are centered within tolerance and the upper 12
and carrier 14 can be reconnected. Next, the jack 22 is extended to the extent that the holding pin 40 can be removed from the side holes 36, 38. The jack 22 is then fully retracted and the upper part 12 is lowered onto the lower part 14 again. The handle 34 can then be grasped to lift the centering pin 26 and the retaining pin 40 can be passed through the hole 38 on the underside of the carrier 32 to hold the pin 26 in the stowed position. The upper part 12 can then be rotated on the carrier 14.

Horizontal movement of the upper part 12 while supported by the legs 20 typically places significant stress on the legs 20 as well as other components of the upper part 12. In order to prevent this from occurring, the float 24 is provided with a base 54 to which an abutment block 56 is fixed, as shown in FIG. An upper abutment plate 58 rests on the abutment block 56 such that the plate 58 is movable relative to the abutment block 56. Both of these abutment members have smooth abutment surfaces and are lubricated to minimize the frictional forces resisting movement under load. Since the socket 60 is attached to the abutment plate 58, the rod end of the jack 22 can be easily attached to the socket 60 by the removable pin 62. The socket 60 and pin 62 constitute a jack attachment device for attaching the jack 22 to the float 24. Contact plate 58
A retaining flange 64 is fixed to the periphery of the abutment block 56, the flange being able to restrict the lateral movement of the abutment plate 58 with respect to the abutment block 56. Thus, the retaining flange 64 constitutes a movement limiting device that limits relative lateral movement between the abutment plate 66 and the abutment block 56. As shown in FIG. 7, float 24 is initially positioned with abutment block 56 centered with respect to abutment plate 58. As shown in FIG. To achieve this positional relationship, the abutment block 56 is centered on a plate 66 forming part of the base 54.
The peripheral edge of the flange 64 is aligned with the flange 64 fixed to the abutting plate 58. During the alignment operation shown in FIG. 6, the legs 20 and jack 22 also move laterally. The abutment plate 58 and the members secured to the abutment plate 58 can be moved laterally as the upper portion 12 moves, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, abutment plate 58 is free to move in any direction in the horizontal plane within the range determined by the contact between flange 64 and block 56. The use of handles 70, 72 each secured to abutment plate 58 and base 54 allows for easy transportation and positioning of abutment plate 58 and base 54, respectively.

Although one preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it is contemplated that changes or modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention, which is limited by the scope of the claims. That can be easily understood.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a crane to which the present invention is applied, showing the upper part of the crane in an elevated state; FIG. 2 is a plan view with a part of the crane shown in FIG. 1 omitted; and FIG. The figure is a longitudinal cross-sectional view taken along line 3--3 of Figure 2, showing one of the pins and its corresponding socket with the pin retracted; Figure 4 is the same as Figure 3; 5 is a side view of the pin shown in FIG. 4, showing the pin in contact with the socket with the upper part of the crane lowered; FIG. 6 is a side view of the pin shown in FIG. Figure 7 is a side view similar to Figure 1, showing the pin moved laterally by further lowering the upper part of the crane; Figure 7 is a cross-section of the float taken along line 7-7 in Figure 1; 8 is a sectional view of the float shown in FIG. 7, showing the float as it has moved laterally during the alignment operation, and FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line 9-9 in FIG. FIG. 10... Crane, 12... Upper part, 14... Lower part (carrier), 16... Bearing, 18...
Ring, 20...Leg, 22...Hydraulic jack, 2
4...Float, 26...Centering pin, 28...
... socket (concave member), 32 ... carrier (convex member), 40 ... holding pin, 54 ... base,
56...Abutment block, 58...Abutment plate,
64...Retaining flange.

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. A crane having an upper part supported by retractable legs above a carrier, the crane having complementary rotating elements such that the carrier and the upper part must be substantially aligned. a lowering centering device for the upper part of the crane, comprising: a plurality of recessed members mounted on the carrier; vertical centering pins slidably carried by the upper part and provided in a number equal to the number of recessed members; a centering pin having a convex end complementary to said concave member; said convex end contacting said concave member such that said upper part and said rotating element of said carrier are mutually perpendicular to each other; a retaining pin selectively retaining the centering pin in a spaced apart position and in a position with the upper portion fully resting on the carrier and the convex end vertically spaced from the concave member; holding device;
and the leg is configured to seat the convex end fully within the concave member when the leg retracts while the retainer holds the centering pin in an extended position. a float attached to enable said upper part to move laterally with respect to said carrier, said rotating element being substantially centered when said convex end is fully seated within said corresponding concave member; a crane upper lowering centering device, wherein said concave member is disposed on said carrier so as to be aligned; 2. In the crane upper part lowering centering device according to claim 1, each of the floats includes: a base in contact with the ground; an abutment block fixed to the base; An abutment plate movable relative to the abutment block; and a jack attachment device for attaching a jack to the abutment plate. 3. The crane upper part lowering centering device according to claim 2, which includes a movement limiting device for restricting relative lateral movement of the abutment plate and the abutment block. Device. 4. In the crane upper part lowering centering device according to claim 3, the movement limiting device is a flange attached to the periphery of the abutment plate and capable of engaging with the abutment block. Output device.