IMPROVED TIPPING SYSTEM

IMPROVED TIPPING SYSTEM

The present invention is directed to bulk material transportation by a container supported on or incorporated in a vehicle.

An area of transportation which utilises special discharging facilities are commonly referred to as bottom dumper containers, which are particularly selected for a the of reason of lower centre of gravity and hence great stability while discharging.

The conventional bottom dump container are usually a relatively large structure due to the fact that the discharging angle of the container floor must be sufficient to promote gravity flow of the total payload being transported. This inclination of the floor reduces payload volume and/or increases the height of the container as it requires the angle of the "V" shape floor bottom to be sufficient to enable gravity discharge its payload, and the required payload capacity. The "V" shape can also produces a bottle neck situation at the discharge point, that can lead to problems such as choking of the outlet and/or jamming of hinged or sliding gates at the discharge opening. The bottle neck can also increase discharge time by the need to use relatively small aperture for strength requirement to avoid distortion and resulting jamming that slows the flow rate and/or large product not being able to pass through the opening.

There is disclosed in US Patent 3161148 by Konig, a rail truck for carrying particulate material, having box sections mounted on a chassis in general longitudinal alignment, with the inner end of each box open. Each of the boxes is hinged at its lower inner end to the chassis for pivotal movement about respective transverse axis. This allows each box to be raised to a tilted position by pivotal movement about the respective axis, whereby the contents of the boxes is discharged through a central opening between the respective hinged ends. Fixed side walls are provided on either side of the chassis to span the open areas between the respective boxes, both when the boxes are in the horizontal transport and the inclined discharge positions.

The disadvantages of the Konig construction is firstly that each of the boxes is pivoted at the lower inner corners thereof, and that the contents of the two boxes, when the boxes are upwardly inclined, is discharged through a single fixed side opening provided in the floor of the vehicle between the inner ends of the respective boxes. This construction limits the rate at which the contents of the boxes can be discharged, and has potential to promote instability due to the degree of inclination of the boxes necessary to ensure discharge of the total contents, at an acceptable rate.

An important factor in this form of transport equipment is that it must be capable of carrying a substantial payload, together with the ability to rapidly discharge the payload whilst also maintaining a high degree of stability of the vehicle during the dumping of the payload, thereby reducing the risk of the vehicle tipping sideways with the accompanying risk of injury to persons as well as damage to the vehicle and substantial loss of operating time.

In the Konig construction there is a relatively small size central discharge opening which extends no more than 50% of the width of the vehicle, hence severely restricting the rate of discharge of the contents of the vehicle. Secondly, Konig has each of the basis pivotally connected to the vehicle frame at the lower inner extremity of the box. This results in the necessity to raise the outer ends of the respective boxes to a substantial height in order to achieve a reasonable flow rate of material from the boxes through the small central opening. This necessitates the use of a high angle of tilt of the respective boxes, substantially increases the risk of the vehicle falling sideways and requires substantial hydraulic equipment to affect the lifting of the boxes as there is no counter-balancing effect during tipping.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a bulk materials transport container having twin inwardly tipping load carriers and having the significantly improved stability, particularly during discharge of the contents, and enables more effective and rapid discharge of the contents.

With this in mind, the present invention provides a container for transporting particulate materials comprising a chassis, two body portions each pivotally supported on the chassis in longitudinal alignment, each body being open at the adjacent ends and relatively disposed to define a unitary load carrying area, said body portions being selectively pivotal relative to the chassis to displace the open ends thereof downward relative to the chassis form the aligned relation to permit gravital discharge therebetween of material from within the body portions.

More specifically there is provided a container for transporting particulate materials comprising a chassis, two body portions each having one open end and supported on said chassis in longitudinal alignment with said open ends in adjacent aligned relation, a rigid upstanding side wall on either side of the bodies fixed to the chassis and spanning the junction of the aligned body portions, each body portion being connected to the walls to pivot relative thereto about respective axes transverse to the chassis to respective inclined positions with the open end of each body portion displaced downwardly from the aligned relation.

By arranging the pivotal movement of the body portions so that the inner ends thereof move downwardly to affect the discharge operation, enables the pivot axis to be located intermediate the length of the respective body portions, rather than at the inner end thereof as in the prior art, results in the load being distributed both fore and aft of the pivot axis, so reducing the effort required to effect the tipping of the body portions to the inclined discharge position.

In addition, by locating the pivot axis of each body portion upwardly from the lower wall or floor of the respective body portion, the discharge opening defined by the transverse edges of the respective body portions will progressively increase as the inclination of the body portions increases, thereby enabling very rapid discharge of the contents of the body portions.

The increase in the size of the discharge opening, as the body portions are inclined, is proportional to the distance that the pivot axis of each of the body portion is displaced from the open end thereof through which the discharge takes place. In addition the distance that each pivot axis is displaced upwardly from the base of the body portion will also increase the size of the discharge opening. The maximum benefit is obtained by a construction wherein the pivot point is displaced both upwardly from the base of the body portion, and inwardly from the open end of the body portion at which discharge occurs.

The invention will be further described by reference to the accompanying drawings illustrated one practical arrangement of a transport container.

In the drawings:-

Figure 1 is a side view of transport container, incorporating an embodiment of the invention in the mobile form. Figure 2 is a view as in Figure 1 in the discharge position.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the chassis of an alternative construction of the container.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a bin for use with the chassis shown in Figure 3. Figure 5 is a side view of an assembly of two bins and a chassis as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

Referring now to the drawings it is to be understood that the container depicted therein may be mounted on or incorporated in a range of vehicles including both rail and road vehicles and may be in a form directed mounted on the chassis of a vehicle or may be in the form of a trailer supported on its own wheel formation and connectable in a towing relation to a vehicle. In addition the container may be in a free-standing form which is transferable between one form of transportation to another, and in this regard, may be used in conjunction with either a road or rail vehicle or a ship or aircraft. Thus in some forms of the invention the chassis indicated at 10 in Figure 3 may be an integral part of the vehicle which effects the transportation thereof and in other forms may be a separate structure which is permanently or releasably attached to the structural frame of the vehicle.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 there is illustrated therein one practical arrangement of a container for transporting particulate materials and incorporating two wheel and axle assemblies suitable for operating on a conventional rail track. Other forms of wheel assemblies may be used for road use, or the container may not be equipped with wheels but is loaded onto a suitable vehicle or vessel for transporting thereof. The container 40 comprises two body portions or bins 41 arranged in an aligned relation on the base chassis 42 mounted on conventional rail boggies 43. Mounted on each side of chassis 42 is a respective upstanding side wall 44. Each of the bins 41 are pivotally attached to the respective side walls 44 by respective pivot bearing assemblies 45, one on each of the opposite sides of the container. As can be seen the axis of the respective pivot bearing assemblies 45 is spaced inwardly from the inner or central end 46 of the respective bin, and also spaced upwardly from the base of the bin.

Mounted at a fixed location centrally of the length of the chassis 42 is a fixed dividing wall 46 extending the width of the chassis between the upright side walls 44. The end of each of the bins 41 adjacent the walls 46 are not provided with an integral end wall but are open, and when the bins are in the horizontal position as shown in Figure 1 , abut the dividing wall 46 to be closed thereby. Also the upper corner portion 48 of the side walls of the bins, adjacent the wall 46, is of an arcuate shape having a centre at the pivot bearing assemblies 45, and extends through an arc of 90°.

At either end of the chassis 42 there is provided a respective telescopic hydraulic ram 50 attached at the lower end 51 to the chassis 42 and at the upper portion 52 to the end wall 53 of the bin 41. Upon expanding the hydraulic rams 50 each of the bins 43 pivot on the respective pivot bearing assemblies 45 from the disposition shown in Figure 1 to that shown in Figure 2. As the bins move to the inclined position shown in Figure 2 the inner open end thereof is displaced downwardly and outward away from the dividing wall 46 to expose the open lower portion 49 of each of the bins to thereby permit the gravity discharge of the contents of the respective bins.

As can be seen in Figure 2 the pivotal movement of the bin creates a substantial opening 55 for the discharge of the contents of the bin, and this opening extends across the full width of the bin, thereby providing rapid discharged of the contents of the bin.

Also, as the axis of the pivotal movement 45 of the bin is located a substantial distance above the floor of the bin and inward from the end thereof, there is created a downward and rearward displacement of that portion of the bin as the bin is tipped, the complete structure is more stable during discharge of the contents.

Referring now to Figures 3 and 4 the container comprises the base chassis 10 and two body sections 11 (one shown in Figure 4) of identical construction that are assembled in use with the chassis 10 in an end to end relationship, similar to that shown in Figure 1. Each body 11 is of a generally rectangular shape having opposed side walls 12 and one end wall 13 extending between the side walls 12 at the outer end of the structure, to form an open top and one open end rectangular box.

At the inner end 11a of each body 11 there is no end wall and each of the side walls 12 are constructed to form a upward and rearwardly sloping edge portion 14. These edge portions 14 are structurally reinforced by members 15, and adjacent the upper and rearward end thereof are provided respective aligned bearing structures 16 on the opposite sides of the body 11.

The chassis 10 is of an open frame structure of an overall length and width appropriate to support the two bodies 11 when arranged in an end to end relationship with the lower edges 25 of the open ends abutting. Centrally of the chassis 10 there is provided a rectangular opening 19 extending through the full depth of the chassis 10 and defined by the respective opposed transverse walls 17 and longitudinal walls 18.

Upstanding from the chassis 10, on the two opposite sides thereof, are respective bearing pillars 20, each carrying two longitudinally spaced bearing units 21. Each bearing unit is arranged to align with a bearing structure 16 provided on the bin that is located therebetween, and are rotatably secured together to pivotally attach each of the bins to the chassis.

When the two body sections 11 are assembled to the chassis with the bearing assemblies in place, the respective transverse edges 25 of the two body sections 11 will be in an abutting relation so that the central opening 19 in the chassis is closed to prevent the contents of the containers escaping through the central opening 19 in the chassis. However, upon pivotal movement of the respective body sections 11 about the bearing structures 16 in a manner similar to that shown in Figure 2, the edges 24 of the floor 11a of the containers will be moved in an arcuate movement about the respective bearing structure a substantial distance apart to define a transverse opening to permit the contents of the containers to gravity discharge through the central opening 19 in the chassis.

In order to limit and hopefully prevent spillage of material being transported in the container appropriate provision is made to effectly seal between components of the container which are subject to relative movement during use. Particular areas where movement occurs is between the walls of the tiltale body and the upstanding side walls to which the body is pivotably attached and where the transverse edges of the inner end of the bars of the body's engage when in the transport position.

A convenient form of seal is a solid or hollow rod of resiliently compressable material such as an appropriate material such as an appropriate grade of rubber such as synthetic rubber. It is preferred that the rod is of a diameter to be compressed when assembled between the relevant components of the container to ensure effective sealing. The composition of the rod must also be selected so binding thereof does not occur as the component of the container move relative to one another such as during tiltering of the bodies.

It will be appreciated that, as a result of the pivot axis of the bodies being displaced from the edges 24 of the bodies, the edges 24 can move apart and downward to create a relatively wide opening therebetween, extending across the full width of the central opening 19, thereby permitting rapid discharge of the contents of the body. Also as part of the respective bodies is displaced downwardly, into or through the opening 19, during discharge the resulting charge is weight distribution improves the stability of the complete container.

The tilting of the bodies 11 may be effected by hydraulic rams similar to that previously described with reference to Figures 1 and 2, or by appropriate alternative means such as overhead crane equipment provided at the location where the contents of the container is to be delivered.