GB1583936A

GB1583936A - Vehicle construction

Info

Publication number: GB1583936A
Application number: GB2161278A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: EDILI MACCHINE
Current assignee: EDILI MACCHINE
Priority date: 1977-10-24
Filing date: 1978-05-23
Publication date: 1981-02-04
Also published as: NL7803534A; FR2406540A1; NL172636C; ES468966A1; IT1115740B; NL172636B; DE2813314A1; BE865681A; FR2406540B1

Description

(54) VEHICLE CONSTRUCTION (71) We, SOCIETA' PER LA COSTRU ZIONE DI MACCHINE EDILI S.P.A. an Italian body corporate of Via Pietro Calamandrei 255, Arezzo, Italy, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement:- The present invention relates to a vehicle construction and in particular to the connection of auxiliary fixtures or equipment to the frame of a vehicle.

As it is known, vehicles, in particular trucks, trailers, half-trailers and the like, have a frame constructed in such a way as to correctly support the loads which are transmitted thereto with the necessary elastic strains, especially with respect to the influence of the road unevenness, taking into account the characteristics of the wheels and related suspension members.

In a case in which it is necessary to connect, fixedly or immovably, particular equipment or fixtures to the frame of a vehicle, it is a normal practice to provide a further frame (a false frame or back frame) forming a portion of the fixture or equipment concerned and which has to be firmly connected to the vehicle frame.

In this case, the stiffness characteristics of the vehicle frame are changed and affected by the presence of the added false frame, the characteristics of the latter having, superimposed thereon, the characteristics of the auxiliary fixture itself, thereby creating a variation of the original characteristics of the vehicle frame, giving rise to added strains and varying the dynamic equilibrium of the system comprising the vehicle suspension and wheels.

An object of the present invention is to reduce the deleterious mutual influence or interaction arising from the connection between a vehicle frame and a false frame for auxiliary fixtures or equipment.

According to the invention there is provided a vehicle construction including a vehicle frame, an auxiliary frame mounted on the vehicle frame and a fixture mounted on the auxiliary frame, in which construction the auxiliary frame is mounted on the vehicle frame by three pivotal connections located at the apices of a first triangle so as to establish a firm connection between the two frames while providing some freedom for elastic deformation of the vehicle frame with respect to the auxiliary frame, and the fixture is mounted on the auxiliary frame by three pivotal members located at the apices of a second triangle.

An embodiment of the invention is described below by way of example with reference to the sole figure of the accompanying drawing which shows schematically a perspective view of a preferred embodiment as applied to a vehicle, carrying a concrete mixer or the like.

In the drawing, reference A indicates the two side members (shown in chain dotted lines) of the frame of a transport vehicle, whereas reference B indicates an auxiliary frame in the form of the base frame of a concrete mixer C. The rotating drum of the concrete mixer C is, in known manner, supported at one end by two bearing rollers constituting pivotal members rotatably mounted on the base frame B and at the other end by a support member 2 which constitutes a third pivotal member and is also connected to the base frame B. The three members 1, 2 are thus located at the apices of an isosceles triangle. The member 2 may comprise, for example, a ball joint, a hinge or spherical support member.

Driving forces for rotating the drum are normally applied, for example through a reduction gear, to said other end of the drum.

The frame B, in the illustrated example, consists of a substantially rectangular struc -ture the perimeter of which is defined by beams which may be of box-shaped cross section to provide the desired stiffness.

Naturally the frame may have any shape and structure (for example a closed structure) depending on the type of the fixture to be supported, the loads concerned, the positions of centres of gravity and so on.

In the illustrated example, the connection between the frame B and the frame A of the vehicle consists of two pivotal connections 3 having a common pivotal axis xx which is generally horizontal and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, said pivotal connections 3 being provided by respective horizontal shafts carried by frame B and also carried by two forked support members 4, the members 4 being in turn fixedly connected (by known means, not shown) to the side members A of the vehicle frame. The shafts forming pivots 3 may be rotatably journalled in frame B in forked support members 4 or in both.

The base frame B and the frame A of the vehicle are connected at a third pivotal connection 5, the pivotal axis yy of which is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and coincides with the longitudinal centre line of the vehicle itself. The three pivotal connections 3, 5 are thus located at the apices of an isosceles triangle having its base remote from the isosceles triangle defined by the restraining members 1, 3.

The pivotal connection 5 comprises a longitudinal shaft carried by a crossmember 8 of the frame B and also carried by a cross piece 6 extending between, and supported by two end brackets 7 secured in turn to the side members of frame A. The shaft forming pivotal connection 5 may be rotatably journalled in cross-piece 8 of frame B, or in the cross-piece 6 or in both.

The arrangement described allows the transmission, between the two frames A and B, of the static stresses and of the stresses occurring during the movement of the vehicle (longitudinal acceleration and deceleration, centrifugal forces, vertical acceleration and so on) while allowing the vehicle frame to deform resiliently in the manner desired.

In practice, the manufacturing details may vary from the illustrated and described details, without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the claims. For example, the third pivotal connection 5 may be of the spherical type, and indeed the other two pivotal connections 3 may also be of the spherical type, for example, in the form of ball and socket joints.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. A vehicle construction including a vehicle frame, an auxiliary frame mounted on the vehicle frame and a fixture mounted on the auxiliary frame, in which construction the auxiliary frame is mounted on the vehicle frame by three pivotal connections located at the apices of a first triangle so as to establish a firm connection between the two frames while providing some freedom for elastic deformation of the vehicle frame with respect to the auxiliary frame, and the fixture is mounted on the auxiliary frame by three pivotal members located at the apices of a second triangle.

2. A vehicle construction according to claim 1, in which each of the said pivotal connections has a single pivot axis, two of the pivotal connections having a common pivot axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and the third pivotal connection having a pivot axis parallel with the said longitudinal axis.

3. A vehicle construction according to claim 2, wherein the pivot axis of the said third pivotal connection lies in the vertical plane passing through the longitudinal axis of the container.

4. A vehicle construction according to claim 1, in which at least one of the said pivotal connections is of the spherical type.

5. A vehicle construction according to any preceding claim, wherein each of the pivotal members is pivotal about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle.

6. A vehicle construction according to any preceding claim, wherein the said fixture is the drum of a concrete mixer.

7. A vehicle construction substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawing.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. vehicle consists of two pivotal connections 3 having a common pivotal axis xx which is generally horizontal and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, said pivotal connections 3 being provided by respective horizontal shafts carried by frame B and also carried by two forked support members 4, the members 4 being in turn fixedly connected (by known means, not shown) to the side members A of the vehicle frame. The shafts forming pivots 3 may be rotatably journalled in frame B in forked support members 4 or in both. The base frame B and the frame A of the vehicle are connected at a third pivotal connection 5, the pivotal axis yy of which is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle and coincides with the longitudinal centre line of the vehicle itself. The three pivotal connections 3, 5 are thus located at the apices of an isosceles triangle having its base remote from the isosceles triangle defined by the restraining members 1, 3. The pivotal connection 5 comprises a longitudinal shaft carried by a crossmember 8 of the frame B and also carried by a cross piece 6 extending between, and supported by two end brackets 7 secured in turn to the side members of frame A. The shaft forming pivotal connection 5 may be rotatably journalled in cross-piece 8 of frame B, or in the cross-piece 6 or in both. The arrangement described allows the transmission, between the two frames A and B, of the static stresses and of the stresses occurring during the movement of the vehicle (longitudinal acceleration and deceleration, centrifugal forces, vertical acceleration and so on) while allowing the vehicle frame to deform resiliently in the manner desired. In practice, the manufacturing details may vary from the illustrated and described details, without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the claims. For example, the third pivotal connection 5 may be of the spherical type, and indeed the other two pivotal connections 3 may also be of the spherical type, for example, in the form of ball and socket joints. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A vehicle construction including a vehicle frame, an auxiliary frame mounted on the vehicle frame and a fixture mounted on the auxiliary frame, in which construction the auxiliary frame is mounted on the vehicle frame by three pivotal connections located at the apices of a first triangle so as to establish a firm connection between the two frames while providing some freedom for elastic deformation of the vehicle frame with respect to the auxiliary frame, and the fixture is mounted on the auxiliary frame by three pivotal members located at the apices of a second triangle.