GB2181997A

GB2181997A - Load stabilizer

Info

Publication number: GB2181997A
Application number: GB08526881A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Frank Horley; Leslie Watson
Original assignee: SEADYKE FREIGHT SYSTEMS LIMITE
Current assignee: SEADYKE FREIGHT SYSTEMS LIMITE
Priority date: 1985-10-31
Filing date: 1985-10-31
Publication date: 1987-05-07
Also published as: GB8526881D0

Abstract

A load (L) is stabilized within a load-carrying container (5) by means of inflatable bags (1) which are mounted within the container and are inflated in situ so that they are sandwiched between the load (L) and a stable support formed e.g. by a side wall of the container (5), or the bags (eg 28, 29) may be suspended from the roof of the container. The container, or if the stabiliser is used in a vehicle load space, the vehicle body, may be provided with an controllable air line to inflate/deflate the bags as required. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Vehicle load stabilizer This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for stabilizing vehicle loads for transportation.

The invention is useful in the transportation of goods in various kinds of load-carrying containers, whether they be mountable on or in a load-carrying vehicle or form an integral part thereof. Thus the invention is applicable for stabilizing loads in containers for carriage by road, rail, sea or air and for stabilizing loads relative to the walls of load-carrying vehicle bodies or of cargo-carrying holds. The invention has been made primarily for load stabilization in the bodies of motorised load-carrying vehicles or in load-carrying trailer bodies whether demountable or not.

A problem which exists in the transportation of many types of merchandise is that of securing the load within the load-carrying container to prevent the load from falling under the forces imposed by direction changes and accelerations and decelerations of the vehicle.

In the case that the goods are held in boxes or other strong protective packaging, instability of the load may involve little risk of damage to the goods. But with many types of consignment the risk of costly damage is considerable. And the need for some means of stabilizing loads during transportation increases as manufacturers or merchants come under increasing pressure to reduce packaging costs.

The problem above referred to occurs for example in the road transportation of bulk loads of tinned foods or beverages if the tins are not securely packaged in indivual unit quantities. Tinned products which were for merly pre-packaged are now in some instances simply placed on locating trays which have to be transported as palletised stacks.

The liability of the haulier to bear the cost of damaged tins can be very onerous.

One way of tackling the problem is to tie the load down within the vehicle, e.g. by means of restraining ropes or a net. This method is not always effective and it is generally inconvenient because of the need for tie anchorages at convenient positions suited to various sizes and types of load and the difficulties of getting the restraining means in posion within the loaded vehicle. The tasks of restraining the load and subsequently releasing it take too much time and effort.

There remains therefore the need for a load stabilizing method and apparatus which is effective and convenient to use. It is an object of the present invention to meet this need.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of stabilizing a load within a load-carrying container, characterised in that one or more inflated cushions is or are sandwiched between the load and one or more stable supports.

This method affords the advantage that the stabilization of the load, i.e. its restraint against toppling within the storage container, can be very easily and quickly achieved. Moreover by its nature, an inflated cushion automti cally conforms itself to the surfaces between which it is sandwiched.

The number of cushions used in any given case will of course depend upon the size of cushion used in relation to the size of the load and in relation to the size and distribution of the free space between the load and the boundaries of the load-carrying space.

Generally it will be appropriate to locate the cushion(s) between the load and one or more fixed walls defining the load-carrying space. It will generally be appropriate to locate one or more said cushions between the load and one or each side wall of the load-carrying container, and/or between the load and the top wall (if any) of the container. If the interior of the load-carrying container is divided into compartments by one or more partition walls, then of course a load in any individual compartment can be stabilised by one or more cushions sandwiched between the load and a said partition wall. It is however not essential for the cushion(s) to be sandwiched between the load and a fixed wall. Load-stabilization can be achieved in some circumstances by means of one or more inflated cushions located between different parts of the load.For example in a case in which different parts of a load are separated by a gap or gaps running paraliel with the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, load stabilization can be achieved by means of one or more inflated cushions located in the or each said gap, the outer parts of the load being thereby held firmly against the opposed outside walls of the container. In such an embodiment of the method according to the invention, each load part is stabilized by a cushion or cushions sandwiched between that load part and a support which is constituted by another part of the load.

Preferably the or each cushion is inflated in situ, i.e. inflated against the surfaces between which it is to be sandwiched. This procedure permits strong cushion pressures to be exerted against a load without the effort and risk of cushion damage which would be required in order to force a pre-inflated cushion into the required cushioning position.

The invention as above defined includes a method wherein one or more said cushions is or are located by hand during or after loading the container. If such free cushions are to be inflated in situ, this can be done e.g. by temporarily connecting each cushion to a flexible air line served by a remote power source or by means of a hand pump permanently or temporarily attached to the cushion.

In what are presently considered to be the most important embodiments of the invention, the cushion(s) is or are mounted in non-inflated condition in the load-carrying space prior to the positioning of the load therein, and is or are inflated in situ, after the loading operation.

The invention includes a load-carrying container, e.g. a load-carrying vehicle body, having associated load-stabilizing apparatus comprising at least one inflatable cushion mounted in said container and an air line connected or connectable to such cushion so that it can be inflated in situ by application of air pressure to such line.

Load stabilisation in such a container can be effected very quickly.

In some preferred embodiments of the invention, the air line is connected to pumping means which is associated with and transportable with the container, and there is control means by which said pumping means can be switched from an inflating to a deflating mode. Such a system affords the important advantage that on reaching the unloading point, the stabilizing pressure on the load can be very rapidly released to allow unloading of the container. In addition there is the advantage that the cushion(s) can be quickly brought into a fully exhausted state in which it or they can easily be folded, rolled or otherwise made compact for convenient storage in an out-ofuse position.

Preferably the cushion(s) is or are suspended within the load-carrying container so that the cushion(s) when inflated can bear against one or more sides of a load. The most preferred forms of apparatus comprise one or more cushions suspended within the load-carrying container adjacent a side wall thereof, and a said reversible pumping system, the cushion(s) when deflated being capable of being rolled up in situ so as to occupy but a small space near the top of such side wall.

It is preferable for the apparatus to have a cushion or cushions extending or distributed along or across substantially the full length or width of the ioad-carrying container. In order to allow cushion pressure to be exerted over a substantial area, e.g. over substantially the whole area of a side wall of a large load carrying road vehicle body or shipping container, it is better to provide a plurality of cushions, side by side, than to provide a single very large cushion. A plural-cushion system can be used in part, even if one cushion should be punctured; and the cost of replacing a damaged cushion is less. If a plurality of cushions is used as is preferred, it is preferable to provide control means, e.g. an air-line valve system, permitting different cushions to be independently inflated and deflated.Such a control means can be used to effect release of one particular part of a load for unloading, e.g. a load part located near the tail-gate of a load-carrying vehicle body, while the remainder of the load remains under cushion pressure.

A suitable material from which to fabricate cushions for use according to the invention is polyvinylchloride.

Certain embodiments of the invention, selected by way of example, will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a rear view of a load-carrying road vehicle (its tail gate being omitted) carrying a load which is stabilized according to the invention; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic representation of one side of the load-carrying body of that vehicle and the associated air cushions and pumping circuit; Figures 3 and 4 are diagrammatic representations of load-carrying containers having differently located load-stabilizing cushions.

Referring firstly to Figs. 1 and 2: four inflatable rectangular bags 1-4, made e.g. from heavy gauge polyvinylchloride, are suspended within the load-carrying body 5 of the vehicle, adjacent one of the side walls of the body.

The bags are suspended on a rod 6 passing through top hems of the bags. Within the bottom hem of each bag there is a rod such as 7 on which the bag can easily be rolled up when it is not required for use. When rolled up the bags can be held in rolled condition near the top of the adjacent side wall of the vehicle body by retaining means (not shown).

When the retaining means is released the bags unroll into their flat vertical positions under their own weight and the weight of the associated rods 7.

Each bag has an inflation nozzle such as 8 which is detachably connected to an air line 9 by a flexible hose such as 10. The air line 9 is secured in the vehicle body at a convenient position near the top thereof as shown in Fig.

1 (In the diagrammatic representation in Fig. 2 the air line 9 is shown at a lower position to assist the clarity of the drawing).

After a load L, e.g. a load comprising palietised stacks of goods, air is forced into the bags via the air line so that the bags are inflated and press against the load, causing it to be firmly held between the bags and the opposite side wall of the vehicle body. In Fig.

1 the bag 1 is shown in broken line in its inflated condition. The other bags inflate into a similar condition but press against the load at different regions along the vehicle body.

The air line 9 forms part of a pneumatic circuit which is represented in Fig. 2. The end 11 of the air line, i.e. its end which is located within the vehicle body, is closed. Its opposite end 12 is open to atmosphere. Air line 9 is connected to the air intake port of a hydraulically operated blower 13 by a branch line 14 and to the air delivery port of the blower by a branch line 15. A brnch line 16 connects the air intake port of the blower to atmosphere via an air filter 1 7. The circuit includes four air line valves 18-21 and a pressure-relief valve 22 for avoiding excess air pressure in the bags. In order to inflate the bags, valves 18 and 21 are set open, valves 19 and 20 are set closed and the blower 13 is energised.

The blower draws air into the circuit via air filter 17 and forces this air along line 9 into the bags. When the bags have been inflated to the required pressure, the blower is stopped and air valve 18 is closed. The bags are thereby retained in inflated condition to stabilise the load during its transportation.

When the vehicle reaches its destination and is to be unloaded, air valves 19 and 20 are opened, valves 18 and 21 are closed, and the blower is energised. The blower consequently draws air out of the bags via line 9 and branch line 14 and discharges this air to atmosphere via the open end 12 of line 9. In this way the bags become fully exhausted and they can easily be rolled up when required.

Fig. 3 shows a load-carrying container 23 having inflatable bags 24,25 suspended from the top of the container at different positions across its width. These bags are connected to air line branches 26,27. Either or both of these bags can hang between different load sections so as when inflated to form an air cushion between those sections. Fig. 3 shows a load comprising three spaced stacks 5i, S2 and S3, separated by the bags. The drawing shows bag 24 prior to inflation and bag 25 after inflation. The different air line branches 26,27 can have independently actuable valves to permit either one of the bags to be inflated without inflating the other or to permit both of the bags to be inflated either simultaneously or in succession, to suit different circumstances. For stabilizing a load as depicted in Fig. 3, bag 24 could remain rolled up, out of use, and bag 25 could be inflated to hold stacks S2 and S3 together and against the right-hand side of the vehicle body. More than two bags can be provided if required. For example there may be two rows of bags, the bags 24,25 forming parts of the different rows, and/or bags may be suspended from more than two positions across the width of the container.

Fig. 4 shows a load-carrying container 28 having inflatable bags 29,30 connected to the top of the container so that by inflating the bags they can be caused to bear against the top of a load as shown in the figure.

Claims

1. A method of stabilizing a load within a load-carrying container, characterised in that one or more inflated cushions is or are sandwiched between the load and one or more stable supports.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the or each cushion is inflated in situ.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cushion(s) is or are mounted in non-inflated condition in the load-carrying container prior to the positioning of the load therein, and is or are inflated in situ, after the loading operation.

4. A load-carrying container, e.g. a loadcarrying vehicle body, having associated loadstabilizing apparatus comprising at least one inflatable cushion mounted in said container and an air line connected or connectable to such cushion so that it can be inflated in situ by application of air pressure to such line.

5. A load-carrying container according to claim 4, wherein the cushion(s) is or are suspended with the load-carrying container so that the cushion(s) when inflated can bear against one or more sides of a load.

6. A load-carrying container according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the air line is connected to pumping means which is associated with and transportable with the container, and there is control means by which said pumping means can be switched from an inflating to a deflating mode.

7. A load-carrying container according to claims 6, wherein the cushion(s) is or are suspended within the load-carrying container and there is means whereby the cushion(s) when deflated can be retained in rolled-up suspended condition when not required for use.

8. A load-carrying container according to any of claims 4 to 7, wherein there is one or more said cushions extending or distributed along or across substantially the full length or width of the container.

9. A load-carrying container according to any of claims 4 to 8, wherein there is a plurality of said cushions and there is control means, e.g. an air-line valve system, permitting different cushions can be independently inflated and deflated.