US2322358A - Lifting mechanism - Google Patents

Description

June 22, 1943. L" R HANSEN 2,322,358

LIFTING MECHANISM Filed 001;. 21, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet -l v mp1 LEE R HANSEN INVENTOR ATTORNEY June 22, 1943. L, R. HANSEN LIFTING MECHANISM Filed Oct. 21, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 LEE R HANSEN INVENTOR BMW. M

ATTORNEY Patented June 22, 1943 LIFTING MECHANISM Lee R. Hansen, Anatone, Wash., assignor of onefourth to George A. Tuttle, Richland, Wash.,

and one-fourth to Charles Ward, Anatone,

Wash.

Application October 21, 1941, Serial No. 415,895

1 Claim.

My present invention relates to lifting mechanism and is especially adapted for use in vehicles for lifting one or both ends of a vehicle when it is desired to do so.

An important object of my invention is to provide a simple and eflicient lifting mechanism adapted to be incorporated into a vehicle and operable from a point remote from the mechanism itself, and which mechanism comprises a minimum of working parts without sacrificing the desired mechanical advantages required.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a lifting mechanism operable by fluid power that is developed and controlled at a point remote from the lifting mechanism.

A further object of the invention is to provide a mechanism for lifting a vehicle which may be incorporated in the forward or rear end ofa vehicle with'the minimum of alteration of the vehicle to adapt it to the varying conditions of each such an installation.

Still another and further object of the invention is the provision of a lifting mechanism that will automatically return to or remain in its rest position when its function is not desired.

Other objects and features ofthe invention will be more apparent during the course ,ofthe following description taken in view .of the accompanying drawings, whereinI have shown and described a preferred form of my invention. Changes and alterations may bemade therein without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as defined by the subjoined claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of the chassis of a motor vehicle indicating the vehicle in dashed line and the lifting mechanism in solid lines,

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of the rear wheel mount and driving mechanism of a vehicle with my lifting mechanism incorporated therewith,

Figure 3 is a similar enlarged view, with portions in section, of the forward wheel mounting mechanism of a vehicle,

Figure 4 is an elevational view illustrating the forward end of a vehicle in its raised position,

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the initial part of the lifting mechanism,

Figure 6 is a view of the underside of the differential housing of a vehicle adapted to receive my invention,

Figure '7 is a perspective view of the underside of the ground engaging shoe or plate of my lifting mechanism,

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a brace rod employed in my invention,

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a pivot arm employed in a certain adaptation of my invention to the forward end of a vehicle, and

Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view taken on line l0|0 of Figure 2.

In the drawings, wherein I have illustrated a preferred form of my invention, the numeral 12 designates a vehicle body which is mounted upon a frame I4 that in turn is associated with front wheels l6 and the rear wheels l8 that constitute the ground engaging members of the vehicle.

The rear wheels I8, for example, are rotated by drive axles 19 that revolve within the housing 20 under the urgence of power transmitted thereto by a propeller shaft 2| within the propeller housing 22 through a train of gears (not shown) in the differential housing 23. It is customary'to associate the housing 20 with the rear end of the frame I4 by means of springs therebetween but, since that forms no part of this invention, details thereof are omitted.

On the underside of the housing 23 I provide I a bearing block 24 having an opening 25'there.- through.

The wheels on the front end of a vehicle are customarily mounted in association with frame cross member 27, from the under side of which. and extending outwardly therefrom, are pivoted the arms 28-28 that cooperate 'with the axles 29, 29 of the wheels suggested at l6, Hi. The axles 29, 29 are attached to vertically pivoted pins and are T-shaped. The upper ends of the vertical members 30 are associated with the frame member 21 by links 35, 35. Spring members 32, 32 between the frame 2? and the arm 28 provide resiliency and absorb shocks that would otherwise be imparted to the vehicle as the wheels or other ground-engaging members are caused to pass over a drive surface. On the arms 28 I mount a plate 36 having a right angularly disposed arm 35 provided with the hole 36 therethrough.

The lifting mechanism per se comprises the bell-crank lever 48 comprising arms 48 and 49, and that is provided with the pivot bolt M intermediate its ends. A ground shoe 42 is pivoted at 43 on one end of the arm 48. The under face of the shoe 42 may be ribbed as indicated at 44 to better contact the ground surface. A spring 45 between the eyelet 46 and the eyelet 4'! tends to keep the shoe 42 aligned with the general axis of the lower arm 48 of the lever 40 as can be seen in Figure 1. 1

Spanner clips 66 and 6| are engaged or secured to the eye 55 by a pin 62. Brace rod 64 between the pin 4| and a pin 66 in the lower extremities of the clip 66 and 6| maintain the two pins in spaced condition. Often the rods 64 are paired to balance the strain and stresses encountered.

A spring 66 between an upper arm 49 of the bell crank lever is anchored to the brace rod 64 and applies tension to the bell'crank to retract it from the down position and to keep the piston 52 in the adit or supply end of the cylinder 53 when th device is not in use and when fluid or other pneumatic pressure is not being provided to force the piston in the opposite direction.

In a rear end installation the pin 4| is passed through the hole 25 or the bearing member 24 to provide a pivot for the bell crank lever 46 upon the underside of the differential housing 23.

In a front end assembly plate 34 an arm 35 is fastened, as shown, to the arm 26 and the pin 4| in that instance is, passed through the hole 36 in the arm 35 to provide the pivot for the bell crank lever.

The plates 66 and 6| are engaged around the propeller shaft housing or tube 2.2 so that the piston 53 is disposed thereabove and the brace arm or arms 64 lies below the tube. In a forward front end mounting of the mechanism a mounting stub 16 on the plate 72, which is attached to a cross frame member 14, provides similar mounting means. In such a front end installation two such lifting mechanisms would preferably be used due to the independent mounting of the forward wheels as is customary with present day vehicular constructions.

As can be seen in Figure 3 the front cylinder 53a has a conduit 56a and of course the front of the vehicle. being provided with a dual set of lifting mechanism, has two such conduits. One conduit,-56b, extends from a second cylinder although the cylinder itself is not shown. By means of valves 6|, 62, and 63 in the conduit lines 56, 56a, and 56b, the flow of fluid from a pump may be manually or mechanically operated.

Let us assume that it is desired to raise the rear of the vehicle. In that event the valve 6| is'opened and the valves 82 and 63 are closed. By operating thepump 65 fluid under pressure flows into the cylinder 53 to extrude the piston rod 5| outwardly and to increase the distance be- I tween the pivot pin 56 and the anchor pivot pin 62, by swinging the bell crank 46 about pivot 4|. This'brings the shoe or foot plate into contact with the ground surface. 'Further movement produces a raising'of the rear of the vehicle.

Force that may be transmitted against the plates 66 and 6| and the pin 66 is resisted by means of the brace rod 64, fixedly arranged between the pivot 4| and pin 66.

When the vehicle is to be lowered the fluid in the cylinder 53 is permitted to flow therefrom under the urgence oi the weight of the vehicle on the bellcrank lever 46 and back into a reservoir of the pump 65. The spring 66 assists in the further evacuation of the cylinder 52 and raises the ground shoe to the position shown in Figure 1.

In like manner either the front left or the front right wheel of the vehicle may be raised individually or together depending upon how the operator controls the valves 62 and 63. If both valves are opened, both or the front wheels will be raised-if only one or the other is opened then only one side of the vehicle will be raised.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

A lifting mechanism for vehicles comprising a bell crank pivotally mounted on the underside of said vehicle for oscillating movement, a ground engaging shoe on an arm of said bell crank, said bell crank being adapted upon oscillation to bring said shoe into contact with a ground surface, a fluid pressure cylinder between the end of the other arm of said bell crank and said vehicle adapted upon expanding motionto actuate said bell crank in its oscillating movement, means for supplying compressed fluid to said cylinder, a brace between the pivot of the bell crank and a portion of said vehicle, and spring means between the bell crank and said brace biased to maintain the shoe and bell crank in its raised position when no pressure is supplied to the said cylinder.

LEE R. HANSEN.

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