WO2005037634A1

WO2005037634A1 - Folding trolley for the transport of different objects

Info

Publication number: WO2005037634A1
Application number: PCT/FR2004/002615
Authority: WO
Inventors: Serge Taquois
Original assignee: Serge Taquois
Priority date: 2003-10-15
Filing date: 2004-10-13
Publication date: 2005-04-28
Also published as: FR2861026A1; FR2861026B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a folding trolley which can be used to transport different objects. The inventive trolley consists of: a short main element (1) which is supported by at least one train of wheels, a rear element (2) which is articulated to the main element (1), and a long front element (3) comprising a drawbar. According to the invention, the aforementioned front element terminates in means (16) for hooking to a vehicle, said element also comprising a support member (16) which is used to support a craft that is mounted on an arm (15). Moreover, the front element (3) further comprises two segments (9, 10) which are articulated to one another.

Description

FOLDABLE TROLLEY FOR THE TRANSPORT OF VARIOUS OBJECTS.

The present invention relates to a folding cart or trailer usable for transporting various objects.

It applies in particular but not exclusively to the transport of elongated objects such as boats.

In general, it is known that the transport and / or handling carts for boats are usually constituted by a carrying frame on which is fixed at least one set of wheels. The front of the chassis is equipped with a coupling device allowing towing by a towing vehicle.

The disadvantage of these trolleys results from their length (several meters) which frequently exceeds that of a passenger car, so that parking problems arise both when the trolley is not used and when it is attached to a traction vehicle.

To solve this problem, the Applicant has already proposed a trolley of the above type having a considerably reduced length and size when the trolley is not in use and which is at least as robust and easy to use as the trolleys transport known in the current state of the art. To this end, the chassis of this carriage comprises a main part provided with wheels and at least one retractable part movable relative to the main part between a retracted position and a deployed position. More specifically, on the front and rear edges of the main element of the chassis (here the central part) are articulated respectively a front part and a rear part, these two parts being able to assume a deployed position in which they extend in the extension of the main element of the chassis, along the longitudinal axis of the latter and a retracted position in which they are folded over one another, on the main element.

The invention more particularly aims to improve this type of carriage so as to be able to further reduce its length in the folded state, without having to reduce its length in the deployed state.

It is particularly applicable in the case of a carriage comprising a central element of short length, a rear element articulated on the central part and a front element incorporating a drawbar and having a significant length terminated by means of attachment to a vehicle (for example a "ball head"), this front element possibly having, near its end, a support element (bow bar) of the boat mounted on a bracket fixed on the upper part of the drawbar and a retractable wheel mounted on an arm.

According to the invention, the front element comprises two sections articulated to each other, namely: a first section articulated to the central element so as to tilt upwards (counterclockwise) and a second section carrying the attachment means and the support element, this second section being articulated to the first section by articulation means allowing the second section to tilt down (clockwise). Thanks to this arrangement, to pass into the retracted state, first of all the rear element is partially folded over the main element and then the first section is tilted until it comes to bear on the end of the rear element, in the folded position, the second section being folded over the first section during this tilting.

Thanks to these provisions, the length of the carriage in the folded position will be less than a third of its length in the deployed position, with excellent centering of the center of gravity of the entire carriage on the axis of the wheels.

Therefore, the trolley, in the folded state, can therefore be easily moved by hand (or by any other means) thanks to a deployable handling or manipulation bar, for example sliding mounted on the central element of the trolley .

An embodiment of the invention will be described below, by way of nonlimiting example, with reference to the appended drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side view of a carriage in the deployed state;

Figures 2 to 5 are side views illustrating the principle of folding the carriage to pass in the folded state: the first part of the drawbar being inclined 30 ° downward (Figure 2), 60 ° (Figure 3) , at 80 ° (Figure 4) and 120 ° (Figure 5);

Figure 6 is a side view of the carriage in the folded state.

As shown in these drawings, the boat transport trolley according to the invention comprises a chassis comprising a main element 1 of short length (for example of the order of 1 m), a rear element 2 of length less than the length of main element 1, for example of on the order of 0.4 m and a front element 3 comprising a drawbar, this front element being relatively long, for example of the order of 1.6 m.

This main element is carried, conventionally, by at least one set of coaxial wheels R occupying a central position.

The main chassis elements 1 and rear 2 each have a substantially rectangular shape and include two lateral beams braced by crosspieces, at least one at the front and one at the rear.

The rear crossmember 4 of the rear element 2 carries a transverse element 5 projecting from both sides which supports, in its lower part, the registration plate and the regulatory rear lights. The front crossmember 6 of this rear element 2 is articulated to the rear crossmember 8 of the main element by means of an articulation allowing tilting of the rear element only upwards in a clockwise direction. To this end, at this articulation, the opposite parts of the longitudinal members of the two elements each have a T-shape, the articulation being located at the upper end of the crossbar of the T, the lower end of this bar being used to lock the two chassis elements in the deployed position. Thanks to this arrangement, a high rigidity of the chassis is obtained in the deployed position.

According to the invention, the front element 3 consists of two successive sections 9, 10. The rear section 9 has a structure similar to the rear element 2 but in which the side members are curved towards one another in direction of the front of the carriage. This rear section 9 is articulated on the front cross member 11 of the main chassis element 1. In a similar manner to the previous one, at this articulation, the ends of each of the longitudinal members of the central element and of the rear section have a T-shape, the articulation being carried out at the upper end of the crossbar of the T, while the locking in the deployed position takes place at the lower end of this crossbar: Thanks to this arrangement, the rear section 9 can tilt counterclockwise at an angle of about 150 ° to come into abutment at the rear end of the rear chassis element 2, in the folded position.

The front section 10 of the front element 3 is articulated by its rear end to the front end of the rear section 9 by means of a hinge 12 making it possible to fold down the element 10 towards the clockwise direction. the section 9 from the deployed position of these two sections 9, 10. To allow blocking of the sections 9, 10 in the deployed position, the chassis section 9 is provided with a support piece 13 which s 'extends beyond the joint 12 and on which the front section 10 abuts in the deployed position. The two sections 9, 10 are locked in the deployed position between this support piece 13 and the section 10.

As previously mentioned, the front part of the section 10 comprises at its end a ball-head rabbit head 14 intended to be hooked on the ball-joint of a ball-joint coupling of a vehicle. On this front part 10 is mounted a bracket 15 on which is mounted a bow bar 16 and, optionally, a winch. Advantageously, this assembly can be rotatable so as to be able to fold the bow bar 16 and the winch.

This front part 10 is provided with a height-adjustable base 17 terminated by a small wheel 18.

From the deployed position illustrated in FIG. 1, the transition to the retracted position is carried out as follows: Firstly, after unlocking the joint, the rear element 2 is folded clockwise to bring it above the main element 1 by tilting it at an angle of approximately 120 ° .

At the same time, the articulation 12 is unlocked, so that the main element 1 rocks slightly under the weight of the front element 3 which is supported by the base 17 and the wheel 18.

The tilting of the main element 1 is then limited thanks to the presence of anti-cyclist bars 19 which extend the main element 1 rearward longitudinally: The end of these bars 19 comes to bear on the ground, thus stopping the tilting of the main element 1. The front end of the element 3 is supported by the base 17 (Figure 2).

The articulation 12 is then unlocked and the section 10 is tilted downwards (clockwise) in order to fold it against the section 9, which switches upwards (anti-clockwise) relative to the main element 1. This double tilting is facilitated by the fact that during a large part of the stroke, the end of the section 10 rolls on the ground thanks to the small wheel 18 (FIGS. 3 and 4).

This tilting is continued until the section 10 is folded against the section 9, in the vertical position (FIG. 5), then the assembly of the two sections 9, 10 comes to bear on the rear edge of the rear element. 2 (Figure 6). The carriage is then in the folded position. Maintaining in this position is then ensured by locking means not shown. An anti-tilting arm 20 may be provided to hold the carriage in an angular position close to that used for rolling the carriage. The vertical passing through the center of gravity of this structure passes in the vicinity of the axis of rotation of the wheels, drawbar side, so that the carriage can be easily handled in the folded state. To this end, the carriage may include a handling arm 21 mounted in the main element 1 and extending rearward.

This arm 21 may be telescopic, removable, or fixed. In the deployed state, it will exceed a length of 20 cm, for example 1 m, so as to be able to have a large lever arm and thus reduce the forces necessary to tilt the carriage.

Advantageously, a system for rinsing the cart and / or the boat can be integrated into the cart. This system could for example include a possibly flexible hose and provided with one or more adapters, of the quick coupling type, so as to allow the user to connect to a water network without difficulty.

On the pipe is arranged a plurality of sprinkler nozzles each serving to emit a jet of water in a predetermined orientation, for example in the direction of the hull of the boat or even of a part of the carriage: preferably, a sensitive part such as ball joints, axles or wheel drums.

The stem / winch assembly may be removable, the stem bar being connected to the stem via a joint (hinge or ball joint) so as to be able to tilt at least 30 ° by relative to its axis in the loading position, to be able to be folded down towards the whole of the trolley and to gain a little more space compared to the general dimensions of the trolley. In the position of use, the bow / winch part is locked straight in the axis of the carriage and is locked using a pin or screw passing through the support part and the retractable part. This axis can itself be locked by means of a nut or a pin.

Claims

claims

1. Foldable trolley usable for the transport of various objects, this trolley comprising a main element (1) of short length carried by at least one set of wheels, a rear element (2) articulated on the main element (1) and a front element (3) incorporating a drawbar and having a long length terminated by means of attachment (14) to a vehicle, characterized in that the front element (3) comprises two sections (9, 10) articulated one to the other, namely: a first section (9) articulated to the main element (1) so as to tilt upwards (counterclockwise) and a second section carrying the hooking means, this second section being articulated to the first section by articulation means allowing the second section to tilt down (clockwise), so that one can pass from a deployed state to a retracted state of the carriage by folding the rear element towards the element main (1) then by tilting the first section (9) of the front element (3) until it comes to bear on the end of the rear element (2), in the folded position, the second section (10) being folded over the first section during this tilting.

2. Trolley according to claim 1 for transporting a boat, characterized in that the front element (3) has, near its end, a support element (16) of the boat mounted on a bracket ( 15) fixed on the upper part of the drawbar and a retractable wheel (18) mounted on an arm (20),

3. Trolley according to one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the main and rear elements (1, 2) of the chassis have a substantially rectangular shape and each comprise two lateral beams braced by crosspieces of which at least one '' one at the front and the other at the rear, the front cross member of the rear element being articulated to the rear cross member of the central element by means of a hinge allowing tilting of the rear element only upwards, clockwise.

4. Trolley according to claim 3, characterized in that at the level of the above articulation, the opposite parts of the longitudinal members of the two elements have a T-shape comprising a transverse bar whose upper end carries said articulation, while the lower part comprises locking means.

5. Trolley according to one of claims 3 and 4, characterized in that the rear section (9) of the front element (3) comprises two beams braced by cross members, the rear cross member of this rear section being articulated to the front cross member of the main element (1) so that it can only tilt upwards, from the deployed position.

6. Trolley according to claim 5, characterized in that the opposite parts of the longitudinal members of the main element (1) and the rear section (9) have a T-shape comprising a transverse bar whose upper end carries an articulation while the lower part comprises locking means.

7. Trolley according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the rear section (9) is provided with a support piece (13) which extends axially beyond the articulation provided between the two sections (9, 10) and on which the front section (10) comes to bear in the deployed position, this support piece (13) cooperating with locking means.

8. Trolley according to one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that the aforesaid support element (bow bar) (16) is equipped with a winch.

9. Trolley according to claim 8, characterized in that the support element (16) is removably mounted and / or tilting on the above-mentioned bracket (15).

10. Trolley according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a handling arm (21) optionally retractable mounted on the main element (1) of the trolley so as to extend behind said element (1 ).

11. Trolley according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises an integrated sprinkler system comprising a hose which can be connected to a water distribution network and comprising a plurality of sprinkler nozzles oriented towards the aforesaid boat and / or to predetermined parts of the carriage.