Crown Equipment Corporation

Crown Controls Corporation

John Ivan Koeper

Allen Thomas Trego

Robert J Henshaw

Daniel Carl Magoto

Kevin Anthony Gilliland

Lewis Henry Manci

James Francis Schloemer

George Robert Wetterer

Daniel C Magoto

Rhett Eugene Snyder

Electrical steering assist systems reduce the operator applied steering effort necessary to operate material handling vehicles. A steer drive unit including a motor is coupled to a steerable wheel for providing steering assist. The amount of steering assist provided by the steer drive unit is determined by a controller that receives input from one or more input sensing devices. The input sensing device(s) may include force sensors that detect an operator applied turning force. The input sensing device(s) may also detect the movement of one steering component relative to another. Further, the input sensing device(s) may include operator activated controls such as a joystick, potentiometer, switches and voice initiated commands. Input sensing device(s) may additionally be provided to detect operational parameters such as the load on the material handling vehicle, vehicle speed, or environmental conditions such as travel path obstruction detection, homing and proximity sensing.

Electrical steering assist for material handling vehicles

Supplemental walk along control for walkie/rider pallet trucks is provided by supplemental controllers such as jog and coast release switches and/or twist grips (or other drive motor speed controllers) provided adjacent the base of load carrying forks. The supplemental controllers are enabled during coasting operation so that operators can advance to the base of the forks to accelerate the trucks between closely spaced picks located along substantially straight portions of pick routes. For application of the trucks' brakes, the operators activate the coast release switches to release the coast mode and enable deadman brake mechanisms to brake the trucks and/or by plug braking with the twist grips. A steering direction detector is provided to determine the direction of the steered wheel so that if the steered wheel is not directed substantially straight ahead, then operation of the truck from the supplemental controls is disabled.

Supplemental jog and/or twist grip or other drive motor speed walk along controllers for walkie/rider pallet trucks

Supplemental walk along control for walkie/rider pallet trucks is provided by supplemental jog switches and coast release switches provided adjacent to the base of load carrying forks. The supplemental jog switches are enabled during coasting operation so that operators can advance to the base of the forks to accelerate the trucks between closely spaced picks located along substantially straight portions of pick routes. For application of the trucks' brakes, the operators activate the coast release switches to release the coast mode and enable deadman brake mechanisms to brake the trucks. A steering direction detector is provided to determine the direction of the steered wheel so that if the steered wheel is not directed substantially straight ahead, then operation of the truck from the supplemental jog switches is disabled.

Supplemental walk along control for walkie/rider pallet trucks

A coast control device for a walkie/rider pallet truck locks the position of a steering arm of the truck to prevent movement by a deadman mechanism. The disclosed locking device is a brake: an armature plate mounted to the steering arm; and an electromagnet coupled to a steering head that is operated to activate coasting operation. The brake force can be overcome by an operator to manually apply the truck brake or to reposition the steering arm to a new position where it is again locked. For controlling coasting operation, the brake is manually engaged by an actuator mounted adjacent to or on a grab bar that is to be gripped by an operator riding on the truck. With the actuator so located, coasting operation can be conveniently engaged while the operator is walking beside the truck.

Coast control for walkie/rider pallet truck

A control system for directing hydraulic fluid to selected cylinders on a lift truck to perform selective ones of a plurality of power truck functions, such as raising and lowering the lift forks on the truck mast, tilting the lift forks with respect to the truck mast, and extending the lift forks away from the truck mast, includes a control lever mounted on the truck control panel, having upper and lower control positions and a neutral position therebetween. A function control switch includes a manually actuatable switch button on the controlled lever. A counter means is responsive to the function control switch to cycle sequentially through a plurality of count states from an initial count state in response to actuation of the function control switch means. Means are provided responsive to the control lever and the counter means for supplying hydraulic fluid to selective ones of the cylinders under control of the control lever with selection of cylinders being determined by the count state of the counter means. The direction of flow of hydraulic fluid is determined by the position of the control lever.

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New Bremen, OH, United States of America

John Ivan Koeper