Kelley Company, Inc.

Martin P Hageman

Thomas J Palus

Charles Harwood Hodges

Jack L Sherard

Jonathan W Kovach

Mark A Bennett

Donald G Roth

Joseph M Delgado

Monroe Mulder

A wheel chocking device ( ) having a wheel chock ( ) that can be raised from a retracted position to a raised position. In the retracted position, the wheel chock ( ) is substantially flat, thereby allowing a truck ( ) to be driven over the wheel chock ( ). In the raised position, the wheel chock ( ) can be engaged with the wheel ( ) of a truck to prevent the truck from driving away from a loading dock. In one embodiment, movement of the chock ( ) is provided by pneumatic cylinders ( ) that drive cables ( ) or chains associated with pneumatic pistons ( ) positioned within the cylinders ( ). As the chock ( ) is moved from the distal position, the chock ( ) can raise from a lowered position to an intermediate position ( ). The chock ( ) is then moved toward the vehicle wheel ( ). Upon contact with the wheel ( ), the chock ( ) will raise from the intermediate position to the fully raised position. In another embodiment, the chock ( ) can be inserted laterally from the side of the wheel ( ).

Wheel chocking device and method for using the same

A wheel chocking device having a wheel chock that can be raised from a retracted position to a raised position. In the retracted position, the wheel chock is substantially flat, thereby allowing a truck to be driven over the wheel chock. In the raised position, the wheel chock can be engaged with the wheel of a truck to prevent the truck from driving away from a loading dock. As the chock is moved from the distal position, the chock can raise from a lowered position to an intermediate position. The chock is then moved toward the vehicle wheel. Upon contact with the wheel, the chock will raise from the intermediate position to the fully raised position. In another embodiment, the chock can be inserted laterally from the side of the wheel.

A wheel chocking device including a longitudinally-extending base frame positioned on the driveway, a chock positioned on the base frame and movable longitudinally relative to the base frame, and a drive mechanism drivingly connected to the chock. The drive mechanism comprises a power mechanism (e.g., an electric motor) positioned outside of an outer edge of the chock path, and both the base frame and the drive mechanism are spaced from the dock face. The drive mechanism can further include a low profile transmission interconnecting the power mechanism with the chock. Preferably, the low profile transmission comprises an endless loop member (e.g., a chain). If a portion of the transmission is within the chock path, then the portion can have a height lower than a height of the chock in the lowered position.

Wheel chocking device

A method of securing a vehicle at a desired location using a wheel chocking device (,) having a chock (,) movable between a lowered position and a raised position. The method comprises the steps of positioning the vehicle at the desired location with the chock (,) in the lowered position, raising the chock to the raised position, moving the raised chock toward a wheel of the vehicle, sensing the presence of an obstruction on the vehicle, lowering the raised chock to an intermediate position to allow the chock to pass under the obstruction, and contacting the chock with the wheel. The wheel chocking device (,) includes a drive mechanism (,) that is positioned underneath the chock so that the vehicle actually drives over the drive mechanism. The drive mechanism is simplified with the use of a drive screw (,) and a partial drive nut (,) that facilitates the use of support members (,) for supporting the drive screw at spaced locations along the length of the drive screw. A multi-link chock facilitates use of the device on wheels of varying sizes.

A loading dock having a dock face, a driveway positioned adjacent to the dock face, a wheel chock positioned above the driveway for movement relative to the driveway, and a power mechanism interconnected with the chock to provide power to the chock. The power mechanism is at least partially recessed within the driveway. Preferably, the power mechanism is spaced from the dock face so that vehicles having lift gates can be serviced under a variety of conditions. The power mechanism can be positioned within a housing that is also spaced from the dock face. The housing can include a ramped portion facing the dock face so that contact with the housing by a lift gate will be deflected.

A dock leveler including a ramp movable between a raised position and a lowered position is moved to its raised position by inflation of an inflatable member, such as an airbag supported beneath the ramp by a support assembly. The support assembly is removably mounted below the ramp at its rearward end, and its forward end is provided with wheels which engage the floor of the pit within which the dockleveler is mounted. A fan is mounted to the support adjacent its rearward end, and includes an outlet communicating through the support with the interior of the airbag. The airbag, support and fan are assembled into a subassembly which is removable as a unit from below the ramp. A lifting tool is employed to raise the forward end of the support assembly, either for cleaning or for use in mounting a pair of auxiliary wheel assemblies to the support assembly. The auxiliary wheel assemblies are employed to disengage the airbag, support and fan subassembly from the dock leveler and to facilitate withdrawal of the subassembly for servicing or the like.

Dock leveler in which the ramp is raised and lowered using an inflatable

A dock leveler includes a ramp movable between a raised position and a lowered position in response to selective inflation of an inflatable member disposed between the ramp and a support located below the ramp, and an improved mounting arrangement for securing the airbag in position below the ramp. The improved mounting arrangement includes a flap extending from the airbag, which preferably consists of extended portions of the airbag walls extending outwardly from an edge defined by one or more internal airbag cavities. The flap is folded and preferably sealed about a rod, and a clamping arrangement is engageable with the flap between the rod and the airbag internal cavities for securing the airbag to a mounting surface, such as a surface defined by the support with which the airbag is engageable. The clamping arrangement includes a clamp bar having a clamping member engageable with the airbag, a spacer mounted at an end of the clamp bar opposite the clamping member, and a series of threaded members such as bolts extending between the clamp bar and the support for removably securing the clamp bar to the support.

Retaining arrangement for an inflatable member in a dock leveler

A dockboard having an improved return-to-dock-level mechanism. The dockboard includes a ramp having its rear edge hinged to the frame of the dockboard and a lip is hinged to the front edge of the ramp and is movable between a downwardly hanging pendant position and an extended position. The ramp is biased to an upwardly inclined position by a counterbalancing mechanism. A holddown mechanism interconnects the ramp and the frame, and permits downward movement of the ramp but prevents upward movement of the ramp unless released through operation of a release lever. A link is pivoted to the underside of the ramp and an arm pivotally connects the link with the lip. The distal end of the link is located forwardly and below the level of an abutment on the release lever when the ramp is at a downwardly inclined position and the lip is extended. Subsequent movement of the lip from the extended position to the pendant position will move the distal end of the link upwardly to engage the abutment and move the release lever to a disengaged position to enable the counterbalancing mechanism to pivot the ramp upwardly to a position slightly above horizontal, in which position, the distal end will move out of engagement with the abutment so that the release lever will return to its engaged position and prevent further upward movement of the ramp.

Dockboard having an improved return-to-dock-level mechanism

A dockboard includes a ramp which is hinged at its rear edge to a loading dock and a lip is hinged to the front edge of the ramp and can be pivoted from a downwardly hanging pendant position to an extended position generally flush with the ramp surface. The ramp is moved from a horizontal position to an upwardly inclined position by a counterbalancing spring assembly and a hydraulic holddown prevents upward movement of the ramp unless manually released. A return-to-dock-level mechanism includes a link that is pivotally connected to the underside of the ramp and an arm interconnects the link with the lip. If the ramp is at a below-dock-level position when a truck pulls away from the dock after loading operation is completed, the lip will fall to its pendant position and the downward movement of the lip is transmitted through the link and arm to pivot the arm into engagement with the release lever of the holddown, thereby releasing the holddown to enable the ramp to be elevated through the counterbalancing spring assembly. As the ramp is elevated to dock-level, the link rides out of contact with the release lever causing the holddown to be re-engaged and prevent further upward movement of the ramp.

Return-to-dock-level mechanism for a dockboard having a hydraulic

A hydraulically operated edge-of-dock dock leveler including a deck plate having its rear edge hinged to the dock and an extension lip is hinged to the front edge of the deck plate. In the storage position the deck plate is located in a generally horizontal position and the lip hangs downwardly in a generally vertical pendant position. A hydraulic cylinder unit interconnects the frame of the dock leveler with the deck plate and extension of the cylinder unit acts to move the deck plate to a generally vertical position where a latch that is pivotally connected to the underside of the lip engages an abutment on the frame to lock the deck plate in the vertical position. Retraction of the cylinder unit will pull the deck plate down and the linkage between the deck plate, the lip and the frame enables the outer edge of the lip to move in a generally curved path into engagement with the bed of a carrier. The hydraulic system for operating the cylinder unit includes a valve mechanism and when the cylinder unit is fully extended, as the deck plate is pivoted upwardly, the pressure increase in the hydraulic system shifts the valve and automatically retracts the cylinder unit.

Hydraulically operated edge-of-dock leveler

A return-to-dock level mechanism for a power operated dockboard. The dockboard comprises a ramp which is hinged at its rear edge to the frame of the dockboard and a lip is hinged to the forward edge of the ramp. A ramp cylinder connects the frame and the ramp and acts to pivot the ramp upwardly between a downwardly extending below dock level position to an upwardly inclined position, while a lip cylinder interconnects the ramp and the lip and acts to pivot the lip from a downwardly handing pendant position to an extended position. The return-to-dock-level mechanism includes a pair of position actuated switches, such as mercury switches, which are connected in an electrical circuit with a timer and the pump of the hydraulic system. One of the switches is mounted on the ramp, while the other switch is mounted on the lip. When the ramp is below dock level with the lip extended, the ramp switch will be closed and the lip switch will be opened. As the lip falls from the extended position to the pendant position after a loading operation is completed, the lip switch will close, which energizes the timer and when the timer times out, the circuit to the pump is completed to operate the pump and supply fluid to the ramp cylinder to raise the ramp. When the ramp is elevated to a position slightly above dock level, the ramp switch will open to stop operation of the pump and the ramp will then descend by gravity to the horizontal cross traffic position.

Return-to-dock level mechanism for a hydraulic dockboard

An automatically sequenced hydraulic cylinder mechanism, including a hydraulic cylinder having a piston rod which is attached to a working member. The hydraulic system includes a pump which supplies hydraulic fluid to opposite sides of the cylinder. Due to the differential in surface area on opposite sides of the piston, the piston is moved in a direction to extend the piston rod. When the piston bottoms out in its stroke of travel, the pressure in the system is increased and the increased pressure will operate a three-position valve to decrease the pressure in one end of the cylinder and automatically retract the piston rod. The cylinder is thus automatically sequenced to extend the piston rod and retract the piston rod without the use of auxiliary switched or sensors.

Automatically sequenced hydraulic cylinder mechanism

A hydraulically operated dockboard including a ramp which is hinged at its rear edge to the frame of the dockboard, and a lip is hinged to the forward edge of the ramp and can be pivoted between a downwardly hanging pendant position and an extended position. A main hydraulic cylinder unit interconnects the frame and the ramp and by operating the cylinder unit the ramp can be pivoted upwardly from a horizontal cross traffic position to an upwardly inclined position. A lip cylinder unit interconnects the ramp and the lip, and operation of the lip cylinder unit will pivot the lip from the pendant to an extended position. The hydraulic system is constructed so that fluid is initially supplied to the main cylinder unit by a pump to raise the ramp, and when the main cylinder unit is fully extended, the increased pressure will shift a valve to supply fluid to the lip cylinder unit. The valve is constructed so that the valve will be maintained in the shifted position by substantially less pressure than that required to initially shift the valve. When operation of the pump is discontinued, the ramp will descend and the back pressure generated by the weight of the lip acting against the valve will retain the valve in the shifted position to maintain the lip in the extended condition until the lip engages the bed of a truck.

Hydraulically operated dockboard

An improved dockboard mechanism for a mechanical dockboard. The dockboard includes a frame that is mounted on a loading dock and a ramp is hinged at its rear end to the frame and is movable between a generally horizontal cross traffic position and an upwardly inclined position. The ramp is biased to the upwardly inclined position by a counterbalancing spring. The holddown mechanism includes a cylinder connected to the ramp and a piston is slidable within the cylinder and carries a piston rod which is connected to the frame. The piston is provided with a longitudinal passage which is closed off by a valve member, and an actuating rod is connected to the valve member and extends outwardly of the cylinder. Movement of the rod will open the valve member to permit extension of the piston rod with respect to the cylinder to enable the ramp to pivot upwardly by the counterbalancing spring.

Holddown mechanism for a dockboard

An improved vehicle restraint for preventing movement of a vehicle, such as a truck away from a loading dock during a loading operation. The vehicle restraint includes a guide frame mounted on the front face of the loading dock and a hook is disposed to move vertically on the guide frame between a lower inoperative position and an upper operative position where the hook engages an abutment on the vehicle. The hook is moved between the inoperative and operative positions by a fluid cylinder assembly, including a cylinder which is disposed in a recess in the driveway adjacent the loading dock, and the piston rod of the fluid cylinder assembly is connected to the hook. By introducing fluid into the lower end of the cylinder, the piston rod will be extended to move the hook to the operative position. The compressible nature of the fluid in the cylinder enables the hook to follow rising and falling of the truck bed during the loading operation.

Growing community of inventors

Mequon, WI, United States of America

Martin P Hageman