Harnischfeger Corporation

Max J Dechantsreiter

A crane for lifting and transporting a load such as a heavy metal coil. An overhead winch lifts and lowers a load carriage and the load attached thereto, and a powered wheeled trolley moves the load horizontally above a floor. Attached to the carriage is a clamp, which engages the coil through its center aperture and its periphery. The clamp has two jaws, one movable with respect to the other, the movable jaw also having a movable gripping surface that moves on an inclined surface of the movable jaw towards the fixed jar to ensure a tight wedging engagement of the load. The jaws and gripping surfaces provide a nonpowered, mechanically firm grip on the load once it has been engaged by the jaws. The coil may be lifted with the jaws when its center aperture is vertically or horizontally disposed, and the load may be placed for storage in either position as well.

Stacker crane for movement of coils

A warehouse crane comprises an elevationally positionable carriage, a shuttle guidably mounted on the carriage for transverse movement, and apparatus for moving a tote pan out of storage racks alongside either side of the crane and onto the carriage, the crane further being able to replace the tote pan in its original compartment or to place the tote pan in any other compartment in either of the storage racks. The apparatus for moving the tote pan out of a storage rack includes a pair of reversibly driven endless chain mechanisms mounted on the shuttle and a tote pan puller attached to those chain mechanisms. The puller travels in a horizontal and flat orbital path, but changes from a vertical position to a transversely outwardly inclined position as it approaches the ends of that path so that the puller may engage a tote pan handle as it moves upwardly in an inclined position.

Warehouse crane including inclinable tote pan puller

A stacker crane having an elevated trolley on which there is a hoist, a load member beneath the trolley is moved vertically by the hoist and is guided by a mast comprising a vertically fixed inner member projecting down from the trolley and an intermediate member telescopingly slidable on the inner member. In one locking position of a toggle element swingably carried by the intermediate member it engages an upwardly facing surface of a ledge on the load member, constraining the intermediate member to move with the load member in a lower part of the range of vertical motion of the load member; in the upper part of that range the toggle element, in an opposite locking position, engages an upwardly facing surface on a ledge on the inner member so that the latter supports the intermediate member. The position of the toggle element is controlled by a pair of latching elements carried by the intermediate member at opposite sides of the toggle element, each movable up and down relative to the intermediate member and biased up to a latching position holding the toggle element in one locking position; but each latching element can move to its latching position only when the other is out of that position. The latching elements are displaced out of their respective latching positions by a dog on each, each dog engageable with a downwardly facing surface on one of the ledges.

Mechanism for latchingly connecting telescoping members

A grapple assembly to be used in conjunction with an overhead crane providing means for picking up and transporting a plurality of blocks of heavy material simultaneously. The grapple assembly includes an elongated horizontal frame member suspended from an overhead crane, the frame member supporting a plurality of vertically extending opposed pairs of pivotable clamping members. The clamping members are each pivotably connected to the sides of the frame member and connected to a toggle linkage drive means such that a downwardly extending portion of each pair of the clamping members can firmly grip a block of material. The toggle linkage drive means are each secured to a central drive shaft which is, in turn, connected to a hydraulically driven rack and pinion. The toggle linkage drive means are also provided with spring biasing means to lock the clamping members in clamping position such that the blocks will not be released during transfer even if the hydraulic power is cut off.

Growing community of inventors

Milwaukee, WI, United States of America

Max J Dechantsreiter