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(11) | EP 4 339 408 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | DEVICE FOR OPENING AND CLOSING THE DOORS OF AN ISOTHERMAL VAN |
| (57) Device for opening and closing the rear doors (2, 3) of a van (1) preferably isothermal,
said van (1) comprising a roof (1a), a bottom (1b), two opposite sides (4) and two
doors (2, 3). For each door (2, 3), said device comprises: - a first actuator (23, 33) arranged on the inside of said doors (2, 3), suited to open a door and moved by an electric, hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder (24, 34) which moves a rod (25, 35) connected to it in such a way that a lever (26) connected to said rod (25) rotates a vertical cylinder (27) equipped with a pawl (29) which allows the opening of said door; - a second actuator (250, 350), also suited to open a door, arranged on the inside of said doors (2, 3) and arranged at the level of either the roof (1a) or the bottom (1b) of said van (1), said second actuator (250, 350) comprising a motor (252, 352) configured to translate a rod (251, 351) that is integral with a rack (253, 353) meshing with a pinion (254, 354), said pinion (254, 354) being integral with a guide plate (255, 355) configured to guide the translation of a movable bar (255c, 355c), said movable bar (255c, 355c) having two opposite terminal parts (255a, 255b, 355a, 355b), one said terminal part (255b, 355b) being connected to a vertical cylinder (27, 37), said vertical cylinder (27, 37) being inserted in a vertical tubular element (28, 38) arranged on the outside of one said door (2, 3), said vertical tubular element (28, 38) being fixed to said door (2, 3); the first actuator (23, 33) is configured to carry out the unlocking of the opening of said doors (2, 3), while the second actuator (250, 350) is configured to open a corresponding door (2, 3) of the van (1). |
[0001] The invention concerns a device for opening and closing the rear doors of a van, particularly but not necessarily of the isothermal type, that is, of vans that transport goods at temperatures below freezing.
[0002] It is known that in vans transporting goods kept at temperatures down to 20 degrees below zero, it is important that the opening and the closing of the rear doors of the van, when loading or unloading is required, are as fast as possible for the purpose of preventing the dispersion of the cold accumulated inside the van itself.
[0003] According to the regulations currently in force, the vehicle that must load and unload goods from a ramp must stop at a certain distance, the driver must place chocks under the tires to keep the van stationary, then open the doors, remove the chocks and move the van closer to the loading/unloading ramp with the doors open.
[0004] In addition to the resulting heat dispersion, it is not uncommon for operator accidents to occur during these complex operations.
[0005] In order to overcome these drawbacks, according to the known art, shutters with automatic openings which open upwards have been designed. However, these openings have the drawback that the doors take up a non-negligible internal space in the upper part of the van, that is, up to 200 millimetres, which does not allow pallets to be loaded above a certain height, with an evident loss in terms of material loaded on the van.
[0007] First of all, the aim is to ensure that the rear doors open automatically, even with remote control, with no need for the driver to get off the truck, thus allowing the driver himself to approach the ramp without having to get off the truck.
[0009] Furthermore, another aim is to minimize the time required to open and close the van doors during loading and unloading operations, in order to avoid any harmful heat dispersion.
[0010] Therefore, the main object of the invention is to automate, as well as speed up, the opening and closing of the rear doors of an isothermal van as will be illustrated in detail in the following description.
[0011] Characteristics and special features of the invention are highlighted in the following description, which is provided by way of non-limiting example and which is illustrated with the aid of the figures, where:
- figure 1 shows a view of the rear doors of an isothermal van in the closed position of said doors;
- figure 2 shows the rear doors of the van from the inside, with their opening and closing mechanisms;
- figure 3 shows in greater detail the operation of the devices visible in figure 2;
- figure 4 is a further illustration of the actuator devices shown in figure 3;
- figure 5 is a perspective view of figure 4;
- figures 6, 7 and 8 show the different degrees of opening of the rear doors of the van that can be obtained with the devices of the invention;
- figures 9, 10, 11 and 12 show corresponding sectional views from above of various details of a door coupling system, seen in different operating configurations.
[0012] With reference to the figures mentioned above, figure 1 shows both the back of the isothermal van, indicated as a whole by 1, and the doors 2 and 3 that close the back of the van 1 itself.
[0014] A first door 2 has two hinges 21 and 22, while a second door 3 has the hinges 31 and 32. The doors 2 and 3 are normally closed hermetically in order to prevent the cold contained inside the van from escaping.
[0015] Each door, that is, both the first door 2 and the second door 3, is equipped with two actuators, one arranged in the median area with respect to the height and the other arranged in the upper end part of the van, as can be seen in figure 2. More particularly, with reference to the first door 2, a first actuator 23 is arranged in a central position with respect to the height of the first door 2 and on the internal side thereof; said first actuator 23 moves a rod 25 over a small stroke through a cylinder 24 that can be either pneumatic or hydraulic or electric, in such a way that a small lever 26 exerts pressure on the edge of the first door 2 so as to open it by a few degrees.
[0016] In fact, the movement of the small lever 26 rotates a vertical cylinder 27, contained in a tubular element 28 in turn fixed to the first door 2.
[0018] By rotating, each pawl 29 releases itself from a corresponding housing 291 and allows the opening of the first door 2 by a few degrees.
[0019] This movement of a few degrees allows a second actuator 250, arranged above, on the roof of the van, to open the first door 2 in the following way.
[0020] The second actuator 250 is arranged on the inside of the corresponding first door 2 and is arranged at the level of either the roof 1a or the bottom 1b of said van 1.
[0021] The second actuator 250, well illustrated in figure 5, is moved by a motor 252, which can be electric, pneumatic or hydraulic.
[0023] Said rod 251 is integral with a rack 253, which in turn meshes with a pinion 254, so that this pinion 254 must necessarily rotate.
[0024] The pinion 254 is integral with a guide plate 255 configured to guide the translation of a movable bar 255c.
[0025] The movable bar 255c has two opposite terminal parts 255a, 255b, as can be easily seen in figure 5.
[0026] A first terminal part 255a slides inside a slot 41 belonging to the upper internal part of a side 4 of the van 1.
[0027] The other, second, terminal part 255b of the guide plate 255 is connected to the vertical cylinder 27, wherein the vertical cylinder 27 is inserted in the vertical tubular element 28 arranged on the outside of the first door 2.
[0028] The guide plate 255 comprises a plurality of rolling bodies 260 configured to guide the translation of said movable bar 255c.
[0029] Under the thrusting action of the rod 251, the pinion 254 rotates and the movable bar 255c pushes the vertical cylinder 27 in such a way that the latter, through the vertical tubular element 28 fixed to the first door 2, causes the first door 2 to rotate around its rotation axis X defined by the corresponding hinges 21 and 22.
[0030] The movable bar 255c rotates with the pinion 254 and simultaneously translates in the radial direction R as prompted by the movement of the first door 2.
[0031] It is clear that, under the thrusting action of the rod 251, the guide plate 255 must necessarily perform a rotary movement as a consequence of the fact that it is integral with the pinion 254.
[0032] The movement of the movable bar 255c, and consequently of the first door 2, is particularly evident in the sequence of figures 6, 7 and 8, which show the opening of the rear doors 2 and 3 of the van until reaching the extreme opening to 270°, which coincides with the position parallel to the sides 4 of the van 1, as shown in figure 8.
[0033] Obviously, when the motor 252 of the second actuator 250 is operated in reverse, the rod 251 connected to it moves in the opposite direction, and so does the rack 253.
[0034] The resulting effect is that the guide plate 255 rotates in the direction opposite to the direction which caused the opening of the first door 2 and therefore the first door 2 closes again.
[0035] What has been described up to now regarding the opening and closing movements of the first door 2 applies in the same way to the second door 3. The latter also has a first actuator 33 in the central position, which moves by means of the cylinder 34 to obtain the release of the second door 3 so that it opens of a few degrees.
[0036] Also in this case, the movement of a small lever 36, as shown in figure 2, rotates the vertical cylinder 37 visible in figure 1 and contained in the vertical tubular element 38. Even the ends of the vertical cylinder 37 are provided with pawls 39 which, by rotating, allow the opening of the second door 3 by a few degrees.
[0037] Furthermore, the second actuator 350, identical to the one 250 already described, opens the second door 3 working in the same way as the second actuator 250.
[0038] Figures from 9 to 12 represent the four configurations of the opening step of the pawls 29 and 39.
[0039] During these steps, the movement of the pawls 29 and 39 is combined with the opening movement of the doors 2 and 3.
[0042] During the remaining part of the door opening and closing process, the pawls 29 and 39 remain in the position assumed in the configuration shown in figure 11.
[0043] It should be noted that the actuators 250 and 350, which in the construction example have been placed at the level of the roof of the van, perform the same function they would perform even if they were placed on the lower part, that is, at the level of the bed of the van.
[0044] According to the invention, it is in any case preferable to arrange the actuators 250 and 350 at the top, in order not to hinder the movement of the pallets entering and exiting the van.
[0045] It should also be noted that the actuators 23 and 33, as well as 250 and 350, can be controlled remotely by means of remote controls of the known type and also with the aid of specific codes, in order to prevent the van from being opened and avoid any unauthorized or even fraudulent unloading of the goods. The pawls 29 and 39 as well as the respective housings 291 and 391 are intended to be of a type known per se.
[0046] In practice, it has been found that the invention achieves the intended purpose and achieves the set objects.
[0047] In particular, the present invention proposes a device for opening and closing the rear doors of a van, such that opening occurs automatically, even with remote control, with no need for the driver to get off the truck, thus allowing the driver himself to approach the ramp without having to get off the truck.
[0048] Furthermore, the invention proposes an opening and closing device which makes it possible to load pallets up to the maximum height available inside the van, thanks to the particularly flat and therefore compact structure of the device itself.
[0049] Furthermore, the invention proposes an opening and closing device that minimizes the time required to open and close the doors of the van during loading and unloading operations, in order to avoid any harmful heat dispersion.
[0050] Therefore, the invention proposes an opening and closing device capable of automating, as well as speeding up, the opening and closing of the rear doors of an isothermal van.
[0051] The invention thus conceived can be carried out with numerous modifications and in several variant configurations, all of which fall within the scope of the inventive concept; furthermore, all details may be replaced by other technically equivalent elements.
[0052] In practice, the components and materials used, provided that they are compatible with the specific use, as well as the contingent sizes and shapes, may be any, depending on the needs and the state of the art.
[0053] Where the features and techniques mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, such reference signs are to be intended as affixed for the sole purpose of making the claims easier to understand and, consequently, such reference signs have no limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by these reference signs.
1. Device for opening and closing the rear doors (2, 3) of a van (1) preferably isothermal,
said van (1) comprising a roof (1a), a bottom (1b), two opposite sides (4) and two
doors (2, 3), characterized in that for each door (2, 3) it comprises:
- a first actuator (23, 33) arranged on the inside of said doors (2, 3), suited to open a door and moved by an electric, hydraulic or pneumatic cylinder (24, 34) which moves a rod (25, 35) connected to it in such a way that a lever (26) connected to said rod (25) rotates a vertical cylinder (27) equipped with a pawl (29) which allows the opening of said door;
- a second actuator (250, 350), also suited to open a door, arranged on the inside of said doors (2, 3) and arranged at the level of either the roof (1a) or the bottom (1b) of said van (1), said second actuator (250, 350) comprising a motor (252, 352) configured to translate a rod (251, 351) that is integral with a rack (253, 353) meshing with a pinion (254, 354), said pinion (254, 354) being integral with a guide plate (255, 355) configured to guide the translation of a movable bar (255c, 355c), said movable bar (255c, 355c) having two opposite terminal parts (255a, 255b, 355a, 355b), one said terminal part (255b, 355b) being connected to a vertical cylinder (27, 37), said vertical cylinder (27, 37) being inserted in a vertical tubular element (28, 38) arranged on the outside of one said door (2, 3), said vertical tubular element (28, 38) being fixed to said door (2, 3),
said first actuator (23, 33) being configured to carry out the unlocking of the opening of said doors (2, 3).2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said second actuator (250, 350) is arranged internally, in proximity to the roof
of the van.
3. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said first and said second actuator are each operated by a hydraulic cylinder.
4. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said first and said second actuator are each operated by a pneumatic cylinder.
5. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said guide plate (255) comprises a plurality of rolling bodies (260) configured to
guide the translation of said movable bar (255c).
6. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said first actuator (23, 33), through said cylinder (24, 34), moves said rod (25,
35) over a small stroke in such a way that a small lever (26, 36) exerts pressure
on the edge of the corresponding door (2, 3) so as to open said door (2, 3) by a few
degrees.
7. Device according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the movement of the small lever (26) rotates said vertical cylinder (27) contained
in said vertical tubular element (28) which in turn is fixed to the door (2), said
vertical cylinder (27) being provided with a pawl (29) at each end.
8. Device according to the preceding claim, characterized in that each pawl (29) is released or engaged from/with a corresponding housing (291) through
its own rotation.
9. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said movable bar (255c) rotates with the pinion (254) and simultaneously translates
in the radial direction (R) as prompted by the movement of the corresponding door
(2).