CHAIN-DRIVE CARGO-HANDLING SYSTEM

• US 3,620,353 A
• Filed: 12/22/1969
• Issued: 11/16/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Dimitri A. Gogin, Milton E. Foster
• Original Assignee: Dimitri A. Gogin, Milton E. Foster
• Inventors: Milton, E. Foster, Dimitri, A. Gogin
• Primary Examiner(s): Joseph Wegbreit
• Assistant Examiner(s): H. S. Lane
• Application Number:
  US04/887,160
• Time in Patent Office: 694 Days
• Field of Search: 198/160,127,173
• US Class Current: 198/809
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 9/00 Equipment for handling freight; Equipment for facilitating passenger embarkation or the like emergency equipment B64D17/00, B64D19/00, B64D25/00; structures integral with fuselage to facilitate loading, fuselage floors specially adapted for freight, steps mounted on and retractable within aircraft B64C; ground installations B64F
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 19/02 for articles, e.g. for containers

Abstract

A chain-drive cargo-handling system within the cargo deck of an aircraft in the form of a conveyor mechanism involving an endless chain assembly continuously operated by a suitable motor. The chain comprises a plurality of interconnected rollers with support pads which are raised by inflatable tubes positioned thereunder to cause uniform frictional pressure contact to the bottom surface of cargo pallets to be moved on support rollers from station to station on the cargo deck. The frictional engagement of the support pads with a cargo container moves it to the next station on support rollers. Each station has its own inflatable tube to be inflated and deflated as desired to move or halt the movement of the pallets along the cargo deck. A latch system is interlocked to the drive system for quickly locking down the containers for pallets when they reach selected positions on the cargo deck and to deflate tubes at those stations to release the drive system from the locked pallets.

Claims

1. A continuous chain drive cargo-handling system comprising:

a first base plane upon which cargo is positioned, an endless chain assembly of a plurality of interconnected rollers, a plurality of inflatable tube sections each representing a cargo station, said tube sections being positioned under said rollers, said sections when inflated being operable to raise said rollers and thus said chain assembly into frictional contact with the bottom surface of said cargo to move said cargo from inflated sections, resilient wear strips over said tube sections upon which said rollers are supported when said tube sections are inflated, said chain assembly having rollers connected by links and by contact pads, said pads having link sections with apertures at the ends thereof for trunnion mounting, said link sections having upstanding walls and a connecting plate positioned in a plane above the top roller surface of said rollers, trunnions rotatably mounted within said link section apertures, said trunnions having extensions extending outwardly from said link sections, and chain guide means for supporting said trunnion extensions when said tube sections are deflated.

2. A continuous chain drive cargo-handling system comprising:

a first base plane upon which cargo is positioned, an endless chain assembly of a plurality of interconnected rollers, a plurality of inflatable tube sections each representing a cargo station, said tube sections being positioned under said rollers, said sections when inflated Being operable to raise said rollers and thus said chain assembly into frictional contact with the bottom surface of said cargo to move said cargo from inflated sections, resilient wear strips over said tube sections upon which said rollers are supported when said tube sections are inflated, and chain guide means comprising a base upon which said tube sections are positioned and shoulders in upstanding guide walls to support trunnions on said chain assembly when said tube sections are deflated.