Towing and carrying systems

• US 4,438,944 A
• Filed: 03/03/1981
• Issued: 03/27/1984
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/1981
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Leonard B. Della-Moretta
• Original Assignee: Leonard B. Della-Moretta
• Inventors: Della-Moretta, Leonard B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Peters, Jr., Joseph F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MAR, MICHAEL Y
• Application Number:
  US06/240,199
• Time in Patent Office: 1,120 Days
• Field of Search: 280/408, 280/456 R, 280/446 R, 280/461 R, 280/461 A, 280/472, 280/469, 280/470, 280/460 R, 280/460 A
• US Class Current: 280/446.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/075 Hitch-adaptors
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/173 consisting of at least two bars which are not connected or articulated to each other
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 3/00 Aircraft adaptations to facilitate towing or being towed B64D39/00 takes precedence

Abstract

A system for connecting a towing, pushing, or hoisting self-propelled vehicle to a non-propelled vehicle utilizes two, three, four or five links connected to each vehicle by respective ball joints. The links converge so that the centers of the non-propelling vehicle'"'"'s forces and motions can be located at places favorable to the steering, stability, and weight distribution of the two vehicles, usually at or near the center of gravity of the self-propelled vehicle. The locations of steering and carrying centers are determined by point-centers or two- or three-degree-of-freedom linear combinations of line-centers where lines extended from the links intersect in points or lines of intersection. The invention includes apparatus for varying the location of the virtual steering and support centers when the vehicles are at rest or in motion, by changing the separation of the hinge points or ball joints on either vehicle. The invention also includes apparatus for varying the height or lateral location of a trailed vehicle by lengthening the links on the side toward which the trailed vehicle is to be relocated, and conversely.

Claims

1. A towing connection for connecting a trailer having a pair of wheels toward its rear end only, to a towing vehicle, including in combination:

three linear links, including one upper link and two lower links, the lower links being generally horizontal;

a first corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a forward portion of the trailer; and

a second corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a rearward portion of the towing vehicle, said second series of joints being closer together than the first series so that the links converge such that extended lines upon which the links lie approximately intersect a remote forward generally vertical instantaneous turning axis, and approximately intersect a remote forward generally horizontal carrying axis; and

wherein the ball joint connecting the upper link to the towing vehicle is positioned somewhat aft of a transverse vertical plane passing substantially through the ball joints connecting the lower links to the towing vehicle, such that the trailer front is at the same level when the trailer is in a preselected turning angle in either direction with respect to the towing vehicle as it is when in the normal straight ahead towing position, whereby rise and fall of the trailer front during turning is substantially minimized.

2. The towing connection of claim 1, wherein the preselected turning angle is about 30°

.

3. A towing connection for connecting a trailer having a pair of wheels toward its rear end only, to a towing vehicle, including in combination:

at least three linear links, including at least one upper and at least two lower links;

a first corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a forward portion of the trailer; and

a second corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a rearward portion of the towing vehicle, said second series of joints being closer together than the first series so that the links converge such that extended lines upon which the links lie approximately intersect a remote forward generally vertical instantaneous turning axis, and approximately intersect a remote forward generally horizontal carrying axis;

said ball joints being so arranged as to substantially minimize rise and fall during turning; and

the upper links being rigid, non-compressible members, and the lower links being tension-only members which yield in a compression situation, the two lower links being in, tension in a normal straight ahead towing configuration.

4. The towing connection of claim 3, the upper link being obliquely angled with respect to horizontal no more than about 31°

in the normal straight ahead towing position.

5. The towing connection of claim 3, each upper link being oriented with respect to horizontal at an angle of about 26°

to about 31°

.

6. A linkage system for connecting a trailer to a towing road vehicle, comprising:

four links extending between the trailer and the towing vehicle, including two upper links, generally symmetrically arranged, and two lower links, generally symmetrically arranged and oriented generally in a horizontal plane;

ball joint type connections at the ends of the links and positioned such that the links converge from the trailer toward the towing vehicle, with link lines of each of two pairs of the links approximately intersecting at remote forward points in the towing vehicles and with two theoretical planes, each containing one of said pairs of the links, intersecting in a remote forward line; and

wherein each link and its ball joint type connections are so positioned and oriented that the line upon which the link lies intersects the theoretical hyperboloid family of instantaneous axes defined by the other three link lines; and

the lower links being tension-only members which slacken in a compression situation, and the upper links being rigid in compression and oriented at about 26°

to about 31°

to the horizontal, the two lower links being in tension in a normal, straight ahead towing configuration.

7. The linkage system of claim 6, further including additional tension-only members between the two lower links and also converging from the trailer toward the towing vehicle, for redundancy.

8. The linkage system of claim 6, wherein the four ball joint type connections at the towing vehicle lie generally in a common vertical plane and in a generally rectangular array, and wherein the four ball joint type connections at the trailer lie generally in another common vertical plane and in a generally rectangular array.

9. A system for carrying a load between the rear of a leading vehicle and the front of a trailing vehicle, comprising:

at least three front support links connected to the rear of the leading vehicle and to the front of the load by spaced apart ball joint type connections, the links lying on link lines converging toward the leading vehicle to define at least a remote forward carrying axis; and

at least three rear support links connected to the front of the trailing vehicle and to the rear of the load by spaced apart ball joint type connections, the rear support links lying on link lines converging toward the trailing vehicle to define at least a remote rearward carrying axis;

the support links including upper links and lower links, the upper links being in compression and the lower links being in tension.

10. The load-carrying system of claim 9, further including load raising and lowering means associated with the front support links and the rear support links.

11. The load-carrying system of claim 10, wherein the load raising and lowering means comprises means for changing the lengths of at least some of the links.

12. The load-carrying system of claim 9, wherein the lower links comprise a pair of links at both the front and rear of the load, and wherein each set of lower links converges toward a remote steering center within the adjacent vehicle, with the upper link associated with each set of lower links lying in a plane which converges toward and intersects the plane of the lower links in a remote horizontal carrying axis within the adjacent vehicle.

13. A method of designing a three-link hitching system for connecting a trailer to a towing vehicle, comprising:

connecting two lower links by ball joint type connections to the rear of the towing vehicle and to the front of the trailer, such that the links lie generally in a common generally horizontal plane and on link lines that converge toward the towing vehicle and intersect generally at a remote forward steering axis when the two vehicles are in the straight aligned position;

finding a vertical axis within a vertical longitudinal plane bisecting the towing vehicle, whose distance from a preselected central vertical axis generally at the trailer'"'"'s front, is substantially the same at 0°

turning angle, i.e. the straight aligned position, as it is at a preselected turning angle of the two vehicles in either direction, said vertical axis within said vertical longitudinal plane being somewhat aft of the two lower link connections at the rear of the towing vehicle;

connecting an upper link to the towing vehicle and the trailer, with ball joint type connections at both ends of the link, one such connection being on said preselected central vertical axis above the two lower links, and the other such connection being lower, on said vertical axis within said vertical longitudinal plane such that the line of the upper link intersects said common generally horizontal plane of the lower links at a remote forward carrying center;

whereby the trailer front will be at the same level with respect to the towing vehicle at 0° and

at the preselected turning angle in either direction, and rise and fall of the trailer front between 0° and

the preselected turning angle will be insubstantial.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the preselected turning angle is 30°

.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the lines of the three links converge generally toward a single forward point in the straight aligned towing position of the two vehicles.

16. A towing connection for connecting a trailer having a pair of wheels toward its rear end only, to a towing vehicle, including in combination:

four linear links, including upper and lower links;

a first corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a forward portion of the trailer; and

a second corresponding series of spaced-apart ball joints connecting the links to a rearward portion of the towing vehicle, said second series of joints being closer together than the first series so that the links converge such that extended lines upon which the links lie approximately intersect a remote forward generally vertical instantaneous turning axis, and approximately intersect a remote forward generally horizontal carrying axis;

the lower links being rigid in tension and the upper links being extensible compression-only members, for extending in a tension situation, whereby the towing connection can accommodate relative twist between the trailer and the towing vehicle without locking up.