Abstract
A mast arm for a large-scale manipulator is disclosed. The mast arm includes a turntable rotatable about a vertical axis, a two-point lever enclosing at least one cavity, and a plurality of mast arm segments. The plurality of mast arm segments are pivotable at articulated joints about articulation axes relative to an adjacent mast arm segment or the turntable via a respective drive unit. At least one of the respective drive units is fastened to a first mast arm segment and acts via the two-point lever on a second mast arm segment or on the turntable.
Claims
1-10. (canceled)
11. A mast arm for a large-scale manipulator, the mast arm comprising: a turntable rotatable about a vertical axis; a two-point lever enclosing at least one cavity; and a plurality of mast arm segments including a first mast arm segment and a second mast arm segment, the plurality of mast arm segments pivotable at articulated joints about articulation axes relative to an adjacent mast arm segment or the turntable via a respective drive unit, wherein at least one of the respective drive units is fastened to the first mast arm segment and acts, via the two-point lever, on the second mast arm segment or on the turntable.
12. The mast arm of claim 11, wherein the two-point lever is assembled from a plurality of components, wherein the assembled components form the cavity.
13. The mast arm of claim 11, wherein the two-point lever includes at least two bearing points, wherein the cavity is formed in a portion between the bearing points.
14. The mast arm of claim 13, wherein the portion includes a tube.
15. The mast arm of claim 13, wherein the portion includes at least one cut-out portion.
16. The mast arm of claim 13, wherein the portion includes at least one bore.
17. The mast arm of claim 13, wherein the portion includes welded-on metal side plates.
18. The mast arm of claim 17, wherein the welded-on metal side plates extend beyond the at least two bearing points.
19. The mast arm of claim 13, wherein the portion is formed from welded-together metal.
20. A large-scale manipulator comprising: a mast arm including: a turntable rotatable about a vertical axis, a two-point lever enclosing at least one cavity, and a plurality of mast arm segments including a first mast arm segment and a second mast arm segment, the plurality of mast arm segments pivotable at articulated joints about articulation axes relative to an adjacent mast arm segment or the turntable via a respective drive unit, wherein at least one of the respective drive units is fastened to the first mast arm segment and acts, via the two-point lever, on the second mast arm segment or on the turntable.
21. The mast arm of claim 20, wherein the two-point lever is assembled from a plurality of components, wherein the assembled components form the cavity.
22. The mast arm of claim 20, wherein the two-point lever includes at least two bearing points, wherein the cavity is formed in a portion between the bearing points.
23. The mast arm of claim 22, wherein the portion includes a tube.
24. The mast arm of claim 22, wherein the portion includes at least one cut-out portion.
25. The mast arm of claim 22, wherein the portion includes at least one bore.
26. The mast arm of claim 22, wherein the portion includes welded-on metal side plates.
27. The mast arm of claim 26, wherein the welded-on metal side plates extend beyond the at least two bearing points.
28. The mast arm of claim 22, wherein the portion is formed from welded-together metal.
Description
[0021] Further features, details and advantages of the invention will become apparent on the basis of the following description and with reference to the drawings. of the invention are illustrated purely schematically in the drawings below and will be described in greater detail below. Items which correspond to each other are provided with the same reference numerals in all the figures. The Figures show in:
[0022] FIG. 1 a large-scale manipulator according to the invention,
[0023] FIG. 2 a mast arm according to the invention,
[0024] FIG. 3a, 3b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a round tube,
[0025] FIG. 4a, 4b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a rectangular tube,
[0026] FIG. 5a, 5b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a plurality of welded components,
[0027] FIG. 6a, 6b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a plurality of welded components,
[0028] FIG. 7a, 7b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a plurality of welded components,
[0029] FIG. 8a, 8b a two-point lever according to the invention made from a plurality of welded components,
[0030] FIG. 8c a detail view of two-point lever made from a plurality of welded components,
[0031] FIG. 9a, 9b, 9c a two-point lever according to the invention with bore,
[0032] FIG. 10a, 10b a two-point lever according to the invention with cut-out portion,
[0033] FIG. 10c a detail view of two-point lever with cut-out portion,
[0034] FIG. 11 a two-point lever according to the invention with buckling load in the plane of the lever,
[0035] FIG. 12 a two-point lever according to the invention with buckling load perpendicular to the plane of the lever.
[0036] A mast arm according to the invention is illustrated in the figures, designated by the reference numeral 1. The mast arm 1 is illustrated in FIG. 1 mounted on a large-scale manipulator 2. The illustration according to FIG. 1 shows a large-scale manipulator 2 with a mast arm 1, which has a turntable 4 which is rotatable about a vertical axis 3, and a plurality of mast arm segments 5, 5a, 5b. The mast arm segments 5, 5a, 5b can be pivoted by means of articulated joints 6, 6a, 6b in each case about articulation axes relative to an adjacent mast arm segment 5, 5a, 5b or the turntable 4 by means of one drive unit 7, 7a, 7b in each case. In the illustration shown, the mast arm 1 is illustrated folded up, so that the large-scale manipulator 2, which is designed as a vehicle, can travel through the road traffic to the deployment site. On folding out the mast arm 1, a tilting moment is produced which is supported by means of the fold-out and extendable supports 18 arranged on the vehicle frame 17. To fold the mast arm 1 in and out, the drive units 7, 7a, 7b are fastened to the mast arm segments 5, 5a, 5b and act via lever mechanisms 8 on a different mast arm segment 5, 5a, 5b or the turntable 4. To this end, the lever mechanisms 8 have at least one two-point lever 9. On the first articulated joint 6 there is shown a two-point lever 9, which is subjected to a high tensile load at the beginning of the folding-out operation. The two-point lever 9 shown is mounted via pins on the first mast arm segment 5 and on the deflecting lever 19, on which the first drive unit 7 acts. The further articulated joints 6a, 6b, too, comprise lever mechanisms 8 on which two-point levers 9 are provided, in order to transmit tensile and compression forces between the mast arm segment 5 and the deflecting lever 19 on the drive unit 7a, 7b upon the folding-in and folding-out operation of the mast arm 1.
[0037] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a mast arm 1 according to the invention in one embodiment. The mast arm 1 has a first 5 and a second 5a mast arm segment, which are pivotable at an articulated joint 6a about a horizontal articulation axis relative to the adjacent mast arm segment 5, 5a by means of a drive unit 7, 7a. The drive unit 7a, which is preferably a hydraulic cylinder, is fastened to the first mast arm segment 5 and acts on the second mast arm segment 5a via a lever mechanism 8. The lever mechanism 8 preferably has two levers, with one lever being designed as a two-point lever 9 and the other lever as a deflecting lever 19. Also between the first mast arm segment 5 and the turntable 4 there is provided a lever mechanism 8 on which the first drive unit 7 acts. The lever mechanism 8 arranged on the first articulated joint 6 has in addition to the deflecting lever 19 likewise a two-point lever 9, which in the mast arm position shown is subjected to the maximum pressure, since the first drive unit 7 exerts a high tensile load on the deflecting lever 19 at the first articulated joint 6 in the position shown. In the position shown, the two-point lever 9 at the second articulated joint 6a is pivoted by the mast arm 1 such that the weight of the two-point lever 9 exerts a large load moment on the turntable 4. By reducing the weight at the two-point lever 9, the load moment exerted by the two-point lever 9 in the position shown can be reduced, so that the supports 18 (FIG. 1) need to be extended less far in order to prevent toppling of the large-scale manipulator 2 (FIG. 1). The supports 18 (FIG. 1) can thus also be made shorter. This furthermore makes the setting-up of the large-scale manipulator (FIG. 1) at the deployment site more flexible, since a lesser supporting width is necessary in order to support the large-scale manipulator 2 securely.
[0038] FIG. 3a shows a schematic view of a two-point lever 9 according to the invention in a first configuration. A two-point lever 9 of this type, but also the two-point levers described below, can be used in a lever mechanism 8 (FIGS. 1 and 2) of a mast arm 1 (FIGS. 1 and 2) and there save weight and reduce the load moment which is exerted by the weight of the two-point levers 9 on the turntable 4. FIG. 3a shows a two-point lever 9 which is assembled from a plurality of components in order to form a cavity 10.
[0039] The assembled components are two bearing rings which form the bearing points 11, 12 of the two-point lever 9. Through these bearing rings 11, 12 there is passed in each case a hinge pin in order to mount the two-point lever 9 rotatably on the deflecting lever 19 (FIGS. 1 and 2) and the mast arm segment 5, 5a, 5b (FIGS. 1 and 2) or turntable 4. Between the bearing rings 11, 12 there is formed a portion 13 which consists of a for example rolled round tube. This round tube 13 forms a cavity 10 which can be seen in FIG. 3b. By welding the bearing rings 11, 12 to the round tube 13, the two-point lever 9 is assembled from the components 11, 12, 13, as shown in FIG. 3a. This produces a two-point lever 9 which is simple to produce and offers a considerable reduction in weight compared with conventional two-point levers 9.
[0040] FIG. 4a shows a further configuration of a two-point lever 9 made of a for example rolled tube 13. The portion 13 between the bearing rings, which form the bearing points 11, 12, is formed by a rectangular tube 13 in the example of embodiment shown here. It can be seen in FIG. 4b that the rectangular tube 13 forms a cavity 10 between the two bearing points 11, 12. This means that a considerable reduction in weight can be achieved, with in particular the rectangular cross-sectional contour of the rolled tube 13 being particularly suitable for ensuring sufficient buckling strength for compression loads, since the second moment of area of the lever 9 is increased by the enlarged external dimensions. In the example of embodiment shown here too, the tube 13 is connected to the further components, or to the bearing rings 11, 12 of the two-point lever 9, preferably by means of welded joins.
[0041] FIG. 5a shows a further configuration of the two-point lever 9 according to the invention. In the example shown here too, the two-point lever 9 is assembled from a plurality of components, with the assembled components forming the cavity 10. In one of the components 20, a cavity-forming cut-out portion 14 is provided in the portion 13 forming the cavity 10. The cavity 10 may for example also be produced by burning out material from the component 20. It can be seen in FIG. 5a that the one-part middle component 20 of the two-point lever 9 has a corresponding cavity-forming cut-out portion 14 or burnt-out portion 14. The cavity-forming portion 13 furthermore comprises welded-on metal side plates 16, 16a, which are shown separately in FIG. 5b. The metal side plates 16, 16a are designed to be continuous beyond the bearing points 11, 12 and as a result offer additional stability for the two-point lever 9 thus formed. To produce the two-point lever 9 shown in FIG. 5a, the metal side plates 16, 16a are welded onto the middle component 20, so that the cavity-forming cut-out portion 14 is covered by the metal side plates 16, 16a. The metal side plates 16, 16a increase the buckling strength of the two-point lever 9.
[0042] FIG. 6a shows a two-point lever 9 according to the invention in a further configuration. Here too, a middle component 20 is provided which has a cavity-forming cut-out portion 14 or burnt-out portion 14 in the region of the cavity-forming portion 13 between the bearing points 11, 12, as can also be seen in FIG. 6b. The metal side plates 16 welded onto the middle component 20 are of multi-part construction and have a crosspiece 21, and sheet metal rings 22 covering the bearing rings 11, 12. Covering the metal side plates 21, 22 increases the buckling strength of the two-point lever 9 and prevents corrosion in the cavity-forming cut-out portion 14 or burnt-out portion 14.
[0043] The two-point lever 9 shown in FIGS. 7a and 7b also has a cavity 10, by which the two-point lever 9 makes a considerable saving in weight compared with levers of solid material. As can be seen from the sectional view according to FIG. 7a, the two-point lever 9 shown here is assembled from a plurality of components 11, 12, 16, 16a, 16b, 16c, the components 11, 12, 16, 16a, 16b, 16c when assembled enclosing a cavity 10 which is formed in a portion 13 between the bearing points 11, 12. The cavity-forming portion 13 is formed from welded-together metal plates 16, 16a, 16b, 16c. The cavity-forming portion 13 has welded-on metal side plates 16, 16a, which are designed to be continuous beyond the at least two bearing points 11, 12. As a result, the bearing rings 11, 12 which form the bearing points 11, 12 are encompassed by the welded-in metal side plates 16, 16a, as a result of which a stable and buckling-resistant two-point lever 9 of reduced dead weight is produced.
[0044] FIGS. 8a and 8b show a two-point lever 9 which is likewise assembled from a plurality of components 11, 12, 16, 16a, 16b, 16c, with the components 11, 12, 16, 16a, 16b, 16c together forming a cavity 10 which is formed in a portion 13 between the bearing points 11, 12. The cavity-forming portion 13 has welded-on metal side plates 16, 16a, which are designed to be continuous beyond the at least two bearing points 11, 12. As a result, the bearing rings 11, 12 which form the bearing points 11, 12 are encompassed by the welded-in metal side plates 16, 16a. Furthermore, the cavity-forming portion 13 comprises further metal plates 16b, 16c, which are welded together with the metal side plates 16, 16a to form an edge profile, in order to form the cavity 10. Additionally, the bearing rings 11, 12 of the bearing points 11, 12 have a projection 23 for screw connection of the anti-twist protection means of the hinge pin (not shown) which is received in the bearing rings 11, 12. This anti-twist protection means is illustrated in greater detail in FIG. 8c. Here it can be recognized that the bearing ring 12 has a further projection 24 for positioning and for weld pool backing. Furthermore, an anti-twist protection means 25 for the pin is indicated in broken lines. The further bearing ring 11 is also configured correspondingly.
[0045] FIGS. 9a, 9b and 9c show a two-point lever 9 according to the invention, with a cavity 10 being formed in a portion 13 between the bearing points 11, 12, in that a plurality of cavity-forming bores 15 are provided in the portion 13. These bores 13 which are formed can be seen very clearly in the sectional views in accordance with FIGS. 9b and 9c and run between the two bearing points 11, 12 along the cavity-forming portion 13.
[0046] FIGS. 10a, 10b and 10c show a two-point lever 9 according to the invention, with here too a cavity 10 being formed in a portion 13 between the bearing points 11, 12, with a cut-out portion 14 being provided to this end in the cavity-forming portion 13. This cut-out portion 14 which is formed can be seen very clearly in the sectional views in accordance with FIGS. 10b and 10c and runs between the two bearing points 11, 12 along the cavity-forming portion 13.
[0047] The illustration according to FIG. 11 shows a two-point lever 9 according to the invention, which is designed in particular for a buckling load in the plane of the lever.
[0048] Owing to the shaping of the lever 9, in particular of the cavity-forming portion 13, the lever 9 is particularly adapted to its buckled figure, so that the lever 9 can optimally absorb a buckling load in the plane of the lever with the minimum use of material. In this case, the two-point lever 9 acts like a buckling column in accordance with Euler mode 2.
[0049] The illustration according to FIG. 12 shows a two-point lever 9 according to the invention, which is designed in particular for a buckling load perpendicular to the plane of the lever. The description for FIG. 11 applies accordingly. In this case, the two-point lever 9 acts like a buckling column in accordance with Euler mode 4.
LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS
List of Reference Characters
[0050] 1 mast arm [0051] 2 large-scale manipulator [0052] 3 vertical axis [0053] 4 turntable [0054] 5 5a 5b mast arm segments [0055] 6 6a 6b articulated joints [0056] 7 7a 7b drive units [0057] 8 lever mechanism [0058] 9 two-point lever [0059] 10 cavity [0060] 11 bearing point A [0061] 12 bearing point B [0062] 13 cavity-forming portion [0063] 14 cut-out portion, burnt-out portion [0064] 15 bore [0065] 16 16a metal side plates, 16b 16c further metal plates [0066] 17 vehicle frame [0067] 18 supports [0068] 19 deflecting lever [0069] 20 middle component [0070] 21 crosspiece [0071] 22 sheet metal rings [0072] 23 projection (anti-twist protection means) [0073] 24 projection (weld pool backing) [0074] 25 anti-twist protection means
