Technical field

This invention relates to the jacks ensuring trailers, truck trailers and tractor trailers to stand firmly and functionally in park without a tractor unit.

Prior Art

Trailer parking legs are used in order to ensure trailers, truck trailers and tractor trailers to stand independently in park without a tractor unit. Two parking legs are fixed on the right and left sides of the wheelless front parts of vehicles such as trailer, tractor trailer. The fact that the part, which is located in the height adjusting mechanisms of parking legs in the left and right hands and called as nut, has different geometry for both legs is one of the most important problems of parking legs produced today. The reason for this problem is the fact that the height adjusting shaft passing through the nut is not produced equiaxially with the body of parking leg. The shaft used in the left parking leg of the vehicle is located on the right side of parking leg, and the shaft used in the right parking leg of the vehicle is located on the left side of parking leg. The most important problem caused by the fact that the parts called as nut do not have the same geometry in both legs is the requirement of using different nuts for each leg. Different nut usage in both legs causes problems especially in stocking spare parts. This situation causes to use more storage areas and increases the cost.

Today, the method used in the production of inner and outer bushings of the trailer parking legs is cutting the material produced as shaped tubes in desired sizes. The inner and outer bushings produced with this method are heavy and have high costs. Another important technical problem of parking legs in state of the art is the fact that the maintenance and assembly of the operating mechanism of the leg are difficult. Various gears and shafts used in parking legs produced today are located inside of the inner bushing; therefore, maintenance works are very difficult.

In EP0380941 numbered European patent document which is one of the states of the art, a telescopic support device for trailers is mentioned. The device includes an outer tube, a first inner tube that can stretch downward inside the outer tube and at least one telescopic support leg consisting of one fixing plate for fixing the support bracket to the object to be supported. In order to decrease weight and facilitate the production, it is produced with girders from a light metal like aluminum alloy as monolith with the outer tube fixing plate by extrusion method.

Brief Description of the Invention

The objective of this invention is to produce a parking leg ensuring vehicles such as trailers, truck trailers and tractor trailers to stand functional and in balance independently of a tractor unit. Another objective of this invention is to produce a parking leg which is equiaxial with height adjusting shaft, outer bushing and inner bushing.

Another object of this invention is to produce a lightened and strengthened parking leg.

Another object of this invention is to produce a cost-efficient parking leg.

Detailed Description of the Invention The "parking leg" produced to achieve the object of this invention is shown in attached figures, and these figures shows respectively: Figure-1 Frontal view of a trailer with two parking legs.

Figure-2 Frontal view of the parking leg.

Figure-3 Perspective view of the outer bushing.

Figure-4 Perspective view of the nut.

Figure-5 Partial side view of the parking leg.

Figure-6 Frontal view of the outer bushing.

Figure-7 Sectional side view of the parking leg.

Figure-8 Sectional perspective view of the parking leg.

Figure-9 Sectional perspective view of the gears and the nut.

Figure-10 Sectional views of different profile presses exerted on inner and outer bushings.

Figure-11 Plan view of the nut.

Figure-12 Plan view of the nut which is used in state of the art.

Figure-13 Sectional view of a parking leg in state of the art.

Figure-14 Sectional view of the parking leg produced equiaxially with the height adjusting shaft and inner bushing.

The parts in the figures have been enumerated one by one and the parts shown by these numbers are given below:

1. Parking leg

2. Inner bushing

3. Outer bushing

4. Drive shaft

5. Pinion gear

6. Big gear ring 7. Vertical cone gear

8. Support shaft

9. Horizontal cone gear

10. Height adjusting shaft

11. Nut

111. Threaded hole

12. Connector plate

121. Screw hole

13. Stamping press

14. Assembly slot

15. Profile press

16. Equiaxial countersinks

17. Shoe

18. Transmission cover

19. Drive gear

20. Small gear ring

21. Nut holder

22. Oil sump

23. Drive shaft bearing

Parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention which ensures trailers, truck trailers and tractor trailers to stand firmly and functionally in park without a tractor unit includes;

- at least one inner bushing (2),

- at least one outer bushing (3) located outside of inner bushing (2) and moving upwards (in the direction of arrow U) and downwards (in the direction of arrow D),

- at least one transmission cover (18) located on the outer bushing (3),

- at least one drive shaft (4) placed vertical to the axes of inner bushing (2) and outer bushing (3), at least one pinion gear (5) fixed to the drive shaft (4) as equiaxial with the drive shaft (4),

at least one big gear ring (6),

at least one vertical cone gear (7) fixed to the big gear ring (6) as equiaxial with the big gear ring (6),

one support shaft (8) passing through the centers of big gear ring (6) and vertical cone gear (7)

at least one horizontal cone gear (9) placed in an axis vertical to the axis of vertical cone gear (7) and as in contact with the vertical cone gear (7), at least one height adjusting shaft (10) fixed to the horizontal cone gear (9),

at least one nut (11) through which the height adjusting shaft (10) passes and which is placed in the inner bushing (2),

a threaded hole (111) located on the nut (11) enabling the height adjusting shaft (10) to pass through the nut (11),

at least one nut holder (21) fixing the nut (11) inside the inner bushing (2), an oil sump (22) located on the upper part (the part in the direction of arrow U) of the nut (11),

at least one drive shaft (19) placed outside of the outer bushing (3), at least one small gear ring (20) placed outside of the outer bushing (3) and transferring the drive coming from drive gear (19) to the support gear (8) and big gear ring (6),

connector plates (12) produced as monolith with the outer bushing (3) and located on both sides of the outer bushing (3),

screw holes (121) located on the connector plates (12),

stamping press (13) which can be in different forms and which is placed on the outer bushing (3) and inner bushing (2) respectively to increase the endurance of outer bushing (3) and inner bushing (2),

at least one assembly slot (14) placed on the outer bushing (3) and ensuring drive shaft (19) and small gear ring (20) to be placed outside of the outer bushing (3) by enabling the support shaft (8) to drive off the outer bushing (3),

profile press (15) exerted to the outer bushing (3),

at least one drive shaft bearing (23) which is located in the inner bushing (2) and bears the drive shaft (4) and through which the height adjusting shaft (10) passes,

equiaxial countersinks (16) which are located on the connector plate (12) and

at least one shoe (17) fixed to the inner bushing (2)

Inner bushing (2) constitutes the part of the trailer parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention that is fixed on the ground. Other parts of the parking leg (1) are connected to the inner bushing (2) directly or indirectly. The inner bushing (2) is produced from a sheet metal made from any metal or metal alloy for the preferred application of the invention. In order to increase the endurance of the inner bushing (2) which is produced from sheet metal, stamping press (13) is exerted to the bushing. Usage of heavy and costly shaped tubes is prevented by producing inner bushing from sheet metal.

The outer bushing (3) circles the inner bushing (2) and preferably has a tetragonal structure as the inner bushing (2). The outer bushing (3) can move up and down over the inner bushing (2) while the height of the parking leg (1) is adjusted. The outer bushing (3) is produced from a sheet metal made from any metal or metal alloy for the preferred application of the invention. In order to increase the endurance of the outer bushing (3) which is produced from sheet metal, stamping press (13) is exerted to the bushing. By this way the usage of shaped tube which was used in the prior art is prevented and a lighter and cheaper outer bushing is produced. Different profile pressing techniques can be applied on the inner bushing (2) and outer bushing (3) (figure 9).

The drive shaft (4) is the part to which the necessary drive is given for the height adjustment of the parking leg (1). During the upward and downward movement of the outer bushing (3), the drive shaft (4) also moves together with the outer bushing (3). The drive shaft (4) can move inside or outside of the outer bushing

(3) · The pinion gear (5) is fixed to the drive shaft (4) as equiaxial with the drive shaft

(4) . As the drive shaft (4) is pushed in the direction of arrow C, the pinion gear (5) gets in contact with the big gear ring (6). As the drive shaft (4) is pushed in the direction of arrow C, the pinion gear (5) starts to rotate the big gear ring (6) with the drive it gets from the drive shaft (4). As the drive shaft (4) is pushed down in the direction of arrow B, the pinion gear (5) contacts with the gears on the inner surface of the drive gear (19). When the drive shaft (4), which is pushed down in the direction of arrow B, is started to rotate, the pinion gear (5) starts to rotate the drive gear (19) with the drive it gets from the drive shaft (4). And the drive gear (19) rotates the small gear ring (20). Because the gear rates are different while the drive shaft (4) is pushed in the direction of arrow C or pushed down in the direction of arrow B, the trailer parking leg can be used in preferred speed by moving the drive shaft (4) in the direction of arrow C or arrow B.

When the big gear ring (6) is pushed in the direction of arrow C, it contacts with the pinion gear (5). The big gear ring (6) is fixed to the support shaft (8) which passes through its center equiaxially. The big gear ring (6) starts to rotate with the drive it gets from the pinion gear (5) and rotates the support shaft (8) in the same axis. The vertical cone gear (7) is fixed to the support shaft (8) equiaxially with the support shaft (8). When the big gear ring (6) and the support shaft (8) start to move, the vertical cone gear (7) also starts to rotate in the same axis with the support shaft (8). The vertical cone gear (7) is in contact with the horizontal cone gear (9). The movement of the vertical cone gear (7) enables the horizontal cone gear (9) which is fixed in the outer bushing in the same axis with inner bushing (2) and outer bushing (3) to rotate around its own axis. The vertical cone gear (7) and the horizontal cone gear (9) is located inside the outer bushing (3).

The horizontal cone gear (9) is fixed to the height adjusting shaft (10) which is placed in the same axis with the horizontal cone gear (9). By the movement of the horizontal cone gear (9), the height adjusting gear starts to rotate in the same axis. There are screw pitches on the exterior surface of the height adjusting shaft (10). The screw pitches on the exterior surface of the height adjusting shaft (10) are in cooperation with the screw pitches on the threaded hole (111) located on the nut. When the height adjusting shaft (10) starts to rotate around its own axis, it moves upwards and downwards according to the direction of the rotation inside the nut which is fixed inside the inner bushing (2) irrotationally. By this way, the drive shaft (4), pinion gear (5), big gear ring (6), vertical cone gear (7), support shaft (8) and horizontal cone gear (9) bearing inside the outer bushing (3) move upwards and downwards together with the outer bushing (3) according to the direction of movement of the height adjusting shaft (10).

When the drive shaft (4) pushed down in the direction of arrow C starts to rotate, the pinion gear (5) which is fixed on the drive shaft (4) enables the drive gear (19) to rotate in the same axis and direction. The drive gear (19) is placed equiaxially with the drive shaft (4) on the part of drive shaft (4) out of the outer bushing (3) and in such a way that it can rotate independently of the drive shaft. The drive gear (19) which is placed outside of the outer bushing (3) is preferably covered by transmission cover (18). The small gear ring (20) is fixed to the part of support shaft (8) that is removed from the outer bushing (3) through the assembly slot (14). The small gear ring (20) is in contact with the drive gear (19) and transfers the drive it gets from the drive gear (19) to the support shaft (8) and the big gear ring (6). The small gear ring (20) is covered with the transmission cover for the preferred application of the invention.

By placing the small gear ring (20) and drive gear (19) outside of the outer bushing (3), a wide area is provided inside the inner bushing (2) and the height adjusting shaft (10) can be placed in the same axis with the inner bushing (2). By this way, the center of threaded hole (111) through which the height adjusting shaft (10) passes comes up to the symmetry axis (S) of the nut (11) and the inner bushing (2).

The fact that the small gear ring (20) and drive shaft (19) are placed outside of the outer bushing (3) also facilitates the assembly and maintenance of small gear ring (20) and drive shaft (19). One can reach to the small gear ring (20) and drive gear (19) by removing the transmission cover (18) and when needed, the small gear ring (20) and drive gear (19) can be replaced for purposes such as maintenance, assembly and replacing the gears for changing the height adjusting speed. The connector plate (12) is the part with which the parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention is assembled to vehicles like trailers. The connector plate (12) is produced as monolith with the outer bushing (3) for the preferred application of the invention. There are screw holes on the connector plate (12) for enabling the connection between the parking leg (1) and vehicles such as trailer and tractor trailer.

In order to increase the endurance of outer bushing (3) and inner bushing (2) on the parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention stamping press (13), which can be in different forms, is used to give a shape. By this way, endurance level against deformation has increased; the opportunity of production with lighter materials has arisen, total weight and cost have decreased. The maintenance and assembly of parts such as drive gear (5) and support shaft (8) inside the outer bushing (3) have been facilitated by opening an assembly slot (14) on the outer bushing (3) of parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention. The parts outside of the outer bushing (3) can be assembled and disassembled easily through the assembly slot (14).

Profile presses (15) are available under the outer bushing (3) for increasing the endurance level. Bands are not required anymore for this part thanks to the increased endurance level attained by profile pressing (15). By this way the number of the materials decreases, and so do the cost and weight.

Equiaxial countersinks (16) are placed on the connector plates equiaxially with the screw holes (121). Equiaxial countersinks (16) provide high endurance, a firm structure and easy assembly.

The assembly slot (14) is a slot opened on the outer bushing (3). Small gear ring is placed on the part of support shaft (8) driving off the outer bushing (3), which locates out of the outer bushing (3) through the assembly slot. The fact that the small gear ring (20) is placed out of the outer bushing (3) through the assembly slot (14) facilitates maintenance and assembly. The drive gear (19) can be placed on the part of the drive shaft (4) out of the outer bushing by the fact that the small gear ring (20) is placed out of the outer bushing (3). By this way, maintenance and assembly of the drive gear (19) can be done easily.

The transmission cover (18) is placed over the drive gear (19) and small gear ring (20) which locate out of the outer bushing (3), and protect drive gear (19) and small gear ring (20) from outer environment. For the preferred application of the invention, the transmission cover (18) is produced in a way that it can be removed from the outer bushing (3). The transmission cover (18) is preferably fixed to the outer bushing with at least one screw. Countersinks are placed equiaxially with the connection axis around the screw holes (which are not shown in figures) used for fixing the transmission cover (18) to the outer bushing (3). By this way, the connection becomes more rigid. The endurance level of the transmission cover (18) is increased by applying horizontal, vertical and rotational stamping press.

It is possible to develop various applications of parking leg (1) subjecting to the invention and it cannot be limited only with the samples explained here; basically it is as stated in the section of claims.