DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a modular containment-plate system for airport carousels comprising tilted sliding crossbars, the containment system being apt to eliminate the known problems arising from the relative pitching movement of conventional containment plates. For this reason, and also because the containment system has a greater thickness than conventional systems, it is also advantageously covered at the top by a modular section which can be reversibly connected to the carousel support structure.

Technological background

Accident prevention in airports is an aspect of fundamental and prime importance in the design and subsequent installation of airport machinery, this aspect assuming even greater importance if the machines are accessible by a public where children are present.

Disadvantages of the prior art

Inclined high-capacity carousels have a common problem consisting in their geometrical form. The inclined surface on which the baggage rests, in the region of the bends, forms a truncated cone segment.

Normally, the conventional containment plates are tangential and superimposed on each other. This causes an inevitable pitching movement of the plates and the formation of more or less large gaps which may create dangerous situations. In fact, baggage straps or belts may be get caught inside the interstices, or the staff or users in general may even get their fingers "pinched" by accidentally inserting them into one of these interstices.

Even the formation of small interstices may constitute a major risk in view of the size of a child's fingers.

Moreover, the necessity to introduce the section according to the invention also arises from the need to replace the steel elements as provided according to the prior art, which, because of their artisanal nature, are subject to defects which inevitably have a negative effect in terms of aesthetic appearance and safety.

In fact, with the section according to the present invention, calendering instead of welding may be used in the region of the carousel bends, overcoming a series of drawbacks and thus allowing precision and high-quality industrial production instead of production on an artisanal level.

Usually the housing elements around the bends, which are formed by welded elements, have manufacturing defects, being deformed and not perfectly shaped, thus not guaranteeing the necessary finish and safety during the design stage.

Such defects can be noted in particular at the junction between two adjacent housing elements and in particular in the vicinity of the bends where often, in the case of a welded finish, the edges at the ends of said housing elements have irregularities, resulting in imperfect joints of inferior quality from an aesthetic point of view.

Objects of the invention

The object of the present invention is therefore to overcome the abovementioned drawbacks by providing a modular section as substantially defined in claim 1.

Moreover, an object of the present invention is to provide a section as substantially defined in claim 6.

Further characteristic features of the modular section are defined in the corresponding dependent claims.

Advantages of the invention

The present invention, overcoming the said problems of the prior art, offers numerous and obvious advantages.

The section together with the external housing, unlike the products of the prior art, is mounted no longer alongside the containment plates, but in particular above them so as to provide a more compact covering without recesses.

This has been made possible by means of the modular containment system comprising a plurality of plates, each of which is hinged by means of a pin which is vertical with respect to the sliding crossbar of the carousel. The presence of this pin, as will be described in detail in a preferred embodiment thereof presented here by way of a non-limiting example, has the effect that the plates around the bends continue to travel in a single horizontal plane, thus eliminating entirely the pitching movement and therefore allowing the introduction of the upper covering section.

The result is the compact positioning of the section with respect to the containment plates.

The section, together with the modular containment system, therefore guides the outgoing baggage by means of sliding friction without any sharp edges or projections.

The section according to the present invention represents a technological innovation which is combined with particular design features: in fact it has an excellent finish, is simple to assemble and provides durable protection.

The section according to the present invention comprises a system for reversible fastening to the structure, which may be advantageously provided in the form of an assembly kit using shaped screws preferably made of steel.

This fastening system may be used equally well along the entire length of the section, owing to the particular form of the bottom part of the single section module. In fact this geometrical form allows insertion and easy fixing of the steel screws for standard sections.

In order to ensure fixing of two consecutive section modules, centring pins are provided, which are to be located inside special seats formed in the section at the junction between two consecutive modules.

The structure of the modular section has optimum mechanical properties, with an excellent response to both flexural and torsional loads.

The section is preferably anodized so as to withstand corrosive processes.

Each section module has on its rear surface shaped elements which provide a distinctive design and special lighting effects.

Brief description of the drawings

Other further advantages, as well as the characteristic features and modes of use of the present invention, will become clear from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments thereof, provided by way of a non-limiting example, with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows, in two perspective views, an airport carousel provided with containment plates and cover housing according to the prior art;

Figures 2 and 3 show a perspective view of a containment plate according to the invention;

Figure 4 shows a plan view of a containment plate according to the present invention;

Figure 5 shows a diagram for connection of two containment plates according to the present invention;

Figure 6 shows a portion of a modular containment plate system according to the present invention;

Figure 7 shows a perspective view of a section module according to the present invention;

Figure 8 shows a cross-sectional view of a section according to the invention and profile thereof;

Figure 9 shows a cross-sectional view of the section and the system for performing fastening to the external housing;

Figure 10 shows a perspective view of a modular section according to the invention around a bend; Figure 11 shows a perspective view of the section according to the invention;

Figure 12 shows a detail of the preceding figure;

Figure 13 shows a front cross-sectional view of the carouse! structure;

Figure 14 shows a perspective view of a portion of the modular containment system covered on top by the modular section according to the present invention; and

Figure 15 shows a perspective view of a detail of Figure 13.

Detailed description of the drawings

With reference to Figure 1 , this shows an airport carousel 100 according to the prior art. It comprises an outer protective housing 101 located along the side of the containment plates 102. The carousel comprises a drive chain (not shown) which slides along a predefined closed path and a plurality of sliding crossbars 103 (on which the plates 104 are positioned) consecutive to each other, integrally connected to the chain and titled with respect to a treadable floor (not shown). Each containment plate usually has a portion integrally fixed to the respective sliding crossbar. In this way, the containment plate travels around the bend, flexing, and for this reason it must necessarily be provided with a substantially sheet-like form, precisely in order to allow it to flex by an amount depending on the magnitude of the radius of curvature of the closed path.

Since, around the bends, the containment plates move along a truncated cone and must necessarily be inclined at an angle substantially equal to 90° with respect to the containment crossbars in order to prevent the formation of a pocket which would then hinder extraction of the baggage, during the movement around the bends the plates tend to create sawteeth relative to each other - this being indicated by the reference number 105 in the figures - which create interstices and gaps, which are potentially dangerous, as described above.

The housing cover for a conventional carousel necessarily may not be arranged above the plates since, owing to the pitching movement, a further potentially dangerous zone would be created, i.e. a zone situated between the covering housing and the top of said containment plates.

With reference now to the following Figure 2, this shows a containment plate 1 according to the present invention.

In particular, the containment plate 1 has a working face, shown in the figure at the bottom, and a rear face, opposite the working face (see figure at the top).

The containment plate 1 , has a preferably elongate shape, comprises a slide knob 11 obtained on the working face, a linear guide 12 obtained on the rear face thereof and a vertical seat 13 for housing a pin (not shown) for hinging the plate on a respective sliding crossbar (situation not shown).

Preferably, the distance between the slide knob 11 and the pin is smaller than a pitch of the drive chain, formed by the length of a link thereof. Each link is integrally connected to a respective sliding crossbar.

The containment plate 1 is also preferably made of elastic material so as to be able to flex when stressed around a bend, but be able to assume again a substantially straight form when said stress is no longer present.

Preferably, the containment plate 1 has, on its working face, another two linear guides, denoted by the reference numbers 14 and 15, and correspondingly another two slide knobs 16 and 17.

The containment plate also has on the working face a cushioning portion 18 for cushioning the baggage coming into contact with the containment plate 1.

With reference to the following Figure 3, this shows the connection of the containment plate 1 to the respective containment crossbar 19, substantially at one end of the latter, the crossbar being integrally connected to the drive chain and tilted with respect to the treadable floor. In particular it is possible to see the pin 20 which is integrally connected to the crossbar 19 (connection not shown) and about which the containment plate 1 is free to rotate.

Still with reference to Figure 3, the cushioning portion 18 is apt to form an angle substantially orthogonal to a plane defined by the crossbar 19, so as to facilitate removal, by the users, of the baggage resting against the plate 1.

Figure 4 shows a detailed plan view of that already described with reference to Figure 2.

The following Figure 5 shows a portion, consisting for example of three containment plates 1 , 1' and 1", of a containment system 1000 for airport carousels according to the present invention. The containment system 1000 comprises generally a plurality of containment plates placed in sequence with each other and partially juxtaposed. Each containment plate, as described above, is hinged with the respective crossbar so as to be able to rotate about an axis orthogonal to the treadable floor and has a working face facing the crossbar (not shown) and a rear face opposite thereto (not visible in the figures).

Moreover, the containment system 1000 comprises telescopic connection means between one containment plate and a containment plate consecutive thereto.

The following Figure 6 shows the juxtaposed arrangement of the containment plate 1 and a containment plate 1' consecutive thereto. As shown in the figures, the telescopic connection means comprise the knob 11 , which can be inserted and is able to slide inside a guide 12' of the plate 1', so as to allow movement away from each other of the two plates 1 and 1' which necessarily occurs around a bend of the closed path.

The telescopic connection means also comprise preferably knobs 16' and 17', which are formed on a rear face of the plate 1' and apt to be inserted and slide, respectively, inside the guides 14 and 15 of the plate 1 , in order to ensure a better fit between two successive juxtaposed containment plates.

With reference now to the following Figure 7, this shows a section module 30 which comprises a top cover cap 31 , first means for reversible connection to an external structure of the carousel (not shown) and second means for reversible connection to a section module consecutive thereto (not shown).

In particular, the first and second reversible connection means comprise a common linear guide 32, obtained on a base of the cover cap 31.

With reference to the following Figure 8, this shows a cross-sectional view of the section module.

With reference to Figure 9, this shows a section module 30 which is reversibly connected to the external carousel structure, now visible. In particular, the structure is an external housing 50 to which the section module is integrally and reversibly connected.

The first connection means comprise a connection element 33 comprising a connection plate defining a substantially U-shaped edge (not visible in the figure because shown in cross-section) and a tab 34 which is orthogonal to the plate and comprises a threaded hole through which it is fixed by means of a bolt 35 to the external housing 5.0. The first connection means also comprise a T-headed bolt (also referred to by persons skilled in the art as "hammer-head screw"). The T-bolt 36 can be easily inserted inside the linear guide 32, positioning its head so that it is aligned with the guide, and is then locked by rotation thereof since its head comes into abutment with linear stringers of the guide 321 and 322. The U-shaped edge is arranged around the bolt 36 and fixed there by means of a lock nut 37.

The second connection means comprise a centring pin (not shown in the figures) which is apt to slide inside the common linear guide 32 and which comprises a pair of threaded through-holes. The pin is arranged at the junction between the section module 30 and a section module consecutive thereto (not shown) and is fixed there by means of a corresponding pair of bolts which bear against the side stringers 321 and 322 of the common linear guide. The pin, being positioned centrally on the junction, so as to arrange one threaded hole inside the linear guide of the section module and the second hole inside a linear guide of the consecutive section module, acts as an element for joining the two modules together as soon as it is fixed by the two corresponding bolts in the manner described.

It will be understood that the two section modules may also be connected by means of a pin having a single threaded hole, the latter being arranged along a joining line of the two consecutive modules.

Figure 9 shows, moreover, a containment plate 1 which is covered at the top by the top cap of the section module.

Figure 10 shows a modular section 40 according to the present invention, which is formed by means of a reversible in-series connection of a plurality of section modules as described above. In particular, in the example shown in the figures, the modular section has been subsequently calendered so as to cover a section of the containment system along a bend of the closed path.

Figures 11 and 12 show the surface finish of the modular section, which combines a high level of efficiency and technical utility with an attractive appearance.

Finally, the modular section according to the present invention may be easily provided in the form of an assembly kit.

With reference to the following Figures 13 and 15, these show, respectively, a cross-sectional view and a perspective view of the airport carousel. In particular, the sliding crossbar 19 integral with the drive chain 60 can now be clearly seen. The containment plate 1 is positioned at one end of the crossbar and is partially covered at the top by the modular section 40 which is reversibly connected to the external housing 50 of the carousel structure. The containment system, therefore, extends along the ends of the sliding crossbars so as to form a closed and compact system of plates along the predefined path followed by the drive chain.

In particular, the figures clearly show the orientation, orthogonal to the treadable floor, of the containment plate (in order to eliminate pitching) and the substantial right- angle formed by the cushioning portion 18 and the crossbar 19 so as to provide a particular ergonomic form allowing extraction of the passing baggage.

Owing to the hinged connection between the containment plate and the crossbar, the containment plates may be designed with a form which is no longer of a laminar nature, as in the case of the prior art; consequently, as a result of their greater thickness compared to the prior art (the containment system is preferably designed with dimensions such as to have a constant thickness composed of three plates juxtaposed on each other), the modular section may be positioned so as to provide a top covering for the containment system, thus increasing the safety and reducing the number of potential accidents, as shown in Figure 14.

The present invention has been described hitherto with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof. It is understood that other embodiments relating to the same inventive idea may exist, all of these falling within the scope of protection of the claims which are provided hereinbelow.