GB2423294A

GB2423294A - Hoist or crane for fitting into an automobile in which the length of the arm and the position of the arm lifting actuator are adjustable

Info

Publication number: GB2423294A
Application number: GB0503223A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Owen Peter Briggs
Original assignee: BRIG AYD CONTROLS Ltd
Current assignee: BRIG AYD CONTROLS Ltd
Priority date: 2005-02-16
Filing date: 2005-02-16
Publication date: 2006-08-23
Also published as: GB0503223D0

Abstract

Disclosed is a hoist 1 or crane for fitting to a car 3 or other such small vehicle for loading and unloading the vehicle. The hoist is fitted to the interior surface of the automobile. The hoist comprises an adjustable hoist arm 10 or jib and an actuator 20 for raising and lowering the arm. The jib may have two parts that move axially relative to each other, with a plurality of holes in the first part for aligning with a hole in the second part for passing fasten means, such as a pin or bolt, through. The hoist may have a vertical support arm 4 attached to the interior of the car with the jib attached to the support vertically spaced from the actuator. The actuator may be fitted to the support above the jib. The actuator may be attached to the jib by a bracket with a pins or bolt passing through one a plurality holes to allow the attachment position to be varied. The jib may also have an adjustable lift arm 16 fitted transversally at it's upper end. The length of the lift arm may be adjustable and locked in place by a pin passing through alignment holes.

Description

85351.525 2423294 Hoist The present invention relates to a hoist and, more

particularly, to a hoist for lifting items into and out of an automobile. The invention is of particular utility in the field of lifting vehicles for disabled people into and out of automobiles such as cars, vans, coaches and so forth.

Many disabled people use small vehicles such as three or four wheel scooters or electric wheelchairs for short distance mobility. Examples include models produced by Sunrise Medical of Milton Keynes, England. In this specification, such vehicles are referred to as "SDM" vehicles. These SDM vehicles are often battery powered and may have limited range or otherwise be unsuitable for long distances. For such distances, disabled people need to use automobiles into which they can load these SDM vehicles, and these may be standard vehicles such as vans or multi purpose vehicles, or specially modified versions of these or smaller vehicles such as hatchbacks or estate cars. 5DM vehicles are usually too heavy, to be lifted into and out of an automobile manually, typically weighing up to 100kg or more, and it may be inconvenient or impractical to use ramps. It is therefore known to use hoists to perform this task, such hoists for example being powered from the battery of the automobile.

In a known system an SDM vehicle is suspended from a flexible chain or cable attached to the arm of a hoist which is provided in the rear part of an automobile such as an estate car or hatchback. Such lifts or hoists are widely available from a number of suppliers, which include the Autochair company, based in Bakewell, Derbyshire,UK and the applicant herein, Brig-ayd controls of Weiwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, UK.

Now, the Automobile Industry prides itself on the wide variety of cars available to the public. More than ever, over the past few years, cars have come in a wide range of shapes and sizes. The advent of four-wheel drive cars, such as the Range Rover, manufactured in the UK, or the Mitsubushi Shogun, manufactured in Japan, are merely two examples of large four wheel drive vehicles. Another trend in automobile design is the mini-people carrier.

Such vehicles include the Renault Megane Scenic, being a vehicle of fairly normal length and width, but with a substantially higher than normal space inside. Other similar examples include the Citroen Berlingo mini people carrier. Yet again this vehicle has an unusual height for its size. This problem would not be so bad if only these vehicles existed, but along side these mini people carriers we still see the more usual Ford Mondeos, Vauxhall Vectras, and other vehicles.

As can be seen above, the number of possible sized and shaped vehicles to which a hoist may be fitted is very large. Particularly since only a very small proportion of each vehicle model is modified for disabled purposes, the manufacturers and installers of such hoists are faced with either stocking a very large number of different devices, or employing a substantial amount of customised installation to fit the hoists into the range of cars available. Both of these options are not very desirable, as both are costly. A further consideration is that the hoists used for disabled people are necessarily well engineered, and have a useful lifetime well in excess of the time that many people choose to keep their car. It is highly unlikely that a purchaser of a used automobile would want the hoist installed by a previous disabled driver. It is therefore advantageous if such hoists can be removed from an automobile when sold, and installed in the next automobile that the owner purchases. This automobile however, may be of a considerably different shape, size, or proportions than the previous one.

Furthermore, the SDM vehicles that a disabled person uses do not have an infinite life, and quite often a disabled person will change their vehicle for a different model, which may have a completely different shape, size, or centre of gravity. It would be desirable to be able to do this without installing a new, different sized hoist.

From a first aspect, the present invention provides a hoist for lifting an item into and/or out of an automobile, the hoist being adapted to be attached to an interior surface of an automobile, and comprising a hoist arm and an actuator arm for raising and lowering the hoist arm, wherein the length of the hoist arm can be adjusted.

As the length of the hoist arm can be adjusted, the same hoist can be fitted into a number of automobiles of different interior dimensions without the need to cut the hoist arm.

A hoist arm having an adjustable length could be achieved in a number of ways. Preferably however the hoist arm comprises first and second parts axially moveable relative to each other to allow adjustment of the length of the hoist arm. The provision of first and second axially moveable parts provides a simple means of adjusting the length of the hoist arm.

The relative positions of the first and second parts of the hoist arm could be set in a number of ways. In one preferred embodiment, a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the first part, and a chosen hole is aligned with a hole in the second part in use, a fastening means being passed through the aligned holes to set the length of the hoist arm.

Preferably the hoist further comprises a support arm attached to the interior of the automobile so as to extend upwardly from the base thereof.

Preferably a first end of the hoist arm is attached to the support arm and a first end of the actuator arm is attached to the support arm at a point vertically spaced from the first end of the hoist arm. Still more preferably the second end of the actuator arm is attached to the hoist arm at a point removed from the first end thereof and the position of the point at which the actuator arm is attached to the hoist arm can be varied.

This again allows greater flexibility in the different sizes of automobiles with which the hoist of the invention can be used and in particular, allows the lifting capability of the hoist to be varied depending on the height of the base of the automobile above the ground.

Preferably the hoist arm is attached to the actuator arm using a bracket, and a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the hoist arm such that a hole in the bracket can be aligned with any of the said holes and fastening means can be passed through the aligned holes.

Preferably the hoist further comprises a lifting arm extending substantially transverse to the end of the hoist arm removed from the support arm, and the length of the lifting arm is adjustable.

By being able to adjust the length of the lifting arm also, greater flexibility is provided in the hoist of the invention.

The length of the lifting arm could be adjusted in a number of different ways, Preferably however the lifting arm comprises first and second parts which are axially moveable relative to each other to allow the length of the lifting arm to be adjusted. Preferably a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the first part which can be lined up with a hole in the second part to enable the length of the lifting arm to be set by fastening means passing through the aligned holes.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic view of a hoist according to the invention when mounted in a vehicle and in the loaded condition; Figure 2 is a top perspective view of a hoist arm according to the invention; Figure 3 is a top perspective view of a part of the hoist arm of Figure 2; and Figure 4 is a top perspective view of another part of the hoist arm of Figure 2.

The figures show a hoist 1 for loading and unloading an item indicated generally at 2 into and out of an automobile whose floor is generally at 3, through an opening of the automobile such as a door or hatchback.

The item 2 may be an SDM (short distance mobility) vehicle for a disabled person such as a scooter or electric wheelchair. The item 2 is indicated simply to indicate the position of the load and is not to scale; in practice an SDM vehicle would be much larger.

As can be seen the hoist 1 comprises a support arm 4, which is mounted to the automobile in a vertical orientation by bolting first and second mounting plates 5, 6 to a side wall 8 inside the automobile. The mounting plates 5 and 6 extend from the upper and lower ends of the support arm 4 respectively. The support arm is configured in such a way as to allow it and the body of the hoist 1 attached to it to rotate about a vertical axis. A hoist arm 10 is mounted to the end of the support plate 4 adjacent the floor 3 of the automobile so as to be pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis 12 extending parallel to the side wall 8 of the automobile when the hoist is in the stowed position within the automobile. The hoist arm 10 comprises an upwardly extending arm 14 terminating in a horizontal, transversely extending arm 16 to which the item 2 is attached by suitable means indicated diagrammatically at 18.

The hoist 1 further comprises a telescopic actuator arm made up of a first arm 22 slidably arranged in a second arm 24. A first end of the actuator arm 20 is pivotably attached to the upper end of the upwardly extending arm 14 of the hoist arm 10 adjacent the transversely extending arm 16. The other end of the actuator arm 20 is pivotably attached to the support plate 4 at a point vertically above and displaced from the lower end of the support plate 4 adjacent the floor 3 of the automobile. The actuator arm 20 acts to pull the upper end of the arm 14 towards the side wall 8 of the automobile when it is retracted so as to pivot the hoist arm 10 upwardly (in the clockwise direction as seen in Figure 1) thus raising the transverse arm 16. In contrast, when the actuator arm is extended, it acts to push the upper end of the arm 14 away from the side wall 8 of the automobile so as to pivot the hoist arm 10 downwardly(in the anticlockwise direction as seen in Figure 1) thus lowering the transverse arm 16.

To lift an item 2 out of an opening in the boot of an automobile, the hoist 1 operates in the following manner.

Firstly, the attachment means 18 are secured to the transverse arm 16 at a first end thereof and to the item 2 at the other end thereof if not already attached. A user then actuates the hoist 1 using a hand held control panel to lift the item 2 up from the floor 3 of the automobile. To do this, the telescopic actuator arm 20 retracts to pivot hoist arm 10 upwardly towards but not as far as the vertical (in the clockwise direction of Figure 1) . Once item 2 has been lifted from the floor 3 of the automobile, the hoist 1 is pivoted about the vertical axis of the support arm 4 to cause the end of the hoist arm 10 to which the item 2 is attached to extend out of the opening in the boot of the automobile.

In this position, the item 2 is suspended above the ground or other surface external of the automobile onto which it is to be unloaded. The pivoting of the hoist 1 about the vertical axis can be automated or can be achieved manually by a user pulling on the upwardly extending hoist arm 14.

Once the item 2 is suspended over the ground externally of the automobile, the user actuates the hoist 1 to lower the item 2 to the ground. To achieve this, the telescopic actuator arm 20 extends to pivot the hoist arm downwardly (in the anticlockwise direction of Figure 1) until the item 2 is resting on the ground. The user then detaches the attachment means 18 from item 2 and raises the hoist back to its original position before pivoting it back about the vertical axis such that it is stowed within the boot of the automobile.

The hoist arm 10 is shown in further detail in Figure 2.

As show in that figure, the arm is made up of 3 main parts. The first part comprises a first relatively long straight member 26 constructed from steel box section material having dimensions of 25mm by 50mm in cross section. The first part is shown in further detail in figure 4.

An intermediate member 28 is provided comprising a longitudinally extending member 30 adapted to receive an end of the first member 26 at the free end thereof so as to be axially moveable therein. The intermediate member further comprises a second member 32 extending at an angle of about 1000 to the longitudinally extending member 30 and adapted to receive an end of the third part at the free end thereof so as to be axially moveable therein. In a preferred embodiment the members 30 and 32 of the intermediate member 28 are integrally formed from a single piece of sheet metal which is bent into shape. Ideally, the intermediate member 28 comprises an upper surface and an outer edge forming a flange 29 extending substantially transverse to and downwardly from the upper surface over the whole length of the intermediate member. The opposite edge of the upper surface of the longitudinally extending member is also bent to extend substantially transverse to and downwardly from the upper surface. The inner edge of the second member 32 is however not bent but rather is cut away to provide a clear flat edge 33. The intermediate member 28 is also open rather than forming a box section, i.e. no lower surface is formed in the intermediate member. This is shown in further detail in Figure 3.

The third part comprises a straight member 34 constructed from steel box section material having dimensions of 25mm by 50mm in cross section.

A number of longitudinally aligned holes 36 are provided approximately centrally on and extending through both the upper and lower faces of the wider side of the first member 26, the holes extending from the end of the first member 26 which is adapted to be received in the intermediate member 28 along a portion of its length. A first hole 38 is provided approximately centrally on and extending through the upper surface of the member 30, adjacent the end thereof which is adapted to receive the first member 26. A further hole 40 is provided approximately centrally on and extending through the upper surface of the member 30, longitudinally spaced from the first hole 38. The first and further holes 38, are adapted to line up with respective ones of the holes 36 in the first member 26 when it is received in the intermediate member 28 such that the narrower sides of the first member 26 are aligned with the flanges 29, 31 on the respective sides of the member 30. Thus, the length of the upwardly extending hoist arm 14 can be altered by sliding the first member 26 further into or out of the first part 30 of the intermediate member 28 and then securing the first part to the intermediate member by passing bolts through the respective first and further holes 38, 40 and the holes 36 in the first member which are aligned with the holes 38, 40, and securing nuts on the ends of the respective bolts.

A number of holes 41 are also provided in the longitudinally extending member 30 of the intermediate member 28 extending from the end thereof adjacent the second member 32. The holes are axially spaced and are roughly centrally aligned in the upper surface of the member. A bracket 42 for attachment to the telescopic actuator arm 20 is provided. The bracket 42 is formed from sheet metal and is substantially frustoconical in plan view. The wider end of the frustocone has two holes 44, 46 extending therethrough, one of the holes being provided in each of the respective corners of the base of the frustocone. These holes are spaced so as to be in alignment with any two adjacent holes of the holes 41 provided in the longitudinally extending member 30 extending from the end thereof adjacent the second member 32. A third hole 48 is provided adjacent the narrower end of the frustocorie such that an end of the actuator arm 20 can be pivotally attached to the bracket by a pin passing through the third hole 48. The bracket can then be attached to a chosen position on the length of upwardly extending hoist arm 14 by aligning the two holes 46, 44 with a chosen set of the holes 41 in member 30 and securing the bracket to the member 30 by passing bolts through the aligned holes.

Two holes 50, 52 are also provided approximately centrally in the upper surface of the second member 32 of the intermediate member 28. The first hole 50 is positioned adjacent the free end of the second member 32 and the second hole 52 is axially spaced therefrom. A number of axially spaced holes 54 are provided centrally in the upper and lower surfaces of the straight member of third part 34. The length of the transversely extending arm 16 can therefore be adjusted by varying the position of the third part within the intermediate part 28 such that a chosen two of the holes 54 are lined up with the holes 50, 52 and then securing the third part to the intermediate part by passing bolts through the holes which are in alignment.

Finally, a hole 56 is provided adjacent the free end of the third part 34 and a hook f or supporting the attachment means 18 is attached to the hoist arm 10 by a pin passing through the hole 56.

When fitting the hoist 1 described above into an automobile, the length of the upwardly extending hoist arm 14 and the transverse hoist arm can be adjusted by the mechanisms described above. Further, the point of attachment of the actuator arm 20 to the hoist arm 10 can also be adjusted. This allows the hoist to be used in a variety of automobiles of different internal dimensions without the need to cut any of the hoist parts or to drill any further holes therein.

It will be appreciated that the embodiment described above is a preferred embodiment only of the invention such that various changes could be made thereto which would fall within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

Claims 1. A hoist for lifting an item into and/or out of an automobile,

the hoist being adapted to be attached to an interior surface of an automobile, and comprising a hoist arm and an actuator arm for raising and lowering the hoist arm, wherein the length of the hoist arm is

adjustable.
2. A hoist as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hoist arm comprises first and second parts axially moveable relative to each other to allow adjustment of the length of the hoist arm.
3. A hoist as claimed in claim 2, wherein a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the first part, and a chosen hole is aligned with a hole in the second part in use, a fastening means being passed through the aligned holes to set the length of the hoist arm.
4. A hoist as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the hoist further comprises a support arm attached to the interior of the automobile so as to extend upwardly from the base thereof.
5. A hoist as claimed in claim 4, wherein a first end of the hoist arm is attached to the support arm and a first end of the actuator arm is attached to the support arm at a point vertically spaced from the first end of the hoist arm.
6. A hoist as claimed in claim 5, wherein the second end of the actuator arm is attached to the hoist arm at a point removed from the first end thereof and the position of the point at which the actuator arm is attached to the hoist arm can be varied.
7. A hoist as claimed in claim 6, wherein the hoist arm is attached to the actuator arm using a bracket, and a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the hoist arm such that a hole in the bracket can be aligned with any of the said holes and fastening means can be passed through the aligned holes.
8. A hoist as claimed in any preceding claim, the hoist further comprises a lifting arm extending substantially transverse to the upper end of the hoist arm, and the length of the lifting arm is adjustable.
9. A hoist as claimed in claim 8, wherein the lifting arm comprises first and second parts which are axially moveable relative to each other to allow the length of the lifting arm to be adjusted.
10. A hoist as claimed in claim 9, wherein a number of axially spaced holes are provided in the first part which can be lined up with a hole in the second part to enable the length of the lifting arm to be set by fastening means passing through the aligned holes.
11. A hoist substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.