JPH11222163A - Electropneumatic connection device for tractor/trailer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electropneumatic connection device which can prevent a connector for electropneumatic connection from being damaged even of a connection between the king pin of a trailer and the fifth wheel if a tractor comes off against one's own will, is excellent in connection reliability, and does not allow a connector on the tractor side to interfere with loading for the trailer. SOLUTION: A connection part 103 in the side of a tractor is disposed at the lower surface of the fifth wheel 102 of the tractor, furthermore, at a position down below the king pin 2 of a trailer, a guide rail 108 is provided, which guides a connector on the trailer side in the direction identical to the contacting/ parting direction of the fifth wheel 102 and the king pin 2. When the fifth wheel 102 comes off from the king pin 2 against one's will, an electropneumatic connection between the connectors can be separated passively by the dissociation of both the fifth wheel and the king pin.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electropneumatic (electric circuit and pneumatic circuit) connection device between a tractor and a trailer connected to each other.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 14 shows a conventional tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-45523 and Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 63-20625.
(A), (c) and (e) are plan views of a connection portion,
(B), (d) and (f) are side views showing the positional relationship between the tractor and the trailer corresponding to (a), (c) and (e), respectively. As shown in FIG.
1 is provided with a fifth wheel 502 which is a member for connection with the trailer 503 on the rear upper surface. The trailer 503 has a kingpin 5 at the lower front end for connection with the tractor 501.
04. As shown in (a), the fifth wheel 502
An opening 502a is formed on the trailer side so as to diverge, and a tractor-side connection portion 505 is disposed below the opening. The tractor-side connection portion 505 has an electric connection terminal and an air connection terminal on the connection surface (upper surface). In addition, the king pin 504 has a trailer side connection portion 50.
6 is attached via a connecting member 507, which is rotatable about a king pin 504. The trailer-side connection portion 506 has an electric connection terminal and an air connection terminal on its connection surface (lower surface).

When the tractor 501 is retracted for connection with the trailer 503 from the positional relationships shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the king pin 504 is inserted into the opening 502a of the fifth wheel 502 as shown in FIG. (It is noted that the king pin 504 is actually stationary and the fifth wheel 502 is moving, but the king pin 504 is moving for convenience of explanation.) The trailer-side connection portion 506 is rotated around the king pin 504 while being in contact with the opening 502a, and its entry posture is corrected along the opening 502a that becomes gradually narrower. Fits in position. At this time, the trailer-side connection portion 506 is located directly above the tractor-side connection portion 505. Here, the king pin 504 is locked, and the tractor-side connection portion 505 is pushed up by a drive mechanism (not shown) to be electropneumatically connected to the trailer-side connection portion 506.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing only the configuration on the tractor side of another conventional tractor / trailer electro-pneumatic connection device described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. Sho 63-3902.
Is a plan view, and (b) is a side view. In the figure, a fifth wheel 512 is provided on the rear upper surface of the tractor 511, and a tractor-side connection portion 514 for electropneumatic connection is mounted on the fifth wheel 512 via a U-shaped fixing member 513. The tractor-side connection portion 514 is urged rearward by a spring 515. When a kingpin (not shown) on the trailer side is relatively inserted into the fifth wheel 512, a trailer-side connection part (not shown) for electropneumatic connection is made in the same direction (substantially horizontal direction) as the insertion direction. Approaches the tractor-side connection 514
The tractor-side connection portion 514 abuts against the spring 515
Press. As a result, the tractor-side connection portion 514 is electropneumatically connected to the trailer-side connection portion.

[0005]

Among the conventional electro-pneumatic connection devices for a tractor / trailer as described above, the former (FIG. 1)
4) The tractor-side connection portion 505 and the trailer-side connection portion 5
The connection with 06 is made by vertical connection. However, if the king pin 504 of the trailer 503 comes off the fifth wheel 502 of the tractor 501 unexpectedly after the electropneumatic connection in such a configuration, a large force is applied to the vertical connection portion to connect the tractor side. There is a problem that the part 505 and the trailer side connection part 506 are damaged. On the other hand, in the latter (FIG. 15), there is no possibility of breakage for the same reason as the former, but the tractor-side connection portion 514 at the upper part of the fifth wheel 512 may interfere with the load of the trailer and the tractor side. There is a problem that the pipes and wirings to the connecting portion 514 are easily exposed because the pipes and wirings are exposed. Further, the tractor-side connection portion 514 is fixed to the fixing member 513.
Is supported in a so-called "cantilever" state, so that it is unstable and sometimes swings during running. For this reason, failures frequently occurred in piping and wiring to the tractor-side connection portion 514, and the reliability of the connection device was poor.

In view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, the present invention does not hinder the existence of the tractor-side connection portion, has a reliable connection device, and undesirably disconnects the vehicle. An object of the present invention is to provide an electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer that can always be used stably while preventing damage to a connection portion even in a case where the connection portion is damaged.

[0007]

An electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to the present invention is a device for mutually connecting an electric circuit and a pneumatic circuit of a tractor and a trailer mutually connected to a vehicle. A tractor-side connector having a tractor-side connector provided on a rear lower surface of a fifth wheel of the tractor and connected to a piping line of the tractor, and a king pin protruding from the front lower surface of the trailer via an intermediate body. A trailer-side connector having a trailer-side connector to which the piping wiring of the trailer is connected, wherein the tractor-side connector is smaller than the king pin that relatively enters the fifth wheel when connecting the trailer. The trailer-side connector is disposed at a lower position,
A drive mechanism that is attached to the same height position as the tractor-side connector, and further includes a drive mechanism that moves the tractor-side connector forward and backward in the front-rear direction of the tractor to attach and detach the tractor-side connector to and from the trailer-side connector. A guide mechanism for guiding the forward and backward movements in the same direction as the direction in which the fifth wheel and the king pin are brought into and out of contact with each other (claim 1). In the electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer configured as described above, the tractor-side connection portion provided on the lower surface of the fifth wheel is driven by a drive mechanism and a guide mechanism to determine the direction in which the fifth wheel is connected to the kingpin. By moving the tractor-side connector in the same direction, the tractor-side connector is attached to and detached from the trailer-side connector. Therefore, even if the connection between the fifth wheel and the kingpin is unintentionally disconnected after the electropneumatic connection, the tractor-side connector and the trailer-side connector naturally move in the same direction as the direction in which the kingpin and the fifth wheel are separated. Separated. As a result, damage to the connection device can be prevented. Further, since the tractor-side connector is held by the guide mechanism, the swing of both connectors during traveling of the vehicle is reduced.

In the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device (Claim 1), the guide mechanism is provided on a tractor-side connector and a tractor-side connector, and the guide rail is provided on the tractor-side connector. (A second aspect). In this case, the traveling direction of the tractor-side connector is always stable and reliable because the roller travels on the guide rail. Therefore, the moving direction can be surely made to coincide with the direction of contact and separation between the fifth wheel and the kingpin.

In the tractor / trailer electro-pneumatic connection device (claim 1), the tractor-side connection portion and the trailer-side connection portion have a centering mechanism for absorbing a connection error in a vertical direction and a vehicle width direction. (Claim 3). In this case, when connecting the tractor and the trailer, it is possible to compensate for any positional displacement between the connectors in the vertical direction and the vehicle width direction. Therefore, the tractor-side connector and the trailer-side connector can always be interconnected stably.

In the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device (claim 3), the vertical alignment mechanism is provided at one of a tractor-side connection portion and a trailer-side connection portion, and is provided in the vehicle body width direction. The alignment mechanism may be provided on the other of them (claim 4). In this case, the alignment mechanisms are distributed and arranged at both connection portions. Therefore, a necessary and sufficient alignment mechanism can be provided with a compact configuration.

In the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device (Claim 3), at least one of the tractor-side connection portion and the trailer-side connection portion is provided in a vertical direction of the tractor-side connector or the trailer-side connector. It may have a tilt permitting means for permitting the tilt (claim 5). In this case, when the tractor-side connector is connected to the trailer-side connector, even if one is inclined in the vertical direction with respect to the other, the connection surfaces can be adjusted to be parallel to each other by inclining accordingly. Therefore, the connectors can be connected more reliably.

In the electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer (Claim 1), a cover is provided on a connection surface of the tractor-side connector, the cover being opened and closed by the advance and retreat of the drive mechanism. (Claim 6). In this case, it is possible to prevent dust or the like from entering the tractor-side connector when the connectors are disconnected. Therefore, the reliability of the electropneumatic connection can be improved, and stable use can be ensured.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. First, the structure of the trailer-side connection device will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 is a side view (including a partial cross section) of the trailer-side connection device, and FIG.
Is a plan view. 5 and 6, a trailer-side connection device 1 includes a king pin (connecting pin) 2, a support portion 3 for supporting the king pin, and an arm 4 fixed to the king pin 2.
And an entry guide 5 attached to an end of the arm 4;
The trailer-side connection portion 6 attached to the end of the approach guide 5 is configured as a main component, and is installed near the front end of the floor surface 7 of the trailer. Here, the king pin 2 is a member for making a mechanical connection between the trailer and the tractor, and the trailer-side connection part 6 is a member for making an electro-pneumatic connection with a tractor-side connection part described later.

The support device 3 has a rib 31 and a structure having a substantially cylindrical column 33 at the center of a boss 32 firmly fixed to the floor 7, and is provided on the inner surface of the column 33. Bearing 34 and thrust bearing 35
And a stopper 36 provided on the upper part of the support 33. The king pin 2 is supported by a support portion 33 via a bearing 34 so as to be rotatable perpendicularly to the floor surface 7 and rotatable about its axis. The king pin 2 protrudes below the floor surface 7, and the protruding portion serves as an engaging portion 21 with the tractor side. King pin 2
The upper end surface of the large-diameter portion 22 is engaged with the upper end portion of the inner wall of the column portion 33, and the retaining member 36 fixed to the upper portion is provided with the thrust bearing 3 mounted on the inner side of the upper end portion of the column portion 33.
5, the vertical movement is restricted. Also,
By the tightening of the nut 23, the stopper 36 itself is also securely fixed.

As shown in FIG. 6, the retainer 36 has a pair of spring receiving portions 36a, and one end of the centering spring 8 is connected to each of the spring receiving portions 36a. The other end of each alignment spring 8 is held on the top of a columnar support 9 erected from the floor surface 7. Accordingly, the pair of spring receiving portions 36a are pulled by the centering spring 8 in the opposite directions with the same force, and are stabilized at the illustrated position. For example, when the kingpin 2 rotates clockwise or counterclockwise in FIG. 6, the pair of spring receiving portions 36 a also rotates with the rotation.
Is prolonged. Therefore, a force for returning to the original position acts on the kingpin 2.

As shown in FIG. 5, the arm 4 is mounted on a floor 7
And one end (the right end) is a kingpin 2
And concentrically rotates with the kingpin 2. The entry guide 5 is attached to the arm 4, and the trailer-side connection portion 6 is connected to the entry guide 5.
Attached to. Accordingly, the entry guide 5 and the trailer-side connection portion 6 also rotate concentrically with the king pin 2. That is, the arm 4 and the entry guide 5 are connected to each other so that the trailer-side connecting portion 6 always advances and retreats together with the kingpin 2 and the trailer-side connecting portion 6 rotates concentrically about the kingpin 2. Has a role as a body. As shown in FIG. 6, the entry guide 5 has a trapezoidal shape so as to be widened toward the rear side of the trailer (left side in the figure). The shape of this “trapezoid” matches the shape of the guide path of the fifth wheel on the tractor side, which will be described later, and the opening angle of both hypotenuses (the inner angle of the intersection angle of the extension line of both hypotenuses) is
It matches the opening angle of the guide path of the fifth wheel on the tractor side (details will be described later).

FIG. 7 is a view of the trailer-side connecting portion 6 viewed from the left end side of FIG. 5 or FIG. 6, and the structure of the trailer-side connecting portion 6 will be described below with reference to FIGS. The trailer-side connection portion 6 includes a connector 61, a support plate 62 extending rearward from the end of the connector 61 to the trailer, and a holding member 63 a that holds a cable or a pipe derived from the connector 61 on the support plate 62. 63b, a channel-shaped frame member 64, a pair of left and right support devices 65 attached to the frame member 64, a cover 66 with a rib 66a provided on the upper portion of the frame member 64, and a trailer rear of the cover 66. A spring 6 stretched between the side central portion and the holding member 63a
7 is provided.

The structure of the support device 65 will be described in more detail. The support arm 6 projecting from the side surface of the connector 61 is provided.
5a, a spherical bearing 65b loaded in the support arm 65a, a support pin 65c inserted into the spherical bearing 65b and upper and lower ends fixed to the frame member 64, and a support arm 65c. A support ring 65d for supporting the lower surface 65a from below,
And a lower portion of the frame member 64 and a spring 65e which is externally inserted into the support pin 65c and urges the support arm 65a upward. With this structure, the connector 61 includes the spring 65e
, And can move downward in a predetermined range with respect to the frame member 64. The connector 61 is rotatable in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 5 around the spherical bearing 65b as a fulcrum while resisting the spring 67. Usually,
The posture is maintained such that the front surface 6a of the trailer-side connection portion 6 is vertical. That is, the trailer-side connection portion 6
5, the front surface 61a can be moved up and down within a predetermined range in FIG. 5, and the front surface 61a which is normally kept vertically can be in a posture inclined backward from vertical. The support plate 62 shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG.
This shows the position in the case of the maximum inclination (11 degrees) from the vertical to the rear.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are views showing the details of the connector 61, wherein FIG. 11A is a plan view and FIG. 11B is a front view as seen from the side connected to a tractor-side connection section described later. In FIG. 6B, the connector 61 includes an electric power connector 611, a control connector 612, an air pipe connector 613, and
A guide hole 614 is provided. Electric power connector 61
1. Control connector 612 and air pipe connector 613
Are connected to predetermined piping and wiring in the trailer. As described above, the support arm 6 is provided on the side of the connector 61.
5a, and a spherical bearing 65b is mounted.

Next, the structure of the tractor-side connection device will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 is a side view of the tractor-side connection device, FIG. 9 is a plan view, and FIG. 10 is a view seen from the connection side with the trailer-side connection device 1. In FIG. 8, the tractor-side connection device 100 is connected to a support 101 installed on the rear floor of the vehicle body of the tractor via a pin 101a inserted into the support 101, and the pin 101a is pivoted around the support 101. A fifth wheel 102 rotatable in a predetermined range in a clockwise direction and a counterclockwise direction in the drawing;
Connecting portion 103 attached to the lower surface of the tip of the tractor
And are mainly configured. Here, the fifth wheel 102 is a member for making a mechanical connection between the tractor and the trailer, and the tractor-side connecting portion 103 is a member for making an electropneumatic connection with the trailer-side connecting portion 1 described above. . As shown in FIG. 9, the fifth wheel 102 has a guide path 102 a that forms a divergent opening toward the trailer side (left side in the figure), and a kingpin receiving portion 102 b inside the guide path 102 a. . The opening angle of the guide path 102a coincides with the opening angle of the two oblique sides of the entry guide 5 in the trailer-side connection device 1 described above.

A pair of (see FIGS. 9 and 10) spring holders 104 are attached to the lower surface of the fifth wheel 102.
Each of the spring holders 104 has a shape similar to a “J” when viewed from the side, and is inserted into a “T” -shaped fixing portion 104a when viewed from the front and a lower end portion of the fixing portion 104a. Two (see FIG. 8) pins 104b and each pin 104b
A pair of springs 104c extrapolated to the pin 104a and fixed to the pin 104b, and the spring 104c is
And a movable portion 104d sandwiched between the lower end of the movable portion 104d. By sandwiching the pair of springs 104c between the lower end of the fixed portion 104a, the movable portion 104d is stabilized with the vertical center line coinciding with the fixed portion 104a in FIG. It is possible to move left and right in a predetermined range in opposition.

The frame 105 is provided with the pair of movable portions 104d.
And serves as a support base for the connector 106. The frame 105 has a pair of air cylinders 107 as a driving mechanism and guide rails 10 laid horizontally.
8 and a cover shaft 109 are attached. A connector 106 and a bracket 110 are attached to the front end of each piston 107a of the pair of air cylinders 107, and these move forward and backward together with the piston 107a. A cover 111 for covering the front surface of the connector 106 is attached to the cover shaft 109, and the cover shaft 10
It rotates with 9. Cams 112 are attached to both ends of the cover shaft 109, and each cam 112 engages with a pin 110a provided on the side surface of the bracket 110 in accordance with the reciprocating operation of the piston 107a.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are views showing the details of the connector 106. FIG. 12A is a plan view, and FIG. 12B is a front view as seen from the side connected to the trailer. In FIG. 2B, the connector 106 includes an electric power connector 1061, a control connector 1062, an air pipe connector 1063, and a guide rod 1064. Electric power connector 106
1. Control connector 1062 and air tube connector 10
63 is connected to predetermined piping and wiring in the tractor. The electric power connector 1061, the control connector 1062, the air pipe connector 1063, and the guide rod 1064 are respectively connected to the electric power connector 611, the control connector 612, and the air connector 61 of the connector 61 in the trailer-side connection portion 6 described above. It is connected or fitted to the pipe connector 613 and the guide hole 614.

A rotatable roller 1065 is provided on both sides of the connector 106 in the non-connection direction. The roller 1065 engages with the guide rail 108 as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, and travels along the guide rail 108 with the operation of the piston 107a. As described above, the air cylinder 1 is guided by the guide mechanism constituted by the guide rail 108 and the roller 1065.
When driven by the piston 107a, the connector 106 moves forward and backward in a predetermined direction. The predetermined directions of the forward and backward movements are the same as the connection and disconnection directions of the fifth wheel 102 with respect to the kingpin 2 respectively.
Since the tractor-side connection portion 103 is provided on the lower surface of the fifth wheel 102, there is no interference with the load of the trailer. Further, damage to the piping wiring to the connector 106 can be prevented.

Next, the connection operation of the trailer-side connection device 1 and the tractor-side connection device 100 configured as described above will be described. The connection between the trailer-side connection device 1 and the tractor-side connection device 100 is performed by retracting the tractor toward the stationary trailer. This allows
The fifth wheel 102 of the tractor approaches horizontally to the kingpin 2 of the trailer, and the kingpin 2 relatively “enters” the guideway of the fifth wheel 102. When the fifth wheel 102 is moved closer to the king pin 2, a fifth drive mechanism not shown in FIG.
The wheel 102 can be rotated in a minute angle range. Thereby, the height position of the tip portion of the fifth wheel can be adjusted.

FIG. 13 is a plan view showing the positional relationship between the fifth wheel 102 and the trailer-side connecting device 1. Fifth wheel 102
Retreats in the direction of arrow A, and the kingpin 2 becomes the guideway 102a.
When the vehicle relatively enters the inside of the vehicle, the vehicle enters the middle of the approach except when the center line C1 of the trailer-side connection device 1 and the center line C2 of the fifth wheel 102 are ideally matched exactly. The guide 5 comes into contact with the guide path 102a (see FIG. 13A). When the fifth wheel 102 further retreats from this contact state and the kingpin 2 relatively enters the inner part of the guide path 102a, the trailer-side connection device 1 rotates counterclockwise around the kingpin 2 as the center of rotation. Into the inside of the fifth wheel 102 while being rotated. At this time, the kingpin 2 itself also rotates in the counterclockwise direction, and as a result,
The centering spring 8 is extended (see FIG. 13B).
As a result, a force acts on the entry guide 5 in a direction along the guide path 102a, and the entry posture of the trailer-side connection device 1 becomes
The center line C1 is corrected in a direction that matches the center line C2 of the fifth wheel 102.

In this manner, even if the kingpin 2 relatively enters the guide path 102a from any direction, the force for pressing the entry guide 5 along the guide path 102a acts, and finally And the center lines C1 and C2 match. Therefore, the connection surface of the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection portion 6 is opposed to and approached from the front surface of the tractor-side connection portion 103 in parallel with the connection surface of the connector 106. By this operation, the trailer / tractor in the vehicle width direction
The occurrence of a connection error between the connection surface of the connector 106 of the tractor-side connection portion 103 and the connection surface of the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection portion 6 is prevented. Further, the mutual inclination (the mutual inclination in a plan view) of the connection surfaces of these two connectors 106 and 61 is also prevented.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show a state in which the trailer-side connecting portion 6 and the tractor-side connecting portion 103 approach each other as described above, and the kingpin 2 is settled at a predetermined position of the fifth wheel 102, that is, It is the side view and top view which show the positional relationship of the trailer side connection device 1 and the tractor side connection device 100 in the state which connected the vehicle with the trailer.
After connecting the vehicle, the locking portion 113 of the kingpin 2 is locked by operating the kingpin locking lock 113 from the tractor side. In the state shown in FIG. 1, the tractor-side connection portion 103 is located below the kingpin 2, and the connection surface of the connector 106 of the tractor-side connection portion 103 and the connection surface of the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection portion 6 are the same as each other. They are facing each other at the height position. In this state, the electropneumatic connection has not been made yet.

Next, the air cylinder 107 is driven to advance the piston 107a (see FIG. 2) to the left in the figure. The connector 106 and the bracket 110 are advanced by the advance of the piston 107a. As the bracket 110 moves forward, the pin 110a drives the cam 112 counterclockwise. This opens the cover 111, exposing the connector 106. The connector 106 advances in a predetermined direction by a pair of rollers 1065 being guided by the corresponding guide rail 108. Then, first, the guide rod 1064 (FIG. 12) is inserted into the guide hole 614 (FIG. 11), and the connectors 106 and 61 are positioned relative to each other. As described above, the connection error between the connecting surfaces of the connectors 106 and 61 in the vehicle width direction of the trailer / tractor and the mutual inclination of the connecting surfaces of the connectors 106 and 61 are prevented. Therefore, the guide bar 1064 is securely inserted into the guide hole 614. However, even if there is still a slight misalignment between the connecting surfaces of the connectors 106 and 61 in the width direction of the trailer / tractor body, the connector may be expanded and contracted by the spring 104c (FIGS. 9 and 10) of the tractor-side connecting portion 103. The horizontal movement of 106 causes the mutual connection error in the vehicle body width direction to be absorbed (horizontal alignment mechanism). The connection error in the vertical direction is absorbed by the vertical movement of the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection section 6 along the support pin 65c (FIG. 7) (vertical alignment mechanism). Further, when the connection surfaces are not parallel to each other in the vertical direction (one is inclined with respect to the other), the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection portion 6 supported using the spherical bearing 65b (FIG. 7) is used. By rotating counterclockwise in FIG. 1, the connection surfaces become parallel to each other (tilt permitting mechanism).

As described above, the connection surfaces are adjusted to be parallel to each other, and accurately positioned up, down, left, and right. Thus, the connector 106 of the tractor-side connection portion 103,
The connector 61 of the trailer-side connection section 6 is electro-pneumatically connected. FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are a side view and a plan view, respectively, showing a state where electropneumatic connection is performed in this manner. After the cover 111 is opened as described above, the cam 112 and the pin 110a are disengaged from each other, and then rotate counterclockwise by their own weight to reach the state shown in FIG. The horizontal / vertical alignment mechanism and the tilt allowance mechanism allow the connector 10 to operate even when pitching or rolling sway occurs during traveling.
It serves to ensure that the connection between 6 and 61 is maintained. Further, since each of the rollers 1065 of the connector 106 is always held by the guide rail 108, the swing of the connectors 106 and 61 during traveling is small.

Next, an operation of separating the trailer and the tractor from each other in a state where the vehicle is connected and the vehicle is connected by electro-pneumatic connection will be described. In this case, first, the air cylinder 107
Of the tractor side connection portion 10
The third connector 106 is detached from the connector 61 of the trailer-side connection portion 6. With the retreat of the piston 107a,
The pin 110a engages with the cam 112 and then the cam 112
Are driven clockwise in FIG. Therefore, cover 1
11 rotates in the same direction to cover the connection surface of the connector 106. In this manner, the connection surface of the connector 106 is automatically covered, so that the male electric power connector 106
1 and the control connector 1062 can be prevented from being exposed, and intrusion of dust can be prevented. This allows
The reliability of the electropneumatic connection can be improved, and the stable performance of the connector 106 can be secured. And the piston 10
When 7a returns to the stroke origin, the separating operation between the connectors is completed. After that, the kingpin lock 11
3 is released, and the tractor advances with the trailer parked, whereby the fifth wheel 102 releases the kingpin 2 and the tractor and the trailer are separated from each other.

Next, the operation when the fifth wheel 102 and the kingpin 2 are unexpectedly disconnected from the vehicle-connected state and the electropneumatic connection state will be described. In this case, the tractor-side connection portion 103 moves together with the fifth wheel 102 by separating the fifth wheel 102 and the kingpin 2. Accordingly, the air cylinder 107 moves to the right in FIG. The movement of the air cylinder 107 causes the piston 1
07a is also forcibly moved. The moving direction at this time is the same as the normal electro-pneumatic departure direction. Therefore, the connector 106 on the tractor side is naturally separated from the connector 61 on the trailer side without any trouble. In this case, the piston 10
7a does not retreat, so the cover 111 does not close. However, if the separation between the fifth wheel 102 and the kingpin 2 is detected by some detecting means, and a retreat command is given to the cylinder 107 based on this, the piston 107a The cover 11 can be closed by closing it back. In this way, even when the fifth wheel 102 and the kingpin 2 are unintentionally disconnected, the connectors can be separated without damaging the tractor-side connection portion 103 and the trailer-side connection portion 6.

In the above-described electropneumatic connection operation, the horizontal aligning mechanism is borne by the tractor-side connecting section 103, and the vertical aligning mechanism and the tilt aligning mechanism are borne by the trailer-side connecting section 6. The load on the mechanism may be reversed, or both the tractor-side connection section 103 and the trailer-side connection section 6 may include these three mechanisms. In short, if the three mechanisms are realized by the tractor-side connection portion 103 and the trailer-side connection portion 6, the same centering effect can be obtained. However, if the alignment mechanisms are dispersed and arranged as in the present embodiment, both the connecting portions 103 and 6 can be made compact, and a necessary and sufficient alignment effect can be obtained.

[0034]

The present invention configured as described above has the following effects. According to the electro-pneumatic connection device for the tractor / trailer of the first aspect, the tractor-side connection portion provided on the lower surface of the fifth wheel is in the same direction as the direction of contact and separation between the fifth wheel and the kingpin by the drive mechanism and the guide mechanism. The tractor connector is attached to and detached from the trailer connector by moving the tractor connector forward and backward.
Even if the connection between the fifth wheel and the kingpin is disconnected unexpectedly after the electropneumatic connection, the tractor-side connector and the trailer-side connector are naturally separated in the same direction as the direction in which the kingpin and the fifth wheel are separated. You. As a result, damage to the connection device can be prevented. Further, since the tractor-side connection portion is provided on the lower surface of the fifth wheel, it is possible to prevent interference with a load and damage to piping and wiring. Further, since the tractor-side connector is held by the guide mechanism, the swing of both connectors during traveling of the vehicle is small, and the failure of the piping wiring is unlikely to occur. Therefore, the reliability as a connection device is also excellent.

According to the electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to the second aspect, the traveling direction of the tractor-side connector is always stable because the rollers travel on the guide rails. Thus, the fifth wheel and the kingpin can be surely brought into contact with each other. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the connection device from being damaged.

According to the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device of the third aspect, when the tractor is connected to the trailer, even if there is a displacement between the connectors in the vertical direction and the vehicle width direction, this is compensated. Therefore, the tractor-side connector and the trailer-side connector can always be interconnected stably.

According to the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device of the fourth aspect, since the alignment mechanism is dispersedly arranged at both connection portions, a necessary and sufficient alignment mechanism can be provided with a compact configuration. .

According to the tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device of the fifth aspect, when the tractor-side connector is connected to the trailer-side connector, even if one of the tractor / trailer and the other is inclined in the up-down direction, it is adjusted to this. By inclining the connection surfaces, the connection surfaces can be adjusted in parallel with each other, so that the connectors can be connected more reliably.

According to the electro-pneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer of claim 6, when the connectors are disconnected from each other,
Since dust and the like can be prevented from entering the tractor-side connector, the reliability of electropneumatic connection is improved, and stable use can be ensured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a state before an electropneumatic connection of an electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the above state.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing an electropneumatic connection state of the electropneumatic connection device for the tractor / trailer.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the electropneumatic connection state.

FIG. 5 is a side view (including a partial cross section) showing the trailer-side connection device.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the trailer-side connection device.

FIG. 7 is a view of a trailer-side connection portion of the trailer-side connection device as viewed from a rear end side.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing the tractor-side connection device.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the tractor-side connection device.

FIG. 10 is a view of the tractor-side connection device as viewed from a connection side with a trailer.

FIG. 11 is a plan view and a front view showing the trailer-side connector.

FIG. 12 is a plan view and a front view showing a tractor-side connector.

FIG. 13 is a plan view showing a positional relationship between a fifth wheel and a trailer-side connection device during a connecting operation between a tractor and a trailer.

FIG. 14 is a plan view and a side view showing a connection state in a conventional tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device.

FIG. 15 is a plan view and a side view showing a configuration on the tractor side of another conventional tractor / trailer electropneumatic connection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Trailer side connection device 2 King pin 4 Arm 5 Entry guide 6 Trailer side connection portion 61 Connector (trailer side connector) 65 Support device 65e Spring 67 Spring 100 Tractor side connection device 102 Fifth wheel 103 Tractor side connection portion 104c Spring 104d Movable portion 106 Connector (Tractor side connector) 107 Air cylinder 108 Guide rail 109 Pin 110 Bracket 111 Cover 112 Cam 1065 Roller

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A device for mutually connecting an electric circuit and a pneumatic circuit of a tractor and a trailer mutually connected to a vehicle, provided on a lower surface on a rear side of a fifth wheel of the tractor, and connected to a pipe of the tractor. A trailer having a tractor-side connection portion having a tractor-side connector to which wiring is connected, and a trailer-side connector attached to a king pin projecting from a lower surface on the front end side of the trailer via an intermediate body and connected to a piping wiring of the trailer. And a tractor-side connector, wherein the tractor-side connector is disposed at a position lower than the king pin that relatively enters the fifth wheel when connecting the trailer, and the trailer-side connector is connected to the tractor-side connector. The tractor-side connector is attached to the same height position, and the tractor-side connector is connected to the front of the tractor. It has a drive mechanism for moving forward and backward and attaching and detaching it to and from the trailer side connector, and a guide mechanism for guiding this forward and backward movement in the same direction as the direction of contact and separation between the fifth wheel and the kingpin. Electro-pneumatic connection device for tractors and trailers. 2. The guide mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the guide mechanism includes a guide rail provided on the tractor-side connection portion, and a roller provided on the tractor-side connector and running on the guide rail. 2. An electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to 1. 3. The tractor / trailer power supply according to claim 1, wherein the tractor-side connection portion and the trailer-side connection portion have a centering mechanism for absorbing a connection error in a vertical direction and a vehicle width direction. Empty connection device. 4. The vertical alignment mechanism is provided at one of a tractor-side connection portion and a trailer-side connection portion, and the vehicle body width-direction alignment mechanism is provided at the other of them. Item 3. An electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to item 3. 5. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the tractor-side connection portion and the trailer-side connection portion has a tilt permitting means for permitting the tractor-side connector or the trailer-side connector to tilt in a vertical direction. 3. An electropneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to 3. 6. The electro-pneumatic connection device for a tractor / trailer according to claim 1, wherein a cover is provided on a connection surface of the tractor-side connector so as to be opened and closed by the forward and backward movement of the drive mechanism.