Vertical conveyor device for various sized payloads

Abstract

A vertical conveyor device to accommodate motor vehicles of varying height. Short and tall containers for motor vehicles alternate around a vertical carousel. When a container is placed in an accessible position, movable walkways and ramps change position allowing patrons and vehicles access to the containers. The position of the walkway and ramp vary depending on the height of the container.

We claim:  
     
         1 . A vertical conveyer system comprising: 
 a floor having a pit therein, wherein the pit is bounded by front and back ramp-side walls and a pair of parallel walkway-side walls;    a ramp-lifting assembly attached to at least one of the ramp-side walls;    a walkway-lifting assembly attached to at least one of the walkway-side walls; and    a container comprising a pan and a set of load supports, the pan being suspended by the load supports and the container being positioned so that the pan is accessible to the floor and can travel over the ramp-lifting assembly and the walkway-lifting assembly.    
     
     
         2 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 1 , wherein the ramp-lifting and walkway-lifting assemblies each have a means for positioning each assembly in several predetermined positions.  
     
     
         3 . The vertical conveyor system  claim 2 , the ramp-lifting assembly further comprising: 
 a ramp having an underside and topside, the ramp extending lengthwise the width of the pit;    a ramp bracket pivotally joining the ramp to the top edge of the ramp-side wall;    a carriage movable and attached parallel to the ramp-side wall;    a carriage-ramp link joining the carriage to the ramp;    first and second linking brackets, the first bracket pivotally joining the carriage-ramp link to the ramp, and the second bracket pivotally joining the carriage-ramp link to the carriage;    a moving means mounted on the carriage;    a speed reducer attached to the motor;    a drive shaft comprising first and second ends, the drive shaft attached to the moving means, the drive shaft extending approximately the length of the carriage;    first and second drive shaft brackets, attached to the carriage, the drive shaft rotating freely within the first and second drive shaft brackets;    first and second ramp cams, each ramp cam attached to opposite ends of the drive shaft where the ends exit the drive shaft brackets; and    first and second roller plates, each roller plate comprising a roller and a plate, wherein a plate is mounted to a walkway-side wall and the roller rolls over a ramp cam.    
     
     
         4 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 3 , wherein the moving means comprises: 
 a motor mounted approximately in the center of the carriage, and    a speed reducer attached in the motor and the drive shaft.    
     
     
         5 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 3 , wherein the moving means is an hydraulic actuator.  
     
     
         6 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 2 , wherein the ramp-lifting assembly is associated with the back ramp-side wall.  
     
     
         7 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 2 , further comprising a second ramp-lifting assembly, wherein one wall is associated with the ramp-lifting assembly, and the other ramp side wall is associated with the second ramp-lifting assembly.  
     
     
         8 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 2 , the walkway-lifting assembly further comprising: 
 a walkway comprising an underside and a topside, and extending the length of the pit;    a walkway bracket pivotally joining the ramp to the top edge if the walkway-side wall;    a walkway roller contacting the underside of the walkway;    a walkway rod having first and second ends, the walkway roller attached to the first end of the rod;    a rod cam attached to the second end of the walkway rod; and    a walkway cam attached to the drive shaft, whereby the rod cam contacts the walkway cam.    
     
     
         9 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 2 , further comprising a second walkway-lifting assembly, wherein one walkway-side wall secures the walkway-lifting assembly, and the other walkway-side wall secures the second walkway lifting assembly.  
     
     
         10 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 2 , further comprising: 
 a carousel for vertically conveying a load; and    a plurality of containers positioned on the carousel, each container capable of being moved into a position to receive a load onto the pan of that container.    
     
     
         11 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 10 , wherein the plurality of containers comprises different containers some having short supports and some having long supports, the containers are short and tall, corresponding to their support lengths, wherein the pans of the short containers, when placed in a position to receive a load, are suspended above the side walls of the pit and the floor, and the pans of the tall containers when placed in a position to receive a load, are about even with the side walls of the pit and the floor.  
     
     
         12 . The vertical conveyor system of  claim 1 , wherein the center of the pan curves upwardly in its unloaded state, and lies flat when supporting a load.  
     
     
         13 . A method for storing various sized payloads comprising: 
 providing a vertical conveyor system comprising 
 (1) a floor having a pit therein, wherein the pit is bounded by front and back ramp-side walls and a pair of parallel walkway-side walls;  
 (2) a ramp-lifting assembly attached to at least one of the ramp-side walls;  
 (3) a walkway-lifting assembly attached to at least one of the walkway-side walls; and  
 (4) a container comprising a pan and a set of load supports, the pan suspended by the load supports, and the container positioned whereby the pan is accessible to the floor by traveling over the ramp-lifting assembly and the walkway-lifting assembly;  
   selecting a container;    moving the selected container to an accessible position;    determining the height of the container;    moving the walkway and the ramp into an accessible position to accommodate a determined height;    accessing the pan of the container;    moving the walkway and the ramp into a neutral position; and    moving the container to an unaccessible position.    
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the step of determining the height of the container comprises choosing between a tall container and a short container.  
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 13 , including moving the walkway up, from within the pit, to attain an accessible position, and moving the walkway down, into the pit, to attain a neutral position.  
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 13 , including moving the ramp down from a generally vertical orientation to attain an accessible position, and moving the ramp up into a generally vertical orientation to attain a neutral position.