Convertible pallet jack with rollers

Abstract

A pallet jack has a forked platform with rollers embedded in the arms of the fork. The rollers are located at intervals from the front of the arms to the rear. The rollers work in conjunction with an inclined ramp, also having embedded rollers, attached to the front of the arms to lift a container onto the forks. Once a container is aligned in front of the inclined ramp, the pallet jack is driven forward. The momentum of the pallet jack, at standard speed, causes the inclined ramp to insert underneath the container and lifts the container onto the arms. The rollers allow the container to move into position on the pallet jack for transfer. An overlay platform may cover the host forks for standard pallet transfer. The overlay platform may have embedded rollers and can be rotated into position over a standard fork.

What I claim is: 
     
         1 . A pallet jack comprising:
 host support arms for supporting a load positioned thereon; the host support arms having proximal and distal ends; the proximal ends being adjacent to a bulkhead; the distal end being removably attached to an inclined ramp;   wherein said inclined ramp has a plurality of rollers embedded within such that the rollers rise above a top surface of the inclined ramp in a manner sufficient to allow a container to move across the top surface of the inclined ramp unimpeded; and   wherein between said proximal end and said distal end of the host support arms are a plurality of rollers embedded in the host support arms such that the rollers rise above a top surface of the host support arms in a manner sufficient to allow the container to roll across the top surface of the host support arms unimpeded.   
     
     
         2 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein a planar overlay platform generally matching a shape of the host support arms is attached by a hinge at a base of the bulkhead such that the planar overlay platform may rotate from a vertical position to a horizontal position to cover the host support arms. 
     
     
         3 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the planar overlay platform has gaps corresponding to a shape of the rollers embedded in the top surface of the host support arms such that when the planar overlay platform is in the horizontal position the planar overlay platform does not contact the rollers and a top surface of the planar overlay platform is above a highest vertical point of the rollers. 
     
     
         4 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the planar overlay platform is attached to the host support arms via an overlay platform hinge and an overlay platform axle. 
     
     
         5 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the inclined ramp attaches to an axle mounted on the front portion of the host support arms. 
     
     
         6 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the inclined ramp is attached to gear holes in outer sides of the host support arms to allow the inclined ramp to be hydraulically lifted and vertically pivot so as not allow the inclined ramp to drag on a floor after loading or unloading the container. 
     
     
         7 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the inclined ramp is attached to the pallet jack via an axle welded to the pallet jack. 
     
     
         8 . The pallet jack of  claim 1 , wherein the rollers in the overlay platform are configured to with a suspension system such that the rollers may lower under sufficient weight. 
     
     
         9 . A pallet jack comprising:
 host support arms integral with the pallet jack for supporting a load positioned thereon;   the host support arms having proximal and distal ends; the proximal ends being adjacent to a host bulkhead; the distal end being removably attached to an inclined ramp;   wherein said inclined ramp has a plurality of rollers embedded within such that the rollers rise above a surface of the inclined ramp in a manner sufficient to allow a container to move across a top surface of the inclined ramp unimpeded;   wherein an overlay platform generally matching a shape of the host support arms of the pallet jack is attached by a hinge at a base of the host bulkhead such that the overlay platform may rotate from a vertical position to a horizontal position to cover the host support arms; and   wherein said overlay platform has rollers embedded in overlay support arms such that when the overlay platform is in the horizontal position the host support arms do not contact the rollers and the rollers rise above a top surface of the overlay platform to allow the container to roll across the top surface of the overlay support arms unimpeded.   
     
     
         10 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the overlay platform is held in a vertical position by a pin and clip attachment with the pallet jack bulkhead. 
     
     
         11 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the inclined ramp extends approximately 31 inches from a distal end of the host support arms. 
     
     
         12 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the inclined ramp is inclined at approximately a 45 degree angle from a floor. 
     
     
         13 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein a pair of gear holes in the host support arms are used to attach the inclined ramp to the pallet jack. 
     
     
         14 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the overlay ramp is locked in a vertical position using a clip or tie attached to a slotted opening. 
     
     
         15 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the host support arms are attached to at least two rotatable guard rails. 
     
     
         16 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the support arms of the overlay ramp are connected by at least one fork stabilizer. 
     
     
         17 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the rollers are spherical in shape. 
     
     
         18 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein the host support arms are extendable. 
     
     
         19 . The pallet jack of  claim 9 , wherein an axle is fused to a front of the host support arms for attachment of the inclined ramp. 
     
     
         20 . A pallet jack comprising:
 host support arms integral with the pallet jack for supporting a load positioned thereon;   the host support arms having proximal and distal ends; the proximal ends being adjacent to a host bulkhead;   wherein an overlay platform generally matching a shape of the host support arms of the pallet jack is attached by a hinge at a base of the host bulkhead such that the overlay platform may rotate from a vertical position to a horizontal position to cover the host support arms; and   wherein said overlay platform has rollers embedded in overlay support arms such that when the overlay platform is in the horizontal position the host support arms do not contact the rollers and the rollers rise above a top surface of the overlay platform to allow the container to roll across the top surface of the overlay support arms unimpeded.