Filing Information

Inventor(s)	Jean-Hugues Lagace ·
Assignee(s)	LAGACE JEAN HUGUES ·  View assignee updates
Attorney/Agent(s)	Pierre Lesperance ·
Primary Examiner	Kenneth R. Rice ·
Application Number	US7567792
Filing date	08/15/1990
Issue date	12/31/1991
Predicted expiration date	08/15/2010
U.S. Classifications	180/91  · 180/67  ·
International Classifications	B62D 5500  ·
Kind Code	A
International Classifications	1806.2;6.3;6.7;9.1;9.21;9.26;9.32;9.44-9.54;9.56;305;307;22 ·
Foreign Priority	CA2057188 - 12/06/1991 ·

Patent Family

Abstract

This invention defines a suspension arrangement for off-highway vehicle that comprises a front pair or walking beams, a rear pair of walking beams, each beam pivoted to the vehicle underframe, articulated joints connecting the rear end of the front beam to the front end of the rear beam to allow up-and-down relative pivoting between the front beams and the rear beams, wheel axles and wheels at the outer end of each beam and at the articulated joints to form a three-axle arrangement, one pair of walking beams being extendible and retractable in length for allowing pivoting of the pairs of walking beams relative to the vehicle chassis, the pivot for one pair of walking beams being preferably positioned higher than the other to accommodate endless tracks of constant length around the wheels on the opposite sides of the vehicle, irrespective of the pivoted positions of the beams, and the transverse pivots for the walking beams have outer end portions projecting a predetermined length from the underframe to carry a corresponding walking beam and a tubular spacer inward or outward of the latter to allow space for a wide endless track or for a narrow endless track producing a wide endless track configuration or a narrow endless track configuration.

Independent Claims | See all claims (7)

1. 1. In a vehicle, the combination comprising an underframe, a pair of front walking beams and a pair of rear walking beams extending in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, the walking beams of each pair located one on each side of the vehicle, each walking beam having an outer end and an inner end, the walking beams of each pair being independently pivotably mounted intermediate said ends to said underframe about a common transverse pivot axis, the pivot axes of the two pairs of walking beams being spaced from each other in the fore-and-aft direction of said vehicle, a pivotal and extensible joint interconnecting the inner ends of the front and rear walking beams on each side of the underframe, whereby the front and rear walking beams on any one side can pivot in opposite directions about their respective pivot axes, a wheel axle carried by each joint and by the outer end of each walking beam, and a support wheel carried by each wheel axle, there being provided a group of three support wheels on each side of the vehicle, and wherein the pivot axis of at least one pair of walking beams is positioned above a straight line joining the wheel axles at the outer end and at the joint of each walking beam of said one pair.
2. 7.7. In a vehicle, the combination comprising an underframe, a pair of front walking beams and a pair of rear walking beams extending in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, the walking beams of each pair located one on each side of the vehicle, each walking beam having an outer end and an inner end, the walking beams of each pair being independently pivotably mounted intermediate said ends to said underframe about a common transverse pivot axis, the pivot axes of the two pairs of walking beams being spaced from each other in the fore-and-aft direction of said vehicle, a pivotal and extensible joint interconnecting the inner ends of the front and rear walking beams on each side of the underframe, whereby the front and rear walking beams on any one side can pivot in opposite directions about said respective pivot axes, a wheel axle carried by each joint and by the outer end of each walking beam, and a support wheel carried by each wheel axle, there being provided a group of three support wheels on each side of the vehicle, two endless tracks each trained on one of said groups of three support wheels and shifting means to longitudinally shift the walking beams of at least one pair relative to said respective common pivot axis, said shifting means including a pair of brackets pivotable about said respective common pivot axis, one of each side of said vehicle, the walking beams of said one pair longitudinally, slidably carried by said brackets and spring means engaging the walking beams of said one pair to constantly bias the same in the direction of the outer ends of the walking beams of said one pair.