DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[001] The invention relates to a dock leveler.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[002] Loading docks or loading bays are commonly found in warehouses for loading/unloading goods to and from a cargo vehicle. For loading/unloading goods, the cargo vehicle is parked in close proximity to the loading bay with a carrier bed of the cargo vehicle facing the loading bay. However, a gap is always left between the vehicle and the loading bay to avoid contact and/or damage to the carried bed of the vehicle and/or the loading bay. While, the gap between the vehicle and the loading bay prevents damage, the gap makes it difficult and unsafe to load/unload the vehicle, especially when the cargo is heavy/bulky. Also, there may be a height difference between the carried bed of the vehicle and the loading bay, which as well adds to the difficulty and safety concerns while loading/unloading the vehicle.
[003] Dock levelers are commonly used to address the aforementioned problem, whereby the dock leveler bridges the gap between the vehicle and the loading bay. Generally, dock leveler comprises a main plate and a lip plate, wherein the entire assembly of the dock leveler is installed in a civil pit at the loading bay. Lifting mechanism/means is provided for lifting/retracting the main plate and the lip plate. In operation, the main plate is lifted to provide the requisite slope and the lip plate engages with the carrier bed to bridge the gap. While, the dock leveler addresses the problem of bridging the gap, the dock leveler requires the loading bay to be modified or designed to accommodate the dock leveler. Moreover, the dock leveler is fixed, and the dock leveler cannot be moved from one dock of the warehouse to another requiring the vehicle to be parked depending upon the position of the dock leveler. Thus, a separate dock leveler would be required for each bay, which adds to the costs. The dock leveler being an electric powered device would require source of energy for its operation. Further, in case of a mechanical and / or electric break-down or malfunction of the dock-leveler, the loading bay would be rendered unserviceable till the dock leveler is repaired, which is undesirable.
[004] Considering the costs and complexity of installing dock levelers, some warehouses rely on manually placing a plate between the carrier bed and the loading bay. However, placing the plate between the vehicle and the loading bay is not a preferred solution as the plate usually is a heavy-duty metal plate. Thus, carrying and placing the same is a difficult and tedious task. Manually placing the plate is extremely unsafe and exposes workers to a risk of fatal injury not only while placing the plate, but also during loading/unloading the material/goods as the plate may not be stable, and the goods/plate may slip over the carrier platform or the loading bay surface causing serious safety hazards & injuries.
[005] Therefore, there exists a need of a dock leveler which addresses at least the aforementioned problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[006] Accordingly, the present invention in one aspect provides a dock leveler comprising: a main plate having opposing sides, and opposing front side and rear side; a front plate pivotally adapted to the front side of the main plate; a rear plate pivotally adapted to the rear side of the main plate, the front plate and the rear plate capable of being in a deployed position or a storage position, in the deployed position the front plate and the rear plate are horizontally oriented with respect to the main plate, in the storage position the front plate and the rear plate are vertically oriented with respect to the main plate; a first mechanism provided between the main plate and the front plate for moving the front plate between the deployed position and the storage position; and a second mechanism provided between the main plate and the rear plate for moving the rear plate between the deployed position and the storage position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[007] Reference will be made to embodiments of the invention, examples of which may be illustrated in accompanying figures. These figures are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Although the invention is generally described in context of these embodiments, it should be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to these particular embodiments.
Figure 1 shows a top perspective view of a dock leveler in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 2 shows another perspective view of the dock leveler in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 3 shows an exploded view of the dock leveler in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
Figure 4 shows a bottom perspective view of the dock leveler in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[008] The present invention is directed towards a dock leveler which is mobile and can be moved from one loading bay to another loading bay as per requirement. The dock leveler is designed to be in a deployed position or a storage position. In the deployed position, the dock leveler can be used for loading/unloading and in the storage position, the dock leveler can be easily moved and/or stored when the dock leveler is not in use.
[009] Figure 1 through figure 4 shows a dock leveler 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The dock leveler comprises of a main plate 110, a front plate 120 and a rear plate 130. The front plate comprises of opposing sides, and opposing front side and rear side. The front plate and the rear plate are pivotally adapted to opposing front and rear sides of the main plate. The dock leveler as discussed hereinbefore is used for bridging a gap between a loading bay and a carrier bed of a vehicle parked adjacent to the loading bay. In an embodiment, the dock leveler of the instant invention is movable i.e. the dock leveler is not fixed to a particular loading bay, and can be moved from one loading bay to the other as per requirement. In this regard, the dock leveler is capable of being in a deployed position and a storage position. In the deployed position as shown in figure 1, the front plate and the rear plate are horizontally oriented with respect to the main plate i.e. the front plate, the rear plate and the main plate are in the same plane / provide a planar surface allowing the dock leveler to be adapted for bridging the gap between the loading bay and the carrier bed. Particularly, the front plate is adapted to the carrier bed, and the main plate and the rear plate are supported by the loading bay. In the storage position as shown in figure 2, the front plate and the rear plate are vertically oriented with respect to the main plate allowing the dock leveler to be moved and/or stored using material handling equipment such as fork lifts, hand operated pallet truck, battery operated pallet truck.
[010] Referring now to figure 3 which shows an exploded view of the dock leveler. As shown, the front plate is adapted to the main plate via a hinge mechanism 140, and the rear plate is adapted to the main plate via hinge mechanism 150. The hinge mechanism 140 between the main plate and the front plate comprises of plurality of slots 142 on the front plate, and plurality of brackets 144 aligned with the slot such that the slots receives the brackets. Further, the brackets, the slots and the front plate are provided with a through hole which when aligned allows a rod 146 to pass through. The hinge mechanism between the main plate and rear plate comprises of plurality of slots 152 on the main plate, and plurality of brackets 154 on the rear plate aligned with the slots such that the slots receive the brackets. Further, the brackets, the slots and the main plate are provided with a through hole which when aligned allows a rod 156 to pass through. Each of the front plate and the rear plate is movable pivotally about the main plate via the respective hinge mechanisms.
[011] Further, a first mechanism and a second mechanism are provided for moving the front plate and the second plate between the deployed position and the storage position. The first mechanism is provided between the main plate and the front plate, and comprises a pair of cylinders 170. As shown in figure 3, the pair of cylinders are mounted on to the main plate at one end, and on the front plate at other end such that operation of the cylinder causes the front plate to move about the main plate. In an embodiment, the cylinder is a hydraulic cylinder wherein a piston with a piston rod is adapted in a cylinder block and the piston/piston rod is movable depending upon hydraulic pressure applied on the piston, resulting in linear motion. A foot pump 172 is connected with the hydraulic cylinders via a feed pipe (not shown) for actuating the cylinders. The foot pump has a spring-loaded foot pedal, which when operated builds pressure on fluid inside the pump and the fluid is transferred to the cylinders from a fluid tank. Upon operating/cranking the foot pump, the cylinders lifts/moves the front plate relative to the main plate, and the front plate eventually is vertically oriented with respect to the main plate.
[012] The second mechanism is provided between the main plate and the rear plate, and comprises a pair of chains 160 and a pair of brackets 162. As shown in the figure, the rear plate has the pair of chains using which the rear plate can be lifted/moved relative to the main plate and eventually is vertically oriented with respect to the main plate. Once the rear plate is lifted using the chains, the chains are locked with respect to the main plate by engaging each chain with the pair of hooks/brackets provided on the main plate. The cylinders hold or lock the front plate in the vertically oriented position, and the rear plate is kept in the vertically oriented position by the chains. As mentioned hereinbefore, the dock leveler is in the storage position when the front plate and the rear plate are vertically oriented. Once in the storage position, the dock leveler can be moved around the loading bay and stored as per requirement.
[013] Reference is made to figure 4, which shows a bottom view of the dock leveler. As shown in the figure, the main plate on its bottom surface comprises of a middle region A, and an outer region B and C provided on each side of the middle region. The middle region comprises a pair of slots 114. The slots are configured to receive/engage forks of material handling equipment such as forklifts, hand operated pallet truck, battery operated pallet truck, etc. Accordingly, once in the storage position, a material handling equipment can simply engage with the dock leveler and transport it to another location or storage area. Similarly, the material handling equipment can transport the dock leveler to a desired loading bay where the dock leveler needs to be deployed. Furthermore, as shown in figure 4, plurality of ribs 112, 122 and 132 are provided on bottom surface of the main plate, front plate and rear plate. As shown, each outer region of the main plate has two diagonally placed ribs so as to provide support completely along the bottom surface. As shown in the figure, on bottom face of the front plate and the rear plate plurality of spaced apart ribs are provided. These ribs have a tapering profile. The ribs provided on the main plate, front plate and the rear plate enhance load bearing capacity and stability of the dock leveler.
[014] To deploy the dock leveler, once the dock leveler is brought to the desired loading bay, the material handling equipment is disengaged from the dock leveler. Thereafter, the front plate and the rear plate are moved/lowered from the vertically oriented position to the horizontally oriented position. To lower the rear plate, the chains are removed from the hook/bracket enabling the rear plate to move pivotally to the horizontally oriented position. To lower the front plate, a release valve of the foot pump is operated. Upon operating the valve, fluid from the cylinder flows back into the tank, which results in lowering of the front plate. Before, the dock leveler is deployed it is desirable that the dock leveler is aligned with the vehicle and positioned on the loading bay such that front side of the main plate aligns with edge of dock, and the front plate is lowered onto the carrier bed ensuring that the front plate flushes with the carrier bed. Thus, the dock leveler when deployed, the main plate and the rear plate rests on the loading bay, and the front plate rests on the carrier bed providing a planar surface for easy and safe loading/unloading of cargo/goods. Further, the inclination can be adjusted by the hydraulic mechanism to cater to any height difference between the loading bay and the carrier bed. The rear plate has a constant gradient enabling easy passage of material handling equipment.
[015] The dock leveler further comprises of a level indicating mechanism. The level indicating mechanism comprises of a pin adapted to the front plate, and an indicia provided on the main plate. The pin extends from a first end to a second end. On the first end, the pin is fixed to one of the side-edge of the front plate, and at the second end the pin extends towards the adjacent side edge of the main plate. Accordingly, as the front plate moves, the pin also moves. The indicia can be a painted surface or a sticker which is provided/applied on a pre-determined area of the main plate, wherein the pre-determined area is proportional to a particular range of angular positions or degree of slope of the front plate. This range is the permissible/safe range in which the front plate should be when in deployed position. Accordingly, when in the deployed position the pin should be within the indicia. In case, the pin is outside the indicia, it would be indicative of an unsafe/non-permissible position. Thus, while deploying the dock leveler, the indicating mechanism aids in understanding the angular position or degree of slope of the front plate.
[016] Further, the dock leveler comprises of pair of locking plates 180 along each side edge of the main plate. The locking plates are slidable from the main plate, and the locking plate has a slot for receiving fastening bolts via which the locking plate can be fixed with the floor of the loading bay. The loading bay, accordingly will have slots aligned with the slots of the locking plate. It may be noted that the locking plates are used in case the dock leveler needs more stability.
[017] Advantageously, the present invention provides a dock leveler which is movable/mobile and does not require a civil pit construction or modification of the loading bay for installation, which is advantageous at-least from a cost and complexity perspective. Moreover, as per the preferred embodiments, the dock leveler can be operated without electricity, which further adds to cost effectiveness.
[018] While the present invention has been described with respect to certain embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modification may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM:
1. A dock leveler comprising:
a main plate having opposing sides, and opposing front side and rear side;
a front plate pivotally adapted to the front side of the main plate;
a rear plate pivotally adapted to the rear side of the main plate, the front plate and the rear plate capable of being in a deployed position or a storage position, in the deployed position the front plate and the rear plate are horizontally oriented with respect to the main plate, in the storage position the front plate and the rear plate are vertically oriented with respect to the main plate;
a first mechanism provided between the main plate and the front plate for moving the front plate between the deployed position and the storage position; and
a second mechanism provided between the main plate and the rear plate for moving the rear plate between the deployed position and the storage position.

2. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first mechanism comprises a pair of cylinders, the pair of cylinders mounted on the main plate at one end, and on the front plate at other end such that operation of the cylinder causes the front plate to move about the main plate.

3. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 3, wherein the cylinders are hydraulic cylinders.

4. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein a foot pump is connected with the hydraulic cylinders via a feed pipe for actuating the cylinders.

5. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second mechanism comprises of a chain coupled to the rear plate for moving the rear plate, and a bracket on the main plate for locking the chain and thereby the rear plate with the main plate.

6. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein plurality of spaced apart ribs are provided on bottom face of the front plate and the rear plate.

7. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein bottom face of the main plate comprises of a middle region and an outer region on each side of the middle region.

8. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 7, wherein each outer region comprises of at least two diagonally placed ribs.

9. The dock leveler as claimed in claim 1, wherein the middle region of the bottom surface of the main plate comprises of a pair of slots (114) configured to receive/engage with forks of a material handling equipment.