Description CAB FRAME UTILIZING COMMON TUBE
Technical Field
[0001] This disclosure is directed to an operator station and, more particularly, to an operator's cab for a work machine such as, for example, a compactor.
Background
[0002] An operator station is the control center of a work machine. For example, the operator station of a compactor where an operator is sitting at is not only controlling the operation of the compactor but also affects the work quality done by the compactor. A well designed operator station of a work machine is important to the efficiency and quality of the overall operation. [0003] Present emerging market compactor designs employ operator stations that are expensive, heavy, and with poor visibility. Although better visibility can be provided to the operator sitting inside the cab, such as the movable cab disclosed in US Patent 7,004,27561, the manufacturing process of the movable cab is complex and the cost is expensive. Further, the commonly used rounded or curved glasses for front wind shield although offers suitable visibility, but expensive to manufacture and difficult to replace it when damaged. [0004] The disclosed operator station of the present disclosure overcomes one or more of the deficiencies set forth above.
Summary of the Disclosure
[0005] Accordingly, a newly designed operator station aimed to solve the present compactor's deficiencies is provided. A compactor cab having unique wind shield structure of flat glasses and uniform frame structure of common size tube is aimed to reduce build and replacement part costs.
[0006] With respect to the glass structure, one of the design choices of 3 piece flat glasses can be used in the front and rear wind shields of a work machine. All flat glasses are made of local market available materials. The front wind shield, an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, comprises a center piece of glass and two outwardly angled side pieces glass. This newly designed glass structure significantly improves the visibility of the operator sitting in the operator station. The operator no longer has to open the door to observe the operation condition around the drum.
[0007] A new cab post structure is also designed and provided to support the overall cab improvements, such as lighter weight, lower costs, and better visibility. Specifically, different options of post structures are provided for the front and rear wind shields, such as, square sectioned tube, L-sections with one bend-plate, two L-sections instead of one square section, and bend-plate with two C-sections to support the glass. In the present disclosure, the post is constructed of 4 mm thickness square sectioned tube for better and easier glass mounting. [0008] Furthermore, the post structure design will be utilized for the entire operator station frame structure. The uniform frame structure with common size tube is made of local market available materials, and thereby, further reduces the production cost of the operator station and the manufacturing processes.
[0009] In addition, several roof structure options are also available for the newly designed operator station for work machine, such as, single sheet curved roof with 5 attached plates, or two sheets curved roof, or flat single sheet with 4 bends at the ends, or simply a single sheet curved roof with trimmed edges. The design choice in a particular market is up to the market characteristic and customer preferences.
[0010] Hence, the work machine operator station of the present disclosure can be easily adapted to various local markets worldwide by having major members manufactured of locally available materials. Most of all, the operator station of the present disclosure overcomes the deficiencies of the work machine in current emerging market.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0011] Figure 1 illustrates an overall look of the operator station of an exemplary embodiment
of the present disclosure;
{0012] Figure 2 illustrates an isometric view of the operator station roof of an exemplary
embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0013] Figure 3 illustrates another isometric view of the operator station roof of an exemplary
embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0014] Figure 4 illustrates the top view of the operator station of the exemplary embodiment of
the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0015] Figure 5 illustrates the bottom view of the operator station of the exemplary
embodiment of the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0016] Figure 6 illustrates the front view of the operator station of the exemplary embodiment
of the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0017] Figure 7 illustrates the rear view of the operator station of the exemplary embodiment
of the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0018] Figure 8 illustrates the right view of the operator station of the exemplary embodiment
of the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0019] Figure 9 illustrates the left view of the operator station of the exemplary embodiment of
the present disclosure depicted in Figure 3;
[0020] Figure 10 illustrates the square sectioned tube with 4 mm thickness used for the post of
the operator station of an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0021] Figure 11 illustrates the square sectioned tube of 4 mm thickness used for the post and
uniform frame structure of the operator station of an exemplary embodiment of the present
disclosure;
[0022] Figure 12 illustrates the two L-sections with one bend-plate post design option for the
operator station of the present disclosure;
[0023] Figure 13 illustrates the two L-sections post design option for the operator station of the
present disclosure;
[0024] Figure 14 illustrates the bend-plate with two C-sections post design option for the
operator station of the present disclosure;
[0025] Figure 15 illustrates the uniform frame structure utilizing common sized tubes as the
post structure of the operator station of the present disclosure;
[0026] Figure 16 illustrates the 3 pieces flat glass used in the front and rear wind shields of the
operator station of an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0027] Figure 17 illustrates the front wind shield with 3 pieces flat glass of the operator station
of the exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure depicted in Figure 16;
[0028] Figure 18 illustrates a design choice of 5 pieces flat glass used in the front wind shield
of the operator station of an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0029] Figure 19 illustrates the glass mounting processes and techniques of the 3 pieces flat
glass used in the operator station of an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure; and
[0030] Figure 20 illustrates the detailed glass mounting processes and techniques of the 3
pieces flat glass used in the operator station of the exemplary embodiment of the present
disclosure depicted in Figure 19.
Detailed Description
[0031] Figure 1 shows an overall structure design of the operator station 10 of the present disclosure. The operator station 10 weighs a lot less than the current existing machine operator station; particularly, it provides better visibility to the operator who operates behind the operation panel 11, and significantly reduces the production costs.
[0032] In general, the operator station comprises a roof 12, an operation panel 11, two doors 13 and support handles 16 are provided at the left and right sides of the operator station; and, the specially designed glasses 14 pasted on the specially designed posts 15 at the front and rear wind shields of the operator station, which provides better visibility to the operator and, therefore, improves the quality of the work machine performance. Further details are revealed in the following description referring to Figures 2-20.
[0033] Now referring to Figure 2, an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment is shown to illustrate the roof structure relative to the rest of the structure design. The roof 12 is constructed with two sheets to form a curved roof as shown and two doors 13 with support handles 16 on the left and right sides of the operator station, providing easy excess to the interior of the cab. The operator sits inside of the operator station facing the oblique control panel 11, which contains all the earthmoving or compaction controls as is customary. The rear glass 21, located at the back of the operator cab, and the control panel board 31 and a console 32 are also shown best in Figure 3, which illustrates another isometric view of the exemplary embodiment depicted in Figure 2. [0034] The top 40 and bottom 50 views of the exemplary embodiment disclosed in Figure 3 are respectively shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5. In Figure 4, there are the control panel 31, the console 32, and the support handles 16. In addition, an operational mechanism 41 to control the wind shield wiper is shown in the back side of the cab. The bottom view 50 shows the control panel board 31, the console 32, the support handles 16, and the operational mechanism 41 in its corresponding position as shown in the top view 40.
[0035] All major settings of the machine operator station of the exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure are shown in Figures 6 and 7 as they are viewed from the front 60 and the rear 70 of the operator station. The control panel 31 sits on the oblique wall of the front wind shield, and a wiper 61 as well. The console 32 and the support handles 16 are shown in their corresponding positions as shown in Figure 3. In Figure 7, an operator chair 71 is shown and a front wind shield wiper 72 is shown as well.
[0036] Now referring to Figure 8, the left view 80 of the operator station of the present disclosure is shown. A control panel 31, support handles and console 32 are provided near the front wind shield 81 of the operator station. The control panel 31 is located on an oblique wall at the lower part of the front window, together with the 3 pieces flat glass forming a convex angled wind shield 81. The rear wind shield 21 is pretty straight. Both the front wind shield wiper 61 and the rear wind shield wiper 72 are also shown in Figure 8.
[0037] In Figure 9, the right view 90 of the operator station of the present disclosure is shown. The front wind shield 81 and the rear wind shield 21 of the operator station are respectively

mounted on the two U-shaped posts 91, 15 that are specially designed for the glass structure of the present disclosure. The specific detailed mounting processes and techniques are disclosed in the following description and depicted in Figures 19-20.
[0038] Figure 10 shows the post structure 100 of an exemplary embodiment of the operator station of the present disclosure. The two U shaped posts 101, 102 may be manufactured from square sectioned tube with 4 mm thickness, for example, the square sectioned tube 111 shown in Figure 11 may be manufactured from any other commonly available material known to those having ordinary skill in the art. Other post design options are shown in Figures 12-14. They are, for example, two L-sections with one bend-plate 121 extended to support the glass, two L-sections 131 instead of just one square section to support the glass, and bend-plate with two C-sections 141 to support the glass.
[0039] Referring now to Figure 15, with respect to the post design, the design choice of the square sectioned tube of 4 mm thickness, such as one of the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, may be utilized for the entire frame structure of the operator station. The overall uniform frame structure is made of locally available materials in various markets. This not only significantly reduces the production cost but also provides manufacturing benefits. As shown in Figure 15, the posts 101, 102 are made of square sectioned tube with 4 mm thickness, and the cab deck 151 is also formed of the same size tubes. This uniform frame structure with common size tube provided by the present disclosure significantly lowers the production cost and simplifies the manufacturing processes in providing a robust cab design. [0040] Finally, the 3 pieces of glass 160 used in the front 161 and rear 162 wind shields are shown in Figure 16. The front wind shield is further detailed in Figure 17. As shown, a center piece 172 of flat glass meets two outwardly angled side pieces 171, 173. The center piece 172 of the 3 pieces flat glass having a trapezoid oblique wall 11, the operation panel, at its lower portion, and two angled side pieces 171, 173 provide better visibility to the operator. The operator no longer needs to put his/her head out the window to properly and clearly view the drum location. Another 3 pieces flat glass 162 is used for the rear wind shield. The structure of the 3 pieces flat glass formed front wind shield 170 is also shown with two support handles 16 and the operation
panel 11 corresponding to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in Figure 3 of the present disclosure.
[0041] Alternately, 5 pieces of flat glass 181, 182, 183, 184, 185 may be used in the front and rear wind shields are shown in Figure 18. The difference between a 3 piece glass wind shield and a 5 piece glass wind shield is that the two pieces outwardly angled side glass are each comprised of two pieces glass instead of just one large piece as shown in Figure 17. For example, the 5 pieces flat glass formed front wind shield 180 depicted in Figure 17 includes a center piece glass 183, two pieces angled side glass on the right 184, 185, and two pieces angled side glass on the left 182, 181.
[0042] Referring to Figure 19, the specific mounting processes and techniques for assembling the exemplary wind shield to the frame of the operator station will now be disclosed. The square sectioned post 192 is welded together with a V shaped plate 193, which circumscribes the post 192 and functions as a connector for the glass to mount. For a 3 piece flat glass structure, the end of side glass 191 is then mounted and pasted 200 to portion of plate 193. After being mounted and pasted, the glass 191 is then further sealed through seal where binds the frame and post 192 with glass 191. Both the front and rear wind shields are mounted by the same processes and techniques. The mounting process of a 5 piece flat glasses will be handled in a similar fashion. [0043] The further details of the mounting, pasting, and sealing process 200 is depicted in Figure 20, wherein the door 13 and the post 192 are shown above the V shaped plate 193 before mounting. The mounting begins by welding the V shaped plate 193 to the post 192; the V shaped plate 193 now circumscribes the post 192 and serves as a connector to a wind shield. Thereafter, the glass 191 and the V shaped plate are firmly pasted 201 together and sealed 202 at the final step of the mounting process.
[0044] Although the present disclosure has been described in certain exemplary preferred embodiments, many modifications and variations would be apparent to those skilled in the art. It is therefore understood that the present disclosure may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. Hence, those preferred embodiments described in the present disclosure should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.
Industrial Applicability
[0045] The newly designed operator station may be constructed with 3 piece glasses wind shields. All 3 piece glasses may be comprised of commonly available flat glass that provides line of sight to outer extents of a compactor drum to reduce weight, cost and improve visibility. The center piece of glass meets the angled side pieces but angles outward so that the overall visibility is improved and the operator would not need to open the door to see the location of the compactor drum.
[0046] Particularly, the operator station is built with locally available tube construction for the posts and the deck; the build cost is therefore significantly reduced. Furthermore, the work machines with the design of the present disclosure can be better adapted to local markets and provide cost effective services. In addition, the plurality of design choices of the roof and post satisfies various customer preferences in different markets.
[0047] It will also be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Other embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the disclosure disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.

WE CLAIMS
1. An operator station for work machine comprises:
a roof;
a U shaped post structure;
a uniform frame structure of common size tube; and
a deck having the uniform frame structure of common size tube.
2. The operator station as claimed in claim 1 further comprises a front and a back
wind shields formed of a plurality of flat glasses.
3. The operator station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the U shaped post structure is
formed of square sectioned tube.
4. The operator station as claimed in claim 3, wherein the U shaped post is formed
of square sectioned tube with around 4 mm wall thickness.
5. The operator station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common size tube is
formed of square sectioned tube.
6. The operator station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common size tube is
formed of two L-sections with one bend-plate extended to support the glass.
7. The operator station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common size tube is
formed of two L-sections instead of one square section.
8. The operator station as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common size tube is
formed of one bend-plate with two C-sections to support the glass.
9. An operator station for work machine with flat glass wind shields comprises:
a plurality of tube posts;
a uniform frame structure of common size tube; a deck having the uniform frame structure of common size tube; and a front wind shields including a center piece flat glass connects a plurality of outwardly angled flat glass at its left and right sides.
10. The operator station for work machine with flat glass wind shields as claimed in
claim 9, wherein the common size tube is square sectioned tube with 4mm thickness.
11. A method of producing an operator station for work machine comprises:
providing a roof;
forming a U shaped post structure;
selecting a uniform frame structure of common size tube; and
constructing a deck having the uniform frame structure of common size tube.
12. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11 further
comprises forming a front and a back wind shields with a plurality of flat glasses.
13. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11 further
comprises forming the U shaped post structure with a square sectioned tube.
14. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 13 further
comprises forming the U shaped post with the square sectioned tube of around 4 mm wall
thickness.
15. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
common size tube is formed of square sectioned tube.
16. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
common size tube is formed of two L-sections with one bend-plate extended to support the
glass.
17. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
common size tube is formed of two L-sections instead of one square section.
18. The method of producing an operator station as claimed in claim 11, wherein the
common size tube is formed of one bend-plate with two C-sections to support the glass.