DESC:FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to floor and roof assemblies for construction equipment operator’s cabin, such as backhoe loader. In particular, the invention relates to corrugated floor and roof assemblies for construction equipment operator’s cabin. More particularly, the invention relates to spot welded corrugated floor and roof assemblies for the operator’s cabin in construction equipment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

At present, the floor assemblies for construction equipment operator’s cabin such as a backhoe loader etc. are made of plain HRCS sheets of about 3mm thickness. The existing floors are reinforced with 10mm thick reinforcements on the bottom side across the floors and normally welded with 5.9m CO2 welding using carbon dioxide (or any other gas heavier than air) for protecting the weld pool from oxidization during this welding process. Usual weight of the completed floor assembly is about 79kg. Whereas, the existing roofs assemblies are made of 2mm thickness plain HRCS sheets welded to the bottom side with standard electric resistance welding (ERW) tube. Usual weight of the completed roof assembly is about 24.5kg.

DISADVANTAGES WITH THE PRIOR ART

The following are the disadvantages with the floor and roof assembly welding by the conventional methods as discussed above:

In particular, this variation in floor thickness from 3 to 10mm causes excessive heat generation during CO2 welding and thus deforms the 3mm thick floor and the flatness varies by up to 6mm over the entire floor length.

As regards the roof welding which includes about 2.0m long CO2 welding, the joinery of plain HRCS sheet welded with standard ERW tube normally requires a bigger fillet welding, which generates excessive heat during CO2 welding.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Some of the objects of the present invention - satisfied by at least one embodiment of the present invention - are as follows:

An object of the present invention is to provide new welding configuration for the floor and roof assemblies used in the construction equipment.

Another object of the present invention is to provide light-weight floor and roof assemblies to substantially reduce the weight of the construction equipment.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide floor and roof assemblies with substantially improved strength.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide floor and roof assemblies having substantially improved aesthetic appeal.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a floor assembly with substantially improved flatness controlled within 3mm over the length thereof.

A yet further object of the present invention is to provide a roof assembly with substantially increased height to add clearance for Falling-object protective structure.

One more object of the present invention is to provide floor and roof assemblies with electric resistance spot welded panels and CO2 welded mounting plates.

Still more object of the present invention is to provide a roof assembly configured with Hat section reinforcement across the width thereof.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description, when read with the accompanying figures of drawing, which are however not intended to limit the scope of the present invention in any way.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided corrugated spot-welded floor and bottom assemblies, wherein the assemblies comprise at least one main panel of a predetermined thickness reinforced with at least a pair of cross-member of a predetermined lengths and thicknesses and welded by means of a combination of spot welding and CO2 welding.

Typically, the floor assembly consists of a corrugated floor main panel, at least one pair of cross-members, a floor central beam, at least one pair of front and rear end support members, at least one pair of operator seat mounting support plates, at least one pair of service plate support beams, at least one pair of side support beams and at least four cabin mounting plates at the corners.

Typically, the floor assembly is made of cold rolled carbon steel sheet (CRCS) and comprises a floor main panel preferably made of 1.2 mm thick CRCS sheet and cross-members preferably made of 2 mm thick CRCS sheet configured with hat sections, the end support members preferably made of 2 mm thick hot rolled carbon steel (HRCS) sheet and is provided with at least four cabin mounting plates preferably made of 10 mm thick HRCS plates at the four corners of the floor assembly.

Typically, the main panel is welded to the cross-members, end support members and beams by means of electric resistance spot welding and to the cabin and seat mounting plates by means of CO2 welding.

Typically, the flatness of the floor assembly along entire length thereof is maintained preferably within 3 mm.

In accordance with the present invention, there is also a roof assembly comprising of a corrugated roof middle plate, a plurality of cross-members configured with hat sections, a roof central beam, a pair of side support members, a pair of side support plates and at least one front support beam.

Typically, the corrugated roof middle plate is preferably made of 0.8 and side panels, cross members, beams, plates and reinforcements are preferably made of 1.5 mm thick cold rolled carbon steel (CRCS) sheet corrugated by press forming.

Typically, the cross-members, side panels and all the end members are joined to the roof middle plate by means of spot welding.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

The present invention will be briefly described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view from top of a corrugated floor assembly for construction equipment configured in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 shows the perspective view from the bottom of the main panel of the corrugated floor assembly of Figure 1.

Figure 3 shows the top view of the corrugated floor assembly of Figure 1 equipped with the operator seat mounting and other reinforcements and cross-members.

Figure 4 shows a perspective view from the top of a corrugated roof assembly configured in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 5 shows the perspective bottom view of the corrugated roof assembly of Figure 4 configured in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

In the following, the corrugated floor and roof assemblies used in construction equipment, such as backhoe loader etc. obtained by spot welding process in accordance with the present invention will be described in more details with reference to the accompanying drawings without limiting the scope and ambit of the present invention in any way.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view from top of a corrugated floor assembly for construction equipment configured in accordance with the present invention. The floor assembly consists of a corrugated floor main panel 11, at least one pair of hat sections 12, a floor central beam 13, Front and rear support members 14, at least one pair of operator seat mounting support plates 15, service plate support beams 16 and a pair of side support beams 17. The floor assembly is made of cold rolled carbon steel sheet (CRCS) and includes a floor main panel 11 made of 1.2 mm thick sheet and cross-reinforcements made of 2 mm thick sheet configured with hat sections. Both end cross members are made of 2 mm thick hot rolled carbon steel (HRCS) sheet. At the four corners of the floor assembly FP, four cabin mounting plates 15 made of 10 mm thick HRCS plates are provided. Further, an operator seat mounting support plates 15 are supported by sufficient number of reinforcement pieces and joined by spot welding. Similarly, floor main panel 11 and all cross members are joined by spot welding. Both end members are also joined to floor main panel by spot welding. Cabin mounting plates are CO2 welded to the end cross members.

Figure 2 shows the perspective view from the bottom of the main panel 11 of the corrugated floor assembly of Figure 1.

Figure 3 shows the top view of the corrugated floor assembly of Figure 1 equipped with the operator seat mounting support plates 15 and other reinforcements and cross-members. Here, the operator seat mounting support plate 15 is joined to the cross members on the back side of the floor assembly by means of CO2 welding.

Figure 4 shows a perspective view from the top of a corrugated roof assembly in accordance with the present invention. The roof assembly consists of a corrugated roof middle plate 21, a plurality of hat sections 22, a roof central beam 23, a pair of side support members 24, a pair of side support plates 25 and front support beams 26. The roof assembly consists of a roof main panel 21 made of 0.8 mm thick cold rolled carbon steel (CRCS) corrugated sheet. The side panels for roof assembly are also made of 1.5 mm thick CRCS sheet by press forming. The cross members of the roof assembly are also made of 1.5 mm thick CRCS sheet and its hat section is press-formed. All the end reinforcements are made of 1.5 mm thick CRCS sheet by press-forming. The cross members, side panels and all the end members are joined to the roof main panel by spot welding.

Figure 5 shows the perspective bottom view of the corrugated main plate 21 of the corrugated roof assembly in accordance with the present invention of Figure 4 illustrated with a plurality of longitudinal reinforcements provided therein.

TECHNICAL ADVANTAGES AND ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE

The spot-welded corrugated floor and bottom assemblies configured in accordance with the present invention have the following advantages:

• Substantial weight reduction.

• Substantially Enhanced section modulus.

• Substantially increased buckling strength.

• Improved aesthetics.

• Improved floor flatness.

• Increased height for additional clearance for Falling-object protective structure.

• Spot welding reduces heat generation, thus reduced floor bending.

• Thickness optimized based on Falling-object protective structure or Roll-over Protective Structure requirement.

Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, shall be understood to implies including a described element, integer or method step, or group of elements, integers or method steps. However, it does not imply excluding any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or method steps. In the claims and the description, the terms “containing” and “having” are used as linguistically neutral terminologies for the corresponding terms “comprising”.

The use of the expression “a”, “at least” or “at least one” shall imply using one or more elements or ingredients or quantities, as used in the embodiment of the disclosure in order to achieve one or more of the intended objects or results of the present invention. Furthermore, the use of the term “one” shall not exclude the plurality of such features and components described.

The description provided herein is purely by way of example and illustration. The various features and advantageous details are explained with reference to this non-limiting embodiment in the above description in accordance with the present invention.

The descriptions of well-known components and manufacturing and processing techniques are consciously omitted in this specification, so as not to unnecessarily obscure the specification. In the previously detailed description, different features have been summarized for improving the conclusiveness of the representation in one or more examples.

However, it should be understood that the above description is merely illustrative, but not limiting under any circumstances. It helps in covering all alternatives, modifications and equivalents of the different features and exemplary embodiments.

Many other examples are directly and immediately clear to the skilled person because of his/her professional knowledge in view of the above description. Therefore, innumerable changes, variations, modifications, alterations may be made and/or integrations in terms of materials and method used may be devised to configure, manufacture and assemble various constituents, components, subassemblies and assemblies according to their size, shapes, orientations and interrelationships.

While considerable emphasis has been placed on the specific features of the preferred embodiment described here, it will be appreciated that many additional features can be added and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the invention. These and other changes in the preferred embodiment of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the invention and not as a limitation.

The exemplary embodiments were selected and described in order to be able to best represent the principles and their possible practical application underlying the invention. Thereby, the skilled persons can optimally modify and use the invention and its different exemplary embodiments with reference to the intended use.
,CLAIMS:We claim:

1. Spot-welded corrugated floor and bottom assemblies for the construction equipment, wherein the assemblies comprise at least one main panel of a predetermined thickness reinforced with at least a pair of cross-member of a predetermined lengths and thicknesses and welded by means of a combination of spot welding and CO2 welding.

2. Spot-welded corrugated floor assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the floor assembly consists of a corrugated floor main panel, at least one pair of cross-members, a floor central beam, at least one pair of front and rear end support members, at least one pair of operator seat mounting support plates, at least one pair of service plate support beams, at least one pair of side support beams and at least four cabin mounting plates at the corners.

3. Spot-welded corrugated floor assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the floor assembly is made of cold rolled carbon steel sheet (CRCS) and comprises a floor main panel preferably made of 1.2 mm thick CRCS sheet and cross-members preferably made of 2 mm thick CRCS sheet configured with hat sections, the end support members preferably made of 2 mm thick hot rolled carbon steel (HRCS) sheet and is provided with at least four cabin mounting plates preferably made of 10 mm thick HRCS plates at the four corners of the floor assembly.

4. Spot-welded corrugated floor assembly as claimed in claim 3, wherein the main panel is welded to the cross-members, end support members and beams by means of electric resistance spot welding and to the cabin and seat mounting plates by means of CO2 welding.

5. Spot-welded corrugated floor assembly as claimed in claims 2 to 4, wherein the flatness of the floor assembly along entire length thereof is maintained preferably within 3 mm.

6. Spot-welded corrugated roof assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the roof assembly comprises a corrugated roof middle plate, a plurality of cross-members configured with hat sections, a roof central beam, a pair of side support members, a pair of side support plates and at least one front support beam.

7. Spot-welded corrugated roof assembly as claimed in claim 6, wherein the corrugated roof middle plate is preferably made of 0.8 and side panels, cross members, beams, plates and reinforcements are preferably made of 1.5 mm thick cold rolled carbon steel (CRCS) sheet corrugated by press forming.

8. Spot-welded corrugated roof assembly as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cross-members, side panels and all the end members are joined to the roof middle plate by means of spot welding.

Dated: this day of 31st March, 2015. SANJAY KESHARWANI
APPLICANT’S PATENT AGENT