Ball screw joint for an automated guided vehicle
US5878844A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 12, 1996 |
| Grant date | Mar 9, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 12, 2016 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC F)Mechanical Engineering; Lighting; Heating
- CPC primaryF16H25/24
- WIPO fieldHandling
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
An automated guided vehicle for carrying a load comprises a mast, a lift carriage, a ball screw drive assembly and a ball screw joint. The ball screw drive assembly has a lift nut and a vertically oriented ball screw. The ball screw joint operatively couples the drive assembly to the lift carriage so as to transmit upward vertical forces from the drive assembly to the lift carriage. The ball screw joint includes first, second, third and fourth shafts which permit the lift nut to move in any horizontal direction and to pivot about any horizontal axis with respect to the lift carriage. As a result, the ball screw joint advantageously prevents the transmission of horizontal forces and angular moments between the ball screw and the lift nut, thereby reducing the wearing out effects of component misalignment on the ball screw assembly.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.