Vehicles for taking on, transporting, and discharging a load

In a self-loading vehicle which is capable of taking on a load, transporting the load, and then discharging the load, elongated substantially horizontal frame means having a pair of opposed end regions, propelling means operatively connected to one of said end regions of said frame means for propelling the latter to cause the vehicle to travel, said propelling means including at least a pair of wheels for engaging the surface on which the vehicle travels, and at least one additional pair of wheels operatively connected with the other of said end regions of said frame means to support the latter during travel of the vehicle, bell crank means pivotally connected with said other end region of said frame means for turning movement with respect thereto about a substantially horizontal bell crank axis which extends transversely with respect to the direction of the vehicle travel, said bell crank means having a pair of elongated arm means which are substantially perpendicular to each other and which are connected to each other at the region of said bell crank axis, one of said arm means being an operating arm means which extends from said bell crank axis toward said one end region of said frame means in a substantially horizontal attitude when the vehicle is in a load-transporting mode while the other of said arm means is a carrying arm means which extends upwardly from said bell crank axis when the vehicle is in said load-transporting mode, load-carrying means pivotally connected to said carrying arm means for turning movement with respect thereto about a discharge axis which is parallel to said bell crank axis and which is situated at an elevation substantially higher than said bell crank axis when the vehicle is in said load-transporting mode, said load-carrying means having a load-carrying position where said load-carrying means extends at least in part from said discharge axis downwardly toward said operating arm means while the vehicle is in said load-transporting mode, bell-crank displacing means operatively connected between said operating arm means and said frame means for turning said bell crank means about said bell crank axis to a position where said operating arm means extends upwardly from said bell crank axis while said carrying arm means extends from said bell crank axis away from said one end region of said frame means to place the vehicle in a mode for taking on a load and to place said load-carrying means in a load-receiving position, and load-carrier displacing means operatively connected between said load-carrying means and said bell crank means for turning said load-carrying means about said discharge axis while said carrying arm means extends upwardly from said bell crank axis to place the vehicle in a load-discharging mode while turning said load-carrying means with respect to said bell crank means to a load-discharging position.