Axle alignment machine
OwnerFloyd E. Deaninventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An axle alignment machine on which a trailer can be driven and fastened, simulating the fastening of a trailer to a fifth wheel of a tractor. The machine having a pit located therein which contains carriages that move on tracks. The carriages support the wheels of a trailer so that with plumb bobs and markings in the pit a static alignment of the axles of the trailer may be obtained and with the use of motors to turn wheel rollers on the carriages a dynamic alignment of the axles of the trailer may be obtained.
Claims2
An axle alignment machine comprised of a base having a forward portion and a rearward portion, a stand supporting a fifth wheel located on the forward portion of the base, a pit located in the rearward portion of the base, removable supports extending across the pit, tracks located in the pit, a plurality of carriages, each carriage having a frame, a plurality of track rollers and a plurality of wheel rollers turnably mounted on each frame, the track rollers being in movable engagement with the tracks, the wheel rollers being mounted on the carriages in fixed relation to the track rollers, markings in the pit along the tracks, plumb bobs attached to the carriages to read over the markings along the tracks, the wheel rollers being mounted in fixed relation to each other and the track rollers to support the wheels of a trailer fastened to the fifth wheel, additional markings across the rear of the pit, a rear plumb bob attached to the rear of the trailer to read over the additional markings across the rear of the pit, motors attached to the wheel rollers to turn the wheel rollers.
A method of aligning axles on trailers comprised of providing a base having a forward portion and a rearward portion, a stand supporting a fifth wheel located on the forward portion of the base, a pit located in the rearward portion of the base, removable supports extending across the pit, tracks located in the pit, a plurality of carriages, each carriage having a frame, a plurality of track rollers and a plurality of wheel rollers turnably mounted on each frame, the track rollers being in movable engagement with the tracks, the wheel rollers being mounted on the carriages in fixed relation to the track rollers, markings in the pit along the tracks, plumb bobs attached to the carriages to read over the markings along the tracks, the wheel rollers being mounted in fixed relation to each other and the track rollers to support the wheels of a trailer fastened to the fifth wheel, additional markings across the rear of the pit, a rear plumb bob attached to the rear of the trailer to read over the additional markings across the rear of the pit, motors attached to the wheel rollers to turn the wheel rollers, placing the wheels of the trailer on the wheel rollers, removing the supports near the carriages from the pit after the wheels of the trailer are placed on the wheel rollers, providing a plurality of springs attached from the rear portion of the trailer to the axles of the trailer to simulate a load on the trailer, operating the motors attached to the wheel rollers, measuring the amount of drift to the right or left of the axles by reading the markings across the rear of the pit adjacent the rear plumb bob, adjusting the axles of the trailer so that the axles will have no drift to the right or the left on the track rollers when the motors attached to the wheel rollers are running.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.