Coast control for walkie/rider pallet truck

A walkie/rider pallet truck comprising:

• a steerable wheel;
• a steerable wheel brake coupled to said wheel;
• a steering arm coupled to said wheel for steering said wheel and being movable through an arc including a driving arc interposed between a generally vertical braking position and a generally horizontal braking position;
• a handle on said steering arm for control of said truck;
• a deadman mechanism coupled to said steering arm for moving said steering arm into said generally vertical braking position to brake said truck when said handle is released;
• and
• a steering arm brake coupled to said steering arm for preventing movement of said steering arm from a selected position due to said deadman mechanism so that said steering arm does not move substantially from said selected position when said steering arm brake is engaged and said handle is released.

A walkie/rider pallet truck comprising:

• a steerable wheel;
• a steerable wheel brake coupled to said wheel;
• a steering arm coupled to said wheel for steering said wheel and being movable through an arc including a driving arc interposed between a generally vertical braking position and a generally horizontal braking position;
• a handle on said steering arm for control of said truck;
• a deadman mechanism coupled to said steering arm for moving said steering arm into said generally vertical braking position to brake said truck when said handle is released;
• a steering arm brake coupled to said steering arm for preventing movement of said steering arm from a selected position due to said deadman mechanism so that said steering arm does not move substantially from said selected position when said brake is engaged and said handle is released;
• and
• an actuator for manually activating said steering arm brake.

A walkie/rider pallet truck comprising:

• a steerable wheel;
• a steerable wheel brake coupled to said wheel;
• a steering arm coupled to said wheel for steering said wheel and being movable through an arc including a driving arc interposed between a generally vertical braking position and a generally horizontal braking position;
• a handle on said steering arm for control of said truck;
• a deadman mechanism coupled to said steering arm for moving said steering arm into said generally vertical braking position to brake said truck when said handle is released;
• a grab bar that is to be gripped by an operator riding on said truck;
• a coast control mechanism coupled to said steering arm for overriding said deadman mechanism so that said steering arm does not move into said vertical braking arc when said handle is released;
• and
• an actuator for manually activating said coast control mechanism, said actuator being located adjacent a gripping position of an operator's hand while gripping said grab bar.