The present invention relates to a transport device for moving objects carried on legs.

Often movement of such objects on floors of hard material is carried through by dragging the object on the floor or carrying it by one or more persons. This is laborous and often implies a heavy load on back, joints and muscles.

The object of the invention is to provide a device of the kind stated by way of introduction, that simplifies movement of heavy objects and thereby decreases the risk of stress injuries of different kinds on the body, as well as the number of persons required for carrying through the movement.

This object has been attained with the transport device according to the invention in that it is characterized by a support unit for a leg of the object, said unit including a support frame, wheel means carrying said support frame, and leg engagement means arranged on the support frame at a sideward distance from said wheel means.

Said leg engagement means may include means designed for surface engagement with the leg with a force that increases with the force excerted by the object on the frame, and suitably also means designed for support of the leg transversely to the direction of the load excerted by the object on the frame.

The invention shall now be described more closely with reference to the attached drawings, which schematically show an embodiment, and on which

Figure 1 is a side view, Figure 2 is a view from above, and

Figure 3 is a perspective view intended to illustrate use of this embodiment of the transport device according to the invention. The illustrated transport device forms a support unit for a leg of an object to be moved. It includes a support frame generally designated 2 and consisting of an essentially perpendicularly bent flat iron with a long and a short branch 4 and 6, respectively, and a support strut 8 extending between the ends of the flat iron branches 4 and 6. On the underside of the free end of the flat iron branch 6 a support wheel 10 is

arranged to be pivotal 360 degrees. On the upper side of the flat iron branch 6 a movable slide 12 is arranged, the branch 6 serving as a guide for said slide by virtue of the fact that side portions of the slide partly extend around the longitudinal edges of the branch 6. The slide 12 along one side thereof carries a long branch 14 of an essentially perpendicularly bent catch arm, a shorter branch 16 of which extends transversely to the flat iron branch 4 on the side of the flat iron branch 4 remote from the flat iron branch 6, as shown in Figure 2. The catch arm 14, 16, the function of which will be described more closely below, is thus arranged to follow the movements of the slide.

A control and lock device for the movement of the slide 12 comprises two flat iron plates 18 and 20, respectively, which are attached on the upper side of the slide in an upright position at a distance from each other. A guide rod 22 parallel to the flat iron branch 6 extends with play through the plates 18 and 20 and is attached to the flat iron branch 4 with one of its ends. Between the plates 18 and 20 the guide rod 22 extends through a lock plate 24, the lower end of which is tiltably supported on the slide 12 close to the plate 18 and the upper end of which is connected to the plate 20 by means of a draw spring 26. When the lock plate 4 is in an upright position as opposed to the tilted position shown in Figure 2, it receives the guide rod 22 with play, but is normally drawn through the action of the spring 26 into engagement with the guide rod 22 in the tilted position. In the last-mentioned position the slide 12, by the occurring clamping action between the lock plate 24 and the guide rod 22, is locked to the guide rod 22 against movement towards the flat iron branch 4. However, the lock device described does not prevent movement of the slide 12 in the other direction.

At the upper end of the flat iron branch 4 a plate shaped abutment element 28 is pivotally supported on a pivot 30 extending along the upper edge of branch 4. The side edge of the element 28 extending on the same side as the catch arm branch 14 is bent away from the flat iron branch 4 for forming a side support surface 32. The function of the abutment element 28 and the side support surface 32 thereof will be described more closely below.

A guide 34 for a slide 36 extends below and parallel to the pivot 30 on the side of the flat iron branch 4 facing the flat iron branch 6. More particularly, the guide 34 is located so as to receive and movably

support the upper end of the support rod 8 with play. As will be described more closely below this allows that the upper end of the support rod 8, when the device is under load, serves to lock the slide 36 in an extended position. The slide 36 is biased by means of a draw spring 38 towards the side of the frame 2, along which the catch arm branch 14 extends, and at its end facing away therefrom is bent in the same direction as the side support surface 32 for forming a further side support surface 40 facing the surface 32. Also the function of the slide 36 and the side support surface 32 will appear from the following description.

The function of the support unit described will now be explained more closely below with reference to Figure 3.

After positioning the lock plate 24 in an upright position and thereby releasing the slide 12 and the catch arm 14, 16 for movement, the support unit is moved with drawn out catch arm 14, 16 into close vicinity of a leg 42 of a heavy object which shall be moved. With the wheel 10 resting on the floor the unit is then applied with the abutment element 28 engaging one side 44 of the leg and with the catch arm portion 16 located on the other side of the leg not shown in Figure 3. The catch arm branch 16 is shifted into engagement with this side and the slide 36 is drawn out so that the side support surface 40 thereof comes into engagement with the facing leg side extending between the above-mentioned leg sides, said facing leg side being neither visible in Figure 3. The position of the support unit is then also adjusted so that the catch arm branch 14 and side support surface 32 come into engagement with the remaining side 46 of the leg. In the position thus obtained, shown in Figure 3, the catch arm branch 16 is locked against further extension due to the fact that the locking plate 24 has been allowed to return to its locking position. A further similar support unit is applied in the same way on a further leg, located at the same side of the object as the first leg, with the flat iron branch 6 directed in the same direction. The opposite side of the object can now be lifted so that the object will rest on the two wheels 10 and can be rolled away. For releasing the support unit from a leg the catch arm 14, 16 must be disengaged so as to be able to be drawn out, by tilting the lock plate 24 into an upright position, so that it can be moved together with the slide 12 along the rod 22.

It is realized that the object at movement on the wheels 10 is safely anchored to the support units by virtue of their design. More particularly the abutment element 28 and the catch arm branch 16 will be pressed very hard against an opposite side each of the leg 42 of the object, and will thereby unshiftably clamp the leg therebetween, due to the moment caused by the lift action and applied upwards on the branch 6. This moment is determined by the reaction force from the floor at the wheel 10 as multiplied with the length of the branch 6. It is then also realized that the mutual position of the abutment element 28 and the branch 16, with the element 28 located above the branch 16 and on the wheel side of the leg 42, is important for the magnitude of the clamping force.

Sidewards stability is obtained by means of the support surfaces 32 and 40 and the catch arm branch 14. The slide 36 is then locked in its position by virtue of the fact that the end of the rod 8 is pressed against the slide due to the action of the above-mentioned moment.

If all legs of an object intended to be moved is provided with its particular support unit as indicated above, the object can easily be rolled on a frame floor without simultaneous lifting. The object must, however, be somewhat lifted when the support units are applied in order to make the object to get clear from the floor.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described and shown. Thus, two wheels attached to a pivoted bracket can be used instead of the wheel 10 for allowing movement over small irregularities, e.g. thresholds. The abutment element 28, 32 can be replaced by parts having another shape for suiting other types of furniture or frame legs. For round legs, or similar, an abutment element with two angled abutment surfaces may thus be used, which centre the leg essentially in the symmetry plane of the unit, which extends in parallel with the flat iron branch 6 through the pivot axis of the wheel 10.

The transport device according to the invention is universally usable for moving objects. Its use within hospitals, homes and in connection with cleaning work, by removal firms, within the furniture and office equipment trade and similar is, however, of particular importance.