20 Mins. to Load
Page 46
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5 Tons of Grain
NAECHANICAL handling has mostly liflbeen confined to goods which might readily be packed in standard containers. A new aid, the Teleloader, demonstrated last week by University Motors, Ltd., Lots Road, London, S.W.I0, the London distributor, requires no prepacking of goods. Sacks or cases weighing 2-3-cwt. can be lifted with equal ease. During the demonstration of this equipment, which was fitted to the side of a lorry, 50 sacks of grain, each weighing over 2 cwt., were loaded from ground level by the driver and mate in under 20 minutes.
In addition to halving the manpower required when loading a lorry, the device reduces manual effort and loading time. The Teleloader comprises a cradle which, hinged to the side or rear of the chassis, sweeps through an arc between ground level and the vertical position. It is operated by a hydraulic n12 cylinder piped to a pump driven from the gearbox power take-off.
A tape, connecting the outrigger of the cradle to the operating cylinder reaction valve, enables the lifting device to function fully automatically, although a separate control valve can be fitted.
During the demonstration the automatic arrangement was used, and the reaction valve was operated by the weight of the sack being dumped on the cradle. The mate wheeled the sacks on to the cradle, which automatically came into operation with the imposition of the load and raised the sack to the height of the driver's shoulder when he was standing on the lorry platform. When the sack was removed, the cradle returned to ground level by the automatic release of the reaction valve.
This unit, which costs less than 1100, including fitting, will be specially useful to agricultural contractors, or on the larger mechanized farms, where it would release a front-loading tractor for other duties. Upon arriving at the loading site, the cradle can be attached in less than a minute by fitting two hinge pins. The pump supplies sufficient pressure at engine idling speed to operate the cradle.
The cradle, an all-welded tubular steel structure, is strong but light, and the equipment, including the operating valve and combined pump and power take-off weighs only 11,cwt. It can be fitted in conjunction with the tipping gear of any lorry.
A user reported that for nine consecutive days the Teleloader lifted 272 2-cwt. sacks each day, the vehicle covering a daily distance of 50 miles from the fields to the drying plant. Without the use of the mechanized equipment, this work would have required four men to produce the same results.
The Teleloader lifter, made by Telehoist, Ltd., Swindon Lane, Cheltenham. Glos., can be operated by a separate manual control which might be more desirable when the equipment is employed to lift boxes or cases requiring to be more carefully balanced on the cradle. The equipment is arranged for automatic return of the cradle to ground level, no provision being made for removing the load from the lorry.