A dockboard having an improved lip lifting mechanism. The dockboard includes a ramp hinged at its rear edge to a loading dock, and the ramp is adapted to be moved from a generally horizontal cross traffic position to an upwardly inclined position by a counterbalancing spring assembly. A lip is hinged to the front edge of the ramp and can be pivoted from a pendant, downwardly hanging, position to a partially extended position just short of its fully extended position by a lip lifting mechanism wh...

A safety device for a loading bridge or walkway at which aircraft are parked for loading and unloading of passengers and cargo through an open door in the aircraft. To prevent the open door from striking the floor of the loading bridge or walkway and thus from being damaged when the position of the aircraft is lowered at fuelling and loading operations, a sensor is provided in the region of the part of the loading bridge facing the aircraft and beneath the open door. When struck by the door the ...

A dockboard to be mounted on the front surface of a loading dock and adapted to bridge the gap between the dock and the bed of a carrier. The dockboard includes a ramp which is composed of a deck plate and an extension lip. The rear edge of the deck plate is hinged to the frame of the dockboard by a series of hinge loops, while the lip is pivotally connected to the forward edge of the deck plate and is adapted to engage the bed of the carrier when the ramp is in the operating position. In the st...

A drop platform structure for use with a loading dock is provided including a pair of elongated telescoping frame members, one of the members being pivotally secured to the dock and the other member being pivotally secured to a brace which is also pivotally secured to the dock. An elongated platform is slidably disposed with respect to the frame members and, upon retraction thereof, automatically telescopes the frame members so as to raise them from a generally horizontal to a generally vertical...

A swing bridge type of aircraft loading bridge structure for use in providing access between an aircraft and a terminal can be constructed so as to minimize the amount of bridge slope by using a rotunda structure attached to a loading bridge so as to move in conjunction with the bridge. A first or rotunda support is used to rotatably carry a secondary support so that this secondary support may be rotated in a horizontal plane and the rotunda structure is rotatably mounted on the secondary suppor...

A dockboard assembly including a support structure with a ramp having a first end pivotally connected to the support structure for pivotal movement between raised and lowered positions on opposite sides of the dock level position. A lip is pivotally connected at a rear edge to the front of the ramp for pivotal movement between an extended cantilevered position and a pendent position. The support structure includes lip supporting keepers for receiving the front edge of the lip when the lip is in ...

A dockboard having a hinged lip which normally hangs down and retains the dockboard in a substantially horizontal position. Linkage connected to the dockboard and the lip locks the latter in its pendent position, and when the dockboard is swung upwardly a predetermined distance and then lowered, the linkage is moved across a toggle line and thereafter swings the lip into an extended position. When the dockboard is released, it swings downwardly until it hits stop means, at which time the momentu...

Apparatus for aligning one or more motorized terminal bridges to one or more doors in a vehicle enabling the loading and unloading of passengers and freight. The apparatus includes control circuits responsive to signals from a remotely located control panel which provides drive signals used in the initial positioning of each bridge. An electro-optical device in each bridge is locked onto a reflective type material affixed to the vehicle in the vicinity of each door. Transducers mounted in variou...

A safety mechanism to be incorporated with a hydraulically operated dockboard for preventing free descent of the ramp if a carrier pulls away from the dock when a load is on the ramp. The dockboard includes a ramp having its rear edge hinged to the dock and adapted to be raised upwardly to an inclined position by a hydraulic cylinder unit. The safety mechanism is located in the hydraulic supply line that supplies hydraulic fluid to the cylinder unit from a pump and the mechanism includes a pair ...

A dockboard to span the gap between a loading dock and the bed of a carrier. The ramp of the dockboard is stored vertically along the front wall of the dock and the side edges of the ramp are pivotally connected to guide members which are movable in vertical guideways mounted on the front surface of the dock. The ramp is raised upwardly from its vertical storage position to a location generally above the height of the dock, pivoted to a generally horizontal position and then lowered downwardly t...