Importance

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Abstract

A dock leveler including a base frame, a deck having its inner side pivotally mounted on the base frame and having a lip pivotally mounted on its outer side, mechanism for raising and lowering the deck, and a fluid circuit and associated linkage for raising the lip in response to raising the deck and for lowering the lip in response to lowering the deck, the fluid circuit including a first piston and cylinder unit connected between the base frame and the deck, a second piston and cylinder unit connected between the deck and the lip, and a conduit coupling the first and second piston and cylinder units so that fluid is pumped from the first piston and cylinder unit to the second piston and cylinder unit during raising of the deck to raise the lip and the reverse is experienced during the lowering of the deck to lower the lip. The first piston and cylinder unit is yieldably mounted between the base frame and the deck and the second piston and cylinder unit is movably mounted on the deck to thereby permit yielding movement of the lip in either direction if it is subjected to external forces. Structure is provided for selectively deactivating the first piston and cylinder unit to permit the lip to drop after it has been raised.

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First Claim