US 12,404,037 B2
Passenger boarding bridge
Hideaki Dobashi, Takarazuka (JP); and Takashi Kunitake, Takarazuka (JP)
Assigned to SHINMAYWA INDUSTRIES, LTD., Hyogo (JP)
Appl. No. 17/906,139
Filed by SHINMAYWA INDUSTRIES, LTD., Takarazuka (JP)
PCT Filed Mar. 30, 2020, PCT No. PCT/JP2020/014473
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 12, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/199117, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 7, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0109013 A1, Apr. 6, 2023
Int. Cl. B64F 1/30 (2006.01); B64F 1/305 (2006.01)
CPC B64F 1/305 (2013.01) 10 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A passenger boarding bridge comprising:
a rotunda connected to a terminal building;
a tunnel unit whose proximal end is connected to the rotunda, the tunnel unit being extendable and retractable, the tunnel unit being rotatable about the rotunda;
a cab provided at a distal end of the tunnel unit, the cab being configured to be docked with an aircraft;
a travel device that supports the tunnel unit and includes travel wheels configured to travel forward and backward, the travel device being configured such that a direction of forward travel of the travel wheels and a direction of backward travel of the travel wheels are changeable;
an operating device that is operated to input an operation command to the travel device; and
a determiner configured to repeatedly perform determination whether or not the current direction of the forward travel of the travel wheels is a direction within a forward-only travel docking enabling range during a period from when the cab starts being moved from a predetermined position until the cab is docked with the aircraft, the cab being moved through an operation of the operating device to cause the travel wheels to travel.