US 5470190

US Patent 5,470,190 — Summary

Bibliographic data

Abstract (verbatim from the record)

A loader vehicle comprising a body having a front end and a rear end and provided with ground engageable propulsion means, an operator's compartment and a boom assembly, comprising a lift arm assembly and a pivot member which projects transversely from the inner end of the lift arm assembly on one side thereof and extends transversely across the body from said one side of the lift arm assembly and which is pivotally mounted on the body, adjacent the rear end thereof, for movement of the lift arm assembly between a raised position and a lowered position in which the lift arm assembly extends forwardly alongside the operator's compartment and means for carrying a material handling implement at an outer end of the boom assembly so as to be disposed forward of the front end of the body, wherein the pivot member is pivotally mounted, for movement about a first axis, on a torsion member, which extends transversely across the body, by first pivotal mounting means disposed at positions which are spaced apart transversely of the torsion member and the torsion member is pivotally mounted on the body, for movement about a second axis which is parallel to the first axis and which extends transversely of the body, by second pivotal mounting means disposed at positions which are spaced apart transversely of the body.

Independent claim — plain-language overview

The record shows one independent claim (claim 1); all other claims located (2–19 in the search snippets) recite "a vehicle according to claim 1." Claim 1 covers a loader vehicle (e.g., a skid-steer loader) with:

• A body having front and rear ends, ground-engaging propulsion, and an operator's compartment.
• A boom assembly with a lift arm assembly and a pivot member projecting transversely from the inner end of the lift arm, extending across the body, and pivotally mounted near the rear end, so the lift arm can move between raised and lowered positions, extending forward alongside one side of the operator's compartment, with a material-handling implement carrier at the outer end positioned forward of the body's front end.
• A two-axis, torsion-member arrangement: the pivot member is mounted for pivoting about a first axis on a torsion member (which extends transversely across the body) via first pivotal mounting means spaced apart transversely on the torsion member; and the torsion member itself is pivotally mounted on the body about a second, parallel axis via second pivotal mounting means spaced apart transversely on the body.

In plain terms: instead of a single rear pivot for the loader arm, the arm pivots on an intermediate transverse torsion beam, which itself pivots on the body — a two-stage pivot geometry that (per the specification) gives the bucket a more vertical lift path, better reach/dump characteristics, improved stability, and reduced center-of-gravity shift during lifting.

Dependent claims (illustrative, from search snippets)

All depend from claim 1 and add, among others: a unitary generally L-shaped boom (cl. 2); fixed pivot positions at the upper rear of the body on opposite sides (cl. 3); the first–second axis spacing being much shorter than arm length (cl. 4); a lifting ram anchored between the wheels and to the arm (cl. 5); a guide link constraining the arm's forward end to a substantially vertical path (cl. 6), with various refinements on the guide-link geometry and pivot locations (cls. 7–14); and an access opening on the side opposite the lift arm with the mounting/torsion member positioned so the operator can see rearward beneath it (cl. 19). The specification also describes (though not necessarily as claims) propulsion/loader hand controls, an operator restraint, eccentric stub-axle wheel-base adjustment, and hydraulic/mechanical drive-linkage embodiments.

Search results and uncertainty notes

• USPTO database: My web searches did not surface a direct USPTO Patent Center/PAIR record for 5470190; the bibliographic data above is taken from the Google Patents record (which mirrors the USPTO front-page data) and FreePatentsOnline. I treat the Google Patents full-text (provided in the task) as authoritative.
• CAFC 2026 dockets: Searches for "5470190" in CAFC/litigation contexts returned no results. Given the patent expired in November 2012 (well past the post-expiration enforcement window and any realistic 2026 appeal), I found no evidence of any CAFC 2026 docket involving this patent. This is a negative result from web search only — I could not independently confirm against the official CAFC docket system, so treat the "no CAFC case" conclusion as highly likely but not formally verified.
• Claims text: The complete claims section was not included in the supplied patent text, and my searches captured only partial claim language (claims 2–19, with 15 partially shown and 16–18 not retrieved). I am confident claim 1 is the sole independent claim (every retrieved dependent claim references claim 1), but the full text/claim count (e.g., whether claims beyond 19 exist) should be verified against the official USPTO record if precision on the claim set is required.