LOCK MECHANISM FOR APPARATUS COMPRISING SWIVEL CASTER

To make it possible that a shopping cart (hereinafter, cart) comprising swivel casters will not travel independently, regardless of the slope of a road surface, and a movable conference desk or the like will not move after being placed, even if an external force is applied thereto.SOLUTION: There is provided a lock mechanism for an apparatus comprising swivel casters. The lock mechanism comprises: the swivel caster that includes a wheel body comprising two wheels and a rotation limiting member that is interposed between and integrated with the wheels; selection means that selects traveling or locking; transmission means that transmits the selection result to a lock pin, and is flexible; and the lock pin, which is positioned at the center of swiveling of the swivel caster, is linked to the transmission means, and moves up and down. The rotation limiting member has an external shape that does not interfere with the lock pin in a specific rotation angle range, and interferes with the same in a different angle range. When locking is selected, the lock pin lowers and locks if the rotation limiting member is in the specific rotation angle range, and in the other angle range, the lock pin interferes with the rotation limiting member but, due to the flexibility of the transmission means, does not press the rotation limiting member in a restrictive manner, and with a small movement of the cart afterward, the wheel body rotates and the lock pin lowers.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5 【課題】自在キャスターを備えたショッピングカート（以降、カート）は路面の傾斜にも拘らず自走しない事、移動式会議机などでは配置後に外力が加わっても移動しないようにする。【解決手段】２つの車輪その車輪に挟まれ一体化された回転規制部材からなる車輪体を含む自在キャスター、走行とロックを選択する選択手段、下記ロックピンに選択結果を伝え柔軟性を有する伝達手段、自在キャスター旋回中心に配置され伝達手段に連結され上下移動するロックピンからなる。回転規制部材は特定の回転角度の範囲ではロックピンと干渉せず、他の角度範囲では干渉する外形形状を有する。ロック選択時、回転規制部材が特定の回転角度の範囲にある場合はロックピンが下がりロックし、他の角度範囲ではロックピンは回転規制部材と干渉するが、伝達手段の柔軟性により回転規制部材を拘束的には押さず、その後のカートのわずかな移動で車輪体が回転しロックピンが下がる。【選択図】図５