Abstract:
A dragline apparatus for cleaning waste material and sludge in clarifier and settling ponds and lagoons includes a pair of side walls and a back wall forming a frame supported on front and rear flotation rollers. Between the home member is at least one blade, pivotally mounted for swinging movement from an active to an inactive position. Cables are connected to the front and rear of the frame and to prime movers on the banks of a pond to be cleaned.
Abstract:
A control for an excavator controls the position of the bucket cutting edge to a desired depth accurately by a calibrating laser receiver mounted on the excavator stick member and passed through a stationary laser plane wherever the stick is moved into or out of a trench. Linear position encoders monitor the length that the actuating cylinders are extended and lookup tables convert the encoder outputs to angle representations for determining the positions of the laser receiver and the cutting edge. Other lookup tables are utilized to avoid time-consuming iterative calculation procedures to provide real-time digital process solutions of trigonometric functions. The apparatus includes a unique laser receiver comprising a plurality of linearly aligned photo receptors with associated circuitry for producing an output representative of the receptor illuminated or, if a group of receptors are illuminated, the centermost receptor illuminated. An alternative embodiment, suitable for retrofit of existing excavators, utilizes gravity-operated pendant angle sensors on each member to provide an indication of cutting edge position.
Abstract:
The grab (3) for handling material has two grab members (4, 5) one or both or which have tines (6, 7), the grab members being relatively movable to open or close the grab so that cohesive or rigid material can be grasped between the tines (6, 7). Additionally, one grab member (4) has side and bottom panels (21, 22) forming a scoop or bucket component and the other grab member (5) has a back panel (10) so that in one condition of the grab, e.g. when the grab members (4, 5) are closed, there is formed a complete scoop or bucket for scooping up granular or liquid material to be handled.In another embodiment, the grab member (5) may also have small side and bottom panels; in other examples the scoop may be provided wholly on one of the grab members.The grab avoids having to use separate devices respectively for grasping and for scooping operations. It is particularly suitable for mounting on a tractor vehicle, though the combined grab and scoop facility is applicable also to implements, utensils, tools or other apparatus, large or small, for materials handling.
Abstract:
A stabilization system to prevent movement of tractor equipment in response to digging action of a digging bucket disposed from one end of the tractor, in which the system has a friction surface and a bracket adapted to attach the friction surface to a loader-bucket/arm unit disposed from the end of the tractor opposite the digging bucket, and the bracket includes means for disposing the surface in a horizontal, downward attitude below the loader-bucket/arm unit, to support the tractor equipment.
Abstract:
A hay bale handling device adapted for use in connection with an ordinary front end loader attachment of a farm tractor, and consisting of a generally forwardly directed prong, or "spear" fixed to the scoop of the loader, so that the spear can be driven into a bale by driving the tractor forwardly, and can use the usual scoop controls for lifting, transporting and depositing the bale. The structure for mounting the spear on the scoop is quickly detachable to permit normal use of the loader, and is easily adjustable to permit mounting of the spear on loader scoops of various sizes and shapes.
Abstract:
The present invention relates to a method for determining the locations of the two hydraulic jacks for controlling an assembly of two pivoted arms, the first arm, called boom or jib, pivoted on the frame of a public works machine, such as a loader or a hydraulic shovel, and the second arm, called balance beam, pivoted on the first arm, while a bucket, adapted to rest on the ground during loading, is coupled to said balance beam, each of said two jacks is coupled between the frame and the balance beam, at least one of the axes of coupling of one of the jacks being separate from the axis of coupling of the other jack on the same element--frame or balance beam--and the instantaneous centers of rotation of the bucket, corresponding respectively to the functioning of each of the control jacks when the bucket is near the ground, are chosen to be on the longitudinal axis of the boom, wherein the first instantaneous center of rotation is chosen to be near the ground, the second instantaneous center of rotation is chosen to be substantially perpendicular with respect to the position of the bucket resting on the ground at the moment of loading and wherein the longitudinal axes of the control jacks are placed on radii passing respectively through each of said centers of rotation, the axes of coupling of the jacks to the balance beam and to the frame being determined by the intersections of said radii with each of these elements.The invention is more particularly applied to the production of a high yield loader.
Abstract:
A loader comprises a bucket at the end of a dipper arm swinging from a cross-member on an upstanding yoke. The dipper arm swings between the uprights to the yoke for the bucket to pick up material on one side and deposit it on the other side. A winch actuates the bucket to dig and lift on the one side and a cam causes the bucket to turn upside down on the other side to deposit its load. The yoke can lean to the one side to extend the reach of the dipper arm and can slew about a vertical axis. The yoke can center itself when the dipper arm swings to the other side. For travelling the whole assembly can fold into a compact bundle.
Abstract:
A frame for supporting implements on a vehicle capable of deflection to absorb torsional and bending stresses applied by the implements and method of making same.
Abstract:
A bucket with a bottom wrapper sheet and adjacent side plates has strips of material welded thereto at critical wear areas. The strips have a plurality of inserts of a hard wear-resistant material bonded into openings in said strips, which strips and inserts are heat treated prior to welding to the bucket. When excessive wear of the strips and inserts has taken place, the strips are removed and new strips with new inserts are welded to the wear areas of the bucket. A method of making and applying wear strips to a bucket is disclosed which includes the steps of forming and shaping the strips, drilling cavities into the shaped strips, bonding preformed inserts in said openings, heat treating the strips with the inserts bonded therein, and attaching the strips to said bucket.
Abstract:
An electro-hydraulic control system to enable either simultaneous extension or retraction of all boom sections in a telescopic crane boom or independent extension or retraction of one or more individual boom sections comprises a valve assembly, including solenoid-operated extend and retract valves, on each boom section cylinder; a manually operable three-position (neutral, extend, retract) main control valve for connecting the valve assemblies to a pressurized fluid source and to a reservoir; a relay for energizing all solenoid valves simultaneously when the main control valve is operated to extend or retract positions to thereby effect simultaneous extension or retraction, respectively, of all boom sections; and manually actuatable selector switches, one for each movable boom section, which, when any one selector switch is actuated while the main valve is operated, override the relay and energize only the solenoid valves in a selected valve assembly thereby enabling independent extension or retraction of a selected boom section.