US2730821A - Bucket cleaner for excavating machine - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 17, 1956 F. J. FETZNER 2,730,821

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Jan. 17, 1956 F, J, FETZNER 2,730,821

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Filed Dec. l, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. I Q- F/A/vn J/Erzms BY J//Aza/aq Jan. 17, 1956 F. J. FETZNER 2,730,82l

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Filed Deo. l, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 50 .fo INVENTOR.

fw /wr FHM/m I g- 6 BY n #Tram/fw Jan. 17, 1956 F. Jr FETZNER BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 4l Filed Deo. l 1951 l I l {ll/IJl/llllllIl/Ill[IIL] Il lll/lll INVENTOR. 'A/wf J. 'rzwfe BY m /me, v ma United States Patent O BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATING MACHINE Frank J. Fetzner, Willowick, Ohio, assignor to The Cleveland Trencher Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application December 1, 1951, Serial No. 259,406

2 Claims. (Cl. 37-97) This invention relates to improvements in and relating to a bucket cleaner for excavating machines, and especially to an improved bucket cleaner for insuring the removal of excavated material from the excavating buckets of a rotary wheel type excavating or trenching machine. These, therefore, are the general objects of the present invention.

A more specic object of the present invention is to provide a bucket cleaner for rotary wheel type trenching machine with resilient means under control of a latch mechanism to retain the cleaner in its active position but which mechanism will release the cleaner when an undue resistance is encountered, and wherein the latch mechanism will be automatically reset consequent upon movement of the cleaner to its active position.

VThe above objects are accomplished by the provision of a pivoted cleaner arm pivotally mounted on a support to swing from its active position to its inactive position under the influence of gravity, together with a compression spring which coacts with a latch mechanism to maintain the cleaner in its active position, such latch mechanism being releasable consequent upon the exertion of undue pressure on the cleaner arm, and arranged to be reset by the movement of the arm from an idle to an active position.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings which illustrate one form of the invention. The essential features of the invention will be summarized in the claims.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a side elevation of a trench excavating machine incorporating the improved bucket cleaner mechanism; Fig. 2 is a fragmentary horizontal section through the excavating machine, certain parts being omitted to more clearly illustrate the bucket cleaner and its associated mechanism; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical section illustrating the cleaner mechanism, portions of the excavating mechanism, as for instance the discharge conveyor and its operating mechanism being omitted to more clearly illustrate the construction of the cleaner mechanism; Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are enlarged fragmentary sectional details taken in substantially the same plane as Fig. 3; Fig. 8 is a fragmentary plan view of portions of mechanism shown in Figs. 4 to 7 inclusive.

`The present invention is especially adaptable for use in connection with a rotary wheel trench excavating machine. Such a machine is shown at Fig. l as comprising a frame 10 supported at either side by tractor type belts, one 0f which is shown at 11. The belts 11 are operatively connected with a motor 12 mounted on the forward end of the frame. At the rear end of the frame there istprovided an inclined upwardly extending mast 15 upon which a rearwardly extending boom 16 is mounted for vertical movement. The boom 16 supports an excavating wheel which is raised and lowered relative to the mast by cables 17 interconnected between the boom 16 and suitable cable winding drums 18.

The boom 16 includes a pair of horizontally spaced longitudinally extending frame members 21 secured together by transverse spacing members, one of which is shown in Figs. 2 and 3 at 22. A pair of struts 23 are secured to each frame member 21 and extend downwardly therefrom forming triangular supports for a cross shaft 24 positioned at their lower ends. A pair of rollers 25 are mounted on the outer ends of the shaft 24 and similar rollers 26 and 27 are mounted on shafts 28 and 29 which are carried in supports 3i) mounted on the frame members 21. The rollers 25, 26 and 27 support an ex cavating wheel 20.

The excavating wheel 20 may comprise a pair of horizontally spaced vertically exten-ding annular rings 31 which are joined together adjacent their outer peripheries by spaced outwardly extending bucket-like formations 32. The inner peripheries of the rings 31 are supportingly engaged by the rollers 25, 26 and 27. The shaft 28 supporting the rollers 26 is rotatably mounted in its supports 30 and carries drive sprockets, one of which is shown at 33. These sprockets coact with a series of teeth-like formations 3d secured to the outer surfaces of the rings 31. Also secured to the shaft 28 is a sprocket wheel 35 which is drivingly connected by a drive chain 36 with a sprocket wheel 37, the latter being drivingly connected with the motor l2 by the usual change-speed transmission unit not shown, but which may be controlled by a lever 3S.

As indicated in the drawings, particularly in Figs. 2 and 3, each bucket 32 may be provided with a plurality of bars 39 which extend rearwardly and inwardly relative to the direction of rotation of the excavating Wheel and form a back for the bucket. These bars are shown as mounted directly on the bucket, however, they may be carried by separate brackets and secured to the wheel independently of the associated buckets.

The application of power to the excavating wheel and to the tractor belts is selectively controlled in the usual manner to cause the machine to travel in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig, l and to cause the wheel to rotate in a clockwise direction. A belt conveyor 40 is mounted on the boom frame members 21 and extends transversely through the excavating wheel. Such conveyor mechanisms are well known at the present time. Suce it to say that, as the digging wheel rotates in a clockwise direction, the excavated material is progressed by the buckets until it reaches the upper part of the wheel where it may drop from the buckets 32 under the influence of gravity and fall onto conveyor 40 which discharges it to one side ofthe machine.

When the machine is used to excavate certain types of earth, such as wet soil, clay and the like, the buckets frequently will not discharge fully, and at times do not discharge at all. Accordingly, a cleaning mechanism to complete the discharge of the buckets is desirable. The present invention provides an improved cleaner mechanism in which the cleaner is resiliently maintained in active position, together with a trip mechanism which will release the cleaner for movement to an idle position should the cleaner meet with undue resistance, and wherein the trip mechanism will be automatically reset consequent upon the movement of the cleaner from an idle to an active position.

The bucket cleaner 50, with which the present invention is particularly concerned, comprises an elongated arm pivotally mounted as at 51 on the boom 16 at a point beneath the conveyor di). The cleaner SEB extends rearwardly along the boom, below the conveyor, and then upwardly and forwardly, above the conveyor and between the rings 31 which form the wheel, into the buckets 352. The uppermost portion 52 of the cleaner may comprise a single member which, as shown in the drawings, projects into the buckets 32 between a pair of the bars 39 which form www the rear' wall of the buckets. It will be apparent that a plurality of such members 52 may be removably attached to the arm so as to extend between each pair of bars 39, or the member 52l may be comb-shaped tov permitrthe passage of the'bars 39 as the wheel rotates. The cleaner 50 is arranged to pivot about its axis 51 from the full line or active position, shown in Fig. 3, to the dotted line position therein shown wherein the cleaner is withdrawn entirely inside the wheel structure. In the presentarrangement the cleaner moves about its pivot from its active to its inactive position under the influence of gravity.

The cleaner 50 is normally held in its active position,

namely, the full line position of Fig. 3 by one or more compression springs 55, which act on the cleaner 50 through a latch mechanism hereinafter to be more fully described. These springs 55 are mounted in elongated rectangular housings 57 which may be secured to the boom 16 as a unit (Fig. 2) or individually secured to the boom (Figs. 6 to 8 inclusive). In either instance each spring housing 57 extends longitudinally relative to the boom'frame and is mounted in a bracket formation 58 which is clamped securely to the boom members 21 by bolts 59.

' Each spring 55 comprises a coil type compression spring which encircles a rod 60, the ends of the spring being interposed between a pair of pins 61 carried by its respective housing 57 and an enlarged head 62 formed on its rod 60. A rectangular block 63 is threadingly mounted on each rod kand serves to limit the outward and rotative movements of each spring relative to its casing 57.

Each spring 55 is connected with a latch mechanism which normally retains the cleaner shoe in its uppermost position, shown at Figs. 3 and 4. This latch mechanism comprising a rod or bar 65 supported by a pair of arms 66, which are pivotally connected as at 67 to the cleaner 50. The rod 65 is normally drawn toward the pivot 51 of the cleaner by a spring 68 interposed between the rodand a lug 69 carried by the cleaner shoe, such movement being limited by a cross bar or stop 70 secured to the cleaner 50.

The latch bar 65 cooperates with one or more coacting latch members 75. The members comprise levers, each of which is pivoted as at 76 to a bracket formation 77 which is secured to the associated spring housing 57. Each lever 75 is provided with an extension 78 which is pivotally connected as at 79 with its associated spring rod 60heretofore described. When the cleaner is in its normal or active position, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4,

the outer end of each of the latch arms 75 lies beneath f the latch bar 65 and the blocks 63 are separated from the stoppins 61 so that the full force of the springs 55 acts ,to urge the respective latch members 75 in a vcounter-clockwise direction, thereby resiliently retaining will increase the pressure of the spring 55, as illustrated in Fig. 5. Should the obstruction remain in the excavating bucket, despite the increased spring pressure, the movement of the cleaner beyond that indicated in Fig. 5 will cause the latch rod 65 to disengage the latch member 75 whereupon the cleaner 50 will drop by gravity to the position indicated by dotted lines in Figs. l and 3, and in Vfull lines in Fig. 6. The lower position of the cleaner is limited by a transverse bar 19 carried by the boom frame members 23.

Following the removal of the obstruction by the oper, ator, the rotative power of the wheel may be used to reset the cleaner 50. As indicated in Fig. 3, one end of a suitable cablev or chain 80 is removably secured, as

by a suitable hook, to a downwardly extending lug 81 of the cleaner 50 and the cable then passed Varound the shaft 29, heretofore described, and its opposite end removably secured to one of the bucket formations 32 of the wheel, as for instance by a hook 82. When-the cable t) is in position and the wheel is rotated in a clockwise direction (Fig. 3) the cleaner 50 will swing in a counterclockwise direction about its pivot 51 from'thedotted linerv position, shown in Fig. 3, to the full line position therein shown.

As the cleaner 'arm 50 moves from its released `or lower position to its uppermost or active position *the latch rod 65 is cammed to the right (Figs. 3 to 6) byv cam surface S5 formed on the underside of the latch bars 75 thereby rocking the bar or rod 65 about its pivot 67 and permitting such bar to clear the latch members 75. When the cleaner 5l) reaches its uppermost position, the latch bars 65 will be drawn atop the ends of the latch arms by their springs 68. The springs 55 now coact throughv One of the advantages of the presentv constructiony isY n that it permits the use of the rotative movement of the excavating wheel for resetting the cleaner and the latch.

mechanism. Further, it enables the usey of comparatively heavy springs which, in their normal positions shown, in, Fig. 6, may bev precompressed whereby the cleaner ,will be retained in its active position by substantially thefull force of the springs. The arrangement likewise, facilitates the use of a comparatively short spring which moves but av short ydistance in relation to themovement of the cleaner itself. Further, the arrangement insures the main taining of both a predetermined relation between the parts of the latch mechanism and a predetermined spring pressure on the cleaner, despite repeated tripping and Vreset,- ting of the latch mechanism.

I claim:

l. In an excavating machine having a rsupport and a plurality of excavating buckets movable at a predetermined path relative to said support, a bucket cleari'erYV Vmounted on said support and including a pivoted arm adapted to extend into the buckets as they move infsaid path, said arm being movable under the influence of gravity to an idle position out ofthe buckets,y arlatchl member pivotally mounted on said arm, a ,stop forrsaid member secured to said arm, resilient means intercomy nected between said arm and said latch member to rettili.1 V

said member against said stop, ya second latch member pivotally mounted on said support, a compression-spring mounted on said support and connected to said second latch member to maintain said latch members in engagement with each other and through the latch members to resiliently retain the cleaner in its active position in the path of said bucket, said latches being positioned. relative to each other to disengage consequent upon .the rocking of the cleaner a predetermined distance against.v

the action of said spring and thereby permitthe cleaner to fall to an idle position under the inuence of gravity and coacting cam surfaces on said latch members tov move said first-named latch member away from its stop and permit restoration of the latching engagementof said members by said resilient means consequent upon movement of the arm to its active position. y

`2. A bucket cleaner for a trench excavating machlnc having a frame carryingA an excavating wheel provided with excavating buckets mounted on its periphery, said cleaner including an arm pivotally mounted on the frame.

to swing from an activeposition extending into the path of the buckets to an idle position out of the path ofthe buckets, a latch member pivotally mounted on said arm, a secondlatch member pivotally mounted on said frame and engaging with the rst-namedl latch member whenv the arm lis in an active position, resilient means interposed between the arm and the first named latchmem-.v-

engagement with each other, a compression spring interposed between said frame and said second named latch member to retain the arm in its active position while the latch members are in engagement, said latch members being positioned to disengage each other when the cleaner arm is moved about its pivot a predetermined distance against the action of said spring and thereby permit the cleaner to move to an idle position ont of the path of the bucket, means carried by said arm to cooperate with the second-named latch member to restore said latch member consequent upon movement of the arm [rom its idle to active position, and wherein one of said latch members has a cam surface to coact with the other latch member and permit said resilient means to restore the lirst'named latch member to its active position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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