US358538A - Ditching-machine - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

A. BURCHAM.

DITGHING MACHINE.

No. 358,538.I Patented Mar. 1, 1887.

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DITCHING" MACHINE,

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 358.538, dated March l, 1887.

Application filed September 26,1885. Serial No. 178,275. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW BUROHAM. a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Mineral City, in the county of Greene and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ditching-Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and te letters or iigures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in ditching machines or wheel-excavators; and it consists in the construction and combination of the parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and specifically pointed out in the claims, the object of inyinvention being to provide a simple and effective excavator or ditching apparatus which can be readily attached to the front axle of an ordinary wagon, and in providing said carriage or axle with an adjustable guide-wheel which can be elevated or depressed, as will be hereinafter fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, `which illustrate my invention, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a ditching-machine embodying my improvement. Fig. 2 is a plan view of said machine, and Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the ditching-wheel detached from its carrier.

In the accompanying drawings, A refers to au axle which is preferably ordinary in construction, sueh as is in useuponordinary farinwagons, and said axle has attached theretoa pole, C, and supporting-wheels B B, which are mounted on the spindles a a. The pole C is attached to the axle by hounds c c, which are provided at their ends with hooks which engage with eyes b, attached to said axle. Instead of hooks and eyes, ordinary clips may be employed. Above the axle A is mounted a bolster, A', to the upper edge of which is secured a platform, G, which. is provided at one end with a serrated arched bar, G, adjacent to which is pivoted a lever, H, which has at- `bent horizontally and downwardly, the lower end having attached thereto a wheel, D', as shown, the ridge or edge of said wheel being horizontal.

To the bolster A are securely attached rearwardly-extending bars d d, which constitute a portion of a frame, between which is journaled a ditching-wheel. The bars d d have adjacent to the ditch or excavating wheel boxes or troughs, which are designed to be filled with stones, in order to augment the weight of the ditching-wheel, as may be desired, and at the rear upper end of these boxes the axle of the ditching-wheel is journaled.

The ditching-wheel consists of two sections, E and E', which are provided at their sides with annular metallic rings e e, which project beyond the peripheries of the sections E and E', and form annular plates for the same.

The axle m of the ditching-wheel has double bearings formed in eyes in the rear upper ends of the boxes, in, which the weights may be placed, and within said boxes and between the eyes the axles are encircled by the ends of a bent bar, f, the upper portion of said bar extending across the ditching-wheel, where it has pivotally attached thereto a blade, F, the under portion having a bearing, f, which encircles the horizontal portion of the bar f. One edge of the blade F, immediately above the bearing f", has an upwardly-projecting eye, f3, with which engages the outwardlybent end of a bar, g, said bar having a member, g', which is attached to the lever H, near its upper end, and by moving said lever the blade F may be caused to contact with the bottom of the recess in the ditching-wheel.

To the frame which supports the ditchingyIO wheel and tothe bolster is secured a suitablyconstructed supplemental frame having vertical bars d', between the upper ends of which are journaled rollers over which pass' an endless belt, I, said belt being located beneath the lower end of the blade F and at right angles therewith.

One of the rollers over which the endless belt I passes has a rearwardly-extending shaft, n, with a pulley, n, which contacts withaflat ring, N, attached to one side of the ditchingwheel.

L refers to a curved blade, which is sharpened at its lower portion, so as to provide a cutting-edge, said blade being held in position concentric. with the periphery of the ditching-wheel by means of converging bracebars ZZ, the outer ends of which are rigidly secured to the sides or back of the blade L, while the front ends are suitably pivoted upon the axle m. These bars Z Z arefprovided with a lever, said lever being connected to the aforesaid bars by a segmental plate, o, as shown in Fig. l. The end of the lever engages with a rack-bar, p, attached to the supporting-frame. By depressing the lever the curved blade can be elevated so that its lower end will be thrown out of an operative position.

The operation of my invention is as follows: W'hen the apparatus is first drawn across thc ground where it is desired to form a ditch, the bar D is elevated and turned so that the end of said bar will rest upon the surface of the platform G, and thus hold the wheel D/ elevated out of contact with the ground. The blade L is then depressed so as to extend a slight distance beneath the periphery of the side flanges of the ditching-wheel. Now, when the machine is drawn across the field, the side flanges E E will enter the ground, and the earth between the same will be elevated and held between the flanges of the ditching-wheel until it contacts with the scraper F, when said earth will be removed from between said flanges and deposited upon the endless carrying-belt, from whence it is dumped at one side of the ditch.

After the machine has been moved over the ground once it is often desirable that the ditch be'made deeper, or what in practice is termed reopened,77 and in such a case the bar D is turned so that its upper end will enter one of the perforations h and permit the wheel D to occupy a position below the frame ofthe ditching-machine, so that it will enter the ditch and serve as a guide for the ditching-wheel.

If it should be desired that the ditch be made wider,the upper end of the bar D can be placed in one of the perforations, so as to cause the Wheel D to contact with one of the sides of the previously-cut ditch. v

I claim- 1. The combination, in a ditching-machine, of an axle provided with supporting-wheels, a bolster mounted above said axle and provided with a rearwardly-extending frame, an excavating wheel provided with outwardlyextending flanges e e, journaled between said frame, an adjustable blade,L, pivoted to the axle and provided with a lever,whieh engages with a rack-bar attached to said frame, a blade, F, and endless carrying-belt, the parts being organized substantially as shown,and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination, with a dit-ching-wheel, of the boxes or troughs arranged at each side of the same for the reception of stones or weights, substantially as setforth.

3. The combination, in a ditching-machine, ofa ditching-wheel having annular side plates projecting at each side beyond the periphery of said wheel to form cutters, a scraper, L, pivotally attached to the axle ofthe ditching-wheel, said plate bei ng adjustable with respect thereto, an adjustable scraper pivoted upon a bar secured to the axle of the ditching-wheel, and a lever for adjusting said scraper and maintaining thesame in position,substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination, in a ditching-machine, of a wheel having side plates forming cutters, the blade extending partially around the rear portion of said wheel, a scraper device extending between the cutters,and an endless carrier having a'shaft with pulley which bears against one side of the ditching-wheel, substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

5. The combination, in a ditching-machine, constructed substantially as shown, of a plate or platform, G, having perforations h, and a bent bar, D, carrying at its lower end awheel, D', the rim thereof being at right angles with the edge of the ditching-wheel, substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ANDRE W DURCH AM.

Vitnesses:

W. B. HUFFMAN, RowLAND HAxwoon.

IOO

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