DIRT MOVING APPARATUS

• US 3,804,178 A
• Filed: 10/10/1972
• Issued: 04/16/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 10/10/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bernard B. West
• Original Assignee: Bernard B. West
• Inventors: West, Bernard B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pellegrino, Stephen C.
• Application Number:
  US05/296,124
• Time in Patent Office: 553 Days
• Field of Search: 172/63,801,802,784,276,190,741,742,67
• US Class Current: 172/67
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 3/786 having a vertical axis of rotation
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2866 for rotating digging elements for milling machines B28D1/186; for mining machines E21C35/18

Abstract

A dirt moving apparatus for leveling the spoil banks left after a strip pit or surface mining operation is provided for attachment to a tractor and includes a blade which engages the earth at an angle to the path of travel of the tractor and an elongated, rearwardly extending, laterally adjustable landside for controlling the side draft of the blade. An elongated, vertical roller is disposed adjacent the trailing end of the landside and extends beyond the planar outer surface of the same for engagement with the earth thereby reducing the friction that would otherwise be encountered as a result of the landside bearing against the face of the cut made by the blade. Positioned adjacent the rearmost end of the blade is a horizontally disposed rotatable disc having a plurality of upright vanes for scattering and redistributing the dirt as it is being displaced by the blade, thereby effecting a leveling of the spoil banks. The vanes may be provided with freely swingable outer sections or the like are encountered, thus avoiding damage to the disc and vane assembly. The apparatus is tiltable about an axis parallel to the path of travel of the tractor for insuring that proper engagement with a bank is maintained as the tractor moves longitudinally along the sideslope thereof.

Claims

1. In a dirt-moving apparatus;

a mobile vehicle;

a blade mounted on said vehicle for engaging the dirt to be moved at an angle to the path of travel of said vehicle;

a landside extending rearwardly from adjacent the forward extremity of said blade and mounted for swinging movement about an upright axis;

means operably coupled with said landside for generally horizontally shifting the landside about said axis and selectively positioning said landside relative to sAid path of travel, said landside being normally disposed at an angle relative to said path of travel for controlling the sidedraft of the blade and for exerting a direction guiding force on said vehicle;

dirt scattering means mounted adjacent said blade for continuously scattering dirt being displaced by the blade, said scattering means including a rotatable, generally horizontal disc disposed adjacent the rearward extremity of the blade for rotation about an upright axis; and

power means operably coupled with said disc for drivingly rotating the same.

2. A dirt-moving apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein there is provided a rotatable, dirt-engaging roller mounted on said landside adjacent the rear extremity thereof to reduce the friction between said landside and the dirt as the vehicle moves in its path of travel.

3. A dirt-moving apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said landside has an outer, substantially upright, planar surface, said roller extending outwardly beyond the plane of said surface.

4. A dirt moving apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein there is provided a plurality of vertically disposed vanes on said disc, said vanes projecting radially from said axis.

5. A dirt moving apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said disc underlies said vanes and is disposed in a generally common horizontal plane with the lower edge of said blade.

6. A dirt moving apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said vanes each have a hinged outer section that is freely swingable about a respective vertical axis.