Apparatus for temporarily covering a large land area

• US 4,927,317 A
• Filed: 09/01/1988
• Issued: 05/22/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Waste Management Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Waste Management Incorporated
• Inventors: Acosta, Wilfred J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Spar, Robert J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Underwood, Donald W.
• Application Number:
  US07/239,294
• Time in Patent Office: 628 Days
• Field of Search: 414/724, 414/607, 414/11, 414/DIG. 912, 212/259, 37/DIG. 3, 47/9, 405/270, 405/288
• US Class Current: 414/724
• CPC Class Codes: B09B 1/004 Covering of dumping sites
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 5/00 Dredgers or soil-shifting machines for special purposes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02W 30/30 Landfill technologies aiming to mitigate methane emissions
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 414/125 Combined or convertible implements

Abstract

A method for temporarily covering a large land area and an apparatus for suspending a flexible cover from a front loader bucket of an earth-moving vehicle. One example of the apparatus includes a cross member having a mid-portion connected by extension arms to the bucket. Tubular enclosures on the bucket receive the free ends of the extension arms for cantilever support thereof. The method of covering the land area includes releasably attaching opposed ends of the flexible cover to the cross member and moving the vehicle to a first location of the land area. The bucket is lowered and a first end of the cover is released. The bucket is raised and the vehicle is moved to a second location so as to spread the cover over increasingly larger portions of the land area. The second end of the cover is thereafter released so that the cover is laid out over the land area. The steps of the method are reversed to remove the cover from the land area. The method and apparatus have particular application for use with sanitary landfill sites.

Claims

1. Apparatus for suspending a flexible cover a spaced distance from a front loader bucket of an earth-moving vehicle, comprising:

a cross member having opposed free ends and an intermediate portion;

a pair of spaced apart rearwardly extending extension arms joined at one end to the intermediate portion of the cross member and having second, opposed free ends;

means at the second ends of the extension arms for mounting the extension arms to the front loader bucket;

a lateral member extending between the extension arms adjacent the free ends thereof;

upstanding reinforcing spines upwardly extending from the extension arms and having free ends spaced from the free ends of the extension arms; and

means for releasably supporting the flexible cover at a series of spaced locations along said cross member.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a pair of spaced apart generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket having forward arm-receiving openings;

a pair of ears upstanding from forward ends of the enclosures defining a spine-receiving aperture; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned for reception in the enclosures with the spines received in the ears so that the support arms receive cantilever support from the enclosure and the ears as the bucket is raised and lowered.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising an outwardly directed ledge extending from a forward edge of the bucket, so as to lie generally between the tubular enclosures, said lateral member cooperating with the extension arms to rest on the ledge as the extension arms receive support from the enclosures and the ears.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein forward ends of the enclosures include a spine-receiving slot so as to receive the free ends of the reinforcing spines, said slot comprising said spine-receiving aperture.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising upstanding reinforcing spines upwardly extending from the intermediate portion of the cross member to the free ends thereof so as to provide cantilever support therefor.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 further comprising reinforcing spines downwardly extending from the bottom of the cross member, between the intermediate portion and, the free ends thereof.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the means for releasably mounting the flexible cover to the cross member comprises a plurality of spaced apart hooks mounted to the cross member for engaging a flexible cover defining a corresponding plurality of spaced apart hook-receiving apertures.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a pair of spaced apart generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket, having forward arm-receiving openings and spine-receiving slots in upper wall portions of the enclosure;

a pair of generally tubular reinforcing enclosures mounted atop the arm-receiving enclosures and having slot means at a lower portion thereof communicating with the slot means of the arm-receiving enclosures so as to form a common spine-receiving passageway therewith; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned so that the spines thereof are received in the spine-receiving enclosures and the arms thereof are received in the arm-receiving enclosures so as to receive support therefrom as the bucket is raised and lowered.

9. Apparatus for suspending a flexible cover a spaced distance from a front loader bucket of an earth-moving vehicle, comprising:

a cross member having opposed free ends and an intermediate portion;

a pair of spaced apart rearwardly extending extension arms joined at one end to the intermediate portion of the cross member and having second, opposed free ends;

a lateral member extending between the extension arms adjacent the free ends thereof;

upstanding reinforcing spines upwardly extending from the extension arms and having free ends spaced from the free ends of the extension arms;

means for releasably supporting the flexible cover at a series of spaced locations along said cross member;

a pair of spaced apart generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket, having forward arm-receiving openings and a spine-receiving slot so as to receive the free ends of the reinforcing spines;

a pair of ears upstanding from forward ends of the enclosures defining a spine-receiving aperture; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned for reception in the enclosures with the spines received in the ears and the enclosure slots so that the support arms receive cantilever support from the enclosures and the ears as the bucket is raised and lowered.

10. Apparatus for suspending a flexible cover from a bucket mounted at the end of a pivotable arm of an earth-moving vehicle, the bucket having opposed sides, the apparatus comprising:

a cross member having opposed free ends and an intermediate portion;

a pair of spaced apart mounting plates at the intermediate portion of the cross member and upstanding thereabove to receive a portion of the bucket with the mounting plates overlying opposed sides of the bucket, said mounting plates each defining a plurality of apertures therein for receiving locking pins extending to the bucket sides;

locking pins extending through the mounting plate apertures to the bucket sides for mounting the cross member to the bucket so as to maintain the cross member generally parallel to the ground as the pivotable arm is pivoted toward and away from the ground; and

a plurality of swingably mounted hook means carried by the cross member for releasably supporting the flexible cover at a series of spaced locations along an edge of the flexible cover, whereby the hook means adjust for different spacings along the flexible cover edge and provide continuous lifting support for the flexible cover edge as the flexible cover is raised and lowered by said cross member as the pivotable arm is pivoted toward and away from the ground.

11. Apparatus for suspending of flexible cover a spaced distance from a front loader bucket of an earth-moving vehicle comprising:

a cross member having opposed free ends and an intermediate portion;

a pair of spaced apart rearwardly extending extension arms joined at one end to the intermediate portion of the cross member and having second, opposed free ends;

a lateral member extending between the extension arms adjacent the free ends thereof;

upstanding reinforcing spines upwardly extending from the extension arms and having free ends spaced from the free ends of the extension arms;

a pair of spaced apart generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket having forward arm-receiving openings;

a pair of ears upstanding from forward ends of the enclosures defining a spine-receiving aperture; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned for reception in the enclosures with the spines received in the ears so that the support arms receive cantilever support from the enclosure and the ears as the bucket is raised and lowered;

means for releasably supporting the flexible cover at a series of spaced locations along said cross member.

a pair of spaced apart generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket having forward arm-receiving openings;

a pair of ears upstanding from forward ends of the enclosures defining a spine-receiving aperture; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned for reception in the enclosures with the spines received in the ears so that the support arms receive cantilever support from the enclosure and the ears as the bucket is raised and lowered.

12. Apparatus for suspending of flexible cover a spaced distance from a front loader bucket of an earth-moving vehicle, comprising:

a cross member having opposed free ends and an intermediate portion;

a pair of spaced apart rearwardly extending extension arms joined at one end to the intermediate portion of the cross member and having second, opposed free ends;

a lateral member extending between the extension arms adjacent the free ends thereof;

upstanding reinforcing spines upwardly extending from the extension arms and having free ends spaced from the free ends of the extension arms;

means for releasably supporting the flexible cover at a series of spaced locations along said cross member;

a pair of spaced aprat generally parallel tubular enclosures for attachment to the bucket, having forward arm-receiving openings and spine-receiving slots in upper wall portions of the enclosure;

a pair of generally tubular reinforcing enclosures mounted atop the arm-receiving enclosures and having slot means at a lower portion thereof communicating with the slot means of the arm-receiving enclosures so as to form a common spine-receiving passageway therewith; and

the free ends of said extension arms dimensioned so that the spines thereof are received in the spine-receiving enclosures and the arms thereof are received in the arm-receiving enclosures so as to receive support therefrom as the bucket is raised and lowered.