Patent Application
20240352698
The present invention generally relates to a construction apparatus, in general and, more particularly, to an apparatus for automatically extruding and forming a finished concrete channel.
Drainage ditches and gutters are used alongside many roadways and paved surfaces to control soil erosion by rain water as well as for directing storm water runoff away from the pavement. The ditches are generally concave and several feet deep and wide and lined with concrete or other durable materials. The conventional way to lay ditches is to excavate the ditch followed by manually forming the concrete channel using a mold/concrete form of wood or other similar material, pour the concrete into the mold, and screed and finish the surface of the ditch by concrete workers, which is time consuming, costly, and inefficient. It is extremely labor-intensive and can result in rapid worker burnout, especially when working under adverse weather conditions. A shortage of skilled labor is a major challenge to the construction industry both now and in upcoming decades, raising production costs. Therefore, there is a need in the art for improved drainage ditch laying in order to reduce costs and increase efficiency. The present invention addresses this need.
In order to improve the efficiency, reduce cost and alleviate the labor-intensive nature of conventional ditch laying, the present invention provides an apparatus to forms concrete-based drainage ditches automatically. The apparatus is capable of continuously laying and finishing ditches in-situ without the need for manual intervention of workers. A worker need only pour mixed concrete into the apparatus which lays and molds the concrete in a pre-dug channel. Advantageously, the apparatus has a robust, uncomplicated design that can be easily fabricated, maintained, and repaired.
In one aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for automatically extruding and forming a finished concrete channel in a drainage ditch. The apparatus includes a frame having support rails for positioning the apparatus over a drainage ditch. A concrete-receiving hopper is attached to the frame for delivering received concrete into the ditch to be shaped into a channel form. A mold having a projection to define a concrete surface of the channel is positioned beneath a top portion of the frame and configured to be received in a hollow mating portion of a laterally-reciprocating piston to shape the received concrete. A lever driver drives the reciprocating piston through a mechanically-linked motor. A vibrator cooperates with the concrete-receiving hopper to urge received concrete into the ditch to be shaped by the mold.
In a further aspect the lever driver includes one or more motor pulleys and flywheels to increase force for driving the reciprocating piston.
In a further aspect, the vibrator includes a waterproof membrane for contacting and urging the received concrete and a vibrating frame to which the waterproof membrane is attached.
In a further aspect, supporting ribs are positioned between the mold and the piston, the supporting ribs being sized to provide a gap for sand and aggregates in the received concrete.
In a further aspect, at least one adjustable support is connected on each side of the frame, and is independently actuable to raise or lower a height of the frame with respect to ground surrounding the ditch.
In a further aspect, each of the adjustable supports includes a rotatable wheel and a spring attached to the rotatable wheel in which a degree of compression of the spring determines a height of an individual adjustable support.
In a further aspect, the rotatable wheel of each adjustable support includes a projection that is received in one of the support rails of the frame.
In a further aspect, the apparatus is self-propelling under action of the piston against molded concrete which moves the apparatus along the ditch.
Aspects of the present disclosure are readily understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It should be noted that various features may not be drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion.
Embodiments of the invention are described in more detail hereinafter with reference to the drawings, in which:
Common reference numerals are used throughout the drawings and the detailed description to indicate the same or similar components. Embodiments of the present disclosure will be readily understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
Spatial descriptions, such as “above,” “below,” “up,” “left,” “right,” “down,” “top,” “bottom,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” “side,” “higher,” “lower,” “upper,” “over,” “under,” and so forth, are specified with respect to a certain component or group of components, or a certain plane of a component or group of components, for the orientation of the component(s) as shown in the associated figure. It should be understood that the spatial descriptions used herein are for purposes of illustration only, and that practical implementations of the structures described herein can be spatially arranged in any orientation or manner, provided that the merits of embodiments of this disclosure are not deviated from by such arrangement.
Details of each of these component systems are shown in the detailed system views of
Note that the fluidity of the concrete mix used to create the channel is relatively low since a stiffer, drier concrete is needed for compaction and to hold the shape of the mold without slumping under its own weight. Therefore, the vibration system 700 system improves the fluidity and facilitate the motion of concrete mix from the hopper into the mold located at the front of apparatus 1000. The vibrator 722 drives the vibration of membrane 713 through vibration frame 712. The Thus, the vibration of membrane makes the vibration of the concrete mix and favors its motion. Through the design, this vibration system 700 has a high energy efficiency, producing a large vibration amplitude with a small force. Therefore, a smaller motor may be used instead of a large one, which minimizes the size of the machine and reduces its cost and operating costs.
The piston body 400 includes four projections, two projections 410 with two apertures and two projections 420 with one aperture. Four pin joints 448 mount to the lower aperture of projection 410 and to the apertures in projection 420 and are fixed with two ball bearing 447 located axially at one end of shaft 448. Flat washers 452 and 453 are used for supporting side to side motion on the shaft joints 448 and secured with set screws. A total of eight ball bearings 447 provide smooth relative movement between the piston body assembly and a rear portion of the frame.
Two pin joints 449 are located on the upper aperture of projection 410 using flat washers 451 for supporting side to side motion on the shaft joint 449. The shaft joints 449 are engaged in the projection 410 apertures by lever rings 450 and secured with set screws. The two shaft joints 449 are also connected through an aperture in a lever 577 (discussed below in connection with
Due to the reciprocating motion of the piston body 400, and close tolerances of mating parts, occasionally, the piston may be jammed by the relatively dry concrete mixture, which leads to a sudden stoppage of apparatus 1000 to remove the jammed concrete. In order to avoid such concrete jams, supporting ribs 490 are used between the mold 300 and piston 400, as seen in
Two middle lever pins 564 are joined onto apertures 510 in the main levers 559 using two middle holes with flat washer 551 and washer 563. The two smaller linking levers 577 are connected into middle lever pin 564 which is locked by lever rings 550 and secured with set screws. In this manner, the linking levers 577 are linked to the main levers 559.
A rear lever pin 565 is joined onto main lever 559 through a rear aperture 515 with two flat washers 551. A motor lever 572 is connected into rear lever pin 565, which is locked by lever rings 550 and secured via set screws. The aperture hole 530 of motor lever 572 is connected to a flywheel assembly (
The rotatable body wheels 135 are located within an opening of wheel frame 145 and fixed with wheel pin 136 which is inserted into an aperture in wheel frame 145. Wheel pin 136 is locked by wheel pin mount 137 and secured with two screws for rotational movement. A wheel spring 134 and movable supporting sleeve 132 are inserted along a rod 129 extending from an upper surface of wheel frame 145 and secured with a hex head bolt screw 133, which permits the adjustment of wheel frame 145 to be held in a selectable position relative to the ground.
A sleeve 132 is mounted on the opening of wheel side mount 128. Its position is locked by a wheel U-holder 130 and secured with set screws. A wheel side mount 128 is secured to left side frame 126 by welding or other fastening techniques. The wheel side mount 128 includes side projections 150 that are slidably engaged within the frame support rails on either side. Based on the design of U-shaped mounting device and the spring in the wheels, the height of the apparatus can be adjusted to reduce the influence of the uneven of the ground by turning screws to independently raise the height on either side to ensure that the apparatus 1000 is level.
The foregoing description of the present invention has been provided for the purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to the practitioner skilled in the art.
The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, thereby enabling others skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with various modifications that are suited to the particular use contemplated.
As used herein and not otherwise defined, the terms “substantially,” “substantial,” “approximately” and “about” are used to describe and account for small variations. When used in conjunction with an event or circumstance, the terms can encompass instances in which the event or circumstance occurs precisely as well as instances in which the event or circumstance occurs to a close approximation. For example, when used in conjunction with a numerical value, the terms can encompass a range of variation of less than or equal to ±10% of that numerical value, such as less than or equal to ±5%, less than or equal to ±4%, less than or equal to ±3%, less than or equal to ±2%, less than or equal to ±1%, less than or equal to ±0.5%, less than or equal to ±0.1%, or less than or equal to ±0.05%.
As used herein, the singular terms “a,” “an,” and “the” may include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the description of some embodiments, a component provided “on” or “over” another component can encompass cases where the former component is directly on (e.g., in physical contact with) the latter component, as well as cases where one or more intervening components are located between the former component and the latter component.
While the present disclosure has been described and illustrated with reference to specific embodiments thereof, these descriptions and illustrations are not limiting. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the true spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. The illustrations may not necessarily be drawn to scale. There may be distinctions between the artistic renditions in the present disclosure and the actual apparatus due to manufacturing processes and tolerances. There may be other embodiments of the present disclosure which are not specifically illustrated. The specification and the drawings are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation, material, composition of matter, method, or process to the objective, spirit and scope of the present disclosure. All such modifications are intended to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto. While the methods disclosed herein have been described with reference to particular operations performed in a particular order, it will be understood that these operations may be combined, sub-divided, or re-ordered to form an equivalent method without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure. Accordingly, unless specifically indicated herein, the order and grouping of the operations are not limitations.
