Patent Application
20240044101
This invention relates generally to excavation equipment.
Excavation equipment is generally used to extract materials and can also be used to supply materials. Various types of excavation equipment exist, with at least some utilizing an excavator bucket that includes a material cavity and teeth extending from the bucket for digging and breaking up materials.
In at least some embodiments, a cast iron excavator bucket is provided that includes a first side wall, a second side wall, and a center wall interconnecting the first side wall and second side wall to form an inner cavity for receiving excavated materials, wherein the first side wall, the second side wall, and the center wall are integrally cast using only a casting material derived exclusively from iron ingot.
In at least some other embodiments, a method of casting an iron excavator bucket is provided that includes: forming a bucket-shaped sand mold including a first mold side wall, a second mold side wall, and a center mold wall interconnecting the first mold side wall and the second mold side wall to form a mold inner cavity; providing a molten casting material made exclusively from iron ingot; pouring the molten casting material into the bucket-shaped sand mold; allowing the molten casting material to cool; and removing the cooled casting material from the bucket-shaped sand mold.
Embodiments of the invention are disclosed with reference to the accompanying drawings and are for illustrative purposes only. The invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction or the arrangement of the components illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in other various ways. In the drawings:
Referring to
To facilitate coupling and actuation, the bucket 10 includes one or more arm mounts 26 secured to or formed integrally therewith, wherein the arm mounts 26 can be sized and shaped to custom specifications or to conform to general standards for interfacing with known machines. In at least some embodiments, a plurality of tooth engagement portions 28 are formed in the front portion 18 of the center wall 16 for respectively receiving a plurality of teeth 30 secured thereto using a plurality of fasteners, such as bolts 32 and nuts 34 (see
In at least some embodiments, the first side wall 12 and the second side wall 14 taper inwards (angle inward as a result of the center wall 16 being narrower along the bottom portion) as they extend towards the bottom portion 20 of the center wall 16, as best seen in
The bucket 10 can be formed using various methods. In at least some embodiments, the bucket 10 is formed using a method that includes the steps of: (i) forming a bucket-shaped sand mold including a first mold side wall, a second mold side wall, and a center mold wall interconnecting the first side wall and second side wall to form a mold inner cavity; (ii) providing a molten casting material made entirely from iron ingot; (iii) pouring the molten casting material into the sand mold; allowing the molten casting material to cool; (iv) and removing the cooled casting material from the sand mold.
In at least some embodiments, the bucket 10 is cast from a material comprised entirely of iron. As it is well known that raw iron ingot includes nominal amounts of unavoidable impurities, it shall be understood that “comprised entirely of iron” or “material derived exclusively from iron ingot” or “exclusively from iron” is intended to include incidental impurities provided in the raw iron ingot, but exclude the intentional addition of other separate elements, such as aluminum, silicon, chromium, manganese, etc., to form a desired alloy. A typical composition for a bucket comprised entirely of cast ductile iron, as described herein, would include the use of a molten iron that includes the following exemplary levels of impurities: Carbon—3.65%; Silicon—2.50%; Sulfur—Copper—0.50%; and Manganese—0.25%.
The casting of large buckets using a steel alloy that includes intentionally added elements is known, but the use of a such steel alloy has several limitations. More particularly, commonly used steel alloys have a higher solidification temperature due to the additional intentionally added elements. Higher solidification temperatures with larger bucket casting sizes, which have thicker cast sections, works satisfactory, but when producing smaller bucket castings that typically include thin cast sections, such alloys are problematic. With smaller bucket size castings, such as those used for typical 9 inch, 12 inch, 16 inch, and 24 inch bucket sizes, as commonly used in the compact utility tractor market, when additional intentionally added elements are included, the thin cast sections (e.g., side walls, etc.) do not stay molten along with the thicker cast sections (e.g., the center wall, etc.) as they cool faster, resulting in undesirably weak joints between various sections. Having all sections of the cast bucket cool substantially simultaneously results in a strong and durable bucket, which is why steel alloys can be satisfactorily used for larger bucket sizes where all wall sections are comparatively thick, while smaller buckets sizes with thin walls must use separately cast steel plate sections that are welded together to achieve the desired strength.
The overall dimensions and shapes of the aforementioned typical smaller buckets and castings can vary to some degree based on the manufacture and intended use of the bucket, although in at least some embodiments, the cast iron excavator bucket 10 first side wall 12 and second side wall 14 can be formed with a thickness of about 3/16 inch to about ⅜ inch or even thinner, with other thicknesses found in further embodiments.
As known small bucket sizes utilize several plates welded together, such buckets lack many of the features found in larger cast buckets. More particularly, casting the bucket 10 allows for integral design features that will strengthen typical stress areas, such as where side walls meet the bottom, front, and rear portions. These design features can include for example, curves, bevels, reinforcements, webs, tapers, etc. Further, as mentioned above, the ability to cast a smaller bucket 10 allows for other options such as integrally forming tooth engagement portions 28, teeth 30, tooth shanks 36, etc. The tooth engagement portions 28 can easily be made thicker or thinner (i.e., reinforced less or more) relative to other portions.
In addition to the disclosed shapes and sizes, all the aforementioned components, can vary to include numerous adaptations. The use of the term “plurality” in the description or claims shall be understood to include “one or more.” While the invention is particularly useful for use with excavator buckets, other applications are possible and references to use with excavator machines should not be deemed to limit the application of the invention. Rather, the invention may be advantageously adapted for use where similar performance capabilities and characteristics are desired, and that such modifications may be made by one of skill in the art of the invention without departing from the spirit or intent of the invention and therefore, the invention is to be taken as including all reasonable equivalents to the subject matter.
