The present invention relates generally to a door lock system for a debris tank.
Industrial vacuum equipment has dozens of wet and dry uses such as hydro excavation, air excavation and vacuum excavation. In addition, the equipment can be used for directional drilling slurry removal, industrial clean-up, waste clean-up, lateral and storm drain clean-out, oil spill clean-up and other natural disaster clean-up applications. The vacuum systems may be mounted to a truck or trailer and are typically powered by gas or diesel engines.
The vacuum systems include a debris tank that is used to collect the material being suctioned by the system. A swinging type door is used over an open end of the tank to access the interior of the debris tank and also for emptying the contents of the debris tank. The door is typically locked in place using manually operated latches. Often times a pair of latches are located at opposing sides along the exterior periphery of the door. However, the latches are susceptible to leaking around the door where an airtight seal is not maintained between the door and the seal of the debris tank because of unequal pressure applied to the door by each latch. Another type of latch system that has been used in the past is located inside the debris tank. However, when the entire latching system is located inside the tank, the latches may be clogged and tangled with the debris being suctioned into the debris tank. Accordingly, what is needed is a door lock system for a debris tank that applies equal pressure to the door for an airtight seal and is reliable.
The following presents a simplified summary of one or more embodiments in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of such embodiments. This summary is not an extensive overview of the one or more embodiments, and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of the embodiments nor delineate the scope of such embodiments. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of the described embodiments in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
In a particular embodiment, a door lock system for a debris tank is disclosed. The system includes a door, a threaded bolt projecting from the door, and a rotary actuator coupled to a head of the threaded bolt for rotating the threaded bolt. In addition, the system includes a cross member spanning the inside of the tank and a nut secured to the cross member, where the threaded bolt and nut are positioned to engage the door to pull and secure the door over an open end of the debris tank by rotating the threaded bolt into the nut using the rotary actuator. A hinge assembly is associated with the door to mount the door to a periphery of the open end of the debris tank for swinging movement of the door between a first position in which the door is over the open end, and a second position in which the door is spaced from the open end.
A hinge drive is coupled to the hinge assembly for driving the door between the first and second positions, where the door is positioned above the open end in a canopy orientation when in the second position. Further, the system includes a power source drivingly coupled to the hinge drive for providing power to the hinge drive, where the hinge drive is constructed and arranged such that the hinge drive drives the hinge assembly. A guide linkage having a first arm and a second arm is for coupling the cross member to the door, where the guide linkage is constructed and arranged to guide the door between the first position and the second position.
To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, one or more embodiments comprise the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative aspects and are indicative of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the embodiments may be employed. Other advantages and novel features will become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the drawings and the disclosed embodiments are intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents.
The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment or design described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs.
Referring to
An inlet port 114 is positioned through the door 110 and is used to connect a suction hose (not shown) to the debris tank 102. In addition, a discharge port 116 traverses the door 110 and is proximate to a bottom of the debris tank 102. The discharge port 116 can be used to empty the contents of the debris tank 102. Also shown in
The door 110 is shown in the full open position in
A detail top view of the hinge assembly 106 is shown in
Referring now to
The door 110 is shown in a closed second position in
Inside the debris tank 102, a float ball valve 150 is used to cut-off the vacuum when the debris tank 102 is full. In operation, as the debris tank 102 is filled with debris, the debris causes a float inside the float ball valve 150 to rise with the level of debris until the float seals an aperture at the top of the float ball valve 150. Sealing the aperture stops the suction and indicates to the operator that the debris tank 102 is full and to empty the debris tank 102. As the debris tank 102 is emptied, the float drops downward to unseal the aperture to allow the suction flow to continue once again.
A detail view of the threaded bolt 120 and the nut 148 is illustrated in
The first linkage arm 122 is secured proximate to the nut 148 and includes a pivot pin positioned so that the first linkage arm cannot move laterally relative to the cross member 142. Similarly, the second linkage arm 124 is secured proximate to the threaded bolt 120 using a pivot pin 158 positioned so that the second linkage arm cannot move laterally relative to the door 110. Accordingly, as the door 110 moves between an open and closed position, the guide linkage positions the threaded bolt 120 to the nut 148.
The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosed embodiments. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope possible consistent with the principles and novel features as defined by the following claims.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20150096234 A1 | Apr 2015 | US |