Patent Application
20140252801
The present disclosure relates to a method for rebuilding a machine surface, and more specifically for rebuilding a segment of a truck body.
A truck body is used to transport material from one location to another. The truck body may be subjected to severe impacts during routine operational use. The impact may damage the truck body, causing wear and tear of the truck body like for example, erosion of a surface of the truck body, permanent deformation of sections of the truck body, etc. The damaged truck body may be rebuilt by installing a new plate over the existing damaged plate.
For example, U.S. Published Application Number 2012/0276364 provides a sandwich panel. The sandwich panel includes a first plate and a second plate spaced apart from the first plate. The sandwich panel also includes a core bonded to the first and the second metal plates so as to transfer shear forces between them. The core includes a main core material. The core also includes a lightweight material that is less dense than the main core material. The lightweight material is hydrophobic.
In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method is provided. The method places a plurality of supports on a segment of a truck body. The plurality of supports defines at least a portion of the segment requiring rebuild. The method then places a rebuilding surface atop the plurality of supports. The rebuilding surface defines a void created between the rebuilding surface and the segment. The method also affixes the rebuilding surface atop the plurality of supports. The method further injects a layer of filler material into the void.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, a truck body for a machine is provided. The truck body includes a segment. The truck body also includes a plurality of supports coupled to at least a portion of the segment. The truck body also includes a rebuilding surface attached atop the plurality of supports. The truck body further includes a layer of filler material provided between the rebuilding surface and the segment.
Other features and aspects of this disclosure will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.
Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or the like parts.
Referring to
As shown in
Referring to
The segments of truck body 110 may experience severe impacts due to frequent loading and unloading of material. These impacts may cause damage to the truck body 110 in the form of erosion of the surface of the truck body 110, formation of cracks and/or deformation of the segments of the truck body 110 and the like. At times, the truck body 110 may require a repair for reinforcement and/or to increase its operable life by rebuilding any of the segments.
The present disclosure relates to a method for rebuilding the segments of the truck body 110. As shown in
The plurality of supports may be configured in the form of bars 216, which are placed horizontally on the floor segment 206 around a portion of the floor segment 206 requiring rebuild. The plurality of bars 216 may be placed in a configuration such that the portion of the floor segment 206 requiring rebuild may be enclosed within the arrangement of the plurality of bars 216. The cross-section of the bars 216 may be of any cross-sectional configuration, such as rectangular, oval, round, I-shaped, T-shaped, C-shaped etc. Additionally, the bars 216 may be solid or hollow. Preferably, the bars 216 are made of a metal, such as, for example, steel or aluminum. Alternatively, other suitable materials like wood or engineering polymers may also be used. The height of the bars 216 may be such that a space is created between the floor segment 206 and a rebuilding surface 302 which is placed atop the bars 216, as shown in
It should be understood that the bars 216 need to be affixed over the floor segment 206 in a fluid tight configuration. In one embodiment, suitable sealing material may be provided between a lower surface of each of the plurality of bars 216 and the floor segment 206, to provide the desired fluid tight fit. It should also be noted that a top surface of each of the plurality of bars 216 may be equally leveled to facilitate the placement of the rebuilding surface 302 atop the plurality of bars 216.
Referring to
As shown in
As shown in
One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the in the illustrated embodiment, the rebuilding surface 302 is provided on the floor segment 206 to level out the deformations present on the floor segment 206 and to provide a new wear surface. As can be seen, the rebuilding surface 302 may also be provided on the transition segment 210 which lies adjacent to the floor segment 206. This may facilitate in maintaining the overall geometry of the truck body 110 in order to allow the payload to easily flow out of the material carrying cavity 212 or to provide a new, generally flat wear surface.
A truck body may require rebuilding due to distortions or deformations created on its material carrying surface. The present disclosure relates to the method of rebuilding the segment of the truck body. Initially, a segment of the truck body 110 requiring rebuild may undergo a cleaning process to remove unwanted dirt, debris, depositions, etc., if any. The cleaning process may be either a manual or an automated scraping of the surface of the truck body 110 by use of appropriate tools and/or solvents. Further, the cleaned truck body 110 may be grit blasted to remove additional depositions like rust, paint, etc., which may not have been cleaned appropriately during the cleaning process and to provide a sufficiently rough surface to facilitate adhesion of filler material 306.
Referring to
At step 404, the rebuilding surface 302 may be placed atop the arrangement of the plurality of bars 216 and the spacers 304. At step 406, the rebuilding surface 302 may be firmly affixed to the bars 216 by any known method of fastening like welding, bolting, riveting or the like. The placing of the rebuilding surface 302 over the arrangement of the bars 216 and the spacers 304 may create a void between the rebuilding surface 302 and the floor segment 206.
At step 408, the filler material 306 may be injected into the void through the injection port. In one embodiment, when the filler material 306 has a relatively low viscosity, the filler material 306 may be allowed to flow freely into the void. In another embodiment, when the filler material 306 has a relatively high viscosity, a pump may be used to push the filler material 306 into the void.
Further, air trapped between the rebuilding surface 302 and the floor segment 206 of the truck body 110 may be allowed to vent out to the atmosphere during injection of the filler material 306 through the ventilation port. Alternatively, a vacuum device like a vacuum pump may be used to force the trapped air out. The filler material 306 may then be allowed to solidify. Solidification may cause the filler material 306 to become rigid providing firm support to the rebuilding surface 302 placed over the floor segment 206. Further, solidification of the filler material 306 may result in the filler material 306 bonding to the floor segment 206 and to the rebuilding surface 302, resulting in an integral composite including the original floor segment 206, the rebuilding surface 302, and the filler material 306.
In one embodiment, after the rebuilding surface 302 is fixedly attached to the plurality of bars 216, additional pressure may be applied atop the rebuilding surface 302 before injection of a filler material 306 in the void. The additional pressure may be applied by placing appropriate weights atop the rebuilding surface 302 and/or by the use of a mechanical press and/or by other structural elements that are restrained by temporary welds, magnets, or other temporary fastening methods. The additional pressure may be applied till the filler material 306 is cured. The additional pressure may prevent structural distortion of the rebuilding surface 302 during the injection and curing of the filler material 306. Finally, the injection ports and the ventilation ports may be sealed off to complete the rebuilding of the segment of the truck body 110.
While aspects of the present disclosure have been particularly shown and described with reference to the embodiments above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated by the modification of the disclosed machines, systems and methods without departing from the spirit and scope of what is disclosed. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of the present disclosure as determined based upon the claims and any equivalents thereof.
