Patent Application
20100307103
The present invention generally relates to an apparatus for preparing a stone base for subsequent construction and, more particularly, to a screed machine that will level a stone base for the installation of a pre-cast concrete wall.
Construction of a large number of structures, including buildings, sewer lines, prefabricated structures, etc., begins with the placement of a stone base. In some instances, the stone base must be accurately placed and graded for the proper construction of the structure. For example, a gravity sewer line is constructed at a sloped grade under which the stone base is graded at that same slope to provide proper support for the sewer line. Another example of a stone base that requires precise grading is the stone base under a pre-cast concrete wall.
A pre-cast concrete wall is manufactured at a remote site and shipped to the job site to be erected. A pre-cast concrete wall, constructed as disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,530,203, granted on May 12, 2009, to Robert W. Hare, et al., is formed with a footer beam that is placed on a graded stone base. A plurality of the pre-cast concrete wall panels are placed around the pre-graded stone base to form an enclosed foundation for a building to be subsequently built on the foundation. The proper support of the footer beams requires that the stone base beneath the pre-cast concrete walls is graded level in both longitudinal and transverse directions so that the stone will contact the underside of the footer beam all along the erected foundation.
Conventionally, the grading of the stone base is first rough graded to within about an inch of being level around the location for the erection of the pre-cast concrete walls. Final grading is accomplished by first setting grading monuments, such as a piece of a wooden two by four placed into the stone base, around the perimeter of the foundation to be erected and then leveled at the desired elevation by a laser level. The stone base can then be hand graded by sliding a screed between consecutive monuments so that the stone base between the monuments is at the same elevation as the adjacent monuments. This process is repeated around the perimeter of the foundation until the entire area on which the pre-cast concrete walls are to be erected is leveled at the desired grade elevation. This process is extremely time consuming and labor intensive.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an apparatus that would be operable to grade a stone base accurately and uniformly without requiring the setting of elevation monuments and hand screeding to accomplish the graded stone base.
It is an object of this invention to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages of the known prior art by providing a manually operated screed machine for leveling a stone base for the installation of pre-cast concrete walls.
It is another object to provide a screed assembly that is vertically movable relative to ground support members to maintain a selected grade elevation for the stone base as the screed machine is moved along the stone base where the pre-cast concrete walls are to be positioned.
It is a feature of this invention that the screed assembly is mounted on a telescopic mast that is operably connected to an actuator to affect vertical movement of the screed assembly.
It is an advantage of this invention that the actuator can be electronically coupled to a laser receiver to affect movement of the screed assembly in conjunction with a laser level defining the final grade for the stone base.
It is another feature of this invention that the screed machine is supported on the ground by a pair of longitudinally spaced rollers.
It is another advantage of this invention that the rollers allow the screed machine to be moved over the stone base.
It is still another advantage of this invention that the screed assembly is positioned in front of the forwardmost roller so that the rollers are supporting the screed machine on the final grade of the stone base.
It is still another feature of this invention that the screed assembly is formed with a forwardly projecting wedge portion that sweeps excess stone base laterally as the screed machine is moved forwardly over the stone base.
It is yet another feature of this invention that the screed assembly is formed with a pair of laterally extending wings that project in opposing directions from the wedge portion to deflect stone base material laterally away from the rollers.
It is yet another advantage of this invention that each of the wings is mounted on a pivot to permit a positioning of the wings in selective angular orientations relative to the wedge portion.
It is still another advantage of this invention that the rollers compact the leveled stone base after the stone base is leveled by the screed assembly.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a method of fine grading a stone base to prepare for the installation of pre-cast concrete walls on the stone base.
It is a further feature of this invention that the stone base is rough graded before the screed machine is placed on the stone base.
It is still a further feature of this invention that the screed machine is pulled along a path on the stone base corresponding to the location along which the pre-cast concrete wall panels are to be installed.
It is a further advantage of this invention that the final grade is set on a laser level with the signal therefrom being received on the screed machine to cause vertical adjustment of the position of the screed assembly.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a pivot mechanism to allow the screed machine to turn corners on the stone base without disturbing the final grade thereof.
It is still another feature of this invention that the frame of the screed machine supports a jack stand that is selectively positionable into engagement with the stone base to allow the screed machine to be lifted above the stone base and rotated to change directions for the movement thereof.
It is still another advantage of this invention that the jack stand is positioned at approximately the center of gravity of the screed machine so that the entire screed machine can be balanced on the jack stand for rotation about the axis corresponding to the jack stand.
It is yet another advantage of this invention that the extension of the jack stand is powered by an actuator.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a monitor to indicate the lateral inclination of the screed machine.
It is another feature of this invention that the lateral level monitor includes a sight level mounted the mast of the screed machine.
It is yet another feature of this invention that the frame of the screed machine is provided with a handle assembly that allows an operator to manually pull the screed machine along the desired path on the stone base.
It is a further feature of this invention that all of the actuators on the screed machine are electrically powered from a battery supported on the screed machine.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a screed machine for leveling a stone base that is durable in construction, inexpensive of manufacture, carefree of maintenance, facile in assemblage, and simple and effective in use.
These and other objects, features and advantages are accomplished according to the instant invention by providing a screed machine having a forwardly positioned screed assembly including a wedge portion and pivoted wing members. The frame is supported on two rollers longitudinally spaced behind the screed assembly. The screed assembly is mounted on a mast for vertical movement in conjunction with a laser receiver that provides a signal indicating the final desired grade of the stone base. The machine can be turned at a corner by extension of a jack stand to elevate the entire machine for rotation about the axis defined by the centrally located jack stand so that the screed machine can be redirected into a different direction without disturbing the final grade of the stone base. The screed machine is manually moved along the stone base by an operator pulling on the handle pivotally connected to the frame. A sight level provides a monitor for the lateral orientation of the screed assembly.
The advantages of this invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed disclosure of the invention, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:
Referring to
The handle assembly 16 is mounted at the front end of the main frame 11 and projects forwardly to be grasped to pull the machine 10 over the surface of the stone base. The handle assembly 16 is preferably pivotally attached to the main frame 11 by pivots 17. The handle assembly 16 can be formed with a U-shaped handle 16a that terminates in a mounting leg 16b that is oriented orthogonally to the handle 16a. The mounting legs 16b are connected to the pivots 17 so that the height of the handle 16a can be varied to the preference of the operator. As best seen in
A screed assembly 20 is pivotally mounted on the main frame 11 and is positioned in front of the main frame 11 to engage the top surface of the stone base to level the stone base. The screed assembly 20 includes a U-shaped support frame 21 pivotally connected to the main frame 11 at pivots 23 located approximately centrally on the main frame 11 to give the pivotal movement of the screed assembly 20 an arc that is substantially linear forwardly of the main frame 11. The support frame 21 has mounted thereon a screed member 25 that includes a rearward linear portion 26 extending transversely across the entire front of the machine 10 and projecting outboard of the main frame 11 to either side thereof. The screed member 25 also includes a V-shaped wedge portion 28 mounted to the front of the linear portion 26 to provide a screed member 25 that has longitudinal depth and operates to move excess stone outboard of the surface being leveled by the machine 10.
The screed assembly 30 also includes a pair of laterally spaced side extension wings 30 positioned at each respective outboard end of the linear portion 26 of the screed member 25. Each side extension wing 30 is pivotally connected to the respective end of the linear portion 26 by a vertical hinge 32 to permit the side extension wing 30 to move between a retracted, inoperative position seen in
An apertured plate 36 mounted on top of the vertical hinge 32 is engaged by a spring-loaded pivot lock 38 having a perpendicularly extending actuation lever 39. With the spring-loaded pivot lock 38 retracted, the side extension wing 30 can be pivoted to the desired position and the actuation lever released to engage the pivot lock 38 with one of the holes in the plate 36 to lock the side extension wing 30 in position. The movement of the side extension wings 30 into an operative position expands the transverse width of the surface of the stone base being leveled by the screed assembly 20, which will provide room for the machine 10 to make a turn, as will be described in greater detail below.
The screed assembly 20 is pivotally movable to cause a vertical adjustment of the screed member 25 by a screed control mechanism 40. A mast 41 is mounted on the transverse support frame member 22 to be vertically movable therewith. The mast 41 preferably includes a base member 42 and an extendable top mast member 43 supported by the base member 42 which is attached to the transverse support frame member 22. A laser receiver 45 is connected to the top mast member 43 by an adjustable mounting apparatus 46 that permits the laser receiver 45 to be positioned vertically along the top mast member 43. An electrically powered linear actuator 47 is mounted on the main frame 11 and operatively connected to the base member 42. The linear actuator 47 is operatively coupled to the laser receiver 45 through a controller 48 that incorporates switches for automatic control of the screed member 25 and manual control thereof.
When in the automatic control mode, the controller 48 receives a signal from the laser receiver 45 that the laser receiver 45 is moving up and/or down with respect to a laser level signal (not shown). The controller 48 activates the linear actuator 47 to cause the linear actuator 47 to expand or contract, as appropriate, to move the mast member 41 and, thus, the screed member 25, thereby keeping the screed member 25 at a level orientation as the machine 10 is moved across the top surface of the stone base. The support panel 44, on which the control mechanism 48 is mounted, is preferably mounted on the handle 16 for convenient access by the operator. The control mechanism 48 is also provided with a sight level 49 that indicates the level of the machine 10 in a transverse direction. One skilled in the art will recognize that electrical wires for the control mechanism and related electrically powered components are removed from the drawings for purposes of clarity, although some components, such as the operative connection between the laser receiver 45 and the control mechanism 48 may be wireless.
An electrically powered jack 50 is mounted on the frame 11, preferably the transverse cross member 11a. The jack 50 has a pivotable linkage member 52, configured as a four-bar linkage, to permit the bottom plate assembly 51 to remain in a vertical orientation. The bottom plate assembly 51 includes a bottom plate member 54 that is rotatable relative to the remainder of the assembly 51. The pivotable member 52 is operatively connected to an electrical jack actuator 53 that upon extension and contraction effects vertical movement of the linkage member 52. The bottom plate 52 at the terminus of the linkage member 52 can swivel relative to the linkage member 52 on which it is mounted. As is represented in
Power for the electrically operated components, such as the linear actuator 47, the control mechanism 48 and the jack actuator 53, is provided by a 12-volt marine battery 55 supported on a battery support pan 57 mounted on the main frame 11 between the rollers 15. The battery support pan 57 is positioned higher than the rollers 15 and, thus, will not contact the stone base. The support panel 44 has mounted thereon a battery life gauge 59 operably connected to the battery 55 to provide a visual indication of the amount of electrical power remaining in the battery 55. The battery 55 is preferably rechargeable.
The screed machine 10 operates in conjunction with a laser level (not shown) that is set up on site and emits a laser signal to indicate the proper grade of the stone base being prepared. In the case of a stone base to be prepared for a pre-cast concrete wall, the laser level emits a laser signal that indicates a level grade at a given elevation. In the case of a sewer line that is placed on a slope gradient, the laser level emits a laser signal that is indicative of that slope gradient. The laser signal is received by the laser receiver 45 that must be positioned on the top mast member 43 by manipulating the mounting apparatus 46. The screed machine 10 is then placed on the stone base at a position corresponding to the desired elevation of the prepared stone base in an orientation that will coordinate the movement of the screed machine 10 with the alignment of the position of structure to be erected on the stone base, typically by a crane or a powered lift that is connected to the crane hoist member 14 to lower the screed machine 10 into the excavation where the stone base has been placed.
The screed machine 10 has the jack 50 retracted and preferably has the side extension wings 30 retracted into the inoperative position and locked into place with the position control apparatus 35. The transverse orientation of the screed machine 10 must be level, which can be authenticated by observing the pendulum 49. If the sight level 49 indicates that the screed machine 10 is not level, the stone base at which the screed machine 10 is to start operation must be manually leveled so that the screed machine 10 starts operation in a transversely level orientation. The screed control mechanism 40 is powered on and switched into the automatic mode of operation. The screed machine 10 is then ready for movement along the path corresponding to the location at which the structure, which in this example would be a pre-cast concrete wall, would subsequently be erected.
Operation of the screed machine 10 is preferably accomplished by two people. One person grasps the handle 16a, which can be pivotally positioned through manipulation of the position control device 18 to locate the handle 16a at a convenient height, and pulls the screed machine along the desired path. The second person utilizes a shovel to assure that a supply of the stone base is piled in front of the wedge portion 28 of the screed member 25 entirely across the transverse width of the screed member 25. If the screed machine 10 is moved and operated without a supply of stone base in front of the screed member 25, the screed member 25 can leave a section of the path of the stone base below the desired grade. If the supply of the stone base in front of the screed member 25 is too great, the screed machine 10 will be more difficult to pull along the desired path. Accordingly, the stone base needs to be rough graded to within about an inch or so of the desired final grade before the screed machine 10 is utilized.
As the first person pulls on the handle assembly 16, the screed machine 10 is dragged along the desired path of the stone base that is to be finally graded. The laser signal received by the laser receiver 45 identifies the elevation along which the laser receiver 45 is to travel. As the laser receiver 45 moves up or down outside of a predetermined range, corresponding to the screed member 25 changing elevation, electrical power is directed to the linear actuator 47 by the control mechanism 48 to cause the base 42 of the mast 41 to be raised or lowered accordingly. As a result, the screed member 25, which is connected to the base 42 of the mast 41 moves vertically to keep the position of the screed member 25 at the desired elevation. The depth of the screed member 25 from the wedge portion 28 to the linear portion 26 keeps the stone base level without ridges and valleys caused by the vertical adjustment of the screed member 25 through operation of the control mechanism 48.
When the screed machine 25 approaches a corner on the desired path along which the stone base is to be finally graded, it is desirable to widen the transverse width of the path being graded on the stone base to affect the turn at the corner, as will be described in greater detail below. To increase the transverse width of the graded path, the operator needs to depress the actuation lever 39 on the side extension wing 30 corresponding to the inside of the turn to be made so that the side extension wing 30 can be rotated outwardly into an appropriate operative position, whereupon the actuation lever 39 can be released and the side extension wing 30 locked into place. Because the bottom edge of the side extension wings 30 are co-planar with the linear portion 26 and wedge portion 28 of the screed member 25, the side extension wing 30 simply widens the path being graded by the screed machine 10.
One skilled in the art will recognize that the side extension wings 30 increase the drag on the screed member 25 and, therefore, increases the force required to move the screed machine 10. If additional assistance is required to move the screed machine 10 along the path being graded, the other person, or persons, helping the operator can grasp the grips 13 and assist in pushing the screed machine 10. At the turn, the screed machine 10 is moved along the path to be graded until the distal tip of the side extension wing 30 that has been deployed into the operative position has cleared the path to be graded after the turn.
When the screed machine 10 has been moved to a position where the deployed side extension wing 30 the location of the jack 50 is at or near the center of the new path on the stone base to be graded after the turn. The operator deactivates the control mechanism 48 by either turning the control mechanism 48 off or switching the control mechanism 48 into manual mode, and then activates the actuator 53 to extend the jack 50 and engage the bottom plate 54 on the graded surface of the stone base immediately below the screed machine 10. Continued extension of the jack 50 will raise the screed machine 10, as is reflected in
Once elevated off of the stone base, the machine 10 can be pivoted about the vertical axis defined by the bottom plate assembly 51 due to the swiveled bottom plate 54. Accordingly, the screed machine 10 can be aligned on the next path to be graded. The extra transverse width of the screed member 25 provided by the extension of the wing 30 graded off a sufficient portion of this next path that the entire screed machine 10 will be placed on a leveled surface to start operation along this next path to be graded. When the screed machine 10 is properly aligned on the next path, the side extension wing(s) 30 are repositioned to the inoperative position and the jack 50 is retracted to place the rollers 15 and the screed member 25 back onto the stone base. The control mechanism 48 can then be switched back to the automatic mode and the screed machine 10 can be pulled along this next path as described above until reaching the next turn.
When finished, the entire perimeter on the stone base corresponding to the erection of the pre-cast concrete walls into a foundation will be graded to a level elevation as defined by the laser level and the paths on the stone base compacted by the weight of the screed machine 10 exerted on the rollers 15. The pre-cast concrete walls can be erected on the graded paths with full support from the graded stone base. Similarly, the screed machine 10 can be used to grade and compact the stone base for a sewer line, the primary difference being that the laser level will be set on the slope gradient for the sewer line and the automatic function of the control mechanism 48 will properly adjust the screed machine to grade the stone base along the desired slope gradient.
It will be understood that changes in the details, materials, steps and arrangements of parts which have been described and illustrated to explain the nature of the invention will occur to and may be made by those skilled in the art upon a reading of this disclosure within the principles and scope of the invention. The foregoing description illustrates the preferred embodiments of the invention; however, concepts, as based upon the description, may be employed in other embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.
This application claims domestic priority on U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/184,350, filed on Jun. 5, 2010, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61184350 | Jun 2009 | US |
