Snow removal apparatus and method of using same

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6553693
  • Patent Number
    6,553,693
  • Date Filed
    Friday, May 26, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, April 29, 2003
    22 years ago
Abstract
A snowblower apparatus and a method of using the snowblower. The snowblower apparatus is self contained and portable and may be mounted on a prime mover. A turbine engine is located within a housing and discharges its exhaust to the desired area of snow or ice removal. The housing is rotatable and tiltable about orthogonal axes so as to allow the operator to direct the discharge nozzle to a desired location. A fuel tank may be mounted separately from the housing and turbine engine. An afterburner may be used to increase the exhaust temperature thereby to remove ice and otherwise dry the desired location.
Description




This invention relates to a method and apparatus for removing snow and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for removing snow using a self-contained turbine engine with flexible operating characteristics which has particular application in association with railways.




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




Snow removal equipment for roads and railway tracks is, of course, well known. In relation to railway tracks, the type of snow removal has generally been a plow and/or blower mounted on the forward end of an engine or an independently powered snowplow and/or blower. Turbine engines for powering snow removal equipment and using the exhaust from such engines are also known. Typically, the snow removal equipment used for clearing railway track cuts a passage of standard train width to allow subsequent passage of the train. The snow is suctioned into a large fan rotating at high speed and is then blown by the fan some distance from the track. The fan is powered by high horsepower engines. Where the exhaust of a turbine engine is used, the turbine engine generally is very large and has a dedicated prime mover to provide operating controls and equipment support.




Although the apparatuses presently used for clearing railway track work relatively well for the applications in which they are used, there are disadvantages inherent in the apparatuses if intended to be used for other applications. First, the forces created to suction in the snow and blow it a distance from the track are large. Ballast under the track is ingested as well as the snow with the result that the ballast bed beneath the track may be damaged. If there is considerable snow present over the winter, the ballast may have to be replaced which is time consuming and expensive. Second, there is little flexibility in the use of the present apparatuses. The cleared pass is of a certain width, primarily the width required for a passing train and this width is not adjustable. If it desired to clear adjacent track switches and the track extending from the switches, a further pass along the switch and track must be made. Third, if a relatively small area located away from the track is desired to be cleared of snow such as at a distance marker or other instructional sign, it must be cleared manually since the snowplow and/or blower is not adapted for such snow clearing.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided apparatus for removing snow comprising a turbine engine having intake and exhaust sections and being operably connected to a base, a discharge nozzle operably connected to said exhaust section and adapted to discharge said exhaust to an area of interest and controls to initiate operation of said turbine engine and to increase and decrease the power of said exhaust discharging from said discharge nozzle, said turbine engine being rotatable and tiltable relative to said base and said turbine engine having an afterburner to increase the temperature of said exhaust discharging from said discharge nozzle.




According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for removing snow from a desired location comprising initiating operation of a turbine engine mounted on a base, ingesting air from ambient surroundings into said turbine engine, discharging said exhaust from said turbine engine into a discharge nozzle, rotating and/or tilting said turbine engine and discharge nozzle relative to said base and raising the temperature of said exhaust prior to discharge of said exhaust from said discharge nozzle.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS




A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with the use of drawings in which:





FIG. 1

is a diagrammatic side view of the snow removal apparatus according to one aspect of the invention, the apparatus being mounted on a prime mover;





FIG. 2

is a diagrammatic side view of the snow blower of FIG.


1


and illustrating the snow blower in its tilted position;





FIG. 3A

is a diagrammatic side view of the tilt and turn table used with the snow blower according to the invention;





FIG. 3B

is a diagrammatic plan view of the tilt and turn table of

FIG. 3A

;





FIG. 4A

is a front axial view of the nozzle used in the turbine engine of

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 4B

is an isometric view of the nozzle of

FIG. 4A

;





FIGS. 5A and 5B

are side and axial views, respectively, of a stator plate used with the turbine engine is of

FIG. 1

;





FIGS. 6A and 6B

are side and axial views of the afterburner flame holder used with the turbine engine of

FIG. 1

; and





FIGS. 7A and 7B

illustrate the typical operating controls of the turbine engine and afterburner according to the invention.











DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENT




Referring now to the drawings, a snow removal apparatus according to the invention is illustrated generally at


100


in FIG.


1


. The snow removal apparatus


100


includes a snow blower generally illustrated at


101


. Snow blower


101


includes a housing


103


within which a turbine engine


102


, conveniently a modified General Electric T58 turbine engine, is located. The T58 engine produces approximately 1400 HP and has approximately an 11000 CFM rating. A discharge nozzle


104


extends from the forward end of the housing


103


and a nozzle temperature sensor


105


extends from the discharge nozzle


104


to provide temperature information within the discharge nozzle


104


.




A steel guard


106


is connected to the housing


103


and provides protection to the discharge nozzle


104


from inadvertent contact with objects and the like during operation.




An air inlet


110


on top of the housing


103


allows air to enter the housing


103


and, therefore, the air intake end


111


of the turbine engine


102


as will be described.




The housing


103


is mounted on the forward end of a prime mover


112


, conveniently a tractor of the non-articulated variety but having “crab” steering, namely steerable forward and rearward pneumatic tires


113


,


114


, respectively, which allow the prime mover


112


to be quickly removed from the railway tracks


120


on which it is operating. This is convenient if a train is expected.




A fuel tank


121


is mounted on the rearward end of the prime mover


112


. The fuel from the fuel tank


121


is used for the turbine engine


102


of the snow removal apparatus


100


. A fuel line runs between the turbine engine


102


and the fuel tank


121


.




Rail wheels


122


,


123


are mounted on the forward and rearward ends of the prime mover


112


, respectively. The rail wheels


122


,


123


are hydraulically raised and lowered with hydraulic cylinders


124


,


130


, respectively. In the event the snow removal apparatus


100


is intended to be driven off the track


120


, the hydraulic cylinders


124


,


130


are activated to raise the railwheels


122


,


123


off the track whereupon all the weight of the prime mover


112


and the snow removal apparatus


100


will rest on the pneumatic tires


113


,


114


and the prime mover


112


can be independently and easily driven off the rails


120


.




The housing


103


is mounted on a table


132


which Is, in turn, mounted on a turntable


131


best seen in FIG.


3


A. The turntable


131


is mounted on a base


115


. A hydraulic motor


133


runs a gear


134


which meshes with a complementary matching circumferential gear


140


connected to the turntable


131


and thereby rotates the table


132


. A tilt mechanism includes a hydraulic cylinder


141


which extends between the table


132


and the turntable


131


. As the hydraulic cylinder


141


is extended and retracted, the table


132


rotates upwardly and downwardly about axis


142


thereby tilting the housing


103


and the attached discharge nozzle


104


.




The turbine engine


102


used for the snowblower


100


was originally used for helicopter purposes and had a third nozzle stage that gave a substantial tangential component to the combustion gases downstream from the combustion chamber. To alter the flow of gases and reduce the sidewise velocity components, a stator plate generally illustrated at


143


(

FIGS. 5A and 5B

) is added downstream of the third stage nozzle of the turbine engine


102


. The blades or vanes


144


have a more open configuration and allow the gases to more readily pass from the third stage nozzle to the discharge nozzle


104


since the flow passage is less constricted by the blades


144


. In addition to the configuration of the blades


144


, a cone


150


is likewise added in an attempt to reduce backpressure and any turbulence within the discharge nozzle


132


caused by the abrupt ending of the third stage nozzle when the turbine engine


102


was adapted for the snow blowing application.




Subsequently, a newly designed third stage nozzle member


155


was designed as seen in

FIGS. 4A and 4B

. This nozzle member


155


also included the cone member


150


of the insert of

FIGS. 5A and 5B

. The technique used was to simply remove many vanes or blade


156


from the original nozzle member


155


and add the cone


150


by welding it to the nozzle member


155


. The advantage of this configuration is that no stator member is required.




The afterburner is generally illustrated at


151


(

FIGS. 6A and 6B

) and is used to increase the temperature of the air being discharged from the turbine engine


102


and the discharge nozzle


104


if required. This temperature increase can be important since, if ice is present, it may not be removed with the blown snow. By increasing the temperature of the discharged air, the ice can be melted and any specific areas desired may be dried to avoid the reformation of ice. This is useful for switches and the like which may not function if encased in ice following a storm or where melting and subsequent freezing conditions are encountered.




The afterburner


151


includes a plate


152


similar to the stator plate described in relation to

FIGS. 4A and 4B

. However, no blades are present and the plate


152


is mounted downstream of the third stage nozzle


155


. A series of atomising fuel injectors


153


are positioned about the circumference of the plate


152


. Fuel and air are supplied to the injectors


153


which atomise the fuel. A raw fuel injector


116


(

FIG. 1

) is mounted in the turbine engine


102


upstream of the injectors


153


. The raw fuel injector


116


injects raw fuel into the operating engine which then ignites in a “streak” of flame. The streak is displaced downstream where it comes into contact with the atomised fuel ejected from injectors


153


. The atomised fuel from injectors


115


ignites thereby increasing the temperature of the discharged gases from the turbine engine


102


and the discharge nozzle


104


.




Control panels


154


,


156


(

FIGS. 7A and 7B

) are provided for the operator. The control panel


154


includes a series of switches and gages which allow the operator to initiate ignition of the turbine engine


102


and to monitor its operation. A master switch


160


allows electrical power to be applied to the turbine engine


102


. A throttle switch


161


allows the fuel in the turbine engine to be increased or decreased. An igniter switch


162


creates an initial spark to initiate combustion of the fuel. A spring loaded starter switch


163


will rotate the engine until a predetermined percentage of rpm, conveniently 19%, is reached, as shown on gage


164


. An exhaust temperature gage


171


allows the temperature of the exhaust discharging from the discharge nozzle


104


to be monitored and a switch may be provided for the addition of extra fuel.




Additional controls are provided for the afterburner


151


as viewed in

FIG. 7. A

fuel discharge switch


172


allows pulsed raw fuel to be released upstream of the injectors


153


. An injector switch


173


allows atomised fuel to flow from the injectors


153


to be ignited by the fuel released by operation of the fuel discharge switch


172


.




OPERATION




In operation, it will be appreciated that the snow blower


101


and fuel tank


121


are self contained units and that they may be mounted on any convenient prime mover including the rail mounted prime mover


112


of FIG.


1


. As seen in

FIG. 1

, the snowblower


101


has a blower attachment member


109


which is complementary to attachment member


108


on prime mover


11


so the snow blower


101


is conveniently connected and removed as desired.




The prime mover


112


will be transported or otherwise moved to the desired operating position which location, for example, may be adjacent a switch extending off a main track line that has been previously cleared by other means.




Operation of the turbine engine


102


will be initiated. Master switch


160


will be turned on to allow power to flow from a battery


165


(

FIG. 2

) within housing


103


. The throttle


161


will be set at its minimum position. The igniter switch


162


is activated to create a spark to initially ignite the fuel. The starter switch


163


rotates the engine until, conveniently with the GE T58 turbine


102


, the percentage rpm reaches approximately 19% as shown on gage


164


. The throttle


161


is then moved to its idle position somewhat above its minimum position. The start fuel switch


170


is turned on to allow fuel to flow until the rpm gage


164


reaches approximately 55-60%. The starter switch


163


, being a spring loaded toggle, is released and the turbine


102


is then under operation. It is important to view the gauges


164


,


171


during operation to ensure that the exhaust temperature as shown on gage


171


remains within a predetermined range and that the rpm of the turbine engine


102


is similarly within a desired operating range.




The housing


103


and, accordingly, the turbine engine


102


and discharge nozzle


104


may be tilted and/or rotated by the operator relative to the base


115


by operating hydraulic motor


133


which will rotate gear


134


and thereby rotate the turntable


131


on which the housing


103


is mounted. Likewise, hydraulic cylinder


141


may be extended or retracted to raise or lower one side of the table


132


which rotates about axis


142


when being raised or lowered. The operator may easily direct the exhaust discharging from the discharge nozzle


104


at any desired location without necessarily requiring any movement of the prime mover


112


during operation of the snow blower


102


.




In certain applications, particularly where ice may be present and/or it is desired to dry a track or other location, the afterburner


151


is useful to heat the temperature of the exhaust being discharged by the discharge nozzle


104


. To initiate operation of the afterburner


151


, the fuel discharge switch


172


(

FIG. 6B

) is initiated. This fuel discharge switch


172


allows a pulsed raw fuel discharge from fuel injector


116


(FIG.


1


). The pulsed raw fuel is ignited by the temperature of the exhaust upstream of the injectors


153


and creates a “streak” of flame directed rearwardly. The injector switch


173


is operated to allow atomised fuel to be released by the injector nozzles


153


and this fuel is ignited by the streak of raw fuel passing to the injectors


153


. Thus, a ring of combustion flame will be formed within the injectors and downstream therefrom which will heat the exhaust and provide increased heat to the area receiving the nozzle discharge.




Many modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates and the specific embodiments herein described should be taken as illustrative of the invention only and not as limiting the invention as defined in accordance with the accompanying claims.



Claims
  • 1. Apparatus for removing snow comprising a turbine engine having intake and exhaust sections and being operably connected to a base, a discharge nozzle operably connected to said exhaust section and adapted to discharge said exhaust to an area of interest and controls to initiate operation of said turbine engine and to increase and decrease the power of said exhaust discharging from said discharge nozzle, said turbine engine being rotatable and tiltable relative to said base, an operator's station being separate from said base and operable to control said turbine engine, said operator's station remaining stationary during said rotatable and tiltable movement of said turbine engine relative to said base, said turbine engine having an afterburner to increase the temperature of said exhaust discharging from said discharge nozzle.
  • 2. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said turbine engine is mounted within a housing and said housing is operably connected to said base.
  • 3. Apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said housing is operably connected to said base through a turntable type connection member to allow said housing to rotate about a vertical axis relative to said base.
  • 4. Apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said housing is operably connected to said base through an axis allowing said housing to tilt about a horizontal axis relative to said base.
  • 5. Apparatus as in claim 2 and further comprising a fuel tank for said turbine engine.
  • 6. Apparatus as in claim 5 and further comprising a prime mover, said housing and said fuel tank being removably connected to said prime mover.
  • 7. Apparatus as in claim 6 wherein said housing is removably mounted on one end of said prime mover and said fuel tank is removably mounted on the other end of said prime mover.
  • 8. Method for removing snow from a desired location by an operator positioned at an operator's station, said method comprising initiating operation of a turbine engine mounted on a base by providing fuel to said turbine engine, ingesting air from ambient surroundings into said turbine engine, discharging exhaust from said turbine engine into a discharge nozzle, rotating and tilting said discharge nozzle relative to said operator's station during operation and raising the temperature of said exhaust prior to discharge of said exhaust from said discharge nozzle, said discharge nozzle and said turbine engine being rotatable and tiltable while said operators's station is maintained in said stationary position relative to said discharge nozzle and said turbine engine.
  • 9. Method as in claim 8 and further comprising ingesting air through an air intake in a housing within which said turbine engine is mounted.
  • 10. Method as in claim 9 and further comprising mounting said housing on a prime mover and moving said prime mover to a desired location with said housing.
  • 11. Method as in claim 10 and further comprising providing fuel to said turbine engine from a fuel tank located remotely from said turbine engine.
  • 12. Method as in claim 11 and further comprising mounting said ho using on one end of said prime is mover and mounting said fuel tank on the opposite end of said prime mover.
US Referenced Citations (4)
Number Name Date Kind
3041748 Wetzel Jul 1962 A
3228125 Wiebe Jan 1966 A
4286943 Petlak et al. Sep 1981 A
5642673 Lucky, Sr. Jul 1997 A