Patent Application
20100281718
The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to snowblowers. More particularly, the subject matter disclosed herein relates to snowblowers having an auger movable between an engaged position and a disengaged position.
Most common designs for snowblowers include a housing supported by one or more wheels and with a handle assembly extending upwardly and rearwardly from the housing so that the operator can hold the handle assembly and walk behind the snowblower as it moves over the ground. At the front of the housing, a snow-throwing impeller or paddle is used for engaging and throwing snow. In such a configuration, as the snowblower is moved forward, snow that is brought into contact with the impeller is thrown to a desired area away from the path to be cleared. This general arrangement, however, will not always operate efficiently in all conditions. In particular, in situations involving wet, heavy, or hard packed snow, the front of the snowblower can tend to ride on top of the snow rather than pressing into the snow. To compensate for such issues, the operator generally has to push the handle assembly forward or upward—often applying a fairly continuous upward pressure—to keep an adequate amount of downward pressure on the front of the snowblower so as to keep the auger in contact with the snow. Lifting the snowblower in this way, however, can be difficult and tiring to do. Further, such lifting takes weight off the wheels, making the machine less stable and thus requiring extra work for the user.
In accordance with this disclosure, systems and methods for operating a snowblower are provided. In one aspect, a snowblower is provided and can include a snowblower housing, an auger connected to the housing, at least one wheel attached to the housing, and a machine control component. The at least one wheel can be movable relative to the housing between a first position and a second position to raise at least a portion of the housing, the wheel in the first position being in a proximate position to the housing, and the wheel in the second position being in an extended position further away from the housing. The machine control component can be movable to selectively control the movement of the at least one wheel relative to the housing. Specifically, the machine control component being can be movable between a disengaged position, in which the at least one wheel is positioned in the first position, and an engaged position, in which the at least one wheel is positioned in the second position.
In another aspect, a snowblower is also provided, and the snowblower can include a snowblower housing, an auger connected to the housing, a handle assembly connected to the housing and including a machine control component, a lever arm pivotably attached to the housing and operably connected to the machine control component, and at least two wheels attached to a rear portion of the housing and supporting the housing, at least one of the wheels being connected to the lever arm. The wheels can be movable with the lever arm relative to the housing between a first position and a second position, where in the first position the wheels are close to the housing, and in the second position the wheels are extended away from the housing. The machine control component can be movable to selectively control the movement of the wheels relative to the housing, the machine control component being movable between a disengaged position, in which the wheels are positioned in the first position, and an engaged position, in which the wheels are positioned in the second position.
In yet another aspect, a method for operating a snowblower is provided. The method can include providing a snowblower having a snowblower housing, with an auger, at least one wheel, and a handle assembly connected to the housing. The method can further include moving a machine control component between a disengaged position and an engaged position. Specifically, moving the machine control component can move the at least one wheel relative to the housing such that when the machine control component is in a disengaged position, the wheel is in a first position proximate to the housing, and when the machine control component is in an engaged position, the wheel is in a second position further away from the housing.
Some of the aspects of the subject matter disclosed herein having been stated hereinabove, and which are addressed in whole or in part by the presently disclosed subject matter, other aspects will become evident as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings as best described hereinbelow.
The features and advantages of the present subject matter will be more readily understood from the following detailed description which should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings that are given merely by way of explanatory and non-limiting example, and in which:
The present subject matter provides systems and methods for operating a snowblower. As is illustrated in
Referring to
Conversely, when wheels 16 are in the second position such as in
As described further herein, snowblower 10 can further include one or more lever arms 20 attaching at least one of wheels 16 to housing 12. Each of lever arms 20 can be pivotably attached to housing 12, and wheels 16 can be rotatably attached to a portion of respective lever arms 20. In this arrangement, and as shown in
In some particular embodiments, where snowblower 10 includes two wheels 16 (i.e., one on each side of housing 12), wheels 16 can be connected by a common axle, such as a connecting rod 28, such that each of wheels 16 can be maintained at an similar position relative to housing 16. As a result, the movement of one of wheels 16 can cause the simultaneous movement of other wheels 16. The operator of snowblower 10 need only cause the movement of a single one of lever arms 20 to move all of wheels 16. Likewise, for systems with more than two wheels, any of a variety of mechanical linkages can be provided to connect the movement of all of the wheels. Accordingly, the position of all of wheels 16 relative to housing 12 can be set by an operator using a single control device.
In this regard, referring again to
For the convenience of an operator of snowblower 10, machine control component 32 can be attached to handle assembly 30. For instance, machine control component can comprise a bail that is pivotably attached to handle assembly 30. The operator can pull the bail against handle assembly 30 to put the bail in the engaged position. Conversely, a biasing element (e.g., a spring) can be connected to machine control component 32 such that when the operator stops applying pressure to machine control component 32 (e.g., releases the bail), machine control component 32 is moved back to a disengaged position, wherein auger 14 is raised above ground surface G. Further, machine control component 32 can also be connected to a power source for snowblower 10 such that movement of machine control component 32 to a disengaged position can cause all motion of snowblower 10 to stop.
Machine control component 32 is usable to control the position of wheels 16 relative to housing 12, and such control can be through the use of an actuation cable 34 as shown for example in
With snowblower 10 having a configuration such as described above and shown in the various figures of drawings, an operator can easily control the operation of snowblower 10 between engaged and disengaged states as shown for example in
Further, as noted above, moving machine control component 32 can involve moving actuation cable 34 (e.g., by moving a pivotable bail) connecting machine control component 32 to wheels 16. In this manner, moving actuation cable 34 causes movement of wheels 16 with respect to housing 12 between the first position and the second position. This movement can be accomplished by pulling pivoting lever arms 20 connecting wheels 16 to housing 12 to pivot wheels 16 relative to housing 12. Because wheels 16 will always stay on the ground, this configuration allows snowblower 10 to be more stable.
As discussed above, this movement of wheels 16 between first and second positions can serve to raise the rear of housing 12 relative to wheels 16, thereby rotating housing 12 forward. In this arrangement, auger 14 can make contact with ground surface G both to engage the layer of snow lying thereon and to drive snowblower 10 forward.
The present subject matter can be embodied in other forms without departure from the spirit and essential characteristics thereof. The embodiments described therefore are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Although the present subject matter has been described in terms of certain preferred embodiments, other embodiments that are apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art are also within the scope of the present subject matter.
