Maintenance vehicle with a hopper assembly
AssigneeExmark Manufacturing Company, Incorporated
InventorsJeffrey J. Moore, Kyler J. Macy, Rodney Lanik
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The technology disclosed herein relates to a maintenance vehicle. The vehicle has a vehicle frame, drive wheels rotatably coupled to the vehicle frame and a prime mover coupled to the vehicle frame. The prime mover is in operative communication with the drive wheels. A hopper assembly is pivotably coupled to the vehicle frame. The hopper assembly has a hopper having a discharge opening and a spreader disk adjacent to the discharge opening. The hopper assembly is pivotable about a pivot axis between a maintenance position and an operating position. The spreader disk is positioned vertically below the discharge opening when the hopper assembly is in an operating position.
Claims21
A maintenance vehicle comprising:
- a vehicle frame;
- drive wheels rotatably coupled to the vehicle frame;
- a prime mover coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the prime mover is in operative communication with the drive wheels;
- and
- a hopper assembly comprising a hopper having a loading opening and a discharge opening,
- wherein the hopper assembly is pivotably coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the hopper assembly is pivotable about a pivot axis between a maintenance position and an operating position.
A maintenance vehicle comprising:
- a vehicle frame;
- drive wheels rotatably coupled to the vehicle frame;
- a prime mover coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the prime mover is in operative communication with the drive wheels;
- a standing platform coupled to the vehicle frame, the standing platform adapted to support a standing operator;
- and
- a hopper assembly comprising a hopper coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the hopper has a front end and a rear end and a hopper volume extending between a top end and a bottom end,
- wherein the hopper volume is asymmetric and has a center of gravity that is closer to the rear end than the front end, and wherein the hopper defines a loading opening and a discharge opening.
A maintenance vehicle comprising:
- a vehicle frame;
- drive wheels rotatably coupled to the vehicle frame;
- a prime mover coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the prime mover is in operative communication with the drive wheels;
- a standing platform coupled to the vehicle frame, the standing platform adapted to support a standing operator;
- a hopper assembly comprising a hopper pivotably coupled to the vehicle frame, wherein the hopper has a front end and a rear end and a hopper volume extending between a top end and a bottom end, wherein the hopper assembly is pivotable about a pivot axis between a maintenance position and an operating position;
- a hopper controller fixed relative to the hopper;
- and
- a control panel fixed to the vehicle frame, wherein the control panel is in operative communication with the prime mover, the hopper controller is in operative communication with the hopper assembly, and the hopper controller is adjacent the control panel when the hopper is in the operating position and the hopper controller is distant from the control panel when the hopper is in the maintenance position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.