Self-cleaning hydraulic clam bucket
OwnerGene Klagerinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bucket of a type designed to attach to the stick of an excavator, using pre-existing pins. The bucket is powered by a hydraulic cylinder, the lines of which attach to excavator controls. Striker forks are mounted onto the stick of the excavator at a predetermined position. The clean-out system is a wiper plate incorporated into the bucket as the “roof”, which is designed to follow the inner contour of the sides of the bucket. As the bucket is filled, the wiper plate moves to the top of the bucket; when the bucket is emptied, the wiper plate contacts the striker forks, which force the material out of the bucket, preventing build-up of material on the inside of the bucket.
Claims6
A hydraulic, self-cleaning bucket assembly for attachment to a striker assembly of an excavator, wherein the self-cleaning bucket assembly comprises:
- a bucket comprising two sidewalls, a contoured bottom, and two square tubing pieces, all welded together to form the bucket;
- a wiper plate rotatably mounted onto one of the square tubing pieces, said wiper plate being movable through a 135° arc and having an edge movable along the countoured bottom;
- means for mounting the bucket onto the stick assembly;
- a striker assembly mounted onto the stick assembly, said striker assembly being positioned to stop rotation of the wiper plate past a predetermined point as the bucket is emptied;
- a hydraulic cylinder with a manifold and a line, said hydraulic cylinder effectuating rotation of the bucket.
A method for excavating materials with a self-cleaning bucket assembly using a hydraulically-powered excavator with an excavator stick, the method comprising the steps of:
- welding a bucket with two sidewalls, a contoured bottom, square tubing pieces, and bucket mounting means;
- rotatably mounting a wiper plate onto one of the square tubing pieces;
- mounting the bucket onto the stick assembly;
- mounting onto the stick assembly a mounting plate having two spaced-apart prongs projecting therefrom;
- scooping materials into the bucket, thereby causing the wiper plate to rotate toward the prongs on the mounting plate;
- moving the bucket over a dumping area;
- emptying the materials from the bucket by rotating the bucket, whereby rotation of the wiper plate is stopped by the prongs on the mounting plate, causing the wiper plate to scrape the materials from the sidewalls and contoured bottom of the bucket as the bucket continues to rotate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.