US 2007/0163156 A1 · Snow removal device

Abstract

There is disclosed a manual snow removal device that uses only a small fraction of the energy required for shoveling snow by eliminating the need to toss snow way up into the air thereby preventing heart attacks and death wherein the collected snow never leaves the ground which comprises a snow mover and a snow receiver wherein the snow mover includes a handle manipulated by one hand and having attached on the lower end a push plate and a laterally attached dig plate and used to move snow into the snow receiver wherein the snow receiver includes a container that is of a box like configuration having a collar assembly rotatably attached to the front end wherein the lower portion of the collar is a snow blade wherein the collar may be latched into a front position thereby placing the blade in a down position such that the receiver may be pulled into the snow by the cord with one hand thereby collecting snow wherein the collar may then be latched into a back position thereby lifting the blade up to create a sled-like front end configuration of the receiver such that the receiver may be easily pulled across the snow to a dump area and dumped by tilting the receiver with the snow mover wherein the user is always standing erect during the whole procedure with no bending down or tossing snow required.

A snow removal device comprising:

(a) a snow mover that is identical to the item mover previously described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,398,278 B1 except for two modifications described in this patent wherein if the handle is in a vertical position with the lower end of the handle attached to the push plate wherein the push plate is termed a striking means in U.S. Pat. No. 6,398,278 B1 wherein in this patent one modification is that the bottom of the handle is beveled upwards and outwards away from the push plate said bevel terminating on the handle back side, wherein a second modification is that the two screw holes on the back side of the handle are recessed to prevent the attaching screw heads or nuts from protruding out beyond the surface of the handle back side;
(b) a container that is of generally a box like structure having a right side, left side, top side, bottom side, back side and an open front end wherein the bottom side is flat wherein when said container is placed on a flat horizontal surface, the back side would be generally perpendicular to that horizontal surface wherein attached to the front edge of the bottom side is a half hinge which is similar to half of a standard cabinet hinge with the pin removed, said half hinge having alternating rounded protrusions and recesses wherein the rounded protrusions contain hinge pin holes, said holes being centered on the rounded portion of the protrusions wherein said protrusions in this half hinge would be received by recesses in the half hinge attached to the rear of the collar assembly snow blade wherein at, or near, the hinge pin hole in the container right side and left side, said sides proceed in an incline upwards and forward and terminate at the upper front edge of the right side and the left side thereby providing space in the right and left sides such that the collar assembly snow blade may freely rotatably move into the up position wherein the container right side and left side upper front edges proceed upwards and terminate at the front edge of the top side wherein said upper front edges and the front edge of the top side are in a plane that is generally parallel to the plane of the back side wherein the snow shield extends upwards from the front edge of the top side in same plane as the upper front edges but extends no further up than is necessary to shield that portion of the latch mechanism contained within the latch frame from snow when the snow receiver is dumped wherein the snow receiver includes the container, collar assembly, latch means, handle, cord, cord clamps and cord guides in an assembled state;
(c) a collar assembly that includes a snow blade, right side, left side, connecting bar and a half hinge wherein, assuming the snow blade is resting in a horizontal plane, the right side extends upwards from the snow blade right edge and the left side extends upwards from the snow blade left edge and the connecting bar joins the top end of the right side and extends to and joins the top end of the left side wherein the latch portion of the latch means is attached to the top surface of the connecting bar wherein the snow blade is flat and the blade front edge is in a straight line wherein attached to the back edge of the of the snow blade is the collar assembly half hinge, said half hinge having alternating rounded protrusions and recesses wherein the rounded protrusions contain hinge pin holes, said holes being centered on the rounded portion of the protrusions wherein the collar assembly is rotatably joined to the container by merging the two half hinges and inserting the hinge pin through the hinge pin holes thereby creating a complete hinge wherein the hinge is so placed that the longitudinal axis of the hinge pin is generally perpendicular the container right side and left side wherein when the collar assembly is rotatably moved over the hinge pin, the collar assembly right side, left side and connecting bar move on the outside of the container and the snow blade moves up or down in front of the container open front end wherein the snow blade front edge and the lower front edges of the collar assembly right side and left sides are generally sharp to facilitate cutting through the snow when the snow receiver is pulled into the snow wherein the straight line established by the snow blade front edge is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the hinge pin wherein the collar assembly is configured such that when the collar assembly is rotatably moved to and latched into a front position by the latch means, said position attained by rotatably moving the connecting bar in a general direction towards the container open front end, the connecting bar is sufficiently spaced back from the container top side front edge and snow shield to allow the attachment of the front position hook receiver and the front stop means, both of which are attached near the container top side front edge wherein when the snow receiver is placed on a flat horizontal surface and the collar assembly is rotatably moved into the front position, the snow blade is also rotatably moved down to a blade down position placing the snow blade at a slope angle C relative to the plane of the container bottom side such that the snow blade front edge exists below that part of the container bottom side that contains the half hinge, resulting in that part of the bottom side being higher above the flat surface than the blade front edge, leaving only the blade front edge and the container back side bottom edge in contact with the flat surface, wherein when the collar assembly is rotatably moved to and latched into a back position by the latch means, said position attained by rotatably moving the connecting bar in a general direction towards the container back side, the snow blade is also rotatably moved up to a blade up position placing the snow blade at an angle A relative to the plane of the container bottom side wherein the snow blade front edge exists higher than that part of the container bottom side that contains the half hinge, whereby a sled-like configuration is formed at the front end of the snow receiver;
(d) a latch means that functions to latch the collar assembly into either the front position or back position wherein the latch portion of the latch means is attached to the top surface of the collar assembly connecting bar wherein the latch is configured to allow the user to engage the latch portion with the snow mover dig plate and/or push plate to move and latch the collar assembly into either the front position or back position wherein during these operations the user may remain standing erect;
(e) a handle that is attached to rear portion of the container top side near the container back side and centered between the container right side and left side wherein the handle includes the hand grip and on either end of said grip, and assuming the handle hand grip is in a horizontal plane, posts extends downward in generally perpendicular fashion, terminating at bases, said bases extending outwardly from their respective posts in a direction away from hand grip and terminating wherein the two bases, having screw holes, are attached to the container top side wherein the hand grip has a front edge and a back edge wherein the back edge is parallel to the plane established by the container back side wherein a slot begins at the center of the back edge and proceeds towards the front edge in a fashion perpendicular to the back edge and terminates prior to reaching the front edge wherein the slot width is sufficient to receive the edge of the snow mover push plate when said plate is inserted into said slot, resulting in the dig plate being moved underneath the hand grip wherein the distance from the slot to either post is sufficient to receive the dig plate wherein the handle is also of a size and shape that can be easily grasped by the hand and used to lift the snow receiver up and about;
(f) a cord that is in the form of a loop wherein either cord end is threaded through a cord guide and is attached to the container by cord clamps, said clamps attached to the lower portion of the container right side and the left side in a location near and to the rear of the container hinge pin holes, said clamp locations being oppositely disposed wherein opposite sides of the cord loop are knotted together by one or more knots wherein said knot(s) may act as hand grasps;
(g) two cord clamps wherein either includes a rounded portion and two bases wherein extending out from either end of the rounded portion are the bases, said bases each having a screw hole wherein the bases are attached to the container with screws wherein the rounded portion is engaged over the cord, clamping the cord ends in place;
and
(h) two cord guides wherein each includes a bar, two posts and two bases, said bases having screw holes wherein if the bar is in a horizontal plane, the posts extend downward from either end of the bar in a generally perpendicular fashion and terminate at bases wherein said bases extend outwardly and away from the bar in a generally perpendicular fashion from the posts and terminate wherein the cord guides are attached to either collar assembly sides in an orientation wherein the front edge of bar is near to and equidistant from the front edge of the collar assembly right side and left side wherein the length of the posts is sufficient to provide enough space between the bar and its respective collar assembly side to allow free up and down movement of the cord wherein the length of the bar and location of cord guide on the collar assembly are, in combination, sufficient to allow the snow receiver to be pulled forward in most usage circumstances without the cord ever engaging either post wherein when the cord is pulled up the cord will engage the cord guide top posts and lift the front of the container up.

6 more elements

Snow removal device

Life of this patent

Snow removal device

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims5