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US 3,967,396 AGranted
Undercutter with rotary trencher
AssigneeCanron, Inc.
InventorsHubert Maisonneuve, Helmuth VON Beckmann, Joseph C. Sun
Life of this patent
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AssigneeCanron, Inc.
InventorsHubert Maisonneuve, Helmuth VON Beckmann, Joseph C. Sun
Estimating the term…
An undercutting apparatus and a method for removing material from beneath railroad track. The apparatus comprises a rotary trench digging means and horizontal chain means to transport the material from beneath the railroad track to the trench digging means at an underground location. In operation the trench digging means digs a trench alongside of the track while at the same time transporting the material delivered by the horizontal chain means to a suitable location above the ground. Preferably the rotary trench digging means comprises a large hollow wheel and one end of the chain means is disposed inside of and near the bottom of the wheel during normal operation of the chain means. Means are provided to pivot the chain means about a vertical axis whereby the chain means can be pivoted from a first position wherein the chain means extends parallel to the track to a second position wherein the chain means extends perpendicular to the track. The chain means is disposed outside of the wheel in the first position and one end of the chain means is disposed inside of the wheel in the second position.
An apparatus for removing material from beneath railroad track comprising a rotary trench digging means having digging buckets arranged to circulate about an open space in the interior of said trench digging means, so as to dig a trench beside said track when in their lowest position and discharge to a receiving means when they are near their highest position, and horizontally extending, elongated chain digging means to dig and transport said material horizontally, said chain digging means during normal operation extending underneath said track and having one end located adjacent the bottom of said trench digging means and within said open space in the interior of said trench digging means, wherein said material is transported by said chain digging means from beneath said railroad track to said trench digging means at a point below ground level and beside said railroad track and drops by force of gravity into said digging buckets as said buckets pass beneath said one end of said chain digging means, said trench digging means serving to dig said trench alongside of said track while at the same time transporting the material delivered by said chain digging means to said receiving means, said receiving means being above the ground level.
A method for removing material from beneath railroad track comprising initially digging a trench along one side of said track with rotary trench digging means disposed in a vertical plane and having digging buckets arranged to circulate about an open space lowering horizontal chain digging means into said trench, said chain digging means extending in a direction parallel to said track, swinging said chain digging means about a vertical axis to an operating position substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of said track and beneath said track and locating one end of said chain digging means above the bottom of and in the interior of said trench digging means, digging and removing said material from beneath said track with said chain digging means, said chain digging means delivering said material to said buckets as they approach the bottom of said trench digging means where said material drops by force of gravity into said buckets of said trench digging means, and transporting the material dug by said chain digging means and by said trench digging means in said buckets to an unloading position above ground level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.