US 4,050,260 AGranted

Underground cable laying machine

OwnerDenis Lemayinventor

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Abstract

A machine adapted to lay a utility cable underground and characterized by leaving no substantial and lasting scar at the surface of the ground, by laying the cable at a uniform depth, by being usable even over the softest ground without leaving any lasting imprint, and by using a reciprocative cutting action avoiding impact vibrations and the annoyance thereof. This machine comprises a body mounted on runners, a cutter in the form of a lever pivoted to the body about a transverse axis and having a cutting edge extending endwise from the body below the runners, a camshaft and motor actuating the cutter, a cable guide guiding the cable downwardly coextensive with the cutting edge, ground-engaging wheels, and a handle carrying the wheels and articulated to select one of three distinct elevation of the wheels relative to the body of the machine.

Claims5

Dependent claims

An underground cable laying machine comprising a body operatively defining a forward longitudinal direction, runners fixed under said body, extending lengthwise in said longitudinal direction and operatively supporting the whole cable laying machine on the ground, a cutter having an elongated cutting edge downwardly extending endwise below the runners, a cable guide including a pair of cable guide wings downwardly extending edgewise substantially co-extensive with said forward longitudinal direction and laterally guiding a cable in downwardly extending position rearward of said cutting edge, pivot means pivotally supporting said cutter on said body for pivotal movement of the cutter about a transverse axis relative to said body and to said longitudinal direction, reciprocation drive assembly mounted on said body, connected to said pivoted cutter, and reciprocatively pivoting the latter to and fro in said longitudinal direction, an elongated handle including a lower section and an upper section, ground-engaging wheels rotatably connected to said lower section and defining a wheel rotation axis extending transversely of said body, said lower section being pivoted to the assembly of said runners and body about a second pivot axis extending transversely of said runners and body at the opposite end of the latter relative to said cutter, a first abutment means operatively interposed between said lower section and said runners and limiting downward pivoting of said lower section relative to said runners and body, said upper section being pivoted to the upper end of said lower section about a third pivot axis extending transversely of said runners and body, and a second abutment means operatively interposed between said lower section and upper section and adjustably limiting the downward pivoting of said upper section relative to said lower section about said third pivot axis.

An underground cable laying machine comprising a body adapted to be progressed over the ground in a forward direction, a cutter extending downwardly below said machine and adapted to be inserted within the ground, pivot means pivotally supporting the upper portion of said cutter to said body for pivotal movement of the cutter relative to said body in the plane of progression of said machine over the ground, said cutter having an elongated cutting edge at its front side, reciprocation drive assembly mounted on said body connected to said pivoted cutter and reciprocatively pivoting the latter to and fro in said longitudinal direction, guide wings secured to said cutter downwardly extending edgewise substantially co-extensive with said cutter and protruding rearwardly of the latter and elongated cable guide members secured to said body and downwardly extending endwise substantially co-extensive with the cutter and behind the latter and between said guide wings, said cable guide members forming a substantially vertically extending cable guiding channel which is independent of the reciprocating pivoting movement of said cutter, said guide channel having a cable inlet at its upper end and a cable outlet at its lower end, said cable outlet being substantially positioned at the level of the lower end of said cutter.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.