Trip hazard removal system and method

A walkway surface cutting system for removing a trip hazard from a walkway, said walkway including a trip hazard and a walkway surface without a trip hazard, the trip hazard being higher than the walkway surface without the trip hazard, said system comprising:

• a gantry comprising a support framework including a first track and a second track, the first track being linearly movable along and orthogonal to the second track, said gantry having a front side and a back side, a right side and a left side;
• a saw assembly comprising a motor, a masonry saw blade operably coupled to and driven by the motor, said saw assembly being linearly movable along the first track, cutting motion of the saw assembly progressing between the front side and the back side along the first track and between the left side and the right side along the second track, said masonry saw blade comprising a circular blade having peripheral cutting teeth;
• a support comprising a plurality of legs maintaining the second track of the gantry at a cutting height and cutting angle relative to a portion of the walkway not to be cut, said cutting height and cutting angle being at a height and angle for the saw blade to cut the trip hazard without cutting the walkway surface without the trip hazard, said plurality of legs including at least one back leg attached to the second track at the back side of the gantry, and at least one back leg attached to the second track at the front side of the gantry, and at least one of the plurality of legs being a leg of user-selectable height, and said plurality of legs straddling the trip hazard of the walkway surface and defining a cutting plane intersecting the trip hazard of the walkway surface at said cutting height and cutting angle;
• a first linear actuator operably coupled to the saw assembly, said first linear actuator including a first stationary body and a first shaft controllably extendible from and retractable into the first stationary body, extension of the first shaft causing linear movement of the saw assembly along the first track in a first direction, and retraction of the first shaft causing linear movement of the saw assembly along the first track in a second direction opposite the first direction;
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• a second linear actuator operably coupled to the first track, said second linear actuator including a linearly moveable element and a manual control, manipulation of the manual control causing linear movement of the linearly moveably element and the first track with the saw assembly along the second track, said second linear actuator comprising a chain drive, said chain drive comprising a chain trained around a drive cog and a driven cog and having a substantially straight segment extending between the drive cog and the driven cog, said straight segment of the chain being coupled to the first track, a shaft extending from the drive cog and a handle on the shaft, said straight segment of the chain comprising the linearly moveable element of the second linear actuator, and said handle comprising the manual control of the second linear actuator, each of said drive cog and said driven cog being rotatably coupled to the second track, rotation of the manual control in a first rotational direction causing rotation of the drive cog, movement of the chain and linear motion of the first track along the second track in the first direction of linear motion;
• and
• said saw assembly further comprising a shroud substantially surrounding the peripheral cutting teeth of the saw blade, said shroud including a vacuum port coupled to a vacuum hose coupled to a vacuum for debris collection and a shield vertically movable relative to the shroud under the influence of contact with the walkway, said shield including a shield portion having a plurality of elongated vertical slots, each vertical slot defining an upper shield position and a lower shield position, and said shroud including a shield attachment for each of the plurality of elongated vertical slots, each shield attachment allowing vertical movement of the shield portion relative to the shield attachment between the upper shield position and the lower shield position.