Chain drive system for tong dog carriers
OwnerEnnis J. Hurdleinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A novel sawmill carriage knee and dog positioning system using a chain knee drive that allows vertical access to chain tension adjustment screws, provides a chain mounting attachment plate connected to an adequately sized air cylinder attached to a dogs in/out carrier slide increasing structural rigidity and reducing component count, weight and unit cost, and providing a novel method to taper the knees relative to the sawline.
Claims4
A sawmill carriage capable of adjusting the taper angle to a desired taper of a log to be cut comprising:
- a plurality of horizontally movable knees, each knee having a vertical face opposing said log, said knees mechanically linked to move as a unit;
- a plurality of tong dogs, each said tong dog comprising of an upper dog and a lower dog;
- a knee base plate having a horizontal top surface and a horizontal bottom surface;
- a chain adjustment plate, having a top surface, a rear surface and a front surface, a portion of said chain adjustment plate extending vertically above said knee base plate horizontal top surface and a portion of said chain adjustment plate extending vertically below said knee base plate horizontal bottom surface, said chain adjustment plate securely attached to said knee base plate;
- an in/out dog cylinder;
- said cylinder able to be retracted or extended to move a said tong dog horizontally toward and away from said knee vertical face, a first end of said in/out dog cylinder attached to said chain adjustment plate, a second end of said in/out dog cylinder attached to said tong dogs;
- a drive chain having a first end and a second end to horizontally jog said knee horizontally and perpendicular to the length of said log, said first end of said drive train attached to a first adjustment bolt, said first adjustment bolt having an axis oriented vertically;
- whereas said first adjustment bolt may be tensioned, thereby removing slack from said drive chain.
A knee assembly for a sawmill carriage to aid in the positioning of a log for cutting at a desired taper, said knee assembly comprising:
- a vertical face opposing said log;
- a pair of dogs, a first upper dog and a second lower dog;
- a knee base plate having a horizontal top surface and a horizontal bottom surface;
- a chain adjustment plate, having a top surface, a rear surface and a front surface, a portion of said chain adjustment plate extending vertically above said knee base plate horizontal top surface and a portion of said chain adjustment plate extending vertically below said knee base plate horizontal bottom surface, said chain adjustment plate securely attached to said knee base plate;
- an in/out dog cylinder;
- said cylinder able to be retracted or extended to move a said tong dog horizontally toward and away from said knee vertical face, a first end of said in/out dog cylinder attached to said chain adjustment plate, a second end of said in/out dog cylinder attached to said tong dogs;
- a drive chain having a first end and a second end to horizontally jog said knee horizontally and perpendicular to the length of said log, said first end of said drive train attached to a first adjustment bolt, said first adjustment bolt having an axis oriented vertically;
- whereas said first adjustment bolt may be tensioned, thereby removing slack from said drive chain.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.