Road material spreading machine

2,159,554

May 23, 1939.

C. L. GEORGE ROAD MATERIAL SPREADING MACHINE Filed April 16, 1937

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Patented May 23, 1939 \

2,159,554

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE

2,159,554

ROAD MATERIAL SPREADING MACHINE * Charles L. George, Findlay, Ohio, assignor to The

Buckeye Traction Ditcher Company, Findlay, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio

Application April 16, 1937, Serial No. 137,359

Claims. (Cl. 221—130)

This invention relates to machines for spreading crushed stone, gravel, or other similar road surfacing material, and particularly to the discharge, control feature of such machine.

The object of the invention is the provision in a machine of the class described of a discharge control shutter, which is mounted for compound adjusting movements, together with a control therefor, whereby its inclination may be changed 10 without varying the spacing of its free edge with respect to the feed wheel, or the spacing of its .free edge with respect to the feed wheel varied without changing its inclination, or both of said adjustments effected together, as the kind of 15 material used, its coarseness and condition, that is, whether dry or moist, may require.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, and from the accompanying drawing, 20 in which—

Figure 1 is an end elevation of a device embodying the invention, with a part broken away; Fig. 2 is a rear elevation thereof; Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section on the line 3—3 in 25 Fig. 2, and Figs. 4 and 5 are enlarged fragmentary sections on the line 4—4 in Fig. 2, with the control parts in different positions of adjustment.

Referring to the drawing, t designates a hopper having a wheel support 2 and having, in the 30 present instance, its bottom 3, its rear wall 4 and its end walls 5 cooperating to form a chutelike passage 6, the lower end of which is closed by a feed roll 7 and by the discharge control means embodying the invention.

The feed roll 7 is driven from the wheels 2, as well understood in the art, and has its feeding movements in the direction indicated by the arrows. The low rear edge of the hopper bottom 3 substantially meets the periphery of the 4,) feed wheel in a line forward of and parallel to a vertical plane cutting the axis of the roll lengthwise thereof. The rear wall 4 terminates at its lower edge in a forwardly and downwardly inclined lip 3, which is directed substantially .-, toward the axis of the roll 7 and terminates in spaced relation to the roll periphery, as shown at 9.

The discharge control means includes a shutter ID which is coextensive with the length of the ;,o roll 7 and is mounted between the two end plates 5 of the hopper with Its forward free edge portion projecting downward and forward through the space 9 between the lip 8 and feed roll. The shutter 10 is preferably flat on its top, as shown, 55 and is supported at its rear edge without the rear side of the hopper, in the present instance at three spaced points, by hanger links i I, the lower end of each of which is pivoted to a respective eye 12 on the shutter, while its upper end is pivoted to a bracket 13 on the outer side of ₅the rear plate 4 of the hopper. The bracket 13 is preferably provided with at least two vertically spaced apertures 14 into either one of which a connecting bolt 15 for the link may be mounted, thus facilitating the vertical adjustment of the j;j link pivot. A stiffening strip 10^s may, if desired, be secured to the under side of the shutter bar.

The shutter bar 10 at each end is pivotally connected at its under side near its free edge ,5 to the forward end of a rearwardly projecting lever 16, each one of which latter is pivoted intermediate its ends to the inner side of each hopper end 5 below the shutter bar, as at 17, and has its rear end connected by a link 18 to the 20 rearwardly projecting end of a bell-crank form of hand control lever 19 pivoted at 20 to the outer side, of the respective end 5 of the hopper. This lever has a hand latch engaging a notched sector 21 to hold the lever in adjusted position. The 25 forward end of the lever 16 has a laterally projecting stud 22 which may be engaged to any one of a series of apertures 23 in a bracket plate 24 attached to the under side of the shutter bar.

In use, the inclination of the’shutter bar and 30 the spacing of its free edge with respect to the periphery of the feed wheel depends on the coarseness or fineness of the material being spread, and upon the flowing nature of such material. The feed roll 7 is preferably provided 35 with spiral grooves which facilitate the discharge of the material, as shown and described in United States Letters Patent No. 2,046,603, to Versal F. Baumgardner, and if a fine dry material, such as sand, is being spread, the free edge of the 40 shutter plate terminates very close to the periphery of the feed roll and at a point adjacent to the longitudinal vertical plane of the feed roll axis, as shown in Fig. 4. The spacing of the edge of the shutter bar with respect to the feed 45 roll depends on the coarseness of the material handled. For instance, if the material is crushed stone, it is apparent that such spacing must be greater than if sand or a relatively fine gravel is used, and also that such spacing must be var- go ied according to the grade of crushed stone or gravel used. It is also desirable when using some materials, and particularly when they are in a moist or wet condition, to increase the inclination of the shutter bar and advance Its edge a gg

2,168,664 greater or less distance from the vertical center line of the feed roll axis in a feeding direction, as indicated by the position of the shutter bar in Fig. 5 relative to Fig. 4.

The inclination of the shutter bar may be varied without affecting the spacing of its free edge with respect to the feed roll either by shifting the vertical position of the pivot bolts 15 for the hanger links 11, or by changing the pivotal 10 connections 22 of the levers I# with the shutter bar and slightly adjusting said levers through an operation of the control levers 19, as desired. The spacing of the free edge of the shutter bar 10 with respect to the feed wheel, to suit the mate16 rial being handled, may be effected in any position of inclination of the shutter bar by a manipulation of the control levers 19 to impart the desired, rocking to the levers 16. It is apparent that any adjusting movement of the levers i6 20 will Impart a compound adjusting movement to the shutter bar due to the pivotal connection of the bar not only with the levers 16, but with the swinging hangers 11. It is apparent that inasmuch as an independent adjusting and control 26 lever is provided for each end of the shutter bar, the spacing of such bar lengthwise of the feed roll may be varied so that such space is of tapered form, whereby a greater feed may be effected at one end than the other.

It will be apparent that in any operative position of the shutter bar 10 with respect to the feed roll, the top of the shutter bar is spaced with respect to the lower edge of the lower edge lip 8 of the rear wall 4, which space is open to the rear 35 of the hopper so as to enable a bar 25 to be freely inserted into the material in the hopper through said space to loosen any clogging thereof that might occur, as indicated in Fig. 4. While such space is open at all times to the rear of the hop40 per, the material will not flow from the hopper through such space due to the inward inclination of the lip 8 causing it to serve as a deflecting lip for the material and due to the upward incflnation and extension of the shutter bar to the 45 rear of said lip.

I wish it understood that my invention is not limited to any specific construction, arrangement or form of the parts, as it is capable of numerous modifications and changes without departing 60 from the spirit of the claims.