Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE
DRIVING ARRANGEMENT AND COOLING SYSTEM FOR A SNOW BLOWER
DEVICE
FIELD
[0001] The subject matter disclosed generally relates to industrial snow
blower devices that are attachable to vehicles such as tractors, trucks, wheel
loaders, off road wheel loaders, off road vehicles and the like. More
particularly,
the subject matter disclosed relates to driving arrangements for industrial
snow
blower devices, to cooling systems for industrial snow blower devices and to
methods of operating such industrial snow blower devices.
INTRODUCTION
[0002] Snow blower devices are known on the market as machines that
facilitate rapid snow removal. They can be essential for removing snow from
driveways, sidewalks, roads, paths and the like. Unlike plows, instead of
pushing
the snow, snow blowers throw the snow a substantial distance away from the
area
where it is not wanted, minimizing the accumulation of snow banks. Typically,
these snow blowers operate by using a plurality of blades which throws the
snow
through a chute away from the snow blower.
[0003] A variety of snow blower devices exist. In some cases, these
devices
may be guided by hand and may be sized similar to a walk-behind lawn mower. In
other cases, larger versions of these snow blowers are mounted to tractors at
the
rear, and utilize a power take off shaft that takes power from the engine to
drive
the snow blower. In yet other scenarios, snow blowers may be mounted to the
front
of non-tractor vehicles and powered utilizing a power take off shaft.
[0004] Front mounted hydraulic snow blowers are often highly expensive to
operate and designed for large industrial operations. Further, front mounted
hydraulic systems are very difficult to mount and set up, often taking upward
of
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eight hours to install with specialized equipment and skills, and are subject
to
frequent hydraulic leaking.
[0005] Such industrial snow blowers on the marker usually include a power
source and a clutch system for operating the drive train which will run the
impeller
of the snow blower device. For industrial snow blower devices of such
dimensions,
presence of a clutch system to operate the drive train results in a loss of
space in
the frame of that snow blower device, in a loss of energy when running the
drive
train/impeller of that snow blower device, a large number of mechanical
components found in the main frame of the snow blower device, an heavy weight
of the snow blower device and energy losses (via friction/sliding movements).
[0006] Accordingly, the presence of such a clutch system increases fuel
consumption and causes wear and tear on the power source of the engine.
[0007] There is therefore a need for driving arrangements for snow blower
devices that would overcome the drawbacks presented above for driving
arrangements of industrial snow blower devices.
[0008] Additionally, the engine included in such industrial snow blower
devices are often known as diesel engines. These diesel engines now on the
market (the ones on the market that are not only provided for the snow blowing
purposes) are provided with turbo systems of which air needs to be cooled
before
being provided to the engine air intake. Because snow blowing operations take
place during cold periods of the year, the cooling needs for snow blower
devices
during snow blowing operations are often less than what is required by the
engine
manufacturers. Therefore, cooling the diesel engine requires a certain amount
of
energy, which energy is taken from the energy that could have been used for
driving the actual impeller or snow blower of the snow blower device (using
the
driving arrangement).
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[0009] There is therefore a need for alternative systems so that the
energy
can be optimizedly provided to both the cooling system and the driving
arrangement of a snow blower device.
SUMMARY
[0010] According to an embodiment, there is provided a driving
arrangement for a snow blower device comprising a power source and an
impeller,
the driving arrangement comprising:
[0011] - a main body,
[0012] - a drive train within and about the main body comprising:
[0013] - a right angle gear box in driving engagement with both the power
source and the impeller of the snow blower device for transferring torque from
the
power source to the impeller, thereby driving the impeller of the snow blower
device.
[0014] According to another embodiment, there is provided a cooling
system for cooling a main power source configured to drive a snow blower of a
snow blower device comprising:
[0015] - an auxiliary power source operatively coupled to the main power
source; and
[0016] - a fan operatively coupled to the auxiliary power source for
cooling
the main power source.
[0017] Features and advantages of the subject matter hereof will become
more apparent in light of the following detailed description of selected
embodiments, as illustrated in the accompanying figures. As will be realized,
the
subject matter disclosed and claimed is capable of modifications in various
respects, all without departing from the scope of the claims. Accordingly, the
drawings and the description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and
not
as restrictive and the full scope of the subject matter is set forth in the
claims.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] Further features and advantages of the present disclosure will
become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in combination
with
the appended drawings, in which:
[0019] Fig. 1 is a side elevation view of a snow blower device mounted on
the front of a vehicle in accordance with an embodiment;
[0020] Fig. 2 is a top perspective view of the snow blower device of Fig.
1;
[0021] Fig. 3 is a top perspective view of a driving arrangement of the
snow
blower device of Fig. 2;
[0022] Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4 of the
driving
arrangement of Fig. 3;
[0023] Fig. 5 is an exploded view of the driving arrangement of Fig. 3;
[0024] Fig. 6 is another exploded view of the driving arrangement of Fig.
3;
[0025] Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 of the snow
blower device of Fig. 2;
[0026] Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 8-8 of the snow
blower device of Fig. 2;
[0027] Fig. 9 is a top perspective view of the snow blower device of Fig.
2,
showing its interior; and
[0028] Fig. 10 is a top perspective view of a cooling system in
accordance
with another embodiment.
[0029] It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like
features
are identified by like reference numerals.
DESCRIPTION OF VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS
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[0030] In embodiments, there are disclosed a snow blower device, a
driving
arrangement for the snow blower device, a cooling system for the snow blower
device and a method for operating the same.
[0031] Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Fig. 1,
there
is shown a snow blower device 10 mounted on the front 14 of a vehicle 12. The
vehicle 12 may be a tractor, a truck, a wheel loader, an off road wheel
loader, an
off-road vehicle and the like. The snow blower device 10 is an independently
driven
snow blower device or attachment. Even if the snow blower device 10 is shown
in
Fig. 1 as being mounted on the front 14 of the vehicle 12, it is to be
mentioned that
the snow blower device 10 may optionally be mounted on the rear 16 of the
vehicle
12. The main role of the vehicle 12 equipped with the front mounted snow
blower
device 10 is to throw the snow a substantial distance away from the area where
it
is not wanted, for minimizing the accumulation of snow banks during
large industrial operations.
[0032] Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown that the snow
blower
device 10 includes a main frame 18 which forms a snow capturing cavity 20
(Fig.
2) in a manner that is well known in the snow removal art. The main frame 18
defines sides 22, 24, rear 26, front 28, top 30 and bottom 32 (Fig. 1) which
define
the base structure for the snow blower device 10. The front 28 of the main
frame
18 defines the snow capturing cavity 20 (Fig. 2). The snow moving components
of
the main frame 18 may include those components typical of any snow blower
device including, but not limited to, a plurality of internal blades 34, a
snow chute
36 and an exhaust 37.
[0033] As shown in Fig. 2, the plurality of internal blades 34 includes
five
concave blades 34. The concave blades 34 may be made of a steel wear plate
material, or any other suitable material that is resistant for such industrial
operations. It is to be mentioned that any other suitable blades or impeller
may be
used, according to the actual state of the art in the snow removal/blower
industry.
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[0034] The main frame 18 may further include an engine receiving section
(not shown) constructed and arranged to receive a power source or engine (not
shown). The engine may include any source of motive power and may include
gasoline engines, propane engines, diesel engines, electrical engines or any
similar self-contained motive source of power. The engine may be a self-
contained
engine which itself may be electric start for operation via electrical wiring
from the
vehicle operator's seat. The main frame 18 is constructed and arranged such as
to facilitate installation and removable connection of the snow blower device
10
with the front 14 (or alternatively the rear 16) of the vehicle 12.
[0035] As better shown in Fig. 7, the engine is employed to mechanically
drive the plurality of internal blades 34 (or the impeller/blower 120) via a
driving
arrangement 42 as it will be described in more details below.
[0036] Now referring to Figs. 3-8, there is shown the driving arrangement
42 in better details. The driving arrangement 42 is in driving engagement with
the
engine of the snow blower device 10 and the internal blades 34 of the impeller
120
as it will be described in more details below. The driving arrangement 42
includes
a main body 44, an engine engaging arrangement 46 mounted on the main body
44 and a blower engaging arrangement 48 mounted on and about the main body
44 and in a substantially perpendicular driving engagement with the engine
engaging arrangement 46. As shown, the main body 44 includes a main opening
45 on one of its faces and a secondary opening 47 on an adjacent one of its
faces
(Fig. 6). The main opening 45 of the main body 44 is for receiving the engine
engaging arrangement 46 while the secondary opening 47 of the main body is for
receiving the blower engaging arrangement 48. The main opening 45 is therefore
perpendicular to the secondary opening 47 of the main body 44, as the engine
engaging arrangement 46 is substantially perpendicular to the blower engaging
arrangement 48.
[0037] The engine engaging arrangement 46 includes a compression
coupling device 50. As better shown in Fig. 5, the compression coupling device
50
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includes a female portion 52 and a male portion 54 which is fitted inside the
female
portion 52 (Fig. 6). The male portion 54 defines a circular outer edge 56 and
a
plurality of outward projections 58 outwardly extending from the circular
outer edge
56 of the male portion 54. The female portion 52 defines a circular inner edge
60
and a plurality of inward projections 62 inwardly extending from the circular
inner
edge 60. A plurality of resilient/flexible portions (or blocks) 64 (i.e., such
as rubber
portions or any other portions of suitable materials that would provide shock
absorption between the female and male portions 52, 54) are placed in the
spaces
66a, 66b between the inward projections 62 of the female portion 52 and the
outward projections 58 of the male portion 54 respectively.
[0038] Therefore, as the female portion 52 is driven by the engine (not
shown), it drives the male portion 54 through the plurality of
resilient/flexible
portions 64. As it happens, the plurality of resilient/flexible portions 64
are
compressed. According to the configuration of the compression coupling device
50 which includes the male portion 54 that is fitted in the female portion 52
and as
each one of the plurality of outward projections 58 of the male portion 54 and
each
one of the plurality of inward projections 62 of the female portion 52 are
separated
by one resilient/flexible portion 64, resonant torsional vibrations of the
snow blower
device 10 may be decreased, severe shock load protection may be increased,
maintenance time periodicity may be increased, noise may be attenuated and the
like.
[0039] The compression coupling device 50 further includes a first ring
68
mounted on one side 70 of the male portion 54 fitted in the female portion 52
and
a second ring 72 mounted on the other side 74 of the male portion 54 fitted in
the
female portion 52. The first and second rings 68, 72 are provided for keeping
the
male portion 54 within the female portion 52 when the engine drives both the
female and male portions 52, 54 to rotate. As better shown in Fig. 5, each one
of
the first and second rings 68, 72 includes a plurality of holes 76a, 76b on
their
respective periphery for fastening the first and second rings 68, 72 to the
female
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portion 52, which also includes a plurality of corresponding holes on the
periphery
of both its sides (best shown in Fig. 6) using a plurality of fasteners (not
shown).
[0040] The engine engaging arrangement 46 further includes a flywheel
housing 80 for receiving, at least, the compressing coupling device 50, which
itself
includes the female portion 52, the male portion 54 fitted within the female
portion
52 with the plurality of resilient/flexible portions 64 and the first and
second rings
68, 72. One objective of the flywheel housing 80 is to receive, while
aligning, the
female portion 52, the male portion 54 fitted within the female portion 52
with the
plurality of resilient/flexible portions 64 and the first and second rings 68,
72 just
mentioned above.
[0041] The flywheel housing 80 defines a cylindrical shape for receiving
the
compression coupling device 50 parts, which are also substantially circular in
shape (i.e., the female portion 52, the male portion 54 fitted within the
female
portion 52 with the plurality of resilient/flexible portions 64 and the first
and second
rings 68, 72). The flywheel housing 80 also includes a plurality of holes 82
on the
periphery of both of its sides 84, 86.
[0042] The engine engaging arrangement 46 further incudes a flywheel 88
which is fixedly mounted on the first ring 68 and which is in driving
arrangement
with the engine (not shown). The flywheel 88 is adjacent to side 84 of the
flywheel
housing 80 (Fig. 4). Therefore, the engine driving the flywheel 88 that is
adjacent
the flywheel housing 80 will allow the male portion 54 fitted within the
female
portion 52 to rotate (both male portion 54 and female portion 52 are in
rotation) as
the flywheel 88 is fixedly mounted on the second ring 72. As for the flywheel
housing 80, it will remain fixed relative to the main body 44 of the driving
arrangement 42.
[0043] The engine engaging arrangement 46 further includes a direction
gear arrangement 90. The direction gear arrangement 90 is partly received in
the
flywheel housing 80. The direction gear arrangement 90 includes a direction
gear
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main frame 92 connected on its side 94 to a direction gear ring 96, which is
located
within the compression coupling device 50. The direction gear main frame 92
defines a hollow opening for receiving a geared shaft 98 which is fixedly
connected
to the direction gear ring 96. Therefore, as the direction gear ring 96 is
being
connected to the male portion 54, when the male portion 54 is in rotation
about
axis 100 (Fig. 6), the direction gear ring 96 rotates as well and drives the
geared
shafted 98 which passes through the hollow opening defined in the direction
gear
main frame 92. The geared shaft 98 includes a plurality of cut teeth or
bevelled
gears 102 that will mesh with another toothed or geared part of the blower
engaging arrangement 48, which is in a perpendicular driving
arrangement/engagement with the engine engaging arrangement 46, to receive
torque from the engine engaging arrangement 46, as it will be described in
more
details below. The direction gear main frame 92 includes a plurality of holes
93
and will be fixedly connected about the main opening 45 of the main body 44
via
these holes 93 and using corresponding holes 95 positioned on the main body 44
of the driving arrangement 42.
[0044] Still
referring to Figs. 3 to 8, on the other hand, the blower engaging
arrangement 48 is partly received within the main body 44 of the driving
arrangement 42. The blower engaging arrangement 48 includes a geared shaft
104 that meshes or cooperates with the geared shaft 98, and more particularly
with
the cut teeth or bevelled gears 102, of the engine engaging arrangement 46.
The
geared shaft 104 is received within the main body 44 via the secondary opening
47 of the main body 44. The geared shaft 104 is substantially perpendicular to
the
geared shaft 98. The geared shaft 104 includes a plurality of cut teeth or
bevelled
gears 106 that meshes with the cut teeth/bevelled gears 102 at its end 108. As
shown in Fig. 5, at its opposite end 110, the geared shaft 104 will receive
the
driving chain 112 which is supported by a first geared wheel 114 and a second
geared wheel 116. The first geared wheel 114 receives end 110 of the geared
shaft 104. The first geared wheel 114 thus rotates about the axis defined by
the
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geared shaft 104. On the other hand, the second geared wheel 116, which has a
diameter that is greater than the diameter of the first geared wheel 114,
receives
the blower shaft 118. The second geared wheel 116 thus rotates about the axis
defined by the blower shaft 118.
[0045] According to the configuration of the driving arrangement 42
defined
above of the snow blower device 10, which includes the engine engaging
arrangement 46 which is substantially perpendicular to the blower engaging
arrangement 48, there is provided power to the blower shaft 118 (and thus to
the
impeller or blower 120) while minimizing the power losses. According to the
configuration of the driving arrangement 42, there is no need for a clutch
system.
In replacement to a clutch system, providing the engine engaging arrangement
46
substantially perpendicular (i.e., right angle gear box) to the blower
engaging
arrangement 48 will reduce the rotational speed provided by the engine to the
engine engaging arrangement 46 according to a predetermined ratio (i.e.,
diameter
of geared portion of the geared shaft 98 / diameter of geared portion of the
geared
shaft 104 or number of cut teeth/bevelled gears 102 of geared shaft 98 /
number
of cut teeth/bevelled gears 106 of geared shaft 104). The snow blower device
10
including the driving arrangement 42 as described above (and without presence
of
a clutch system) reduces the number of parts that are needed within the main
frame 18 of the snow blower device 10 and therefore minimize the associated
weight, the associated energy losses (friction losses and sliding losses) and
maximize the volume available within the main frame 18 of the snow blower
device
10.
[0046] According to an embodiment, the dimensions of the snow blower
device 10 may be as follows: cutting width: 3073 mm; overall length: 3242 mm;
length from fixing plate: 3092 mm; overall height: 2604 mm; working height:
2254
mm; weight: 11 068 kg. It is however to be mentioned that the snow blower
device
may include any suitable dimensions and configurations.
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[0047] According to an embodiment, the capacity of the snow blower device
may be as follows: capacity: up to 10 000 tons / hour depending on engine
selection; casting distance: up to 91 m depending on the ratio selection. It
is
however to be mentioned that the snow blower device 10 may be customized to
provide any suitable capacity.
[0048] According to an embodiment, the impeller/blower 120 may include
the specifications as follows: diameter: 2032 mm; Blades: Five concave blades
in
steel wear plate; impeller casing: made of steel wear plate; hydraulic
rotation with
hydraulic cylinder from the third loader valve. It is however to be mentioned
that
the snow blower device 10 may include any suitable impeller/blower 120 that
can
be driven by the driving arrangement 42 as described above. Hydraulic rotation
may be provided with a hydraulic cylinder from a third loader valve or via a
hydraulic circuit added on the snow blower device 10.
[0049] According to an embodiment, the power unit or engine of the snow
blower device 10 may include, without limitation, a diesel engine L6 (700 bhp
at
2100rpm); a diesel engine L6 (800 bhp at 2100 rpm); a diesel engine V12 (1150
bhp at 2100 rpm); a diesel engine V12 (1 350 bhp at 2100 rpm) and the like. It
is
however to mentioned that any suitable power unit or engine may be used to
drive
the driving arrangement 42 described above.
[0050] According to an embodiment, the drive chain or roller chain 112 may
be in a fully enclose oil bath.
[0051] According to an embodiment, the snow blower device 10 may include
shear bolts 122 mounted on the blower engaging arrangement 48 of the driving
arrangement 42.
[0052] According to an embodiment, the engine may be a Caterpillar C18-
800hp.
[0053] According to another embodiment and referring now to Fig. 10, there
is shown a cooling system 200 for cooling the main power source (mentioned
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above) which is configured to drive the snow blower 120 of the snow blower
device
10. The cooling system 200 includes an auxiliary power source 202 (i.e.,
hydraulic
motor) which is operatively coupled to the main power source (not shown) and a
fan 204 which is operatively coupled to the auxiliary power source 202 for
cooling
the main power source (not shown).
[0054] Still referring to Fig. 10, there is shown that the cooling system
200
further includes a hydrostatic pump 206 operatively coupled between the
secondary power source 202 (i.e., hydraulic motor) and the main power source.
[0055] According to one embodiment, the main power source may be a
diesel engine and the auxiliary power source 202 may be a hydraulic fixed
displacement piston motor.
[0056] According to one embodiment, the pump 206 of the cooling system
200 may be a reversible hydrostatic pump.
[0057] The cooling system 200 may further include a controller 208 for
operably controlling the auxiliary power source 202, and thus the fan 204 only
when needed, depending on predetermined criteria, such as, without limitation,
temperature of the main power source and/or temperature of the auxiliary power
source 202. Therefore, the main power source and alternatively the auxiliary
power
source 202 may be equipped with temperature indicators, and may be operatively
coupled to the controller 208. As shown in Fig. 10, the cooling system 200 may
further include an oil reservoir for providing oil to the hydraulic pump 206
and an
oil filter 210, such as a diesel filter. Rotation direction and /or rotation
speed of the
fan 204 may be controlled by the temperature of air at the entrance and by the
temperature of the freezing liquid of the diesel engine. Control may include a
time
delay in order not to follow each and every heat peak (more particularly heat
peaks
of air).
[0058] According to another embodiment, there is provided a method for
cooling the main power source configured to drive the snow blower 120 of the
snow
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blower device 10 described above. The method includes the step of providing
the
auxiliary power source 202 to drive the fan 204 which is responsible of
cooling the
main power source (not shown).
[0059] According to one embodiment, the method may include the step of
providing the auxiliary power source 202 to drive the fan 204 only when
temperature of the main power source needs to be decreased or cooled.
[0060] According to one embodiment, the method may include the step of
providing the auxiliary power source 202 to drive the fan 204 in a first
rotation
direction and/or in a second rotation direction (and/or at different
rotational
speeds).
[0061] According to one embodiment, the method may further include the
step of obtaining the temperature of the main power source (and alternatively
the
auxiliary power source 202) prior providing the auxiliary power source 202
(and
alternatively the auxiliary power source 202) to drive the fan 204 responsible
of
cooling the main power source.
[0062] According to the configuration of the cooling system 200, the
auxiliary power source 202 and its corresponding fan 204 are responsible of
cooling the main power source (mainly antifreeze and air). Because snow
blowing
operations take place during cold periods of the year, the cooling needs for
the
snow blower device 10 during snow blowing operations are less than what is
required by the main power source manufacturer (operations performed during
summer time for example). Therefore, according to the configuration of the
cooling
system 200, cooling the diesel engine requires a certain amount of energy,
which
energy is taken from the auxiliary power source 202 instead of energy from the
main power source that is used for driving the actual impeller or snow blower
120
of the snow blower device 10 (using the driving arrangement). The energy
provided
by the main power source may then be used only to drive the driving
arrangement
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24, and not for cooling purposes. The global efficacy of the snow blower
device 10
is then increased.
[0063] As the main power source is optimizedly cooled and/or heated, less
ice/snow/debris will accumulate on the radiator of the main power source.
Needs
for maintenance and/or washing the radiator of the main power source are then
decreased and operator of such snow blowing devices 10 will lose less time in
performing such operations.
[0064] While preferred embodiments have been described above and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it will be evident to those skilled
in the
art that modifications may be made without departing from this disclosure.
Such
modifications are considered as possible variants comprised in the scope of
the
disclosure.
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