Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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ICE-BREAKING APPARATUS
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an ice-breaking apparatus for road
maintenance.
More particularly, the present invention relates to an ice-breaking apparatus
adapted for
mounting on a vehicle or a machine.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Breaking ice from the road, the sidewalk, or any other pathway is a
considerable
worry for the city services of the geographic zones where the temperature
frequently
drops below zero. To keep the ground surface free of ice and ensure the safety
of
citizens, various methods have been developed, including manual shoveling,
spraying of
chemicals, and mechanical breaking and removal.
Compared to manual shoveling, mechanical breaking of ice allows substantial
time savings. It also prevents the ecological drawback of using chemical means
such as
de-icing crystals. Road ice-breakers, rubblizing machines, or ice-breaking
systems are
therefore well known in the art, and used in an attempt to clear ground
surfaces of ice.
The ice-breaking method of these devices is based on the use of a rotating
blade for
breaking the ice. There are many variations in the design of ice-breaking
systems. For
example, some ice-breaking systems comprise smooth edge cutting disks
mountable on
the wheels of a vehicle. Other designs may comprise toothed wheels adapted to
be
mounted on a mobile support.
However, some limitations still have to be addressed with regards to the
efficiency and
the size of the existing ice-breaking devices, and with regards to the damage
caused to
the road and sidewalk. Indeed, large amounts of crystal salt are still needed
as there
might be a remaining ice layer on the ground. In addition, considerable damage
is done
to the road and sidewalk because of inexistent or inadequate damping systems.
Furthermore, ice-breaking systems are most of the time too large to be used in
narrow
pathways. Finally, poor adaptability causes inefficient ice breaking at the
junction of the
road and the sidewalk.
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There is therefore a need for an improved ice-breaking apparatus which, by
virtue of its
design and component, would be able to overcome the above-discussed prior art
concerns.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which, by virtue
of its
design and component, satisfies some of the above-mentioned needs and is thus
an
improvement over other related ice-breaking apparatus known in the prior art.
In accordance with the present invention, the above mentioned object is
achieved, as
will be easily understood, by an ice-breaking apparatus such as the one
briefly described
herein, and such as the one exemplified in the accompanying drawings.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ice
breaking
apparatus adapted for mounting on a vehicle, the ice breaking apparatus
comprising:
a frame;
a mounting system for mounting the frame on a vehicle;
a central shaft rotatably attachable to the frame; and
a drum assembly mounted about the central shaft, the drum assembly comprising
at least one wheel, each of the wheels comprising:
a plurality of disks, each disk having an aperture therethrough for
mounting on the central shaft, and wherein each disk comprises a plurality
of cutting teeth projecting from an outer edge of each disk; and
a damping system comprising a plurality of blocks made of an elastic
material, the blocks being installed between the apertures of the disks and
the central shaft, to absorb shocks.
In some implementations, the central shaft is square shaped.
In some implementations, the wheel assembly comprises 3 disks.
In some implementations, the plurality of disks is disposed in a staggered
arrangement.
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In some implementations, each of the disks comprises 28 teeth.
In some implementations, the damping system comprises 12 blocks.
In some implementations, the blocks are rectangular rubber blocks.
In some implementations, the disk is a spiked disk comprising casted cutting
teeth.
In some implementations, the cutting teeth are interchangeable cutting teeth,
mountable
on the disk by fasteners.
In some implementations, the mounting system is adapted to be mounted at the
front of
a vehicle.
In some implementations, the mounting system is adapted to be mounted at the
rear of a
vehicle.
In some implementations, the central shaft is attachable to the frame by
bearings.
In some implementations, the bearings are embedded within the rotatable drum.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus further comprises a weight
transfer
system between the vehicle and the rotatable drum.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus further comprises a
scraping blade
located behind the rotatable drum.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus further comprises weighing
elements attachable to the drum assembly.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus further comprises
floatation wheels
attachable to the central shaft.
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In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus further comprises
stabilizers
attachable to the frame, for stabilizing the ice breaking apparatus in idle
operation
thereof.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus is paired with at least
one other
ice-breaking apparatus.
The objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more
apparent upon reading the following non-restrictive description of a preferred
embodiment thereof, given for the purpose of exemplification only, with
reference to the
appended drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the invention and to show how the same may be
carried
into effect, reference is now made by way of example to the accompanying
drawings in
which:
Figure 1A is a perspective view of an ice-breaking apparatus according to an
embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 1 B is a front view of what is shown in 1A.
Figure 1C is a rear view of what is shown in 1A and 1B.
Figure 1B is a side-view of what is shown in 1A, 1B and 1C.
Figure 2 is a perspective view of a frame according to an embodiment of the
present
invention.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a mounting system according to an embodiment
of the
present invention.
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Figure 4 is a perspective view of a drum assembly according to an embodiment
of the
present invention.
Figure 5A is a perspective view of a wheel according to an embodiment of the
present
5 invention.
Figure 5B is a side view of a wheel according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In the following description, the same numerical references refer to similar
elements.
Furthermore, for the sake of simplicity and clarity, namely so as to not
unduly burden the
figures with several reference numbers, not all figures contain references to
all the
components and features, and references to some components and features may be
found in only one figure, and components and features of the present invention
illustrated in other figures can be easily inferred therefrom. The
embodiments,
geometrical configurations, materials mentioned and/or dimensions shown in the
figures
are optional, and are given for exemplification purposes only.
Furthermore, although the present invention may be used with various objects,
such as
vehicles, for example, it is understood that it may be used with other tools
and
attachments. For this reason, expressions such as "vehicle", "disk", "wheel",
"drum",
"shaft", etc. as used herein should not be taken as to limit the scope of the
present
invention to these machine attachments in particular. These expressions
encompass all
other kinds of attachments, tools and/or purposes with which the present
invention could
be used and may be useful, as can be easily understood.
As shown in figures 1 to 5B, there is provided an ice-breaking apparatus 10
for mounting
on a vehicle. It is understood that the ice-breaking apparatus 10 may also be
used with
other attachments, such as machines or motorized tools, as known by a person
skilled in
the art.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus 10 comprises a frame 12, a
mounting system 14, and a drum assembly 16 mounted about a central shaft 40.
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The frame 12 has a front side 120, and a rear side 122. The frame 12 can have
different
shapes and materials allowing the protection of the drum assembly 16. In some
implementations, the frame 12 is provided with stabilizers 18, to stabilize
the ice-
breaking apparatus 10 in an idle position thereof. The stabilizers 18 are
secured to the
frame 12 by fasteners, for example. The rear side 122 can comprise a central
cylindrical
mount 124 for fastening on the mounting system 14.
The mounting system 14 can be secured to the rear side 122 of the frame 12 by
means
of bolt and nut combination 140, or another connector as known by a person
skilled in
the art. The mounting system 14 can be adapted for mounting at the front, or
further at
the rear, of a vehicle. The mounting system 14 can further comprise a central
connector
142 to be secured to the frame 12, preferably a central hole connectable with
the central
cylindrical mount 124 of the frame 12. It may further comprise four lateral
connectors 144
distributed around the central connector 142 for mounting on a vehicle. In
some
embodiments, the mounting system 14 is a hitch plate secured to the rear side
122 of
the frame 12.
In some implementations, the central shaft 40 is rotatably attached to the
frame 12 by
bearings 42, or another fastener as known by a person skilled in the art. The
bearings 42
allow pivotable attachment of the central shaft 40 to the frame 12. According
to an
embodiment, the bearings 42 are embedded within the drum assembly 16, allowing
the
ratio of the overall width over the working width of the ice-breaking
apparatus 10 to be
optimized. The central shaft 40 can have different shapes, and can further
comprise a
support 44 enclosing said central shaft 40. The support 44 allows application
of different
pressures along the drum assembly when working at the junction of the road and
the
sidewalk. In some implementations, the support 44 has a squared shape.
The drum assembly 16 can comprise at least one wheel 46 each of which includes
a
plurality of disks 50 and a damping system 52. According to an embodiment,
each wheel
46 can include 3 disks 50. In the illustrated embodiments, a plurality of
wheels 46 is
used. In other embodiments, a single larger wheel can be used and is simply
installed on
a larger central support bearing.
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Each disk 50 has an aperture 500 therethrough for mounting on the central
shaft 40. The
aperture 500 has a shape corresponding to the shape of the central shaft 40,
or to the
shape of the support 44 enclosing the shaft. The plurality of disks 50 can
have different
sizes and materials. Each disk 50 has a plurality of cutting teeth 502
projecting from the
outer edge 504, and can further comprise 28 teeth. The plurality of disks 50
can be
disposed in a staggered arrangement, the cutting teeth 502 of each disk 50
being shifted
of an angle 506 with respect to those of each adjacent disk 50. The cutting
teeth 502 can
be casted within the disk 50, therefore forming one single unitary spiked
disk. According
to an embodiment, the cutting teeth 502 are interchangeable cutting teeth 502
mountable on the disk 50 by fasteners (not shown) such as pin and hole
combination, or
bolt and nut combination. The cutting teeth 502 can have different shapes and
materials;
and preferably have an optimized shape that ensures a good breakage of the
ice, as
well as durability of the teeth.
The damping system 52 is installed between the apertures 500 of the disks 50
and the
central shaft 40, or between the apertures 500 of the disks 50 and the support
44. The
damping system 52 allows absorbing shocks due to the contact between the drum
assembly 16 and the ground, and therefore decreasing the potential damage to
the road
or sidewalk. According to an embodiment, the damping system 52 can comprises a
plurality of blocks 520 made of an elastic material. The blocks 520 are
connected by
fasteners 522 such as holds, pins, screws, nuts or another fasteners known by
a person
skilled in the art. The blocks 520 can be of different numbers, shapes and
materials. In
particular, the damping system 52 can comprise 12 blocks 520, wherein the
blocks 520
can be made of rubber, or another elastic material known by a person skilled
in the art.
The blocks 520 can further have a rectangular shape, being juxtaposed in a
manner that
allows forming a square around the square shaped support 44.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus 10 comprises a weight
transfer
system (not shown) that allows transferring the weight between the vehicle and
the drum
assembly 16. Transferring the weigh allows controlling the force applied on
the ice, and
optimizing the ice breakage. An advantage of the ice breaking apparatus 10
with respect
to prior art systems known to the Applicant is that the ice breaking apparatus
10 can
function without motorized support such that only the weight of the apparatus
is sufficient
and required to induce ice breakage on the surface to be cleared.
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In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus 10 comprises a scraping
blade
(not shown) to breaking broken ice. The scraping blade is preferably installed
behind the
drum assembly 16. The ice-breaking apparatus 10 can also comprise weighing
elements
(not shown) attachable to the drum assembly 16 to increase the force applied
on the ice
by the drum assembly 16. According to some embodiments, the ice-breaking
apparatus
comprises floatation wheels (not shown) to assist the vehicle supporting the
drum
assembly 16.
10 In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus 10 is combined with
at least
another ice-breaking apparatus 10, the combination of at least two ice-
breaking
apparatus 10 being used in the ice breaking and removal of large areas such as
airport
runways.
In some implementations, the ice-breaking apparatus 10 is used to hammer and
uniformly flatten the countryside roads that are free of ice.
In some implementations, the ice breaking apparatus 10 further includes a
tilting
mechanism for tilting the ice breaking apparatus with respect to a .ground
surface. Such
a configuration allows the apparatus to be positioned in an orientation with
respect to an
iced surface at a more aggressive incident angle and therefore enhance the
ability of the
apparatus to break the ice.
It will be readily understood by one skilled in the art that the above-
mentioned
embodiments are merely illustrative of the possible specific embodiments which
may
represent principles of the present invention. Of course, numerous
modifications could
be made to the embodiment described above without departing from the scope of
the
present invention as defined in the appended claims.
