阅读说明：本技术 铲斗以及包括铲斗的岩土移动设备 (Bucket and geotechnical moving equipment comprising same ) 是由 J·V·C·哈尔 L·B·格里肖 于 2018-05-23 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种用于移动岩土物料的铲斗(10),所述铲斗(10)包括：操控区段(12),所述操控区段具有用于联接至机器的安装机构(64)；装载区段(14)5,所述装载区段安装在所述操控区段(12)上,使得所述装载区段(14)能与所述操控区段(12)分开,使得所述装载区段(14)能够分开并且用另一装载区段(14)更换。所述操控区段(12)可以包括安装构造(46),并且所述装载区段(14)可以包括与所述安装构造(46)互补的另一安装构造(20),且所述安装构造(46)0被构造为在其中接纳所述另一安装构造(20),并且所述安装构造(20)和所述互补的安装构造(46)具有抵接的表面。(A bucket (10) for moving geotechnical material, the bucket (10) comprising: a steering section (12) having a mounting mechanism (64) for coupling to a machine; a loading section (14)5 mounted on the handling section (12) such that the loading section (14) is separable from the handling section (12) such that the loading section (14) can be separated and replaced with another loading section (14). The handling section (12) may comprise a mounting formation (46) and the loading section (14) may comprise a further mounting formation (20) complementary to the mounting formation (46), with the mounting formation (46)0 being configured to receive the further mounting formation (20) therein, and the mounting formation (20) and the complementary mounting formation (46) having abutting surfaces.)

1. A dipper for moving geotechnical material, the dipper comprising:

a steering section having a mounting mechanism for coupling to a machine;

a loading section mounted on the manipulation section such that the loading section is separable from the manipulation section such that the loading section can be separated and replaced with another loading section.

2. A bucket in accordance with claim 1 wherein the manipulation section comprises a mounting configuration and the loading section comprises another mounting configuration that is complementary to the mounting configuration.

3. A bucket in accordance with claim 2 wherein the mounting formation is configured to receive the other mounting formation therein, and the mounting formation and the complementary mounting formation have abutting surfaces.

4. A bucket in accordance with claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the manipulation section comprises a mounting plate having the mounting formation, the mounting formation comprising a skirt extending away from the mounting plate.

5. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein the mounting formation or the complementary mounting formation comprises at least one key section and the other of the mounting formation or the complementary mounting formation comprises a recess complementary to the key section.

6. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 2 to 5 wherein the loading section comprises a base and walls extending upwardly from the base, and the loading section further has an open top.

7. A bucket in accordance with claim 6 wherein the wall has an upper edge that forms the other mounting formation that engages the mounting formation on the handling section.

8. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the loading section is mounted on the handling section by welding and is separable from the handling section by breaking a weld.

9. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the loading section is mounted on the handling section by a fastening element and is separable from the handling section by removal of the fastening element.

10. A dipper in accordance with any one of claims 1-9 wherein said handling section comprises a plurality of ear plates projecting upwardly from said mounting plate and spaced apart from one another, each ear plate forming an opening for receiving a pivot pin therethrough to allow said dipper to be pivoted by a dipper handling mechanism.

11. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 10 wherein the loading section comprises a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame.

12. A bucket in accordance with claim 11 wherein at least one of the plates is separable from the frame such that the plate can be separated and replaced with another plate.

13. A bucket in accordance with claim 11 wherein at least one of the plates is detachably mounted on the frame by welding and is separated from the frame by breaking the weld.

14. A bucket in accordance with claim 11 wherein the frame has two sides and the loading section includes a side plate mounted on each side of the frame.

15. A bucket in accordance with claim 14 wherein the frame defines at least one support ledge extending between the sides, and said loading section comprises at least one support plate mounted on the frame and extending across the support ledge.

16. A bucket in accordance with claim 15 wherein the at least one support plate is separable from the frame such that the support plate can be separated and replaced with another support plate.

17. A bucket in accordance with claim 15 or claim 16 wherein the at least one support plate comprises two plate members joined to one another and which may have different thicknesses or plate strengths.

18. A dipper in accordance with any one of claims 11-17 wherein said frame forms a mouth through which material enters and exits said loading section and said dipper further comprises a blade mounted on said frame adjacent said mouth.

19. A dipper in accordance with claim 18 further comprising a plurality of replaceable geotechnical engagement formations removably mounted on the blade and on the frame adjacent the mouth and further comprising a plurality of replaceable corner elements removably mounted on the frame at spaced intervals along a side of the frame.

20. A dipper for moving geotechnical material, the dipper comprising:

a manipulation section; and

a loading section mounted on the handling section by welding, the loading section being separable from the handling section by breaking a weld so that the loading section can be replaced with another loading section,

wherein the loading section comprises a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame by welding, and at least one of the plates is separable from the frame by breaking a weld so that the plate can be replaced with another plate.

21. A bucket in accordance with claim 20 wherein the manipulation section defines a mounting configuration and the loading section defines a complementary mounting configuration that is closely received within the mounting configuration.

22. A bucket in accordance with claim 20 or claim 21 wherein the loading section comprises two side plates and one support plate, and each of the two side plates and the one support plate is separable from the frame.

23. A dipper for moving geotechnical material, the dipper comprising:

a frame; and

a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one plate of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame to enable the plate to be replaced with another plate.

24. A bucket in accordance with claim 23 wherein at least one of the plates is welded to the frame and separable from the frame by breaking a weld.

25. A bucket in accordance with claim 23 or claim 24 wherein the frame has two sides and the loading section comprises side plates mounted on the sides and each of the side plates is separable from the frame so that it can be replaced with the other side plate.

26. A bucket in accordance with any one of claims 23 to 25 wherein the frame defines at least one support ledge between the side ledges, and the loading section comprises at least one support plate mounted on and extending across the support ledge and separable from the frame such that the at least one support plate can be replaced with another plate.

27. A bucket in accordance with claim 26 wherein the support plate comprises two plate members joined to one another and having different thicknesses or load strengths.

28. A dipper in accordance with any one of claims 23-27 further comprising a top plate mounted on said frame and a plurality of ear plates on said top plate for interacting with an external dipper handle mechanism, projecting upwardly from said mounting plate and spaced apart from one another.

29. A dipper in accordance with any one of claims 1-28 wherein said dipper is an excavating dipper.

30. An earth moving machine, comprising:

a support body;

a hinge member extending from the support body; and

a bucket in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 28, the bucket being mounted on an end of the hinge members.

31. An excavating machine for excavating geotechnical material from rock and soil, the excavating machine comprising:

a support body;

a hinge member extending from the support body; and

a dipper mounted on an end of the hinge member distal from the support body, the dipper including: a manipulation section; and a loading section mounted on the manipulation section, the loading section being separable from the manipulation section such that the loading section can be separated and replaced with another loading section.

32. The excavation machine of claim 31, wherein the support body is a movable support body having an geotechnical engagement configuration, and the support member can include an operator cab.

33. The excavating machine of claim 31 or claim 32, wherein the articulating member includes a beam arm extending from the body and a shovel articulated relative to the beam arm at a distal end of the beam arm.

34. The excavating machine of any one of claims 30 to 32, wherein the loading section is mounted on a bucket mounting section by welding the loading section to the manipulation section and is separable from the manipulation section by breaking a weld.

35. An excavating machine for excavating geotechnical material from rock and soil, the excavating machine comprising:

a support body;

a hinge member extending from the support body; and

a dipper, the dipper comprising: a manipulation section; and a loading section mounted on the handling section by welding, the loading section being separable from the handling section by breaking a weld so that the loading section can be replaced with another loading section; and wherein the loading section comprises a frame and a plurality of plates welded to the frame, and each of the plurality of plates is separable from the frame by breaking a weld so that the plate can be replaced with another plate.

36. A method of servicing a bucket, the bucket including a manipulation section having a mounting mechanism for coupling to a machine and a loading section mounted on the manipulation section for engaging excavated material, the loading section being separable from the manipulation section, the method comprising:

separating the loading section from the manipulation section; and

attaching another loading section to the manipulation section.

37. A method of maintaining a bucket in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 22 wherein the loading section and the handling section are welded to one another and separating the loading section from the handling section comprises breaking a weld that mounts the loading section and the handling section to one another and attaching another loading section to the handling section comprises welding the loading section and the handling section to one another.

38. A method of repairing an excavator bucket comprising a handling section and a loading section, the loading section being detachably mounted on the handling section by welding, the method comprising:

sensing when the load-bearing section needs to be replaced;

separating the carrier section from the handling section by breaking a weld; and

attaching another loading section to the manipulation section.

39. A method of servicing a bucket, the bucket including a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one plate of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame, the method comprising:

detecting when one of the separable plates needs to be replaced;

separating the plate from the frame; and

attaching another plate to the frame.

40. A method of repairing a bucket, the bucket including a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one plate of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame, the method comprising:

detecting when one of the separable plates is damaged and needs to be replaced;

separating the plate from the frame; and

attaching another plate to the frame.

41. A handling section for a bucket for moving geotechnical material, the handling section comprising a substantially rectangular mounting plate having at least one mounting element for coupling to a machine and a skirt depending from three sides of the mounting plate, wherein the skirt includes mounting formations for mounting on a loading section.

42. The steering section of claim 41, wherein the bucket is an excavator bucket.

43. A loading section for a bucket for moving geotechnical material, the loading section comprising a base, two side walls, a rear wall, each wall having an upper edge defining an open top and forming another mounting formation for mounting on a handling section.

44. The loading section of claim 43, wherein the bucket is an excavator bucket.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a bucket and an earth moving apparatus including the bucket. The present disclosure also provides a method of repairing a geotechnical mobile bucket.

The present disclosure relates particularly, but not exclusively, to an excavating bucket. Therefore, it will be convenient to hereinafter describe the invention with reference to this exemplary application. For example, excavating buckets may be used on excavators for excavating trenches and longitudinal channels in rock and soil and for material handling in mines and quarries. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure is more broadly applicable and applicable to other buckets and machines for material handling.

Background

The reference to prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form of suggestion that the referenced prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in australia or in any other country.

The earth moving machine or rock moving machine has wide application in the fields of construction, mining and the like. Such machines include excavators, dozers, excavators, draglines, reclaimers, and bucket wheels. The bucket has a bucket-like material container and a portion that interacts with a bucket handling mechanism on the machine. The bucket is removably mounted to an articulated arm of the machine.

Excavators or excavating equipment are used to dig or dig channels and holes in rock and soil. Excavation can be performed for a variety of reasons, including laying of pipelines, maintenance and repair of pipelines, and also general excavation in rock.

Excavators are also used in open pit mining to excavate blasted or loose overburden and transfer the material to a dump truck. Mining buckets may be manufactured by standard Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) or custom designed to suit specific applications on site, such as material type and density. The excavated materials include hard rock, iron ore, and coal.

Excavators typically include a support body or body and a boom extending from the support body and a shovel articulated relative to the boom at a distal end of the boom. The support body is typically a vehicle having an earth engaging formation which can move through the earth and which can also rotate in the same place on the earth. The support body further comprises an operator cab, which is used by an operator to operate the excavator. An excavator bucket is removably mounted on the end of the shovel remote from the support body. The bucket is manipulated by a bucket manipulation mechanism, which typically includes a plurality of hydraulic rams for pivoting the bucket.

The excavator bucket has an upper part of the bucket that interacts with the bucket handling mechanism, and a lower section that forms a bucket-like material container.

The material handling section of an earth moving bucket experiences a high degree of wear during normal day-to-day operation and use of the excavator. Some prior buckets have been designed to withstand harsh operating conditions and extend their operating life as much as possible. For example, some prior art buckets include a steel body internally lined with replaceable wear liners and wear shields. Relining the bucket requires considerable down time, for example, about six weeks of manufacturing time.

Eventually, the material handling section will need to be replaced. This means that an entirely new bucket needs to be made. In connection with this, there is also a considerable expense. The upper part of the bucket that interacts with the bucket steering mechanism requires machining to high tolerances, which is time consuming and expensive.

Definition of

In the description and claims, the term "comprising" is to be understood as having a broad meaning similar to the term "comprising" and is to be interpreted as implying any stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not excluding any other integer or step or group of integers or steps. This definition also applies to variations of the term "comprising", such as "comprises" and "comprising".

Disclosure of Invention

The applicant has realised that it would be beneficial to be able to keep down time for replacing, repairing or repairing worn or damaged wear liners and buckets as low as possible.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a bucket for moving geotechnical materials, the bucket including:

a steering section having a mounting mechanism for coupling to a machine; and

a loading section mounted on the manipulation section such that the loading section is separable from the manipulation section such that the loading section can be separated and replaced with another loading section.

The earthen material may be any suitable material desired to be excavated and moved, and includes soil, earthworks, blasted overburden, loose overburden, coal, metal ore, and the like.

The machine on which the bucket is mounted may be any suitable machine for moving earth or geotechnical material and includes excavators, draglines, dozers, dredgers, rope shovels, bucket wheels and loaders.

The loading section may be joined to the handling section by welding and may be detached from or detached from the handling section by breaking the weld.

Alternatively, the actuating section can be mounted on the actuating section by means of fastening elements and can be detached from the actuating section or detached from the actuating section by removing the fastening elements.

The fastening elements may be rivets, bolts or other suitable fasteners.

The handling section may comprise a mounting formation and the loading section may comprise a further complementary mounting formation which engages with a mounting formation on the handling section to mount the handling section on the loading section.

The first mounting formation may be configured to snugly receive the second mounting formation therein, and the mounting formation and the complementary mounting formation may have abutting surfaces.

The mounting mechanism for coupling to the machine may be any suitable mounting mechanism for coupling an earth moving bucket to the machine. Suitably, the mounting mechanism comprises at least one ear plate.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a bucket for moving geotechnical materials, the bucket including:

a steering section having a mounting mechanism for coupling to a machine;

a loading section mounted on the manipulation section such that the loading section is separable from the manipulation section such that the loading section can be separated and replaced with another loading section;

wherein the steering section comprises a mounting formation and the loading section comprises a further mounting formation complementary to the mounting formation and configured to receive the further mounting formation therein, and the mounting formation and the complementary mounting formation have abutting surfaces.

The use of abutting complementary mounting formations avoids the use of additional connecting means such as connecting plates or other connecting means. The additional plates or connectors may interfere with material handling during use and/or may be damaged.

The mounting formation may have at least one depending skirt which closely overlaps and abuts a complementary recess at an upper portion of the complementary mounting formation. In this way, the abutment surfaces transmit stresses and forces.

The mounting formation or complementary mounting formation may also have at least one key section and the other of the mounting formation or complementary mounting formation may have a complementary recess to assist in correct alignment of the two sections.

The loading section may include a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame.

At least one of the panels may be separable or detachable from the frame so that a panel may be separated and replaced with another panel. Alternatively, each of the plates may be separable from the frame, such that each of the plates may be replaced when worn or damaged. This can be compared to a conventional one-piece bucket, whereby, for example, if the side walls are damaged in use, the entire bucket needs to be replaced.

The at least one of the plates may be detachably or detachably mounted on the frame by welding and may be separated from the frame by breaking the weld.

The frame may have two sides and the loading section may comprise a side plate mounted on each side of the frame.

The frame may define at least one support ledge extending between the sides, and the loading section may include at least one support plate mounted on the frame and extending across the support ledge.

The at least one support plate may be separable from the frame, such that the support plate may be separated and replaced with another support plate, for example, when worn or damaged.

The at least one support plate may include two plate members joined to each other, and the two plate members may have different thicknesses or plate strengths. This enables the two plate elements to be designed to withstand different forces and loads. This, in turn, enables the plate elements located in the high wear areas to be designed with higher strength and wear resistance properties than other plate elements.

In another form, the frame may define two support ledge extending between the sides of the frame, and the loading section may include a support plate extending across each of the two support ledge.

The properties of the panel, such as the thickness of the material and the wear resistance, can be selected according to the specific requirements at the site. In areas of high wear, the plates may be thicker, made of a high strength and/or wear resistant material. Wear resistant liners are not generally required. Thus, the overall weight of the bucket may be less than conventional buckets.

The loading section may include a base and a wall extending upwardly from the base, and the loading section may also have an open top.

The wall may have an upper edge forming the further mounting formation which engages with the mounting formation on the manipulation section.

The frame may form a mouth through which material enters and exits the loading section.

The bucket may further include a blade mounted on the frame adjacent the mouth.

The screed may be separable from the frame to enable the screed to be replaced with another screed. This can occur if the flights wear or break or the geotechnical conditions change such that a different flight is required.

Still further, the bucket or excavator may be used in different applications requiring buckets of different designs.

The bucket may further include a plurality of replaceable geotechnical engagement formations removably mounted on the blade and on the frame adjacent the mouth.

Further, the bucket may also include a plurality of replaceable corner protection elements removably mounted on the frame at spaced intervals along the sides of the frame.

The manipulation section may comprise an upper mounting plate and the mounting formation may comprise a skirt extending away from the upper plate. For example, the mounting plate may be generally rectangular, and the skirt may depend from three sides of the rectangular mounting plate.

The mounting mechanism on the steering section may include any suitable mount for coupling the bucket to the earth moving machine. Suitably, the mounting mechanism comprises a plurality of lugs for interacting with the external bucket handling mechanism, projecting upwardly from the mounting plate and spaced from one another. Each ear plate may form an opening for receiving a pivot pin therethrough to allow the bucket to pivot relative to the bucket manipulation mechanism.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a bucket for moving geotechnical materials, the bucket including:

a manipulation section; and

a loading section mounted on the handling section by welding, the loading section being separable from the handling section by breaking a weld so that the loading section can be replaced with another loading section,

wherein the loading section comprises a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame by welding, and at least one of the plates is separable from the frame by breaking a weld so that the plate can be replaced with another plate.

Suitably, the bucket is an excavating bucket.

The handling section may define a mounting configuration and the loading section may define a complementary mounting configuration closely received within the mounting configuration.

The manipulation section may comprise a top plate having a peripheral edge, and the mounting formation may comprise a skirt depending from the peripheral edge of the top plate.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a handling section for an excavator bucket, the handling section comprising a generally rectangular mounting plate having at least one mounting element for coupling to a machine and a skirt depending from three sides of the mounting plate, wherein the skirt comprises mounting formations for mounting on a loading section.

The loading section may comprise a wall having an upper edge forming a further mounting formation.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a loading section for an excavator bucket, the loading section comprising a base, two side walls, a rear wall, each wall having an upper edge defining an open top and forming a mounting formation for mounting on a handling section.

The loading section may include two side plates and one support plate, and each of the two side plates and the one support plate may be separable from the frame.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a bucket for moving geotechnical materials, the bucket including:

a frame; and

a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one plate of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame to enable the plate to be replaced with another plate.

In this way, the plates may be removed and replaced when worn or damaged.

At least one of the plurality of plates may be welded to the frame and separable from the frame by breaking a weld.

Optionally, each of the plurality of panels may be separable from the frame such that all of the panels may be replaced.

The frame may have two sides and the loading section may comprise side plates mounted on the sides, and each side plate may be separable from the frame such that it can be replaced with another side plate.

The frame may define at least one support ledge between the side ledges and the loading section may comprise at least one support plate mounted on the frame and extending across the support ledge, and the at least one support plate may be separable from the frame such that the at least one support plate can be replaced with another plate, for example when worn or damaged.

In one form, the frame may define a support ledge (e.g., curved along its length) and a support plate (e.g., having a corresponding curve) extending across the support ledge.

The support plate may comprise two plate elements joined to each other, for example by welding to each other, and the two plate elements may have different thicknesses or load strengths. This enables the two plate elements to be joined to withstand different forces and loads.

In another form, the frame may define two support ledge mounts, and the loading section may include two separate support plates extending across the two support ledge mounts.

The bucket may further include: a top plate mounted on the frame, and a plurality of plates, and a plurality of ear plates on the top plate for interacting with an external bucket handling mechanism, projecting upwardly from the mounting plate and spaced apart from one another.

Each ear plate may form an opening for receiving a pivot pin therethrough to allow the bucket to pivot relative to the bucket manipulation mechanism.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an excavator for excavating geotechnical material from rock, the excavator comprising:

a support body;

a hinge member extending from the support body; and

a dipper mounted on an end of the hinge member distal from the support body, the dipper including: a loading section; and a manipulation section mounted on the loading section, the loading section being separable from the manipulation section such that the loading section can be separated and replaced with another loading section.

The support body may be a movable support body having an geotechnical engagement configuration, and the support member may include an operator cab.

The hinge member may include a beam arm extending from the body and a shovel hinged relative to the beam arm at a distal end of the beam arm.

The handling section may be mounted on the loading section by welding the loading section to the handling section and separated from the loading section by breaking the weld.

Alternatively, the handling section may be mounted on the loading section by a fastening element which passes through the loading section and the handling section to fix the loading section and the handling section to each other.

The manipulation section may comprise a mounting configuration and the loading section may comprise a further mounting configuration complementary to said mounting configuration.

The further mounting formation may be configured to be closely received within and abut the mounting formation.

The bucket of the excavator may include any one or more of the optional features of the bucket defined in the previous aspect of the present disclosure.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a machine for moving geotechnical material, the machine comprising:

a support body;

a hinge member extending from the support body; and

a dipper, the dipper comprising: a loading section; and a handling section mounted on the loading section by welding, the loading section being separable from the handling section by breaking a weld so that the loading section can be replaced with another loading section; and wherein the loading section comprises a frame and a plurality of plates welded to the frame, and each of the plurality of plates is separable from the frame by breaking a weld so that a plate can be replaced with another plate.

The machine may be an excavator.

The excavator and bucket may include any one or more features of the excavator and bucket defined in the preceding aspects of the disclosure.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of maintaining a bucket including a loading section for engaging geotechnical material, a manipulation section mounted on the loading section, the loading section being separable from the manipulation section, the method including:

separating the loading section from the manipulation section; and

attaching another loading section to the manipulation section.

The method may include sensing when a loading section needs to be replaced.

The loading section and the manipulation section may be welded to each other, and separating the loading section from the manipulation section may comprise breaking a weld fitting them to each other, and attaching another loading section to the manipulation section may comprise welding the loading section and the manipulation section to each other.

Separating the loading section from the manipulation section may further comprise removing fastening elements attaching the sections to each other from the loading section and the manipulation section.

Attaching the other loading section to the manipulation section may comprise passing a fastening element through each of the loading section and the manipulation section to attach the sections.

Passing the fastening element through each of the loading section and the manipulation section may comprise passing a bolt or rivet through each of the loading section and the manipulation section.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of repairing an geotechnical mobile bucket including a manipulation section and a loading section detachably mounted on the manipulation section by welding, the method including:

sensing when the load-bearing section needs to be replaced;

separating the carrier section from the handling section by breaking a weld; and

attaching another loading section to the manipulation section.

The bucket may be an excavator bucket.

The method may include any one or more features of the previous aspect of the disclosure.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of servicing a bucket, the bucket including a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one plate of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame, the method comprising:

detecting when one of the separable plates needs to be replaced;

separating the plate from the frame; and

attaching another plate to the frame.

The at least one plate of the plurality of plates may be welded to the frame, and the plate may be separated from the frame by breaking the weld.

Further, attaching another plate to the frame may include welding the plate to the frame.

Further, each of the plurality of panels may be separable or detachable from the frame such that all of the panels may be replaced.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of repairing an earth-moving bucket including a frame and a plurality of plates mounted on the frame, at least one of the plurality of plates being separable from the frame, the method including: detecting when one of the separable plates needs to be replaced; separating the plate from the frame; and attaching another plate to the frame.

Drawings

Excavating buckets and excavators according to the present disclosure may manifest themselves in a variety of forms. It will be convenient to hereinafter describe in detail several embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. This detailed description is provided to guide those interested in the subject matter of the invention how to put it into practice. It should be clearly understood, however, that the specific features of this detailed description do not supersede the generality of the preceding broad description. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a top front perspective view of a bucket having a loading section and a manipulation section positioned above the loading section;

FIG. 2 is a lower front perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top rear perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a lower rear perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional detail of a portion of the bucket shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is an exploded rear perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 1, showing the plate separated from the loading section;

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective front view of the bucket of FIG. 1, showing the manipulation section separated from and above the loading section;

FIG. 10 is an exploded rear perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 1, showing the manipulation section separated from and above the loading section;

FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective rear view illustrating how the loading section of the bucket of FIG. 1 is welded to the handling section;

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective front view illustrating how the loading section of the bucket of FIG. 1 is welded to the handling section;

FIG. 13 is a side view of the bucket of FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional detail of a portion of the bucket shown in FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a side view of an excavator having a boom and a bucket as illustrated in the previous figures mounted at the end of the boom;

FIG. 16 is a front perspective view of a bucket, which is a variation of the bucket of FIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is a rear perspective view of the bucket of FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is a side view of the bucket of FIG. 16, an

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional detail of a portion of the bucket shown in FIG. 16.

Detailed Description

In fig. 1 to 14, reference numeral 10 generally designates an excavating bucket suitable for use in excavating.

The bucket 10 comprises a manipulation section 12 and a loading section 14, which is mounted on the manipulation section 12 such that it is detachable from the manipulation section 12, i.e. detachable from the manipulation section 12. This enables loading section 14 to be separated from manipulation section 12 and replaced with another loading section. In the embodiment illustrated in fig. 1-13, loading section 14 is mounted on handling section 12 by the act of welding loading section 14 to handling section 12. Thus, the loading section may be separated from the handling section 12 by any of the available techniques for cutting through welded connections, including oxygen torch, arc gouging or grinding.

Loading section 14 has a substantially box-like configuration with a base 15 and walls 16 extending upwardly from the base along three sides. The fourth side is open and defines a mouth 17 for receiving excavated material. Further, the loading section 14 has an open top 19 (see fig. 9 and 10).

Loading section 14 is structurally formed by a frame 22 and a plurality of plates mounted on frame 22. More specifically, the frame 22 defines side ledges on each side of the frame 22 and side plates 24, 26 extending across the side ledges. Further, the frame 22 defines at least one support ledge extending across the rear of the loading section between the side ledges, and a support plate 28 mounted on the frame 22 extending across the support ledge.

Fig. 8 shows an exploded view of bucket 10 with plates 24, 26, 28 separated.

The frame 22, in turn, includes two side frame members 30, one on each side of the bucket 10. The frame 22 also includes two transverse frame members, an upper transverse frame member 32 and a lower transverse frame member 34, which extend across the rear of the loading section 14 between the side frame members 30.

The wall 16 of the loading section 14 has an upper edge 18 which forms a mounting formation which is a peripheral edge formation 20 which is further directed to the peripheral edge formation on the manipulation section 12 and which interacts with the peripheral edge on the manipulation section 12 in a manner described in more detail below.

The upper edge 18 of the wall 16 is defined by the upper edges of the side wall frame members 30 and the upper edges of the upper transverse frame elements 32.

The plates 24, 26, 28 are welded to the frame 22 and can be removed when the plates are worn or damaged.

Bucket 10 further includes a blade 36 mounted on frame 22 adjacent mouth 17. As shown in the figures, the blade 36 has earth engaging teeth 38 for assisting the bucket 10 in excavating earth.

The manipulation section 12 comprises a mounting plate 42 having a skirt 44 around its peripheral edge. A skirt 44 extends away from the mounting plate 42 and forms a mounting formation in the form of a peripheral edge formation 46 which interacts with a complementary further peripheral edge formation 20 on the loading section 14.

Referring to fig. 9 and 10, the upper side frame member 30 is in two parts, an inner member portion 50 and an outer member portion 52, which are welded together. The inner portion 50 defines a side portion of the peripheral edge formation 20 of the loading section 14. The upper portion of the upper frame member 32 defines a rear portion of the peripheral edge formation 20 (seen more clearly in figure 10).

Mounting plate 42 is generally rectangular having four sides, and skirt 44 is configured to extend circumferentially around the other peripheral edge configuration 20 of loading section 14. Thus, at least a portion of the skirt 44 overlaps the complementary peripheral edge formation 20 to provide a surface for securing the two sections 12, 14 to one another.

The skirt 44 has two sides 44a, 44b and a rear section 40 c. Each side 44a, 44b has a depending key portion 48. The outer element part 52 of the loading section 14 has a complementary recess 45. When the two parts are joined, the key portion 48 is located within the recess 45 to allow for simple and accurate joining of the manipulation section 12 and loading section 14. The front edge of the recess 45 may also provide a bearing surface when the bucket 10 is digging backwards towards the excavator.

The mouth end 20m of the peripheral edge formation 20 has a stepped profile as shown in figures 9 and 10. The handling section 14 has a front panel bracket 60 with a projection 62 on either side which is received by the stepped portion. Again, this helps to locate the two parts together. This is shown in cross section as shown in fig. 6.

It will be appreciated that when the two sections 12, 14 are joined, the inner surface of the skirt abuts the outer surface of the peripheral edge formation 20. This abutment is clearly visible in the cross-section of fig. 6.

The handling section 14 further includes a mounting mechanism including a plurality of ear plates 64 spaced apart from one another on the mounting plate 42 for interacting with a bucket handling mechanism on the excavator. Each ear plate 64 defines an opening 66 for receiving a pivot pin from the bucket handling mechanism to enable the bucket 10 to pivot relative to the bucket handling mechanism. Since the structure and function of a bucket manipulation mechanism for manipulating and manipulating a bucket is well known in the art and does not form a part of the present disclosure, it will not be described in further detail. Machining of the ears 64 requires that it be done to a high degree of tolerance and is therefore expensive.

Fig. 11 to 14 show how the handling section and the loading section are welded together. The sections are welded together along inner weld lines 70 and outer weld lines 72. Figure 14 shows a cross section of the abutment surfaces welded together. It will be appreciated that the double weld line provides a very strong connection between the two sections.

Fig. 15 illustrates an exemplary excavator for use with the excavator bucket described above with respect to fig. 1-14.

The excavator 80 includes a support body 82 and a hinge member 84 extending from the support body. The support body 82 is a movable support body having an geotechnical engagement configuration 86 and including an operator cab 88. The hinge member 84 includes a beam arm 90 extending from the support body 82 and a shovel 92 hinged relative to the beam arm 90 at a distal end of the beam arm 90. Similar to that described above with reference to fig. 1-14, bucket 10 is removably mounted on the end of hinge member 84 remote from support body 82.

As illustrated in fig. 15, in use, the bucket 10 is typically used on an excavator 80 to excavate and remove material from rock soil.

When bucket 10 is operational and being used for work, manipulation section 12 and loading section 14 are fixed to each other and operate as a single unit. During typical operation of the bucket, the loading section 14 is subjected to much greater forces than the maneuvering section 12, for example due to rocks and other geotechnical materials. As such, the loading section is prone to wear and damage over time. Thus, it is expected that the loading section will have a shorter operational life span than loading section 14 which is not subjected to impact with the excavated material.

When the loading section 14 is damaged or worn out or otherwise needs to be replaced, the operation of the excavator may be interrupted and the bucket removed and sent to the workshop.

The lower loading section 14 can then be replaced with a new undamaged and unworn lower section 14 which is fixed to the original handling section 12 and is therefore used again. To this end, the original loading section 14 is separated from the upper handling section 12, which involves cutting through a welded connection that attaches and secures the loading section 14 and the handling section 12 to each other. This is done using a torch or other tool known in the art. Since these techniques are well known to those skilled in the art and do not form part of the invention claimed herein, they will not be described in further detail in this specification. The section 14 is then mounted on the section 12, for example by welding a new, unworn loading section 14 to the original or same handling section 12.

A new loading section 14 is mounted on the section 12 by receiving a skirt of the mounting section forming the peripheral edge configuration described above. The skirt 44 forming the peripheral edge formation 46 is positioned on the section 12 so that it circumferentially surrounds the complementary formation 20 on the loading section 14 so that the surfaces of the two formations 20 and 46 abut. The two sections 12 and 14 are then welded to each other and the bucket 10 is ready to be reattached to the excavator 80 and used again. More specifically, the peripheral edge formation 20 and the further peripheral edge formation 46 are welded to each other along their length both inside and outside the bucket. The complementary abutment surfaces are particularly clearly shown in fig. 1 and 3. During use, when the bucket is being driven into or dragged across rock soil, the bucket experiences significant forces, particularly shear forces. This provides the attachment with an engineering strength sufficient to perform its function.

Fig. 16 to 19 show a modification of the bucket 10 shown in fig. 1 to 14. This bucket is similar to the bucket described above with reference to fig. 1-11, and therefore, unless otherwise indicated, the same reference numerals will be used to refer to the same components. Therefore, the following description will focus on the differences between the present embodiment and the previous embodiments.

In this bucket, the mounting section is attached to the load-carrying section by fastening elements, which are bolts that pass through and attach the mounting section and the load-carrying section together.

In this bucket 10, the manipulation section 12 is attached to the carrier section 14 by fastening elements 100, which are rivets that pass through and attach the manipulation section 12 and the carrier section 14 together. The cross-section in fig. 19 shows a rivet 100 passing through the skirt 44 and the peripheral edge formation 20 to join the two sections together.

The advantage of the bucket described above with reference to the drawings is that it enables the load carrying section to be separated from the attached bucket mounting section and placed with another new load carrying section. This can be done with minimal down time.

Different buckets have different designs, particularly with respect to their load-bearing section, to perform different functions in different applications. For example, load-bearing sections of different designs are used to excavate soft soils as compared to excavation of multi-rock earthworks.

Another advantage is that a certain load carrying section can be separated from the bucket mounting section to which it is attached and can be replaced with a different load carrying section having a different design.

Another advantage is that the load carrying section can be constructed with a lighter construction because it is known that the load carrying section does not need to maintain the same working life span as the bucket handling section. This helps to avoid the use of bucket liners, which are time consuming and expensive to replace.

Another advantage of avoiding the use of bucket wear liners is that the liners can store energy and create a safety hazard when removed.

The actuation section can be designed for an extended and predetermined lifetime. Suitably, the manipulation section may maintain structural integrity for a useful life of up to about 3000 hours or four to five years.

The complementary abutment surfaces of the respective mounting formations provide the attachment with an engineering strength sufficient to withstand the forces encountered in use.

Yet another advantage is that the handling section is in the form of a roof and the walls of the bucket are provided by the loading section. This allows the use of removable side panels.

It will of course be realised that the above has been given by way of illustrative example of this invention and that all such modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of this invention as is herein set forth.