CA2201684C - Ice pebbling - Google Patents
Ice pebbling Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2201684C CA2201684C CA 2201684 CA2201684A CA2201684C CA 2201684 C CA2201684 C CA 2201684C CA 2201684 CA2201684 CA 2201684 CA 2201684 A CA2201684 A CA 2201684A CA 2201684 C CA2201684 C CA 2201684C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- pebbler
- head
- sheet
- ice
- wheels
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
Links
Classifications
-
- E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- E01—CONSTRUCTION OF ROADS, RAILWAYS, OR BRIDGES
- E01H—STREET CLEANING; CLEANING OF PERMANENT WAYS; CLEANING BEACHES; DISPERSING OR PREVENTING FOG IN GENERAL CLEANING STREET OR RAILWAY FURNITURE OR TUNNEL WALLS
- E01H4/00—Working on surfaces of snow or ice in order to make them suitable for traffic or sporting purposes, e.g. by compacting snow
- E01H4/02—Working on surfaces of snow or ice in order to make them suitable for traffic or sporting purposes, e.g. by compacting snow for sporting purposes, e.g. preparation of ski trails; Construction of artificial surfacings for snow or ice sports ; Trails specially adapted for on-the-snow vehicles, e.g. devices adapted for ski-trails
- E01H4/023—Maintaining surfaces for ice sports, e.g. of skating rinks
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63C—SKATES; SKIS; ROLLER SKATES; DESIGN OR LAYOUT OF COURTS, RINKS OR THE LIKE
- A63C19/00—Design or layout of playing courts, rinks, bowling greens or areas for water-skiing; Covers therefor
- A63C19/10—Ice-skating or roller-skating rinks; Slopes or trails for skiing, ski-jumping or tobogganing
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Architecture (AREA)
- Civil Engineering (AREA)
- Structural Engineering (AREA)
- Structures Of Non-Positive Displacement Pumps (AREA)
- Catching Or Destruction (AREA)
Abstract
An ice pebbler is used for pebbling a sheet of curling ice. The pebbler has a wheel supported base that may be pulled or motor driven across a sheet of ice.
The pebbler carries a water container for the pebbling water and a pebbler head mounted on the base for lateral movement across the sheet. The pebbler may be manually operated, pulled by hand and with a hand crank for swinging the pebbler head across the sheet. In the preferred arrangement, the wheels and the pebbler head movement are driven so that the pebbler will travel at a uniform speed along the ice sheet. The swinging movement of the pebbler head may be driven by the wheels or motor driven to provide even greater pebbling consistency. The water pressure may be from a gravity feed or air pressure, but the preferred arrangement is a pressure pump, which delivers constant pressure throughout a pebbling operation.
The pebbler carries a water container for the pebbling water and a pebbler head mounted on the base for lateral movement across the sheet. The pebbler may be manually operated, pulled by hand and with a hand crank for swinging the pebbler head across the sheet. In the preferred arrangement, the wheels and the pebbler head movement are driven so that the pebbler will travel at a uniform speed along the ice sheet. The swinging movement of the pebbler head may be driven by the wheels or motor driven to provide even greater pebbling consistency. The water pressure may be from a gravity feed or air pressure, but the preferred arrangement is a pressure pump, which delivers constant pressure throughout a pebbling operation.
Description
De-15-02 03:11Pm From-AIKINS cA o22oisa4 2oo2-oa-i5jD4-957-0840 T-758 p.ODT/ODB F-852 ICE PEBBLING
The present invention relates to the art of ice pebbling, as used in the sport of curling.
In curling, the surtace of a sheet of ice is "pebbled" before play by sprinkling water droplets on the ice surface. The droplets freeze on contact with the ice to provide the desired pebble.
Pebbling is a manual process, carried out using a portable water container delivering water to a pebbler head. The water may be delivered by gravity or under pressure, often generated using air pressure in the water tank. The pebbler 1 D head is swung manually from side to side of the ice sheet as the person pebbling the ice walks backwards down the center of the sheet. The manual process can lead to variations in the pebble and thus variations in the performance of the ice during play-There may be differences in pebbling from side to side of the sheet, or variations along the sheet. Differences will also be apparent from sheet to sheet.
Consistency is highly desirable, but may only be achieved by a master ice maker-The present invention is concerned with an apparatus that is intended to ameliorate these problems.
According to the present invention there is provided an ice pebbler for pebbling a sheet of curling ice, said pebbler comprising:
a base;
wheels for supporting the base on the sheet for travel over the sheet along a path of travel;
a water container mounted on the base;
a pebbler head connected to the water container for receiving water therefrom; and pebbler head displacement means mounting the pebbler head on the base for enabling lateral movement of the pebbier head across the path of travel.
08/15/02 THII 16:10 [TX/RX NO 9772] [X007 08-15-02 03:llPm From-AIKINS CA 02201684 2002-08-15 204-95T-0840 T-T58 p.008/008 F-852 This apparatus provides a stable base for the heavy water container and the pebbler head. Irregular vertical movements of the pebbler head and changes in the pebbler head orientation wifih respect to the ice surface are minimized, providing a more uniform pebble to the ice sheet.
The pebbler may be manually operated, pulled by hand and with a hand crank for swinging the pebbler head across the sheet. In the preferred arrangement, the wheels and the pebbler head movement are driven so that the pebbier will travel at a uniform speed along the ice sheet. The swinging movement of the pebbler head may be driven by the wheels or motor driven to provide even greater pebbling consistency. The water pressure may be from a gravity teed or air pressure as in the prior art, but the preferred arrangement is a pressure pump, which delivers constant pressure throughout a pebbling operation.
The pebbler head displacement means may include vertical adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base for vertical adjustment and angular adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base far angular adjustment to change the orientation of the pebbler head with respect to the ice surtace.
Other features that may be employed are variable speed drives for the wheels, the pebbler head and a water delivery pump.
!n the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the present invention:
Figure 1 is a side view of a pebbler according to the present invenfiion;
Figure 2 is a front view of the pebbler; and Figure 3 is a top view of the pebbler.
Referring to the accompanying drawings, there is illustrated a pebbler 10 that includes a base frame 12 including two side members 14 and a back cross member 16. At the front of the base frame is a live axle 08/15/02 THLJ 16:10 [TX/RX NO 9772] x]008 18 that extends across the frame and carries two front wheels 20. At the back of the base frame is an axle 22 that carries two back wheels 24.
Extending upwardly from the front ends of the side members 14 are two uprights 26. At their upper ends, the uprights merge into a forwardly projecting U-shaped hand grip 28.
As illustrated most particularly in Figures 2 and 3, the base frame 12 carries a DC electric motor 30. A pulley 32 mounted on the motor shaft is connected by a belt 34 to a pulley 36 on the live axle 18. This drives both of the front wheels at the same speed to drive the pebbler forwardly along an ice sheet.
A rechargeable electric battery 38 is mounted on the base frame 12 immediately behind the motor 30.
Partway up the uprights 26 is a pebbler assembly 40. This includes two sleeves 42 fitted slidably on the respective uprights 26 and a crossbar 44 joining the two sleeves. Hex head set screws 46 are screwed into threaded bores in the sleeves 42 and serve to lock the pebbler assembly in place at a desired height on the uprights.
A swing arm 48 projects forwardly from the center of the crossbar 44. At its front end, the swing arm is connected to an oscillator arm 50 mounted by a vertical pivot pin 52 on the crossbar 44, at its lateral centre. Forwardly of the pivot pin 52, the oscillator arm is pinned to a link 54 which is in turn pinned to a crank 56 driven by a swing arm motor 58 mounted on the crossbar 44. The swing arm motor is a variable speed DC
motor driven by power from the battery 38. Operation of the motor swings the swing arm back and forth across the back of the pebbler.
At the free, rear end of the swing arm 48 is a pebbler head 60 screwed into a pebbler head socket mounted on the end of the swing arm and coupled to a hose 64. The hose leads from the pebbler head to a pump and motor assembly 66 mounted on a water tank 68 located on the base frame beside the motor and battery. The pump and motor assembly is powered by the battery 38. The tank is filled with water as needed through a filling opening closed by a cap 70.
With all three motors in operation, the pebbler is driven at a constant speed along the sheet of ice, while the swing arm swings back and forth across the ice in a uniform manner and the pebbler head receives water at constant pressure from the pump and motor unit.
The nature of the pebbling can be altered by controlling any of the three motors.
A pump control 72 on the motor and pump unit 66 can vary the pressure delivered by the pump to the pebbler head and thus the breadth of the pattern from the head. It has been found that a pressure resulting in a 13 inch (33 cm) rise of the water from the head yields good results The swing arm motor 58 is controlled with a swing arm motor control 74 to vary the speed of oscillation of the pebbler head across the sheet.
The drive motor is controlled by a control 76 that will vary the speed at which the pebbler advances along the ice. Normally this will be in the order of 2 to 3 miles per hour (3 to 5 kph), approximately walking speed.
The height of the pebbler head above the ice is adjustable by releasing the set screws 46 and sliding the pebbler assembly up or down on the frame uprights 26. Where it is desired to tilt the pebbler head up or down to change its orientation with respect to the ice surface, the swing arm may be bent up or down.
While one particular embodiment of the invention has been described in the foregoing, it is to be understood that other embodiments are possible within the scope of the invention and are intended to be included herein. It is, for example, possible to configure the pebbler as a completely manual apparatus with a hand crank for oscillating the swing arm as the pebbler is drawn forward along the sheet of ice by hand. Gravity feed, air pressure or a pump may be used for delivering water to the pebbler head in the manual version of the apparatus. The pump is preferred as it provides a uniform pressure for the full length of a sheet, while gravity feed and air pressure will normally drop as the pebbler advances along the sheet.
It is also possible to link the oscillating drive of the swing arm to the wheels of the pebbler so that the swing arm is oscillated in timed relation with the rotation of the wheels.
Another characteristic that may be included in some embodiments is a pebbler head and hose that is detachable from the swing arm. This allows the ice maker to remove the pebbler head for use in spot pebbling, for example in the corners of the sheet that would not normally be accessible without turning the pebbler around.
The present invention relates to the art of ice pebbling, as used in the sport of curling.
In curling, the surtace of a sheet of ice is "pebbled" before play by sprinkling water droplets on the ice surface. The droplets freeze on contact with the ice to provide the desired pebble.
Pebbling is a manual process, carried out using a portable water container delivering water to a pebbler head. The water may be delivered by gravity or under pressure, often generated using air pressure in the water tank. The pebbler 1 D head is swung manually from side to side of the ice sheet as the person pebbling the ice walks backwards down the center of the sheet. The manual process can lead to variations in the pebble and thus variations in the performance of the ice during play-There may be differences in pebbling from side to side of the sheet, or variations along the sheet. Differences will also be apparent from sheet to sheet.
Consistency is highly desirable, but may only be achieved by a master ice maker-The present invention is concerned with an apparatus that is intended to ameliorate these problems.
According to the present invention there is provided an ice pebbler for pebbling a sheet of curling ice, said pebbler comprising:
a base;
wheels for supporting the base on the sheet for travel over the sheet along a path of travel;
a water container mounted on the base;
a pebbler head connected to the water container for receiving water therefrom; and pebbler head displacement means mounting the pebbler head on the base for enabling lateral movement of the pebbier head across the path of travel.
08/15/02 THII 16:10 [TX/RX NO 9772] [X007 08-15-02 03:llPm From-AIKINS CA 02201684 2002-08-15 204-95T-0840 T-T58 p.008/008 F-852 This apparatus provides a stable base for the heavy water container and the pebbler head. Irregular vertical movements of the pebbler head and changes in the pebbler head orientation wifih respect to the ice surface are minimized, providing a more uniform pebble to the ice sheet.
The pebbler may be manually operated, pulled by hand and with a hand crank for swinging the pebbler head across the sheet. In the preferred arrangement, the wheels and the pebbler head movement are driven so that the pebbier will travel at a uniform speed along the ice sheet. The swinging movement of the pebbler head may be driven by the wheels or motor driven to provide even greater pebbling consistency. The water pressure may be from a gravity teed or air pressure as in the prior art, but the preferred arrangement is a pressure pump, which delivers constant pressure throughout a pebbling operation.
The pebbler head displacement means may include vertical adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base for vertical adjustment and angular adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base far angular adjustment to change the orientation of the pebbler head with respect to the ice surtace.
Other features that may be employed are variable speed drives for the wheels, the pebbler head and a water delivery pump.
!n the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the present invention:
Figure 1 is a side view of a pebbler according to the present invenfiion;
Figure 2 is a front view of the pebbler; and Figure 3 is a top view of the pebbler.
Referring to the accompanying drawings, there is illustrated a pebbler 10 that includes a base frame 12 including two side members 14 and a back cross member 16. At the front of the base frame is a live axle 08/15/02 THLJ 16:10 [TX/RX NO 9772] x]008 18 that extends across the frame and carries two front wheels 20. At the back of the base frame is an axle 22 that carries two back wheels 24.
Extending upwardly from the front ends of the side members 14 are two uprights 26. At their upper ends, the uprights merge into a forwardly projecting U-shaped hand grip 28.
As illustrated most particularly in Figures 2 and 3, the base frame 12 carries a DC electric motor 30. A pulley 32 mounted on the motor shaft is connected by a belt 34 to a pulley 36 on the live axle 18. This drives both of the front wheels at the same speed to drive the pebbler forwardly along an ice sheet.
A rechargeable electric battery 38 is mounted on the base frame 12 immediately behind the motor 30.
Partway up the uprights 26 is a pebbler assembly 40. This includes two sleeves 42 fitted slidably on the respective uprights 26 and a crossbar 44 joining the two sleeves. Hex head set screws 46 are screwed into threaded bores in the sleeves 42 and serve to lock the pebbler assembly in place at a desired height on the uprights.
A swing arm 48 projects forwardly from the center of the crossbar 44. At its front end, the swing arm is connected to an oscillator arm 50 mounted by a vertical pivot pin 52 on the crossbar 44, at its lateral centre. Forwardly of the pivot pin 52, the oscillator arm is pinned to a link 54 which is in turn pinned to a crank 56 driven by a swing arm motor 58 mounted on the crossbar 44. The swing arm motor is a variable speed DC
motor driven by power from the battery 38. Operation of the motor swings the swing arm back and forth across the back of the pebbler.
At the free, rear end of the swing arm 48 is a pebbler head 60 screwed into a pebbler head socket mounted on the end of the swing arm and coupled to a hose 64. The hose leads from the pebbler head to a pump and motor assembly 66 mounted on a water tank 68 located on the base frame beside the motor and battery. The pump and motor assembly is powered by the battery 38. The tank is filled with water as needed through a filling opening closed by a cap 70.
With all three motors in operation, the pebbler is driven at a constant speed along the sheet of ice, while the swing arm swings back and forth across the ice in a uniform manner and the pebbler head receives water at constant pressure from the pump and motor unit.
The nature of the pebbling can be altered by controlling any of the three motors.
A pump control 72 on the motor and pump unit 66 can vary the pressure delivered by the pump to the pebbler head and thus the breadth of the pattern from the head. It has been found that a pressure resulting in a 13 inch (33 cm) rise of the water from the head yields good results The swing arm motor 58 is controlled with a swing arm motor control 74 to vary the speed of oscillation of the pebbler head across the sheet.
The drive motor is controlled by a control 76 that will vary the speed at which the pebbler advances along the ice. Normally this will be in the order of 2 to 3 miles per hour (3 to 5 kph), approximately walking speed.
The height of the pebbler head above the ice is adjustable by releasing the set screws 46 and sliding the pebbler assembly up or down on the frame uprights 26. Where it is desired to tilt the pebbler head up or down to change its orientation with respect to the ice surface, the swing arm may be bent up or down.
While one particular embodiment of the invention has been described in the foregoing, it is to be understood that other embodiments are possible within the scope of the invention and are intended to be included herein. It is, for example, possible to configure the pebbler as a completely manual apparatus with a hand crank for oscillating the swing arm as the pebbler is drawn forward along the sheet of ice by hand. Gravity feed, air pressure or a pump may be used for delivering water to the pebbler head in the manual version of the apparatus. The pump is preferred as it provides a uniform pressure for the full length of a sheet, while gravity feed and air pressure will normally drop as the pebbler advances along the sheet.
It is also possible to link the oscillating drive of the swing arm to the wheels of the pebbler so that the swing arm is oscillated in timed relation with the rotation of the wheels.
Another characteristic that may be included in some embodiments is a pebbler head and hose that is detachable from the swing arm. This allows the ice maker to remove the pebbler head for use in spot pebbling, for example in the corners of the sheet that would not normally be accessible without turning the pebbler around.
Claims (9)
1. An ice pebbler for pebbling a sheet of curling ice, said pebbler comprising:
a base;
wheels for supporting the base on the sheet for travel over the sheet along a path of travel;
a water container mounted on the base;
a pebbler head connected to the water container for receiving water therefrom; and pebbler head displacement means mounting the pebbler head on the base for enabling lateral movement of the pebbler head across the path of travel.
a base;
wheels for supporting the base on the sheet for travel over the sheet along a path of travel;
a water container mounted on the base;
a pebbler head connected to the water container for receiving water therefrom; and pebbler head displacement means mounting the pebbler head on the base for enabling lateral movement of the pebbler head across the path of travel.
2. A pebbler according to Claim 1 wherein the wheels are freely rotatable and including a handle for manually moving the pebbler along the sheet.
3. A pebbler according to Claim 1 or 2 wherein the pebbler head displacement means include a hand crank for swinging the pebbler head across the sheet.
4. A pebbler according to Claim 1 including a motor and means for driving the wheels from the motor.
5. A pebbler according to Claim 4 wherein the pebbler head displacement means are connected to the motor for driving the pebbler head movement from the motor.
6. A pebbler according to Claim 1, 2 or 4 wherein the pebbler head displacement means are connected to the wheels for driving the pebbler head movement from the wheels.
7. A pebbler according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, including a pump for delivering water under pressure from the water container to the pebbler head.
8. A pebbler according to any one of Claims 1 to 7 wherein the pebbler head displacement means include vertical adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base for vertical adjustment.
9. A pebbler according to any one of Claims 1 to 8 wherein the pebbler head displacement means include angular adjustment means mounting the pebbler head on the base for angular adjustment to change the orientation of the pebbler head with respect to the ice surface.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2201684 CA2201684C (en) | 1997-04-03 | 1997-04-03 | Ice pebbling |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2201684 CA2201684C (en) | 1997-04-03 | 1997-04-03 | Ice pebbling |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2201684A1 CA2201684A1 (en) | 1998-10-03 |
| CA2201684C true CA2201684C (en) | 2003-06-17 |
Family
ID=4160316
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2201684 Expired - Fee Related CA2201684C (en) | 1997-04-03 | 1997-04-03 | Ice pebbling |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2201684C (en) |
Families Citing this family (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN104964500B (en) * | 2015-07-05 | 2017-06-06 | 金烜伊 | A kind of grinding roller formula trash ice snowmaker |
| CN104913560B (en) * | 2015-07-05 | 2017-03-22 | 张鑫 | Spiral guide snow maker |
-
1997
- 1997-04-03 CA CA 2201684 patent/CA2201684C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CA2201684A1 (en) | 1998-10-03 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEER | Examination request | ||
| MKLA | Lapsed |
Effective date: 20170403 |