CA2496232A1

CA2496232A1 - Material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track

Info

Publication number: CA2496232A1
Application number: CA 2496232
Authority: CA
Inventors: Bill Mclellan; Steve Schmidt
Original assignee: AGRITRAC EQUIPMENT Ltd
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-02-02
Filing date: 2005-02-02
Publication date: 2006-08-02

Abstract

A material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track, which includes an endless vehicular track supported by a track frame. The track frame having a drive wheel engaging and driving the track and two spaced apart idler wheels with rollers inbetween supporting the track. Shield plates are secured to the face of the track frame. The plates fit within boundaries defined by the track and are adapted to fill gaps through which debris might otherwise pass through to the endless track. The rollers, idler wheels and drive wheel are left open. Arcuate shields are secured to the face of the track frame in a position overlying the idler wheels. A downwardly angled elongated shield is secured to the face of the track frame between the idler wheels and immediately above the rollers.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION:
Material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to guards mountable to a vehicular track to prevent the incursion of material, which might interfere with track operation.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
When foreign material enters a vehicular track, such foreign material may interfere with the operation of the track. A number of patents have been filed which are intended to address this problem: U.S. Patent 1,992,702 (Koop 1935); U.S. Patent 2,146,882 (Baker 1939); U.S. Patent 2,418,610 (Webb 1947); U.S. Patent 3,861,762 (Freedy et al 1975); U.S.
Patent 4,531,787 (Hart et al 1985); U.S. Patent 4,553,790 (Boggs 1985); and U.S. Patent 5,775,447 (Dester et al 1998).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention there is provided a material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track, which includes an endless vehicular track supported by a track frame. The track frame having a drive wheel engaging and driving the track and two 2 0 spaced apart idler wheels with rollers in between supporting the track.
Shield plates are secured to the face of the track frame. The plates fit within boundaries defined by the track and are adapted to fill gaps through which debris might otherwise pass through to the endless track. The rollers, idler wheels and drive wheel are left open.
Arcuate shields are secured to the face of the track frame in a position overlying the idler wheels. A
2 5 downwardly angled elongated shield is secured to the face of the track frame between the idler wheels and immediately above the rollers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
30 These and other features of the invention will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to in any way limit the scope of the invention to the particular embodiment or embodiments shown, wherein:
FIG.1 is a side elevation view of a vehicular track;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the vehicular track in FIG. 1 with a material deflecting guard assembly attached in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of a shield plate;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an arcuate shield;
FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of a downwardly angled shield; and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a fender.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiment, a material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track generally identified by reference numeral 10, will now be described with reference to FIGURES 1 through 6.
Structure and Relationship of Parts:
Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown an endless vehicular track 12. Track 12 is supported by a track frame 14, which has a drive wheel 16 engaging and driving track 12 and two spaced apart idler wheels 18 with rollers 20 in between supporting track 12. To protect endless track 12 from foreign material, material deflecting guard assembly 10 is 2 0 used as depicted in FIG. 1. Material deflecting guard assembly 10 includes shield plates 22 are secured to the face 24 of track frame 14, and are shown in detail in FIG.

3. Shiled plates 22 are bolted to arcuate shields 26 using, for example, 5/8" x 1"
bolts. Plates 22 fit within boundaries defined by track 12 and are adapted to fill gaps through which debris might otherwise pass through to track 12 while leaving rollers 20, idler wheels 18 and 2 5 drive wheel 16 open. Arcuate shields 26, shown in more detail in FIG. 4, are secured to track frame 14, such as by welding arm 27 onto track frame 14, in a position overlying idler wheels 18. A downwardly angled elongated shield 28, shown in more detail in FIG.
5, is secured to face 24 of track frame 14 between idler wheels 18 and immediately above rollers 20 by using, for example, S/8" x 3/4" bolts. A fender 30, shown in more detail in 3 0 FIG. 6, is secured to a vehicular frame (not shown) overlying drive wheel 16 by using, or example, 1/2" x 1" bolts.

Operation:
The use and operation of material deflecting guard assembly will now be discussed with reference to FIGS 1 through 6. Referring to FIG. 1, an endless vehicular track is supplied. Referring to FIG. 2, shield plates 22 are secured to face 24 of track frame 24 to prevent debris from passing through any gaps. Arcuate shields 26 are also secured to face 24 of track frame 14 overlying idler wheels 18. Downwardly angled elongated shield 28 is secured to track frame 14 between idler wheels 18 and immediately above rollers 20. A
fender 30 is attached to a vehicular frame (not shown) overlying drive wheel 16. As endless track 12 travels, guards 22, 26, 28, and 30 prevent debris from accumulating within track 12.
As rollers 20, idler wheels 18 and drive wheel 16 are left open, debris that does enter is not trapped in side and is expelled during movement.
Advantages:
The present guards were developed to meet a need experienced when working in wood chip piles associated with saw mills. It was determined that existing guards did not provide adequate protection. The wood chip piles experience periodic collapses or "avalanches". These avalanches of wood chips would circumvent the guards and become packed inside the vehicular tracks.
2 0 In this patent document, the word "comprising" is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article "a" does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be one and only one of the elements.
(t will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the illustrated embodiment without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter defined in the Claims.

Claims

1. A material deflecting guard assembly for a vehicular track, comprising:
an endless vehicular track supported by a track frame which has a drive wheel engaging and driving the track and two spaced apart idler wheels with rollers inbetween supporting the track;
shield plates secured to the face of the track frame, the plates fitting within boundaries defined by the track and being adapted to fill gaps through which debris might otherwise pass through to the endless track while leaving rollers, idler wheels and drive wheel open;
arcuate shields secured to the track frame in a position overlying the idler wheels; and a downwardly angled elongated shield secured to the face of the track frame between the idler wheels and immediately above the rollers.

2. The assembly as defined in Claim 1, wherein a fender is secured to a vehicular frame overlying the drive wheel.