FI119978B - Method and apparatus for making clubs from trees - Google Patents

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF SCALES FROM WOOD FÖRFARANDE OCH ANORDN1NG FÖR ATT TILLVERKA KLABBAR FRÄN TRÄD

| FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a method and apparatus for making chips from trees. i

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A common practice in firewood production today is felling, pruning, and often cutting to lengths suitable for transportation in the forest (and logging) of the trees afterwards, where the said trunks or logs have been transported from the forest. There are a variety of tools and equipment available on the market to make chips from frames or supports.

We do not know of any solutions available in the market for treating trees directly in the forest and also for harvesting the produced chips with the same a 15 device. However, solutions comprising at least most of the required processing steps have been developed. Here are some of them. Λ '1 U.S. Patent No. 4,291,057 discloses a robust machine that takes and processes pre-felled wood into chips. The machine is equipped with a grapple boom arrangement for grasping the felled wood and guiding it to the machine's processing line, a feeder with feed jaws, 20 pruning blades, a cutting device, splitting chambers and a tank for collecting manufactured valves.

The wood is fed with a feeder, whereby the pruning blades at the same time prune it. The wood is always fed forward to the desired length of the flap and cut with the '·% saw to the next piece to be split. The feed jaws then feed the wood forward again, whereby the body in front of the frame is squeezed and chipped against the splitting die, and the chips fall into the container at the end of the machine. The disadvantage of this solution is that it is a robust and expensive machine just designed for this purpose. However, the trees must first be felled with another machine before they can be machine treated.

U.S. Patent No. 4,398,581 discloses an apparatus for coupling to a tractor lifting device which can be used for felling, chopping and chopping wood. There are no mutations in the system. Although the hardware can perform all three functions, it is complex in design and seems difficult to use. U.S. Pat. No. 4,641,694 likewise discloses an apparatus for coupling to a tractor lifting device which can be used for felling, chopping and chopping wood.

The device is simple because it comprises only a guillotine * 35 type cutter mounted on a pivotable body, which can be used to perform all three functions. The operation of the equipment is largely manual and does not have the collection function.

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The solutions described above have not been so successful that, to our knowledge, they have been implemented at least on a larger scale.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a more versatile and functionally effective method and apparatus for felling, pruning and trimming and splitting wood and collecting the produced chips.

To accomplish this purpose, the apparatus of the invention for producing chips from wood comprising a treatment frame and associated retaining means, a cutting device and a pruning device for engaging and cutting wood in a first step and then pruning, chopping the body into pieces and splitting the pieces apart characterized by what is defined in the characterizing part of independent claim 1.

Claims 2 to 4 define certain embodiments of the device according to the invention.

To accomplish this purpose, the method of the invention for producing chips from wood with a device comprising a treatment frame and an attachment thereto.

apparatus for engaging and cutting wood in the first step and then for pruning the tree, cutting the body into pieces and splitting the pieces in the second step, and apart from the processing body, the cutting blade 20 is characterized in what is defined in the independent claim 5. Claim 6 defines an embodiment of the method of the invention.

The device according to the invention is adaptable for use with various machine tools. For example, it can be attached to the tractor's three-point linkage, mounted on a separate hydraulic jack or mounted on a forestry machine boom. The drive force 25 of the device can be taken from the main engine's hydraulic system. The unit can also be equipped with its own hydraulic and control system, which depends on the main machine.

The simple construction of the device is made possible by the fact that the tree is felled through a pivot point in the trunk. Then the base of the tree is made to rise from the ground to the desired height at which splitting and splitting is performed and from which the chips produced can fall into the collection and transport space. Otherwise, it would have to be transported on conveyors, thus making the structure more difficult.

The use of a cutting device specific to the invention for performing various tasks makes the solution simple and inexpensive.

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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 schematically illustrates a possible embodiment of the device according to the invention;

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Viewed from 5 pages,.

Fig. 2 is a top view of the device of Fig. 1, Figures 3-6 illustrate a possible embodiment of the cutting device of the device according to the invention, and Figures 7-11 show a method according to the invention.

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The device 1 in Figures 1 and 2 is mounted on the arms 3 of the three-point linkage of the tractor 2 and is powered by the tractor's hydraulic system. The device is shown schematically and in greater detail only to the extent necessary to understand the invention. Even some of the actuators are shown only in general and some are omitted entirely, and only the essential actuators are shown in more detail. The hydraulic system itself and its control are not shown. As mentioned above, the unit can also be equipped with its own hydraulic and steering system.

The device 1 has a frame frame 4 mounted on the rear by means of a joint 5, a frame 7 comprising means for cutting, pruning and moving wood, a front upward splitting blade 17 and a side collector container 20. The handling frame 7 is pivotable by the joint 5 8.

The handling body 7 has a trough space 6 for receiving and grasping the wood 23 and, on one side thereof, retaining means 12 which are pivoted by means of lever arrangements 21 of the respective actuators 13 and 25 to hold the body 23 in its trough against its bottom and opposite sides. Preferably, the retaining means 12 consist of a spindle having a roll of, for example, a hexagonal cross-section mounted thereon. Such a roll holds the body pressed against it but rotates and allows the body to be moved when pushed or pulled with sufficient force. The roll may also be wholly or partially conically expandable in shape to also hold larger wood in place. Actuator 13 which presses the body of the retaining means! ii, may comprise a suitable spring arrangement in addition to the hydraulic cylinder.

The uppermost processing frame is provided with a pruning blade unit 11, which can be realized * in a conventional manner, for example by means of curved blades 35 pressed against the tree frame. The pruning blade unit is not shown in more detail here, and is completely omitted from Figure 2. Also, Figure 2 does not show the connection of the device to the tractor as it is well illustrated in Figure 1.

The frame 7 is also fitted with a boom 15 sliding up and down in the position of Figure 1, for example by means of a roller guide 22, with a lowering device 14 at its lower end. The booms and 5 cutting devices are moved relative to the body by hydraulic cylinders 15.

The body 7 with its devices is pivoted on the joint 5 by a hydraulic cylinder 8 which acts between the beam 8 supported on the frame 4 and the bracket 10 on the side of the body 7.

The splitting blade 17 is supported in a suitable position and position relative to the frame frame 4 by a support plate 18. Below the blade is a trough 19, where the split trees fall and from which they slide into a collection container 20.

A possible embodiment and operation of the cutting device 14 will be described in more detail with reference to Figures 3-6. The boom 15 and the cut-off device are moved relative to the frame 7 by hydraulic cylinders 16 according to control. The cutting device 14 has a plate-like body 24, to which brackets 26 are connected at one end of the hydraulic cylinders. The cutting blade 27 with 15 cutting blades 28 is pivotally mounted to the body 24 by a joint 30. The joint 30 and the second joint 31 to which the hydraulic cylinder 32 operating between the frame and the cutting blade are connected are · positioned in the reinforced body portion 29 of the cutting blade. a hook-like portion 25 which is bifurcated as indicated by the dashed line so as to form a space 25 'between the plates on both sides, adapted to receive a pivoting blade 27. Also, the inside edges of the plates of the counterpart are beveled.

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate the operation and use of a batch unit which plays an essential role in the process of the invention. In the device according to the invention, the cutting device is also used to move the body and push the body to be cut against the splitting blade. For this purpose, the wood is mainly cut from the desired point of the length of the chips to be produced, for example as shown in Figure 5. Here, the blade 27 is rotated by means of a hydraulic cylinder to a position where only a small portion of the wood connects to the body 23 to be cut, but the blade is stopped in this position while retaining pressure on the wood. The wood is pressed against the bevelled edges 30 of the vascals. When the wood is subsequently pushed against the splitting blade by means of the cutting device and at the same time pulled so that the pruning blades prune it, the forces and stresses resulting therefrom are greatly exerted on the counterpart and body of the cutting device and respectively on the blade. The splitting blade comes against the end of the tree as indicated by the dotted line L. When the cutting blade 27 has come close to the splitting blade i: 35, it is rotated further so that it is finally in the position shown in Fig. 6f 5f, whereby the wood piece finally splits and breaks off at the end of the body.

Figures 7 to 11 illustrate, in highly schematic and reduced drawings, the operation of the device and the method according to the invention. In Fig. 7, the device is set upright against the wood 5 so that its body 23 is positioned as desired within the treatment body 7. The wood is then clamped by means of unit 14. The wood is then held in place in the treatment frame 7 by means of clamping means, a supporting cutting blade and possibly also a pruning unit and the treatment frame is pivoted by a joint 5 to a position at the base of wood. The blade 27, and the boom 15 are moved away from the base 10 to the desired length of the chop, as shown in Figure 9. The wood is then cut at this point for the most part, for example as shown in Figure 5.

By the term "for the most part" it is meant, for example, that 20% of the cross-sectional area is unbroken and holds the body to be severed in the body. In any case, a much larger portion of the cross-section is truncated than not. In practice, at this stage, the wood is cut as far as possible on the basis of the experience gained in practice, but still so that the piece to be cut is still securely stuck in the run. Next, the body 23 is pushed forward (Fig. 10) by means of a cutting device and its displacement means so that the piece to be cut is pressed against the splitting blade 17 and splinters at the end of the wood, and at the end of movement. The valves 33 formed from the cut-off piece 20 fall and enter the container 20. During transfer, the blades of the pruning unit prun the branches from the upper body. , In the next step (Fig. 11), the blade 27 of the cutting device 14 is opened again and the boom and blade assembly are again moved away from the base for the distance of the valve and so on. '

If the device according to the invention is intended to be hung on a boom of a forestry machine, then the point of attachment 25 is preferably between the joint 5 and the splitting blade 17. The collection and transport container can then act as a transport trolley for a forestry machine, for example. For attachment to a separate hydraulic hoist, the unit is suitable for small body changes. The suspension is then preferably made from the center of gravity of the device and the structures required for attaching the tractor are omitted. The collection and transport container can then serve as the machine's own pallet.

It is characteristic of the solution according to the invention that the cutting device, which is preferably a cutter or guillotine type cutting device, is essentially utilized for a number of purposes: first felling the wood, then pushing the wood against the splitting blade and pulling the frame through the pruning unit when cutting the tree to the end. It is essential and simple for the solution that the beam structure associated with the cutting device, which slides on the treatment frame by means of a pre-161 roller arrangement, acts as a guide in both splitting and pruning and in the wood feed movement.

As described above, the wood 23 is pressed into the trough of the treatment body 7 at an angle formed by its second side wall and bottom, which is preferably a right angle. Solution 5 is advantageous because the wood only needs to be pressed from one side in the direction of the corner and accordingly the retaining clips are only needed on the other side. Thus, as the wood shrinks, its center moves towards the corner, and when the splitting blade is positioned as an angle bisector, as shown in Fig. 5, the wood always splits approximately in the middle. Fixed pruning blades can also be placed on the sides of the corner, so fewer blades are needed in the pruning unit. Otherwise, this angle is realized so that the wood slides there easily.

The collection and transport container 20 may be, for example, a suitable box or basket which may be secured so that it is easy to replace the full container. The transport container may also be formed, for example, by a basket-like structure in which a suitable Suur sack is placed and secured.

The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but may vary within the scope of the appended claims.

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A

Claims (6)

A device for making sticks from trees, which device comprises a handling frame (7) and in connection therewith grippers (6,12), a cutting tool (14) and a twig tool (11) for gripping a tree and cutting it in a first step and then to cut the tree (23), cut off the trunk into pieces and split the bits in a second step and a split knife (17) arranged outside the handling frame (7), characterized in that the handling frame (7) is suspended. on a hinge (5) for pivoting the measures in the second stage to pivot it to a position where the root end of the tree (23) is directed towards the splitting knife (17), and that the cutting tool (14) has been equipped (15,16) in addition to cutting, also work as a displacement of the tree (23) to twig it and push it towards the splitting knife (17). 2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the cutting tool (14) is fixed to a boom (15) which, in order to carry out the functions of the cutting tool, is arranged to slide along the handling frame (7), wherein said boom works simultaneously as a control at the twig and the splitting of the tree. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the cutting tool (14) is of the cutting device type and comprises at least one knife (27) provided with a drive device (32). * 1 '1 Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the cutting tool (14) can be controlled to first cut the stem (23) to the bulk but not completely, whereby the stem can be displaced by means of the · · · • · ·: · 1 of said cutting tool to twig it and push it towards the splitting knife (17). • · • · · «· ·· •»: t> " 5. A method of making sticks from trees with a device comprising a handling frame ♦ · **** (7) and in connection therewith grippers (6,12), a cutting tool (14) and a twig tool (11) to. . Grab a tree and cut it in a first step and then to twig the tree (23), cut off the · · · • · ·!! the trunk in pieces and split the pieces in a second step and a split knife (17) arranged outside the handling frame (7), characterized in that the handling frame (7), which has therefore been suspended • ·: on a joint (5) , for the measures entering the second stage, a position is pivoted to the root end of the tree (23) lying thereon towards the splitting knife (17), and by the cutting tool (14) • · • · V1: the splitting knife ( 17). moreover, it is also used as a relocator of the tree (23) to twig it and push it towards 6. A method according to claim 5, characterized in that the cutting tool (14) in said second step when cutting into pieces is controlled to first cut the stem (23) to the greater part but not completely, whereby the stem can be displaced by means of said cutting tool to set it apart. and push it towards the splitting knife (17). • · • ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ «♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 1 • ·