US1963928A - Leaning wheel grader - Google Patents

Description

F. E. ARNDT June 19, 1934.

LEANING WHEEL GRADER 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 13, 1930 June 19, 1934. F. E. ARNDT LEANING WHEEL GRADER 13, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec.

Patented June 19, 1934 UNITED STATES LEANING W HEEL GKADER Franklin E. Arndt, Gallon, Ohio, assignor to The Gallon Iron Works & Mfg. 00., Galion, Ohio,

a corporation of Ohio Application December 13, 1930, Serial No. 502,222

21 Claims.

This invention relates to leaning wheel graders of the general character disclosed in my former Patents 1,655,303 and 1,579,803. In Patent No. 1,655,303, there was a main frame made up of articulated sections. The rear sections were relatively short and were pivotally connected to the forward sections for lateral swinging movement. Mounted upon the extremities of these rear sections for swinging movement therewith was a rear axle and carried by this rear axle were the two rear wheels mounted upon knuckles so that they could be canted from a vertical plane into a downwardly inclined position in either direction. In this patent the two rear sections which supported the rear axle are at all times in parallel relation to each other and the rear axle remains in a vertical plane throughout all of its movements. The wheels could be leaned to the right or to the left but no means was provided to cause the rear wheels to tend to run toward the road or toward the work. It was diflicult with this machine to hold the blade to the work.

In Arndt Patent 1,679,803, means was provided to automatically skew the rear axle or turn it on a vertical pivot when the rear axle was shifted to one side or the other of the longitudinal center line of the machine. The skewing of the rear axle positioned the rear wheels so that they would tend to run toward the road and thereby hold the blade to its work.

However,if the grader shown in Patent 1,679,803 was being used for bank sloping or cutting down a bank and widening the road it was necessary to shift the rear axle in a direction to cause the wheels to run in a direction which would not hold the blade to its work. In other words, if the rear axle was shifted to the left with the rear section of the machine, this would cause the rear wheels to tend to run to the left, and yet in bank sloping it might be very desirable to shift the rear axle to the left and yet have the rear wheels tend to run to the right. Thus my present invention particularly relates to means whereby the rear wheels may be automatically shifted into a position to cause the machine to tend to shift laterally toward the work to thus counteract the lateral draft in the opposite direction caused by the action of the work against a laterally inclined scraper or mold board and the object of this invent on is to provide, generally speaking, a construction such that when the rear section of the frame of the rear axle is shifted laterally from a medial position in either direction and the wheels are leaned, the wheels shall be shifted around a vertical axis as it were to cause the wheels to run toward the right or toward the left.

One of the objects of the present invention therefore is to provide means for bodily shifting the wheels laterally while maintaining the rear axle frame at all times at right angles to the line of draft and combining with suchshifting means, mechanism for leaning the wheels either to the right or left while automatically shifting the axes of the wheels to cause the wheels to run toward the right or toward the left to counteract the tendency of the mold board to shift the rear end of the machine laterally. For instance, if the mold board is inclined from the center of a narrow road toward the upper level of a bank at the side of the road and it is desired to widen the road by cutting down the bank and cause the mold board to move the material farther away from the center of the road, the rear wheels may be shifted to the left so as to bring the right-hand front and rear wheels into alinement parallel to the right-hand line to which the road is to be widened. Then upon shifting the rear wheels into vertical planes their tops will be shifted toward the right with the result that the individual axes of the wheels will be automatically shifted into positions to cause the wheels to tend to run toward the said right-hand line, thus counteracting the tendency of the mold board to shift the rear end of the machine toward the center of the road. In the same manner if the upwardly sloping bank at the left-hand side of the road is to be cut off and the material moved further away from the center of the road, the rear wheels may be shifted toward the right, and the tops of the wheels leaned toward the left which will shift the rear wheel axes individually into such positions as to cause the rear wheels to tend to run further away from the center of the road to counteract the tendency of the mold board to shift the rear end of the machine toward the center of the road. While the leaning of the wheels and the shifting of the axes of the wheels are interdependent, such leaning and shifting are independent of the mechanism for shifting the rear wheels laterally. However, the mechanism for shifting the rear wheels laterally co-operates with the leaning mechanism and the means for shifting the axes of the wheels; to support the rear'wheels in the desired positions relative to the front wheels, in the desired vertical planes, and for the desired direction of travel, while the rear'axle remains at right angles to the line of draft of the machine.

A further object is to prov-idea construction of this character in which the pivots for the knuckles of the rear wheels are not disposed in an absolutely horizontal plane as was the case in my Patent No. 1,655,303, for instance, but wherein the pivots for the knuckles are disposed in a plane inclined. to the horizontal, as for instance, downwardly and forwardly, so that if the wheels are leaned in one direction or the other, they will be at the same time slightly turned in a horizontal plane in one lateral direction or the other.

A further object is to provide a construction of this character wherein the shifting toward the right or left from the center line of the machine of the rear axle has nothing whatever to do with causing the wheels to run in a direction toward the right or left, but wherein if the axle is shifted to the right or left and it is desirable to have the wheels run to the left in the one case or right in the other, the wheels are leaned as toward the right or toward the left, this leaning action automatically causing the wheels to turn about a vertical axis to cause the machine to move laterally in the direction desired.

Another object of the invention is to provide parallel motion mechanism for shifting the rear axle laterally so that the latter may be maintained at all times at right angles to the line of draft of the machine, such parallel motion mechanism comprising spaced-apart parallel bars symmetrically connected to the axle so as to maintain uniform' the distribution of the pull exerted on the rear axle, and combining with such parallel motion mechanism independently operable means for varying the inclination or leaning of the wheels and the direction of the travel thereof, the mechanism for supporting the wheels in their adjusted positions cooperating with the parallel motion mechanism to hold the wheels in the desired positions when the grader including the mold board is being operated while the latter is in an adjusted angular position.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

My invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a leaning wheel grader constructed in accordance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Figure 3 Figure 3 is a fragmentary rear elevation of the grader;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary top plan View thereof, particularly in section; I

Figure 5 is a section on the line 55 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a plan view of one of the skew pivot blocks disposed between the axles;

Figure 8 is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the manner in which the rear wheels when canted tend to guide the rear end of the machine toward the left. a I

Referring to Figure 1, it will be seen that therein I have illustrated an elevational view of a leaning wheel grader of the general character referred to. The frame of the grader includes the longitudinally extending frame beams 10 which are upwardly arched, the forward ends of the frame beams being operatively connected to each other and mounted upon a bolster in turn connected to the front axle-in'any suitable or desired manner. This front axle 11 carries the usual tongue 12 and the usual front wheels 13.

This frame supports the draw bars 14 which in turn support the circle 15 upon which the scraper or mold board 16 is mounted. The means for raising or lowering the draw bars or rotating the circle to angle the blade are not part of the present invention. Therefore, all parts extraneous to the present invention are omitted from the drawings.

The rear ends of the frame beams 10 may be horizontal or may as illustrated be connected to horizontal angle irons 17, the horizontal angle irons supporting a platform upon which the operator may stand. It will be noted from Figure 4, that upright elements 18 are attached to the forward ends of the angle irons 17 and that to the rear faces of these upright members 18 are attached the angles 19 and 20. These angles 19 and 20 may be rigidly connected to each other and riveted or otherwise attached to the vertical members 18 or they may be simply angle irons attached to these members 18.

These angle irons l9 and 20 have horizontally disposed portions to carry pins or bolts 21. Preferably the angle iron 20 will extend entirely across the rear end of the machine.

The rear axle structure embraces a frame indicated generally at 21a, the axle broadly considered including two angle irons 22 and 23 extending transversely of the machine, this angle iron axle supporting, in a manner to be hereafter stated, the knuckles of the rear wheels. This axle is operatively connected adjacent its opposite ends to longitudinally extending links 24 or parallel bars. These each consist of a length of steel bent upon itself so that each bar has the form of an elongated U, each bar at its b ight end having welded therein the vertically ex-' tending sleeve 25. Disposed above and below the axle is a vertically disposed fork like member or axle end 26 having a shank designated generally 27, this shank being formed with two transversely extending bolt holes 28. The free ends of each U-shaped link or bar 24 embrace this shank 27 and bolts 29 pass through the ends of each bar or link and through the bolt holes 28, thus holding the axle end or fork 26 to these bars 24. It is to be understood that these bars 24 whatever their form, constitute in effect rear sections of the supporting frame of the machine so that the supporting frame is thus formed of two articulated sections, that is, a forward section supported at its forward end by the forward wheels and a rear section supported at its rear end by the rear wheels and pivoted to the forward section.

Disposed between the angle irons 22 and 23 of the rear axle is a skew pivot block designated generally 30.

This consists of a malleable iron casting formed to provide two parallel spaced horizontal bolt receiving sleeves 31 connected by a web 32, a vertical web 33. intersecting the web 32 at its middle, this vertical web 33 having its edge face cut away at its middle and being designed to bear against the inner faces of the angle irons 22 and 23. Bolts 34 pass through the angle irons 22 and 23 and through the sleeves 31 to hold the skew pivot blocks in position upon the axle. Each block is formed at its center with a vertically extending bearing sleeve 35 which is adapted to aline with eyes 36 formed in the ends of the fork 26. A pivot bolt 37 passes vertically through the eyes 36 and through the sleeve 35.

It is to be particularly noted from Figure 6 that while the sleeve 35 is vertical, the sleeves 31 are not exactly horizontal, In other words, the

end faces of the web 33 are inclined downward and rearward relative to a truly vertical plane and the bolts 34 and sleeves 31 are inclined downward and forward relative to a truly horizontal plane and thus the vertical flanges of the angle irons 22 and 23 are nottruly vertical but are inclined upward and forward while the horizontal flanges of the angle irons 22 and 23 are inclined downward and forward at a slight angle to the horizontal. As illustrated in the drawings, the inclination or forward tilt of the axle, therefore, is approximately three degrees from a true vertical plane, though the pin 37 is truly vertical. is a very important feature of the invention as will appear hereinafter.

Mounted between the extremities of the angle irons 22 and 23 which constitute the axle, are the knuckles 38 for the wheels 39, these knuckles being pivoted upon pivot pins 40 extending through the angle irons 22 and 23 of the axle parallel to the bolts 34 and, therefore, these pivot pins 40 extend downward and forward at a slight inclination to the horizontal plane. The knuckles 33 have upwardly extending arms 41 which are connected by transverse link bars 42 pivoted to the arms 41. Each link bar carries upon it at its middle or in any desired position, the curved or downwardly bowed rack 43. Mounted in the axle are the pinions 44 which engage the rack 43. Each pinion 44 is mounted upon a shaft extending through the angle irons 22 and 23 and between these angle irons is mounted a worm wheel 45 with which a vertical worm shaft 46 engages having a hand wheel (not shown) at its upper end whereby the shaft may be rotated. By rotating the shaft in one direction or the other, the connecting bar 42 is shifted in one direction or the other, thus tilting the wheels 39 from a median position in one direction or the other. Any suitable means may be used for shifting the bars 42 and thereby tilting the wheels and I do not wish to be limited to any particular means whereby the knuckles may be tilted to tilt the wheels.

For the purpose of shifting the parallel link bars or rear sections 24 of the frame from a median position toward the right or toward the left to thereby angle the supporting frame or angle the front and rear sections of the supporting frame with reference to each other, I mount upon the rear of the forward supporting frame the screw 4'7 which is mounted in suitable bearings and carries a traveling nut 48 slidably carried upon a transverse guide 49. This nut 48 is pivotally connected to a link 50 which link at one end is operatively pivoted to the sections or links 24 which constitute the rear frame in a manner to be later explained.

The screw 47 is rotated by any suitable means controlled by the operator, as for instance, by a bevel gear 51 mounted upon the screw 47 and engaging the bevel gear 52 mounted upon a vertical shaft 53 which carries a hand wheel (not shown) Thus by rotating the screw 47 in one direction or the other the links or rear sections 24 and the rear axle may be shifted toward the right or toward the left from a median position. I do not wish to be limited to any particular means for shifting these rear sections 24 and the rear axle therewith, that is, to any particular means for angling the forward and rear sections of the frame as other means than that shown might be used without departing from the spirit of the invention. It will be seen now that, without regard to the position of the rear section of the supporting frame and the rear axle, whether'in an intermediate position or an offset or angled position, that if the wheels 39 are disposed in a vertical position and not canted, the wheels will tend to run straight ahead, but if the wheels are canted outward at the top and toward the left hand side of the machine, the plane of the wheel, because the pivot 40 is disposed in a plane inclined to the horizontal, will be at an angle to the line of draft so that the left hand wheel will be inclined forward and away from the line of draft while the right hand wheel will be inclined toward the line of draft, that is, the longitudinal axis of the machine. If on the other hand, the left hand wheel is canted outward at the bottom and inward at the top of the wheel and the right hand wheel is in parallel relation, as, of course, it must be; the wheels 39 will then be so turned in a horizontal plane that they will tend to skew the rear of the machine toward the right instead of toward the left.

In other words, if the pivots 40 of the wheel knuckles were disposed in a vertical plane, the wheels would then act as steering wheels. If the pivots 49 of the knuckles were disposed in an absolutely horizontal plane, the wheels 39 would then simply perform the function of leaning wheels resisting lateral draft but if the pivot pins 40 are disposed at an inclination to the horizontal, they will act both as leaning wheels and as steering wheels for the rear end of the machine and the degree of their angle to the line of draft or longitudinal axis of the machine will depend entirely upon the angle of the pivot pins 40 to the horizontal.

While I have illustrated the pivot pins 40 as having an inclination of three degrees to a horizontal plane, I, of course, do not wish to be limited to this as it might be desirable to have these pivot pins tilted to as much as eight or ten degrees or anywhere between these degrees or less than three degrees if desired. I have illustrated the axle itself as being tilted at a three degree angle relative to a vertical plane to thus tilt the pivot pins 40 at a three degree angle to a horizontal plane, but I do not wish to be limited to an axle which is tilted, as it is only necessary that the pivot pins should be tilted with reference to a horizontal plane. For practical reasons, however, it is best to form the axle so that it is tilted in this manner as thus the pivot pins 40 will extend through the axle at right angles to the planes of the angle irons thereof and the connection of the pivot pins to the axle will be, therefore, much more rigid and strong.

It is necessary to provide some means for supporting the rear end of the front section of the grader upon the swinging rear sections 24. To this end, I attach to the rear sections or links 24 the transversely extending parallel angle irons 54 as shown most clearly in Figures 2 and 4. These angle irons are connected to the swinging sections 24 by means of pins 55 passing through the shanks 27 and held in place by the nuts 56. These pins are square at their upper ends and extend down between the upwardly extending flanges of the angle irons 54 and the pins 55 are pinned to the angle irons bythe transverse pins 55a (see Figure 2). The angle irons 54 are parallel to each other and extend through and are slidable in the downwardly and inwardly turned flanges 57 of slides 58 (see Figure 2). These slides 58 are slidably mounted upon the longitudinal angle irons 17 as shown in Figure 4.

Thus it will be seen that the angle irons 54 slide transversely through the members 58 and the draft of the machine.

members 58 in turn slide upon the angle irons 17. Thus these links or rear sections 24 have sliding engagement with the rear ends of the front section of the machine and an efficient support is provided for this rear section. The link is pivotally connected at 59 to a plate 60 in turn connected to the sliding angle irons 54 and thus as the nut 48 is shifted to the right or to the left, the angle irons 54 are shifted to the right 01' to the left carrying with them the links or rear sections 24.

While the above stated construction is a preferable one, it will be understood that the detailed construction might be modified in many ways without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

While I have hereinbefore referred to this machine as being used for widening roadways while the mold board is in a bank sloping position, I wish to point out that the mechanism for varying the direction of travel of the rear wheels also operates efiectively when the mold board is in certain bank sloping positions to move the cut material toward the center of the roadway. For instance, if the machine is traveling forwardly with the mold board at the right hand side of the machine in bank sloping position for cutting material and moving it inside of the path of travel of the right hand rear wheel 39 as viewed in Figure 3, the tendency would be for the rear end of the machine to be shifted away from the center of the roadway. Now by operating the leaning wheel mechanism so that the rear wheels may be kept in vertical planes with the right hand 1 rear wheel at a lower level, as for instance, in a ditch, at the side of the roadway and with the left hand rear wheel up on the roadway, and the rear axle frame 22 inclined downwardly from the left toward the right as viewed in Figure 3, the

outer end of the spindle of the right hand knuckle 38 will be thrown forwardly and the outer end of the spindle of the left hand knuckle 38 will be thrown rearwardly, thereby changing the direction of travel of the rear wheels toward the center of the roadway. The change of direction of travel ground. The shifting tendency of the mold board will consequently be effectively counteracted. It should be particularly noted that this is accomplished while maintaining the rear axle frame 23, 23 at all times at right angles to the line of The means for adjusting the rear wheels relative to the rear axle frame 23, 23 being independent of the mechanism for effecting lateral shifting of the said axle frame.

It is to be particularly noted that shifting of the rear axle to the right or left of the center line of the machine has nothing whatever to do with causing the wheels to run toward the blade or toward one side of the road or the other side of the road. Therefore, if the axle is shifted toward the left and it is desired to have the wheels run to the right, the wheels are leaned to the right and if it be desirable that they run to the left, under the same circumstances, the wheels are leaned to the left. This is particularly advis able where, as in bank sloping, as before remarked, it may be desirable to shift the rear axle to the left and yet have the rear wheels tend to run toward the right. In my construction, the canting of the rear wheels from a vertical plane in one direction or the other tends to cause the rear end of the machine to move toward the left or toward the right and this without reference to whether the forward and rear sections of the machine have been angled with reference to each other or not.

With this construction, I not only provide a leaning wheel resistance to side draft, but I provide for automatically turning the rear wheels in a direction tending to shift the rear of the machine toward the work, thus further resisting this side draft, which side draft is particularly powerful in machines of this type.

I claim:-

1. An implement of the character described, having forward wheels, a rear axle and rear wheels, the rear wheels being mounted upon'the rear axle for tilting movement toward or from a vertical plane, and the pivotal connection of the rear wheels to the rear axle being disposed on a downward and forward inclination.

2. An implement of the character described having an axle and wheels tiltably mounted upon the axle for movement toward or from a vertical plane, the pivotal connection of each wheel to the axle having its axis disposed at an inclination to a horizontal plane.

3. An implement of the character described having a supporting frame formed of flexibly connected front and rear sections, a forward axle having forward wheels, 2. rear axle, wheels tiltably mounted upon the rear axle, toward or from a vertical plane, the pivotal connections of the rear wheels to the rear axle being disposed with their axes extending downward and forward with relation to a horizontal plane.

4. An implement of the character described,

having a supporting frame formed of flexibly I connected front and rear sections whereby the sections may be angled laterally with relation to each other, a front axle having forward wheels, a rear axle upon which the rear sections are supported, knuckles pivotally mounted upon the rear axle for oscillation in an inclined plane, wheels mounted upon the knuckles, and manually operable means for tilting said wheels from or toward a vertical plane, the pivotal connections of the knuckles to the rear axle having their axes dis posed at an inclination to the horizontal and at right angles to said inclined plane whereby after said wheels are tilted, said knuckles will be turned in said inclined plane.

5. An implement of the character described, having a supporting frameformed of flexibly connected front and rear sections, a forward axle and forward wheels for the forward section, a rear axle supporting the rear section, knuckles pivotally connected to the rear axle, each knuckle oscillating upon an axis extending downward and forward at an inclination to a horizontal plane, wheels mounted upon the knuckles, each knuckle having an arm, a connecting rod between the arms and the knuckles, and manually operable means for shifting the connecting rod in one direction or the other to thus tilt the wheels.

6. An implement of the character described, having a supporting frame formed of flexibly connected front and rear sections, means for angling said sections with relation to each other, the forward axle having forward wheels, a rear axle upon which the rear supporting section is mounted, knuckles pivotally mounted upon the rear axle, the axis for each knuckle being approximately parallel to the line of draft but being disposed at an angle to a horizontal plane,

wheels mounted upon the knuckles, and manually controllable means whereby the knuckles and wheels may be tilted.

'7. An implement of the character described, formed of flexibly connected front and rear sections, a forward axle and forward wheels on the forward section, a rear axle comprising two horizontally spaced members, the confronting faces of the members being disposed at an angle to a vertical plane, pivot blocks disposed between and spacing the members apart and each having a plurality of passages at right angles to the confronting faces of the said members, and each having a pivot bolt passage, bolts extending through the members and the first named passages, the rear sections of the supporting frame having forks at their rear ends embracing the axle and said blocks, pivot bolts passing through said forks and the vertical passages in the blocks, and rear wheels tiltably mounted on the axle, the axis for each wheel extending forward and rearward and being disposed at an angle to a horizontal plane.

, 8. An implement of the character described, having a supporting frame formed of flexibly connected front and rear sections, a forward axle and forward wheels for the forward section, a rear axle comprising two horizontally spaced angle irons, the confronting faces of the angle irons being disposed at an angle to a vertical plane, pivot blocks disposed between the angle irons and spacing them apart, each block being formed to provide a medial vertical web having end faces engaging against the inner faces of the angle irons, and integral sleeves on opposite sides of and parallel with the web defining bolt passages, the block having at its center a vertical sleeve, constituting a bolt passage, there being webs integrally connecting the vertical sleeve 1 with the first named web and the first named sleeves, the rear ends of the rear sections of the supporting frame having forks embracing the rear axle and said blocks and having alined bolt openings, bolts passing through the angle irons and said first-named sleeves, pivot bolts passing through the alined openings of the fork and through the second named sleeves, and rear wheels having knuckles pivotally mounted on the extremities of the axle, the pivotal axis for each ,knuckle being disposed at an inclination to a horizontal plane, and means for tilting said knuckles and the rear wheels.

9. An implement of the character described having a supporting frame formed of flexibly conheated front and rear sections, a forward axle and forward wheels for the forward section, a rear axle disposed rearward of the front section, the front section having horizontal portions ex tending toward the rear axle, a pair of links pivotally connected to the front section forward of the rear end thereof and pivotally connected to the rear axle, a transverse bar pivotally connected to said links and extending beneath the horizontal portions at the rear of the forward section, and members slidingly mounted upon the horizontal portions of the forward section for movement parallel to the line of draft, the transverse bar connecting the links having sliding engagement with said members.

10. An implement of the character described, having a supporting frame formed of a forward section and a rear section, a forward axle and forward wheels on the forward section, the forward section at its rear end having horizontal elements, a rear axle disposed rearward of the horizontal elements of the forward section, links constituting the rear section of the frame and pivotally connected to the forward section of the frame and operating beneath the horizontal elements of the forward section, a pair of transversely extending bars pivoted to said links and moving transversely with the links, and means for securing sliding engagement of the bars with the horizontal elements of the forward section. lL'An implement of the character described, having a supporting frame formed of a forward section and a rear section, a forward axle and forward wheels on the forward section, the forward section at its rear end having horizontal elements, a rear axle disposed rearward of the horizontal elements of the forward section, links constituting the rear section of the frame and pivotally connected to the forward section of the frame and operating beneath the horizontal elements of the forward section, a pair of transversely extending bars pivoted to said links and moving transversely with the links, slides mounted upon the horizontal elements of the forwardsection for movement parallel to the line of draft, the slides having downwardly extending inturned flanges embracing the transverse bars and through which the transverse bars slide.

12. An implement of the character described, comprising a forward section and a rear section, the forward section having at its forward end a front axle and front wheels, said forward section comprising a frame including horizontally extending elements at the rear end of the frame and vertical elements at the forward ends of the horizontal elements, a rear axle disposed rearward of the horizontal elements, links constituting rear section ofthe frame and having forks at their rear ends pivotally connected to the rear axle, bolts mounted upon the vertical elements and extending downward through the forward ends of the links whereby to pivotally connect the links of the rear section to the forward section a pairof angle irons extending transversely beneath the rear ends of the horizontal elements, pins pivotally connecting said angle irons to the rear ends of the links, members slidingly mounted upon the horizontal elements for movement parallel to the line of draft and through which members the transverse angle irons slide, a transversely extending screw mounted upon the horizontal elements, manually operable means for rotating said screw, a traveling nut mounted upon the screw and an operative connection between said traveling nut and said transversely extending angle irons.

13. An implement of the character described including a supporting frame comprising a front section and forward wheels supporting the front section, a rear section comprising a rear axle having supporting wheels, and links pivotally connecting said rear axle to the front section, said links comprising elongated U-shaped members operatively pivoted at their bight ends to the forward section, members forked at their rear ends to embrace the rear axle and at their forward ends bolted to the rear end portions of said U-shaped members, and pivot pins extending through the forked ends of said members and the rear axle.

14.. A road grader of the character described having an axle, wheels and knuckles upon which the wheels are mounted, the knuckles being pivoted to the axle, the pivotal axes of the knuckles being inclined forward and downward relative to a horizontal plane whereby as the wheels are tilted, said knuckles will be shifted in a plane extending at right angles to the axes of said knuckles.

15. A road grader comprising an adjustable mold board, a rear axle frame, means for shifting said rear axle later-ally while confining it to positions at right angles to the line of draft, spacedapart rear wheels at the ends of said axle frame, mechanism for supporting said rear wheels for adjustment in inclination and direction of travel relative to the said line of draft, and means for adjusting said supporting mechanism independently of said shifting means to vary the inclination and direction of travel of said wheels while said axle frame remains at right angles to said line of draft.

16. A road grader comprising an adjustable mold board, a rear axle, parallel motion mechanism for shifting said rear axle laterally, spacedapart rear wheels, knuckles serving as journal supports for said wheels, means for supporting said knuckles at the ends of said axle on axes at right angles to the axes of said wheels and inclined relative to a horizontal plane through said axle, and means operable independently of said parallel motion mechanism for adjusting the positions of said knuckles to vary the inclination and direction of travel of said wheels.

1'7. A road grader comprising a mold board, a rear axle, horizontal parallel motion mechanism for shifting said axle laterally while maintaining the latter at right angles to the line of draft of the machine, spaced-apart rear wheels, knuckles serving as journal supports for said Wheels and pivoted to the ends of said axle on axes inclined relative to a horizontal plane extending through said axle, upright parallel motion mechanism for adjusting said'knuckles on said axes, and means for operating said upright parallel motion mechanism independently of said horizontal parallel motion mechanism.

18. A road grader comprising an adjustable mold board, a rear axle, means for shifting the rear axle laterally while maintaining the same at right angles to the line of draft of the machine, spaced-apart rear wheels, knuckles for said wheels pivoted to said axle on axes inclined relative to a horizontal plane through said axle, and means for adjusting the positions of said knuckles to vary the inclinations of said wheels and their directions of travel to enable said mold board to cut off an upwardly sloping bank and move the material further away from the center of the road.

19. A road grader having a supporting frame, a mold board adjustably carried thereby, front Wheels, rear wheels, a rear axle frame connected to said supporting frame to remain at all times at right angles to the line of draft of the grader, knuckles providing axles for the rear wheels, and means for pivotally mounting said knuckles on said axle frame on axes inclined relative to a horizontal plane.

20. A road grader comprising an adjustable mold board, a rear axle frame, means comprising parallel motion mechanism for shifting said rear axle frame laterally while maintaining the same at right angles to the line of draft of the machine, spaced apart rear wheels, and means for mounting said rear wheels on said axle frame for adjustment of the leaning of said wheels, and their direction of travel relative to the said line of draft independently of said parallel motion mechanism to enable the travel of the rear wheels to counter-act the tendency of'the mold board to shift the rear end of the machine laterally during the operation of cutting an upwardly sloping bank.

21. A road grader including a mold board adapted to be disposed in an angular position relative to the line of draft of the machine, a rear axle frame, means for shifting said rear axle frame laterally while maintaining the same at all. times at right angles to the said line of draft, and mechanism independent of said shifting means for adjusting the leaning of the saidwheels in their direction of travel relative to said line of draft while said axle frame remains at right angles to said line of draft.

FRANKLIN E. ARNDT.

Images