US20150144730A1

US20150144730A1 - Rotating expandable roll-out assembly and sheet tow assembly for rolled materials

Info

Publication number: US20150144730A1
Application number: US14/550,437
Authority: US
Inventors: Larry W. Hines
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2013-11-27
Filing date: 2014-11-21
Publication date: 2015-05-28

Abstract

A roll-out assembly for use in dispensing rolled materials on to a surface. An elongated frame has opposing ends including structure for attachment to brackets rotatably attached to the rolled material. A pivot structure is attached to the elongated frame between the opposing ends. An attachment structure is connected to the pivot structure for attaching the roll-out assembly to a vehicle. A sheet tow assembly for attachment to a tow vehicle and for towing and unrolling a sheet of rolled material across a surface. An elongated bracket has a top surface for hinged attachment to a base structure and a bottom surface for attachment to the base structure. The base structure is for attachment to the tow vehicle. The top and bottom surfaces are for attachment to a portion of the sheet of rolled material to secure the sheet portion between the top and bottom surfaces.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/909,946 filed Nov. 27, 2013. The entire disclosure of the above application is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to devices for carrying and deploying rolled materials. More particularly the present disclosure relates to devices for deploying rolls of underlayment materials used in constructing road beds.

BACKGROUND

This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
The use of underlayment or substrate materials when building road beds or other structures is well known. To place the rolled-up materials on prepared soil can be cumbersome and time consuming as the materials are very heavy, typically a few thousand pounds. Also, maintaining a necessary overlap between two adjacent parallel runs of material can be difficult and may require a significant amount of physical labor to pull the material into a desired position. Typically the prior art has mounted the rolled material 10 on an assembly 12 attached to a pair of lift forks 14 on a skid loader or a similar vehicle 16, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The assembly 12 may have included connectors 18, such as clevis pins, to hang a bar and spindle assembly 20 so that the rolled material could be unrolled as the skid loader backed up in the direction of arrow 22. FIG. 2 shows a front elevation of assembly 12 without the skid loader and rolled material. Assembly 12 was formed of welded members 24 and also included box members 26 for receiving forks 14 of the skid loader 16. The connectors 18 at the top of assembly 12 provide connectors for accommodating lifts that require greater height than provided by the connectors 18 at the bottom of assembly 12.
The prior art way of unrolling the material presents a number of issues. First, it requires the vehicle to travel over the prepared soil or over the unrolled material which can disturb the soil or damage the material. There are usually limits on the type of vehicle, weight of vehicle, and type of tires that can be used to reduce that damage that may be done by the vehicle to the soil or the material. Also, the wrapped rolled material does not indicate the direction in which the material is rolled and therefore the material may need to be reloaded after the wrapping is removed, causing a waste of time. This can become significant when using certain types of rolled material that must be laid down and covered up with other material (e.g. other rolled material, soil, or pavement) within a period of time as little as 30 minutes (the rolled material deteriorates with exposure to ultraviolet light). It is desirable for the rolled material to be kept parallel to the prepared soil or road-bed so that the runs of material can be laid down quickly in place without much manual manipulation of the material by workers. The prior art lift fork attachment does not easily ensure that the rolled material stays parallel to the prepared soil surface.
In road construction, after a first layer of rolled material has been laid down, a second layer of rolled material at a non-parallel angle (often orthogonal) to the first layer may be laid down. The prior art typically accomplished this using the same assembly and skid loader shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. It is often difficult for the skid loader to pull a section of material over the necessary distances (often over 400 feet) because the skid loader is not large and powerful enough. Also, the skid loader is required to be driven backwards and this backward travel is problematic at the end of a run because the roll needs to be unhooked from the assembly and turned around for return run, which is time consuming and labor intensive.
Therefore, there is a need for a device that allows the heavy rolled materials to be movably mounted over prepared soil and easily rotated and unrolled over the prepared soil without disturbing the prepared soil or damaging the material. There is also a need for attaching a sheet of material to a vehicle (tractor, skid loader, or other vehicle that is acceptable for driving on the sheet of material) to tow the material across and on top of a previously laid layer of material.

DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a prior art depiction of unrolling a sheet of rolled material;

FIG. 2 is a prior art assembly used in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 a is a perspective of an example roll-out assembly for use in dispensing rolled materials;

FIG. 3 b is an end elevation of FIG. 3 a;

FIG. 3 c is a top elevation of FIG. 3 a;

FIG. 3 d is a side elevation of FIG. 3 a;

FIG. 4 a is a perspective of another example roll-out assembly;

FIG. 4 b is a partial perspective of FIG. 4 a taken from below the example roll-out assembly;

FIG. 5 is a perspective of a portion of an example roll-out assembly;

FIG. 6 is a cut-away elevation of an example pivot structure;

FIG. 7 is a perspective of an example tow sheet assembly; and

FIG. 8 is a graphical depiction of an example sheet laying system.

Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The attached drawings are inherently self-explanatory and disclose examples of assemblies. The example shown in the drawings FIGS. 3-6 shows a roll-out assembly that attaches to a quick-connect or other attachment (not shown) of a tow vehicle. The quick-connect attachment is known and commercially available to allow easy attachment and detachment of a variety of tools to the end of a boom arm of the tow vehicle or other parts of a tow vehicle. The boom arm may be part of a track-hoe, excavator, or other vehicle that allows the roll out assembly to be held over a prepared soil bed, such as a road bed, parking lot, or paver bed, while the vehicle travels alongside adjacent the prepared soil. In this way a roll of material attached to the roll-out assembly may be unrolled and laid out quickly, efficiently, and with minimal physical labor. Also, because the tow vehicle does not need to travel over the prepared soil no damage is done to the prepared soil, such as a road bed.
The roll-out assembly may have a rotation or pivot structure attached to the pivot plate that allows the roll-out assembly to be rotated, preferably a full 360 degrees or infinitely rotatable, to allow for easy manipulation of a suspended roll of material to ensure that the material is rolled out and laid down in the desired position and orientation. The pivot structure in the example is an inner pipe or cylinder with a distal bearing plate that rotates within an outer pipe or cylinder and a frame base plate as best seen in FIG. 6. There may be grease certs allowing lubricant to be forced between the inner and outer pipes. There also may be set screws to allow the roll-out assembly to be fixed in a desired orientation.
The roll-out assembly also may be expandable to accommodate a variety of rolled material widths. The roll-out assembly in use may have L-brackets connected at the boom arm ends. The L-brackets are known and commercially available for attachment to a tubular spreader pipe that is contained in the rolled material. The boom arms may include a hydraulic arm that can be controlled from the track-hoe.
FIGS. 7 and 8 show a sheet tow assembly attached to the top of a base structure, such as a known box blade. The sheet tow assembly could be formed with its own base structure and does not need to be on a box blade. The tow assembly includes an elongated L-iron. The forward, downward extending portion may be equal or greater in length than two boards and about three wraps of the rolled material around one of the boards. For example, if two 2×12s are used, the forward portion of the L-iron should be at least four inches. The L-iron needs to be robust and heavy enough to maintain the material on the box blade or other base structure, as the sheet of material is towed. The material may be quite heavy and may be pulled over 400 feet so the connection must accommodate a significant amount of weight and stress on the material at the point of attachment. The L-iron is hinged as shown and can be lifted by the handle extending from the L-iron as shown.
FIG. 8 shows sheet laying system with a sheet of rolled material wrapped three times around a board and sandwiched between another board and mounted on the tow assembly. The tow assembly is mounted to a tractor that is light enough to travel across a sheet of rolled material without undue damage. Also, the tow assembly may include a lip or raised edge below the L-iron for holding the bottom wrapped board and preventing the boards from being pulled off the tow assembly. In the example shown, the raised edge is a top portion of the bottom surface, best seen in FIG. 7.
The sheet laying system shown in FIG. 8 includes the tow assembly attached to the tractor and the sheet of material on one end. On the opposite end is shown the roll-out assembly suspending the roll of material. The roll-out assembly is shown attached to the boom arm of a track-hoe.
Referring to the example shown in the drawings FIGS. 3-6, a roll-out assembly 100 that attaches to a quick-connect attachment (not shown) is detailed. The unshown quick-connect attachment may be any suitable attachment that is known and commercially available to allow easy attachment and detachment of a variety of tools to the end of a boom arm. The boom arm may be part of a track-hoe, excavator, or other vehicle that allows the roll out assembly to be held over a prepared soil bed, such as a road bed, parking lot, or paver bed, while the vehicle travels alongside the prepared soil. In this way a roll of material attached to the roll-out assembly may be unrolled and laid out quickly, efficiently, and with minimal physical labor.
FIG. 3 a shows a basic roll-out assembly 100 without any extension arms. Roll-out assembly 100 includes an elongated frame 102 having opposing ends 103, 105 and may be a box-beam or any material sufficient for carrying a roll of material to be laid down. Support braces 104 stiffen the roll-out assembly 100 and may be attached between the frame 102 and a pivot frame 106, as shown. Pivot frame 106 forms a portion of a pivot structure described in detail below. Pivot frame 106 may be a first cylinder and sized to rotatably receive a pivot member (described below) that may be a second cylinder that allows the first cylinder to rotate with minimal friction but yet provides stable rotation without racking or binding between the first and second cylinders.
If the roll-out assembly 100 does not include boom arms (described below), the opposing ends 103, 105 may include structure for attachment to brackets (such as bar and spindle assembly 20 shown in FIG. 1) rotatably attached to the rolled material (such as rolled material 10 of FIG. 1). The structure for attachment to brackets may be end plates attached at opposing ends 103, 105, where the end plates are bolted or otherwise attached onto the brackets. Alternatively, the structure for attachment to the brackets may simply be that known L-brackets, as described above, may slidingly engage with the box frame 102 at opposing ends 103, 105.
Pivot frame 106 may be attached to the elongated frame 102 between the opposing ends 103, 105 as shown, generally at a central location of the elongated frame 102 so that the weight of the rolled material is balanced when suspended from a boom arm of a vehicle. An attachment structure may be connected to the pivot structure described below for attaching the roll-out assembly 100 to a vehicle.
Elongated frame 102 may further include structure 108 for attaching at least one hydraulic arm for causing the boom arms (described below) to extend and retract. A pivot frame base plate 110 may also be attached to elongated frame 102 and may include frame supports 112.
FIG. 3 b is an end elevation of FIG. 3 a from end 105. FIG. 3 c is a top view of FIG. 3 a. FIG. 3 d is a side elevation of FIG. 3 a.
FIG. 4 a shows roll-out assembly 100 further including extendable boom arms 114, 116 coupled with the elongated frame 102 such that the boom arms 114, 116 extend and retract with respect to the opposing ends 103, 105 to accommodate varying widths of rolled material (not shown). The boom arms 114, 116 may be similar or they may be slightly different as shown. Boom arm 114 may also include a boom arm sleeve 118 that includes structure 120 for attachment to a hydraulic arm (not shown) that may be attached to structure 108. Sleeve 118 may also include a locking pin 122 that is received in a series of holes 124 formed in boom arm 114. Such an arrangement allows the boom arm 114 to be roughly set to accommodate a width of rolled material, allowing the boom arm sleeve 118 to be moved by the hydraulic arm to a more precise width. Boom arm 116 may also include a similar configuration to that shown for boom arm 114. Alternatively, boom arm 116 may have a configuration as shown in FIG. 4 a where boom arm 116 is slidingly engaged within elongated frame 102 and is fixed at a desired extension length by a set screw 126. Both boom arms 114, 116 may include appropriate structure for attachment to brackets, such as known L-brackets, that are rotatably attached to the rolled material. In the example shown, the bracket attachment structures are end plates 128.
FIG. 4 a also shows the attachment structure 130 connected to the pivot structure 132 for attaching the roll-out assembly 100 to a vehicle. The attachment structure 130 may be any suitable structure for attaching to and mating with an attachment structure of the vehicle to be used. In the example shown, attachment structure 130 is a pivot plate attached to a second cylinder (shown in FIG. 4 b). The pivot plate 130 is also for attachment to the vehicle such that the first cylinder 106 rotates with respect to the second cylinder when the roll-out assembly 100 is suspended from the vehicle. Also shown is a set screw 134 that may be used to prevent rotation of the roll-out assembly 100.
FIG. 4 b shows the pivot structure 132 including first cylinder or pivot frame 106, the second cylinder 136 rotatably mounted within the first cylinder 106 such that the second cylinder 136 remains rotatably held within the first cylinder 106 when the roll-out assembly 100 is suspended from the vehicle.
FIG. 5 shows an alternate attachment structure 138 that allows roll-out assembly 100 to be manipulate so that elongated frame 102 is generally parallel with a surface upon which the rolled material is being laid. This minimizes the manual manipulation of the rolled material needed to place the rolled material in the desired location on the surface to be covered and with respect to other layers of rolled material placed on the surface. Attachment structure may include a bottom pivot plate 140 attached to the second cylinder 136, a top pivot plate 142 may be hingedly attached to the bottom pivot plate 140 at a first location shown generally at 144. Structure 146 on each of the bottom and top pivot plates 140, 142 may be for attachment of at least one hydraulic arm (not shown) to cause the bottom pivot plate 140 to rotate with respect to the top pivot plate 142 about the hinge 148. The example shown also includes a hinge plate 150 rigidly attached to bottom pivot plate 140 and forms a part of hinge 148. Hinge plate 150 essentially provides space between pivot plates 140, 142 to accommodate the hydraulic arms. Other structure for attaching a hydraulic arm to pivot plates 140, 142 may not require hinge plate 150.
FIG. 5 further shows that pivot structure 132 may include a bearing pivot plate 152 attached to the second cylinder 136. The bearing pivot plate 152 may have a diameter greater than an outer diameter of the second cylinder 136 and greater than an inner diameter of the first cylinder 106 such that the bearing pivot plate 152 causes the second cylinder to remain within the first cylinder 106 when the roll-out assembly 100 is suspended from the vehicle.
FIG. 6 is a cut-away view of the pivot structure 132 attached to elongated frame 102 and the pivot frame base plate 110. Pivot frame 106 may be attached to pivot frame base plate 110 by any appropriate method such as welding. As seen second cylinder or pivot member 136 is received within first cylinder 106. Bearing pivot plate 152 is fixedly attached to pivot member 136 and has a diameter greater than an outer diameter of the second cylinder 136 and greater than an inner diameter of the first cylinder 106 such that the bearing pivot plate 152 causes the second cylinder to remain within the first cylinder 106 when the roll-out assembly 100 is suspended from the vehicle. Bearing pivot plate 152 cannot fit within cylinder 106 and because it is attached to second cylinder 136 the roll-out assembly can be rotated about cylinder 106.
The pivot structure may also include grease certs (not shown) for injecting lubricating grease between cylinder 136 and cylinder 106 and between bearing pivot plate 152 and cylinder 106 and pivot frame base plate 110. The pivot configuration shown is one example however other configurations are possible. Any configuration that allows roll-out assembly to be rotated when it is suspended from a vehicle will be acceptable. The roll-out assembly 100, including pivot structure 132, may be formed of any material sufficiently strong and durable to hold and maneuver heavy rolled materials used as underlayment for pavement such as road beds.
The boom arms 114, 116 and pivot plates 140,142 may include hydraulic arms that can be controlled from the vehicle to which roll-out assembly 100 is attached such as a boom arm of a track-hoe. If hydraulic arms are use appropriate hydraulic lines and connectors may be attached to roll-out assembly 100 and connected to a hydraulic control system of the vehicle.
FIG. 7 shows a sheet tow assembly 154 attached to the top of a known box blade 156. The box blade 156 is shown in phantom by the dashed lines. The sheet tow assembly could be formed with its own base structure or attached to any other appropriate base structure and does not need to be on a box blade. The box blade or base structure 156 may include attachment structure 158 for attachment to a tow vehicle such as a tractor, or other suitable vehicle.
The sheet tow assembly 154 is for attachment to a tow vehicle for towing and unrolling a sheet of rolled material across a surface. The sheet tow assembly 154 may include an elongated bracket 160 with a top surface 162 for hinged attachment to the base structure 156 and a bottom surface 164 for attachment to the base structure 156. The hinged attachment of top surface 162 to the base structure 156 may be by a pair of hinged arms 166, 168 as shown. The top surface 162 may be lifted using arm 170. The bottom surface 164 may be attached to base structure 156 by any appropriate manner such as the brace arms 172, 174, 176. The top and bottom surfaces 162, 164 are for attachment to a portion of the sheet of rolled material such that the sheet portion is secured between the top and bottom surfaces 162, 164.
The top and bottom surfaces 162, 164 may abut each other and frictionally hold the portion of the sheet during towing. The top and bottom surfaces 162, 164 may each be further formed by a length of board (shown in FIG. 8) attached to the elongated bracket 160. Using boards such as standard construction lumber, for example 2×10s, 2×12s, or the like allows a portion of the sheet to be wrapped at least once around one of the boards before attachment to the elongated bracket to provide a secure attachment to the sheet of rolled material.
The tow assembly 154 and specifically bracket 160 may include an elongated L-iron, as shown. The forward, downward extending portion 178 may be equal or greater in length than two boards and about three wraps of the rolled material around one of the boards. For example, if two 2×12 boards are used, the forward portion 178 of the L-iron should be at least four inches. The L-iron should be robust and heavy enough to maintain the material on the box blade or other base structure 156, as the sheet of material is towed. The sheet of rolled material may be quite heavy and may be pulled over 400 feet so the connection must accommodate a significant amount of weight and stress on the material at the point of attachment. The L-iron may be hinged and lifted by the handle 170 extending from the L-iron as shown.
FIG. 8 shows a sheet of rolled material 180 wrapped three times (at 182) around a bottom board 184 and sandwiched between a top board 186 and mounted on the tow assembly 154. The tow assembly 154 is mounted to a tractor 188 that is light enough to travel across a sheet of rolled material without undue damage. Also, it is preferred that the tow assembly 154 include a lip or raised edge on bottom surface 164 and below the L-bracket 160 for holding the bottom wrapped board 184 and preventing the boards 184, 186 from being pulled off the tow assembly 154.
FIG. 8 further shows the roll-out assembly 100 suspending the roll of material 180. The roll-out assembly 100 is shown attached to the boom arm 190 of a track-hoe. Together, the sheet tow assembly 154 and the roll-out assembly 100 form a sheet laying system for enabling a sheet of rolled material to be unrolled and placed across a surface. The sheet tow assembly is for attachment to a first tow vehicle and the roll-out assembly 100 is for attachment to a second tow vehicle, as shown. The roll-out assembly 100 may be pivoted, as indicated by arrow 192 to align the suspended rolled material 180 as needed. FIG. 8 also shows an example of the known L-brackets 194 commercially available for attachment to a tubular spreader pipe (not shown) that is contained in the rolled material 180. The roll-out assembly 100, as stated above may include one or more hydraulic arms (not shown) that may be controlled from the track-hoe controlling boom arm 190.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.
Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms and that neither should be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. In some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed.
When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numerical terms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the example embodiments.
Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A roll-out assembly for use in dispensing rolled materials on to a surface comprising:

an elongated frame having opposing ends including structure for attachment to brackets rotatably attached to the rolled material;

a pivot structure attached to the elongated frame between the opposing ends; and

an attachment structure connected to the pivot structure for attaching the roll-out assembly to a vehicle.

2. The roll-out assembly of claim 1 further including extendable boom arms coupled with the elongated frame such that the boom arms extend and retract with respect to the opposing ends to accommodate varying widths of rolled material.

3. The roll-out assembly of claim 2 further including structure for attaching at least one hydraulic arm for causing the boom arms to extend and retract.

4. The roll-out assembly of claim 1 wherein the pivot structure includes a first cylinder, a second cylinder rotatably mounted within the first cylinder such that the second cylinder remains rotatably held within the first cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the vehicle.

5. The roll-out assembly of claim 4 wherein the attachment structure includes a pivot plate attached to the second cylinder wherein the pivot plate is also for attachment to the vehicle such that the first cylinder rotates with respect to the second cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the vehicle.

6. The roll-out assembly of claim 4 wherein the attachment structure includes a bottom pivot plate attached to the second cylinder, a top pivot plate hingedly attached to the bottom pivot plate at a first location and structure on each of the bottom and top pivot plates for attachment of at least one hydraulic arm to cause the bottom pivot plate to rotate with respect to the top pivot plate about the hinge.

7. The roll-out assembly of claim 4 wherein the pivot structure further includes a bearing pivot plate attached to the second cylinder, the bearing pivot plate having a diameter greater than an outer diameter of the second cylinder and greater than an inner diameter of the first cylinder such that the bearing pivot plate causes the second cylinder to remain within the first cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the vehicle.

8. A sheet tow assembly for attachment to a tow vehicle for towing and unrolling a sheet of rolled material across a surface comprising:

an elongated bracket having top surface for hinged attachment to a base structure and a bottom surface for attachment to the base structure and wherein the base structure is for attachment to the tow vehicle; and

wherein the top and bottom surfaces are for attachment to a portion of the sheet of rolled material such that the sheet portion is secured between the top and bottom surfaces.

9. The sheet tow assembly of claim 8 wherein the top and bottom surfaces abut each other and frictionally hold the portion of the sheet during towing.

10. The sheet tow assembly of claim 8 wherein the top and bottom surfaces are each formed by a length of board attached to the elongated bracket and wherein the portion of the sheet is wrapped at least once around one of the boards before attachment to the elongated bracket.

11. A sheet laying system for enabling a sheet of rolled material to be unrolled and placed across a surface comprising:

a sheet tow assembly including:

an elongated bracket having top surface for hinged attachment to a base structure and a bottom surface for attachment to the base structure and wherein the base structure is for attachment to a first tow vehicle; and

wherein the top and bottom surfaces are for attachment to a portion of the sheet of rolled material such that the sheet portion is secured between the top and bottom surfaces; and

a roll-out assembly including:

an attachment structure connected to the pivot structure and for attaching the roll-out assembly to a second tow vehicle.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the top and bottom surfaces abut each other and frictionally hold the portion of the sheet during towing.

13. The system of claim 11 wherein the top and bottom surfaces are each formed by a length of board attached to the elongated bracket and wherein the portion of the sheet is wrapped at least once around one of the boards before attachment to the elongated bracket.

14. The system of claim 11 further including extendable boom arms coupled with the elongated frame such that the boom arms extend and retract with respect to the opposing ends to accommodate varying widths of rolled material.

15. The system of claim 2 further including structure for attaching at least one hydraulic arm for causing the boom arms to extend and retract.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein the pivot structure includes a first cylinder, a second cylinder rotatably mounted within the first cylinder such that the second cylinder remains rotatably held within the first cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the second tow vehicle.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the attachment structure includes a pivot plate attached to the second cylinder wherein the pivot plate is also for attachment to the second tow vehicle such that the first cylinder rotates with respect to the second cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the second tow vehicle.

18. The system of claim 16 wherein the attachment structure includes a bottom pivot plate attached to the second cylinder, a top pivot plate hingedly attached to the bottom pivot plate at a first location and structure on each of the bottom and top pivot plates for attachment of at least one hydraulic arm to cause the bottom pivot plate to rotate with respect to the top pivot plate about the hinge.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein the pivot structure further includes a bearing pivot plate attached to the second cylinder, the bearing pivot plate having a diameter greater than an outer diameter of the second cylinder and greater than an inner diameter of the first cylinder such that the bearing pivot plate causes the second cylinder to remain within the first cylinder when the roll-out assembly is suspended from the second tow vehicle.