US2191072A

US2191072A - Hydraulic water control and lock for concrete mixers

Info

Publication number: US2191072A
Application number: US282963A
Authority: US
Inventors: John P Faber
Original assignee: RANSOME CONCRETE MACHINERY CO
Current assignee: RANSOME CONCRETE MACHINERY CO
Priority date: 1939-07-06
Filing date: 1939-07-06
Publication date: 1940-02-20
Anticipated expiration: 1957-02-20

Description

Patented Feb. 20, 1940 PATENT OFFICE,

HYDRAULIC WATER CONTROL AND LOOK FOR CONCRETE MIXERS John P. Faber, Dunellen, N. J., assignor to Ransome Concrete Machinery Company, Plainfield, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application July 6, 1939, Serial No. 282,963 x 10 Claims.

The improvements relate generally to concrete mixers employing a rotary drum, of any known type, havinga charging opening in one head, a

discharge opening in the opposite head and means for dumping dry aggregates thereinto through said charging opening and simultaneously supplying water to said dry aggregates to hydrate thesame,

The improvements relate more particularly and primarily to means of the character indicated which employ hydraulic pressurecontrolled by valves for the operation of the water valves, discharge chute and other parts such as are shown and described in Patent No. 2,119,144 of May 31, 1938 to Williams, owned by the assignee of the present improvements, and to which reference is made for details not shown or described herein, and involve certain modifications of as well as additions to the apparatus of that patent. They also involve in their preferred application the use of a batchmeter or timer, a device well known and commonly used in machines of this type and shown in various expired patents, which is arranged to be set by the charging means and to lock the discharging means until a certain mixing time or number of revolutions of the mixing drum has elapsed. In the present improvements, however, the batchmeter is also employed to lock the means for operating the water supply during the mixing period, so that it is not possible for the operator, af-- ter the proper measured quantity otwater has been supplied to the batch of dry aggregates to bernixed, to add more water thereto and make themixture morefluent or sloppyfl to the detriment of the set concrete eventually formed thereby.

These and further objects and advantages of the improvements will be apparent from the following. description, referring to the accompanying drawing, in which- Fig. l is a general side elevation showing an exemplary embodiment of the improvements; and

Fig. 2 is an end view showing only the hydraulic valve operating and locking means for the water supply- In the said drawing, l represents the valve handle and lever by whichthe three-way valve controlling the water supply by hydraulic pressure is operated. This lever is pivoted at 2 in the casing 3, has a valve rod 4 above its pivot hinged thereto which operates the multiple valve I 5 and a locking rod 6 hinged to its lower end. Secured to it between the latter and the pivot is an oscillating arm 1 connected in turn at its outer end with the bell crank member 9 by the link 8 for operation, and operation of the valve lever I. The bell crank member is pivoted at it and has the upper end of its vertical leg 9 in the 5 path of the stepped tappetbar hinged to the clutch lever I2 and having its outer end slidably supported on the bracket 13. The end of the tappet has a hook H to engage the rounded upper member [3 of the bracket [3 and check re- '10 turn movement, and is beveledbetween the step ilfland this hook so that the step will be raised and lowered when the lever is reciprocated to lift it from engagement with the part 9 and return it toposition opposite that part.

A clutchdevice Hi andwinding drum It for raising and lowering the loading skip H5 are shown, and a brake lever may be mounted at ll, as shown in said patent, but these parts need not be further described asthey are common in the 20 art and form no part of the present improvements, in which it is contemplated that the water control lever shall be operated by the clutch lever, as well as by direct manipulation. The loading skip I6 is pivoted to the lower end of the 25 swinging arm 18 which is in turn pivoted at its upper end at 19 and has fixed thereto a short arm 20, this construction being substantially that of my Patent No. 1,767,443 of June 24, 1930 to which reference may be made for details, if de- 30 sired.

When the skip rises it first swings on the lower pivot and then on the pivot I9 of the arm 18, the latter movement rocking the arm 25 and pulling the cable 21 running over the sheave 22 35 and pulling the rod 23 to set the batchmeter 24 and lock thesaid rod in that position, in well known manner.

i 3 The pulling of the rod 23rocks the bell crank ment of the locking rod 6. The end of the rod slides in a sleeve 30 by which it is guided in the direction of this aperture;

The pipe 3| communicates pressure to the cylinder 32 to open the water discharge valve 35 and the pipe 33 by similar pressure closes the" said valve and opensthe refilling valve 34 of the water tank and measuring device 31, water being discharged through the pipe 33 to the mixing drum (not shown), as set'forth in said (Fig. 2) of the valve lever l is neutral, the dotted line position on the right the discharge position, and the dotted line position on the left the refilling position.

It will be seen from the foregoing that when the clutch lever i 2 is moved forward the step ll" engages the crooked upper end of the bell crank 9 and rocks it to dotted position as shown in Fig. 2, then rises and passes over it. This causes the lower leg of the bell crank 9 to swine upward pushing the link 8 and the arm 1 and rocking the valve lever l to discharge position, actuating the cylinder 32 and causing water to be discharged into the drum through the pipe 36, in which position it will remain until it is returned to neutral or closed position; meanwhile, the clutch lever I2 being held inthis in position by the operator until the skip has dumped itsload intothe drum. The clutch lever is then moved to out position, as shown in full linesinFig. 2, restoringthe'tappet H to its original position, and theskip is then permitted to descend for another load. During this movement the operator may move the valve leverfl to operate the refilling valve and provide another charge of water for the next batch of aggregates.

When the skip has risen to, its full discharge position the rod 23 has been pulled to its extreme right position and locked until the timing device 24 ,shallrelease it. This movement and locking of the rod 23 also moves the lower arm 28 into position over the aperture 29 and locks it there, so that the valve lever i cannot again be moved to discharge position until the time for properly mixing abatch of aggregates has elapsed and the parts are released. The operation above described may then be repeated. v

The valve operating lever I may be provided with a spring or weight to return it automatically to neutral position when'released, and it willbe understood that at the end of the mixing named the batchmeter or timer will retract the rod 25 and unlock the locking rod 5, the backward movement of the bar 23 being permitted by the slack in the cable 2| due to the return of the skip H5 to its lower position. This.permits the water discharge valve to be again opened by clutch en" gaging movement of thelever H2 or manual movement of the valve lever l'. V

Various changes in the details of construction and arrangement of the exemplary embodiment herein shown and described may be made w thout departing from the'scope of the invention, which is designed to be used either with a single mixing drum or atwo-compartment drum, and

it is intended that thecon'nections with the timing device shall include a connectionbywhich the discharge or transfer chuteof the mixer is locked and released, it being necessary only to connect the rod 26 or the cell crank 25 with a locking device forsuch a chute, so that both discharge chute and Water supply are locked until the mixing peried measured by the batchmeter or timer ZG'has elapsed. 7

When the lever i is returned toneutral or full line position, manually or automatically, the

exit valve 35 is not necessarily closed i'out the, container filling valve 3 3 remains closed until said lever is moved to its right-hand position. The water supply means therefore cannot be operated to discharge water until the rod 6 is unlocked to causethis filling movement, which of course must be preceded, momentarily at least, by the closing of the exit valve. The means for causing discharge of the Water is therefore locked in closed position against water discharging movement by the locking of the refilling valve or the locking of the exit valveor both.

after such discharge and means connected with said timing device and said means for causing discharge of the container whereby the latter is locked in closed position by the former during said period against water discharging movement.

2. In apparatus of the character indicated, a

loading device, a containerfor water to be discharged with the contents of said loading device, means for causing discharge of said loading device and water from said container, .a timing device to measure a period to elapse after such discharge and means connected with said timing device and said means for causing discharge of the container whereby the latter is locked in closed position by the former during said period against water discharging movement and a connection between said loading device and said timing device whereby the latter is set for operation by the former and the said water discharging device locked.

3. In apparatus of the character indicated, a loading device, a container for water to be discharged with the contents of said loading device,

means for causing discharge of said loading deloading device, a container for water to bedis- I charged with. the contents of said loading device into a mixing drum, means for causing discharge of said loading device and of water from said container, a timing device to measure" a mixing period to elapse after such discharge and means connected with said timing device'and said means for causing discharge of the container whereby the latter is locked by the former during said period against water discharging operation and means for operating the water discharging means connected with and actuated by the means. for causing discharge of the loader comprising a clutch lever, a tappet thereon, a pivoted arm in. the path of said tappet and an operative connection between said arm and said water discharge means. I

5. In the apparatus set forth in claim 4, there being also a member against which said tappet bears and an inclined bearing portion of said" tappet to cause it to move from said arm after arm operating movement.

7 In apparatus of the character indicated, in combination with means for controlling the operation of a solids loading device and means for tion between the last named-means and said period measuring means whereby the said last named means locks in closed position and unlocks automatically at the beginning and end of first means including a manually operable lever, 15,

said period respectively, a connection between said solids loading device and said locking means through said measuring means, and an operating connection between said solids loading control and said liquid charging control.

'7. In apparatus of the character indicated, in combination with means for controlling the operation of a solids loading device and means for controlling a liquid charge to a mixingdrum, said of means for measuring a mixing period of said solidsand liquid and preventing the discharge thereof during such period, means for locking said liquid charge control, a connection between the last named means and said period measuring means whereby the said last named means locks in closed position and unlocks automatically at 'the beginning and end of said period respectively,

a connection between said solids loading device and said locking means through said measuring means, and an operating connectionbetween said solids loading control and said liquid charging control. i

8. In apparatus of the character indicated, in

combination with means for controlling the op eration of a solids loading device and means for controlling a liquid charge for a mixing drum, said first means including a manually operable lever and said second means including a source of fluid under pressure, a valve controlling said charge, a conduit communicatingbetween said.

valve and source, and a manually operable valve on said conduit controlling said communication, of means for measuring a mixing period of said solids and liquid and preventing the discharge thereofduring such period, means for locking said manually operable valve, a connection between the last named means and said period measuring means whereby the said valve is locked in closed position and unlocked at the beginning and chant said period respectively, a connection solids and liquid and preventing the discharge thereof during such period, means for locking said manually operable valve, a connection between the last named means and said period measuring means whereby the said valve is locked in closed position and unlocked at the beginning and end of saidperiod respectively, a connection between said solids loading device and said locking means and an operating connection between saidsolids' loading control and said liquid charging control.

10. In apparatus of the character indicated, in combination with means for controlling the operation of a solids loading device and means for controlling a liquid charge for a mixing drum,

said first means including a manually operable lever and said second means including a source of fillld under pressure, a valve controlling said charge, a conduit communicating between said valve and source and a manually operable valve on said conduit controlling said communication, of means for measuring a mixing period of said solids and liquid and preventing the discharge thereof during such period, means for locking said manually operable valve, a connection between the last named means andsaid period measuring means whereby the said valve is locked in closed position and unlocked at the beginning and end of said period respectively, and a connection between said solids loading device and said locking means through said measuring means.

JOHN P. FAIBER.