US2459358A - Lumber stacking machine - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 18, 1949. B, BlRKHEAD 2,459,358

LUMBER STACKING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet l I ruler/tor By @Mazflz.

Jan. 18, 1949. B|RKHEAD 2,459,358

LUMBER STACKING MACHINE I I Inventor I -32'rkheadz WW 13 Jan. 18, 1949. 3 BlRKHEAD 2,459,358

LUMBER STACKING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN Inven tar .Boszre 11 222 $2'1fiz'bead- Attorneys Patented Jan. 18, 1949 lJNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE LUMBER STACKING MACHIN E Boswell -M.-Birkhead, Ola, Ark.

Application September M, 1945, Serial No.- 616,348

3 Glaims.

The present invention relates to anovel and structurally distinct machine which is expressly, but .not necessarily, adapted for expeditiously and reliably handling and stacking boards, planks, timbers and other so-called lumber, the embodiment hereindisclosed being particularly useful and appreciably helpful in lumber yards where various kinds andcumbersome pieces of lumber are customarily stacked in high orderly piles for compactness, convenience of inspection and access and other'well known storage purposes.

'A machine constructed in accordance with the principles of the instant invention, the same having been actually constructed and bein presently in use,. is such in type and construction that, handled by three men,'it can actually :do the stacking work of eight menipursuingpresent day laborious methods of lumber stacking.

Furthermore, a lumber-stacking machine .constructed and usedin accordance with myideas is not only atime and labor saver, but actually accomplishes the desired ends by more systematically and neatly stacking the lumber, especially roughpieces, such as are'usually'inconvenient and troublesome to handle, and, 'what is InOI8,ll3 promotes unusual economy in'that it .embodies'the use of an internal combustion engine or other power plant embodied in aihookup which obviates thenecessity of making repeated repairs and which is susceptible of operation'on a minimum basis due to the relatively smallamount of fuel and'oil required for adequate powering results.

Another'object of the invention has to do with the provision of principles of simplicity and economy in that the 'majority of mechanical expe'dients and parts are in many instances stock typesthese being readily available on the open'market and thereforesuch as to ave the I way for satisfactory original assembling and subsequent replacements and repairs.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from'the following description and the accompanying illustrative drawings.

In the drawings, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a complete, workable dumber-stacking machine constructed in accordance with the principles and requirements of the'present invention.

3 Figure '2 is :aside elevational view of the same showing the liftable -and lowerable lumber- .2 handling and conveyor assembly in an upwardly inclined position.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-section on the plane of the line"33 of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 4 is'a front end elevation, ,that..is,'a view of the righthand endportion. ofFigure 2.

Figure. 5 .is an enlarged fragmentary section of theLdischarge or dumping end of the conveyor means or assembly,"the view'being on the'line 55 of Figure 4.

Briefly, .and by way of .introduction to the detailed description, it is" to be explained that the overall structure "is characterizedtby a 'portable base in the form of an openwork'frame structure, thisibeingprovidedwith flanged wheels fortravel on'suitabletrack rails. .The liftableandllowerablelumber-han'dling and conveyor assembly is hingedly'mounted on the frame structure, and the various operating devices including the-power plant and pow-ertransmission -belt and other parts are mounted, primarily,-within the confines of said frame structure.

Reference being had now to the various :main parts by distinguishing reference characters, it will 'be seen that the track rails 'A are conventional' and in" practice are laid-"alongside "of the stacks to be progressively erected or piled -in thelumber yard, this'in awell known manner. The openwork frame orbasestructure'B is-provided with flanged rollers C movable along said track rails. Theprime-mover or power plant, a suitable type'motororengine, is-mounted-on the rear-or'left hand'members-or cross-pieces of the frame structure and is denoted at D. The lumber-handling, elevating and conveying assembly or means is generally denoted by the ref erence character E.

The frame Bis primarily made up of lower horizontal rails l6 supporting "the rollers -or wheels C and supporting front,--rear-and intermediate uprights H, 12 and l3, respectively, these connected at their lower ends to the lower rails Hi and at their upper en'ds to the forwardly and downwardly inclined'toppingrailsI l. in

practice I provide additional braces and frame parts, for example, the parts l5 and f6, asshown in the side elevation in Figure-2. However, it is perhaps not necessary to' describe each-and every minor detail of-the frame, as adaptations will vary in construction, obviously.

The motor or powerplant'D (see "Fig.-l) is suitably supported in the-lower portion ofthe frame structureand hasappropriate. clutch-= and gear-shifting meansand-drives'the main power 3 supply shaft I1, this being journaled in suitable bearings and provided with a small drive pulley I8 over which a motion-transmitting belt i9 is trained. The opposite end of the belt (see Fig. l in particular) is trained over a larger speedreducing pulley 2B keyed on a driven or power take-off shaft 2! journaled in suitable bearings secondary motion-transmitting belt 21 is operable.

Incidentally, the latter belt 21 is also trained at I may well designate the belt I9 as the main belt and the belt 21 as the secondary belt.

one end over a pulley 23 on a third or stub-shaft 29 suitably mounted for rotation in the frame structure. The numeral 30 designates an adapter or auxiliary frame within the main frame which 1 supports a U-shaped bail 3| (see Fig.4) carrying a belt-tightener pulley 32 over which the secondary belt is trained. Through a suitable pulley the belt 27 drives a short shaft 33 having a pinion 34 in mesh with a gear 35 (see Fig. l), the gear being on one end of the motion-transmitting shaft 36 and having another gear 3'! at its opposite end to drive the motion pick-up gear- 38 on the winch. or drum shaft 39. The latter shaft extends transversely and completely across I i the median portion of the frame structure and is provided at opposite ends with cable-winding drums 40 which operate in a manner to be hereinafter described. It will be noticed that the winches or drums 40 are provided with ratchet wheels 4| with which pawls or dogs 42 coa-ct, said dogs being mounted for actuation on and by a rocker shaft 43, this journaled for oscillation in bearings in the frame structure and having a suitably available hand lever a l at one end to be controlled by one of the attendants or operatives.

The lever 45 seen on the same side of the frame structure operates another rocker mounted for oscillation in suitable bearings, this in turn controlling a link i'i which serves to adjust the belt-tightener stirrup or bail 3|. Thus,

open-type framework or frame structure B, the power plant, the power propulsion and main and auxiliary power take-01f shafts, and main and secondary belts cooperable therewith for controlling the various shafts through the pulleys shown. In so doing I have traced the ways and means of supplying motive power to the drum shaft 39 on the one hand and the conveyor chain shaft 25 on the other.

Referring further to the last-named shaft 25, it will beseen that it is provided at opposite ends with sprocket wheels 48 to a-ccommodatesprocket chains 49, there being another auxiliary sprocket wheel at 50 to accommodate an endless sprocket chain 5i. The opposite ends of these three sprocket chains, that is, the upper ends, coact with sprocket wheels on a complemental shaft 25a, this being mounted in bearings between the upper ends of the T-shaped beams or arms 52 (see Fig. 3) of the liftable and lowerable lumberhandling conveyor assembly or means E.. The two main sprocket chains .49 are provided with shaft 46 I have covered the general construction of the suitable lugs or spurs 53 (see Fig. 5), and these lumber and carry the the discharge end. The lumber is discharged over the upper end of the structure E and the pieces are piloted down by way of the guides or fingers 54 arranged above the pile or stack of lumber (not shown). It will be noted in Figure 2 that the lower ends of the arms 52 are hingedly attached to the front end of the frame structure,

as indicated at the points 55. Any suitable bearings and shaft connections may be utilized in accomplishing this, it being the main purpose or the present disclosure to show the entire unit E pivoted at one end and liftable and lowerable, that is, movable up and down in relation tothe relatively stationary underlying frame structure B.

The means for raising and lowering the unit E comprises a pair of levers 56 (see Fig. 2) of appropriate construction and of suitable lengths, these being pivotally mounted at their lower ends, as indicated at '51. provided with idling rollers 58 which track back and forth in the guide and retention channels provided therefor. The numeral 59 designates a sheave mounted for idling on the pivoted link 66 provided therefor. A cable 6! is stationarily anchored on an eye Men the front post Ii, as shown at the left in Figure 2, and this cable is trained over the sheave 59 and the return reach or run 63 extends forwardly and downwardly and then over a stabilizing pulley 64 on the front post i l, the cable then going back to and being wound on the adjacent or coacting winch or drum 40.

Looking back now over the machine which has been, it is believed, amply and specifically described, it will be seen that all of the principal and essential parts are mounted on and sup-.

ported within the confines of the open framework B. The latter serves as a base or support for the lumber-handling, elevating and dumping conveyor means E, and the structure E is hinged on the framework and is raised up and down through the medium of the levers 56 on opposite sides of the framework. It follows that the framework is shifted back and forth on the rails A by way of the wheels C and brought alongside of the stack in the making. The stack is partly stacked, as a general rule, by hand until it reaches an elevation wherethe machine will take over, as it were. attendants simply place the machine in operation and then place the boards or planks one. by one transversely across the conveyor chain. The end portions of the planks are held against slippage by the conveyor lugs 53. Thus, as the endless chains 49 are driven around by the mechanism described, the pieces of lumber are carried in a step-by-step manner up and then discharged over the upper end of the means E being more or less guided down on the top of the pile by the delivery and guide fingers 54. As the height of the pile increases, the elevation of the conveyor E also gradually increases. This is due to the fact that the winding and reeling means made up of the cables 6i, sheaves 59 and 64, and winding drums or winches 4!) take care of this.

That is to say, the drum shaft 39 is constantly rotated at the desired speed by the belt andgearmeans already described. Retrograde rotation is prevented by the pawl and ratchet -mechanism shown. on'the drum exerts the necessary lifting on the links 66, and these in turn gradually elevate'the levers 5B and the antifriction rollers or wheels 58 pressed against the under sides of the beams same from the intake to The upper ends are When this happens, the

Consequently, the reeling of the cables easogees or rrails; and swing same.- gradually up. When ittis desired to lower the-structure, the pawls ,or dogs are released and the cables 6| are unwound in an obvious-"manner.

A careful consideration of the foregoing description in conjunction with the invention as illustrated inthe drawings. will enable the reader to obtain a clear understanding-and impression of the alleged features of merit and novelty sufficient to clarify theconstructionpf the invention as-hereinafter claimed.

:Minor changes in shape, size, materialsqzand rearrangement of parts may'be resorted ato;in actualpractice so long as no departure is made from the invention as claimed.

I' claim:

'1. In a lumber handling and-stackingrmachine ofthe'class described, an open-style framework constitutingia relatively fixed-base, a powergplant mounted on said framework and including a drive shaft, a complemental driven shaft mounted on said framework, a pulley on said drive shaft, a second pulley on said driven shaft, a propulsion belt trained over said pulleys for operating said driven shaft, a lumber conveying, elevating and stacking unit embodying a pair of complementail arms located one on each side of the framework, the forward ends of said arms being hingedly mounted on the forward end portion of said framework, a sprocket shaft mounted in the rear upper ends of said arms, sprocket wheels mounted at opposite ends of the latter shaft, a second sprocket shaft mounted on the forward end portion of said framework beyond and in advance of the hinged ends of said arms, sprocket wheels keyed on the opposite end portions of said second named sprocket shaft, endless conveyor chains disposed in parallelism with each other and spaced from one another and trained over respective coacting sprocket wheels on the end portions of the sprocket shafts, an operating connection between said driven shaft and said second named sprocket shaft, means for raising and lowering said arms in respect to the framework, said means embodying levers, said levers being similarly arranged one on each side of the intermediate portion of the framework and said lever being pivotally anchored at their lower ends on said framework, idling rollers mounted on the upper ends of said levers and in rollable camming contact with intermediate portions of said arms, a pair of sheaves, one for each lever, links pivotally attaching the respective sheaves to the upper portions of the respective levers, cables securely anchored at corresponding ends on the upper portion of the front end of said framework, intermediate portions of said cables being trained over said sheaves, a horizontal cable winding shaft mounted for operation on said framework on a plane belov. the anchored ends of said cables and provided with cable winding drums, said cables being reelable at their remaining ends on the drums, and an operating connection between the winding shaft and the aforementioned driver: shaft.

2. In a lumber handling and stacking machine of the class described, an open-style framework constituting a relatively fixed base, a power plant mounted on said framework and including a drive shaft, a complemental driven shaft mounted on said framework, a pulley on said drive shaft, a second pulley on said driven shaft, a propulsion belt trained over said pulleys for operating said driven shaft, a lumber conveying, elevating and stacking unit embodying a pair of complemental anms located one-onaeach-sidev of the framework, theliff'orward ends. of said: arms. being; hingedly mounteds onathe forward end portion of said framework, a-sprocket shaftmounted in. the rear uppertends of said arms, sprocket wheels mounted atvopposite-ends of said latter shaft, a second sprocket shaft mounted on the forward end portionizofmsaidframework beyond and in advancevof the hinged ends of said arms, sprocket wheelsrskeyed on the oppositeiend portions of saids'secondtnamed sprocket shaft, endless conveyortchains;disposed iniparallelism with each otherzzandszspaced from one another and trained over v-respectivercoacting sprocket wheels on the endsportionsof -the sprocket shafts, an operating connectionbetween said driven shaft and said secondrnamed sprocket shaft; means. for 3 raisin a-nd,:-iowering:said arms'inrespect to the framework,- =;said means rembodying levers, said levers being properly arranged one on each side of the intermediate portion of the framework and said levers being pivotally anchored at their lower ends on said framework, idling rollers mounted on the upper ends of said levers and in rollable camming contact with intermediate portions of said arms, a pair of sheaves, one for each lever, links pivotally attaching the respective sheaves to the upper portions of the respective levers, cables securely achored at corresponding ends on the upper portion of the front end of said framework, intermediate portions of said cables being trained over said sheaves, a horizontal cable winding shaft mounted for operation on said framework on a plane below the anchored ends of said cables and provided with cable winding drums, said cables being reelable at their remaining ends on said winding drums, and an operating connection between said winding shaft and the aforementioned driven shaft, and additional sheaves coacting with said first named sheaves, said additional sheaves being rigidly mounted on the forward end portion of said framework, the intermediate runs of said cables running forwardly over and then rearwardly from said fixed sheaves before said remaining ends are attached to and wound on said winding shaft.

3. In a lumber handling, elevating and stacking machine of the class described, a portable horizontally located framework, an elongated elevator unit disposed over and above said framework and bodily swingable toward and from the framework and embodying a pair of spaced parallel arms, said arms being located adjacent opposite sides of said framework and hingedly mounted at their forward ends on the forward upper portion of said framework, said arms being rectilineariy straight and embodying longitudinally extending, channel-like track portions, 2, horizontal sprocket shaft mounted for rotation on the forward intake end of said framework, said shaft being adjacent to the hingedly mounted ends of said arms, sprocket wheels keyed on end portions of said sprocket shaft, a second horizontal sprocket shaft mounted for operation on the rear discharge end portions of said arms, sprocket wheels mounted on the end portions of said last named sprocket shaft, a pair of endless sprocket chains, said chains being trained over the respective coacting sprocket wheels on said first and second named sprocket shafts, said chains being situated in alignment with said arms and the upper runs of the chains being in direct sliding contact with the arms, and lifting and lowering means for said elevator unit comprising a" a pair of duplicate levers, said levers being situated one on each side of the intermediate portion of said framework and hingedly connected at their lower ends to said framework, said levers being provided, at their upper ends with idling rollers, saicl rollers riding in contact with the track portions of said arms, a drum shaft mounted for rotation on the lower intermediate portion of said framework and provided with cable Winding drums, a prime mover on said framework, an operating connection between the prime mover and drum shaft, sheaves swingably mounted on the intermediate portions of said levers, additional complemental sheaves fiX- edly'mounted on the forward end portion of said framework, and lever lifting and lowering cables anchored at corresponding upper forward ends on said framework and trained over the coacting sheaves and having their rear ends wound on said drums in a manner to raise and lower the levers through the medium of the sheaves and cables.

BOSWELL M. BIRKHEAD.

REFERENCES orrnn I The following references are of of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 504,589 Kaime Sept. 5, 1893 530,296 Aiken Dec. 4, 1894 391,140 Brown June 16, 1908 1,505,732 Simon Aug. 19, 1924 1,558,300 Searles Oct. 20, 1925 1,669,613 Greer May 15, 1928' 1,673,559 Hanak June 12, 1928 1,796,495 Veilleux Mar. 17, 1931 record in the n

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