US2784018A - Automotive sanders - Google Patents

Description

March 5, 1957 w. T. ANDERSON 2,784,018

AUTOMOTIVE SANDERS Filed Feb. 8, 1954 o s: n... 'Il'. r'. '11"'....1

.Fig/4 United States Patent O AUTOMOTIVE SANDERS Wilbur T. Anderson, Denver, Colo.

Application February 8, 1954, Serial No. 408,877

2 Claims. (Cl. 291-44) This invention relates to a sand valve for releasing anti-skid sand to the wheels of an automotive vehicle, and more particularly to a sand valve of the type illustrated and described in applicants co-pending application Serial No. 356,666J now Patent No. 2,760,406.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a valve structure, designed to be positioned upon the lower extremity of a sand conduit or hose leading from a suitable sand reservoir on an automotive vehicle, which can be operated either by vacuum or electrically to release sand, when desired, ahead of the drive wheels of the vehicle, which will not become clogged by mud, water, slush or other foreign materials.

Sand valves of this type are usually used only in winter weather and are therefore subjected to ying mud, snow and slush which is driven upwardly into the housing by the rapid air ow caused by the vehicles motion. The accumulated moist material is frozen in the device by the freezing temperatures encountered and the sand valve is rendered useless until thawed out.

Another object of the invention is to so construct the device that water, mud, and slush cannot be splashed or blown into the valve operating mechanism to become frozen therein, and to provide means for constantly loosening and eradicating any moisture, mud, and slush which may attempt to enter the device.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and eiliciency. These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views of the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the improved sand valve;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section therethrough, taken on the line 2-2, Fig. 4, with the interior structure shown in side elevation;

Fig. 3 is a similar section, with the interior structure illustrated in section; and

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section, looking downwardly on the line 44, Fig. 2.

The improved sand valve comprises a flat-sided, hopper-like housing having an elongated, rectangular, horizontal cross-section, closed at its top by means of a sealing cap 11. The sealing cap 11 is held in place on the housing 10 in any desired manner, such as by means of self-threading screws 12.

The bottom of the housing terminates in a discharge nipple 13 about which a flexible tube 14 is secured in any desired manner. The tube 14 is formed from exible rubber, neoprene, or flexible plastic, and terminates at its bottom in an enlarged sand discharge bell 15 which is formed integrally therewith.

The lower periphery of the bell 1S is surrounded by a still further enlarged bead or verge 16. The exible tube Patented Mar. 5, 1957 "ice 14 and the llexible bell l5, with its verge 16, form an efficient moisture trap. The dilerences in the diameters of the verge 16 and the bell 15 form a first moisture trapping shoulder 18 and the diEerences in the diameters between the bell 15 and the tube 14 form a second relatively wide moisture trapping shoulder 17. The differences in diameters between the tube 14 and the nipple 13 form a third and iinal trapping shoulder 35. Water, slush and mud splashed upwardly from the roadway impinge against the internal wall of the verge and bell and are trapped from being blown upwardly into the housing 10 by the moisture trapping shoulders 18, 17 and 35.

Moisture is still further deterred from traveling upwardly into the housing 10 by means of an annular lip 19 which surrounds the lower extremity of the tube 14 and which projects downwardly within the bell 15.

A unitary valve fitting 20 is secured to and supported from the cap 11 by means of a suitable supporting screw 21. The fitting 20 is provided with an intake tube 22 which projects upwardly through and from the cap 11 and downwardly into the housing 10. The lower extremity of the tube 21 is normally closed by means of a semi-spherical rubber ball 23.

The ball 23 is seated in a ball cup 24 carried on the extremity of a valve lever 27. The valve lever 27 is suspended through the medium of suitable hinge ears 25 from a cotter key 26 extending through the fitting 20 and forming a hinge pivot for the lever. The valve lever 27 terminates beneath a vacuum cylinder 28 formed in and projecting downwardly from the fitting 20.

A vacuum nipple 29 projects upwardly from the vacuum cylinder 28 through the cap 11. The lower extremity of the cylinder 28 is closed by means of a cup-shaped cylinder head 30 frictionally forced thereon. A cuppedpiston 31 is mounted in the cylinder 28 and is constantly urged downwardly therein by means of a suitable compression spring 32 acting between the piston 31 and the top of the cylinder. A piston stud 33 projects downwardly from the piston 31 through the head 30 and is hingedly connected to the extremity of the lever 27 by means of a second cotter key 34.

The device is installed in the automotive vehicle by securing the upwardly projecting portion of the intake tube 22 into the lower extremity of the sand supply hose of the vehicle so that the entire device is supported from the hose. A vacuum hose is connected from the vacuum nipple 29 to the vacuum system of the vehicle through any suitable valve arrangement.

Sand will ow down the sand hose to lill the sand tube 22. When it is desired to discharge sand for traction purposes, the air is evacuated from the vacuum cylinder 28 through the vacuum system. This causes atmospheric pressure to force the piston 31 upwardly in its cylinder 28, causing the stud 33 to lift the extremity of the valve lever 27 so as to tilt the ball socket 24 and the ball 23 downwardly to the broken line position of Fig. 3, allowing the sand to flow into the housing 10 and to discharge from the bell 15.

Experiment has shown that without the bell and the liexible tube 14, moisture will be blown into the bottom of the housing 10 and will freeze therein with accumulated sand and other debris so as to prevent discharge of the sand. With the bell 15 in place, however, upward travel of the moisture is prevented by the internal shoulders 18, 17 and 35 and the trapping lip 19. Any debris which might strike and adhere to the internal walls of the flexible portions of the bell will soon be shaken loose due to the constant whipping and shaking motion of the flexible bell 15 and its tube 14 while the vehicle is in motion so that clogging of the housing 10 due to freezing is entirely prevented.

While a vacuum cylinder has been illustrated, for tilting the ball 23, an electric solenoid could be positioned in the exact position of the vacuum cylinder so that the stud 33 would be drawn upwardly magnetically instead of pneumatically, should electrical operation be preferred over the vacuum actuation.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is to be understood that the same may be varied, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired secured by Letters Patent is:

l. A sand valve for vehicles comprising: a hopperlike housing having a sand discharge in its bottom and a cap closing its top; a unitary valve fitting secured to and beneath said cap within said housing; an intake tube formed on and supported by said fitting, said tube projecting upwardly through said cap and downwardly into said housing; a hinge pivot in said fitting; a valve lever tiltably supported intermediate its extremities from said pivot and positioned below said intake tube; a resilient, hemispherical sealing device carried by one extremity of said lever and positioned to close the lower extremity of said intake tube; an upwardly extending lever-actuating member hingedly secured to and extending upwardly from the other extremity of said lever; spring means urging said latter extremity downwardly; and means for urging said latter extremity upwardly when desired.

2. A sand valve for vehicles as described in claim l having a vacuum cylinder formed on and supported by said fitting above the said other extremity of said lever; and a piston in said cylinder connected with said leveractuating means for drawing the latter upwardly in response to vacuum in said cylinder, said spring means being positioned in said cylinder and acting against the piston therein.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,743,293 Toft Jan. 14, 1930 2,016,419 Elston Oct. 8. 1935 2,137,917 Lintern Nov. 22, 1938 2,163,911 Lintern June 27, 1939 2,469,980 Myshrall May 10, 1949

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