US3189068A

US3189068A - Log debarking machine

Info

Publication number: US3189068A
Application number: US189466A
Authority: US
Inventors: Brundell Per Gunnar; Jonsson Karl-Erik Arnold
Original assignee: SODERHAMNS VERKSTADER AB
Current assignee: SODERHAMNS VERKSTADER AB
Priority date: 1961-05-10
Filing date: 1962-04-23
Publication date: 1965-06-15
Anticipated expiration: 1982-06-15
Also published as: DE1201033B

Description

June 15, 1965 Filed April 23, 1962 P. G. BRUNDELL ETAL LOG DEBARKING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 15, 1965 P. G.IBRUNDELL ETAL 3,139,058

LOG DEBARKING MACHINE Filed April 23, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.2

June 15, 1965 P. s. BRUNDELL ETAL LOG- DEBARKING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 23, 1962 3 s s 7 2 f M 6 3 k a +4 3 4 4 v i. 7 up Ilsl 4 III-I1 mi h I $1 ORN United States Patent O 3,189,068 LOG DEBARKING MACHINE Per Gunnar llrundell, Toltfors, Gayle, and Karl-Erik Arnold .lionsson, Ga le, Sweden, assignors to Siiderhainns Verlrstiider AB, Soderhamn, Sweden, a corporation of Sweden Filed Apr. 23,1962, Ser. No. 189,466 Claims priority, application Sweden May 10, 1961,

4,940/61 Claims. (Cl. 144-208) The invention relates to a debarking machine of the type in which a hollow rotor provided with debarking tools is carried by a housing which is hingedly suspended on a shaft directed in parallel to the axis of the rotor. Conveyor means are located at both ends of the rotor to move logs through it, and the housing is adapted to be adjusted in dependence on the diameter of the logs so as to place the rotor coaxially in alignment with a log to be introduced. Further, a rotatable roll above the conveyor at each end of the rotor is movable in vertical direction to exert a downward holding pressure on the logs moving through the rotor.

Debarking machines of this kind are primarily of interest in debarking thick and unassorted logs, some of which are even so thick that they cannot pass the rotor. In such case, the pivotally suspended rotor can be moved aside, to let the too thick logs pass along the conveyor without being debarked. A drawback with this arrangement is, however, that said log-engaging rolls must simultaneously be raised separately so as not to obstruct the passage of the logs.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved debarking machine eliminating this drawback. According to the invention, each of said rolls is carried by an arm hingedly supported in the housing to be rotated in a vertical plane substantially perpendicular to the axis -of the rotor, and power transmitting means are mounted on the housing to rotate the arms a desired angle to lift the rolls onto a log. By this device, the log-engaging rolls are automatically moved aside together with the rotor so that thicker logs are not prevented from passing. As

the pivots of the roll-carrying arms are moved together with the housing, the pivotal movement of said arms on the pivots will be limited to a smaller angle than would be the case if the pivots of the arms were carried by a stationary support. By means of simple mechanisms it is, moreover, possible to adjust the arms automatically in desired angular positions independence on the pivotal movement of the housing. According to a preferred embodiment described in detail hereinafter, it is also possible to cause the rolls to engage the log bythe action of at least part of the weight of the hingedly suspended machine, so that the weight of the rolls themselves and their arms need not be very great.

Further features of the debarking-machine according to the invention are apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings,

FIGURE 1 shows a side elevation of the machine as seen from the inlet end, whereas FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the same machineL' FIGURE 3 is a sectional view illustrating the central valve arrangement for the cylinder and piston unit connecting the feed roll arm to the rotor housing.

The machine is built up on a rectangular frame 3 made of I-beams, Secured to one end of said frame is an upright support or bracket 4. Said support is composed of two vertical, laterally spaced side plate 5 mounted in parallel to the longitudinal direction of the frame (FIG. 2) and a transverse end plate 6. joining said side plates. The rotor 7 and its tools 8 adapted to en- 3,189,9fi8 Patentedjune 15, 1965 gage the surface of a log '9 introduced may be of any suitable construction. In some known way, the rotor is journalled in a stator made integral with a cylinder ltl enclosing the rotor periphery, Along approximately half its periphery the cylinder 10 is secured to a box-shaped housing 11 pivotally suspended in the support 4 by means of a pivot 12. The housing is adjustable in the desired angular position in relation to the frame 3 by means of a hydraulic cylinder 13. One end of this cylinder is linked to the frame 3 below the support 4, while the projecting end of the piston rod is linked to a lug 14 provided on the bottom of the housing 11. The supply of pressure fluid to the cylinder 13 is controlled by a valve operated manually.

,The rotor'7 is driven by a motor 15 secured to one side of the housing 11. Though not shown, the driving pulley of the motor is disposed within the housing, and the cylindrical wall 10 isprovided with openings required for the passage of driving belts.

Outside each end of the rotor the cylinder 10 carries a protective shield 16 and 17, respectively. The shield 16 at the outlet end is annular, while the shield 17 at the inlet end (visible in FIG. 1) extends only along a little more than half the circumference of the rotor. A feed roll 18 fixed to a horizontal shaft 19 is disposed opposite the rotor outside each shield. Each roll 18 may be regarded as composed of two truncated cones turning their narrower ends towards each other, and the envelope surface of the roll is provided with grooves directed axial- 1y or at oblique angles to the axis. The shaft 19 is journalled in bearings 20 [and 21 carried by

supports

22 and 23, respectively, secured to the frame 3. A sprocket 24 is fixed to oneend of each shaft 19, and both sprockets 24 are driven by a sprocket wheel 25 on a shaft extending from a gear box 27 coupled to a motor 26. Thoughnot shown, a conveyor is arranged for advancing the logs to the roll 18 in front of the rotor and another conveyor receives debarked logs from the roll disposed behind the rotor.

A roll 28 concave in profile and provided with peripheral grooves is located above each of the feed r0lls18 to engage the logs from above so as to retain them in correct position during the passage through the rotor. Each roll 28 is journalled at the free end of an arm 29 hingedly mounted on the housing to rotate in a vertical plane substantially perpendicularto the axis of the rotor. In the embodiment shown (FIG. 2), the two arms 29 are secured to a common shaft 30 journalled in the housing 11in parallel to the pivot 12. Preferably the shaft 30 is located at apoint above a center line A connecting the center of the pivot 12 with the center of the rotor, FIG. 1. One end of a hydraulic cylinder 31 is linked to a lug32 provided on one of the arms 29, and the piston rod 33 projecting from the opposite end of the cylinder is linked to a pivot 34 secured in the lower part of the' housing 11. A valve 35 is secured to the cylinder 31, and a movable valve reversing member 36 is connected to one end ofa Bowden cable 42 mounted in a U-shaped sleeve 37 on the housing'll. The other end of the cable is by means of a helical spring 3 8 kept incontact with the upper surface of one of the beams of the frame 3. The valve 35 controls conduits, see FIGURE 3, for supplying pressure fiuid to theends of the cylinder 31. Preferably said valve isof a type used in connection with hydraulic normal neutral position because of the upward movement of the cylinder.

FIGURE 3 shows the cylinder 31 and the valve mechanism 35 in section. The valve housing 35 contains a valve slide 41 which is secured to the Bowden cable 42. In the known manner, the cable 42 is encased by a flexible sleeve 37. The valve housing has a central inlet port 43 and two outlet ports 4-4 and &5, one at each end. Two

pistons

46 and 47 on the valve slide 41 are adapted to cooperate each with one

port

43 and 49, respectively. The two ports 43 and 4-9 are by means of

passages

50 and 51, respectively, connected each to one end of the cylinder 31.

'In FIG. 3, the piston 52 of the cylinder 31 is in its central position and the two

valve slide pistons

46, 47 close the ports 48 and 4-9, respectively. Should the rot-or housing 11 be swung upwards, i.e. clockwise in FIG. 1,-the outer end of the cable 4-2 will be pushed out by the spring 33 to keep in contact with the beam 3, and thereby the valve slide 41 is pulled upwards. The cylinder space above the piston 52 is thereby brought into communication with the inlet 43 which is connected to a source of pressure fluid. The piston 52 will be depressed and the arms 29 are caused to swing upwards on the pivot 30. At this upward movement of the arms the slide 41 is returned into the closing position in FIG. 3, and the piston 52 is then held in its new position within the cylinder.

When the housing 11 moves downwards, also the valve member is moved downwards and supplies fluid to the lower end of the cylinder so that the rolls 28 are lowered. The automatic control of the arms 29 described is no necessary condition, as instead the cylinder 31 may very well be actuated by means of a valve operated manually.

A structural detail not mentioned previously is a pcripheral fin 39 on the cylinder wall remote from the housing 11. Said fin 39 is arranged to engage a groove in an arcuate upright guide member 40 fixed to the frame 3, and the object of this device is to absorb some of the thrust to which the housing 11 is subjected when a log is fed through the rotor.

In FIG. 1, the log 9 shown has the smallest diameter that can be de'oarked in the machine and consequently the rotor 7 is in its lowest position, while at the same time the piston rod of the cylinder 13 is entirely retracted. The maximum log diameter is only slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the rotor, and to receive such a log the rotor must be raised such that the lower part of its inner surface is approximately on a level with the top of the feed roll 18. Between this position and the position shown in FIG. 1 the center of the rotor moves along an are having the pivot 12 as its center. Thus, it is not to be avoided that the center of the rotor is displaced slightly in a lateral direction in relation to the roll 18, i.e. to the left in FIG. 1. Particularly when introducing very thick logs, however, it may be suitable to avoid a great lateral displacement, and for this reason the chord of said are is preferably directed almost vertically. In other words, the line connecting the center of the rotor to the center of the pivot 12 forms approximately the same angle to the horizontal plane through the pivot center in the lowest as well as in the highest position of the rotor. The lateral displacement of the rotor is also counteracted by the great distance between the pivot .12 and the rotor center, but in this respect the possibilities are of course limited for practical reasons.

When the housing 11 is moved upwards, the log-engaging rolls 28 are raised simultaneously with and to the same extent as the rotor, as their pivot shaft is journ-alled in the housing. To receive a bigger log, however, the rolls 28 must be raised twice as high the the rotor, and this is taken care of by the cylinder 31. The valve and actuating means 37 are dimensioned and mounted such that the rolls 28 move automatically to the level required for engaging the log surface. Because the shaft 30 is mounted in the housing 11 the pivotal movement of the arms 29 is decreased, and thereby the rolls 28 do not engage the log at too great an angle even in case the log a maximum diameter. For the same purpose the shaft 39 is, as described, preferably disposed above the line connecting the center of the rotor to the pivot 12 so that the arms 29 will slope downwards in the lower position of the rotor.

When the rotor 7 has been raised sufiiciently to receive a centered log, and the roll 28 before the inlet end of the rotor has engaged the log surface, the pressure in the hydraulic cylinder 13 may be relieved entirely or preferably only partly by means of a known hydraulic valve mechanism (a so-called overflow valve) so that the two rolls 28 retain the rotor in its position by resting on the log surface. In this way the rolls 28 engage the log at an increased pressure which may be desired in some cases.

According to another embodiment the two arms 29 of the rolls may instead be arranged to move individually, either by being secured each to one pivot or by being journalled on a common shaft secured to the housing. In such case the two arms must of course be connected to separate lifting means.

The invention is not limited to the embodiment shown in the drawing. For instance, the arms 29 may instead be journalled in a part of the housing projecting on the opposite side of the rotor in relation to the pivot 1-2. According to a further embodiment said pivot may be disposed such that the central line corresponding to center line A of FIG. 1 is vertical or almost vertical in an initial position corresponding to FIG. 1. Such an arrangement is possible, if the shafts of the feed rolls 18 are mounted at an angle to the horizontal plane.

What we claim is:

1. A debarking machine comprising a hollow rotor provided with debarking tools to remove bark from logs fed through it, a housing carrying the rotor and hingedly suspended on a shaft directed in parallel to the axis of the rotor, a motor mounted on the housing for rotating the rotor, conveyor means located at both ends of the rotor to move logs through it, the housing being adapted to be adjusted about said shaft in dependence on the diameter of the logs so as to place the rotor coaxially in alignment with a log to be introduced, means for maintaining the housing in adjusted position, a roll rotatably mounted above the conveyor at each end of the rotor and movable in vertical direction to exert a downward holding pressure on the logs moving through the rotor, arms carrying said rolls and hingedly supported in said housing to swing in vertical planes substantially perpendicular to the axis of the rotor, and power transmitting means mounted on the housing and connected to the arms to swing said arms relative to the housing to move the arms through a desired angle to lift the rolls above an oncoming log.

2. A debarking machine comprising a hollow rotor provided with debarking tools to remove bark from logs fed through it, a housing carrying the rotor and hingedly suspended on a shaft directed in parallel to the axis of the rotor, 21 motor mounted on the housing for rotating the rotor, conveyor means located at both ends of the rotor to move logs through it, the housing being adapted to be adjusted about said shaft in dependence on the diameter of the logs so as to place the rotor coaxially in alignment with a log to be introduced, means for maintaining the housing in adjusted position, a roll rotatably mounted above the conveyor at each end of the rotor and movable in vertical direction to exert a downward holding pressure on the logs moving through the rotor, arms carrying said rolls and hingedly supported in said housing to swing in vertical planes substantially perpendicular to the axis of the rotor, power transmitting means mounted on the housing and connected to the arm to swing said arms a desired angle to lift the rolls above an oncoming log, and means sensing the angular position of the housing in relation to a stationary support, said sensing means being arranged to control said power transmitting means in such a way that said rolls are moved in relation to and in the same direction as the housing.

3. A debarking machine comprising a hollow rotor provided with debarking tools to remove barkfrom logs fed through it, a housing carrying the rotor and hingedly suspended on a shaft directed in parallel to the axis of the rotor, a motor mounted on the housing for rotating the rotor, conveyor means located at both ends of the rotor to move logs through it, the housing being adapted to be adjusted about said shaft in dependence on the diameter of the logs so as to place the rotor coaxially in alignment with a log to be introduced, means for maintaining the housing in adjusted position, a roll rotatably mounted above the conveyor at each end of the rotor and movable in vertical direction to exert a downward holding pressure on the logs moving through the rotor, arms carrying said rolls, a common pivot journalled in said housing extending substantially parallel to the axis of the rotor, said pivot being movable with said housing and supporting said arms for swinging movement in vertical planes substantially perpendicular to the axis of the rotor and power transmitting means mounted on the housing and connected to at least one of said arms and operative to swing both of said arms a desired angle about said common pivot relative to the axis of the rotor and independently of the movement of the housing about the axis of said shaft so as to lift both rolls above an oncoming log.

4. A debarking machine comprising a hollow rotor provided with debarking tools to remove bark from logs fed through it, a housing carrying the rotor and hingedly suspended on a shaft directed in parallel to the axis of the rotor, a motor mounted on the housing for rotating the rotor, conveyor means located at both ends of the rotor to move logs through it, the housing being adapated to be adjusted about said shaft in dependence on the diameter of the logs so as to place the rotor coaxially in alignment with a log to be introduced, means for maintaining the housing in adjusted position, a roll rotatably mounted above the conveyor at each end of the rotor and movable in vertical direction to exert a downward holding pressure on the logs moving through the rotor, arms carrying said rolls and hingedly supported in said housing to swing in vertical planes substantially perpendicular to the axis of the rotor, hydraulic means mounted on the housing to swing said arms a desired angle to lift the rolls above an oncoming log, means sensing the angular position of the housing in relation to a stationary support, and valve means controlled by said sensing means for supplying pressure fluid to said hydraulic means in such a way that said rolls are moved in relation to and in the same direction as the housing.

5. A debarking machine according to claim 1, in which each rol1-carrying arm is supported in the housing at a point located between the rotor and the axis of the shaft that horizontally supports the housing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,675,255 4/54 Bloedel et a1.

2,749,952 6/56 League.

2,785,715 3/ 57 Brundell et a1.

2,855,010 10/ 58 Lefiler.

2,925,107 2/60 Fitzwater.

3,019,825 2/62 Herolf.

FOREIGN PATENTS 78 8,839 1/58 Great Britain.

LESTER M. SWINGLE, Primary Examiner.

EARL EMSHWI-LLER, WILLIAM W. DYER, IR.,

Examiners.

Claims

1. A DEBARKING MACHINE COMPRISING A HOLLOW ROTOR PROVIDED WITH DEBARKING TOOL TO REMOVE BARK FROM LOGS FED THROUGH IT, A HOUSING CARRYING THE ROTOR AND HINGEDLY SUSPENDED ON A SHAFT DIRECTED IN PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF THE ROTOR, A MOTOR MOUNTED ON THE HOUSING FOR ROTATING THE ROTOR, CONVEYOR MEANS LOCATED AT BOTH ENDS OF THE ROTOR TO MOVE LOGS THROUGH IT, THE HOUSING BEING ADAPTED TO BE ADJUSTED ABOUT SAID SHAFT IN DEPENDENCE ON THE DIAMETER OF THE LOGS SO AS TO PLACE THE ROTOR COAXIALLY IN ALIGNMENT WITH A LOG TO BE INTRODUCED, MEANS FOR MAINTAINING THE HOUSING IN ADJUSTED POSITION, A ROLL ROTATABLY MOUNTED ABOVE THE CONVEYOR AT EACH END OF THE ROTOR AND MOVABLE IN VERTICAL DIRECTION TO EXERT A DOWNWARD HOLDING PRESSURE ON THE LOGS MOVING THROUGH THE ROTOR, ARMS CARRYING SAID ROLLS AND HIGEDLY SUPPORTED IN SAID HOUSING TO SWING IN VERTICAL PLANES SUBSTANTIALLY PERPENDICULAR TO THE AXIS OF THE ROTOR, AND POWER TRANSMITTING MEANS MOUNTED ON THE HOUSING AND CONNECTED TO THE ARMS TO SWING SAID ARMS RELATIVE TO THE HOUSING TO MOVE THE ARMS THROUGH A DESIRED ANGLE TO LIFT THE ROLLS ABOVE AN ONCOMING LOG.