US3873227A

US3873227A - Paving crack sealer machine

Info

Publication number: US3873227A
Application number: US385097A
Authority: US
Inventors: Robert L Goethe; Robert R Green
Original assignee: CRESTMARK PRODUCTS CO Inc
Current assignee: CRESTMARK PRODUCTS CO Inc
Priority date: 1972-02-08
Filing date: 1973-08-02
Publication date: 1975-03-25
Anticipated expiration: 1992-03-25

Abstract

Apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a crack in a surface when the ambient temperature drops to a level which would otherwise preclude satisfactory flow of the material utilizes a heated delivery valve and heat sink to maintain an elevated temperature. A source of heat such as a gas burner is in direct heat exchange relationship with the heat sink to raise the temperature to the desired level and heat radiating from the source as well as the heat sink maintains the temperature sufficiently high to assure an adequate flow of material. A depending crack follower structure has a projection extending into the crack and is mounted for pivotal movement about both horizontal and vertical axes. This allows the projection to follow an irregular crack and avoid being damaged by an unyielding object in the crack. Yieldable biasing means normally holds the structure in perpendicular relationship to the surface but will yield under force to accommodate pivotal movement. Also, the horizontal and vertical axes of pivotal movement are disposed in spaced relationship thus precluding any form of ''''universal'''' movement about axes or planes other than the two perpendicular axes.

Description

United States Patent 1191 Goethe et a1.

[ 1 Mar. 25, 1975 1 1 PAVING CRACK SEALER MACHINE [75] Inventors: Robert L. Goethe, Tampa, Fla;

Robert R. Green, Kansas City, Mo.

221 Filed: Aug. 2, 1973 21 Appl. No.: 385,097

Related U.S. Application Data 63] Continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 224,482, Feb. 8,

1972, abandoned.

[52] U.S. Cl. 404/107 [51] Int. Cl. E016 23/02 [58] Field of Search ..404/107,111,89,93, 118; 222/146 R, 146 H [56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 1,698,015 1/1929 Fitzgerald 404/107 2,530,777 1 1/1950 Middlestadt 404/107 2,578,080 12/1951 Middlestadt 404/107 .l,130,(i52 -1/19o4 Newton 404/107 .1, 1 83,80} 5/1905 Gierhart 404/111 3,227,055 1/1966 Glade... 404/107 3,280,710 10/1966 Glade 404/107 3,432,969 3/1969 Byttebier 404/89 X Primary LIraminer-Nile C. Byers, Jr. Almrncy, Agent, or FirmKircher, Wharton & Bowman Lowe, Kokjer [57] ABSTRACT Apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a crack in a surface when the ambient temperature drops to a level which would otherwise preclude satisfactory How of the material utilizes a heated delivery valve and heat sink to maintain an elevated temperature. A source of heat such as a gas burner is in direct heat exchange relationship with the heat sink to raise the temperature to the desired level and heat radiating from the source as well as the heat sink maintains the temperature sufficiently high to assure an adequate flow of material. A depending crack follower structure has a projection extending into the crack and is mounted for pivotal movement about both horizontal and vertical axes. This allows the projection to follow an irregular crack and avoid being damaged by'an unyielding object in the crack. Yieldable biasing means normally holds the structure in perpendicular relationship to the surface but will yield under force to accommodate pivotal movement. Also, the horizontal and vertical axes of pivotal movement are disposed in spaced relationship thus precluding any form o1- universal" movement about axes or planes other than the two perpendicular axes.

12 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures 1 PAVING CRACK SEALER MACHINE This application is a continuation-in-part of our previously filed application Ser. No. 224,482 entitled Paving Crack Sealer Machine filed Feb. 8, 1972 and now abandoned.

This invention relates to maintenance equipment and more particularly to apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a surface. With poured concrete and other equivalent materials which are used to present a surface, aging of the surface invariably results in cracks being presented in the surface. In addition, in many instances it is necessary to leave expansion joints in the surface whichjoints are filled with a yieldable material. Particularly with paved surfaces such as highways preventive maintenance requires that cracks in the surface be periodically cleaned of any material that has accumulated in the cracks and the cracks then be filled with an asphaltic type of material to prevent further deterioration.

Prior techniques for filling cracks in pavement have largely depended upon a number of manual laborers with hand pots, thus resulting in a tedious and timeconsuming procedure. Prior art techniques have also been limited by the fact that at very low temperatures the molten material used to fill cracks in pavement is highly viscous and cannot satisfactorily be poured. Even when the temperature is not so low as to absolutely preclude crack filling, it has heretofore been found that as the temperature drops the crack filling procedure becomes substantially more difficult.

While there have been machines utilizing heated tanks to move over a crack and supply the molten material to it at low temperatures, these devices have been largely unsatisfactory because of their inability to accurately follow an irregular crack. A particular problem in providing a guiding mechanism for a crack filling machine is that because the cracks are normally quite irregular with many relatively slight variations in direction, any guiding mechanism must be closely associated with the material delivery structure.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a surface wherein the delivery valve anddelivery conduit are heated to accommodate free flow of the material and wherein guiding mechanism is provided to guide the apparatus along an irregular crack.

As a corollary to the above object, an aim of this invention is to provide apparatus having structure for guiding it along an irregular crack which may be operated by relatively unskilled workers and wherein the results obtained are superior to those obtained utilizing only manual means to follow an irregular crack.

It is also an objective of this invention to provide a guide mechanism for apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a crack in a surface wherein the guide mechanism is associated with the fluid material delivery structure so that the material is always delivered to the crack even when the latter follows a highly irregular path with many sharp variations in direction.

Still another objective of this invention is to provide apparatus as described in the foregoing objects wherein the handlebars of the apparatus also present a bracket which allows the apparatus to be hung over the endgate of a truck, thus eliminating the need of the apparatus to always be lifted completely into the truck when it is to be transported.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the apparatus of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational view of the crack follower structure and delivery means of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a further enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of the heat conductive block which comprises the material delivery means of the apparatus;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevational view of the crack follower structure;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary top plan view illustrating the vertical axis for pivotal movement of the crack follower structure and associated housing; and

FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view taken along reference line 66 of FIG. 2.

Referring initially to FIG. 1 wherein the'apparatus of the present invention is designated generally by themmeral 10, apparatus 10 includes a vehicle designated generally by the numeral 12 that is intended to be moved over a surface 14 having a crack 16 therein which is to be filled with a thermoplastic fluid material. Vehicle 12 comprises a frame 18 which is supported upon a pair of aligned, spaced-apart rear wheels 20 (one of which is visible in FIG. 1) and a third wheel 22 spaced forwardly of and intermediate the wheels 20. Forward wheel 22 is freely rotatable about a vertical axis to facilitate steering of vehicle 12. Extending upwardly from frame 18 away from surface 14, and rigid with the frame, are a pair of handlebars 24 (one of same being visible in FIG. 1) which are intended to be grasped by an operator to steer the vehicle along surface 14. Each handlebar 24 may be partially supported by a T-brace 26 which is welded to the handlebar and to frame 18. At the terminal end of each handlebar 24 is a longitudinal extending, vertically depending element 28 that is welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the handlebar and a corresponding T-brace 26. Element 28 cooperates with brace 26 and handlebar 24 to present a bracket which in cooperation with the corre-. sponding bracket of the other handlebar allows apparatus 10 to be hung from the endgate of a truck. This eliminates the need to load the entire apparatus 10 completely into the truck when it is necessary to move it short distances over a highway.

Disposed atop the frame 18 is an insulated tank '30 and a second tank 32 containing a source of fuel such as LP. gas. Tank is normally provided with a layer of thermal insulation 34 of suitable material such as Fiberglass, expanded foam, or the like. Tank 30 is providedwith a hinged top 36 to allow the tank to be filled with a suitable crack filling material including asphalts, cut-backs, and emulsions. The material is normally heated to a relatively high temperature before it is introduced into tank 30, and insulation 34 assures that heat loss will be minimized while the material is being applied.

Depending from frame 18 beneath tank 30 is a housing 38 which is provided with a hinged door 40 to allow access to the interior of the housing. At least partially enclosed within housing 38 are a delivery structure 42, a conduit 44, and a burner 46. Delivery structure 42 normally comprises a block formed from aluminum or other heat conductive material and serves both as a delivery valve and as a heat sink for the interior of the housing 38. Structure 42 has a through-bore 48 comprised of a generally vertical segment 50 and a horizontal segment52. It is generally desired to maximize the length of bore 48 for maximum heating of the material and the perpendicular segments at the peripheral edges of structure 42 serve this end. Vertical segment 50 is disposed in alignment with an opening 54 in the bottom of tank 30 and conduit 55 communicates segment 50 with opening 54. A second generally vertical bore 56 in structure 42 intersects segment 52 and receives a threaded fitting 57 defining an outlet opening 58. Bore 56 thus presents a housing for a plunger valve 60 which is movable vertically to varying degrees to either partially or completely block bore 48. To this end a cable 61 may be coupled with plunger 60 and with a handle grip 65 secured to one of the handlebars 24. An operator may pull on grip 65 to raise plunger 60 and open the passage through structure 42. A first collar 62 rigid with plunger 60 and a second collar 64 which is rigid to housing 38 and telescopically receives plunger 60, serve to mount yieldable means in the form of a coil spring 66 which biases plunger valve 60 downwardly into a passage-closing position and yields under the force of an operator pulling on handle 65. The end of bore 48 is blocked by an appropriate fitting 68 which is threadably received and may be removed for cleanout purposes.

As best illustrated in FIG. 2, burner 46 is disposed with its burner tip 70 directed against structure 42. A conduit 72 couples burner tip 70 with the fuel in tank 32 through a control valve 74 and a fuel line 76. A thermocouple 80 is also coupled through a line 78 with valve 74 to control the flow of fuel to burner 46 when the latter is operating. The end of thermocouple 80 is disposed immediately above burner 46 and both burner and thermocouple are held in place by a common bracket 82 mounted on the bottom of housing 38. A hand valve 84 is operable to provide means for effecting major incremental variations in the flow of fuel to burner 46. Hand valve 84 is normally provided with a number of different settings one of which is chosen at the outset of operation of apparatus as dictated by the particular material being applied to surface 14.

Referring additionally to FIGS. 46, the end of structure 42 from which outlet opening 58 extends projects beyond the sidewall of housing 38 so as to allow flow of material into crack 16. This end of structure 42 also has a pair of angle braces 86 secured to it by bolts 88 with the braces being disposed in spaced apart relationship to mount a U-shaped framework 90. Framework 90 has a block 92 disposed at its lowermost end between the legs of the framework which block has a through-bore for mounting a crack follower projecting rod 94. A pin 96 extends through block 92 and the braces 86 to pivotally mount the framework 90, block 92, and rod 94 for movement about a horizontal axis.

Disposed above block 92 and also rigid with framework 90 is an L-bracket 98 to which one end ofa coil spring 100 is fastened. The other end of spring 100 is secured to a third angle brace 102 mounted on the side of structure 42 which is opposite the side to which braces 86 are secured. Thus, spring 100 serves to to bias framework 90 against movement about the horizontal axis of pin 96.

A washer 104 is rigid with rod 94 and provides a bearing surface for a coil spring 106. Rod 94 is telescoped through spring 106 and the latter serves to bias the rod downwardly into its crack-engaging position. The uppermost end of rod 94 defines an islet 108 to which a cable 110 is secured for lifting the rod against the force of spring 106. The other end of cable 110 is secured to an appropriate handle grip (not shown) adjacent one of the handlebars 24.

As best illustrated in FIG. 5, the entire housing 38 is mounted upon an upright rod 108 which is journaled in a collar 110 that is rigidly secured to framework 18 through an arm 112. Coil springs 114 are disposed on either side of rod 108 and are secured to the framework 18 and to housing 38 respectively.

In operation, tank 30 is filled with a fluid material which is intended to be applied to surface 14 for filling crack 16 or other depressions in the surface. Burner 46 is placed in operation to provide a heat source in direct heat exchange relationship with structure 42. As an operator pulls on handle grip 65 material will commence to flow through the passage presented by bore 48 and out of the delivery structure 42 onto surface 14. Because of the highly heat conductive nature of the block, the material will readily flow through bore 48. Also, the heat radiated from structure 42 raises the temperature substantially within housing 38 to assure that the material remains highly fliud in conduit 44. Thermocouple stops the flow of fuel to the burner in the event the flame is extinguished. Hand valve 84 is operated to select the desired temperature level of the burner.

Projection rod 94 normally assumes its extended position into crack 16 to facilitate guiding of apparatus 10. Manifestly, with rod 94 in the crack, and freely pivotal wheel 22-at the front of vehicle 12, little effort is required on the part of an operator to steer the machine and maintain outlet 58 directly over crack 16. The rod is preferably constructed of a very hard material such as tungsten or a steel alloy capable of withstanding substantial forces. By virtue of the fact that the outlet 58 is immediately adjacent rod 94, and both the rod and outlet opening are mounted for pivotal movement about the vertical axis of rod 108, any slight variation in the direction ofcrack 16 will result in reorientation of outlet opening 58. Thus the fluid material is always directed into the crack and spillage onto surface 14 is minimized. Movement of housing 38 along with rod 94 and delivery structure 42 about the vertical axisof rod 108 is illustrated by the broken line positions in FIG. 5.

If the projecting end of rod 94 should strike an unyielding object in crack 16, the entire framework will pivot about the horizontal axis of pin 96 as illustrated by the phantom position for framework 90 in FIG. 2. .This will normally allow the projecting end of rod 94 to pass over the object, although if crack 16 becomes completely closed, cable 110 may be pulled to raise rod 94 against the action of spring to completely lift the projecting end out of the crack. Return of the projecting end of rod 94 to its normally vertical position perpendicular to the plane of surface 14 is assured by virtue of coil spring 100. Likewise, springs 114 assure return of the entire housing 38 to its normal position parallel to framework 18 after deflection caused by a change in the direction of track 16. It is desirable that the horizontal and vertical axes of pivotal movement of the rod 94 be disposed in spaced relationship to avoid complete universal" movement of the rod 94 which would make it more difficult to guide the apparatus and maintain the rod in crack 16.

Having thus described the invention, we claim:

1. Apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a crack in a surface for filling the crack, said apparatus comprising:

a vehicle adapted to be moved over the surface along the crack;

a source of said fluid material carried by said vehicle;

crack follower structure mounted on said vehicle and adapted to extend down into saidcrack;

said structure being mounted for pivotal movement about horizontal and vertical axes while precluding movement other than about said axes;

means coupled with said structure and said vehicle for biasing said structure against movement about either of said axes while yielding'under force to allow said movement; and

conduit structure coupled with said source for receiving material therefrom,

said conduit structure including means presenting an outlet opening adjacent said crack follower structure and in rearwardly spaced relationship thereto relative to the direction of travel of the vehicle, the means presenting said outlet opening being coupled with the crack follower structure for move ment along the path of the crack as the vehicle moves over the surface.

2. The invention of claim 1, wherein said vehicle comprises a pair of aligned wheels disposed for engagement with said surface, and a third wheel spaced forwardly of the vehicle from said aligned wheels, and third wheel being freely rotatable about a vertical axis whereby to facilitate steering of the vehicle.

3. The invention of claim 1, wherein is included means for biasing said follower structure into the crack and means for raising said follower structure out of said crack against the force of the follower structure biasing means to clear an obstruction in the crack.

4. The invention of claim 1, wherein said vehicle includes a pair of handles extending upwardly and away from said surface and adapted to be grasped by an operator to steer the vehicle, said handles comprising a bracket adapted to be placed over the endgate of a truck for supporting the vehicle when it is transported by a truck.

5. The invention of claim 1, wherein said conduit structure comprises heat conductive material delivery means and wherein is included a heat source for raising the temperature of the delivery means to a level sufficient to maintain said material in a fluid state when the ambient temperature drops to a level which would otherwise preclude satisfactory flow.

6. The invention of claim 5, wherein said conduit structure comprises a block having a through-bore presenting a passageway for said material and terminating in said outlet opening, and said heat source is in direct heat exchange relationship with said block.

7. The invention of claim 6, wherein is included conduit means coupling said through-bore with said source, and structure at least partially enclosing said block, said heat source and said conduit means, whereby the heat from said source also raises the temperature of the conduit means within the housing to facilitate the flow of material through the conduit means.

8. The invention of claim 7, wherein is included valve means disposed in said through-bore for controlling the flow of material therethrough.

9. The invention of claim 8, wherein said valve means comprises a second bore intersecting the firstmentioned bore, and a plunger disposed in said second bore, said plunger being operable to block the firstmentioned bore in varying degrees.

10. The invention of claim 5, wherein said conduit structure comprises an aluminum block having a through-bore presenting a passageway for said material and terminating in said outlet opening, and said heat source comprises a burner and a source of fuel for the burner, the flame of the burner being directed against said aluminum block.

11. The invention of claim 10, wherein said source of material includes insulated tank means for containing said fluid material, there being an opening in the tank means through which the material passes to said through-bore, said tank means being disposed above said block, said through-bore having a generally vertical segment beneath said opening and a generally horizontal segment extending away from said vertical segment whereby the length of the bore is maximized to maximize the distance traveled by said material passing through said block.

12. The invention of claim 11, wherein is included heat control means coupled with said burner for adjusting the output of the burner to vary the temperature in said housing in accordance with the flow requirements of the material.

Claims

1. Apparatus for delivering a fluid material to a crack in a surface for filling the crack, said apparatus comprising: a vehicle adapted to be Moved over the surface along the crack; a source of said fluid material carried by said vehicle; crack follower structure mounted on said vehicle and adapted to extend down into said crack; said structure being mounted for pivotal movement about horizontal and vertical axes while precluding movement other than about said axes; means coupled with said structure and said vehicle for biasing said structure against movement about either of said axes while yielding under force to allow said movement; and conduit structure coupled with said source for receiving material therefrom, said conduit structure including means presenting an outlet opening adjacent said crack follower structure and in rearwardly spaced relationship thereto relative to the direction of travel of the vehicle, the means presenting said outlet opening being coupled with the crack follower structure for movement along the path of the crack as the vehicle moves over the surface.

9. The invention of claim 8, wherein said valve means comprises a second bore intersecting the first-mentioned bore, and a plunger disposed in said second bore, said plunger being operable to block the first-mentioned bore in varying degrees.