Patent ID: 6942430
Filing Date: 2005-09-13
Classification: E02D

Abstract:
1. Apparatus for placing pipe piling in the ground, comprising: pipe piling having an upper end portion and a lower end portion; a support frame; a motor mounted on said support frame, said motor having a downwardly extending rotary output shaft; a drive head mounted on said support frame for rotation about a vertical axis; said output shaft being connected to said drive head such that rotation of said output shaft by said motor will rotate the drive head about said vertical axis; said drive head being drivenly connectable to the upper end portion of the pipe piling; clamping apparatus mounted on side portions of the support frame, below said drive head, said clamping apparatus including: a pair of horizontally disposed linear hydraulic actuators, each said actuator comprising a fixed outer end portion and a retractable/extendible/rotatable inner end portion; and a pair of pipe piling engaging clamps connected to the inner end portions of the actuators, said clamps confronting each other across a space between them, said clamps being adapted to receive between them a section of pipe piling when the upper end portion of the pipe piling is drivenly connected to said drive head; whereby the actuators can be retracted to move the clamps apart and provide between them said pipe piling receiving space, and the actuators can be extended to move the clamps towards each other and into clamping engagement with a pipe piling that has been placed in said space between the clamps.