Patent ID: 6481124
Filing Date: 2002-11-19
Classification: E02F

Abstract:
A coupler for enabling an excavator operator to couple an excavator bucket to a dipper arm of an excavator without leaving an excavator cab, the coupler being operably mounted between the excavator bucket and the dipper arm, the excavator bucket including a first pivot pin and a second pivot pin, and the dipper arm including a bucket hydraulic cylinder, the coupler comprising:(a) a pivoting latching hook; (b) two spaced side plates, each side plate having four fixed pin location points, each side plate including a first aperture and a second aperture defining two of the fixed pin location points, the first aperture operably alignable with the dipper arm of the excavator and the second aperture operably alignable with the bucket hydraulic cylinder, a first open-ended hook-shaped recess defining a third fixed pin location point for engagement with the first pivot pin provided on the excavator bucket, and a second open-ended aperture selected to cooperate with the pivoting latching hook to define the fourth fixed pin location point and for latching engagement with a second pivot pin provided on the bucket subsequent to engagement of the first hook-shaped recess with the first pivot pin; (c) a double acting piston and cylinder device for controlling the latching hook, one end of which device is pivotally connected about a first pivot axis to the coupler, and the other end of which device is pivotally connected to the latching hook; and (d) blocking means moveably connected relative to the side plates and movable from and into a blocking position which prevents the latching hook from being disengaged from the second pivot pin on the excavator bucket, the blocking means being movable from within the excavator cab independent of the latching hook moving between the latching position and the unlatched position.