Distributor for particulate material

A distributor for a particulate material is mountable on a portable container having a rear discharge chute, and includes a hopper for receiving material from the discharge chute, and spreader means mounted below the hopper for spreading the material. The distributor further includes means for pivotally securing the hopper to the discharge chute, so that the hopper and spreader are movable as a unit between an operating position, in which the hopper and spreader depend from the discharge chute, and an elevated storage position, in which the hopper and spreader are located above the base of the container. A winch and cable assembly moves the hopper and spreader between the operating position and the storage position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates in general to distributors for spreading 
particulate material from a portable container, and more specifically 
relates to distributors that are movable with respect to the containers 
with which they are associated. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
A wide variety of distributors for spreading particulate material from a 
container are known in the art. Such distributors have been found to be 
particularly advantageous for use with containers that are mountable on 
the body of a truck used by highway maintenance departments in spreading 
salt, sand, or gravel on the surface of roads that are covered by ice, or 
snow. To provide a defined spreading pattern that is restricted to the 
roadway and is sufficiently unaffected by high winds, known distributors 
include spreading means that are positioned below the axles of the trucks 
on which they are mounted. Such spreader means are exposed to road hazards 
and to the risk of being damaged as the trucks travel over rough terrain. 
In a U.S. Pat. to Walker, No. 3,819,120, a distributor mountable by a 
support frame to the rear end of a truck is vertically movable with 
respect to the frame. However, such movement is for the sole purpose of 
controlling the spreading pattern of the distributor. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention provides an improved particulate material distributor 
that is pivotally mounted from the rear discharge chute of a portable 
container and includes a hopper for receiving particulate material from 
the discharge chute and spreader means mounted on the lower end of the 
hopper. The distributor is movable between a lowered operating position, 
in which the hopper and spreader means extend downwardly below the 
discharge chute, and an elevated storage position, in which the 
distributor projects upwardly from the discharge chute. 
In a preferred embodiment the material container, on which the distributor 
is mounted, is carried in a truck body and the spreader means of the 
distributor is driven by a rotary hydraulic motor associated with the 
hydraulic fluid system of the truck. A manually operated winch and cable 
assembly mounted on the container includes a cable attached at one end to 
the distributor for moving the distributor between the operating and 
storage positions therefor. Such movement is made possible by the support 
of the hydraulic drive motor directly on the spreading means so that the 
only drive connections between the truck and the motor are the flexible 
fluid transmission lines for supplying fluid from the truck hydraulic 
system to the motor.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
A preferred embodiment of the distributor of the present invention, 
indicated generally at 10 in FIG. 1, is adapted for spreading salt, sand 
and other particulate material from the rear of a container 11. A usual 
truck 12, such as that used by state highway maintenance departments, has 
a body 13 for receiving the container 11. The container 11 is of a flare 
type and includes a base or bottom wall 16, a pair of sidewalls 17, a 
front wall 18 and a rearwall 19. Referring to FIG. 4, the rear container 
wall 19 has a lower central opening 21 adjacent the base 16 closeable by a 
gate 22 guidable for vertical movement in tracks 23 fixed to the rear wall 
19. The gate 22 is operated by a cylinder and piston assembly 25 mounted 
on the rear wall 19. A discharge chute 29 for the container 11 projects 
rearwardly from the rear wall 19, and has an upper opening 30 for 
receiving material from the container opening 21. 
As shown in FIG. 3, the distributor 10 is mounted on the discharge chute 29 
and includes a hopper 31 of a generally rectangular shape in transverse 
section having a top opening 35 (FIG. 2). The hopper 31 has a lower 
tapered portion 36 which terminates in a relative narrow opening 37 formed 
in a top plate 38 of a rotary spreader 39 secured to the lower hopper 
portion 36. The assembly of the hopper 31 and spreader 39 forms the 
distributor 10. 
The top plate 38 of the spreader 29 is of a generally square shape having 
depending adjustable side plates 44 and front and back plates 45 and 46, 
respectively, pivotally connected to the top plate 38. Extension arms 47a 
(only one of which is shown in FIG. 3) extend from the front plate 45 and 
are connected by links 48a to adjustment members 49a secured to side 
braces 42. An extension arm 47b projects outwardly from the rear plate 46 
and is connected by a link 48b to an adjustment member 49b fixed on the 
top plate 38. Each of the side plates 44 has a leg 50 connected by a link 
51 to an adjustment plate 52 secured to the side braces 42. Thus, the side 
plates 44 and front and back plates 45 and 46, respectively, are manually 
adjustable between a vertical position, as represented by the position of 
the plates 45 and 46, and a horizontal position, represented by the side 
plates 44, to control the spread pattern of the spreader 39. 
A rotary hydraulic motor 55, supported on the upper side of the spreader 
top plate 38, is powered by fluid under pressure supplied from the 
hydraulic system of the truck 12 via lines 56. An output shaft 57 of the 
motor 55 extends downwardly through the spreader top plate 38 and mounts a 
rotary spreader blade 58 for rotation adjacent the under side of the top 
plate. 
Referring to FIG. 3, the distributor 10 is pivotally connected to the 
discharge chute 29 by means including a pair of pivot arms 61 fixed to the 
rear upper portion of the hopper 31 and pivotally connected at 60 to a 
pair of pivot arms 62 projected rearwardly from the rear of the chute 29. 
By virtue of this pivotal connection between the discharge chute 29 and 
the distributor 10, the distributor 10 is pivotally movable from an 
operating position projected downwardly from beneath the chute 29 to an 
elevated inverted position extended upwardly from the rear end of the 
chute 29, as represented by FIGS. 5 and 6. 
On completion of a spreading operation, the distributor 10 may be pivoted 
to the elevated position therefor for protection against damage in 
transport. When the container 11 is to be removed from the truck 12 for 
storage purposes for placement on the ground as shown in FIG. 6, the 
distributor 10 is moved to the elevated position therefor so as to be 
located above the ground to permit the entire base of the container to be 
supported on the ground. 
Preferably, a winch and cable assembly 65 is employed for manually moving 
the distributor 10 from the spreading position to the elevated position 
therefor. The assembly 65 includes a crank operated winch 66 supported 
from one side of the discharge chute 29, and a winch cable 67 trained 
about a pulley 70 on the container 11 for connection to the distributor 10 
at the spreader means 39. 
In its elevated position, the distributor 10 is held from pivoting 
downwardly by the winch and cable assembly 65. On release of the winch 66 
and unwinding of the cable 67, the distributor 10 is permitted to move 
downwardly into the operating position therefor wherein the upper end of 
the hopper 31 is open to the discharge chute 29. To maintain the 
distributor 10 in its operating position during travel of the truck 12, 
lock plates 75, pivotally secured at opposite sides of the discharge chute 
29 have latch portions 76 engageable with a flange 77 on the upper end of 
the hopper 31. Thus in both the operating or elevated positions therefor, 
the distributor 10 is releasably locked against movement. 
Although the invention has been described with respect to a preferred 
embodiment thereof, it is to be understood that it is not to be so limited 
since changes and modifications can be made therein which are within the 
full intended scope of this invention as defined by the appended claims.