Methods and apparatus for making an asphalt-aggregate pavement

An apparatus and method for delivering asphalt-aggregate material from a plurality of supply trucks to a finishing machine. In a preferred form of the invention the hopper of the finishing machine is modified to have a capacity substantially equal to the capacity of one of the supply trucks. The apparatus is a self-propelled storage vehicle including a hopper having a capacity substantially equal to the capacity of one of the supply trucks, a high capacity loading conveyor, and a high capacity unloading conveyor system. A transversely disposed screw auger is provided for remixing the asphalt-aggregate material in the hopper prior to its discharge to the finishing machine. In the first method of operation the storage vehicle shuttles between the finishing machine and a remote location of the supply trucks and in the second method of operation the storage vehicle travels in tandem with the finishing machine as the paving operation is performed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates in general to methods and apparatus for 
making an asphalt-aggregate pavement. In particular, the invention relates 
to methods and apparatus for transporting the asphalt-aggregate material 
from the delivery trucks to the screed of a finishing machine. 
2. Summary Of The Prior Art 
The conventional method of laying an aspahlt-aggregate roadway mat includes 
the use of a finishing machine and a number of delivery trucks to 
transport the asphalt-aggregate material from the asphalt plant to the job 
site. Finishing machines of the type hereunder consideration, sometimes 
called pavers, are well-known to those skilled in the art. Such a 
finishing machine has a so-called floating screed at its rear end, usually 
provided with some form of vibratory means, to form the asphalt mat. The 
finishing machine also includes a hopper at its front end for receiving 
the asphalt-aggregate material and suitable conveyor means, usually slat 
conveyors and screw augers, for delivering the material from the hopper to 
a position just in advance of the screed. 
A typical finishing machine has a hopper with a capacity of approximately 5 
tons. A typical delivery truck, usually a dump truck, will have a capacity 
of approximately 20 tons. The technique for transferring the 
asphalt-aggregate material from the dump truck to the hopper of the 
finishing machine screed normally requires the truck driver to position 
his vehicle immediately in front of the finishing machine, the latter 
being provided with rollers which engage the rear tires of the truck. 
During the time that the material is being transferred from the dump truck 
to the hopper of the finishing machine, the latter is advancing along the 
subgrade as it forms the asphalt-aggregate mat and in doing so pushes the 
truck forwardly in tandem therewith. 
A number of problems arise when operating the finishing machine and the 
delivery trucks in the manner just described. Quite frequently, the hopper 
of the finishing machine will be nearly empty and thus ready to be 
refilled, but a loaded dump truck will not be available at the job site. 
The absence of a loaded delivery truck at the required time is most often 
due to traffic conditions which prevent the delivery trucks from arriving 
at the job site at the proper time intervals. When this occurs, the 
finishing machine must obviously stop and await the arrival of another 
delivery truck. 
As is known to those skilled in the art, when a finishing machine stops, 
even momentarily, the screed will tend to settle into the freshly laid 
mat. When the finishing machine then commences forward travel, the screen 
will tend to ride upwardly momentarily thus depositing an excessive amount 
of material. Consequently, the stopping of the finishing machine causes a 
depression and bump in the surface of the asphalt-aggregate mat resulting 
in an uneven pavement surface. Needless to say, it is desirable to produce 
the smoothest possible surface. 
It is often necessary to stop the finishing machine even though one or more 
loaded delivery trucks are available at the job site. This is so since 
quite often it is simply impossible for the truck drivers to remove the 
empty delivery truck from the front of the finishing machine and to 
maneuver a full delivery truck into a position in advance of the finishing 
machine before the finishing machine runs out of material. As illustrated 
in Table I (set forth below), as the paving rate of the paver, in tons per 
hour (TPH), increases the available truck exchange time decreases. 
TABLE I 
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TRUCK EXCHANGE TIME FOR A CONVENTIONAL 
FINISHING MACHINE OPERATING DISCONTINOUSLY 
FINISHING MACHINE WITH 5 TON HOPPER CAITY 
OPERATES CONTINUOUSLY WITH 20 
TON CAITY TRUCKS 
20 TON TIME AT TRUCK 
PAVING TRUCK PAVER EXCHANGE 
RATE INTERVAL W/5 TON TIME 
(TPH) (MINUTES) LIVE HOPPER AVAILABLE 
______________________________________ 
200 6 4.5 1.5 
300 4 3.0 1.0 
400 3 2.2 0.8 
600 2 1.5 0.5 
______________________________________ 
As is known to those skilled in the art, at least 1.5 minutes are required 
to perform the truck exchanging operation. Therefore, it is apparent from 
the data in Table I that a finishing machine using the conventional supply 
methods cannot operate continuously at a rate greater than 200 TPH. In 
order to operate at a higher paving rate and still provide sufficient time 
to exchange trucks, the paver must stop each time the hopper's supply of 
paving material is exhausted. This situation is illustrated in Table II 
(set forth below), where the finishing machine, running discontinuously, 
can operate at a rate of 800-1200 TPH while still providing the necessary 
1.5 minutes for the truck exchanging operation. 
TABLE II 
______________________________________ 
TRUCK EXCHANGE TIME FOR A CONVENTIONAL 
FINISHING MACHINE OPERATING DISCONTINOUSLY 
FINISHING MACHINE WITH 5 TON HOPPER CAITY 
OPERATES DISCONTINUOUSLY WITH 20 
TON CAITY TRUCKS 
20 TON TRUCK TIME TRUCK EXCHANGE 
PAVER INTERVAL AT TIME 
TPH (MINUTES) PAVER AVAILABLE 
______________________________________ 
400 6.0 2.3 3.7 
600 4.0 1.5 2.5 
800 3.0 1.0 2.0 
1200 2.0 0.8 1.2 
______________________________________ 
However, this discontinuous operation of the finsihing machine results in 
an undesirable depression and hump on the pavement mat each time the 
finishing machine is stopped to perform the truck exchanging operation, as 
previously explained. 
There have been two general approaches in the prior art in an attempt to 
deal with the problems just mentioned. The first approach involves 
providing a delivery truck with a very substantial capacity. 
Representative prior art showing such trucks include U.S. Pat. Nos. 
3,647,096; 3,731,825; 3,750,802; 3,794,194; and German Patent Publication 
No. 22 60 396 (1972), all in the name of John H. Holland. The provision of 
such large capacity trucks really does not solve the problem since the 
finishing machine still must be stopped if one of such trucks is not 
available in a loaded condition at the finishing machine hopper when its 
hopper is nearly empty. Further, the trucks shown in the aforesaid Holland 
patents are of the trailer-truck type making it even more difficult for 
the truck operator to maneuver the vehicle in advance of the finishing 
machine hopper. 
Another approach, in an attempt to solve the finishing machine stopping 
problem referred to herein, involves dumping of the asphalt-aggregate 
material on the subgrade in the form of a windrow in advance of the path 
of travel of the finishing machine. According to this technique, a windrow 
loader machine, such as the machine shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,512, is 
provided for picking up the material from the subgrade and for delivering 
the material into the hopper of the finishing machine. 
This windrow approach has not proved to be very satisfactory. Although a 
delivery truck can normally dump its contents more rapidly in forming a 
windrow rather than remaining with the finishing machine when discharging 
the contents directly into the hopper of the latter, considerable skill is 
required on the part of the delivery truck driver to form a proper 
windrow. Accordingly, considerable time is still required to discharge the 
contents of the delivery truck. Thus, the delivery truck may be required 
to remain at the job site longer than desirable thereby delaying departure 
of the truck to the asphalt plant for picking up another load of the 
asphalt-aggregate material. Another disadvantage to the windrow technique 
results from the fact that the material is dumped onto the subgrade and 
hence some of the material picked up by the windrow loader may be 
contaminated with the subgrade material. Moreover, weather conditions can 
adversely affect the exposed asphalt material that forms the windrow. 
SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention resides in the provision of an apparatus that 
includes a large capacity hopper and a large capacity conveyor thereby 
permitting the delivery dump truck to discharge its entire contents 
directly into such hopper in a very rapid manner. In the preferred 
embodiment of the invention, the aforesaid apparatus is in the form of a 
self-propelled vehicle which may shuttle back and forth between the 
delivery trucks and the finishing machine. The present invention also 
resides in a method for using the apparatus of the present invention in 
association with delivery trucks and a modified form of the finishing 
machine. 
A primary object of the present invention resides in the provision of a new 
apparatus and method for transferring asphalt-aggregate material from one 
or more delivery trucks to a finishing machine. 
Another object of the present invention resides in the provision of, and 
the method of using, a self-propelled vehicle having a large capacity 
conveyor and hopper for shuttling back and forth between the delivery 
trucks and the finishing machine. 
Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a 
self-propelled vehicle of the type described which includes a conveyor 
having an inlet with a width substantially the same as the width of the 
delivery truck thereby facilitating the rapid discharge of the contents of 
the delivery truck. 
Another object of the present invention is the provision of a 
self-propelled vehicle of the type just described which is provided with a 
transversely disposed screw auger for remixing the asphalt-aggregate 
material in the hopper prior to transfer of the material to the hopper of 
the finishing machine. 
Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a 
self-propelled vehicle of the type described which is provided with a 
discharge conveyor, swingable in both vertical and horizontal planes, 
whereby the asphalt-aggregate material may be transferred from the 
self-propelled vehicle to the finishing machines when such vehicle is 
disposed on either side of the finishing machine. 
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become 
apparent from the following description.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
Referring to FIG. 1, a self-propelled storage vehicle, constituting a 
preferred form of the apparatus of the present invention, is generally 
designated 10. The self-propelled vehicle is shown in association with a 
finishing machine, generally designated 12, and a delivery truck, 
generally designated 16. 
The delivery truck 16 is normally in the form of a dumptruck having a 
pivotably mounted bed 17 with a tailgate 18. The truck 16 transfers the 
aggregate-asphalt material from a remote source to the storage vehicle 10 
as will be explained below. 
The finishing machine may be supported either by endless tracks or by 
rubber tires and includes a hopper 14 and a vibratory screed 15 which is 
of the floating type well known to those skilled in the art. The finishing 
machine also includes a conventional conveyor system consisting of 
longitudinally disposed conveyors 19a (shown in broken lines) and 
transversely disposed screw augers 19b for delivering the 
asphalt-aggregate material from the hopper 14 to a position just in 
advance of the screed 15 where it is discharged onto the subgrade. 
The hopper of a conventional finishing machine is open at its front and has 
low side walls to receive the material from the dump truck. By using the 
self propelled vehicle of the present invention, the hopper of the 
finishing machine may be modified so that its capacity is expanded from 
the standard 5 tons to 12 tons, or even as high as 20 tons. This 
modification can be made by providing a wall 14a at the front of the 
otherwise conventional hopper and by increasing the height of the side 
walls 14b, as shown in FIG. 1. Of course, the standard supply truck 16 
cannot deliver the aggregate-asphalt material to the modified hopper 14 
because the truck's bed 17 discharges at an elevation well below the 
height of wall 14a. However, the storage vehicle 10 of the present 
invention is able to discharge the aggregate-asphalt material into the 
upwardly expanded hopper 14 because the discharge conveyor can swing 
vertically to an adequate height, as will hereinafter be explained. 
Referring more particularly to FIGS. 2, 3, and 6, the self-propelled 
storage vehicle 10 includes a chassis 18 that is supported on the roadway 
surface by first and second wheel sets 20 and 21, respectively. It will be 
understood that alternative roadway engaging means, such as endless 
tracks, could be used in place of the wheel sets 20 and 21. 
As shown in FIG. 6, the hydrostatic drive system for the self-propelled 
storage vehicle 10 consists of individual hydraulic motors 101-109 that 
are supplied with fluid pressure from the hydraulic pumps 110-114. (It 
should be noted that the intake and exhaust lines for the hydraulic motors 
are represented by a single line in the drawings for improved clarity.) An 
engine 115 provides the motive force for the pumps as is conventional in 
hydraulic drive systems. 
Wheel set 21 is driven by hydraulic propel motor 101 that is supplied with 
fluid pressure by propel pump 110. The wheel set 21 is also steerable by 
steer cylinder 102 which is supplied with fluid pressure from auxiliary 
pump 114 through manifold 116. 
Referring more particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, a large capacity storage 
hopper 23 is mounted on the chassis 18. The hopper 23 has a capacity 
approximately equal to the capacity of a single supply truck 16. The 
hopper, open at its top, consists of sidewalls 24, 25 and a bottom 
including a first inclined wall 26 joined with a second inclined wall 27 
by an arcurate wall portion 28. 
The self-propelled storage vehicle further includes an operator's platform 
29 having a horizontally disposed frame 30 supporting identical operator 
control stations 31 and 32. The platform 29 is preferably mounted on the 
chassis 18 by means of a parallel linkage system (not shown) permiting the 
platform 29 to be swung back and forth over the hopper 23 (between the 
solid and broken line positions shown in FIG. 2) to facilitate operating 
the self-propelled vehicle in both directions. Of course, each operator 
control station includes the various controls for operating the hydraulic 
drive system of FIG. 6. 
The storage vehicle 10 also includes a high capacity loading conveyor 33, 
preferably of the drag-slat type, comprising a frame 34 having side 
members 35 pivotably mounted to the uprights 36 of the chassis 18 by a 
horizontal shaft 37. Thus, conveyor 33 can be swung vertically about the 
horizontal shaft 37 between the loading position shown in FIG. 2 and the 
transport position shown in FIG. 1. The swinging movement of conveyor 33 
is provided by a pair of hydraulic cylinders 103 and 104 supplied with 
fluid pressure by auxiliary pump 114 through manifold 116, as shown in 
FIG. 6. 
The drag-slat conveyor 33 has slats 85 (FIGS. 2 and 6) mounted on endless 
chains 86 meshing with sprocket wheels 87 fixed to shafts 45 and 46. Shaft 
45 is driven by hydraulic motor 105, as shown in FIG. 6, and is supplied 
with fluid pressure from a separate loading conveyor pump 111. The infeed 
end of conveyor 33 includes a trough 38 with a bumper 39 adapted to abut 
the back end of the supply truck 16 during the truck unloading operation. 
An important feature of the present invention is the provision of the 
trough 38 with a width substantially the same as the width of the supply 
truck bed 17 such that the asphalt-aggregate material can quickly and 
easily be dumped from the truck 16 into the trough 38. 
An adjustable gate 41 is movably mounted over the infeed opening of the 
conveyor that is defined by the conveyor frame cover plate 42 and the lip 
43 of the trough. The gate 41 is secured to the cover plate 42 by a pair 
of adjustable screwthread assemblies 44 such that the size of the infeed 
opening can be varied to regulate the flow of material into the conveyor 
33. The bottom wall of conveyor 33 terminates at a position just inside of 
the bottom wall 27 of the hopper such that the aggregate-asphalt material 
will fall into the hopper as the slats of the conveyor push the material 
past this position, as shown in the cut-away section of FIG. 2. 
Mounted on the inside surface of the hopper bottom wall 26 is a first 
discharge conveyor 47, as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 5 and 6, which is 
preferably of the drag-slat type. The discharge conveyor 47 includes a 
first set of sprocket wheels 88 fixed to shaft 48. Hydraulic motor 106 
drives shaft 48 and is provided with fluid pressure by a separate 
discharge pump 112. 
A housing, consisting of a top wall 49 and a pair of opposed sidewalls 50, 
completely encloses the conveyor 47 except for openings 51 and 52 (FIG. 5) 
located in the sidewalls 50 in the area of arcuate wall portion 28. The 
second shaft 53 (FIG. 6) of the conveyor 47 extends through openings 51 
and 52 and is journaled in suitable bearing assemblies 54 and 55, as shown 
in FIG. 5. Sprocket wheels 56 and 57 are fixed to shaft 53 and mesh with 
chains 89 that, in turn, support the slats 58. 
The second shaft 53 of the conveyor 47 also functions as the shaft for the 
screw auger 60 that is disposed in the area of the hopper 23 defined by 
the arcuate wall portion 28 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5. Because the 
sprocket wheels 56 and 57 are fixed to the shaft 53, the hydraulic motor 
106 also serves to rotate the screw auger 60. The rotation of the screw 
auger 60, in turn, conveys the aggregate-asphalt material from the lateral 
sides of the hopper, through the openings 51 and 52 and into the path of 
the first discharge conveyor 47. As the screw auger 60 rotates, it not 
only transports the material to conveyor 47 but also remixes the material 
such that a more uniform mixture of material is delivered to the finishing 
machine 12. 
This mixing action of the screw auger 60 is especially important because 
the aggregate-asphalt material has a tendency to separate according to 
particle size during transportation and handling. As is known to those 
skilled in the art, when the asphalt-aggregate material is discharged from 
the surge bin at the asphalt plant into the bed of the delivery truck 16, 
the coarser material tends to flow toward the sides of the bed of the 
delivery truck. Thus, this coarser material will be transported to the 
sides or lateral extremities of the hopper 23 since the conveyor 33 
transports the material from the bed of the delivery truck to the hopper 
23 without imparting transverse or lateral movement to the 
asphalt-aggregate material to any significant degree. Consequently, it is 
desirable to remix the material in the hopper 23 by imparting the 
requisite lateral or transverse movement of the material from the side 
portions to the central portion of the hopper. 
To this end, the screw auger 60 is designed such that each end of the shaft 
53 is provided with first flight sections 61 joining with second flight 
sections 62. The pitch of the first flight sections 61 is greater than the 
pitch of the second flight sections 62. Thus, the volumes bounded by the 
flights of the first flight section 61 are greater than the volumes 
bounded by the flights of the second flight sections 62. As a result, when 
the coarse material, located at the lateral edges of the hopper, is 
conveyed from the second flight section 62 to the first flight section 61, 
it will not completely fill the larger volumes, thereby allowing the finer 
material, located in the central portion of the hopper, to enter the void 
spaces in these larger volumes and combine with the coarser material. This 
mixture of coarse and fine material is then conveyed to discharge conveyor 
47. Thus, the variance in pitch between the flight sections 61 and 62 
enhances the mixing capabilities of the screw auger 60. 
A second discharge conveyor 65 is mounted on the chassis 18 such that the 
infeed end of conveyor 65 is located beneath the outfeed end of the first 
discharge conveyor 47. Material discharged from the first discharge 
conveyor 47 at the top edge of bottom wall 26 falls through the chute 66 
onto the second discharge conveyor 65 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4. The 
infeed end of the frame 69 of the second discharge conveyor 65 is formed 
with guides 67 and 68 facilitating the flow of material from the chute 66 
onto the conveyor 65. Preferably, the second discharge conveyor 65 is of 
the belt-type having end rollers 76, 77, and an endless belt 90. Roller 77 
is driven by hydraulic motor 109 supplied with fluid pressure from pump 
113 as shown in FIG. 6. It should be noted that a drag slat conveyor of 
the type already described may also be used. 
The frame 69 is mounted for vertical swinging movement about shaft 70 and 
is raised and lowered by the lift cylinder 108 extending between a first 
pivot point 72 located on the conveyor frame 69 and a second pivot point 
73 located on a rotatable sleeve 76 supported by the chassis 18. The 
trunnion 74 supports shaft 70 and is mounted on a turntable supported by a 
suitable bearing assembly (not shown) and rotated by hydraulic cylinder 
107, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, such that the discharge end of conveyor 65 
may be swung beyond the lateral extremities of the storage vehicle 10. 
Both the vertical lift cylinder 108 and the horizontal swing cylinder 107 
are provided with fluid pressure from the auxiliary pump 114 through the 
manifold 116. 
The self-propelled storage vehicle 10 of this invention is able to operate 
in either one of two alternate modes. In the first mode of operation, 
illustrated in FIG. 1, the storage vehicle 10 shuttles between a remote 
location of the supply trucks 16 and the job site where the finishing 
machine 12 is performing the paving operation. The finishing machine 12, 
having the modified hopper 14 with the expanded capacity of approximately 
12-20 tons, begins the paving operation with the hopper filled with 
aggregate-asphalt paving material. 
As the finishing machine 12 performs the paving operation, the storage 
vehicle 10 travels to the remote location of the supply trucks 16 where 
its loading conveyor 33 is positioned adjacent the rear of one of the 
trucks. The paving material is dumped from the truck 16 into the trough 38 
where the loading conveyor 33, operating at a capacity of 800-1200 tons 
per hour (TPH), completely transfers the 20 tons of paving material from 
the truck 16 to the hopper 23 in approximately one minute. 
The storage vehicle 10, with a full load of paving material in hopper 23, 
then travels to a position adjacent the finishing machine such that the 
output end of the second discharge conveyor 65 is disposed over the 
finishing machine's expanded hopper 14. In the time required for the 
storage vehicle 10 to travel to the supply truck 16, transfer the paving 
material from the truck 16 to the hopper 23, and return to the finishing 
machine, the supply of paving material in the finishing machine's hopper 
will have been nearly exhausted. Because it is desirable to have the 
finishing machine travel continuously, the storage vehicle operator 
controls the propel motor 101 so that the output end of conveyor 65 
remains over the hopper 14 of the moving paving machine 12. As the two 
machines travel in tandem down the roadway, the auger 60, first discharge 
conveyor 47, and second discharge conveyor 65 are operated at a high 
capacity rate of 500-1200 TPH such that the 20 tons of paving material are 
completely transferred from the storage vehicle 10 to the finishing 
machine hopper 14 in approximately one minute. Thus, the finishing machine 
may run continuously while the storage vehicle 10 repeats this shuttle 
loading operation. 
In the second mode of operation, the self-propelled storage vehicle 10 
always travels adjacent the finishing machine 12, rather than shuttling 
between the remote location of the supply trucks and the finishing machine 
as in the first mode of operation. To coordinate the relative speeds of 
the two vehicles as they travel together down the roadway surface, a 
control linkage 80 is used between the finishing machine 12 and storage 
vehicle 10 as shown in FIG. 6. The control linkage 80 consists of a rigid 
finger 81 fixed to and extending from the front end of the finishing 
machine 12. This finger contacts a movable lever 82a of sensor 82 located 
on the storage vehicle 10. The sensor 82 is operatively connected to an 
output control 83 of the propel pump 110 such that the speed of the 
storage vehicle 10 is controlled to maintain a constant pressure on the 
sensor lever 82a by the finger 81. Thus, the speeds of the two vehicles, 
and consequently, the distance between the two vehicles are maintained 
constant as they travel down the roadway. It will be understood that the 
control linkage 80 could be eliminated and the propel motor 110 controlled 
by an operator to maintain the speed of the vehicle 10 substantially the 
same as the finishing machine. 
Continuing with a description of the second mode of operation, the paving 
operation begins with the storage machine hopper 23 and the finishing 
machine hopper 14 fully loaded with paving material. As the paving 
operation progresses, the storage vehicle 10 begins to transfer the paving 
material from its hopper 23 to the finishing machine hopper 14 while the 
two vehicles travel along the roadway together. However, unlike the first 
mode of operation, the paving material is discharged at a rate 
approximately equal to the paving rate of the finishing machine. Thus, a 
steady-state flow of material occurs between the storage vehicle 10 and 
finishing machine 12. Because the paving material of the storage vehicle 
10 is slowly discharged onto the finishing machine hopper, it is not 
necessary to use a modified finishing machine with the expanded hopper 14. 
Thus, a conventional finishing machine may be used. However, it is 
preferable to use the expanded hopper 14 because the greater the combined 
storage capacity of the storage vehicle 10 and the finishing machine 12, 
the fewer trucks needed to maintain the storage vehicle 10 loaded, which, 
of course, translates into a cost reduction for the paving operation. 
During this gradual discharging of the paving material from the storage 
vehicle hopper 23, a supply truck is backed into abutting engagement with 
the bumper 39 of the storage vehicle 10 and is pushed along therewith. 
Thus, when the supply of paving material in the hopper 23 has been nearly 
depleted, the paving material in the supply truck, that has already been 
positioned at the trough 38, can be quickly transferred to the hopper 23 
by the high capacity loading conveyor 33 operating at a capacity of 
900-1200 TPH. This process is repeated continuously such that a constant 
supply of paving material is made available to the finishing machine. 
In either mode of operation, the vertical and horizontal swinging of the 
second discharge conveyor 65 allows the storage vehicle 10 to feed the 
finishing machine hopper 14 even when the two machines are riding on 
surfaces having different elevations or when the machines are traveling 
offline or side by side. The horizontal swinging movement of conveyor 65 
also facilitates the feeding of the material when the vehicles are 
rounding corners. 
The paving method and apparatus of this invention provide a more efficient 
loading capability for the finishing machine that results in a higher 
quality paved surface. As illustrated in Table III (set forth below), the 
storage vehicle and finishing machine, when used in the first mode of 
operation, can pave continuously at a rate of 500 TPH while still allowing 
a 1.5 minute truck exchange time. 
TABLE III 
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TRUCK EXCHANGE TIME USING A STORAGE 
VEHICLE ACCORDING TO THE INVENTION 
FINISHING MACHINE WITH 20 TON CAITY 
HOPPER OPERATES CONTINUOUSLY WITH 20 TON 
TRUCKS ACCORDING TO THE FIRST MODE OF 
OPERATION OF THE INVENTION 
20 TON TIME AT 
TRUCK PAVER @ TRUCK 
PAVER INTERVAL (1200 TPH) EXCHANGE 
TPH (MINUTES) (MINUTES) TIME 
______________________________________ 
200 6 1 5 
300 4 1 3 
400 3 1 2 
500 21/2 1 11/2 
600 1 1 1 
______________________________________ 
This is a 300 TPH increase over the prior art system referred to in Table 
I. Moreover, in the second mode of operation, where the supply of paving 
material from the storage machine is continuous, the paving rate of the 
system is increased such that it is substantially equal to the maximum 
paving rate of the finishing machine. In either mode of operation, the 
paving operation runs continuously to provide a higher quality paved 
surface having no undesirable depressions or lumps. 
Although the invention has been described in its preferred forms with a 
certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present 
disclosure has been made by way of example only. Numerous changes in the 
details and construction of the combination and arrangement of parts will 
be apparent without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, 
as defined in the appended claims.