MOBILE SELF-PROPELLED CRUSHING MACHINE

Abstract: According to the present invention, a mobile, self-­ propelling crushing machine includes a structure essentially consisting of two beams (1, 2), on which a central frame (3) is welded, said central frame housing a rotor (30), which is sup­ ported on a frame (16), which, in one form of execution of the invention, is lowered by hydraulic cylinders (12, 13, 14, 15) fixed to the frame. In another form of execution of the inven­ tion, the frame (65) is driven by four mechanical jacks, being connected with each other by means of chains (68, 69) and being driven by a single hydraulic motor (60). Thus the pen­ etration fo the rotor into the soil to be treated does not de­ pend only on its own weight, but especially on the action of the just-mentioned hydraulic cylinders or mechanical jacks. The rotor (30) is driven by two hydraulic motors (38, 39) the one opposite to the other and self-adjusted, so that, when a pressure transductor signals a pressure increase to the hydraulic motors of the rotor, due to an increased effort, the forward movement speed of the machine, which moves on tracks, decreases as a consequence.

Description: The invention concerns a mobile,self-propelled crushing machine suited for the treatment and the land reclamation of rocky soils, as well as for the cultivation of open-pit mines and for the preparation of road beds. To the known technique belong some types of crushing machines, mostly of the trailer type, in which the rotor bearing a series of crushing hammers is driven by a power-take-off connected, for instance, to an agricultural tractor. Some types of crushing machines are provided with their own motor and power is conveyed to the rotor by means of the mechanical pulley/ belt system: The penetration of the rotor into the soil to be treated depends not only on the kinetic energy of the hammers, but also on the lowering of the rotor itself in relation to the plane of the machine, as well as from the power applied by the rotor on the soil being treated. In one type of known crushing machine the lowering of the rotor in relation to the plane of the machine is obtained by means of some hydraulic jacks positioned between the axle of the trailing wheels of the machine and the frame. These hydraulic hammers cause the rotation of two hinged arms, which connect the wheel axle and the frame, with the effect of lifting or lowering the frame bearing the rotor and, therefore, the rotor itself. As far as the pressure of the rotor on the soil is concerned, it depends exclusively on the weight of the rotor. One of the disadvantages which are found in the just mentioned machines is that the penetration of the rotor into the soil is rather limited, since said pressure depends exclusively on the weight of the rotor. Besides, even the lowering of the rotor in relation to the plane of the machine is, in fact, rather limited by the type of articulation, that is of the rotation of the hinged arms. The US-A-4.333.686 Patent discloses a road surfacing machine in which the rotor is housed in a sub frame, that is pivotally connected with the main-frame. The vertical cylinders are positioned between the main frame and the sub-frame. In such a way the action of the vertical cylinders don't permit the penetration of the rotor in a vertical direction in relation to the main-frame and in relation to the plane of the soil. Another limitation of the known machines consists in the fact that the power transmission to the rotor, which is obtained by means of a transmission belt being placed laterally in relation to the rotor supports, causes some inconveniences to the supporting bearings because of the different load applied to the bearings themselves. The main purpose of the present invention is that of eliminating the now mentioned disadvantages by realizing a crushing machine being suited to treat soils which are extremely difficult, because of the presence of large, even protruding boulders and even because of the conformation of the soil with steep slopes, for instance with 30-35% inclines. In particular, the purpose is that of obtaining that the depth of penetration into the soil be easily adjustable according to the requirements. Yet another purpose is that of obtaining that the pressure of the rotor on the soil depend not only on its own weight, but also on an adjustable strength applied by the machine operator. Another purpose is that of obtaining that the transmission of the rotor rotation insure a perfect balance to the bearings supporting it, in order to do away as much as possible with the maintenance operations. We also want to obtain that the effort of the machine during the crushing operation be self adjusted, in the sense that a slowing down of the machine moving speed automatically corresponds to an increased crushing effort. The last, but not the least, purpose which we want to obtain is that the fastening of the hammers to the supporting flanges of the rotor be of a simple type, so as to allow an easy replacement of the hammers. Besides, we want to obtain that the crushing machine be stable under practically any working condition, even on very uneven and steep soils with very strong inclines. All the just-mentioned purposes and others, which will be better illustrated hereafter, are achieved with a mobile, self-propelled crushing machine that, according to the main claim, comprises: a support structure having two longitudinal, generally parallel beams supporting a central frame having at least four corners; a rotor housed within the central frame, said rotor having a cylindrical member with hammers; means for rotating the rotor; means for pushing the rotor against the soil, said machine being characterized in that the pushing means pusch the rotor in a direction that is orthogonal in relation to the frame of said crushing machine and in relation to the soil. According to a preferred form of construction of the machine being the object of the invention, the synchronous pushing action on the rotor is exerted by at least four hydraulic cylinders, vertically mounted on the frame of the machine and connected with the lateral metal plates supporting the rotor. According to another form of execution of the invention, the pushing action on the rotor is exerted by four mechanical jacks, each acting on a screw, which, while rotating,cause the corresponding bushings, which are rigidly connected with the rotor supporting frame, to slide vertically. One of the advantages of the invention consists in the fact that the lowering of the rotor in a direction which is constantly orthogonal in relation to the machine frame, guarantees an even treatment of the soil and an equally even wearing out of the hammers. Another advantage of the machine according to the invention is that the strength of the rotor penetration into the soil no longer depends on the weight of the rotor itself, but is the main function of the pushing strength exerted against the soil by the pressure means being present on the machine frame. Yet another advantage of the machine according to the invention consists in the fact that the two hydraulic motors activating the rotation of the rotor are foreseen and that they are placed one opposite the other within the housing containing the rotor, so that they are protected during the treatment of the soil and so that the penetration of the rotor into the soil occurs without any hindrance on the part of the motors. Besides, thanks to this arrangement of the motors, the working width, which corresponds to the width of the rotor, practically coincides also with the overall width of the crushing machine. Other characteristics and details of the invention will be better understood from the description of a preferred form of execution of the crushing machine, which is given by way of example only, but is not meant to limit the scope of the invention and which is illustrated in the enclosed figures of drawing, wherein: Fig. 1 shows a side view of the crushing machine as a whole; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a part of the supporting frame and of the central frame; Fig. 3 shows a view of the frame supporting the rotor being connected to the central frame by means of hydraulic cylinders; Fig. 4 shows in a lengthwise section the arrangement of the rotor and of its frame in relation to the structure supporting the machine; Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of the machine which shows the arrangement of the rotor hammers; Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the rotor of the crushing machine; Fig. 7 shows the shape of the profile of the flange bearing the hammers; Fig. 8 is a side view of a construction variation of the crushing machine Fig. 9 is a top view of the variation of Fig. 8; Fig. 10 shows in detail the guide of the rotor frame. With reference to the above-mentioned figures it can be observed that the crushing machine includes a supporting structure consisting essentially of two longitudinal parallel beams 1 and 2 of the I-type with an increased section in their central position corresponding to where frame 3,having the form of a parallelepiped, is positioned. Said frame consists of four vertical posts 4, 5, 6, 7 having a "U" shape and being welded to the main beams 1 and 2 and of four more trasversal upper beams 8, 9, 10, 11, being also in a "U" shape and being welded to each other and to the vertical posts. Four hydraulic cylinders are directly connected to two of the four upper trasversal beams, as can be observed in Fig. 3. Thus the cylinders 12 an 13 are connected to beam 10 and the cylinders 14 and 15 are connected to beam 8. Since the rods of said hydraulic cylinders are connected to the lateral sides of the supporting frame of the rotor being indicated as a whole with 16, it follows, as a consequence, that both the frame and the rotor are in fact supported by the four hydraulic cylinders. In fact, as can be observed in the Figs. 3 and 4, the rods of the cylinders 12 and 13, which can be seen in said figures, are connected to the brackets 17 and 18 being welded to the lateral side 19 of frame 16. It is thus easy to understand how the whole frame 16 and, therefore, also the rotor supported by said frame, can penetrate into the soil at a pre-stablished depth which is the resultant of the stroke of the pistons of the hydraulic cylinders; it can also be understood how the power of the rotor pressure in the soil depends, not only on the weight of the rotor and of the supporting structure, but also in a determinant way by the hydraulic push exerted by the cylinders on the rotor frame. As can be observed in Fig. 5, the rotor frame 16 consists of two lateral metal sheets 19 an 20 and of a back metal sheet 21. The lateral sheets 19 an 20 are not only supported by the hydraulic cylinders 12 an 13, 14 and 15, but they are also guided within the vertical posts by U-shaped slides, which are welded to the sheets 19 and 20 and inserted into the posts. Thus the slides 22 and 23 are inserted into the posts 4 and 6 and 24 and 25 are inserted into the posts 5 and 7 respectively. Fig. 6 shows the rotor of the crushing machine, which is indicated as a whole with 30 and which consists of cylinder 31 on the surface of which a series of circular flanges 32,being equally spaced from each other by spacing rings 33 is arranged. The hammers 26 which crush the rocks are fastened to the flanges 32. The cylinder is supported by two roller bearings 34 and 35, which are connected to two flanges 36 and 37. Each of said flanges, which is bolted to the lateral side of frame 16 by means of bolts, is shaped in such a way that it receives and bears a hydraulic motor. In the case being examined, flange 36 bears motor 38 and flange 37 bears the hydraulic motor 39. The bulks of the hydraulic motors 38 and 39 are contained within the hollow spaces constituted by the flanges 36 and 37 respectively; thus rotor 30 can sink into the soil to be treated without any problems from the hydraulic motors. It can be said, in actuality, that the track opened in the soil by the rotor hammers is as wide as the maximum distance between the two opposite motors 38 and 39, so that the rotor can penetrate deeply into the soil without any hindrance. Shaft 41 of the hydraulic motor 38 is coupled with the flanged half-joint 42, which is fastened by means of the bolts 43 to the round crown 44, which is welded to cylinder 31 of rotor 30. In the same way, shaft 45 of the hydraulic motor 39 is coupled with the flanged half-joint 46, which is also fastened to the round crown 44. Between the flanges and the half-joints there are two bearings which have the task of centering and supporting the half-joints. Thus bearing 47 is connected between flange 37 and the half-joint 46. The opposite arrangement of the two hydraulic motors 38 and 39 insures a balanced distribution of the efforts of the rotor and it allows, therefore, a practically uniform load on the bearings. As a consequence, a longer life span is insured to all the bearings of the rotor and to all the parts connected to them. The speed of the rotor is directly proportional to the pressure exerted by the fluid which runs in the hydrauli motors, while the issuing power is proportional to the amount of the fluid itself. These parameters are variable with the help of known control devices which act on the pumps of the hydraulic pack 40, which is present on board the crushing machine. In the case of the described example, the propelling motor of the self-propelled machine is of the hydraulic type too and this allows a direct self adjustment of the forward-motion speed of the machine in relation to the power absorbed by the rotor during the crushing operation. For this reason it has been planned that the hydraulic circuit, which is connected to the motors 38 and 39 of the rotor, be provided with a pressure transductor - not represented in the figures of drawing - which reads the pressure of the circuit and sends a proportional electric signal to a balancing electronic circuit; said circuit controls a valve acting on the flow adjuster, so as to lower the amount of liquid converging to the propelling motor, with the consequent decrease of the forward-motion speed, when the transductor signals a pressure increase. On the other hand, if the transductor signals n decrease of pressure, due for instance to the presence of only a few obstacles in the soil, then there will be an adjustment in the sense that the delivery to the machine-propelling motor is incrensed, and, as a consequence, the speed of the machine will incrense. With reference to Fig. 4, it can be observed that, in the case under examination, the flanges 32 of the rotor are provided with six fastening points for the hammers; said points are indicated with 27. The flanges being provided with six fasteningn points for the hammers, it is possible to mount a single hammer with a counterweight on the opposite side, or two opposite hammers. All this is done according to the nature of the soil to be treated and also to the speed at which one wants to perform the treatment. Hammer 26 is a prism-shaped metal block presenting a passing slot 28, as can be observed in Fig. 6. The shape of flange 32 is such, that the rim of said flange presents a smaller diameter on one side of the hammer than on the other side of it, so that the hammer can position itself at an angle in the direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the rotor, as can be seen in Fig. 7, thus avoiding the breaking up of the hammer when it hits rocks that are too hard. The fastening of the hammers to the flange is achieved by means of a bolt 49 which engages itself in a threaded bush 50 having the same length. The length of both the bolt and the bush is such, that it is possible to remove the two mechanical parts from hole 27 without hindering the adjoining hammer. This fact is particularly important if one considers that the replacement of worn-out hammers is very frequently necessary and it is, therefore, necessary that this operation be done easily and with the least employment of labour, which goal is, in fact, achieved with the just described fastening method. Finally, in order to increase the stability of the machine and the weight loading down the rotor during the crushing operation, it has been deemed advisable - in the example of Fig. 1 - to place the fuel tank 51 directly on the rotor frame 16 and precisely over the rotor itself, as can be seen in Fig. 4. Moreover, at the bottom of the metal sheet 21 of frame 16 the presence of a levelling roller 29 has been foreseen, which is meant to level the soil after it has been treated by the machine. The Figures 8, 9 and 10 represent a different form of execution of the machine being the object of the invention. In this form of execution the lowering and lifting movement of rotor 30 is not obtained by means of four hydraulic cylinders, but rather by means of four mechanical jacks, which are positioned at the corners of the rotor-supporting frame. A single hydraulic motor 60 causes two coaxial half-joints 61 and 62,being connected at the opposite sides of gear boxes, to rotate. The heads of said gears cause the vertical screws 63 and 64 respectively to turn. Each of the screws 63 and 64 is coupled with a lock nut, and the lock nut, in turn, is rigidly connected with frame 65 supporting rotor 30. The gear boxes activating the other two screws 66 and 67 of the remaining mechanical jacks are driven by chain 68 for screw 66 and chain 69 for screw 67. Therefore, chain 68 connects the gear boxes of the screws 63 and 66, while chain 69 connects the gear boxes of the screws 64 and 67. The result of this is that all four screws of the jacks rotate by the same angle and, as a consequence, the four lock nuts, which are connected with said screws are subject to a translation motion of the same nature, thus insuring an even treatment of the underlying soil. Frame 65 supporting rotor 30 is guided at its four corners by means of two coaxial tubes, coupled together. More precisely, as can be seen in Fig. 10, where the enlarged detail of the guide assembly 70 is shown, a metal plate 71 is welded to frame 65 supporting the rotor and it presents a tube 72 welded at its end. Another tube 73 presents a lengthwise slot, in order to allow the silding of plate 71 and it is fixed by means of plate 80 to the frame of the machine. Clearly, when rotor 30 goes up or down in relation to the frame of the machine, frame 65,and therefore the rotor too, is guided within the four tube-shaped posts 72, which slide within a corresponding number of posts 73. The relative position between the rotor and the frame of the self-propelled machine is detected by a closeness sensor 81, which reads the position of the rotor in relation to a scale 82, which is marked with reference dots 83. Rotor 30 is closed at the top by a protection plate, presenting a fixed part 84 and a mobile part 85, which can be lifted by means of a pneumatic cylinder 86. This insures the possibility of inspecting the rotor from the upper part of the machine and it is also possible to easily replace the worn-out hammers. On this subject it will be pointed out now that the machine being the object of the invention is provided, in both the illustrated forms of execution, with closeness sensors, which signal the wearing out of the hammers and trigger a signal in the driver's cab when the hammers are worn out beyond a certain size. In the Figs. 8 and 9 it can be observed that the sensors 87 are mounted on plate 84 and each of them is arranged in relation to each round flange 32 of rotor 30. Thus, if one of the hammers connected with one of the flanges 32 wears out or breaks, sensor 87 detects the trouble and sends a signal to the control panel 88 in the cab 89. It will be finally pointed out that the execution form illustrated in the Figs. 8 and 9 foresees two separate endothermic motors which separately drive the progress of the machine and the movement of the rotor. More specifically, motor 90 drives the hydraulic motors of rotor 30 and motor 60 driving the mechanic jacks; while motor 91, being less powerful, as compared with motor 90, drives the movement of the machine tracks 92. Several construction variations may be applied during the manufacturing of the machine; said variations will be considered within the scope of the present invention, such as it is defined in the following claims.

Claims: 1. A mobile, self-propelled crushing machine comprising: a support structure having two longitudinal, generally parallel beams (1,2) supporting a central frame (3) having at least four corners; a rotor (30) housed within the central frame, said rotor having a cylindrical member with hammers; means for rotating the rotor; means for pushing the rotor against the soil; characterized in that the pushing means push the rotor in cooperation with the central frame (3) and parallel thereto in a direction that is maintained orthogonal in relation to the support structure of said crushing machine and in relation to the soil. 2. A crushing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the pushing action on the rotor (30), which is synchronous and orthogonal in relation to the frame of the machine, is exerted by at least four hydraulic cylinders (12, 13, 14, 15) being vertically mounted on the frame of the machine, ant that they exert their action on the rotor supporting frame (16). 3. A crushing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the pushing action on the rotor (30), which is synchronous and orthogonal in relation to the frame of the machine, is exerted by four mechanical jacks being connected to one another by means of chains (68, 69) and being driven by a single hydraulic motor (60), said jacks presenting their individual screws (63, 64, 66, 67) coupled with a corresponding number of lock nuts, which are rigidly connected with the rotor supporting frame (65). 4. A crushing machine according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that the relative lifting and lowering motion of the rotor in relation to the machine is controlled by a closeness sensor (81), which reads the position of the rotor in relation to a scale (82) fixed to the frame (3). 5. A crushing machine according to one of the foregoing claims, characterized in that the wear and tear of the hammers is controlled by closeness sensors (87) positioned on the metal plates supporting the rotor (30). 6. A crushing machine according to one of the foregoing claims, characterized in that the rotor (30) including a cylinder (31), on which a series of flanges (32), separated frome each other by spacers (33) and bearing the hammers (26), is connected, is driven by two hydraulic motors (38, 39) being opposite to each other and having shafts (41, 45) inserted between two half-joints (42, 46), being connected to a round crown (44) welded centrally to the rotor. 7. A machine according to claim 6, characterized by in that two flanges (36, 37), the one equal to the other and connected to the lateral sides (19, 20) of the frame, support two hydraulic motors (38, 39) and house two pairs of bearings (34, 35; 47, 48), a pair of which supports the rotor (30), while the other pair supports the half-joints which transmit the motion to the rotor. 8. A machine according to one of the foregoing claims, characterized in that each flange is provided with six holders (27), placed at an equal distance from each other along the circumference for the fastening of the hammers, the shape of the flange in correspondance with said holders being such, that the rim of said flange has a smaller diameter on one side of the hammer than on the other side, so that the hammer can position itself at an angle in the direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the rotor. 9. A machine according to one of the foregoing claims, characterized in that each hammer (26) is fastened to the flange (32) by means of a bolt (49) engaging itself in a threaded bush (50), the length of both the bolt and the bush being shorter than the distance between two hammers. 10. A machine according to one of the foregoing claims, characterized in that not only the motors driving the rotor are hydraulic, but the propelling motor of the machine is hydraulic too. 11. A machine according to claim 10, characterized in that the rotation speed of the rotor (30) and the forward-motion speed of the machine are self-adjusted and self-compensated by means of an adjustment circuit which foresees a pressure transductor, which registers the pressure of the hydraulic motors of the rotor, said transductor sending the corresponding electrical signal to an electronic circuit which, according to the registered variation, proceeds to adjust in compensation the amount of fluid converging to the propelling motor.

Inventors: BARBIERI, ELDA
Applicants: BARBIERI, ELDA
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B02C21
IPC codes: E02F3, E01C23, B02C13, E02F5, B02C21