Abstract:
A frame apparatus that fits on the loader arms of a skid steer front loader. This frame apparatus serves as a platform upon which a plurality of hydraulically driven tools can be employed. The frame apparatus further includes a hydraulic junction box and solenoid system for multiplying the front loaders hydraulic ports.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to front end loaders and attachment for front end loaders as used with utility tractors, and more specifically, to a front end loader attachment having multiple tools for use on skid steer loaders or other similar vehicles. 
     It has been known for some time to utilize various tools on skid steers. However, many tools require different control means and mounting brackets. As such, the cost of having several tools can be great. One method of reducing the cost of multiple tools is to provide a framework having a control means that may be used with various tools. This type of attachment framework has proven very efficient in many situations. 
     Of particular interest are attachments for skid steers for use in the landscaping and earth preparation industry. These attachments include rakes for preparing soil, brooms for sweeping, stump grinders, plow blades and the like. The various attachments are limited only by the ability of skid steers or front end loaders and a users needs. 
     One problem that has arisen when attaching multiple tools to a skid steer is the limited number of hydraulic ports on a typical skid steer. These ports may include control means for the front end loader and extra ports to run the tool. However, if various adjustments are needed to vary the angle or position of the tool and to operate various implements on the tool, extra hydraulic ports may be required that are not supplied on the original skid steer or front end loader. Further, as the typical bracket on a front end loader may only move up and down, various means of angling or adjusting attachments may also be required. 
     From this discussion it can be seen that it would be desirable to provide a structure for skid steer loaders. This structure would need to readily attach to the skid steer loader, have a means for controlling various hydraulic attachments and allow a user to multiply the number of hydraulic ports in an inexpensive and efficient manner. 
     This problem has been solved by supplying a multiple tool attachment apparatus having a pivotable tool attachment bar and a hydraulic junction box electrically controlled so as to multiply the number of hydraulic ports and allow for easy control by the user in the cab of the skid steer. This allows a maximum number of attachments to be used while keeping costs low by not duplicating control means and attachment means for each implement. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the primary objective of the present invention to provide a means of pivotally mounting a plurality of tools to the forward end of a front end loader to be used in a number of applications that would allow an individual to perform difficult tasks in a short period of time that would have normally required a larger number of people to complete. 
     It is an additional objective of the present invention to provide such a means that is configured in a manner that would allow an individual to easily change and secure the tools to the front end loader, thus, allowing him to accomplish a number of tasks without the aid of other people. 
     It is a further objective of the present invention to provide such a means that will allow an individual operator to manipulate the attached implement in a vertical manner that will allow him to place a varying degree of downward pressure on the implement which will translate on to the surface upon which the implement is working. 
     It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide such a means of enabling an individual to complete many types of complex jobs that is not only effective, but which also is inexpensive to own and operate. 
     These objectives are accomplished by the use of a frame apparatus that fits on the loader arms of a skid steer front end loader. The frame apparatus serves as a platform upon which a plurality of hydraulically or electrically driven implements can be employed to brush, scrape, or grind objects such as sidewalks and parking lots, fields, tree stumps, and any one of a multitude of other objects that require similar maintenance or surface preparation. 
     The hydraulically driven implements are designed in a manner that allows them to be easily installed on, and removed from, the frame apparatus. These instalment and removal procedures are facilitated by the use of implements which are equipped with a standardized implement bar which constitutes the rearmost surface of each implement. The implement bar is then complimented by the use of a U-bolt attachment device (or other quick-tach apparatus) that essentially clamps the implement bar to the pivoting attachment frame located at the most forward end of the present invention. This design ensures that not only a wide variety of implements can be used with the present invention but also enables the user to easily change from the use of one implement to another. 
     The present invention also employs a pivotal mounting system that is designed into the mechanisms that provide for the mounting of a plurality of implements to the forward portion of the present invention. This pivotal mounting system allows the angle of attack of the implement in relation to the front end loader&#39;s direction of travel to be varied depending upon the needs of the operator&#39;s objectives. Thus, for instance, an operator can choose to direct any debris that is accumulated in front of the operating implement to one side of the front end loader or the other. This provides for the increase of the implement&#39;s efficiency as it allows certain jobs to be adequately completed with only one pass of the front end loader and its attached implement. 
     This pivoting motion is controlled in one of either two ways. The first of these is a manually operated adjustment bar that spans the distance between the forward edge of the OEM base and the rearward edge of the implement bar on one side of the centrally located attachment base. The adjustment bar is capable of expanding and contracting and being locked into a desired length. The expansion of the adjustment bar forces one side of the implement bar away from the OEM base and the forward end of the front end loader which changes the angle of the attached implement in one direction. Conversely, when the adjustment bar is contracted the implement bar is drawn in on that side which changes the angle in the opposite manner. 
     The other manner in which the angle of attack of the attached implement is controlled by the design of the present invention is by the use of a hydraulic cylinder in the place of the manual adjustment bar. This method allows an operator to make adjustments in the orientation of the implement by using hydraulic pressure to expand and contract the hydraulic cylinder as necessary. The needed hydraulic pressure to operate this system is supplied by the front end loader&#39;s hydraulic system through the hydraulic coupling device which is to be discussed in greater detail below. 
     The hydraulic pressure needs of the present invention and any attached implements are facilitated by the use of a hydraulic junction box which allows the hydraulic system of the front end skid steer loader to be connected with any hydraulic system that the implement employs for its operation. The hydraulic junction box allows a user to attach the primary pressure and return lines from the skid steer to the quick release hydraulic ports on the forward surface of the junction box. The rearward surface of the junction box additionally has quick release secondary hydraulic ports which provide for a point of attachment for the implement&#39;s hydraulic lines. 
     Finally, the hydraulic junction box also contains an electrically activated solenoid which is used in conjunction with the hydraulically controlled adjustment cylinder to vary the angle of attack of attached implements. The use of the solenoid allows a small portion of the hydraulic pressure within the hydraulic junction box to be diverted to the hydraulic adjustment cylinder through the cylinder hydraulic lines which allows the operator of the front end loader to control the pivotal orientation of the attached implement from within the loader cab. Thus, the hydraulic junction box provides a mechanism that allows for the operation of the attached implement&#39;s hydraulic system, for the operation of a hydraulic adjustment cylinder, and a mechanism that allows for the easy changing of the implements attached to the present invention to match the requirements of the job at hand. 
     For a better understanding of the present invention, reference should be made to the drawings and the description in which there are illustrated and described preferred embodiments of the present invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a typical skid steer loader being shown as equipped with the present invention which is configured with an implement bar being attached to the forward portion of the invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a top elevation view of the present invention showing it as configured with an implement bar and illustrating the manner in which the hydraulic junction box allows the hydraulic system of the skid steer to be connected to the hydraulic system of any implement that the invention is equipped with. 
     FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the present invention showing it as configured with an implement bar and illustrating the configuration of the attachment frame and the OEM base that is used to attach the invention to the forward portion of a typical skid steer loader. 
     FIG. 4 is a top elevation view of the present invention illustrating the manner in which adjustment bar is used to vary the angle of attack of the implement bar in one direction by extending the adjustment bar towards its maximum length and holding it there by the use of the adjustment arm pin and pin holes. 
     FIG. 5 is a top elevation view of the present invention illustrating the manner in which adjustment bar is used to vary the angle of attack of the implement bar in the opposite direction by retracting the adjustment bar towards its minimum length and holding it there by the use of the adjustment arm pin and pin holes. 
     FIG. 6 is a top elevation view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention which illustrates the use of a hydraulic cylinder for changing the angle of attack of the implement bar instead of the manual adjustment bar. 
     FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of the hydraulic junction box component of the present invention and illustrates its general manner of construction and the orientation of the primary hydraulic ports. 
     FIG. 8 is a rear elevation view of the hydraulic junction box component of the present invention and illustrates its general manner of construction and the orientation of the secondary hydraulic ports. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to the drawings, and more specifically to FIG. 1, the pivoting loader attachment frame  10  is an accessory item intended to be used in conjunction with front end skid steer loader  12 . Front end skid steer loaders  12  are typically highly maneuverable motor driven vehicles used to pick up and transfer raw materials having skid steer wheels  22  and loader arms  14  which are driven and controlled through the use of the loader arm hydraulic cylinders  20 . The front end skid steer loaders  12  also generally consist of a loader body  16  to which all of its components are attached and which also contains the loader cab  18  within which the operator sits during the use of the present invention. 
     The pivoting loader attachment frame  10  consists of the attachment base  32  which itself is primarily made up of the upper attachment plate  24  and the lower attachment plate  30 . The attachment base  32  is fixed to the forward most portion of the loader arms  14  of the front end skid steer loader  12  by the use of the OEM base  54 . This method of attachment of the present invention to front end skid steer loader  12  allows the operator to control the present invention and any of its plurality of attachments through the manipulation of the loader arms  14 . Thus, the operator of the front end skid steer loader  12  can vary the down force placed on the present invention (which in turn varies the work force placed on the target surface) with only the effort of operating the hydraulic control and steering mechanisms which control the loader arms  14 . 
     The hydraulic power needed to operate the plurality of implements that can be attached to the present invention is supplied by the front end skid steer loader  12  through the primary hydraulic assembly  26  located at the front of one of the loader arms  14 . The manner in which this is accomplished is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 which further detail the use of the primary hydraulic return line  28  and the primary hydraulic pressure line  29  to span the distance between the primary hydraulic assembly  26  at the front of the loader arms  14  and the hydraulic junction box  40  located on the upper surface of the upper attachment plate  24  of the attachment base  32 . The hydraulic junction box  40  also provides the point of attachment for the secondary hydraulic return line  36  and the secondary hydraulic pressure line  38  which supply the actual hydraulic pressure to the individual implement&#39;s hydraulic box  98  that is necessary for their designed operation. Finally, the hydraulic system of the present invention is equipped with a hydraulic control switch  41  which is positioned in the loader cab  18  where it is generally held in place by the use of a magnetized surface that can bind to any number of surfaces within the loader cab  18 . The hydraulic control switch  41  allows the operator of the front end skid steer loader  12  to control certain aspects of the invention&#39;s operation which will be more fully discussed in the text below. 
     The attachment base  32  itself is made up of the upper and lower attachment plates,  24  and  30 , which form a forward extending triangular structure which is attached at its base to the OEM base  54 . The most forward end of the attachment base  32  is constructed in a manner that allows for the pivotal attachment of the implement bar  34  which is the base upon which each of the employed implements is manufactured. This pivotal attachment is facilitated by the use of the pivoting attachment plate  44  which is fitted within the gap between the upper and lower attachment plates,  24  and  30 , and is pivotally held there by the use of the central pivot bolt  42 . The central pivot bolt  42  extends from the upper surface of the upper attachment plate  24 , through the pivoting attachment plate  44  and out the lower surface of the lower attachment plate  30 . 
     The pivoting attachment plate  44  is the component of the present invention which provides the method of attachment for a specific implement through the use of the implement bar  34 . The implement bar  34  is a component that is common to all of the implements that are designed to be used with the invention and facilitates the attachment by horizontally spanning the most forward section of the invention. The attachment is made by placing the implement bar  34  against the outward surfaces of two implement attachment brackets  46  that are attached to either outside edge of the pivoting attachment plate  44 . The actual attachment is made by passing a plurality of implement U-bolts  48  around the outside of the implement bar  34  and through the implement attachment brackets  46  where they are held in place buy the use of the U-bolt nuts  50 . This method of attachment serves to clamp the implement bar  34 , and therefore any accompanying implement, to the forward portion of the present invention which enables it to be used by the operator of the front end skid steer  12  in the desired manner. 
     The present invention also employs the use of an adjustment arm  52 , the operation of which is detailed in FIGS. 4 and 5, which works in conjunction with the pivoting attachment plate  44  to allow the front end skid steer loader  12  to vary the angle of attack of the implement bar  34  in relation to the orientation of the present invention and the direction of travel of the front end skid steer loader  12 . The adjustment arm  52  is made up of, in part, an inner adjustment arm  58  which is a hollow tubular devise that maybe square in its cross section and that is pivotally attached at its rearward end by the use of the inner bolt  70  to the inner bracket  68  and also which is open in its forward end providing access to its tubular interior. 
     The adjustment arm  52  also contains an outer adjustment arm  56  component which is generally a solid bar that may also be square in its cross section and has an outside dimension that is slightly smaller than the inside dimension of the inner adjustment arm  58 . This configuration allows the outer adjustment arm  56  to slide in and out of the inner adjustment arm  58  to vary the length of the adjustment arm  52  as a whole. The forward end of the inner adjustment arm  58  also contains the arm pin  60  which operates in conjunction with a plurality of adjustment holes  62  that pass through the body of the outer adjustment arm  56  to hold the adjustment arm  52  at the desired length. 
     Additionally, the outer adjustment arm  56  is pivotally attached to the pivoting attachment plate  44  at the outer bracket  64  by the use of the outer bolt  66 . This configuration allows the operator to vary the distance that the adjustment arm  52  spans which in turn will either draw in or push away one end of the implement bar  34  from the corresponding side of the forward end of the invention. This pivoting action allows the implement&#39;s angle of attack to be changed from tilted to one side of the front end skid steer loader&#39;s  12  direction of travel, to square in this relationship, or all the way tilted to the opposite side. Thus, the operator can vary the orientation of the implement through he manipulation of the adjustment arm  52  to any one of a plurality of positions depending upon the requirements of the job being performed. 
     An alternative embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 6 in which a hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  is used in place of the manually operated adjustment arm  52 . The hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  is pivotally attached to the other components of the present invention at its forward end at the outer bracket  64  and at it rearward end at the inner bracket  68  by the use of the outer and inner bolts,  66  and  70  in much the same manner as the adjustment arm  52 . In this embodiment of the invention, the activation of the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  is used to change the angle of attack of the attached implement. This activation causes the cylinder rod  74  either expand in relation to the body of the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  or to contract which in turn changes the distance between the body of the invention and the implement bar  34 . 
     The control and activation of the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  is provided through the hydraulic control switch  41  which is an electrical device that allows a small portion of the hydraulic pressure provided by the front end skid steer loader  12  within the hydraulic junction box  40  to be diverted to the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72 . This diversion occurs through the cylinder pressure line  76  which spans the distance between the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  and the hydraulic junction box  40  and allows the operator to expand the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  through the use of the hydraulic control switch  41 . The cylinder return line  78  completes the circuit by returning hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72  to the hydraulic junction box  40 . This embodiment of the present invention allows the operator to control the position of the attached implement without leaving the loader cab  18 , thus, making the use of the present invention more user friendly than the previous embodiment. 
     The manner in which the hydraulic junction box  40  is constructed is further detailed in FIGS. 7 and 8 which illustrate the general configuration of the hydraulic junction box  40  and the orientation of its components. The upper portion of the box body  80  is covered by the box cover  86  which protects the hydraulic junction box  40  from potentially damaging impacts. This protection function of the box cover  86  is especially important in terms of the hydraulic solenoid  92  (the component of the hydraulic junction box  40  that actually controls the diversion of hydraulic pressure to the hydraulic adjustment cylinder  72 ) which in part extends above the upper surface of the box body  80 . Therefore, the use of the box cover  86  ensures that no object will come into contact with the hydraulic solenoid  92  which could potentially damage it and effect the overall performance of the invention. 
     The primary purpose of the hydraulic junction box  40  is to provide a means by which the hydraulic system of the front end skid steer loader  12  can be quickly and easily connected with the hydraulic systems of the plurality of implements that can be attached by the use of the present invention. The connections involved in the attachment of the hydraulic system of the front end skid steer loader  12  to the invention are facilitated by the primary pressure and return line ports,  82  and  84 , which are located in the rearward oriented face of the box body  80  and allow for the connection of the primary hydraulic pressure and return lines,  29  and  28 . The connections involved in attaching the implement&#39;s hydraulic to the hydraulic junction box  40  are facilitated by the secondary pressure and return line ports,  94  and  96 , which are located in the forward oriented face of the box body  80  and allow for the connection of the secondary hydraulic pressure and return lines,  38  and  36 . Finally, the connections involved in attaching the hydraulic adjustment cylinder&#39;s  72  hydraulic system to the hydraulic junction box  40  are facilitated by the cylinder pressure and return line ports,  88  and  90 , which are located on the outward surface of the box body  80  and allow for the connection of the cylinder pressure and return lines,  76  and  78 . 
     Although the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred versions thereof, other versions are possible. For example, the type of tractor used may vary greatly. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the preferred versions contained herein.