Patent Publication Number: US-10767326-B2

Title: Auger for a snow thrower

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. CN201720545696.5, filed on Mar. 16, 2017, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a snow thrower and an auger thereof. 
     BACKGROUND 
     As a hand-push type power tool, the snow thrower is an important device for clearing snow in winter. The snow thrower has major advantages of high efficiency, economy, environmental protection and the like. With the growing economy and the continuous progress of society, the snow thrower is also gradually popularized at home and abroad. 
     The snow thrower includes an auger and a snow throwing cylinder. For a traditional snow thrower, part of the snow is directly thrown to the snow throwing cylinder when the auger rotates. Apparently, most of snow cannot be thrown exactly to the snow throwing cylinder. Thus, snow clearing efficiency is low. 
     SUMMARY 
     An auger for use in a snow thrower includes a supporting shaft having a central axis, a snow throwing bracket secured to a middle portion of the supporting shaft and configured to throw snow, a left snow scraper surrounding the supporting shaft, secured to a left end of the snow throwing bracket and configured to push the snow to the right towards a region where the snow throwing bracket is located, a right snow scraper surrounding the supporting shaft, secured to a right end of the snow throwing bracket and configured to push the snow to the left towards the region where the snow throwing bracket is located, a left supporting plate secured to a left end of the supporting shaft, two ends of which are respectively secured to the snow throwing bracket and the left supporting plate, and a right supporting plate secured to a right end of the supporting shaft, two ends of which are respectively secured to the snow throwing bracket and the right supporting plate. The left snow scraper and the right snow scraper are symmetrical about a plane perpendicular to the central axis. An angle of the left snow scraper around the central axis is greater than 180 degrees and smaller than 360 degrees, and a ratio of the angle of the left snow scraper around the central axis to a length of the left snow scraper in a direction of the central axis is greater than or equal to 0.9 degree/mm and less than or equal to 3 degree/mm. 
     Further, the angle of the left snow scraper around the central axis may be greater than 210 degrees and smaller than 270 degrees and the ratio of the angle of the left snow scraper around the central axis to the length of the left snow scraper in the direction of the central axis may be greater than or equal to 1 degree/mm and less than or equal to 2.2 degree/mm. 
     Further, the auger may include two left snow scrapers and two right snow scrapers. The two left snow scrapers are respectively secured to two ends of the left supporting plate and the two right snow scrapers are respectively secured to two ends of the right supporting plate. 
     Further, the snow throwing bracket may be made of a first material, and the auger may further include an edge plate made of a second material which has a smaller hardness than the first material. The edge plate may be secured to an edge of the snow throwing bracket and the edge plate may protrude from the edge of the snow throwing bracket in a radial direction of the central axis. 
     Further, the snow throwing bracket may be provided with a through hole, and the through hole may be located between the edge plate and the supporting shaft. 
     Further, a hardness of the left snow scraper may be greater than or equal to 50 HRB and less than or equal to 100 HRB, and a thickness of the left snow scraper may be greater than or equal to 1.5 mm and less than or equal to 3.5 mm. 
     Further, an outer side of the left snow scraper away from the central axis may be provided with sawteeth. 
     Further, the auger may include a left auxiliary supporting plate located between the snow throwing bracket and the left supporting plate. The left auxiliary supporting plate may be secured to the supporting shaft, and the middle portion of the left snow scraper may be secured to one end of the left auxiliary supporting plate. 
     Further, the left snow scraper may be provided with a protruding rib protruding from a surface of the left snow scraper facing the snow throwing bracket. The rear side of the left snow scraper may be provided with a groove corresponding to the protruding rib. 
     Further, the auger may be made of metal material. 
     Also described is a snow thrower that includes an auger housing formed with an accommodating cavity and a one of the above augers which is arranged in the accommodating cavity. 
     The present disclosure has the following beneficial effects: snow can be rapidly gathered from both sides to the middle when the auger of the snow thrower is rotating, thereby increasing the snow clearing efficiency; and the snow is prevented from being scattered when the auger is throwing the snow, thereby improving the snow clearing effect. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an exemplary snow thrower. 
         FIG. 2  is a plan view of the snow thrower in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of an auger of the snow thrower in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a plan view of the auger in  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded view of the auger in  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 6  is a plan view of the auger in  FIG. 3  from another view angle. 
         FIG. 7  is a schematic diagram illustrating a left snow scraper around a supporting shaft of the auger in  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic diagram illustrating the left snow scraper around the supporting shaft of the auger in  FIG. 3  from another view angle. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present disclosure is described in detail below in conjunction with accompanying drawings and specific examples. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the example snow thrower  100  includes an auger  10 , a motor, a handle  20 , a chassis  30 , an auger housing  40 , a snow throwing member  50 , wheels  60 , a controlling trigger  70 , and a regulating handle  80 . 
     The auger  10  serves as the functional element of the snow thrower  100 . The motor drives the auger  10  to rotate to implement a snow clearing function. The handle  20  is configured to be held by a user. The handle  20  is connected to the chassis  30 . The handle  20  is rotatable relative to the chassis  30 . The motor is secured to the chassis  30 . The motor may be an internal combustion engine which is powered by fuel combustion, or an electric powered motor. Specifically, the motor is an electric motor. The snow thrower  100  further includes a battery pack. The battery pack powers the motor. The auger housing  40  accommodates the auger  10 . The auger housing  40  is formed with an accommodating cavity  41 . The auger  10  rotates in the accommodating cavity  41 . The snow throwing member  50  is configured to guide the snow thrown by the auger  10 . The snow throwing member  50  changes a trace of the snow to guide the snow away. The snow throwing member  50  is connected to the middle portion of the accommodating cavity  41 . The snow throwing member  50  forms a throwing passage. The throwing passage is communicated with the accommodating cavity  41 . The snow that enters the accommodating cavity  41  is thrown by the auger  10  into the throwing passage. The wheels  60  rotate relative to the chassis  30  so that the snow thrower  100  moves on ground. The controlling trigger  70  is operated by the user to start the motor. The regulating handle  80  is operated by the user to regulate a position of the snow throwing member  50  so that the snow can be thrown to different directions. The rotation of regulating handle  80  drives the snow throwing member  50  to rotate. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3  to  FIG. 6 , the auger  10  includes a supporting shaft  11 , a snow throwing bracket  12 , a left snow scraper  13 , a right snow scraper  14 , a left supporting plate  15  and a right supporting plate  16 . 
     The supporting shaft  11  has a central axis  101 . The motor drives the supporting shaft  11  to rotate about the central axis  101 . The snow throwing bracket  12  is configured to throw the snow. The position of the snow throwing bracket  12  corresponds to the position of the snow throwing member  50 , so that the snow thrown by the snow throwing bracket  12  can directly enter the throwing passage. The snow throwing bracket  12  is secured to a middle portion of the supporting shaft  11 . 
     The left snow scraper  13  is substantially helical, and surrounds the supporting shaft  11 . The left snow scraper  13  is secured to a left end of the snow throwing bracket  12 . The left snow scraper  13  is configured to push the snow to the right towards a region in which the snow throwing bracket  12  is located so as to facilitate the snow-throwing of the snow throwing bracket  12 . Specifically, the left snow scraper  13  is formed integrally as an independent part. 
     The right snow scraper  14  is substantially helical, and surrounds the supporting shaft  11 . The right snow scraper  14  is secured to a right end of the snow throwing bracket  12 . The right snow scraper  14  is configured to push the snow to the left towards a region in which the snow throwing bracket  12  is located so as to facilitate the snow-throwing of the snow throwing bracket  12 . Specifically, the right snow scraper  14  is formed integrally as an independent part. The snow is gathered from two sides to the middle by the left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  to facilitate the throwing of the snow. 
     The left supporting plate  15  is secured to a left end of the supporting shaft  11 . The right supporting plate  16  is secured to a right end of the supporting shaft  11 . Two ends of the left snow scraper  13  are respectively secured to the snow throwing bracket  12  and the left supporting plate  15 . Two ends of the right snow scraper  14  are respectively secured to the snow throwing bracket  12  and the right supporting plate  16 . The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  are respectively secured to two ends of the snow throwing bracket  12 . 
     The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  are symmetrical about a plane  102  perpendicular to the central axis  101 . 
     In one or more embodiments, the auger  10  includes two left snow scrapers  13  and two right snow scrapers  14 . The two left snow scrapers  13  are respectively secured to two ends of the left supporting plate  15 . The two right snow scrapers  14  are respectively secured to two ends of the right supporting plate  16 . The middle portion of the left supporting plate  15  is secured to the supporting shaft  11 . The middle portion of the right supporting plate  16  is secured to the supporting shaft  11 . 
     The snow throwing bracket  12  is made of a first material. The auger  10  further includes an edge plate  17 . The edge plate  17  is secured to the snow throwing bracket  12 . The edge plate  17  protrudes from an edge of the snow throwing bracket  12  in a radial direction of the central axis  101 . The edge plate  17  is made of a second material which has a smaller hardness than the first material. Specifically, the snow throwing bracket  12  is made of metal material. The edge plate  17  is made of rubber material. The edge plate  17  increases a snow throwing area of the auger  10 , and increases snow throwing efficiency. In addition, the arrangement of the edge plate  17  can prevent foreign matters from being caught between the snow throwing bracket  12  and a cavity wall of the accommodating cavity  41 . 
     The edge plate  17  is formed with a snow throwing plane  17   a  for throwing snow. A side of the snow throwing plane  17   a , away from the central axis  101 , is a straight line, and the straight line is parallel to the central axis  101 . Specifically, the snow throwing plane  17   a  is substantially rectangular. Specifically, a side of the edge plate  17 , away from the central axis  101 , is a straight edge. The auger  10  includes two edge plates  17 . The two edge plates  17  are respectively secured to two ends of the snow throwing bracket  12  away from the central axis  101 . The two edge plates  17  are centrally symmetrical about the central axis  101 . 
     The auger  10  further includes bolts  171 . Two bolts  171  are configured to fix the edge plates  17  and the snow throwing bracket  12 . The two bolts  171  are symmetrical about the plane  102 . The edge plates  17  are reliably secured. 
     The snow throwing bracket  12  is provided with a through hole  121 . The through hole  121  is located between the edge plates  17  and the supporting shaft  11 . A linear velocity of part of the snow throwing bracket  12  close to the supporting shaft  11  is low during rotation, thereby possibly causing low snow throwing height and leading to snow scattering. The arrangement of the through hole  121  prevents the part of the snow throwing bracket  12  close to the supporting shaft  11  from throwing snow and improves snow throwing quality. 
     Sawteeth  133  are formed at an outer side of the left snow scraper  13  away from the central axis  101 . The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  have the same structure. The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  can perform cutting during rotation and break hard snow blocks or ice blocks, thereby increasing the snow clearing efficiency. 
     Hardness of the left snow scraper  13  and hardness of the right snow scraper  14  are greater than or equal to 50 HRB and less than or equal to 100 HRB. Thickness of the left snow scraper  13  and thickness of the right snow scraper  14  are greater than or equal to 1.5 mm and less than or equal to 3.5 mm. The setting of the strength and the thickness of the left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  not only ensures the strength of the left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14 , but also improves the capability of the left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  for breaking the hard snow blocks or ice blocks, and increases the snow clearing efficiency. As a specific example, the left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  are made of metal material. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7  and  FIG. 8 , an angle β of the left snow scraper  13  around the central axis  101  is greater than 180 degrees and smaller than 360 degrees. A length L 1  of the left snow scraper  13  in the direction of the central axis  101  is greater than or equal to 120 mm and less than or equal to 200 mm. A ratio of the angle β of the left snow scraper  13  around the central axis  101  to the length L 1  of the left snow scraper  13  in the direction of the central axis  101  is greater than or equal to 0.9 degree/mm and less than or equal to 3 degree/mm. 
     Specifically, the angle β of the left snow scraper  13  around the central axis  101  is greater than 210 degrees and smaller than 270 degrees. The ratio of the angle β of the left snow scraper  13  around the central axis  101  to the length L 1  of the left snow scraper  13  in the direction of the central axis  101  is greater than or equal to 1 degree/mm and less than or equal to 2.2 degree/mm. 
     In the direction of the central axis  101 , the left snow scraper  13  has a high snow conveying capability, and can rapidly guide the snow which contacts the left snow scraper  13  to a region corresponding to the snow throwing bracket  12 , thereby increasing the snow sweeping efficiency. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3  to  FIG. 6 , the auger  10  further includes a left auxiliary supporting plate  18  located between the snow throwing bracket  12  and the left supporting plate  15 . The middle portion of the left snow scraper  13  is secured to an end of the left auxiliary supporting plate  18 . The middle portion of the left auxiliary supporting plate  18  is secured to the supporting shaft  11 . Two ends of the left auxiliary supporting plate  18  are respectively secured to the middle portions of the two left snow scrapers  13 . The left auxiliary supporting plate  18  supports the left snow scrapers  13  and enhances the strength of the left snow scrapers  13 . 
     The auger  10  further includes a right auxiliary supporting plate  19  located between the snow throwing bracket  12  and the right supporting plate  16 . The middle portion of the right supporting plate  19  is secured to the supporting shaft  11 . Two ends of the right auxiliary supporting plate  19  are respectively secured to the middle portions of the two right snow scrapers  14 . 
     A side of the left snow scraper  13 , which faces the snow throwing bracket  12 , is defined as a front side of the left snow scraper  13 , and a side of the left snow scraper  13 , which faces away from the snow throwing bracket  12 , is defined as a rear side of the left snow scraper  13 . The left snow scraper  13  is provided with a protruding rib  131  protruding from the front side of the left snow scraper  13 , and the protruding rib  131  is located in the middle portion of the left snow scraper  13 . The rear side of the left snow scraper  13  is provided with a groove  132  corresponding to the protruding rib  131 . The left snow scraper  13  has a high strength. The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  are symmetrical about the plane  102 . The left snow scraper  13  and the right snow scraper  14  have the same structure. 
     The above shows and describes basic principles, major features and advantages of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art should understand that above embodiments do not limit the present disclosure in any form. Technical solutions obtained by equivalent substitutions or equivalent transformations fall within a protection scope of the present disclosure.