Patent Publication Number: US-2015060098-A1

Title: Adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This relates to an adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Moldboards are used on equipment such as plows, graders, and the like for manipulating material, such as grading, plowing snow, moving dirt, etc. The cutting edge of the moldboard is generally a single piece of material that is replaceable. Some machinery provides segmented blades that permit some movement, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,205 (Smathers) entitled “Segmented Snow Plow Apparatus,” which describes a snow plow blade made up of a series of bits that are mounted on a spring and permitted to independently move vertically relative to the other bits. 
     SUMMARY 
     There is provided an adjustable cutting edge for a moldboard that has a material engaging surface and a bottom edge. A series of cutter bodies is provided, each cutter body having a top edge, a bottom cutting edge opposite the top edge, a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a front surface having a concave curvature, a rear surface opposite the front surface and having a convex curvature, and a position control profile extending along at least a portion of the rear surface. A series of retainers is carried by the moldboard, each retainer permitting a respective cutter body to move along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge relative to the bottom edge of the moldboard and engaging the position control profile of a respective cutter body to retain the respective cutter body in a selected position. 
     In another aspect, the first and second sides of the cutter bodies may comprise side engagement surfaces, the side engagement surfaces engaging adjacent cutter bodies and permitting movement of each cutter body to the respective actuators. 
     In another aspect, the top edge and the bottom edge may comprise end engagement surfaces, the end engagement surfaces permitting a following cutter body to be attached to a top edge of a cutter body in use. 
     In another aspect, the convex curvature may match the curvature of the moldboard. 
     In another aspect, the convex curvature may match the concave curvature. 
     In another aspect, the position control profile may prevent movement outward from the concave curvature. 
     In another aspect, the position control profile and the retainer may comprise a tongue and groove channel for permitting movement along the concave curvature. The tongue may comprise a dovetail and the groove may comprise a dovetail groove. 
     In another aspect, each actuator may have an actuating profile that engages the position control profile, each actuator moving the respective cutter body by manipulating the actuating profile to apply a force to the position control profile. 
     In another aspect, the series of retainers may be spaced along a length of the bottom edge of the moldboard such that the respective cutter bodies form a continuous cutting edge. 
     In another aspect, the retainers may further comprise actuators that selectively move the respective cutter body along the concave curvature to advance or retract the bottom cutting edge. Each actuator may be independently controlled. Each actuator may comprise a worm gear, the worm gear engaging the position control profile of the respective cutter body. Each actuator may be manually operated or operated by a power source, such as an electric motor. There may comprise a microcontroller connected to the series of actuators, the microcontroller controlling the position of each cutter body based on commands from an operator. The microcontroller may be programmed with instructions to advance the bottom cutting edge of selected cutter bodies and retract the bottom cutting edge of other cutter bodies to create a cutting edge profile. There may be sensors for sensing the position of each bottom cutting edge. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other features will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to be in any way limiting, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge. 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge. 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge with a retractable pin. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side elevation view of an adjustable cutting edge with a microcontroller. 
         FIG. 5  is a side elevation view of an actuator. 
         FIG. 6  is a top plan view of an actuator. 
         FIG. 7  is a top plan view of an actuator engaging a cutter body. 
         FIG. 8  is a side elevation view of a cutter body. 
         FIG. 9  is an end elevation view of a cutter body. 
         FIG. 10  is a top plan view of a cutter body. 
         FIG. 11  is a top plan view of the side engagement of cutter bodies. 
         FIG. 12  is a side elevation view of the end engagement of cutter bodies. 
         FIG. 13  is an end elevation view of the cutter bodies in  FIG. 11 . 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective view of an adjustable cutting edge with the bottom edges of the cutter bodies positioned to provide a continuous cutting edge. 
         FIG. 15  is a perspective view of an adjustable cutting edge with the bottom edges of the cutter bodies positioned to provide an irregular cutting edge. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     An adjustable cutting edge, generally identified by reference numeral  10 , will now be described with reference to  FIGS. 1-15 . 
     Structure and Relationship of Parts 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an adjustable cutting edge  10  has a moldboard  12  with a material engaging surface  14  and a bottom edge  16 . A retainer  18  is carried on bottom edge  16  and engages a cutter body  20  to retain the respective cutter body  20  in a selected position. In a preferred embodiment, retainer  18  not only retains cutter body  20  in place, but is also an actuator  18  that selectively moves cutter body  20  along the concave curvature of moldboard  12  to advance or retract bottom cutting edge  16 . Retainer or actuator  18  is preferably carried at or close to bottom edge  16 , although it could be located elsewhere on moldboard  12 . Referring to  FIGS. 8 and 9 , cutter body  20  has a top edge  22 , a bottom cutting edge  24 , a first side  26 , a second side  28 , a front concave surface  30 , a rear convex surface  32 , and a position control profile  34 . Referring to  FIG. 2 , position control profile  34  is designed to retain the position of cutter body  20  relative to moldboard  12  but permit movement along the curvature of moldboard  12 . In the depicted embodiment, position control profile  34  accomplishes this by being in a dovetail shape to engage a corresponding groove carried by moldboard  12  and having a first profile  36  that engages a second profile  38  located on retainer or actuator  18 . The dovetail shape maintains the position while allowing it to slide or move along the concave curvature of moldboard  12 , while first profile  36  allows the sliding movement to be controlled. By following the concave curvature, cutter body  20  is able to maintain a consistent orientation as it wears and is moved down. 
     Referring to  FIG. 14 , cutter bodies  20  extend along moldboard  12  to act as a continuous cutting edge. While it will be appreciated that cutter bodies  20  may be made to any size or specification that is preferred by the user, it has been found that adequate results are achieved when cutter bodies  20  have a width of 3″, a length of between 16″ to 20″ and a thickness of 5/8″ to 1″ thick. The width should be sufficiently great to provide room to access retainers  18  while being small enough that the wear can be approximated as linear across its width. The thickness should be sufficient to give adequate strength to moldboard  12 , and may generally be close to the thickness of traditional cutting plates. The length affects the amount of wear that can be tolerated by cutter bodies  20  before being replaced, but will also increase the weight of the overall cutting edge and individual cutter bodies  20 . 
     As mentioned above, retainer  18  is used to hold cutter body  20  in place. Retainers  18  are designed to be connected to moldboard  20  in a fixed position and to retain cutter bodies  20  in a fixed position. The mounting between retainer  18  and moldboard  20  may be a rigid connection, or may tolerate some movement for shock absorption. However, as cutting edge  10  is designed to replace a traditional cutting edge, any movement will be minimal. Referring to  FIG. 3 , each retainer  18  may hold a cutter body  20 , for example, by providing a retractable pin  42  that engages first profile  36  of cutter body  20 . Retractable pin  42  may be spring-mounted and either or both of retractable pin  42  and first profile  36  may be shaped such that retractable pin  42  acts like a ratchet when a downward force is applied to cutter body. This allows a user to adjust the cutting edge simply by tapping the top of cutter body  20 , such as with a hammer. In order to move cutter body  20  up, retractable pin  42  would have to be released manually before allowing cutter body  20  to move. Referring to  FIG. 5 , retainer  18  is shown as an actuator with a second profile  38 , which is movable and is used to move cutter body  20 . In the embodiment shown, second profile  38  is a worm gear; however, it will be understood that other methods could be used to engage second profile  38  with first profile  36 . For example, second profile  38  may include sprockets, a pin based adjustment system, a belt driven system, etc. In order to adjust the position of cutter body  20  in the current embodiment, second profile  38  is controlled by an adjustment element  40 . As depicted, adjustment element  40  is a bolt head that can be engaged by a hand drill or another rotary tool, which causes worm gear  38  to rotate along its axis. This causes cutter body  20  to move up or down, depending on the direction of rotation. It will be understood that adjustment element  40  could be replaced with any method appropriate to adjust second profile  38 , such as a socket or an electric motor to rotate worm gear  38 . The particular design of adjustment element  40  will depend on the type of actuator  18  that is used. An actuator  18  that rotates on a vertical axis, or perpendicular to the bottom edge  16  of moldboard  12 , is useful as it provides easy access to a worker to adjust a series of cutter bodies  20 . Alternatively, referring to  FIG. 4 , actuator  18  may be a motor  44  and a microcontroller  46  may be used to operate motor  44 ; additionally, sensors  48  may be used to detect the length or position of cutter bodies  20 . The use of sensors  48  and electric motors  44  allow for features such as preconfigured cutting profiles, and automatic adjustments to wear. Microcontroller  46  could be controlled remotely, such as from the cab of a vehicle. Referring to  FIG. 7 , actuator  18  engages position control profile  34  of cutter body  20 . In the embodiment shown, position control profile  34  is a groove channel that engages a dovetail-shaped tongue of actuator  18 . It will be understood that other designs could also be used to engage actuator  18  with cutter body  20  as will be recognized by those skilled in the art. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 8 ,  9  and  10 , cutter body  20  is depicted with position control profile  34  being a dovetail tongue and groove connection, and second profile  36  on rear convex surface  32  is shaped to allow adjustment via worm gear  38 . Methods for the adjustment and engagement of cutter body  20  may vary. Referring to  FIG. 11 , the side engagement of cutter body  20  is shown. Rather than the tongue and groove engagement shown, any other engagement that allows parallel movement may be used. Referring to  FIG. 12 , cutter bodies  20  may be designed to connect with an end to end engagement  50 . Engagement  50  allows cutter bodies  20  to be locked together and allows the user to preload a cutter body for easy transitions between cutter bodies after appropriate wear has taken place. End engagement  50  of cutter body  20  in the embodiment shown may be replaced with any other method of end engagement. 
     As mentioned above, the wear of each individual cutter body  20  may vary, depending on the type of work being done, and the position of the cutter body  20  along moldboard  12 . The present system permits each cutter body  20  to be adjusted individually to maintain an optimal cutting edge as well as replacing those sections that are subject to more wear on an as needed basis without having to replace an entire cutting edge. Referring to  FIG. 13 , an example of cutter bodies  20  having a continuous cutting edge despite each cutter body  20  having a different length is shown. Referring to  FIGS. 14 and 15 , the contrast of a moldboard having a continuous cutting edge and an irregular cutting edge is shown. 
     Operation: 
     As the cutting edge of a moldboard is used, uneven wear may result. As a result, the entire cutting edge may need to be replaced even though portions of the cutting edge may still have sufficient material to continue working. Additionally, different styles of cutting edges may be needed for different tasks. For example, some operations require a continuous cutting edge while other operations an uneven cutting edge profile, or an edge with “teeth.” 
     An example of the adjustment process for an adjustable cutting edge  10  will now be given. It will be understood that the process and details for other examples will depend on the preference of the user, the specific design of adjustable cutting edge  10 , and the task being performed. Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , actuator  18  is carried toward bottom edge  16  of moldboard  12 . Actuator  18  has second profile  38  in the form of a worm gear. Referring to  FIG. 7 , actuator  18  has a dove tail shape allowing it to be received in position control element  34  on rear convex surface  32  of cutter body  20 . Referring again to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , position control profile  34  allows movement of cutter body  20  toward or away from bottom edge  16  relative to moldboard  12 . Position control profile  34  has first profile  36  that engages second profile  38 . Adjustment element  40  is manipulated and moves cutter body  20  until cutter body  20  is in a desired position. After cutter body  20  has been exposed to wear, adjustment element  40  is again manipulated to maintain a desired cutting edge by adjusting the position of each cutter body  20 . When enough wear has taken place, a new cutter body  20  may be engaged on top edge  22  of original cutter body  20  and pulled through as existing cutter body  20  continues to be worn. Alternatively, existing cutter body  20  may be removed when sufficiently worn and a new cutter body  20  inserted. Cutter body  20  is designed to be manipulated independently of adjacent cutter bodies  20 . 
     In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be one and only one of the elements. 
     The scope of the following claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set forth in the examples above and in the drawings, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.