Abstract:
A wear sole attaches to the bottom portion of existing shoes on pusher/box plows used for snow removal. The wear sole protects the expensive shoes that come from the manufacturers from wear and reduces the frequency in which the shoes must be replaced.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application is based on and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/023,599 filed on Jul. 11, 2014, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to the field of commercial snow removal. More particularly, the present invention relates to the use of snow pusher plows/box plows on skid steers, wheel loaders, or other equipment that is used for snow removal, and the wear that results from prolonged use of these snow pusher plows/box plows (particularly to the “shoes” on either side of the plow). 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Commercial contractors in the snow removal industry use pusher plows or box plows to clear large lots (mainly industrial, commercial, and retail locations). As seen in  FIG. 1 , these pusher/box plows  10  attach to equipment  14 , such as wheel loaders, skid steers, and other large machinery. The pusher/box plows come in a variety of configurations but generally include spaced apart vertical sides  18 , a rear wall  22 , and shoes  26  at the bottom of the spaced apart vertical sides  18 . The pusher/box plows  10  work very well to collect snow, move it, and stack it. As a result of prolonged use pushing snow across pavement, the shoes  26  mounted to the sides  18  of the pushers  10  become worn and routinely need to be replaced. Generally, the majority of the wear on these shoes  26  occurs on the bottom portion of the shoe where the pusher is pressed against the pavement. The wear is uneven, and often the whole shoe  26  must be replaced when only the bottom is worn. The shoes  26  work great, but they are very expensive, and create a lot of waste due to uneven wear patterns. At up to seven-hundred dollars retail, the cost to replace the pusher/box plow shoes  26  places a very high, and somewhat unnecessary cost on the users, because they must replace portions of the shoe  26  that do not require replacement, due to the 3-sided, single-piece construction. 
         [0004]    As such, there is a need for a less expensive, more functional option for pusher/box plow shoes. There is a need for a plow shoe that is less expensive to replace. There is also a need for a plow shoe that wears evenly. It is inefficient and wasteful to constantly replace shoes, when a large portion of the shoe is in near perfect condition. A shoe that wears evenly, and costs less would greatly help commercial contractors within the snow removal market. 
         [0005]    It will be understood by those skilled in the art that one or more aspects of this invention can meet certain objectives, while one or more other aspects can lead to certain other objectives. Other objects, features, benefits and advantages of the present invention will be apparent in this summary and descriptions of the disclosed embodiment, and will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Such objects, features, benefits and advantages will be apparent from the above as taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures and all reasonable inferences to be drawn therefrom. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a prior art pusher/box plow attached to machinery; 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a side perspective view of a shoe for a pusher/box plow with one embodiment of a wear sole in accordance with the invention attached thereto; 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a top perspective view of the shoe and wear sole of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  is a detail bottom exploded perspective view of the shoe and wear sole of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a detail bottom perspective view of a portion of the wear sole of  FIG. 4 ; 
           [0011]      FIG. 6  is a detail bottom perspective view of a portion of the shoe of  FIG. 4 ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 7  is a detail side perspective view of the shoe and wear sole of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0013]      FIG. 8  is a detail side perspective view of the shoe and wear sole of  FIG. 7 , shown with the threaded bolt and lock washer removed; and 
           [0014]      FIG. 9  is a detail side perspective view of the shoe and wear sole of  FIG. 7 , shown with the threaded bolt and lock washer installed. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , current pusher/box plows  10  for snow removal are adapted to be attached to large machinery  14 . The box plow  10  has two spaced apart vertical sides  18  attached to a rear wall  22 , with each side having a bottom edge, and a shoe  26  attached to each respective one of the vertical sides and protecting the bottom edge, the shoe  26  having a flat bottom plate  30  (see  FIG. 2 ), and a perpendicular plate  34 . The shoes  26  are attached to the box plow sides by bolts and nuts (not shown) received in holes  46  in the perpendicular plate  34  and holes in the respective box plow side  18 . There are a variety of shapes and sizes of shoes  26  and the illustrated example is representative only and should not be interpreted as limiting the configuration or application of the present invention. 
         [0016]    As seen in  FIGS. 2-9 , the present invention is a wear sole  60  adapted to be attached to the flat bottom plate  30  of the shoe  26  by spaced apart threaded bolts  64  passing through unthreaded openings  68  in the flat bottom shoe plate  30  and into threaded holes  72  in the wear sole  60 . The wear sole  60  can be effectively made of AR400 abrasive-resistant steel although other materials could be used. The wear sole can be laser-cut from sheets and drilled and tapped for the threaded holes  72  to receive the bolts. Other manufacturing techniques could of course be used.  FIGS. 5 and 8  are detailed views showing the threaded holes  72  in the wear sole  60 . The bolts  64 , as best seen in  FIGS. 7-9 , can be any effective fastener but it has been found effective to use ⅝ inch Grade 8 bolts and lock washers. Depending on the bolt, a lock washer or other washer may or may not be required. The shape of the wear sole  60  is determined by the specifications and sizing of the snow pusher/box plow shoe  26  that it will be attached to. Although in less preferred embodiments (not shown) a wear sole  60  with dimensions smaller than the existing shoe  26  surface can be used, it has been found most effective to closely match the shape of the existing shoe  26  bottom surface. 
         [0017]    Once cut, holes  72  are drilled and tapped into the wear sole  60 , to receive the bolts  64  after they are passed through the shoe  26 . Once these holes  72  in the wear sole  60  are drilled and tapped, corresponding holes or unthreaded openings  68  are drilled in the existing shoe  26 , to make room for the bolts  64  to pass through to the threaded holes  72  in the wear sole  60 . When the threaded holes  72  in the wear sole  60  and the unthreaded holes  68  in the shoe  26  are lined-up ( FIG. 8 ), the bolts  64  and lock washers (if necessary depending on bolt selection) are passed-through the unthreaded holes  68  in the shoe  26  and screwed into the threaded holes  72  of the wear sole  60 . (See  FIGS. 7 and 9 .) 
         [0018]    While many different forms of hard, durable, abrasive-resistant material could be used to manufacture the wear soles  60  (including but not limited to acrylic materials, polyethylene materials, AR200 steel, COR-TEN® steel, and others), AR400 steel has proven most effective. Alternative bolts could be used in place of the ⅝ inch bolt  64  that has been found effective, and many different sizes would be needed to fit the different sizes of shoes  26  from the variety of manufacturers who produce pushers and box plows  10  with shoes  26 . 
         [0019]    The wear sole  60 , built to preserve the life of the shoe  26 , is created to be a less-expensive and more efficient wear-point on the pushers/box plows  10 . Once the wear soles  60  are attached to the shoes  26 , the operator simply uses the pusher/box plow  10  as he normally would. When the wear sole  60  is fully worn, the bolts  64  will pop-off or release their engagement, and the operator will then know it is time to replace the wear sole  60 , to preserve the more expensive to replace shoes  26 . 
         [0020]    Although the invention has been herein described in what is perceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not intended to be limited to the specific embodiments set forth above. Rather, it is recognized that modifications may be made by one of skill in the art of the invention without departing from the spirit or intent of the invention and, therefore, the invention is to be taken as including all reasonable equivalents to the subject matter of the appended claims and the description of the invention herein.