Abstract:
An ambulatory fire fighting apparatus comprising at its front end a device for lifting the overburden and comminuting and exposing the nonflammable soil which passes unded a rotary drum which pulverizes the soil and discharges the pellets of dirt through a guide chute, the chute being associated with a fan which has branches for directing of air entraining the pellets and pressurizing the drum.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention pertains to an ambulatoryor self propelled fire fighting apparatus for use in forest, praire or similar fires in remote areas where no water is available or where the use of water would promote toxic fumes which would be caused by any fire retardant chemicals previously applied to the site or would spread the toxic and hazardous material into the environment. 
     The invention is directed to the utilization of in situ non-flammable material such as primary soil and casting such material onto the fire to thus cut off oxygen and smother the blaze. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The prior art teaches the use of shovels and the like to dig into the soil and fling it into the fire. This poses great risk for the fire fighter and the small quantity of soil moved by a shovel is usually not adequate. Presumably bull dozers and the like may be used to bury the fire. However, this requires large equipment which normally cannot be transported to an inaccessible fire site and their effectiveness is thus limited to accesible areas. Some attempts have been heretofore to haul nonflammable material by wagons and dumping it onto the fire. This requires time consuming hauling and the use of this method, as presently known to me has been abandoned. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention is directed to a novel portable apparatus which digs into the terrain for non-burnable material and which then cast or slings the material through a directing chute onto the blaze in sufficient quantities to smother it. 
     One object of the invention is to provide a manueverable fire fighting apparatus which may be pushed to the fire or is self propelled and easily guided by an individual fire fighter. 
     Another object is to provide the unit with a rotary drum with a floating guard in back to protect the operator from flying rocks and lumps of dirt and the like. 
     A further object is to provide a device which scarfs any top growth from in front of the machine which is provided with comminuting mechanism for breaking up the subsoil in front of an oncoming pitching and comminuting drum which throws the subsoil particulate through a directing chute onto a fire. 
     Another object is to provide such apparatus with a drum having novel resilient blades or tines operative to scoop the soil with spoon shaped end portions provided on the ends of the tines, said tines being deflectible circumferentially of the drum and springing back during digging and in addition to the centrifugal moments developed by high speed rotation of the drum also imparting the spring return component for flinging the particles of soil into a discharge chute with sufficient trajectory to deposit such particles onto the fire. 
     Another object is to provide a supplementary forced air source which augments the moments imparted by the other components in cascading the particles from the chute onto the fire. 
     As till further object is to provide an auxilliary blower which has a duct leading into the drum air inlet to prevent a vacuum or low pressure area forming in front of the drum and which provides a pressure head at the air inlet into the drum so as to maximize the effectiveness of the drum in discharging the non-flammable soil through the discharge chute. 
     Another object is to provide a drum with dirt-cutting and and comminuting means comprising circular laterally spaced edged blades for breaking up the soil and serving as rock guards, the blades flanking the drum tines which are rotated at high speed and whip through the soil particles and cast them onto a fire through a discharge tube. 
     The invention contemplates the provision of a novel blower having one air discharge branch directed to augment the discharge of partices from the chute and another branch directed into the drum to maximize the air supply to the drum. 
     The invention is also directed to a novel fire fighting apparatus wherein the components are arranged to enhance the effectiveness of each other but also wherein they are positioned in front of the operator between him and the fire to serve as a shield. 
     Another object is to provide a novel particle-propelling drum which comprises a casing carried on a center shaft, the shaft driving a pair of axially spaced cutter disks which are positioned adjacent to respective side walls of the of the drum casing, the disks confining a group of radially extending spring fingers or tines which flex circumferentially upon striking the ground and which generate a circumferential and radial flow of air directed toward the ground and then tangentially with the entrained particles into a discharge chute. 
    
    
     These and other object and advantages inherent in and encompassed by the invention will become more apparent from the specification and the accompanying drawing, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a side elevational view with parts shown in section taken substantially on line 1--1 of FIG. 2: 
     FIG. 2 is a top plan view with part broken away and shown in section of the equipment taken substaially on line 2--2 of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a front view of an end portion of one of the drum tines, and 
     FIG. 4 is a cross section of one of the tines. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The fire fighting apparatus shown in the drawings is identified generally by the numeral 1 and comprises and ambulatory self-propelled frame 2 including a pair of longitudinal side frames or beams 4 and 6 which are interconnected at their forward or front ends by a transverse beam member 8. 
     The beam member 8 supports a divider 10 shown in top plan view as triangular in shape which has a downwardly and rearwardly sloping front edge 12 and is effective to spread the bramble or other growth such as weeds etc. apart to facilitate passage of the equipment over the terrain. 
     The rear base portion of the divider is mounted to the front side of the front beam member. 
     Behind the transverse front beam member there is provided a front support roller 15 which is journaled between a pair of fore and aft extending arms on an axle secured to the arms intermediate their front and rear ends. The arms 16,18 are pivoted at their front ends on a pin from the lower ends of brackets supported on beams 4 and 6. The pin is horizontal and provides an axis of pivot transverse to the direction of transverse of the unit. The rear ends of the arms are interconnected by a transverse bar 26 which serves as an up stop abuttment against a stop end 28 of an adjustable stop bolt 30 which extends through an opening in a support element 32 and is threaded through a nut welded to element 32. Thus the front roller may drop to ride through a depression but as soon as it reaches level or higher ground it will move upwardly and engage with the stop thus lifting or supporting the front end of the unit. 
     Behind the front guide roller, there are mounted a series of steel disk plows or cutters 35 which comprise a transverse shaft rotatably journalled at the ends on the forward ends of a pair of side links 38,38 each of which is biased downwardly by a compression spring 40 which at its lower end bears against the top edge of the associated link 38 as at 42 and at its upper end reacts against the bottom side of a transverse beam member 44 connected at its ends to the side rails of the main frame. The rear ends of the links 38 are each privoted on a horizontal transverse axis to pendant ears 46 depending from respective side rails. The disk plows are edge sharp and cut through the soil or sod etc. and slice the soil therebeneath. The disk plows may be positioned slightly askew to the direction of travel to compound their action in scarfing and cutting and plowing the overburden. 
     Behind the disk plow there is positioned a share plow 48 which is secured at its top to a transverse main bar frame 50 as by a securing bolt 52. The share plow parts the sod or plant growth overburden laterally and exposes the underlayer of earth or aggregate which extends rearwardly to a region beneath the lower portion of the inlet structure 54 of an upwardly and forwardly inclined discharge chute 55. The lower portion of the inlet end of the chute is provided with a droop lip 56 formed of elastomeric material laced with fiber such as a tire carcass. The lip guides any soil particles discharged thereagainst into the chute and is yieldable to prevent damage as it traverses the terrain. 
     A cutting and pulverizing drum 58 follows the share plow and digs at a level therebelow. The drum comprises a generally cylindrical housing or casing 60 made of sheet metal with an open bottom 62 and having laterally spaced side walls 64,66 and a circumferential arcuate segmented wall 68 extending between and interconnecting the side walls 64,66. 
     The wall 68 is an arcuate sector contoured about a beater 69 which has a pair of laterally or axially spaced side disks 70,70 which sharp periperal edges 72. The disks or cutters 70,70 flank a plurality of radially extending resilient combination beaters, soil scarfers and comminuters and impellers arranged in brush-like fashion. The impellers 71 may be flat bars of spring steel and are secured at their root ends 72&#39; to the periphery of a core 74 which is fixed to a center drive shaft 76. The impellers may be flat bars as shown or may have cylindrical stem portions 78 and outer end transversely arcuated spoon shaped portions 79 to better scoop up up the agregate. The impellers will bend back when digging into and scrape into the exposed virgin soil and will spring back to unloaded position when exiting the ground and thus mechanically and centrifugally sling the material through the duct as abetted by the blast of air generated by the drum. 
     As seen in FIG. 1 the duct 55 flares reawardly and immediately above the duct is a cut-off plate 79&#39; mounted on the duct and extending into the drum housing in scraping relation to the outer ends of the impeller blades to prevent recirculation of the aggregate. It will be noted that the circumferential wall 68 of the housing is provided with extender sections 75a and 76a. The front section or shroud 75a operates to move the air inlet valve assembly 77 to which it is attached clockwise together with the positioning of the inlet end portion of the discharge chute. The adjustment is accomplished by bolt 78a threaded through a lug 80 on the shroud 75a and a stationary lug 82 on the stationary circumferential wall of the blower drum. 
     The stub inlet tube 83 of air assembly 77 is provided with a damper valve 84 for regulating the amount of air being drawn into the the drum and the tube 83 has a branch pipe 90 which extends proximate to the bottom portion of the inlet section of the discharge tube for aspirating any dust generated about or in front of the drum. 
     The arcuate rear section 76a slides upon wall 68 and is interlocked therewith. The lower end portion 92 of the rear section is formed as a forwardly pointed shoe 94 with a ground engaging sole plate 95. 
     The section 76a is biased toward the earth by gravitation and in order to cause it to float lightly over any ground obstruction such as a protruding stone or the like a tension spring 96 is provided hooked between lugs 98 and 100 at the section 68 and 78a. 
     The drum is driven by a cog belt and pulley assembly or sprocket and chain drive 102 extending between shaft 76 and an output shaft 104 of an internal combustion engine 105 mounted on a pedestal 108 integrally supported on the main frame. 
     The shaft 104 also drives an input shaft 110 of a transmission 112 by a cog belt and pulley assembly or sprocket and chain drive 118 to a drive axel 120 of a rear roller or wheel assembly 123 disposed between the side beams of the main frame, the axle being set in bearings 124. 
     The shaft 104 also drives a fan 125 mounted in housing 128 suitably supported on the main frame. The housing has an air discharge opening 130 which communicates with an inlet duct 132 comprised of telescoping sections. 
     The main air duct 132 has a branch duct 134 connected thereto and the branch duct 134 has a flared outlet 136 in the vicinity of the inlet tube 83 and provides a high pressure zone or head eliminating a vacuum pocket in this region pumping air into the tube 83 to augment the blower action of the aggregate drum. 
     The main trunk 138 of the duct 134 is angled toward the aggregate discharge tube and connects with a sleeve 140 which is telescoped over the discharge end of the chute or tube 55 and exhausts upwardly and outwardly toward the fire and entrains the aggregate therein to obtain sufficient velocity thereto in a trajectory into the fire. 
     The unit is counterbalanced across the axle of the rear roller or wheels by tension springs 150 connected to arm 152 and the rear extensions 154 of the frame members 6 and 8. The extensions 154 terminate as handles 160 by which the operator guides and maneuvers the unit.