Patent ID: 8678052

Claim:
A stump grinding machine comprising: a chassis comprising a wheel-driving hardware set and a stump grinding wheel attachment hardware set, with the chassis defining a forward direction, a rearward direction, an up direction, a down direction, a first side direction and a second side direction that is opposite said first side direction; a stump grinding wheel sub-assembly, comprising a stump grinding wheel member, with the stump grinding wheel member defining a central axis, an axial direction, an angular direction and a radial direction; a stump grinding wheel; and a wood chip collection sub-assembly comprising a collector member and a wood chip receptacle sub-assembly; wherein: the stump grinding wheel attachment hardware set rotatably mechanically connects the stump grinding wheel sub-assembly to the chassis so that: (a) the central axis of the stump grinding wheel is: (i) at least substantially aligned with the two opposing side directions, (ii) perpendicular to the up and down directions and (iii) also perpendicular to the forward and rearward directions, (b) the wheel-driving hardware set is operatively connected to the stump grinding wheel sub-assembly such that the wheel-driving hardware set drives the stump grinding wheel sub-assembly to rotate about the central axis of the stump grinding wheel, and (c) the grinding wheel is located sufficiently low to the ground to grind stumps that are embedded in the ground; the stump grinding wheel comprises a first major surface facing in the first side direction, a second major surface, facing in the second side direction and a peripheral edge facing in the radial direction; the wood collection chip sub-assembly is mechanically connected to the chassis and is sized, shaped, structured and/or located to guide material, cut by rotation of the stump grinding wheel sub-assembly into the wood chip receptacle sub-assembly; and the collector member is shaped, sized, located, structured and/or connected so that it surrounds at least a portion of the peripheral edge of the stump grinding wheel that is: (i) located rearwards of the central axis, and (ii) located below the central axis in the down direction, and is further shaped, sized, located, structured and/or connected so that it surrounds at least a portion of the first major surface of the stump grinding wheel that is: (i) located rearwards of the central axis, and (ii) located below the central axis in the down direction.