Patent Document

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to machines that dedensify wood and other biomass into easily transportable segments. The invention specifically relates to—but is a unique and novel improvement on—wood chippers and chainsaws. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    On-site tree limb processing generally requires gasoline or diesel powered cutting equipment that can be transported into dense forest environments of varying topographies. This equipment is dangerous, noisy, and requires constant maintenance. 
         [0003]    Animal such as horses, cattle, goats, deer, and other ruminants graze on pastureland and woodland grasses as long as they are available. When this food stock has run out, these ruminants shift their feeding attention to the bark, leaves, and twigs of accessible brush—since all ruminants have the ability to turn cellulose into glucose. This food stock is considered browse food. 
         [0004]    It is difficult to use common wood processing equipment to produce browse food. There is a need for tools that are extremely portable and energy efficient to process and prepare densely vegetated forest fuels to be properly sized for use in these applications. The present invention can be powered by any motive source, is an order of magnitude more efficient than prior art, and renders a wood product that is ideally sized to be used as a browse food for ruminants. 
         [0005]    The closest prior art to the present invention includes Dupuis&#39; U.S. Pat. No. 7,316,188, which discloses a very complex dedensification and delivery unit for the conversion of a wood source; Jonkka&#39;s U.S. Pat. No. 7,293,730, which is a knife fixing method wherein an external force is applied to a roller chain that drives multiple knife elements to process wood into sections; and Olofsson&#39;s U.S. Pat. No. 7,267,146 that describes an improved bed knife for a wood chipper. The present invention is a unique and novel improvement over all the referenced prior art. 
       SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
       [0006]    A primary objective of the present invention is to provide a waste free browse food processing apparatus wherein cellulose tree branch material being fed into the machine is easy to hold, and doesn&#39;t pull or twist, both the machine and blade are very easy to manufacture and maintain, the machine is quiet and only requires minor adjustments, and the machine will operate at low speeds to be safer than high speed wood dedensification machines. 
         [0007]    Another objective of the present invention is to provide a means to help solve the problem of uncontrollable wildfires caused by excessive buildup of small diameter slash and brush. 
         [0008]    Another objective of the present invention is to provide a means to help meet the need for development of renewable energy through livestock feed augmentation through usage of previously unused cellulose feedstock, which will help in the effort to halt and reverse global climate change. 
         [0009]    Another objective of the present invention is to allow fuller utilization of smaller branches than a chainsaw can safely cut, and replace chainsaws for repetitive cuts on branches once they are removed from a tree trunk. 
         [0010]    The present invention provides the aforementioned benefits by incorporating a pair of spiral cutting blades mounted to a rotary machine that drives the cutting blades in a parallel axis located above a fixed reaction surface. The present invention discloses a device wherein tree branch material is forced between the cutting surfaces that traverse an expanding arc across a fixed reaction surface. The length of the spiral blades are configured to sever a fixed length portion of the cellulose feed stock to render a product suitable for animal feed. 
         [0011]    As a piece of tree branch is being cut by the present invention, it can not turn or kick back while the cut is being made—and it self feeds into the machine at a very moderate rate. This feature greatly increases the operators&#39; safety and comfort. 
         [0012]    The rotary machine component of the present invention can be driven electrically, hydraulically, pneumatically, by a fossil fuel powered engine, or any other motive force—but the efficiency of the spiral knife design dramatically reduces the energy required to dedensify tree limbs and other biomass. 
         [0013]    The present invention cuts tree limbs to a predetermined length based on the width and height of the spiral cutting blades, and the speed of rotation of the rotary drive machine. The slicing cut creates no sawdust, wood chips, or any other waste product. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a side view representation of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 2  is a top view representation of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 3  is an isometric view representation of the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is an end view representation of the adjustable cutting bed of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0018]    The preferred embodiment of the present invention, as presented in the side view in  FIG. 1 , the top view in  FIG. 2 , the isometric view in  FIG. 3 , and the end view detail in  FIG. 4 , incorporates a spiral shear assembly that slightly resembles the spiral reel in an old fashioned lawnmower. The spiral shear component of the present invention consists of two twelve inch by one and one half inch cutting blades  12  and  13  which are bent into a 180 degree spiral. The cutting edges  15  and  16  of said cutting blades  12  and  13  are tapered and sharpened. Cutting blades  12  and  13  are welded or fixedly attached around the circumference of round shaft  11 , and configured equidistant from, and opposite each other. 
         [0019]    Pillow blocks  29  and  30  are fitted to shaft  11  on either side of the horizontal ends of cutting blades  12  and  13 . Horizontal mounting plates  47  and  48  are welded or otherwise fixedly attached to the upper surfaces of vertical mounting towers  19  and  20 . Said vertical mounting towers  19  and  20  are made of a material that can be welded or otherwise fixedly attached to the upper surface of mounting plate  24 . Pillow blocks  29  and  30  are secured to horizontal mounting plates  47  and  48  with bolts  31 ,  32 ,  33 , and  34  and nuts  35 ,  36 ,  37 , and  38 . 
         [0020]    Right angle gearbox  6  is solidly mounted to a flat mounting plate  24  with bolts  17  and  18  such that the gearbox  6  output shaft  8  is parallel to the long axis of mounting plate  24 . Mounting plate  24  may be any rigid material that can be bolted and/or welded to. 
         [0021]    One end of said shaft  11  is removably but solidly coupled to the output shaft  8  of right angle gearbox  6  with flexible shaft coupler  10 , essentially extending said output shaft  8 , and shaft coupler  10  is secured to shaft  11  with keyway  9  and setscrew  5 . Said shaft coupler  10  is an industry standard device and needs no further description. Additionally, shaft coupler  10  is attached to shaft  11  at a height relative to mounting plate  24  and pivotable cutting bed  14  such that the cutting edges  15  and  16  of blades  12  and  13  slide by cutting bed  14  at a distance of approximately one thirty second of an inch at their closest point of contact as shaft  11  is rotated in a clockwise direction by gearbox  6 , which is driven by motor  40 . 
         [0022]    Motor  40  may be an industry standard DC or AC electric motor; a gasoline of other fuel powered engine, a hydraulic motor, a pneumatic motor, or any other prime mover capable of outputting rotational force, and as such does not need to be detailed further herein, however, it is important that motor  40  be of a type that can reverse direction to release any jammed feed stock. Motor  40  is mounted to the input side  28  of gearbox  6  with bolts  31  and  32 . Gearbox  6  is an industry standard right angle reduction gearbox and as such does not need further detail herein. 
         [0023]    The motor  40  engages the gearbox  6  and provides rotational force to gearbox  6 . Gearbox  6  ideally incorporates an industry standard face mount surface  43  to allow attachment of any suitable motor  40  capable of outputting the required torque to force the cutting edges  15  and  16  cutting edges of blades  12  and  13  through any tree limb branch  46  to completely sever a section of said branch  46 . 
         [0024]    As detailed in  FIG. 4 , cutting bed  14  may also be any flat surfaced rigid material that may be welded or otherwise fixedly attached to round adjusting shaft  22  at its upper long end. Pillow blocks  27  and  28  are fitted to both ends of adjusting shaft  22 , and are fixedly attached to horizontal mounting plates  47  and  48  with bolts  51 ,  52 ,  53 , and  54  and nuts  55 ,  56 ,  57 , and  58  such that round adjusting shaft  22  and round shaft  11  are parallel to each other and that cutting bed  14  passes under blades  12  and  13 . Adjusting screw  59  is attached to mounting plate  24  through a hole  61  and held in place with lock nut  60  such that said adjusting screw  59  can raise or lower cutting bed  14  to the proper functional height. 
         [0025]    The present invention is intended to be operated such that as blades  12  and  13  are rotated slowly—nominally 50 rpm—around a substantially horizontal axis, a small round tree branch  46  is fed into the space between the spiral cutting edges  15  and  16  and the cutting bed  14 . Any vertical movement of the branch  46  is stopped by the vertical reactive force of the cutting bed  14 . The horizontal movement caused by the spiral shape of the cutting edges  15  and  16  is resisted by friction—the horizontal reactive force—between the tree branch  46  to be cut and the cutting bed  14 . If said friction is not adequate to sustain the horizontal reactive force, the friction can be increased by incorporating rough or channeled surfaces in the path of horizontal movement on the upper surface of cutting bed  14 . 
         [0026]    A tree branch  46  up to one and one quarter inches in diameter can be fed under a descending blade  12  or  13 , and the resulting downward force against said branch  46  is resisted by the reactive force of the cutting bed  14 . The spiral shape of the blades  12  and  13  create a horizontal force which is resisted by the frictional reactive force between the branch  46  and the cutting bed  14 . As the first of blades  12  and  13  completes its cut, the second blade of blades  12  and  13  begins its cut three to four inches back from the first cut on the branch  46 , The result is a smooth, quiet, efficient slicing action that uses only a fraction of the power that typical 1700 rpm wood chippers and shredders in prior art use—resulting in a waste-free browse food producing apparatus. 
         [0027]    Wood chippers and bush hogs both draw in the wood automatically, rapidly and forcefully—often presenting a danger to an operator. The present invention allows an operator to stop the forward feed action by simply pulling back on a branch  46  being fed into the machine. There is a short moment when the first of blades  12  and  13  completes its cut, and before the second of blades  12  and  13  starts its cut—when the branch  46  can be pulled back to stop the feed action. 
         [0028]    While exemplary embodiments of the foregoing invention have been set forth for purposes of illustration, the foregoing description should not be deemed a limitation of the invention disclosed herein. Accordingly, various modifications, adaptations and alternatives may occur to one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present invention.

Technology Category: 7