Wear Assembly For Excavating Equipment

Abstract

A wear assembly for excavating equipment includes a base fixed to the excavating equipment, a wear member fit over the base, and a lock to releasably hold the wear member to the base. The wear member includes side relief to reduce drag on the system. The wear member and the base each includes a hemispherical front end and a generally trapezoidal rear portion. The base includes a nose and a stop projecting from the nose to cooperate with the lock without an opening being needed to receive the lock into the nose. The lock is an elongate lock positioned generally in an axial direction and which holds the wear member to the base under compressive loads.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention pertains to a wear assembly for securing a wear member to excavating equipment, and in particular to a wear assembly that is well suited for attachment and use on a dredge cutterhead.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Dredge cutterheads are used for excavating earthen material that is underwater, such as a riverbed. In general, a dredge cutterhead 1 includes several arms 2 that extend forward from a base ring 3 to a hub 4 (FIG. 21). The arms are spaced about the base ring and formed with a broad spiral about the central axis of the cutterhead. Each arm 2 is provided with a series of spaced apart teeth 5 to dig into the ground. The teeth are composed of adapters or bases 6 that are fixed to the arms, and points 7 that are releasably attached to the bases by locks 8.[0003]In use, the cutterhead is rotated about its central axis to excavate the earthen material. A suction pipe is provided near the ring to remove the dredged material. To e...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a wear member for excavating equipment is formed with side relief in the working and mounting sections to minimize the drag associated with the digging operation and, in turn, minimize the power needed to drive the equipment. Reduced power consumption, in turn, leads to a more efficient operation and a longer usable life for the wear member.

[0006]In accordance with the invention, the wear member has a transverse configuration where the width of the leading side is larger than the width of the corresponding trailing side so that the sidewalls of the wear member follow in the shadow of the leading side to decrease drag. This use of a smaller trailing side is provided not only through the working end but also at least partially into the mounting end. As a result, the drag experienced by a worn wear member of the invention is less than that of a conventional wear member. Less drag translates into less power consumption and a longer use of the wear member before it needs to be replaced. Accordingly, the working ends of the wear member can be further worn away before replacement is needed.

[0007]In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the wear member has a digging profile that is defined by the transverse configuration of that portion of the wear member that penetrates the ground in one digging pass and in the direction of motion through the ground. In one other aspect of the present invention, side relief in the wear member is provided in the digging profile to lessen the drag experienced during a digging operation. In a preferred embodiment, side relief is provided in every digging profile expected through the life of the wear member including those which encompass the mounting section.

Problems solved by technology

Further difficulties are caused by the operator's inability to see the ground that is being excavated underneath the water; i.e., unlike most other excavating operations, the dredge cutterhead cannot be effectively guided along a path to best suit the terrain to be excavated.

Consequently, considerable power is needed to drive the cutterhead, particularly when excavating in rock.

However, as the bit becomes shorter due to wear, the mounting sections of the points will begin to engage the ground in the cutting operation.

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