Snow shovel

Abstract

A snow shovel head includes an impeller rotatably coupled to a shaft, a discharge chute, and a chute handle in a housing including a rear wall, a circumferential wall having an output leading to the chute, and a cutout bottom wall, the notched bottom wall extends on two transverse sides from the rear wall of the shell to two opposite transverse corners of the bottom wall at the front part and the circumferential wall of the shell; the housing has a transverse corner and extends centrally from the rear wall of the housing toward the open front portion of the housing until reaching a tip recessed relative to the transverse corner. The rear wall extends to a transverse corner of the bottom wall at the circumferential wall; when the impeller rotates, snow is shoveled from the open front portion of the housing to the inside surface of the circumferential wall of the housing toward the output portion to the chute so as to discharge the snow.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 514,885, filed on July 21, 2023. All of the above references are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Technical Field

[0003] The present invention relates to a snow shovel, and more particularly to a snow shovel head and a snow shovel. Background Art

[0004] Snowplows and snow throwers combine the maneuverability of a snow shovel with the throwing mechanism of a snowplow to save the work of clearing snow from one surface to a distant surface. They can be fuel or electric, corded or battery powered. Snowplows collect snow and push it through a discharge chute. They are typically powered by electricity, either with a plug-in cord or with rechargeable batteries, which are limited by cord length or battery life, respectively. A rotating impeller scoops up the snow and creates a force that ejects the snow from the discharge chute to a distance away from the path to be cleaned. Battery-powered snowplows are typically heavier. Both have limited efficiency in snow clearing capabilities, depending on the conditions of the snow and / or the directionality of the snow throw.

[0005] There remains a need for (improvements) in the field of snow shovels. Summary of the invention

[0006] More specifically, according to the present invention, a snow shovel head is provided, which includes a shell with an open front, an impeller located in the shell and rotatably connected to a shaft, a discharge chute and a chute handle, the shell including a rear wall, a circumferential wall, a bottom wall with a cutout, and an output portion leading to the chute located in the circumferential direction of the shell, the bottom wall having two opposite lateral corners at the front and at the circumferential wall; the bottom wall of the shell extends from the rear wall of the shell to the two opposite lateral corners of the bottom wall at the front and at the circumferential wall of the shell on both lateral sides, and extends from the rear wall of the shell toward the open front of the shell at the center until reaching a tip recessed relative to the lateral corners; the rear wall extends to the two lateral corners of the bottom wall at the circumferential wall; the impeller shovels snow from the open front of the shell to the inner surface of the circumferential wall of the shell when rotating, and reaches the chute toward the output portion to discharge the snow.

[0007] A snow shovel is also provided, which includes a shovel head, a motor and a handle, the shovel head of the snow shovel including a shell with an open front, an impeller located in the shell and rotatably connected to an axis, a discharge chute and a chute handle, the shell including a rear wall, a circumferential wall, a bottom wall with a cutout, and an output portion leading to the chute located on the circumferential wall of the shell, the bottom wall having two opposite lateral corners at the circumferential wall; the bottom wall of the shell extends from the rear wall of the shell to two lateral corners at the circumferential wall of the shell on both lateral sides, and extends from the rear wall of the shell toward the open front of the shell at the center until it reaches the tip; the rear wall extends to the two lateral corners of the bottom wall at the circumferential wall; wherein, when the impeller rotates, it shovels snow from the open front of the shell to the inner surface of the circumferential wall, and toward the output portion to the chute; the handle connects the shaft of the impeller to the motor. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent from a reading of the following non-restrictive description of specific embodiments of the invention given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0009] In the attached picture:

[0010] Figure 1A is a perspective view of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0011] Figure 1B is a perspective view of a snow shovel according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0012] Figure 2 According to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure Figure 1A A front view of a snow shovel head;

[0013] Figure 3 According to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure Figure 1A A side view of a snow shovel head;

[0014] Figure 4 According to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure Figure 1A Rear view of the snow shovel head;

[0015] Figure 5 According to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure Figure 1A A bottom view of a snow shovel head;

[0016] Figure 6 Showing details of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0017] Fig. 7A Showing details of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0018] Figure 7B Showing details of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0019] Fig. 8A Showing details of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0020] Figure 8B Showing details of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0021] Figure 8C The details of the connection between the housing and the chute of the snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure are shown;

[0022] Fig. 9A is a front perspective view of a snow shovel head having a front skirt according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0023] Fig. 9B An embodiment according to one aspect of the present disclosure is shown in which the front skirt is removed. Fig. 9A Snow shovel;

[0024] Fig. 9C and Fig.9D Shows details of the height adjustment of the skid shoe of the snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0025] Fig.10 shows details of a snow shovel according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0026] Fig.11A is a perspective view of a snow plow impeller according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0027] Fig. 11B A snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure is shown. Fig.11A Impeller;

[0028] Fig. 11C An embodiment according to one aspect of the present disclosure is shown. Fig.11A The blades of the impeller;

[0029] Fig. 12A is a rear view of a snow shovel head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure;

[0030] Fig. 12B yes Fig. 12A A first side view of a snow shovel head;

[0031] Fig. 12C yes Fig. 12A A bottom view of a snow shovel head;

[0032] Fig.13A shows details of a snow plow head according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure; and

[0033] Fig. 13B yes Fig.13A Front view of a snow shovel head. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] The invention is illustrated by the following non-limiting examples.

[0035] like Figure 1A , Figure 2 The snow shovel head 16 according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 13 includes a housing 22 with an open front portion that accommodates the impeller 18 and is connected to the discharge chute 12 , and a chute handle 14 located at the proximal end of the discharge chute 12 .

[0036] The housing 22 is a cylindrical body with an open front, and includes a rear wall 34 , a circumferential wall 9 , a bottom wall 25 , and an output portion 17 located on the circumferential wall 9 and leading to the chute 12 .

[0037] The snow shovel head 16 includes a handle 200 extending from the rear wall 34 of the housing. The snow shovel head 16 can be connected to an extension handle 201 (see, for example, FIG. 2 ) for supporting a handle and a motor unit. Fig. 12A The locking connector 232 in the embodiment of the present invention is preferably a locking connector 232 in the embodiment of the present invention, such as according to the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1B The extended handle 201 includes a main grip portion 230 at its distal end, for gripping by a user, for example, with one hand, and a middle grip portion 220 at a distance from the main grip portion 230, for gripping by a user, for example, with another hand. Figure 1B In the embodiment, a button 231 is shown on the handle 201 for selecting the speed of the motor M when the motor is started to actuate (activate) the rotation of the shaft (not shown) in the handle 201 and 200, thereby actuating the rotation of the impeller 16 of the snow shovel head. As is well known in the art, a trigger on the motor M is used to start the motor M, and the shaft drives a gear set (not shown) in the gear box to rotate the impeller 18 around its axis 300 in the housing 22 (see, for example, Fig. 11B ). The user can drive and steer the snow shovel with one hand while using the other hand to operate the chute by acting on the chute handle 14, as described below.

[0038] The handle 201 and the motor M may be attached to and detached from the snow plow head 16 by unlocking and detaching the extended handle 201 from the handle 200 of the snow plow head 16 .

[0039] The motor M may be an electrical power source with a rechargeable battery; alternatively, it may be corded to plug into an electrical outlet, or may be a fuel power source.

[0040] The impeller 18 can be actuated to rotate within the housing 22 about its rotational axis 300, which is connected to a gearbox attached to the rear wall of the housing 22 and actuated, for example, as described above. For example, the impeller can be removed from the open front of the housing 22 for replacement by loosening the impeller from its rotational axis 300.

[0041] For example, Fig.11A Three blades 37 are shown, extending from the rear wall 61 of the impeller towards the open front of the housing over a first length 63, then curving forward in the direction of impeller rotation 61 (see rearward curvature C) and extending over a second length 65 to their free edges; in the figures herein, looking at the impeller from the front, the rotation is counterclockwise and the output to the chute is on the right; with the output to the chute on the left, the rotation of the impeller is clockwise and the curvature of the blades is opposite.

[0042] The bottom wall 25 of the housing extends from the rear wall 34 of the housing to a lateral corner at the circumferential wall of the housing and extends towards the open front of the housing over a length corresponding to the first length 63 of the blades 37, which is from the rear wall 61 of the impeller to, for example, Figure 1A The tip of the V-shaped cutout shown in the figure presents a notched front edge: at the tip of the V-shaped cutout, the front edge of the bottom wall is recessed relative to the opposite lateral corners of the front edge 11; the rear wall 34 of the shell extends to the lateral corners of the bottom wall, intersecting with the circumferential wall at these corners, thereby forming a converging shape of the inner surface of the shell, and when the amount of snow collected by the impeller moves to the right under the rotation of the impeller, the converging shape further converges the snow into the shell, as will be described in detail below.

[0043] In operation, the blades 37 of the rotating impeller shovel snow from the bottom wall and the open front of the housing 22 to the sliding surfaces 27 on the inner side surface of the peripheral wall of the housing 22 to reach the output portion leading to the chute 12 (see Fig. 7A and 7B Arrow A in the figure).

[0044] exist Figure 1A , Figure 2 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 , Figure 7B , Fig. 8A , Figures 9A-9B , Fig.10 , Fig. 11B , Fig.13A In the figure, the bottom wall of the housing is shown with a notched front edge, e.g. Figure 1A9, with the lateral portions 11A and 11B of the bottom wall extending into the front bottom portions 9A and 9B of the circumferential wall 9, respectively; other shapes of the notched front edge of the bottom wall can be envisaged, such as U-shaped or square. The lateral portions of the bottom wall extending into the respective front bottom portions of the circumferential wall 9 have been found to help pick up snow and direct it towards the output to the chute and to the chute 12.

[0045] This combination of bottom and circumferential walls of the housing, the output to the chute, and the impeller blades effectively collects snow and focuses it to the output to the chute 17 without snow jamming, for example, at the front of the snow shovel and / or within the housing 22 between the blades and the impeller wall.

[0046] The impeller blades may be molded from polymers selected for impact resistance at low temperatures, such as (PC) polycarbonate and (ABS) thermoplastic alloy of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (PC-ABS).

[0047] Figure 1-8A Fig. 9A , Fig. 9B and Fig.10 The impeller 18 shown in FIG. 1 is a four-blade impeller. The impeller may include three blades 37, such as Fig.11A , Fig. 11B Or as shown in FIG13. The number of blades and / or the curvature from the rear wall of the impeller to its outer edge, and / or the shape of the blades can be selected based on at least one of the following: the inner size of the housing, the bottom wall of the housing 22, the diameter of the impeller 18, the rotation speed (rpm) of the impeller 18, and the target snow pickup and discharge efficiency of the snow shovel head. Different shapes of blades can be selected, such as spoon-shaped or flat paddles.

[0048] The rear surface of the blade 37 may be reinforced by ribs 67, for example Fig. 13B As shown. In FIG. 11, Fig. 12C , Fig.13A In the embodiment of the invention, three blades 37 have ribs 67 on their rear surface; the ends of the ribs 67 form teeth 60. Such teeth 60, which protrude from the leading edge of the blades, can be provided for breaking up compacted snow or ice.

[0049] The material collected from the ground is guided in an uncompressed form by the rotation of the impeller blades and is guided to the sliding surface 27 located at the inner wall of the housing 22; thus, for example, rocks, branches or debris that may be picked up from the ground together with snow are caught between the rear wall 34 of the housing 22 and the blade wall 38 at the inner rear part of the housing 22 (for example, at Fig. 9B ) before being discharged from the open front to the outside of the shell.

[0050] The collection width of the snow scoop head can be, for example, up to 16 inches, depending on the diameter of the open front and the internal dimensions of the housing 22. In the case of a front skirt, the collection width of the snow scoop is primarily determined by the opening (i.e., width) of the front skirt in front of the snow scoop; an open skirt, i.e., too wide relative to the diameter of the impeller, may result in more snow being pushed than collected into the housing, which may result in snow compression as it is scooped / rolled up by the rotating blades.

[0051] In an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure such as that shown in FIG. 8 , the chute 12 is rotationally connected at its distal end at the output 17 of the housing 22 so as to rotate about a substantially vertical axis, and the deflector is pivotally connected at its proximal end about a substantially horizontal axis so as to tilt upward and downward relative to the longitudinal axis of the output 17. Fig. 8A Detail of a rotating automatic locking chute according to an embodiment of one aspect of the present disclosure is shown. The chute 12 shown can be rotated 180 degrees around the output portion 17 of the column leading to the chute (see Fig. 8A The deflector 13 is pivotally connected to the chute 12 so as to tilt upward and downward (see arrow C in FIG. 1 ). Fig. 8A ) in order to control the distance between the position of the snow discharge ground and the user's position; by manipulating the chute handle 14, the user can thus pivot the deflector 15 upwards in order to discharge the snow onto a discharge ground further away, or pivot the deflector downwards in order to direct the desired snow discharge to a discharge ground closer to his cleared space, thereby controlling the distance of the snow discharge and, as he advances, controlling the uniform distribution of the snow on the discharge ground away from the cleaned surface.

[0052] Figure 8C Detail of the rotary connection of the chute 12 at the output to the chute 17 is shown according to an embodiment of an aspect of the present invention, wherein the locking ball 402 on the inner wall of the chute 12 (e.g., at Figure 8C is shown in a transparent manner and from Fig. 12B4 (observed on the outer surface of the chute 12 in FIG. 1 ) interferes / interference fits with ribs 404 on the periphery of the output portion leading to the chute 17. The locking ball 402 is positioned on a flexible tab so as to maintain its contact against a series of ribs 404 around the chute 12, attached to the output portion of the chute 17. The ball located between two ribs locks the position of the chute. When the chute 12 is forced to rotate to the left or right, the ball flexibly passes over the corresponding rib to its left or right side, thereby disengaging, and rotation is possible, wherein the ball maintains the final position of the chute 12 when locked again between two other ribs. Such interference elements of two locks flexibly connected to the inner wall of the chute 12 such as the ball 402 can, for example, be used to lock the rotational position of the chute. Thus, the user is able to control the snow discharge position around and away from the user's position, controlling the rotation of the chute and the tilting of the deflector. Manipulating the chute handle 14, the user monitors the rotation of the chute about the output of the housing and the tilting of the deflector about its connection axis to the chute and is able to accurately direct the snow discharge jet to the target remote surface and control its height above the target remote surface while guiding the snow shovel with the other hand holding on the main grip.

[0053] Slide shoes 28 may be attached to the circumferential wall 9 of the housing 22, thereby allowing the height of the housing 22 relative to the ground to be adjusted (see Figure 1A Depending on the desired clearance height between the snow shovel head and the ground, the locking bolt 29 ( Figure 1A , Figure 9, see Fig.9D The length of the shoe 28 extending below the bottom wall 25 of the housing 22 can be adjusted by adjusting the length of the shoe 28 (arrow) to optimize snow removal efficiency while facilitating movement of the snow shovel head over the ground, such as when clearing snow from a gravel surface, to remove snow from the surface while leaving the gravel intact.

[0054] like Figure 1A , Fig. 8A , Fig. 9A As shown, for example, a front skirt 26 may be provided on the front peripheral edge of the open front portion of the shell 22 for collecting snow into the shell 22. The front skirt may be removable (see Fig. 9A Arrows in the Fig. 9B : Snow shovel head without front skirt). In order to reinforce the front skirt, a front rod 31 can be provided to connect the opposite front corners of the front edge 11, for example Fig.10 shown.

[0055] The wall of the housing 22 may be a plastic material having a thickness, for example, in the range between 3 mm and 4 mm. Increased thickness may be used. The rear wall 34 of the housing 22 may include reinforcing ribs 80; the rear wall 30 of the gearbox at the outer surface of the rear wall 34 of the housing 22 may include reinforcing legs 70, for example, Fig. 12A shown.

[0056] The scope of the claims should not be limited by the embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.

Claims

1. A snow shovel head comprising a housing with an open front, an impeller located within the housing and rotatably connected to a shaft, a discharge chute and a chute handle, wherein: The housing comprises a rear wall, a circumferential wall, a bottom wall with a cutout, and an output portion located in the circumferential direction of the housing and leading to the chute, wherein the bottom wall has two opposite lateral corners at the front and at the circumferential wall; wherein the bottom wall of the housing extends from the rear wall of the housing to two opposite lateral corners of the bottom wall at the front portion at the circumferential wall of the housing on both lateral sides, and extends from the rear wall of the housing toward the open front portion of the housing at the center until reaching a tip recessed relative to the two lateral corners; the rear wall extends to the two lateral corners of the bottom wall at the circumferential wall; The impeller, when rotating, scoops snow from the open front of the housing to the inside surface of the circumferential wall of the housing, toward the output portion to the chute for discharge of the snow.

2. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The chute is rotationally connected at its distal end to the output leading to the chute for rotation about a substantially vertical axis, said rotation of the chute allowing the position of the snow discharge to be controlled.

3. The snow shovel head of claim 1 further comprising a deflector at the proximal end of the discharge chute, the deflector being pivotally connected to the chute handle about a substantially horizontal axis so as to be capable of tilting upward and downward; the tilting of the deflector allowing control of the thickness of the snow discharge.

4. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The chute is rotationally connected at its distal end to the output portion leading to the chute at a rotational connection so as to rotate about a substantially vertical axis, the outer wall of the output portion leading to the chute comprising at least one rib at the rotational connection, the inner wall of the chute comprising at least one ball configured to interfere with the at least one rib, thereby rotationally locking the chute relative to the output portion leading to the chute.

5. The snow shovel head of claim 1 further comprising a deflector at a proximal end of the discharge chute, the deflector being pivotally connected to the chute handle about a substantially horizontal axis so as to be able to tilt upward and downward, the tilting of the deflector allowing control of the thickness of snow discharge; the chute being rotatably connected at its distal end to the output portion leading to the chute so as to rotate about a substantially vertical axis; wherein the chute handle controls the rotation of the chute and the tilting of the deflector.

6. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The impeller comprises blades which extend from the rear wall of the impeller towards the open front of the housing over a first length corresponding to the length of the bottom wall of the housing up to the tip of the bottom wall and then bend forward in the rotation direction of the impeller.

7. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The impeller includes blades, at least one of the blades including a forward-projecting tooth.

8. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The number of blades is selected based on at least one of: an inner dimension of the housing, a diameter of the impeller, and a rotational speed of the impeller.

9. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The profile of the blades is selected based on at least one of: the interior dimensions of the housing, the diameter of the impeller, and the rotational speed of the impeller.

10. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The shape of the blades is selected based on at least one of: the inner dimensions of the housing, the diameter of the impeller, and the rotational speed of the impeller.

11. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: At least one of the number of blades, the profile of the blades, and the shape of the blades is selected as a function of at least one of: an inner dimension of the housing, a diameter of the impeller, and a rotational speed of the impeller.

12. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: A slide shoe is attached to an outer surface of the housing, the slide shoe having a selected length extending below the bottom wall of the housing.

13. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The housing includes a front skirt.

14. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The two opposite lateral corners at the circumferential wall of the housing are connected by a front rod.

15. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The housing is molded plastic.

16. The snow shovel head according to claim 1, wherein: The blades are moulded plastic.

17. The snow shovel head of claim 1, further comprising a handle extending from the rear wall of the housing and configured to support a motor, wherein the handle connects the shaft of the impeller to the motor.

18. A snow shovel comprising the snow shovel head, a handle and a motor according to claim 1, wherein: The handle connects the shaft of the impeller to the motor.

19. The snow shovel according to claim 18, wherein: The handle includes a main grip portion at a distal end thereof and an intermediate grip portion between a proximal end thereof and a distal end thereof.

20. A snow shovel, comprising: A shovel head, the shovel head comprising: A housing with an open front, an impeller located within the housing and rotatably connected to a shaft, a discharge chute and a chute handle, wherein: The housing comprises a rear wall, a peripheral wall, a bottom wall with a cutout, and an output portion located on the peripheral wall of the housing and leading to the chute, wherein the bottom wall has two opposite lateral corners at the peripheral wall; The bottom wall of the housing extends from the rear wall of the housing to two lateral corners at the circumferential wall of the housing on both lateral sides, and extends from the rear wall of the housing toward the open front of the housing at the center until reaching the tip; the rear wall extends to the two lateral corners of the bottom wall at the circumferential wall; wherein the impeller, when rotating, shovels snow from the open front portion of the housing to the inner surface of the circumferential wall and toward the output portion to the chute; Motor; and A handle connects the shaft of the impeller to the motor.

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