Snow removal tools in the chute of a snowblower

Abstract

To provide a snow removal tool having excellent durability and being capable of fundamentally solving snow clogging by efficiently scraping the snow from the inside of a chute to the outside of a snow plow.SOLUTION: A tool A for removing snow within a show plow chute includes: a metal pole-shaped body 1 having a projecting tip 2 at one end that can be inserted into snow and a handle 3 for operator operation at the other end; and a roughly flat metal claw part 4 with its inner end fixed in a movable state in the vicinity of the projecting tip 2 of the body 1, which is inserted into snow along the side face of the body 1 when the body 1 itself is inserted into snow, and on reaching the surface of the snow, the outer end separates from the side face and expands in a lateral direction substantially orthogonal to the insertion direction to support the surface of the snow.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a tool for removing snow that has become clogged in the chute of a small, gasoline-powered, rotary-type walk-behind snowplow (see, for example, JP 2020-143487 A) used by individuals, stores, offices, small and medium-sized businesses, etc. [Background technology]

[0002] When wet snow with a high moisture content is blown away by the snow blower, the snow does not fly far because of strong friction with the inner wall of the chute. As a result, the snow does not have enough force to be expelled, and it falls back into the chute, causing a blockage.

[0003] Even if the auger is restarted to clear the snow blockage, the snow pushed back into the impeller is heavy and contains a lot of water, so the rotational force of the auger is insufficient to expel it, and the snow ends up adhering to the inside of the chute, causing the blockage to reoccur.

[0004] As a result, the snow could not be removed smoothly, and the auger and engine had to be stopped each time the snow was removed, resulting in a decrease in the efficiency of the snow removal work.

[0005] For this reason, there are known devices that use sticks or shovels to remove the snow that has become stuck tightly in the chute (see Patent Documents 1 and 2 below), as well as special tools that effectively drop the snow in the chute into the impeller in order to reduce the work of removing the snow (see Patent Documents 3 and 4 below). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Jpn. Jpn. Published No. 56-21847 [Patent Document 2] Special Publication No. 4-30487 [Patent Document 3] Utility Model Registration No. 3093908 [Patent Document 4] Utility Model Registration No. 3097677 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Patent Document 1 is a snow removal tool with a brush part and a spatula part, but it is not a tool intended to remove snow stuck in a chute, Patent Document 2 is a rod-shaped snow pusher with anti-slip grooves on the handle, one end of which has a spatula part for removing snow stuck to the inside of the chute, and Patent Document 3 is a cylindrical snow shovel made of resin with a sloped tip, and when it is thrust into snow stuck in the chute, the snow enters the hollow structure, reducing the pressure on the tip of the snow shovel and pushing snow into the impeller with less force, and Patent Document 4 is a snow shovel with a pointed part on one side and a shovel-shaped part on the other side, which is a tool for pushing snow stuck in the chute into the impeller, just like Patent Document 3.

[0008] In Patent Documents 1 and 2, snow stuck in the chute is simply pushed out from the upper tip of the chute, so the snow returns to the inside of the impeller, and therefore the purpose of snow removal is not removed from the snow blower. In Patent Documents 3 and 4, the tip is sloped and made into a hollow cylinder or shovel shape, which reduces the compression density of the snow and makes it possible to remove stuck snow by pushing it from the chute into the impeller, but, like Patent Documents 1 and 2, the above-mentioned purpose cannot be achieved.

[0009] Due to this problem, when the auger is restarted, the snow in the impeller frequently becomes clogged again, so it would be desirable to scrape the snow in the chute out to the upper tip and remove it from the snow blower, but this is not shown in the above-mentioned documents.

[0010] To provide a tool having excellent durability that can effectively remove snow from within a chute to the outside of a snow remover, thereby enabling snow clogging to be essentially eliminated. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] The snow removal tool in the chute of a snow removal machine of the present invention comprises a metal pillar-shaped main body having a protruding tip portion at one end that can be inserted into snow and a handle portion at the other end for operation by an operator, and a metal, approximately flat, plate-shaped claw portion having an inner end movably fixed to a portion near the tip portion of the main body, which is inserted into the snow along the side of the main body when the main body is inserted into the snow, and which has an outer end that separates from the side and extends laterally approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction when it reaches the edge of the snow, supporting the edge of the snow. The tip portion has a substantially triangular pyramid shape, and when viewed from the one end of the main body portion, the maximum dimension in a horizontal direction substantially perpendicular to the insertion direction of the main body portion at the bottom surface portion, which is the connection point with the main body portion, is a dimension such that the main body portion and the claw portion along the side surface of the main body portion fit within the area of ​​the bottom surface portion when the main body portion is inserted into snow. It is characterized by the above. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the present invention, when snow is stuck in the chute, the user holds the handle and inserts the main body part from the tip, so that the claw part enters the snow along the main body part, and when it reaches the edge of the snow, the outer end of the claw part separates from the side of the main body part and expands laterally approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction to support the edge of the snow, so that the user can remove the snow by holding the handle and pulling the main body part out of the chute.

[0014] In addition, by installing a metal wire connecting the handle portion and the outer peripheral end of the claw portion, when the user inserts the main body portion, the wire can cut the snow inside the chute by operating the handle portion to rotate the main body portion, and a moderate amount of snow can be removed with little strain in one use. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main portion of an embodiment according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the above embodiment in use. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the above embodiment in use. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the above embodiment in use. [Figure 7] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a main portion of another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a part of the embodiment in cross section. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0017] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, snow removal tool A in the chute of a snow blower has a metal, pillar-shaped main body 1 having a protruding tip 2 at one end that can be inserted into snow and a handle 3 at the other end for operation by the operator, and a metal, approximately flat, claw portion 4 made of metal, with an inner end fixed in a movably state near tip 2 of main body 1, and when main body 1 is inserted into snow, it is inserted into the snow along the side of main body 1, and when it reaches the edge of the snow, its outer end separates from the side and expands in a horizontal direction approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction to support the edge of the snow.

[0018] The material for main body 1 is preferably a heavy metal that can withstand snow, for example, aluminum, stainless steel, or iron. The size of main body 1 is not particularly limited, but for example, it has a cylindrical shape with a length (longitudinal direction) of 150 to 200 mm in the direction in which it is inserted into the snow and a diameter of 15 to 20 mm.

[0019] The tip portion 2 may have any shape that allows it to be easily inserted into snow, for example a triangular pyramid shape with a diameter of 20 to 40 mm and a longitudinal length of 10 to 20 mm. It is made of the same material as the main body portion 1 and is either molded integrally with the main body portion 1 or formed as a separate piece and fixed to the main body portion 1.

[0020] especially, The tip portion 2 is Approximately triangular pyramid shape The one end of the main body 1When viewed from the outside, the maximum dimension in the horizontal direction, approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction of the main body 1, of the bottom surface portion, which is the connection portion with the main body 1 but By sizing the main body 1 so that the main body 1 and the claw portions 4 along the sides of the main body 1 fit within the bottom area when the main body 1 is inserted into snow, contact and adhesion of snow to the main body 1 and the claw portions 4 can be reduced, the main body 1 can be easily inserted into the snow, and the resistance of the snow when cutting the snow can be reduced.

[0021] The handle 3 can be of any shape depending on the user's operation, for example, a shape that conforms to the shape of the palm or fingers so that the user can easily grip it, a shape with holes for inserting fingers, a shape that is not slippery even when wet, etc., and the material is not limited to metal. Note that the drawing shows a flat plate shape with a longitudinal direction of 80 to 100 mm, a lateral direction of 20 to 40 mm, and a thickness of 10 to 20 mm.

[0022] The claw portion 4 is made of the same metal material as the main body portion 1 and is approximately flat. It is attached to two points along the periphery of the main body portion 1 and has a hinge-like rotating fixed portion 4a near the tip portion 2, which is one end of the main body portion 1, where the inner end is fixed in a movably state. A rotating receiving portion 1a for holding this rotating fixed portion 4a is provided on the main body portion 1. When the main body portion 1 is inserted into snow, the rotating fixed portion 4a and the rotating receiving portion 1a serve as fulcrums so that the main body portion 1 is inserted into the snow while following the side of the main body portion 1, and when it reaches the edge of the snow, the user can rotate the handle portion 2 so that the outer end separates from the side and is deployed horizontally approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction.

[0023] With this configuration, as shown in Figures 4 to 6, the user holds the handle 2 and inserts the main body 1 into the snow C packed inside the chute B (in the direction of the arrow in the figure).At this time, the claw portion 4 is subjected to resistance from the snow C and is inserted into the snow C while following the side of the main body 1 (Figure 4).

[0024] When cutting snow, after inserting the tool to a certain depth, the user rotates the handle portion 2 to move the main body portion 1 through the snow C. The rotational force causes the outer end of the claw portion 4 to move away from the side of the main body portion 1 and support the edge surface of the snow C (Figure 5).

[0025] When the user removes snow by holding the handle 2 and pulling the main body 1 out of the snow C (in the direction of the arrow in the drawing), the claw portion 4 can remove some of the snow c inside the chute B to the outside of the chute B while carrying it with it (Figure 6).

[0026] Figures 7 and 8 show another embodiment of the present invention, in which a metal wire 5 is installed to connect an insertion hole 3a (see Figure 1, same below) provided on the peripheral side of the handle portion 3 and a connecting hole 4b (see Figure 1, same below) provided at the outer circumferential end of the claw portion 4, and the length of this wire 5 is set to a length that will allow the claw portion 4 to open fully.

[0027] When the main body 1 and the claw portion 4 are inserted into snow C (see Figures 4 to 6, same below), the wire 5 bends due to the resistance of the snow C so that the claw portion 4 fits along the main body 1, or the wire 5 is installed in such a manner that the user can adjust it by pulling the wire 5 with the handle 3, thereby preventing damage to the connection point between the claw portion 4 and the main body 1 due to the resistance of the snow C.

[0028] Furthermore, the wire 5 is not limited to being straight and of uniform thickness; by using a wire having a spherical or other protruding portion on the way from the handle portion 3 to the claw portion 4, it can be effective in removing snow c, as described below.

[0029] With this configuration, when inserting the main body 1, the user operates the handle 2 to rotate the main body 1, which causes the wire 5 to cut the snow C inside the chute B, allowing an appropriate amount of snow c to be removed with little strain in one use.

[0030] Needless to say, the present invention can be modified and applied in various ways without departing from its essence. For example, the number of claw portions 4 is not limited to the above two, and one or more will suffice. However, as the number increases, resistance to snow C increases, so up to about six is ​​desirable.

[0031] Furthermore, since users usually rotate the handle portion 3 toward their dominant arm, it is beneficial to provide an appropriate angle of inclination on at least the upper surface of the claw portion 4 (the surface on the handle portion 3 side in the longitudinal direction) on which the snow c to be removed is placed; it will be easier for users to use if the upper surface of the claw portion 4 is inclined forward in the direction of rotation to suit right-handed or left-handed people; and if multiple claw portions 4 are provided, it is desirable to have all of them with the same inclination direction and angle. [Explanation of symbols]

[0032] A Snow removal tool in the chute of a snowplow 1 Main unit 1a Rotational bearing part 2 Tip 3 Handle 3a Insertion hole 4 Claw part 4a Rotational fixing part 4b Connection hole 5 Wire B Snowplow chute C Snow stuck in the chute c. Snow to be removed

Claims

1. a metal pole-shaped main body having a protruding tip portion at one end that can be inserted into snow and a handle portion at the other end for operation by an operator; the inner end is movably fixed to a position near the tip of the main body, and when the main body is inserted into the snow, it is inserted into the snow along the side of the main body, and when it reaches the edge of the snow, the outer end separates from the side and expands in a lateral direction approximately perpendicular to the insertion direction to support the edge of the snow; The tip portion is substantially triangular pyramid shaped, and when viewed from the one end of the main body portion, the maximum dimension in the horizontal direction substantially perpendicular to the insertion direction of the main body portion at the bottom surface portion, which is the connection point with the main body portion, is a dimension such that the main body portion and the claw portion along the side surface of the main body portion can be accommodated within the area of ​​the bottom surface portion when the main body portion is inserted into snow.

1. A snow removal tool in a chute of a snowplow, comprising:

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