Multi-movements blade for snowblower

Abstract

A scraping apparatus includes an uppermost structure having a front and a rear, and a shaft mounted to the rear of the uppermost structure parallel thereto. The scraping apparatus includes at least one torsion spring wound around the first shaft, and a blade mounting structure mounted thereto that is rotatable between a working position and a tripped position The scraping apparatus includes blades mounted slidingly to the front of the blade mounting structure with the blades being rotatable between a lowermost position and a raised position. The torsion springs are biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position and the blades toward their lowermost position.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE

[0001] This application claims priority to, or benefit of, provisional application US 63 / 749,801, filed January 27, 2025, entitled MULTI-MOVEMENTS BLADE FOR SNOWBLOWER, the specification of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUNDa Field

[0002] The subject matter disclosed generally relates to road-scraping apparatuses. More particularly, the subject matter disclosed relates to scraping apparatuses of snowblowers that are adapted to adjust to ground unevenness. b Related Prior Art

[0003] One example of a surface to be cleaned is a roadway surface on which accumulated snow and / or ice (which are hereafter generically referred to in a non-limitative manner as “frozen water materials”). This is generally done using a rigid blade having a lowermost edge that is in engagement with the roadway surface. The blade is attached to a vehicle, for instance a truck or the like, travelling over the roadway. In this context, the blade is often called a “snowblower”. A snowblower blade is often relatively large so as to maximize the width of the surface cleaned by a single pass. Such concept, however, assumes that the roadway surface is perfectly smooth, flat and free of obstructions. In practice, road surfaces are not perfectly smooth, flat and free of obstructions. For instance, the surface height often varies irregularly from one end of the lowermost edge of the blade to the other and the surface height varies all the time as the blade moves thereon. The lowermost edge is therefore not always fully in engagement with the roadway surface over its entire length, with the result that some frozen water materials tend to remain on the roadway surface at various locations, especially where the surface height is the lowest compared to the immediate surrounding areas. The efficiency of the cleaning is thus reduced.

[0004] Road maintenance operators must often use de-icing chemicals to melt the remaining frozen water materials so as to complete the cleaning. The amounts of de-icing chemicals are generally inversely proportional to efficiency of the cleaning. Thus, if the cleaning is inefficient, more de-icing chemicals are required. This has a direct impact on the operating costs and increases the footprint on the environment.

[0005] Still, obstructions can be present on the roadway surface and be hit by the lowermost edge of the blade. Some of these obstructions can damage the blade and / or remove a portion of the roadway surface, depending on the nature of the obstructions, when using a rigid blade.

[0006] Different approaches have been suggested over the years for mitigating the difficulties experienced with fully-rigid snowblower blades. One approach is presented for instance in Swiss Patent No. 416,708 granted 15 Jul. 1966. This patent uses a series of spring-biased movable plates on the lowermost edge of the blade. It also teaches the use of bolts capable of breaking when subjected to excess stress, such as when the plates hit an obstruction. Similar arrangements are disclosed for instance in U.S. Pat. No. 3,400,475 granted Sept. 10, 1968, in Canadian Patent No. 2,423,830 C granted Feb. 10, 2004, and in U.S. Pat. No. 7,467,485 granted Dec. 23, 2008. Another approach is to use a series of plates on the lowermost edge of the blade where the plates are resiliently attached to the rest of the blade. Examples are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 520,479 granted May 29, 1894, and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,032 granted Apr. 28, 1998.

[0007] Other technologies of interest are described through U.S. 9,611,604 B2 granted Apr. 4, 2017, U.S. 10,865,533 B2 granted Dec. 15, 2020, and U.S. 10,480,140 B2 granted . All the documents referred to above are publicly available.

[0008] Although existing arrangements may have been generally considered adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been entirely satisfactory in all respects. These is a need for a more efficient snow removal. solution. There is a need felt in the art for a solution that is less sensible to accumulation of, e.g., snow and ice therein rendering them less efficient. There is also a need for a solution providing less area between a snow blade and the ground for snow and ice accumulations thereof affecting the ground-clearing functionality thereof, as these accumulation with existing solutions decreasing significantly the efficiency of the solution.

[0009] In summary, there is still room for many improvements in this area of technology.SUMMARY

[0010] According to an aspect, there is described a snowblower, a snowplow or a snowplow portion of a snowblower having an uppermost structure, a plurality of blades forming the lowermost edge, wherein the blades are movable in a first movement between a default forward position and a raised position, and that can be tripped between a default frontmost position and a rear position in a second movement, wherein a shaft is mounted to the rear of the uppermost structure and torsion springs are mounted thereto or wound therearound, and are adapted to restore the blades to their default positions. Such mechanism can be applied to a snowplow or to a snow blower, inter alia.

[0011] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus having a scraping edge adapted to scrape a ground surface area when moved forward, the scraping apparatus including: an uppermost structure having a front and a rear thereof; a first shaft mounted to and parallel to the rear of the uppermost structure; at least one torsion spring wound around the first shaft; a first blade mounting structure rotatably secured to the first shaft between a working position and a tripped position where the first blade mounting structure is pivoted rearward relative to the working position; and at least one blade slidingly mounted to a front of the first blade mounting structure, the at least one blade being movable between a forward position and a raised position, wherein the at least one torsion spring is at least one of i) biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position and ii) biasing the at least one blade toward the forward position.

[0012] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one torsion spring includes a first torsion spring dedicated to biasing to the first blade mounting structure.

[0013] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the first blade mounting structure includes a shouldering wall adapted for a first arm of the first torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position.

[0014] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the uppermost structure provides a rear wall for a second arm of the first torsion spring to abut against.

[0015] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, where the first shaft is extending substantially horizontally.

[0016] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one torsion spring includes at least one second torsion spring dedicated to biasing the at least one blade.

[0017] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one blade includes a blade opening providing an opening wall adapted for a first arm of the at least one second torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the at least one blade toward the forward position.

[0018] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the blade opening has a single lowest vertex providing the opening wall.

[0019] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the first blade mounting structure includes a rear assembly and a blade support providing a substantially flat wall for the at least one blade to slide onto, wherein the blade support includes a support opening for the first arm of the at least one second torsion spring to extend across to abut the opening wall.

[0020] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the blade support includes oblong openings extending vertically parallel to one another for securing the at least one blade therethrough to the blade support.

[0021] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the first blade mounting structure includes a wall adapted for a second arm of the at least one second torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position.

[0022] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one blade includes at least two blades, wherein the at least one torsion spring includes a first lowering torsion spring and a second lowering torsion spring each dedicated to biasing a distinct one of the at least two blades, and wherein the first blade mounting structure includes a member extending perpendicular to the first shaft, with sections of the first shaft on opposite sides of the member having distinct one of the first lowering torsion spring and the second lowering torsion spring wound around.

[0023] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one blade includes two blades, wherein the two blades are mounted to the first blade mounting structure.

[0024] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, further including a second blade mounting structure mounted to the first shaft.

[0025] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the first blade mounting structure and the second blade mounting structure are movable between the working position and the tripped position independently from one another.

[0026] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, further including a second shaft and a second blade mounting structure mounted to the second shaft.

[0027] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the first blade mounting structure includes a member extending parallel to the first shaft.

[0028] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one blade includes at least two blades that are movable between the forward position and the raised position independently from one another.

[0029] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a scraping apparatus, wherein the at least one torsion spring includes a first torsion spring dedicated to biasing to the first blade mounting structure and a second torsion spring dedicated to biasing the at least one blade, wherein the first torsion spring and the second torsion spring have a plurality of similar characteristics among inside diameters, outside diameters, material, wire diameter, body length, number of coils, free angle, and arm lengths.

[0030] In some aspects, the description herein relates to a vehicle including the scraping apparatus.

[0031] Features and advantages of the subject matter hereof will become more apparent in light of the following detailed description of selected embodiments, as illustrated in the accompanying figures. As will be realized, the subject matter disclosed and claimed is capable of modifications in various respects, all without departing from the scope of the claims. Accordingly, the drawings and the description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive and the full scope of the subject matter is set forth in the claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Further features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in combination with the appended drawings, in which:

[0033] FIG. 1 is a front view of a snowplow portion of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0034] FIG. 2 is a right side elevation view of the scraping apparatus of FIG. 1;

[0035] FIG. 3 is a perspective elevated semi-exploded front view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower comprising a plurality of blades in accordance with an embodiment;

[0036] FIG. 4 is an oblique semi-exploded rear view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower, the scraping apparatus comprising a plurality of blades in accordance with an embodiment;

[0037] FIG. 5 is a close-up view of the scraping apparatus of FIG. 4 according to the close-up area -5- of FIG. 4;

[0038] FIG. 6 is a front view of a blade of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0039] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a blade support of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0040] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a washer used for mounting a blade on a blade support on a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0041] FIG. 9 is a front perspective view of a section of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower with one blade removed in accordance with an embodiment;

[0042] FIG. 10 is a rear perspective view of components of a tripping mechanism of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0043] FIG. 11 is a front perspective rear view of components of a tripping mechanism of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0044] FIG. 12 is a rear perspective view of a section of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower with one blade removed in accordance with an embodiment;

[0045] FIG. 13 is a cross-section partial perspective view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower with the cross-section plane perpendicular to the spring shaft, the view depicting a leveling spring when the blade is frontmost in accordance with an embodiment;

[0046] FIG. 14 is a cross-section partial perspective view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower with the cross-section plane perpendicular to the spring shaft, the view depicting a tripping spring when the blade is frontmost in accordance with an embodiment;

[0047] FIG. 15 is a rear partial perspective view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0048] FIG. 16 is a front oblique partial perspective view of a scraping apparatus such as a snowplow or a snowblower, with the side wall and the leftmost blade removed in accordance with an embodiment;

[0049] FIG. 17 is a front oblique perspective view of a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0050] FIG. 18 is a rear oblique perspective view of a snowblower in accordance with an embodiment;

[0051] FIG. 19 is a front view of a snowblower with snow chute components removed in accordance with an embodiment; and

[0052] FIG. 20 is a rear oblique perspective view of a snowblower with snow chute components and cap of the tripping mechanism removed in accordance with an embodiment.

[0053] It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0054] The realizations will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying figures, in which realizations are illustrated. The foregoing may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the illustrated realizations set forth herein.

[0055] With respect to the present description, references to items in the singular should be understood to include items in the plural, and vice versa, unless explicitly stated otherwise or clear from the text. Grammatical conjunctions are intended to express any and all disjunctive and conjunctive combinations of conjoined clauses, sentences, words, and the like, unless otherwise stated or clear from the context. Thus, the term "or" should generally be understood to mean "and / or" and so forth.

[0056] Recitation of ranges of values and of values herein or on the drawings are not intended to be limiting, referring instead individually to any and all values falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value within such a range is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. The words “about”, “approximately”, or the like, when accompanying a numerical value, are to be construed as indicating a deviation as would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art to operate satisfactorily for an intended purpose. Ranges of values and / or numeric values are provided herein as examples only, and do not constitute a limitation on the scope of the described realizations. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (“e.g.,”“such as”, or the like) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the exemplary realizations and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the realizations. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any unclaimed element as essential to the practice of the realizations. The use of the term “substantially” is intended to mean “for the most part” or “essentially” depending on the context. It is to be construed as indicating that some deviation from the word it qualifies is acceptable as would be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art to operate satisfactorily for the intended purpose.

[0057] In the following description, it is understood that terms such as "first", "second", "top", "bottom", "above", "below", and the like, are words of convenience and are not to be construed as limiting terms.

[0058] It should further be noted that for purposes of this disclosure, the term "coupled" means the joining of two members directly or indirectly to one another. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature. Such joining may be achieved with the two members, or the two members and any additional intermediate members being integrally formed as a single unitary body with one another or with the two members or the two members and any additional intermediate members being attached to one another. Such joining may be permanent in nature or alternatively may be removable or releasable in nature.

[0059] It will be noted that throughout the appended drawings, like features are identified by like reference numerals.

[0060] Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 and FIG. 2, a scraping apparatus 100 is, e.g. adapted to be mounted to a vehicle, and is adapted to scrape an area, e.g. snow covered ground, with its lowermost scraping edge when moved forward. The vehicle with the scraping apparatus 100, such as a snowplow or a snowblower, comprises an uppermost structure 102 and a lowermost section 104 comprising a plurality of blades 106 providing together a lowermost edge 108 to the scraping apparatus 100. The front of the scraping apparatus 100 features a plurality of blades 106 adapted to respond to the unevenness of the ground, being able to move independently from each other between a forward position and a raised position. Furthermore, the blades 106, when hitting an obstacle that they are not adapted to avoid by raising, are adapted to trip, to rotate rearward such as providing a free path for the scraping apparatus 100 to go forward without breaking the blade 106 and limiting speed variations resulting from the whole snowblower having to raise or break the obstacle when moving forward.

[0061] Accordingly, for the remainder of the present description, the vertical displacement of the blades 106 is designated to be a leveling movement, and the rotation forward / rearward of the blades 106 is designated to a be a tripping movement.

[0062] Referring to FIGS. 4, FIG. 5, FIG. 6, FIG. 10, FIG. 11, FIG. 12, and FIG. 14, the scraping apparatus 100 comprises a shaft 120 mounted to the uppermost structure 102 on its rear face. A plurality of blade mounting structures 132 are mounted rotatably to the shaft 120. The blade mounting structures 132 are movable, limited in its rotations forward and rearward by abutting constrains against the uppermost structure 102, between a default frontmost position, namely a working position, and a tripped position rotated rearward. The blade mounting structures 132 comprises a plurality of first members 136 mounted to and extending perpendicular to the shaft 120, and a second member 138 extending parallel and distant to the shaft 120. The second member 138 joins the first members 136 into a unitary structure. At least one tripping torsion spring 134, and preferably a plurality, are mounted to the shaft 120, and preferably wound around the shaft 120, with its arm 184 abutting against the rear face of the uppermost structure 102 and its arm 182 abutting against the blade mounting structure 132, preferably against a shouldering wall 150 providing a hook function, pushing the blade mounting structure 132 frontward, but upon a pressure rearward over the blade mounting structure 132, allowing the blade mounting structure 132 to trip rearward, rotating rearward such as providing a free path for the scraping apparatus 100 to pass over an obstacle.

[0063] Referring to FIGS. 3, FIG. 6, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 9, FIG. 12, and FIG. 13, on each of the blade mounting structure 132 is mounted a blade support 142 providing a substantially flat wall adapted to mounted slidingly a number of one, or a plurality of blades 106 thereto. The blade supports 142 are mounted fixedly to or part of the blade mounting structure 132, on the front side thereof, and can thus be tripped therewith. The blade supports 142 are extending vertically between a lower edge 152 of the uppermost structure 102 of the scraping apparatus 100 downward to its lower edge 154 at some distance above the lowermost edge 108 of the scraping apparatus 100. This distance between the lower edge 154 of the blade supports 142 and the lowermost edge 108 provided by the blades 106 provides clearance under the blade 106 when the blade 106 is raised.

[0064] The blade supports 142 comprises at least two oblong openings or slots 162 where members 164 travel between their forward position and their raised position. Nut and bolt assemblies 166 are used to secure the blades 106 to the blade supports 142, in front thereof. The blade supports 142 further comprise an opening 158, a vertical slot, providing a void or passage for a front arm 188 of a lowering torsion spring 148 to extend across and to be able to move up and down and to exert a downward pressure over the blade 106.

[0065] Blades 106 are mounted to a blade support 142 using the nut and bolt assemblies 166 and members 164, such that the blades 106 are movable up and down. The blades 106 further comprise an opening 168, preferably a ground-pointing triangular opening having a lowest vertex 170, through which extend the arm of the lowering torsion spring 148 and further providing an opening wall 190 against which is abutting the arm 188. Other shapes (else than a triangular shape) are considered within the scope of the application. Accordingly, as unevenness of the ground exert upward pressure or release pressure over the blades 106, the blades 106 can individually move upward, compressing the lowering torsion spring 148, or alternatively the lowering torsion spring 148 pushing individually the blades 106 back against the ground. One advantage of the triangular shape opening 168 is the self-locating function given when the end of the spring is located in the lowest vertex of the triangle to properly locate the blade 106.

[0066] The lowering torsion springs 148 are mounted to preferably be considered wound around, the shaft 120, side-by-side with the tripping torsion springs 134, providing a substantially common rotation axis 125. The arm 186 of the lowering torsion spring is abutting against the second member 138, having the tripping torsion springs 134 and the lowering torsion springs 148 operating independently from each other, with one movement of any one not affecting substantially the other one.

[0067] According to an embodiment, the blades 106 are rubber-based panels mounted side-by-side, juxtaposed to each other at the front of the scraping apparatus 100, providing a substantially continuous lowermost edge 108 when on horizontal ground.

[0068] According to an embodiment, blades 106 are adapted to be able to raise and lower independently from each other.

[0069] According to an embodiment, a number of blades 106, varying between one and a plurality, and preferably two, are mounted to the same blade support 142, thus tripping at the same time.

[0070] According to an embodiment, slots 162 are extending parallel to each other, with the members 164 having a non-circular shape (shown in FIG. 8) travelling in the slots 162 helping in maintaining straight vertical movements of the blades 106.

[0071] According to an embodiment, the torsion springs used for the tripping torsion springs 134 and the lowering torsion springs 148 are identical, lowering the production costs and maintenance costs. More generally, the torsion springs used for the tripping torsion springs 134 and the lowering torsion springs 148 have a plurality of similar characteristics among inside diameters, outside diameters, material, wire diameter, body length, number of coils, free angle, and arm lengths, and preferably all of these characteristics being identical.

[0072] According to an embodiment, the number of tripping torsion springs 134 is equal to the number of lowering torsion springs 148.

[0073] According to an embodiment (shown in FIG. 13), the bottom of the shaft 120 is located slightly above the location of the opening 168, minimizing the offset of the position of the spring in the support and in the blade.

[0074] According to an embodiment, the shaft 120 comprises a plurality of shaft sections, with a number of either one or more blade mounting structure 132 mounted thereto. According to embodiments, all or less than all of the blade mounting structures 132 are mounted to the same shaft sections.

[0075] According to an embodiment (not depicted), distinct shafts are used to wound around and mount the torsion springs.

[0076] According to an embodiment, torsion biasing means having a horizontal axis around which torsion occurs are considered therein, including torsion springs.

[0077] Referring to FIGS. 15 and FIG. 16, according to an embodiment the limit of the tripping position of the blade mounting structure 132 rearward is set by the second member 138 abutting against transversal fins 172 part of the uppermost structure 102 across which extends the shaft 120, and frontward by the top 174 of the blade supports 142 abutting against the lower edge 152 of the uppermost structure 102.

[0078] Regarding the operation of the scraping apparatus 100, as the blades 106 raise individually or trip jointly if mounted to the same blade support 142, the lowermost edge 108 of the scraping apparatus 100 changes shape between a straight line and segregated line sections since adjusting to the unevenness of the ground, or be interrupted over portions of the lowermost edge 108 as tripped blades 106 will become provisionally nonoperative during the time necessary for the scraping apparatus 100 to pass over an obstacle.

[0079] It is worth noting that the described mechanism for raising and tripping blades is compact, located close to the lowermost edge. According to an embodiment, a shaft that is mounted about 175 mm above the lowermost edge with the illustrated supports provides a raising amplitude of the blades of about 50-60 mm, and provides a maximum clearance below the blade when tripping of about 100-150 mm.

[0080] In the previous embodiment, the uppermost component, e.g., the top tip of the tipping torsion spring extends about 25-50 mm above the shaft, providing plenty of space above for mechanical components to be mounted to the uppermost structure.

[0081] Referring to FIGS. 17 to 20, the snowblower 200 illustrated is designed to be tied up to a tractor with the scraping structure 210 located distant-most to the tractor and the auger 220 operating in a partially enclosed room bound by the scraping structure 210 and side walls 215, with the opening side of the room on the tractor side. In this configuration, the snowblower 200 is designed mostly to be pulled by the tractor. More precisely, the snowblower 200 is normally moved in a raised position to a snow blowing starting location, lowered, and then pulled with the auger actuated for blowing snow encountered by the snowblower 200 as the tractor drives forward.

[0082] It is to be mentioned that the tripping and lowering function are operable both when scraping as the scraping apparatus 100 is moved, as when lowering the scraping apparatus 100 on uneven ground.

[0083] It Is worth mentioning that the present mechanism that allows the blades to trip and raise can be used in both orientations, thus e.g., with pulled snowblowers and with pushed snowblowers.

[0084] Referring particularly to FIG. 18, it is worth mentioning the compact configuration of the mechanism tripping mechanism around the shaft 120 allows to place a cap 225 over the mechanism with low cumbersomeness generated thereby. It is further to be noted that the small opening about the lower edge of the cap 225 limits the amount of snow and ice that may penetrate therein and thus the risks of jamming torsion springs in addition to the orientation and characteristics of torsion springs decreasing odds of the spring jamming compared to compression springs of the prior art.

[0085] It is further to be noted that according to an embodiment (not illustrated), a movable portion of the cap may removably and biasedly substantially close the space between the lower edge of the cap and the rear face of the supports when the supports are not tripped, preventing snow in that position to enter in contact with the torsion springs. When the blades trip, the movable portion of the cap may be moved rearward to provide the necessary space for the tripping displacement of the blades.

[0086] It is further to be noted that the limits of the raising movements and the rearward movements of the blades prevent any risk of contacts between the blades and the auger. Such movements provides minimal clearance between the blades and the auger when in default lowered and frontmost position, allowing most snow to be pushed in contact with the auger, and movement of the blades with no risk of interference since the whole blade, including its top edge either substantially remains at the same location or is moved rearward when the blades is tripping.

[0087] It is further worth nothing that the present mechanism for raising and tripping blades are easily usable to retrofit existing scraping edges since the retrofit is limited to the bottom section of the scraping apparatus and the lower-rear section of the uppermost structure that is kept from the original scraping apparatus.

[0088] It is further worth mentioning that the present mechanism may be partially implemented with no difficulty. Shaft section(s) that are smaller than the whole width of the scraping apparatus may be used to implement the functions over a limited portion of the scraping apparatus.

[0089] Functions may further easily be limited to one or the other of the blade raising movement and the blade tripping movement with light modifications. For instance, blades may be fixedly mounted to the support to limit to the tripping movement. Transversal fins may be permanently or provisionally mounted to rear face of support to prevent the supports to trip. For instance, the latter may further be hydraulically actuatable to operate on demand based on, e.g., the nature of the material to scape without modification of the scraping apparatus.

[0090] It is worth noting that the torsion springs wound around a horizontal shaft of the present scraping apparatus offers the advantage of providing almost no surface for snow and ice to accumulate onto. The coils extending vertically offer no space between coils for accumulation thereon, and relative rotation of neighbor coils relative to another rather than displacement of the coils toward and away from each other results in the scraping apparatus having low sensibility for its efficiency in having or not accumulation thereon. Accordingly, it makes the present scraping solution well adapted for cold conditions such scraping snow and ice.

[0091] While preferred embodiments have been described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that modifications may be made without departing from this disclosure. Such modifications are considered as possible variants comprised in the scope of the disclosure.

Claims

1. A scraping apparatus having a scraping edge adapted to scrape a ground surface area when moved forward, the scraping apparatus comprising:an uppermost structure having a front and a rear thereof; a first shaft mounted to and parallel to the rear of the uppermost structure; at least one torsion spring wound around the first shaft;a first blade mounting structure rotatably secured to the first shaft between a working position and a tripped position where the first blade mounting structure is pivoted rearward relative to the working position; andat least one blade slidingly mounted to a front of the first blade mounting structure, the at least one blade being movable between a forward position and a raised position,wherein the at least one torsion spring is at least one of i) biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position and ii) biasing the at least one blade toward the forward position.

2. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one torsion spring comprises a first torsion spring dedicated to biasing to the first blade mounting structure.

3. The scraping apparatus of claim 2, wherein the first blade mounting structure comprises a shouldering wall adapted for a first arm of the first torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position.

4. The scraping apparatus of claim 2, wherein the uppermost structure provides a rear wall for a second arm of the first torsion spring to abut against.

5. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, where the first shaft is extending substantially horizontally.

6. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one torsion spring comprises at least one second torsion spring dedicated to biasing the at least one blade.

7. The scraping apparatus of claim 6, wherein the at least one blade comprises a blade opening providing an opening wall adapted for a first arm of the at least one second torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the at least one blade toward the forward position.

8. The scraping apparatus of claim 7, wherein the blade opening has a single lowest vertex providing the opening wall.

9. The scraping apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first blade mounting structure comprises a rear assembly and a blade support providing a substantially flat wall for the at least one blade to slide onto, wherein the blade support comprises a support opening for the first arm of the at least one second torsion spring to extend across to abut the opening wall.

10. The scraping apparatus of claim 9, wherein the blade support comprises oblong openings extending vertically parallel to one another for securing the at least one blade therethrough to the blade support.

11. The scraping apparatus of claim 6, wherein the first blade mounting structure comprises a wall adapted for a second arm of the at least one second torsion spring to abut against whereby biasing the first blade mounting structure toward the working position.

12. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one blade comprises at least two blades, wherein the at least one torsion spring comprises a first lowering torsion spring and a second lowering torsion spring each dedicated to biasing a distinct one of the at least two blades, and wherein the first blade mounting structure comprises a member extending perpendicular to the first shaft, with sections of the first shaft on opposite sides of the member having distinct one of the first lowering torsion spring and the second lowering torsion spring wound around.

13. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one blade comprises two blades, wherein the two blades are mounted to the first blade mounting structure.

14. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a second blade mounting structure mounted to the first shaft.

15. The scraping apparatus of claim 14, wherein the first blade mounting structure and the second blade mounting structure are movable between the working position and the tripped position independently from one another.

16. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a second shaft and a second blade mounting structure mounted to the second shaft.

17. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first blade mounting structure comprises a member extending parallel to the first shaft.

18. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one blade comprises at least two blades that are movable between the forward position and the raised position independently from one another.

19. The scraping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one torsion spring comprises a first torsion spring dedicated to biasing to the first blade mounting structure and a second torsion spring dedicated to biasing the at least one blade, wherein the first torsion spring and the second torsion spring have a plurality of similar characteristics among inside diameters, outside diameters, material, wire diameter, body length, number of coils, free angle, and arm lengths.

20. A vehicle comprising the scraping apparatus of claim 1.

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