Towed Earth Moving Implement With Pitch-Adjustable Winged Blade Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing towed earth moving implements are limited in their ability to perform a wide variety of ground shaping operations, particularly in creating complex ground surface profiles beyond simple leveling and grading.
Innovation Solution
A towed earth moving implement with a blade assembly that includes a center blade and a pair of wing blades, where the wing blades are oriented in a non-parallel, fixed angle relative to the center blade, and the blade assembly is adjustable in pitch, allowing it to operate in three distinct positions: pitch-neutral leveling, upwardly pitched ditching, and downwardly pitched crowning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the blade assembly uses a fixed parallel configuration, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but it can only perform basic leveling operations and cannot create complex ground surface profiles
Solution Approach 1:
The blade assembly incorporates a pitch adjustment mechanism that allows the entire assembly to rotate about a transverse axis, changing the pitch angle between 0 and 45 degrees. This dynamic adjustment capability enables the same blade structure to perform multiple ground shaping operations including leveling, ditching, and crowning, thereby resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and operational versatility.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the operational parameters of the blade assembly by introducing pitch angle as a variable parameter. By adjusting the pitch angle from 0 degrees (leveling position) to 45 degrees (ditching/crowning position), the blade assembly can create different ground surface profiles. This parameter change approach allows one structure to achieve multiple functions without increasing fundamental structural complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the blade assembly is fixed in a single position, then the structure is simple, but it cannot adapt to different ground shaping requirements such as leveling, ditching, and crowning
Solution Approach 1:
The blade assembly is designed as a multi-functional universal structure that can perform leveling, ditching, and crowning operations. By incorporating pitch adjustment capability, a single blade assembly design serves multiple purposes that would otherwise require different specialized implements, thereby achieving versatility without proportionally increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The introduction of a hydraulic actuator system enables dynamic reconfiguration of the blade assembly between different operational positions. The actuator allows smooth transition between leveling, ditching, and crowning modes, providing adaptability to various ground shaping requirements while maintaining a relatively compact and integrated system design.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the wing blades are oriented parallel to the center blade, then the manufacturing is simpler, but the implement cannot perform ditching and crowning operations that require angled blade configurations
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than manufacturing blades in multiple fixed angular configurations, the invention uses a dynamic pitch adjustment mechanism that rotates the entire blade assembly to achieve the required angular orientation for ditching and crowning operations. This approach maintains uniform blade manufacturing while providing variable operational angles through mechanical adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade assembly is designed as a universal component that can achieve multiple operational configurations through pitch adjustment. The same uniformly manufactured blades can perform leveling, ditching, and crowning operations by changing the assembly's pitch angle, eliminating the need for specially angled blades for each operation type.
Data Source
AI summary
A towed earth moving implement features a longitudinal pull tongue, a winged blade assembly with a transverse center blade and a pair of angled outer wing blades, and a wheeled frame on which the blade assembly is carried. A pivotal blade-pitch between the pull tongue and the blade assembly defines a transverse blade pitch axis about which the blade is adjustable in pitch-angle relative to the pull tongue. In a pitch-neutral position, working edges of the wing blades reside in a same horizontal working plane as a working edge of the center blade, for ground leveling purposes. In an upwardly pitched position, the working edges of the wing blades reside in forwardly inclined relation to the horizontal working plane, for ditching purposes. In a downwardly-pitched position, the working edges of the wing blades reside in forwardly declined relation to the horizontal reference plane, for crowning purposes.