Rotating Drum Sifting Backfill Device for Trench Padding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for backfilling trenches and padding buried elements, such as pipes and conduits, are not efficient or reliable in ensuring that only small particles are used for backfilling, which is crucial for protecting the buried elements from damage due to soil shifts and temperature changes.
Innovation Solution
A backfill device with a lateral earth moving component and a sifting device that separates backfill spoil into desired sizes, where the sifting device uses a rotatable drum with openings to allow smaller particles to fall into the trench while larger particles are diverted to the opposite side, ensuring a compact and protective padding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sifting device with a rotatable drum is used to separate backfill spoil into desired sizes, then the reliability of padding buried elements with small particles is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the lateral earth moving function and the sifting function into a single integrated device. The rotatable drum with openings is mounted on the lateral earth moving apparatus, allowing both functions to be performed in one operation rather than requiring separate equipment for earth moving and sifting.
Solution Approach 2:
The lateral earth moving apparatus is designed to perform multiple functions: it moves backfill spoil laterally and also supports the sifting drum that separates particles by size. This multi-functional design reduces the need for separate specialized equipment while maintaining reliable padding of buried elements.
2Productivity
If backfilling and padding are performed in a single operation using an integrated device, then the productivity is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the backfilling operation and the padding operation into a single integrated process. The lateral earth moving apparatus moves spoil while the mounted sifting drum simultaneously separates particles, allowing both backfilling and padding to occur in one pass rather than requiring separate operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated device allows continuous operation where backfill spoil is continuously moved laterally and continuously sifted through the rotatable drum. This eliminates interruptions between earth moving and sifting operations, maintaining continuous productive action throughout the backfilling process.
3Manufacturing precision
If a rotatable drum with sifting openings is used to separate backfill particles, then the manufacturing precision of particle size separation is improved, but the use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sifting drum is positioned and oriented to utilize gravity for particle separation. Backfill spoil enters the drum and particles are separated based on size as they move through the drum under gravitational influence, reducing the need for additional energy input mechanisms while maintaining precise size separation through the openings.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables efficient and reliable backfilling and padding of trenches in a single operation, ensuring that only small particles are used to protect the buried elements, improving the protection against damage from soil shifts and temperature changes.
Implementation Method 1
Pieces of backfill spoil smaller than the sifting openings will fall through the sifting openings into the trench directly below the sifting device
Data Source
AI summary
A backfilling device for backfilling an open trench and padding a pipe within the trench has a lateral earth moving device and a sifting device. The backfilling device is attached to a tractor that moves the lateral earth moving device into a backfill spoil pile adjacent to the trench with the sifting device located above the trench. The lateral earth moving devices moves the backfill spoil material laterally into a rotating drum of the sifting device. Smaller particles of the backfill material fall through the rotating drum, which is also vibrating to backfill the trench and pad the pipe with backfill fines. The oversize debris in the backfill material continues to move laterally and falls out the end of the rotating drum to form a pile of large piece backfill material on the side of the trench opposite from the backfill spoil pile.