Excavating – Land clearer
Reexamination Certificate
2002-09-18
2003-12-16
Pezzuto, Robert F. (Department: 3671)
Excavating
Land clearer
C037S302000, C172S699000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06662479
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for removing trees or stumps and method associated with its use. More particularly it relates to a tree or stump removing apparatus for connection to an earth working apparatus such as an hydraulic excavator or other motorized heavy equipment used for conveyance in the ground breaking or farm industry.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Stump cutter devices are well known devices that are used to remove tree stumps and sometimes trees from the earth. Known stump cutters are commercially available in a wide variety of sizes and configurations from various manufacturers. Stump cutters and tree removers are available in a trailer configuration where the stump cutter is pulled behind a truck or similar vehicle, in a self-propelled configuration, where the stump cutter includes wheels or tracks and as an attachment adapted to be received by a backhoe attachment on a tractor or the like.
Tree and stump removal is often needed on tracts of land that have been cleared of other obstructions. Often, a large amount of excavation is occurring on the tract of land in conjunction with the tree removal. In light of the presence of one or more excavators or other earth movers at these sites, it has been proposed in the case of stump cutting apparati to provide a such an apparatus that releasably attaches to the boom of an excavator or similar apparatus such that a separate, self-contained stump cutter or removal tool is not needed.
Known stump cutter or removal attachments that releasably connect to the end of a boom of an excavator have not proven to be satisfactory, especially where a large amount of stumps or trees must be cleared from a wide area of land, particularly in the cases of cedar and mesquite trees in the American Southwest. Existing devices rely upon the excavator to continuously maneuver the cutting assembly, and to apply the force needed to engage the assembly with the stump or tree, and are configured such that the operator of the excavator is often unable to see the base portion of the tree or stump and the cutting or removal operations thereon as they occur. Known stump cutters for attachment to excavators and other earth movers are configured such that the operator can be exposed to flying debris, and such that the control of the movement of the cutting assembly is difficult, especially in light of the fact that the movement of the entire excavator, boom, or both must be utilized to move the cutting assembly during cutting operations. The control of an earth mover and stump cutter in this manner to remove a stump is very difficult. In addition, the removal of a stump, especially when repeated numerous times as often required, using an earth mover with known stump cutting attachments, can place a large strain on the earth mover causing excessive wear and tear of the earth mover and associated equipment. Upon encountering a tree or stump, the cutting assemblies of these known attachments transmit large forces back through the frame and other components of the prime mover—e.g., through the boom of the excavator, and can cause excessive wear on these components. Also, with known tree removing apparati and stump cutter designs for attachment to an earth mover, the earth mover and its associated hydraulics are utilized to force the cutting or remover assembly into the stump or tree.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,295,458 teaches a combination useful for uprooting trees which includes a tractor, and a frame mounted on the tractor that extending forwardly therefrom. The frame has forwardly-opening sockets at its front end portion. Detachably mounted in the sockets is a an engaging means that is adapted to engage trees and the like, and apply a bending action thereto, upon forward motion of the tractor. A blade is carried by the frame, which blade is disposed rearwardly of the forward end portion of the engaging means, in a position to pass through the soil beneath the surface of the soil to loosen the roots of the tree that is bearing against the engaging means.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,303,415 discloses a shovel which includes a boom having a dipper stick disposed on the boom for actuation in the vertical plane of the boom. There is a ground-clearing fork mounted on the lower end of the stick, wherein the fork comprises a frame structure and a plurality of parallel socket-forming members affixed in the frame. The socket comprises teeth mounted in it which form members that extend from the lower edge of the frame in the same plane and in the same general direction as the line of the dipper stick.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,650,063 sets forth a grubber for trucks comprising a beam having an inner end pivotally attached to a truck and an outer end contacting the ground, the beam being hinged intermediate its ends, means for maintaining the hinge point of the hinge above a line drawn between the contact point of the beam with the ground and its pivot point with the truck, and force-transmitting means on the beam between the outer end and the hinge point, the beam breaking upwardly on application of force to the pivoted inner end.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,635,269 provides a tree cutter comprising a frame, an adjustable suspension means on the frame for connecting the frame to a prime mover. The suspension means swings the frame in a predetermined direction. The frame includes a substantially flat cutting blade that extends from one side of the frame to an opposite side thereof and having a cutting edge formed thereon, for shearing engagement with a tree when the frame is swung in the predetermined direction for impact with the tree.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,244,560 teaches a tree remover having a gripper including a V-shaped wedging member with a blade projecting inwardly thereof for cutting into a portion of the tree above the roots forming a shelf with adjacent fibers of the tree compressed between the wedging members, and means for exerting an upward force on the gripper by exerting a compressive force between ground engaging support members and an elevatable frame from which the gripper depends. It has an elongated arm pivotally carried by a vehicle on one end thereof and extending forwardly and downwardly therefrom, a first fluid power operated cylinder means connected to the elongated arm intermediate the ends thereof for raising and lowering same, a tiltable supporting frame having a lower inner end pivotally carried upon a free end of the elongated arm and a lower forward end supportable upon the ground, a second fluid power operated cylinder means pivotally connected to the tiltable frame for imparting tilting movement thereto, an elevatable frame member having pivotal connection adjacent an upper rearward portion of the tiltable frame, a tree-gripping means carried by the elevatable frame extending forwardly thereof, and a pair of transversely aligned power operated cylinders. There is a pivotal mounting between a forward lower end of the tiltable frame and forward portion of the elevatable frame member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,761 discloses a device for breaking loose tree stumps from the ground that comprises a vehicle, an arm or the like carried by the vehicle and a tool carried by the arm and engageable with a stump. The tool comprises at least two members movable relative to each other when the tool has been located in an uprooting position relative to the stump. One of the members is adapted to rest against the ground while the tool may lift the stump by means of the relative movement of the members. The tool is pivotally connected to the arm and comprises a claw, which may be introduced under portions of the stump, and a support member for application against the ground, the support member being movable relative to the claw, a pressure exerting means connected to the support member being adapted to press the support member against the ground, while the claw is introduced under the stump, in order to cause the claw to move upwardly, thereby breaking loose the stump from the ground. The improvement of this invention over the prior art is that the support membe
Beach Thomas A.
Pezzuto Robert F.
Whewell Christopher J.
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