CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] The present application claims the filing benefits of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 62/503,540, filed May 9, 2017, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for improving the operation and cleaning of a concrete screeding machine for leveling and smoothing of freshly poured concrete that has been placed over a surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Screeding devices or machines are used to level and smooth uncured concrete to a desired grade. Known screeding machines typically include a screed head, which includes a vibrating member and a grade setting device, such as a plow and an auger device. The screed head is vertically adjustable, such as in response to a laser leveling system, to establish the desired grade at the vibrating member. Examples of such screeding machines are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,655,633; 4,930,935; 6,227,761 ; 7,044,681 ; 7, 175,363 and/or 7,396, 186, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The present invention provides a screeding system that includes a rotatable screed head that is rotatable about a longitudinal axis to assist in cleaning the auger and other components after screeding uncured concrete. The screed head includes a pair of leveling actuators that extend and retract to level or adjust an attack angle of the plow and the vibrating member of the screed head by rotating the screed head support frame about an axis parallel to an axis of rotation of the auger. The leveling actuators extend and retract to adjust the support frame and the screed head between a screeding orientation and a cleaning orientation. For example, responsive to actuation of a user input, the leveling actuators may fully extend to rotate the support frame to the cleaning orientation, with the support frame rotating at least 60 degrees about the axis when rotated to the cleaning orientation.

27635207.1 1 [0005] These and other objects, advantages, purposes and features of the present invention will become apparent upon review of the following specification in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a concrete leveling and screeding machine that incorporates the screed head and control system of the present invention;

[0007] FIG. 2 is a front view of the elevation frame and screed head, with the screed head shown in a screeding position or orientation;

[0008] FIG. 2A is a sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 2;

[0009] FIG. 3 is a front view of the elevation frame and screed head, with the screed head shown rotated rearward with the leveling actuators retracted;

[0010] FIG. 3A is a sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 3;

[0011] FIG. 4 is a front view of the elevation frame and screed head, with the screed head shown in a cleaning position or orientation;

[0012] FIG. 4A is a sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 4;

[0013] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the screed head, shown with the plow removed to show details of the rounded housing or frame disposed partially around the auger;

[0014] FIG. 6A is a side elevation of the screed head in its screeding position;

[0015] FIG. 6B is a side elevation of the screed head as it is rotating between its screeding position and its cleaning position;

[0016] FIG. 6C is a side elevation of the screed head in its cleaning position;

[0017] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the screed head in its screeding position or orientation; and

[0018] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the screed head in its cleaning position or orientation.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] Referring now to the drawings and the illustrative embodiments depicted therein, a screeding machine 1 10 includes a wheeled unit 1 12 with a boom 1 14 extending therefrom and supporting an elevation beam or frame 130 and a screeding head or assembly 1 16 at an outer end thereof (FIG. 1 ). The wheeled unit 1 12 is drivable to a targeted area at a support surface with uncured concrete placed thereat, and the wheeled unit may rotate about a base portion to swing the boom and screeding head to a targeted location. The boom 1 14 is extendable and retractable to move the screeding head 1 16 over the placed concrete, while the screeding head 1 16 is operable to establish a desired grade of the concrete surface and smooth or finish or screed the concrete. In the illustrated embodiment, the screeding head 1 16 includes a plow 1 18, an auger 120 and a vibrating member 122, all of which are mounted at a support beam or frame 123 (FIG. 1 ). The screeding machine includes a plurality of stabilizers 124 that are extendable and retractable to support and stabilize the machine on the support surface during the screeding operation. The screeding machine 1 10 includes laser receivers 126 at opposite ends of the screed head 1 16 and elevation frame 130 and is operable responsive to such sensors to extend and retract the elevation actuators 132 to maintain a desired grade as the machine screeds the concrete. The screeding machine is operable to rotate the screed head about a longitudinal axis to assist in cleaning the auger, as discussed below.

[0020] The screeding head rotation system of the present invention is suitable for use on a large screeding machine 1 10 and the screeding head or assembly 1 16, which may be similar in construction and/or operation as the screeding machines and screeding heads described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,655,633; 4,930,935; 6,227,761 ; 7,044,681 ; 7, 175,363 and/or 7,396, 186, and/or U.S. Publication Nos. US-2015-0309006; US-2007-01 16520 and/or US- 2010-0196096, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, such that a detailed discussion of the overall construction and operation of the screeding machines and screeding heads need not be repeated herein. For example, the screeding machine may comprise or may utilize aspects of a Somero LASER SCREED™ screeding machine. However, clearly this example is not intended to limit the scope of the present application and clearly aspects of the present invention are suitable for use on other types of screeding machines. For example, the screeding system of the present invention may be suitable for use on smaller screeding machines, such as machines of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,976,805; 7, 121 ,762 and/or 7,850,396, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

[0021] The screeding system of the present invention provides for rotation of the screed head (comprising the lower frame and auger and plow and vibrating member) about a longitudinal axis (that extends along the length of and is parallel to the axis of the auger) to assist in cleaning the auger and vibrating member. The head thus is able to roll over (by rotating about 90 degrees) to make the auger and other components very visible and easy to clean. Such rotation of the rotatable screed head could cut the cleaning time in half. In the illustrated embodiment, the rotation is caused by full or near full extension of the leveling actuators 128.

[0022] The machine or system may include control features that allow an operator to actuate a user input to rotate the screed head between a screeding orientation (FIGS. 2, 2A, 6A and 7) and a cleaning orientation (FIGS. 4, 4A, 6C and 8). The operator can select or actuate a user input to cause the rotation to the cleaning orientation. During normal screeding operation (when in the screeding orientation), the leveling actuators are extended and retracted within an operating range to rotate the support frame about the axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the auger to cause pivotal movement and leveling of the plow and the vibrating member within an operating range (such as less than about 30 degrees or less than about 20 degrees or less than about 10 degrees about the axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the auger). As can be seen with reference to FIGS. 4, 4A, 6C and 8, when rotated to the cleaning orientation (when the leveling actuators are more fully extended) the screed head is rotated so that the vibrator is at an upper part of the screed head and the plow is at a lower part of the screed head. In such an orientation, the vibrator is positioned closer to the elevation frame or beam 130, such that extension of the elevation actuators 132 may be needed to ensure sufficient clearance for rotating the screed head to the cleaning orientation.

[0023] In the illustrated embodiment, each leveling actuator 128 is mounted at a first end to a bracket 129 fixedly disposed at the lower end region of the respective elevation actuator 132, and is mounted at a second end to the support frame 123, such that the support frame 123 pivots relative to the brackets 129 when the leveling actuators 128 are extended and retracted. As shown in FIGS. 6A-C, the leveling actuators 128 adjust between a retracted state (FIG. 6A) and a fully or near fully extended state (FIG. 6C) to pivot the screed head and support frame about a pivot axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the auger, while the brackets remain fixed relative to the lower end region of the elevation cylinders.

[0024] Optionally, and desirably, controls may be included that, when the input is actuated to rotate the screed head to the cleaning orientation, the system determines (such as via processing of sensor signals indicative of the degree of extension of the elevation cylinders and processing of sensor signals indicative of the degree of extension of the leveling cylinders and/or the degree of rotation of the screed head) if there is enough clearance between the elevation beam or frame and the vibrator for such rotation. As can be seen with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, the screed head needs to be sufficiently lowered (via extension of the elevation cylinders) below the elevation beam or frame to provide sufficient clearance for the pivoting of the screed head toward and to the cleaning orientation. If there is sufficient clearance (i.e., if the screed head is sufficiently lowered below the elevation beam via extension of the elevation cylinders), then the system may rotate the screed head to the cleaning orientation (FIG. 8). If the system determines that there is insufficient clearance, the system may generate an alert to warn the operator or may block such rotation, in order to avoid impacting the vibrator with the elevation beam or frame. Similarly, when the screed head is in the cleaning orientation, the system may limit or preclude retracting the elevation cylinders which would raise the screed head toward the elevation beam and could cause the vibrator to hit the elevation beam.

[0025] In order to allow for such rotational movement of a screed head, the screed head of the present invention has a modified elevation cylinder mounting and yoke interface to make room for the extra rotation of the auger support beam or frame. In the illustrated embodiment, the yoke has been shortened in width from 8.88 inches to 5 inches. Also, and as best shown in FIG. 5, the shape of the auger support beam 123 has a rounded inner surface to provide additional clearance relative to the auger and to further ease cleaning. The curved rolled surface provides easier cleaning as compared to the multiple pieces that are cut and welding together with squared or sharp corners or angles, as done with conventional screed heads. Also, the self-level cylinder or actuator for rotating the screed head is positioned at the plow side and has a longer stroke length compared to conventional actuators, with the longer stroke length allowing for the screed head to pivot up to about 90 degrees when the leveling actuators are fully extended (see FIGS. 4A and 6C).

[0026] To get to the screed head in the cleaning orientation or mode, an operator activates the self-leveling switch (SLS) to extend the leveling actuators. When the leveling actuators extend, the head rotates or rolls over for washing. When the switch is initially actuated, the screed head will begin rotating until the self-level angle sensor detects about 35-45 degrees of motion and then it will stop. A display screen or alert at the control panel of the machine then will have a pop up or alert that indicates to the operator that the machine should be on stabilizers, boomed out and that the elevation cylinders should be lowered. This is a warning so the operator can make sure everything is "ok" before the switch will be active to continue rotating the screed head toward the cleaning orientation.

[0027] Thus, the screeding system of the present invention (for use with a screeding machine during screeding of an uncured concrete surface) includes a wheeled base unit, a support arm extending from the wheeled base unit (such as an extendable and retractable boom), and an elevation frame disposed at an outer end of the support arm (such as pivotally disposed at the outer end of the boom and pivotable about a generally vertical pivot axis). The elevation frame comprises elevation actuators at opposite ends thereof, and a screed head comprising a support frame is pivotally mounted at lower ends of the elevation actuators. The support frame supports an auger, a plow and a vibrating member, and the auger, when operating, rotates about an axis of rotation. The screed head comprises a pair of leveling actuators that extend and retract to adjust the plow and the vibrating member by rotating the support frame about an axis parallel to the axis of rotation of the auger. The leveling actuators extend and retract to adjust the support frame and the screed head between a screeding orientation and a cleaning orientation. For example, responsive to actuation of a user input, the leveling actuators may fully or substantially or near fully extend to rotate the support frame to the cleaning orientation, during which the support frame rotates at least about 60 degrees about the axis.

Preferably, the leveling actuators fully extend and rotate the support frame about 90 degrees when rotated to the cleaning orientation. During the screeding operation (when the leveling actuators function to level the plow and vibrating member), the range of extension and retraction of the leveling actuators results in a much smaller range of rotation about the axis, such as less than around 10-20 degrees or thereabouts.

[0028] Therefore, the present invention provides a screeding system that eases cleaning of the auger and the plow after screeding uncured concrete. The screed head is pivotable via the leveling actuators between a screeding orientation and a cleaning orientation, such as responsive to a user input at the control panel of the screeding machine. The control system determines the degree of rotation and may generate an alert if the system determines that there may be insufficient clearance between the vibrator and the elevation frame if the screed head continues to rotate towards the cleaning orientation. [0029] Changes and modifications to the specifically described embodiments can be carried out without departing from the principles of the present invention, which is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims as interpreted according to the principles of patent law.