Caterpillar Tractor Co.

Gene B Easterling

Carroll R Cole

Reginald K Ringel

Joel M Beckham

Egon E Wolff

Joseph E Dezelan

Rolland D Scholl

Robert Allan Atherton

Joseph Lawrence Strabala

Donald R Berchtold

An earth working machine having an earth shaping blade (30) employs a control system for maintaining the blade (30) at a desired slope relative to a reference grade irrespective of lateral movement of the blade (30) or deflection of front and rear frame sections (15, 18). A ground engaging trailing wheel (96) mounted at the rear of the blade (30) senses rotation of the blade (30) relative to the direction of machine travel resulting from rotation or lateral shifting of the blade (30) and operates a potentiometer (124) to produce a control signal proportional to the magnitude of blade rotation. A first pair of accelerometers (128, 130) mounted on the blade (30) for rotation by the trailing wheel (96) produces blade controlling signals respectively corresponding to the change in slope and pitch of the blade (30) relative to the front frame section (15) of the machine. A second pair of accelerometers (42, 44) mounted at transversely spaced locations on the front frame section (15) produce control signals indicative of the roll of the front frame section (15) while an additional accelerometer (90) mounted on the rear frame section (18) produces control signals indicative of the frame pitch. An electronic circuit (94) algebraically combines the control signals for use in controlling the operation of a pair of hydraulic cylinders (38, 40) which maintain the blade (30) at a desired slope.

Earth working machine and blade condition control system therefor

A work vehicle and method for assembling the vehicle with a ring gear that is rotatably supported by a frame of the vehicle through contact only with bearing strips which maintain the ring gear against movement in any direction other than rotationally about the ring gear axis. The bearing strips may be made of organic plastic or metal.

Work vehicle and ring bearing arrangement therefor

An improved motor grader circle mounting and circle assembly has a mounting in which an annular upright wall with an outwardly extending integral top flange and a removable bottom flange form an outwardly open annular cavity. A circle structure of welded arcuate segments is rotatably mounted between the flanges and cooperates with the wall and flanges to form a close annular lubricant chamber, and a segmental internal ring gear is on the circle structure in the cavity. Renewable segmental lower and upper bearing plates are located between bearing surfaces of the circle mounting and the circle; and a lower oil sealing ring is so located as to permit removal of the bottom flange and lowering of the circle structure to replace all the bearing plates and a segmented upper oil seal without draining the lubricant chamber.

Circle mounting and circle assembly for a motor grader

A ring gear bearing arrangement for motorgraders and method for assembling the vehicle with a ring gear that is rotatably supported by a frame of the vehicle through contact only with organic plastic bearing strips which maintain the ring gear against movement in any direction other than rotationally about the ring gear axis.

Work vehicle and ring gear bearing arrangement therefor

A motor grader including a main frame mounted on steerable wheels, a drawbar frame mounted on the main frame, a working implement carried by a circle gear rotatably mounted on the drawbar frame and a hydraulic control circuit is described. An improvement in the control of the working implement is disclosed in which continuous downward force is exerted on the circle gear at all times during operation by hydraulic rams. Preferred embodiments of the invention are described wherein the force is exerted by hydraulic means including wear surfaces in contact with the circle gear and wherein the hydraulic control circuit is adapted to provide automatic operation.

Motor grader or the like with hydraulic control system for circle gear

A motor grader has improved support structure for mounting the grader blade on the circle blade support arms and for controlling blade tilt. A bearing housing structure consists of a transverse structural member with integral upright bearing housings at its two ends, is slightly shorter than the space between the support arms, and is carried on pivots at the lower ends of the arms with facing bearings so the bearing housing structure reinforces the arms against lateral deflection. The grader blade support rails extend through upper and lower jaws in the bearing housings with the weight of the blade carried in bearing plates in the upper jaws and the lower rail guided between parallel upright bearing plates in the lower jaw which is otherwise free of contact with the lower jaw. Blade tilt is controlled by a single hydraulic cylinder pivotally mounted on the circle midway between the arms with its piston rod pivotally connected to the transverse structural member.

Motor grader with blade support structure

An implement mounting arrangement is disclosed which is operatively associated with a longitudinally oriented main frame of a vehicle such as a motor grader. The implement mounting arrangement includes a base frame assembly having an inner end and an outer end and universally secured at its inner end to the main frame, a pair of actuators interconnected between the main frame and the outer end of the base frame assembly for suspended raising, lowering and tilting thereof, an implement support assembly hingedly mounted on the outer end of the base frame assembly, and a pair of actuators interconnected between the base frame assembly and the implement support assembly for angling it relative to the direction of travel of the vehicle.

Motorgrader implement mounting arrangement

A motor grader including a wheeled main frame and a drawbar structure attached thereto is disclosed wherein a circle-mounted working implement, such as a blade or the like, is supported on the drawbar by improved guide shoes. The improved guide shoes include surfaces in engagement with both upper and lower surfaces of the circle at all times and remotely controlled mechanical apparatus for varying the frictional forces exerted by such guide shoes on the circle, whereby undesirable effects due to wearing of the engaging surfaces in operation are reduced.

Motor grader having improved guide shoes for circle-mounted implement

The motor grader drawbar assembly has a blade mounted on a circle gear and a drive unit operatively connected to the circle gear to selectively rotate it and the blade. A plurality of radially mounted pistons operate against an upright wall of the circle gear to provide a brake and/or locking mechanism. The pistons, and their accompanying cylinders, are mounted in members which also underlie and support the circle gear. Thus, the vertical position of the circle gear is not affected by the braking operation. A hydraulic circuit is provided to alternately operate the drive unit and the braking operation.

Growing community of inventors

Decatur, IL, United States of America

Gene B Easterling