Tigercat Industries Inc.

Koehring Canada Limited

John Kurelek

Duane Anthony Barlow

Grant J Somerville

Andrew Robert Hoshel

Leonard Cobb Cole

Kevin Keats

When arranging the geometry of knuckle booms with efficient hydraulic circuits it is sometimes necessary to place the cylinder that provides the reaching force above the boom so that its base area rather than its rod end area provides the boom point motion and force in the pulling direction. It is also sometimes necessary to provide equal areas for both pushing and pulling by further modifying the reach cylinder installation. In the invention, the knuckle boom apparatus has a machine base, a hoist boom and a stick boom. The stick boom has an intermediate pivot pinned to pivot on the distal end of the hoist boom, and a proximal end having a suitable cylinder push point. At least one hydraulic hoist cylinder is mounted between the machine base and the hoist boom, and at least one hydraulic stick cylinder is mounted between the hoist boom and the stick boom. A hydraulic reach cylinder is mounted above the hoist boom between the hoist boom and the suitable push point, whereby when the hydraulic reach cylinder is actuated by supplying oil to its base end, the distal end of the stick boom is withdrawn towards the machine base. The hydraulic circuit has at least one hydraulic conduit line connecting respective base end ports of the hoist and stick cylinders so as to allow hydraulic oil to shunt between base ends of the hoist and stick cylinders.

Knuckle boom for reaching and pulling and hydraulic circuits therefor

The knuckle boom includes a hoist boom having a proximal end pivoted to a machine base, and a stick boom having a proximal end pivoted to a distal end of the hoist boom. At least one hydraulic hoist cylinder is mounted between the machine base and the hoist boom, and at least one hydraulic stick cylinder is mounted between the hoist boom and the stick boom. A hydraulic circuit supplies hydraulic oil to the cylinders, and provides an oil flow path between working ends of the cylinders so as to transfer a slug of pressurized hydraulic oil between the working ends. In one embodiment, reaching movement is controlled by a pump connected to control transferring of the slug between the hoist and stick cylinders. The pump determines which cylinder receives which portion of the slug of oil, and thereby controls the angle between the booms, thereby producing reach.

Reach actuation for energy saving hydraulic knuckle booms

The two boom members and hydraulic cylinders of a knuckle boom tree harvesting machine are so arranged and proportioned that with a single control movement during reaching and retracting actions the working tool head is made to travel in an approximately horizontal path. The cylinders and control valve are so connected that during horizontal reaching action load-supporting pressurized oil from a collapsing cylinder is not required to be dumped to the reservoir in the conventional heat generating manner, but is rather shunted directly to an extending cylinder where it continues to do useful load support work. Energy waste to hydraulic oil heat and fuel consumption is significantly reduced. Although these advances have been particularly developed for disc saw felling and stroke delimbing of trees they can also be applied to other knuckle boom applications where horizontal reaching is a major function.

Hydraulic circuits for tree-harvesting knuckle booms

A tree felling and accumulating head has tree storage pocket space with a preferably V-shaped backing shape to one side of the cutting area. A taker and a tucker arm, both pivoted on the opposite side, sweep trees into the storage space in cooperation with each other to build a well-aligned bundle. A second taker arm, operating from the pocket side, opposes the first taker arm to help gather and hold difficult trees but does not sweep in fully to disturb the trees already in the pocket space, even as the first taker closes fully.

Accumulating tree felling head with picker arm

The disc saw blade has a plurality of arcuate teeth detachably mounted in complementary-shaped arcuate sockets provided in a rim portion around the circumference thereof. Each tooth has a portion butting against a stop, such as a transverse tail stop surface defined by an inward projection of the socket. The configuration provides a small throw entry gap to reduce the likelihood of sticks being thrown. The teeth preferably are detachably mounted by virtue of a tight fit within the sockets, with no use of fasteners to absorb cutting forces. Keying elements such as a male portion of generally rectangular cross-section extending from the socket into a corresponding female portion in the tooth preferably are used to ensure proper alignment of each tooth relative to the plane of the disc saw blade. Preferably, the teeth and sockets are parts of concentric circles, the diameter of the teeth preferably being slightly larger than the diameter of the sockets, thereby producing a press fit. An axial pin may be installed in each tooth through a clearance space within the blade, such that the pin contacts the blade when its tooth rotates slightly away from its installed position, to prevent further rotation away from its installed position. An adapter preferably is used to assist in installation of the teeth, the adapter having a body which is rotatable by a driving tool and having pins or the like extending laterally therefrom to engage the tooth such that the tooth rotates with rotation of the adapter. Preferably, the adapter has an arcuate element secured along one side of its body to ride against a surface of the socket as the tooth is installed, thereby maintaining the tooth in proper engagement with the socket throughout its installation.

Tree felling disc saw with replaceable arcuate teeth

The felling and accumulating head has a large accumulation or storage area for severed trees, separate from the severance area at the front of the head, obtained by elevating the accumulation area to extend preferably at least over the rim of the saw disc, and preferably outwardly and rearwardly over the teeth of the saw. Trees are swept from the severance area, up a small ramp into the accumulation area, by arms, at least one of which preferably sweeps at least partially over the saw motor so as to be able to sweep trees a substantial distance rearwardly, i.e. at least beyond an imaginary lateral line through the saw axis.

Tree felling disc saw head with large tree accumulation area

The felling and accumulating head has a large accumulation or storage area for severed trees, separate from the severance area at the front of the head, obtained by elevating the accumulation area to extend preferably at least over the rim of the saw disc, and preferably outwardly and rearwardly over the teeth of the saw. Trees are swept from the severance area, up a small ramp into the accumulation area, by arms which preferably sweep over the saw motor so as to be able to sweep trees a substantial distance rearwardly, i.e. at least beyond an imaginary lateral line through the saw axis.

The felling and accumulating head has a large accumulation area for trees, obtained by elevating the accumulation area to extend outwardly and rearwardly over the teeth of the saw. Trees are swept from the front severance area, up a small ramp into the accumulation area, by a taker arm, and are retained there by a tucker arm. The taker and tucker arms pivot preferably on the same axis, on the opposite side of the head from the accumulation area, and sweep over the saw motor, to sweep trees a substantial distance rearwardly, i.e. at least beyond an imaginary lateral line through the saw axis. The butt plate is recessed beneath the top of the saw kerf, which permits the head to be angled forward slightly for continuous advancement from one tree to the next.

Tree felling disc saw held with large accumulation area

The felling and bunching head for severing and grouping trees has a shear or saw or the like for severing trees, and an accumulation area for accumulating severed trees, extending rearwardly from the shear or saw, substantially outwardly and away from a centerline of said head. Taker and tucker arms are pivotally mounted to pivot towards and away from the accumulation area. The taker and tucker arms are mounted via pivotal connections located substantially outwardly from the shear or saw on the opposite side of the centerline from the accumulation area, on substantially the same axis. The taker and tucker arms have generally similar geometries facing the accumulation area, as viewed from above, thereby presenting generally similar geometries to trees in the accumulation area, thereby minimizing jostling of the trees when they are alternately held in the accumulation area by the taker arm and by the tucker arm.

High capacity feller heads

There is provided a felling head for attachment to a boom. The felling head includes an upper part and a lower part. The upper part has at least one brace portion and a grapple adapted to clasp a tree trunk against the brace portion. The lower part includes a circular saw blade mounted in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of a tree clasped between the brace portion and the grapple. The leading edge of the circular saw blade projects beyond the location of the brace portion by a distance at least as great as the diameter of a tree being felled so that such tree can be cut through by the saw blade before the tree comes into contact with any other part of the felling head, including the brace portion.

Method and apparatus for felling trees

There is provided a grapple for lifting and maneuvring elongated items, which includes a main frame and a sub-frame, the two frames being pivotally mounted with respect to each other about a substantially vertical axis. The sub frame includes grappling jaws and heel elements which are capable of receiving elongated items. Mechanisms are provided for rotating the sub-frame with respect to the main frame. The heel is fixed with respect to the sub-frame and is spaced from the grappling jaws.

Integral heel tree length grapple

There is provided a method and apparatus for felling a tree. A tree is cut through with a circular saw, and then substantially immediately after the cutting, the tree is clasped by a grapple means. The apparatus for cutting the tree may include an offset exposed arc of the circular saw, and by mounting the apparatus on a swingable boom, it is possible to cut the tree in a scything or scythe-swinging action.

Improvements in disc felling heads

Apparatus is provided for sorting trees in situ in the forest immediately after being cut, the steps of limbing and topping optionally being included prior to the sorting operation. To this end a vehicle is provided having at least four dumping bunks. Trees of different sizes or species are loaded into the different bunks. The inner two bunks dump to the rear of the vehicle, while the outer two bunks dump to the sides of the vehicle.

Growing community of inventors

Brantford, Canada

John Kurelek