Ground milling machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11746481-B2
Application number	US-201816039017-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 18, 2018
Priority date	Jul 18, 2017
Publication date	Sep 5, 2023
Grant date	Sep 5, 2023

Abstract

The invention relates to a ground milling machine, comprising: a machine frame supported by front and rear travel units and at least partially height-adjustable; a milling drum housing arranged on the machine frame, comprising a milling drum that is rotatable about a horizontal axis of rotation perpendicular to the milling direction; a retaining device arranged in front of the milling drum housing in the milling direction with an adjustment device that enables the height adjustment of the retaining device in relation to the milling drum housing and the machine frame; and a ground contact device arranged in front of the milling drum housing in the milling direction with a contact runner and a mounting lever. The contact runner is adjustable in relation to the retaining device within a height-adjustment range and is mounted on the retaining device by way of the mounting lever. The contact runner comprises a first joint via which it is connected to the mounting lever in a pivotable fashion, the mounting lever being connected to the retaining device via a second joint and positioned between the contact runner and the retaining device in such a manner that, when the height of the retaining device is adjusted in relation to the contact runner, the mounting lever reaches or traverses an apex of the curve of movement of the mounting lever about the first or second joint, the apex delimiting the adjustment path of the mounting lever in the horizontal direction over the entire height-adjustment range, in particular in such a manner that the horizontal distance between the first and the second joint increases before subsequently decreasing. Finally, a distance measuring device is provided, with which the vertical distance or a correlating value between the machine frame and/or the milling drum housing and the contact runner can be measured.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A ground milling machine, comprising:
a machine frame supported by front and rear travel units and at least partially height-adjustable;
a milling drum housing arranged on the machine frame, comprising a milling drum that is rotatable about a horizontal axis of rotation perpendicular to a milling direction;
a retaining device arranged in front of the milling drum housing in the milling direction with an adjustment device that enables height adjustment of the retaining device in relation to the milling drum housing and the machine frame; and
a ground contact device arranged in front of the milling drum housing in the milling direction with a contact runner and a mounting lever,
wherein the contact runner is height adjustable in relation to the retaining device within a height-adjustment range,
wherein the contact runner is mounted on the retaining device by the mounting lever,
wherein the contact runner is pivotably connected to the mounting lever via a first joint,
wherein the mounting lever is pivotably connected to the retaining device via a second joint,
wherein the mounting lever is operable between the contact runner and the retaining device such that, when a height of the retaining device is adjusted in relation to the contact runner, a horizontal distance between the first and the second joint increases before subsequently decreasing, and

a distance measuring device with which a vertical distance, or a value which correlates to the vertical distance, between the machine frame and/or milling drum housing and the contact runner is measurable.

2. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein the distance measuring device is connected to the contact runner with an articulated connection.

3. The ground milling machine according to claim 2 , wherein the articulated connection is configured such that a path of adjustment of the distance measuring device extends in an essentially vertical direction over the height-adjustment range.

4. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein the distance measuring device is connected to the contact runner and to the machine frame or milling drum housing with an articulated connection, respectively.

5. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein the distance measuring device comprises a linear actuator.

6. The ground milling machine according to claim 5 , wherein the linear actuator comprises a hydraulic cylinder-piston unit, with an integrated distance measuring device.

7. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein an articulated connection of the distance measuring device to the contact runner lies between the first joint and the second joint when viewed in the milling direction.

8. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein a maximum deviation of a longitudinal axis of an adjustment path of the distance measuring device from a fictional vertical reference axis is smaller than +/−8° and/or a radius of a pivoting movement of the mounting lever about the first joint is in a range of at least 15 cm.

9. The ground milling machine according to claim 8 , wherein the maximum deviation of the longitudinal axis of the adjustment path of the distance measuring device from the fictional vertical reference axis is smaller than +/−2°.

10. The ground milling machine according to claim 8 , wherein the radius of the pivoting movement of the mounting lever about the first joint is in the range of at least 20 cm.

11. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein a horizontal adjustment movement of the contact runner is a maximum of 5 cm over the height-adjustment range.

12. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein the mounting lever comprises
a straight element with a longitudinal extension and/or
is configured in a shape of a mounting fork, with the contact runner being arranged between two opposite arms of the mounting fork.

13. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , further comprising a control unit configured to determine a milling depth based on a distance value determined by the distance measuring device.

14. The ground milling machine according to claim 13 , wherein the control unit is further configured to determine the milling depth based on the distance value determined by the distance measuring device as a real-time measurement value based solely on the distance value determined by the distance measuring device.

15. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , further comprising a contact device arranged on both sides of the retaining device as viewed in a direction of the horizontal axis of rotation of the milling drum.

16. The ground milling machine according to claim 1 , wherein, from a working position of each of the retaining device and the contact runner relative to each other, the retaining device is height adjustable by the adjustment device, via a height adjustment movement, to a raised position,
wherein, when each of the retaining device and the contact runner are in the working position, respectively, the second joint is vertically lower than the first joint,
wherein, when the retaining device is in the raised position and the contact runner is in the working position, the second joint is vertically higher than the first joint,
wherein, when the retaining device is adjusted from the working position thereof to the raised position, the second joint travels upward along the height adjustment movement with the retaining device, wherein the height adjustment movement occurs along a curve where the second joint pivots about the first pivot, and
wherein, when the second joint travels from the working position of the retaining device upward along the height adjustment movement, the horizontal distance between the first and the second joint increases until the second joint and the first joint are vertically equal to one another, and thereafter the horizontal distance between the first and the second joint decreases when the second joint travels upward along the height adjustment movement to the raised position of the retaining device.

17. The ground milling machine according to claim 16 , wherein, when the horizontal distance between the first and the second joint increases as the second joint travels from the working position of the retaining device upward along the height adjustment movement, the contact runner moves forward relative to the milling direction, and when the horizontal distance between the first and the second joint decreases as the second joint travels upward along the height adjustment movement to the raised position of the retaining device, the contact runner moves rearward relative to the milling direction.

18. The ground milling machine according to claim 16 , wherein the working position of each of the retaining device and the contact runner is a scratching position.

Assignees

• Bomag Gmbh

Inventors

• Dzomo Gerome
• Thelen Thomas

Classifications

• E01C23/088 Primary

  Rotary tools, e.g. milling drums {(for forming recesses to receive marking materials E01C23/0946)} · CPC title

• E01C23/127

  rotary, e.g. rotary hammers · CPC title

• G01B5/18

  for measuring depth · CPC title