SWIVEL PLOW FEET

Abstract

Swivel plow feet for a plow have a shaft rotatably connected to a foot portion at a joint; the foot portion with a convex shaped surface for engaging the plowed surface. In embodiments, the shaft is received in a bushing fixed to the plow frame, with the vertical height adjustment of the plow feet with respect to the plow provided by a series of selectable holes in the shaft that cooperate with a pair of aligned holes in the bushing on the plow frame with a pin extendable through the aligned holes. The dome shape portion having a skid surface on a lower end and a unitary central hub with a recess for receiving the lower end of the shaft on an opposite upper end. The lower end of the shaft rotatably retained in the recess of the central hub. The flange end of the shaft may engage one or more bearings in the hub and the hub may have a grease fitting providing a grease pathway to the recess with the bearings and lower end of the shaft.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/398,315, filed Aug. 16, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Referring to Prior Art FIG. 1, plows mounted on trucks, utility vehicles, or all-terrain vehicles typically utilize a pair of feet that extend down to a level slightly below the level of the plow's lowest edge, the cutting edge, such that the cutting edge clears the ground or surface being plowed. This positioning can help prevent damage to driveways, sidewalks or lawns, such as when snow plowing. Such feet are typically configured with a bowl or mushroom shape with the dome of the mushroom facing downwardly for engaging the surface being plowed. A shaft of the foot extends through a bushing unitary with the plow frame and may be retained therein by a retention pin extending through holes in the bushing and through a select one of a series of spaced holes in the foot shaft. Vertical adjustment is provided by removing the retention pin, vertically changing the position of the shaft with respect to the bushing and reinserting the retention pin in a desired different hole of the series of select holes.

Wear of plow feet mounted as such are typically on one side of the dome portion of the foot. Such feet are considered a consumable item that must be replaced periodically. It would be desirable to provide a foot design that would last longer that existing plow feet minimizing replacements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A plow, such as used for snowplowing, has a pair of swivel plow feet for positioning the plow blade at a height above the surface being plowed. Each of the swivel plow feet having a shaft rotatably connected to a foot portion at a joint, the foot portion with a convex shaped surface for engaging the plowed surface. In embodiments, the shaft is received in a bushing fixed to the plow frame, with the vertical height adjustment of the plow foot with respect to the plow provided by a series of selectable holes in the shaft that cooperate with a pair of aligned holes in the bushing on the plow frame. A pin extendable through the aligned bushing holes and a selected hole in the plow foot shaft providing a desired vertical positioning of the foot with respect to the plow. The plow foot shaft has a flange at an opposite end of the shaft providing a T-shape in cross section. The dome shape portion having a skid surface on one end and a unitary central collar or hub with a recess for receiving the flanged end of the shaft on an opposite end. The flanged end of the shaft rotatably retained in the recess of the central hub. In embodiments, the flange end of the shaft may engage a bearing configured as a thrust washer on the hub floor in the recess. A bearing configured as an annular bushing or sleeve may be positioned on the shaft opposite the flange engaging the interior wall surface of the hub. The annular bushing, the flanged end of the shaft, and the thrust washer may be retained in the hub with a C-shaped spring clip received in a groove in the interior wall surface proximate the end of the hub. The joint providing rotation of the foot portion about the axis defined by the foot shaft. In embodiments, a grease fitting is positioned on the central collar of the foot portion providing a grease pathway to the interior of the joint.

A feature and advantage of embodiments of the plow foot is a distributed wear pattern about the skid surface of the dome shaped foot. The distributed wear providing a longer useful life of the plow foot.

A feature and advantage of embodiments is a swivel foot that has a long useful life due to the available of rotational motion of the foot portion of the plow foot that can occur rather than direct scrapping without rotation and the consequential localized wear of the plow foot.

A feature and advantage of the invention is that the swivel plow feet can replace existing plow feet attached to a plow without modification of the plow.

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a snowplow with a PRIOR ART foot attached thereto for engaging a surface being plowed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of swivel plow foot attached to the plow.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the swivel plow foot separated from the plow.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the swivel plow foot of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a plow 20 generally has a plow blade 22 with a lower removable cutting edge piece 24, both the plow blade and cutting edge piece are bolted to and supported by a plow frame 26. Mounting structure 28 extending from the frame 26 is utilized for removable attachment of the plow to a vehicle. Lower frame member 30 has a bushing 34 welded thereto with a vertical shaft receiving hole 36 and one or more holes 38 that extend through the sidewall of the bushing for receiving a cotter pin 40.

A prior art plow foot 42 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a shaft 44 welded to a bowl shaped foot portion 46 attached to the plow at the bushing. Plows typically will have a plow foot at the left and right side of the plow, only the left side of the plow is illustrated in FIG. 1. The foot portion 46 having a downwardly facing convex surface 47 for engaging a surface being plowed. The prior art foot 42 having a plurality of holes 48 extending crosswise through the shaft 44 for allowing variable vertical positioning of the shaft with respect to the bushing 34, and thus the positioning of the foot portion 46 with respect to the lower cutting edge piece 24. Typically, such as shown in FIG. 1, the bottom surface 47 of the feet will be adjusted to extend slightly below the lower edge 49 of the cutting edge piece of the blade sacrificing wear of the plow foot over wear of the cutting edge piece on the plow.

A swivelable plow foot 50, as illustrated in FIGS. 2-4, also may have a shaft 52 with a plurality of crosswise holes 58 for providing the height adjustment in cooperation with the holes 38 in the bushing 34. As illustrated by the arrowed arc 62 in FIG. 2, and with the plow foot shaft 52 non rotatably fixed in position by the cotter pin 40, the foot portion 56 is rotatable with respect to the shaft 52 and plow 20 about the shaft axis a and at joint 63. The foot portion 56 is generally bowl shaped and has a convex lower surface defining a skid surface 64 with a flattened central portion 65 on the bottom facing end 66 of the foot portion. The upwardly facing end 68 has an upwardly projecting collar defining a central hub 70 with a recess 72 therein. The recess receiving a lower end 75 of the shaft 52. The lower end having a diametrically enlarged portion 77 defining a flange 78 at the end 80 of the shaft. The joint 63 including a pair of bearings, one may be configured as an annular bearing or bushing 82 proximate the lower end 75 of the shaft 52, the other may be configured as a thrust bearing 84 seated on the floor 86 of the recess. The joint assembly 88 may be retained in the hub by way of a retaining ring 90 seated in a groove 92. A grease fitting 94 may be inserted in an opening or port 95 in the hub providing a grease or other lubrication pathway 97 including an opening 98 in the annular bearing 82. The lower portion of the shaft may have a diameter a few thousands of an inch less than the inner diameter of the bushing 82 providing clearance for rotation and for providing sufficient open area for the grease lubrication 100 at the interfaces.

The shaft and foot portion as described herein are suitably comprised of steel. The bearings of the joint may suitable be brass or other metals and alloys.

All the features disclosed in this specification (including the references incorporated by reference, including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive. The following U.S. patents are incorporated herein for all purposes: U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,231,875; 4,669,205; 4,794,710; 5,109,618; 5,697,172; 6,823,615; 8,776,405; and 8,875,419.

Each feature disclosed in this specification (including references incorporated by reference, any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any incorporated by reference references, any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Although specific examples have been illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose could be substituted for the specific examples shown. This application is intended to cover adaptations or variations of the present subject matter. Therefore, it is intended that the invention be defined by the attached claims and their legal equivalents, as well as the following illustrative aspects. The above described aspects embodiments of the invention are merely descriptive of its principles and are not to be considered limiting. Further modifications of the invention herein disclosed will occur to those skilled in the respective arts and all such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A swivel plow foot comprising a shaft sized for being received in a bushing of a plow frame, the shaft having a plurality of spaced through holes transverse to an axis of the shaft for receiving a pin for positioning the height of the plow foot with respect to the bushing of the plow frame, the swivel plow foot further comprising a foot portion swivelably attached to a lower end of the shaft at a swivel joint, the foot portion having a convex shaped skid surface.

2. The swivel plow foot of claim 1, wherein the foot portion comprises a bowl shaped skid portion having the convex skid surface, the foot portion further comprising a hub portion unitary with the skid portion extending centrally upward from the skid portion opposite the convex skid surface, the hub portion having a central recess with the lower end of the shaft retained therein.

3. The swivel plow foot of claim 2, wherein the lower end of the shaft has a diametrically enlarged portion positioned and retained in the hub portion.

4. The swivel plow foot of claim 3, wherein the diametrically enlarged portion is configured as a flange, the flange engaged with a bearing seated in the recess.

5. The swivel plow foot of claim 4, wherein the bearing is configured as a bushing positioned about the shaft and abutting the flange, and wherein the swivel plow foot further comprises a thrust washer seated on a floor of the recess and engaged with the flange.

6. The swivel plow foot of claim 3, further comprising a grease fitting providing a grease pathway to an interior of the hub.

7. The swivel plow foot of claim 5, further comprising a grease fitting providing a grease pathway to an interior of the hub.

8. The swivel plow foot of claim 1 in combination with a second swivel plow foot and in further combination with the plow frame, the plow frame having a pair of fixed bushings to receive the plow foot and the second plow foot.

9. The swivel plow foot of claim 1, wherein the concave surface has a centrally positioned flattened region.

10. A plow with a pair of swivel plow feet attached thereto, the plow comprising:

a plow frame supporting a plow blade, a lower cutting edge piece attached to the plow blade, the lower cutting edge piece defining a lower margin of the plow, the plow frame having a pair of bushings with upright holes for receiving plow feet shafts, one of the bushings located on the left side of the plow and the other of the pair of bushings located on the right side of the plow;

each of the pair of swivel feet comprising a shaft that is vertically adjustable within one of the respective bushings of the plow frame and that that has a lower end that extends into and is retained in an upwardly facing hub of a foot portion, the foot portion having a downwardly facing convex surface, the foot portion rotatable about the shaft extending therein.

11. The plow of claim 10, wherein each of the foot portions has a grease fitting attached to the respective hub.

12. The plow of claim 10, wherein the shaft of each of the pair of swivel feet has a lower flange positioned in the respective hub portions, and wherein each of the shafts have a bearing positioned between said shaft and an interior wall of the hub portion.

13. The plow of claim 12, wherein bearing is a sleeve extending around the shaft above the flange.

14. The plow of claim 12, wherein each of the pair of swivel feet has a thrust bearing positioned at a lower end of the shaft, the thrust bearing seated on a floor of the respective hub recess.

15. The plow of claim 10, wherein each of the swivel feet further comprises a respective grease fitting that provides a grease pathway to a joint defined by the connection of the respective shaft with the respective hub.

16. A swivel plow foot comprising a shaft that is vertically adjustable within a bushing of a plow and that that has a lower end that extends into and is retained in an upwardly facing hub of a foot portion, the foot portion having a downwardly facing convex surface, the foot portion rotatable about the shaft extending therein.

17. The swivel plow foot of claim 16, wherein the lower end has a flange, the flange engaged with a bearing in the hub of the foot portion.

18. The swivel plow foot of claim 17, wherein the bearing is a bushing positioned on the shaft above the flange and wherein the swivel plow foot further comprises a thrust bearing positioned between the flange and a floor of a recess in the hub.

19. The swivel plow foot of claim 16, wherein the hub has a grease fitting that provides a pathway to the interior of the hub.

20. The swivel plow foot of claim 17, wherein the hub has a grease fitting that provides a pathway to the interior of the hub.