Abstract: In a method for the manufacture of prismatic or truncated-pyramid-shaped beams, it is suggested to produce respectively two adjoining, mutually perpendicularly disposed lateral faces in one working step by simultaneous edging. In an apparatus for performing the method of this invention, a machining tool (2) with two sawing or cutting tools (7, 18) is provided, these last-mentioned tools forming a right angle with each other and being arranged offset with respect to each other in the direction of the longitudinal extension of the bole (6) to be edged.

Abstract: To produce wooden laths, boards of optional width are resawn in unplaned condition, whereupon the laths are fed each into one compartment which is defined by splitting knives and within which the laths are subjected to a pressure which is directed against the feed table carrying the laths and under the action of which first the lower side and then the upper side are planed. The machine for resawing the boards and planing the laths has a feed table with a guide edge and sawing means comprising coaxially mounted saw blades adjacent the infeed end of the machine, splitting knives mounted directly after the sawing means and defining compartments each adapted to accommodate a lath, and pressure means above each compartment for applying to the laths a pressure directed against the feed table. Planing means are arranged for working, under the action of said pressure, first the lower side and then the upper side of each lath.

Abstract: Two circular saws are arranged with their rotary axes parallel to each other and driven in opposite rotational directions. The flight circles of the two saws overlap each other. The cutting edges each extend, without touching, into the gaps of the respective other saw. The saws are driven in forced synchronism.

Abstract: An end-dogging log carriage system has two narrow, carriage sections, supportably guided on an elongated track, interconnected by a drive cable and a clamping cable. Both cables are wrapped around a spooling drum mounted on one of the carriage sections in such a way so that rotation of the spooling drum simultaneously changes the operative length of both clamping and drive cables thereby moving one carriage section with respect to the other to adjust the length of the log carriage and clamp a log therebetween. The tension in the cable system acting at the cable attachment points on each carriage section provides therein a preinduced countermoment in opposition to the dogging moment occurring when a log is dogged. The carriage sections are laterally biased against a single sidemounted guide rail spaced from the supporting track and discontinuous proximate the saws by a preloaded torque shaft mounted on each carriage section.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for sawing a tree trunk and for treating a slice of wood of uniform thickness sawn off the trunk. In the first method, the trunk dimensions and shape as well as the biological quality of each section of the trunk both in the lengthwise and the crosswise direction are defined along with the sawing process, and this information is taken into account while treating the trunk. This method is characterized in that the production programme, which comprises various articles, i.e. product components, of different measures and qualities, is recorded (a) before the actual sawing process. The trunk is sawn into two halves in the middle (b), or the heart slice is removed therefrom (i). The longitudinal quality borders of each trunk half are defined on the basis of the sawn face and recorded (c), and further the shape and size of the trunk half are measured and recorded (d). The quality information and the measuring results are combined (e).

Abstract: The present invention is the combination of a linebar and saw assembly for sawing cants or logs having various amounts of sweep in order to maximize the yield. The linebar is conformable between a straight line and a line which approximates an arc of a circle. Both ends of the linebar are positioned relative to the saw so that one end is essentially adjacent to the center of the saw. Both ends of the linebar always remain on the line defined by the linebar when it is in straight line position. A tangent to the end of the linebar adjacent to the saw is always parallel to the plane defined by the saw. The saw is skewable about the point of intersection of the end of the linebar with a line drawn from the centerline of and normal to the plane of the saw. A mechanism for bending the linebar and skewing the saw completes the invention. Using this invention the linebar can be configured into an arc which approximates the sweep curvature of a cant or log being sawn.

Abstract: A process which enables boards with unfinished edges or edges still covered with bark to be split up easily and rapidly is suggested.After clamping for performance of the trimming cut, the board is gripped at its unfinished edge located opposite to the unfinished edge to be severed, and is prevented from displacement in the longitudinal direction and from pivoting in its bearing plane. For performance of consecutive separating cuts, the board is then displaced in the transverse direction in such a way that the remaining unfinished edge approaches the cutting plane.The advantage of this process is that boards need only be trimmed on one longitudinal side, and the separating cuts may be made subsequently, with the other unfinished edge being left over at the end as remainder.

Abstract: A resaw has twin arbors with one to six blades mounted on each arbor. In addition, the resaw has a rotatable fence with a continuous belt along its periphery. Two side pressure rollers are mounted adjacent to the rotatable fence between an entrance to the resaw and the blades. A workbed of the resaw is made up of a series of spiked rollers. Just prior to an exit from the resaw, there is located a top roller which is mounted normal to the side pressure rollers and can move further away from or closer to the workbed. The arbors are each powered by an electric motor. The rotatable fence, the side pressure rollers and the spiked rollers are all powered by hydraulic motors connected to a single power source and all rotate at the same speed at any given time. The side pressure rollers are automatically adjustable so that they exert pressure towards the rotatable fence on any wood that is located between said rollers and said fence.

Abstract: The present invention comprises the combination of an elongated curved linebar with at least one saw. This arrangement enables "sawing-around-the-curve" so that increased recovery can be obtained from cants or logs having significant amounts of sweep. The linebar is positioned so that a tangent at the end adjacent to the saw is parallel to the plane of the saw. The linebar is preferably curved so that it approximates the average curvature of the cants or logs being fed to the saw. An auxilliary straight line bar, which is normally out of contact with an incoming cant, may alternatively be moved into position when the incoming cant is relatively straight sided.

Abstract: The present invention is a linebar assembly for guiding a cant or log into a saw. It comprises a flexible linebar which can be bent from a straight-line configuration to one approximating a circular arc having a minimum radius of about 30 m. The linebar can be configured into a circular arc which approximates the curvature of a cant or a log having sweep as great as about 100 mm in 5 m of length. The cant is fed into the saw along a circular path to achieve significantly higher lumber recovery. Extended tests have shown that this recovery will be 20-30% greater than that obtained using conventional straight-line sawing methods without any reduction in grade recovery.

Abstract: A saw machine with one or more saw blades for ripping a log, after which are provided one or more parting knives. The problem occurring in saw machines of prior art is that the spacing of the fixed guiding points working the log, as viewed in the direction in which the log is being sawn, becomes so large that curve-sawing is no longer possible. The saw machine of the invention is characterized in that both the saw blades (7) and the parting knives (8) are located in a separate sawing unit (6) articulatedly attached to the frame (9) of the saw machine and thereby following the crookedness of the log (11).

Abstract: A method and apparatus for producing lumber products which are machined on all sides. With this method, the curved trunk which is to be machined, and which increases approximately conically in thickness toward one of its ends, is first, prior to flattening its longitudinal sides and cutting off boards, aligned relative to a processing line of sawmill equipment in such a way that its longitudinal central plane, which is disposed in the direction of curvature of the trunk, extends approximately parallel to the machining surfaces of side cutting devices which flatten the longitudinal sides of the trunk. After that, a portion of the large trunk end which projects beyond an alignment plane is flattened. This flattening is effected in a plane which is tangential to the two trunk ends on a convexly curved surface portion thereof.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for sawing a log or a block into pieces of lumber, such as blocks, planks, boards, etc. The method is characterized in that pieces of lumber are sawn out with longitudinal cut surfaces such that--when the log is viewed in cross section--the lateral surface of the piece of lumber facing the center of the log is substantially concave while its lateral surface facing away from the center of the log is substantially convex, the concavity and convexity being adapted to the local tangential and radial shrinkage properties of the wood so that the sawn pieces, after drying to the desired moisture ratio, will have substantially plane-parallel sides.

Abstract: A sawmill in which a multi-log supporting mechanism is constructed wherein logs are grasped at spaced angular positions about the mechanism and rotated by it between an initial receiving position to a profile measurement position and then to a sawing position. The end-to-end axis of the supporting mechanism is adjustably oriented with respect to a saw in terms of profile measurements and size of lumber determined to be cut from a log. Directionally, this adjustment is made normal to the profile measurement dimension.

Abstract: An automatically-controlled system for ripcutting a cant into a plurality of boards includes the conveyor for advancing the cant transversely along a substantially straight path. Optical scanning stations along the path determine the shape of the usable board area which is fed to a control system. The control system, in turn, directs a mechanism which orients the cant on a sawing table. The cant is held in a fixed position on this table while a plurality of overhead saws make a series of parallel cuts on the board. The wane edges fall away and the resulting cut boards are transferred to an outfeed conveyor.

Abstract: A method for orienting a log, supported by rotating means, which is to be fed into a saw or a similar device. The upper edge line of the log profile is surveyed by two cameras placed in such a symmetrical position above the log that a line from the camera to the log in the feed plane forms an olbique angle with the feed plane. Each camera records the edge line viewed by it and the log is brought by orienting movements in such a position that the images of the edge lines as viewed by the cameras are substantially mirror images of each other.

Abstract: A chipping machine for processing wood including a chipping head with circumferentially spaced chipping knives to chip those portions of the wood in intereference with the chipping knives as the wood is moved past the inboard end of the chipping head, a facing head rotatably mounted adjacent the inboard end of the chipping head with facing cutters adapted to cut a flat face on the wood just inboard of the chipping knives, and drive means adapted to rotate the chipping head at a speed to generate the desired size wood chips and to rotate the facing head at a speed to generate the desired surface finish on the face of the wood.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for sawing a piece of timber and particularly for edging a board. The piece of timber is brought to pass in its longitudinal direction through a measuring station and further, maintaining its position, to a sawing machine. The optimum width and sawing direction are determined by the measuring data obtained by means of measuring gates collected in the memory of a computer. The computer controls the sawing blades. The blades of the sawing machine are turned to take the desired sawing direction and are moved at an even speed in lateral direction during the sawing process. The apparatus comprises a conveyor for transferring the log of timber, a plurality of gates for measuring the optimum width and direction, a computer for collecting the data. The computer controls the blades so that during sawing, the sawing lines coincide with the edge lines of the calculated optimum board. The sawing machine is mounted on vibration dampers which act as springs.

Abstract: An apparatus for aligning lumber, especially blocks from which the first pair of cants is removed, comprising a conveyor for transferring the blocks in longitudinal direction, a measuring station and a microprocessor or equivalent. Before feeding the blocks into a saw mill, they have to be aligned correctly in order to ascertain a maximum amount of wood products. In conventional apparatuses for aligning blocks, the alignment is performed on the unsawed surfaces of the block. In practice this leads to errors. In the present invention the errors can be eliminated by arranging the aligning members to comprise one or several short conveyors located in connection to the conveyor. The short conveyor can be shifted transversally both below and above the level of the conveyor, and it can be given a horizontal adjusting movement impulse according to the adjusting values received from the calculating unit.

Abstract: A method of forming cants slabbed on four sides from logs, and a sawmill assembly for effecting formation of the cants. First and second in-line sets of pairs of saws are provided, and a log is fed to the first set of saws in a horizontal direction, the first set of saws slabbing two opposed sides of the log. The log is continuously fed from the first set of saws to the second set of saws in the same horizontal direction, and the log is rotated 90.degree. about an axis along the horizontal direction during feeding from the first set to the second set of saws. The second set of saws slab two opposed sides of the log after 90.degree. rotation thereof, and a cant slabbed on four sides is thus formed. The distance between the pairs of saws of each set is adjustable by automatic detenting from one spacing to another, and the scrap is carried away from saw sets by conveyors outside of the saw sets.

Abstract: A cutting machine fitted with saw blades for pieces of timber has, adjacent to at least one pair of outer saw blades, lateral guide devices, the position of which can be adjusted, and which ensure the guiding of a worked piece of timber when its rear end section has left the lateral guide devices before the saw blades on the feed side of the arrangement. The arrangement is suitable for simple sawing machines and for reducing and reducing-sawing machines, and is particularly advantageous for the working of curved timber.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for cutting boards from tree trunks in which transverse cuts are made in a tree trunk which extend into the trunk a predetermined depth and thereafter longitudinal cuts are made into said trunk, which cuts pass through a plane passing through the inner ends of the transversal cuts, whereby the boards are separated from the trunk. The apparatus for cutting boards from tree trunks comprises guide rollers for advancing a trunk in a longitudinal direction, saw units adapted to move in a vertical and in a longitudinal directions to produce the transverse cuts and saw blades movable in the longitudinal direction to produce the longitudinal cuts after the transversal cuts have been made.

Abstract: An arrangement in sawing machines or like processing machines for the forward feeding and infeeding of work pieces, such as logs in particular, to the machine, comprising a stationary saw table which extends parallel to the desired feed line for the workpiece, at least up to the sawing machine, and at least two, individually drivable, endless feed chains which extend in vertical planes parallel with the feed line beneath the saw table. Each of the feed chains is provided with at least one dogging means which moves in a groove in the saw table. The groove is parallel with the feed line and common to all dogging means. The dogging means projects up out of the groove, above the surface of the saw table, in a manner to enable the dogging means to act on the rear end surface of a work piece resting on the saw table, for feeding said workpiece up to and into the sawing machine.

Abstract: A portable sawmill system comprising at least three wheeled, independently movable modules is disclosed. The modules are independently maneuverable to a land site having a ready source of logs to be processed and are arranged in a preselected geometrical configuration adjacent one another and the source of logs. A log from the source is received on the first module and debarked. The debarked log is moved axially and transversely off the first module and onto a second module. A plurality of saw means are carried by the second module to form boards from a log being processed. A third module is located at the output side of the second module and is adapted to receive and further process the boards formed on the second module.

Abstract: An improved method and apparatus for efficiently producing machined lumber products such as boards and squared timber is described wherein, after initial four-sided planing of a log, the remaining wany edge regions are milled using saw/chipper units which present, at each milled region, a relatively smooth and a relatively rough surface. The final step in log processing involves sawing the log along the plane of the rough milled surfaces so as to yield a pair of substantially smooth, severed boards, as well as a smooth central timber or cant. The apparatus includes respective, carriage-mounted, shiftably adjustable heads (each having a chopping tooth member and an adjacent saw blade of substantially the same diameter) along with cooperating second saw blades.

Abstract: An improved positioning and feed system for cants or boards has the capability for skewing and offsetting at a pre-positioning station with respect to the saws of a sawing machine. At a pre-positioning station, at least one visible line is directed to and impinges upon an incoming piece. An operator, through the use linear positioners and a first set of movable pins, pre-positions the individual piece with respect to the reference line, skewing and offsetting it as necessary. Once the orientation is selected, a downstream second set of pins which assume the same position as the first set will be moved upwardly. The first set of pins will be retracted, allowing a conveyor table to convey the piece to the pre-positioned second set of pins. With the piece in its pre-priented position, the conveyor table is then moved vertically downward allowing the piece to lie atop a longitudinal infeed conveyor. Additional pins may be utilized according to the particular type of incoming cant or board.