US3526387A - Post pullers - Google Patents

Description

H. B. FLEMING POST PULLERS Sept. 1, 1970 Filed June 12, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 w 6m m u m 1 FM J M 5.. M .WQ a a W L m a a L1 1.: 6v H E mm n wm vm mm Wm United States Patent 3,526,387 POST PULLERS Howard B. Fleming, South Portland, Maine, assignor to Fleming Devices, Inc., South Portland, Maine, a corporation of Maine Filed June 12, 1968, Ser. No. 736,327 Int. Cl. B661? 11/00; E21b 19/00 US. Cl. 25430 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to post pullers and particularly to post pullers adapted to be operated by the hydraulic system of a motor vehicle that may also be employed to move the pullers from post-to-post.

While post pullers vary as required by the type and dimensions of the ground entering member that is to be wholly or partly raised from the ground, typical requirements are illustrated by problems encountered in readjusting the heights of guard rail posts to meet new safety standards. Such partial pulling of posts must be rapidly effected, requiring both effective puller operation and ease in moving the puller from one post to another.

The principal objective of the present invention is to provide post pullers that will meet both of those generally indicated requirements, an objective attained with a post puller having a base provided with an opening extending rearwardly from its front end and dimensioned to enable the base to straddle the post that is to be pulled. Supporting structure adjacent the front end of the base and laterally of its opening has one end of an arm pivotally connected thereto, the arm extending length-wise above the opening with its other end pivotally connected to a ram pivotally mounted on the base rearwardly of the opening. The post-gripping means are connected to the arm intermediate its pivots so that when the ram is actuated, the arm functions as a second class lever in raising the embedded post.

The ram is desirably hydraulically operated as the base is adapted to be carried from post-to-post by a hydraulically operated pick-up device attached to a motor vehicle. With this arrangement, the vehicle may be maneuvered into a position in which the base straddles the post and the base then lowered so that it is supported by the ground. The post-gripping means are then secured to the straddled post and the ram employed to actuate the lever arm to raise the post. After the post-gripping means are released and the ram lowered, the hydraulic system of the vehicle is used to pick up the post puller and carry it to the next post.

For this purpose, a lifting fork is preferred and the base, accordingly, has loops on each side of its opening and accessible from the rear of the puller that are disposed and dimensioned to receive the fork. Desirably, the vehicle has a short wheel base so that, in most cases, the major portion of the fork will rest against the ground when the puller is positioned for use so that upwardly sloping or downwardly sloping ground is no problem. Sloping ground does, however, require adjustability of the connection between the post-gripping means and the lever arm to insure the most effective operation whether the ground slopes in either direction or is flat. This objective is attained by providing for the attachment of the postgripping means in any one of a plurality of positions lengthwise of the lever arm.

in the accompanying drawings, there is shown an illustrative embodiment of the invention from which these and other of its objectives, novel features and advantages will be apparent.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a post puller in accordance with the invention,

FIG. 2 is a side view thereof,

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary rear view showing the connection between the ram and the lever arm, and

FIG. 4 is a section taken approximately along the indicated lines 44 of FIG. 3.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated by the drawings, the puller has a base 10 in the form of a flat plate provided with a central slot 11 having a flared entrance opening through its front edge and extending a substantial distance to the rear to enable the base 10 to straddle the post 12 that is to be pulled, the post .12 being shown as a section of an H beam only by way of an example. At the rear end of the slot 11 there is a roller 13 mounted in marginal supports 14 and in practice, the puller is moved into a position in which the roller 13 is usually in engagement with the post 12.

Uprights 15 are pivotally connected as at 16 to the base 10, one on each side of the slot 11 and adjacent the front edge of the base. The uprights 15 are inclined inwardly towards each other and their upper ends are interconnected by the pivot 17 in support of one end of the lever arm, generally indicated at '18. Each upright 15 is connected to outwardly inclined brace structure 19 welded to the base 10 adjacent the slot 11. Where adjustment of the angle between the uprights 15 and the base 10 is to be varied, each brace 19 has an arcuate slot 20 through which extends the anchoring bolt 21 for the appropriate upright.

The lever arm 18 is shown as consisting of two mernbers 22 of right angular section having their side portions 22A held in spaced parallel relationship by a like member 23 whose edges are welded to their side portions 22B. The side portions 22A have transversely aligned holes at one end for the pivot 17 and like holes at its other end for the pivot 24 by which the lever arm 18 is secured to the generally indicated attachment 25 secured to'the exposed end of the piston 26 of the hydraulic ram whose cylinder 27 is connected to a mount 28 secured to the base 10 rearwardly of its slot 11 by a transversely disposed pivot 29.

The post puller shown in the drawings is to be carried from post-to-post on a hydraulically raised and lowered fork and to be operated when the fork is resting on the ground by the hydraulic system of the vehicle to which the fork is attached. The base 10 has loops 30 on each side of the slot 11 and accessible from the rear of the post puller for the arms of the generally indicated fork 31, the loops 30 being dimensioned so that the fork arms are a loose fit therein to enable the base 10 to be supported on the ground sloping relative to the plane defined by the fork 31.

The side portions 22A also have a series of transversely aligned holes 32 to provide different positions lengthwise of the lever arm 18 for the pivot pin 33 which supports the hook 34 between the portions 22A. The chain 35 for the post-gripping means is detachably secured to the lever arm 18 by the hook 34. While the post-gripping means, generally indicated at 36, may be of other types, it is herein shown as a body having a transverse, downwardly opening slot 37 dimensioned to receive the upper end of the post 12. A cam 38 pivotally connected to the body is exposed in the slot 27 for engagement with one side of the post 12 and includes an outwardly extending arm 39. The chain 35 is connected to the arm 39 after having been passed through the upwardly disposed eye 40 so that an upward pull on the chain 35 actuates the cam 38 to clamp the post 12 securely against the opposite side wall of the slot 37.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that in pulling a long series of posts, whether to remove them or to raise them to a predetermined extent, the puller is picked up by a vehicle having a hydraulically operated lifting fork 31 and the ram is connected to the hydraulic system of the vehicle. The operator of the vehicle maneuvers the vehicle into a position in which the base straddles a post 12 with the post 12 at or close to the rear end of the slot 11. The fork 31 is lowered until the base 10 rests on the ground. With the post-gripping means 36 secured to the post 12 and the chain 35 caught on the hook 34, the hydraulic system is then employed to actuate the ram to raise or remove the post 12. After the post-gripping means 36 are released and the puller lifted by the fork 31, the operator moves to the next post.

It is, of course, desirable that the pull on the post 12 be i vertical thereof. For that reason, if the terrain so slopes as to make a substantial variation in the direction of the pull relative to the post 12, the hook 34 may be moved with its pivot 33 supported in different transversely aligned holes 32, forwardly if the ground slopes upwardly and rearwardly if the ground slopes in the opposite direction. It will also be apparent that the angle of the uprights 15 relative to the base 10 may also be varied to accommodate slopes but a change in this relationship is not usually necessary.

I claim:

1. In a post puller for use with a post-gripping clamp having a supporting chain, said puller comprising a base having an opening extending rearwardly from its front end and dimensioned to enable the puller to straddle the post to be pulled, supporting structure adjacent the front end of said base and laterally of said opening, an arm pivotally connected to said structure above said opening and extending lengthwise and rearwardly thereof, a ram comprising piston and cylinder members, one member pivotally connected to said base adjacent its rear end and a pivot connecting the other member to the rear end of said arm, the intermediate portion of said arm including means by which post-gripping means may be connected thereto.

2. The post puller of claim 1 in which the connecting means for the post-gripping means provides a series of longitudinally spaced attaching positions, one in a perpendicular to the base that is inclusive of the position of a post when the puller is placed so that the straddled post is at the rear end of the opening.

3. The post puller of claim 2 in which the connecting means for the post-gripping means is a hook including a pivot and the attaching positions are pivot-receiving holes extending transversely through the arm.

4. The post puller of claim 1 and the base has forward and rearward loops accessible from the rear of the puller and shaped and dimensioned for the reception of the arms by a hydraulically operated lifting fork and the ram is hydraulically operated.

5. The post puller of claim 1 in which the arm includes a pair of parallel members of rectangular cross section arranged with a side portion of each depending and spaced from the side portion of the other, and a thread member of rectangular stock with its edges welded to the other side portions of the pair of members, the depending portions having a series of longitudinally spaced and transversely aligned holes and the connecting means is a hook including a detachable pivot, the pivot extending through transversely aligned holes with the hook depending between the side portions.

6. The post puller of claim 5 in which the ram memher that is pivotally connected to the arm includes a pair of vertically disposed, parallel members of rectangular stock arranged with a side portion of each parallel but spaced apart and with the rear ends of the depending portions of the arm between them and connected thereto by the pivot.

7. The post puller of claim 1 in which the supporting structure includes a pair of uprights, one on each side of the opening, the uprights being upwardly and inwardly inclined towards each other, forward and rearward loops on each side of the opening for a lifting fork and accessible from the rear of the base, and brace means connected to the uprights and to the base, each brace means being secured to the base between the margins of the opening and the proximate loops.

8. The post puller of claim 1 in which the supporting structure includes a pair of uprights, one on each side of the opening, the uprights being upwardly and inwardly inclined towards each other, each upright being pivotally connected to the base, and brace means for each upright, each brace means being secured to said base, and means adjustably connecting each upright to its brace means to enable the angle of the uprights to the base in a lengthwise direction to be raised.

9. The post puller of claim 1 in which the opening is a slot.

10. The post puller of claim 1 in which the opening is a slot and a roller carried by the base and engageable by a post when the puller is positioned with a post at the rear end of the slot.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,043,223 11/1912 Grady 254-30 3,048,368 8/1962 Linabery 254-132 X 3,161,432 12/1964 OLeary 254132 X 3,358,967 12/1967 Harmon 2543O OTHELL M. SIMPSON, Primary Examiner DAVID R. MELTON, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 254-132

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