Braking assembly for use on a hydraulic winch
In a hydraulic winch having a clutch assembly for freeing a drum of the winch for
free falling rotation, a control system is provided for controlling operation of the clutch assembly.
The supply system includes a directional control valve shiftable between a first position in which fluid is supplied to the clutch assembly at a first pressure which maintains the clutch in the disengaged position to allow free fall of the drum, and a second position in which fluid is supplied to the clutch assembly at a second pressure which allows the clutch to return to the engaged position, braking free fall of the drum.
A timing element shifts the directional control valve to the second position after fluid has been supplied to the clutch assembly at the first pressure for a predetermined length of time. The timing element is a kick-down sequence valve that is connected directly between the clutch assembly and the directional control valve and that is movable from a flow-preventing position to a flow-permitting position once the fluid supplied to the kick-down sequence valve reaches a predetermined pressure. The kick-down sequence valve in the flow-permitting position supplies pressure to the directional control valve to shift the directional control valve to the second position so that fluid is supplied to the clutch at the second pressure.
It is known to anchor a barge in a river by releasing an elongated spud or pile that drops from the barge and sinks to the bottom, penetrating the river bed. The spud is suspended from the barge by a cable so that the barge is anchored by the spud to the river bottom, and the cable is spooled on the drum of a hydraulic winch provided on the barge so that the spud can be pulled from the river bottom and raised to release the barge for navigation.
In order to release the spud to anchor the barge, it is conventional to provide the hydraulic winch with a clutch assembly connected between the hydraulic motor of the winch and the drum such that the drum can be disengaged from the motor to rotate freely. By providing this feature in the winch, the spud can be released to free fall to the bottom of the body of water in which the barge is to be anchored, gathering velocity during the free fall to penetrate the river bed by an amount sufficient to anchor the barge in place.
After the spud penetrates the river bottom during an anchoring operation, the velocity of the spud drops off quickly. However, because the free spooling drum continues to rotate under its own momentum, slack is created in the cable, causing tangling or knotting thereof. This effect is referred to as bird nesting, and can damage or ruin the cable. As such, there is a need in the art for a winch having a system for controlling operation of the clutch so that the spud can be released for free fall during anchoring, and rotation of the drum can be subsequently braked to prevent bird nesting of the cable.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a control system for the clutch of a hydraulic winch, wherein each time the clutch is moved to a disengaged position in which the drum of the winch is allowed to free fall, the system times the free fall and automatically re-engages the clutch to brake rotation of the drum after a predetermined delay.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a control system in which the number of system elements necessary to provide the timing and control functions is reduced relative to prior art systems.
In accordance with these and other objects evident from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, a control system is provided for use on a hydraulic winch having a frame, a drum supported on the frame and defining a central longitudinal axis about which the drum rotates, a drive means for driving rotation of the drum, a clutch connected between the drive means and the drum and being movable between an engaged position in which the drive means engages the drum and a disengaged position in which the drum rotates freely, and a hydraulic system for operating the clutch. The control system includes a directional control valve that is shiftable between a first position in which fluid is supplied to the clutch assembly at a first pressure which maintains the clutch in the disengaged position to allow free fall of the drum and a second position in which fluid is supplied to the clutch assembly at a second pressure which allows the clutch to return to the engaged position, braking free fall of the drum. In addition, the system includes a timing means for shifting the directional control valve to the second position after fluid has been supplied to the clutch assembly at the first pressure for a predetermined length of time.
The timing means of the present invention consists solely of a kick-down sequence valve connected directly between the clutch assembly and the directional control valve of the fluid supply means, the kick-down sequence valve being movable from a flow-preventing position to a flow-permitting position once the pressure supplied to the kick-down sequence valve reaches a predetermined pressure. The kick-down sequence valve, in the flow-permitting position, supplies pressure to the directional control valve to shift the directional control valve to the second position so that fluid is supplied to the clutch at the second pressure.
By providing a control system in accordance with the present invention, numerous advantages are realized. For example, by reducing the number of control system elements required to time the disengagement of the clutch, it is possible to more accurately control the free fall of a spud during anchoring of a barge than is possible with conventional systems. In addition, the control system of the present invention is both less complex and less expensive than prior art systems.
This invention relates generally to hydraulic winch, and more particularly to a control system that is used to control the free fall rotation of the drum of a spud winch.
Braking assembly for use on a hydraulic winch
By: Angela
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