US2354586A - Method of and machine for treating and laying strip material from packages - Google Patents

Description

C METHOD OF AND MACHINE FOR TREA www July 25, 1944.

A. C. FISCHER METHOD 0F AND MACHINE FOR TREATING AND A July 25, 1944.

l LAYING STRIP MATERIAL FROM PACKAGES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 26 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 A. C. FISCHER METHOD oF AND MACHINE EoR .TREATING AND LAYIMG STRIP MATERIAL FROM. PACKAGES Filed Jan. 26, 1940 Julyzs,y 1944.

METHD OF AND MACHINE FOR TREATING AND LAYING STRIP MATERIAL FROM PACKAGES July 25, 1944. A. c.- FISCHER I Filed Jan. 2e, 1940 5 sheets-sheet 4 July 25, 1944. A. c. FISCHER 2,354,586 METHOD 0E AND MACHINE FOR TREATING AND LAYING STRIP MATERIAL FROM PACKAGES Filed Jan. 26, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 fia 75 I faz I Patented July 25, 1944 METHCD F AND MACHINE FOR TBEATING AND LAYING STRIP MATERIAL f FROM PACKAGES Albert C. Fischer, Chicago, Ill. y

Application January 26, 1940, Serial No. 315,681

12 Claims.

l This invention relates to machines for treating and depositing material while being advanced over a space for receiving the same. More particularly, the invention concerns machines for treating and lling the crevices at sectional joints in concrete paving or the like, and for laying roofing paper or other similar materials upon flat surfaces.

The invention further contemplates and has for its objects an improved strip convertible into a plastic or semi-duid condition upon the application of heat by said machines to provide a medium for sealing and securing the deposited materials in place; a new package embodyingA such strip; a new process of preparing the space for receiving the strip and of depositing the strip and other materials within said space; and novel apparatus for carrying out said process. 'An additionalobject is the provision of a process of and machine for laying a compressible strip within a paving joint crevice or the like.

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a machine constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention and which is adapted to clean a paving crevice or the like, to apply a cementitious material to the crevice and to lay a 1111er strip within such crevice, there being parts broken away for clarity;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal' sectional view taken through said machine substantially upon the line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig.. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view illustrating a modied .form of feeding passage adaptable to the machine of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken transversely of adjacent paving slabs, illustrating a crevice between such slabs and a paving iiller striptherein of the type adapted to be inserted by the apparatus shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a modified form of machine for cleaning and lining a paving joint crevice with a cementitious material preparatory to its receiving la iiller strip;

Fig. 6 is a filler strip laying machine which is adapted to deposit a filler strip in a paving joint crevice;

Fig. I is a modied form of machine which is adapted both to clean a paving crevice and to lai a illler strip therein, the view being a side eleva- Fig. 10 is a, transverse vertical sectional view taken on the line III-I0 of Fig'. 9.

Referring now to -the drawings and particularly to Figs. 1 and 2 thereof, the machine there shown is for treating a crevice I0 which is between two adjacent paving slabs or the like Il and I2. The lower part of the crevice I0, when the crevice is between paving slabs, will normally be filled by an asphaltic plank I3. Both the slabs Il and I2 and the lower edge of the plank I3 rest upon a prepared earth bed I4.

The machine frame comprises a pair of parallel side members I5 and I6. The side member I5 has a'rearwardly and upwardly inclined section I1 offset outwardly from the front or main body of this member. Similarly, an upwardly inclined rear section I8 is onset outwardly from the forepart of the side member I6.

Axle bolts 20, 2I, 22 and 23 interconnect the foreparts of the frame members I5 and I6 and have respectively journalled thereon, between said frame members, a cleaner brush 24, a'coat-` ing applicator brush 25, al combination driving and guide roller 26 and a guide roller 21.

Said brush member 24 has a center section 28 of bristles sufciently long to reach downwardly. into the crevice I0, and sections 29 upon each side thereof with bristles of a length to sweepingly engage the slabs II and I2 adjacent to said crevice. Sections 30 and 3l of the brush 25 respectively correspond to the sections 28 and 29 of the brush 24.

The guide and driving roller 26 provides part of the machine running gear, said roller being adapted to bear upon the adjacent edges of the slabs II and I2 and having a center flange 32 which is of limited width to enable it to project downwardly into the crevice I0. The guide roller 21 is also provided with a central iiange, 33,'

which is adapted to .project downwardly into the crevice.

A part of the machine running gear is comprised of a broad roller or drum 34 of comparatively large diameter. This roller is journalled at its hollow trunnions 35 within countersunk bearing portions 36 of burner shields 31 which are anchored inthe offset frame sections I1 and I9. Because of the axial extent of the drum 34 the vehicular machine has adequate'lateral support to enable it to stand upright without the assistance of an attendant.

A sleeve (not shown), rotatively disposed upon the bolt 22, is connected with the hub of the driving roller 26`and projects through the frame member I6 where it hasa gear 3B connected nonrotatively therewith. Thus the gear y38 is connected for rotation with the driving roller 26. A gear 39 meshes with the gear 39 and is journalled upon a shaft 40 which is anchored in the side member I6 and a bracket member 4I that is connected to the frame member by bolts 4|'. Also rotatively disposed upon the bolt 40 is a sprocket 42, and this sprocket is suitably connected with the gear 39 to be driven thereby.

The bolt 2| rotatively carries a sleeve (not shown) which extends through the frame mem ber I6 where it has flxed'thereto sprocket wheels 43 and 44. Said sleeve is xed to the hub of the brush member 25 whereby said brush member and the sprockets 43 and 44 are connected for rotation in unison. Another sleeve (not shown), rotatlvely disposed upon the bolt 20, is secured to the hub ofthe cleaner brush 24 and carries for rotation therewith a sprocket wheel 45. A- chain 46 operably connects the sprocket Wheels 42 and 43r whereas a chan^41 similarly connects the sprocket Wheels 44 and 45. It will be seen, therefore, that when the machine is advanced, toward the left, the frictional engage.- ment of the roller 26 with the slabs Il and I2 will cause it and the gear 38 to rotate counterclockwise'as indicated by the arrow adjacent to the roller 26 in Fig. 1. The gear 38 then causes the gear 39 and the sprocket wheel 42 to rotate clockwise, and the chain 46 interconnecting the sprocket wheels 42 and 43 is then operable to impart clockwise rotation to the sprocket wheel 43 which, in turn, imparts clockwise rotation to lthe sprocket wheel 44 and to the applicator brush 25. Chain 41 is then effective for transmitting driving force from the sprocket 44 to the sprocket 45 for imparting clockwiserotation to the brush member 24. In other words, the brush members 24 and 25 are driven through the power transmission mechanism comprising the aforesaid gears, sprockets, and chains, fromthe driver roller 26 and caused to rotate in the direction opposite to that of said driver roller.

Manipulation and advancement of the machine is accomplished by manual force applied to a backwardly and upwardly extending control shaft 48 having a. handle bar 49 attached to its upper end. Said control bar is suitably anchored at its lower` end in a socket member 50 which includes a ring l carried 'about a long bolt 52. This bolt 52 is inserted through holes in the back end sections of the frame members l5 and I6 and through spacer sleeves 53 and 54 which are disposed upon opposite sides of the ring 5l. When a wing nut 55 is loosened, sufficient play is possible between a serrated edge 56 of the base member ring 5I and a complemental serrated end 51 of the spacer sleeve 54 to permit angular adjustment of the control shaft 48 about the bolt 52. After the desired adjustment is obtained, it is preserved by simply tightening the wing nut 55 for holding the serrations 56 and 51 tightly meshed.

A pair of identical standards each comprising upwardly converging legs 58 and 59 rise respectively from the frame side members I5 and I6 and are apertured as at 50 at their upper ends for receiving a reel-holding rod 6l. This rod 6l is adapted to rotatively carry a reel 62 having a strip 63 of joint filler material wound thereabout. The reel is placed upon the machine by aligning its opposite ends with the standard apertures 60, whereupon the rod 6I is inserted through said apertures Aand through a center axial opening in the reel. Such reel is removed when desired, by simply withdrawing the rod 6l.

This ller strip 63 may be made from a viscous hydrocarbon material such as asphalt having compounded therewith a suitable brous material to toughen it and a petroleum oil to increase its flexibility so that it will unwind readily from the reel in cold weather. Mineral matter such as powdered lime may also be added in amounts up to to harden the strip and to prevent the contiguous surfaces from sticking together upon the reel. While asphalt is named as a suitable material from which to make the strip 63, it is to be understood that any material will do which melts quickly when heated and which has the proper physical characteristics when deposited in the crevice. threaded downwardly from the reel through a heater passage generally designated 64. This passage comprises downwardly converging side walls 65 and 66, a front wall 61 which slants backwardly and the lower forward cylindrical periphery of said drum. The lower end of this passage is arranged for registry with the crevice l0 and serves .as guiding means for directing the strip 63 into said crevice while the machine is advanced as presently explained.

Heating means comprising burners generally designated 68 are incorporated into the passage structure. Each of these burners 68 includes a gas mixing tube 69 having a plurality of apertures 10 for the admittance of air for forming a combustible mixture with gas vapor discharged l from jet members 1| which are in threaded engagement with the extended ends of said tubes 69. Gas vapor under pressure is admitted to the jet members 1| through conduits as 12 and 13. The amount of vapor discharged from the jets and hence the flame intensity i's regulatable by conventional valves under control of handles 14.

Jet members 1|', in threaded relation with the mixing tubes 31, are fed with gas vapor through conduits 12 and 13' which correspond to the conduits 12 and 13. Valves operated by valve stem handles 14' are for regulating the amount of vapor delivered to the jet members 1l', and air for mixing with this Avapor is obtained through holes as 10' in the mixing tubes 31.

Said conduits 12, 13, 12 and 13 lead from a gas pressure tank 15 which may be partly lled with gasolene or other volatile combustible Inaterial 16. This tank may be filled through an opening closed by a cap 11; A pump of any conventional construction, manipulatable by a reciprocal operating member 18, may be associated with the tank 15 as a means of creating pressure therein. Said tank 15 is supported at its rearmost end upon a pair of L-shaped brackets 19 which are respectively secured to the frame pieces l5 and 6. The frontend of this tank is carried by a bracket that depends from the rear end of a second tank 8l.

Said tank 8l is for holding liquid cementitious material 82 such as a rubber cement which is to be applied to the side walls of the crevice ID prior to deposit of the strip 63 therein. Support means for the tank 8l is provided in the form of upright rods 83 which engage the bottom of the tank and are carried at their lower ends in the machine frame. Access is had into the tank through an opening elosable by a cap 84. Contained within the bottom of the tank 8l is a discharge spout 85 placed directly above the applicator brush 25. Said spout 85 is elosable and regulatable in the amount of ow permitted by a-needle valve member 86 under control of a handle member 81 which is rotatable to advance or retract a valve stem 88 in threaded relation with a flanged bushing 89. When the handle 81 is turned to withdraw the valve member 86 fromv its seat in the lower part of the spout 85,

'Ihe free end of the strip is Operation of the machine In setting the machine in operation, some of the cementitious material 82 will be disposed by means of the brush or applicator member 25v in the initial part of the crevice l which is to be `iilled with the stripv 63. The control handles as 14 of all of the burners will have been opened to admit gas and the burners ignited for heating up the walls of the strip passage 64 and of the drum 34. The free end of the strip 63 will then be fed downwardly into the passage 64 where the flames from the burners comprising the jet members 'il will be played upon the strip to melt at least the surface portion thereof to impart to the strip a tacky surface. The thus treated end portion of the strip will then be projected through the strip guiding section at the lower end of the passage into said initial portion of the crevice and the machine advanced to run the drum 34 onto the strip for pressing it downwardly and rmly into the crevice. It willbe observed that the passage 64 together with the burners comprising the jet members 1| serves as a heating means or chamber. Heat is imparted to the flight of the strip within the passage by the chamber walls including the periphery of the drum 34 which is also heated by burners.- Such heat adds to the flexibility of the strip and to its softness, thus expediting the function of the pressing-in drum or roller 34 for depositing the strip in the crevice. Especially are the sides of the strip heated to a semi-liquid state by the iiames which are played directly thereon from the burners upon the pas- -sage side walls 65 and 66. When the sides of the strip are thus treated they readily conform t0 minute irregularity in the sides of the crevice l0 when and after being pressed thereinto by the roller 34.

'I'he heat developed by the burners will be se- Sealing of the strip to the crevice side walls is augmented by the cementitious material which is applied to these walls by the applicator brush 25, and the valve member 86 will also be adjusted to selectively regulate the amount of cementitious material which is discharged for applying to the crevice walls in accordance with the speed at which the machine is advanced.

The above described machine is also adaptable to the laying of a compressible strip into a crevice as I0; that is, a sealing strip which is simply compressed lbefore being deposited in the crevice and then permitted to expand for grippingthe crevice side walls and thus holding it in sealing section and tothe roller drum 34 is illustrated by dotted lines in Fig. 1. Said rollers 96 will be spaced apart a distance not exceeding the width of the crevice I0 so the strip will be suillciently compressed to enable it to be readily pressed into the crevice by the drum 34. The hollow strip 95 is compressed :by the rollers as indicated in Fig. 3, and when it is laid within the crevice I0 it exipands to some such shape as that illustrated in Fig. 4, the strip having longitudinal ribs 01 which impingingly engage the crevice side walls. 'I'he strip may be, of course, of any other cross sectional -sh pe. When the strip is made of rubber the burners will not Ibe active during the laying iprocess.

a character for having a surface section thereof melt or soften under heat to form a plastic adhesive coating. It would be possible, however, to coat a compressible strip, as one of cork, with an asphaltic material and run the burners at low heat for melting the surface coating and thus cause the strip to be adhesively as well as impingingly engaged with the crevice side walls when in place. During the laying of a compressible strip, the cleaner brush 24 will serve as before for cleaning the crevice, and the lbrush 26 may be used for coating the surface of the crevice with material from the tank 8|.

Also in the above machine, the heating chamber 64 may lbe adapted for holding a bath of liqvuid sealing material, heated .or unheated, and

through which any kind of strip is passed to incur a coating of sealing material rprior to being `deposited in the crevice. l

It may be found advantageous by some to reduce the mass of the unitary machinery for cleaning, coating and filling a crevice. For example, some may prefer to have the machine'shown in Figs. 1 and 2 built into separate units as those shown respectively in Figs. 5 and 6. The machine in Fig. 5 is for cleaning and coating the crevice, whereas the machine shown in Fig. 6 is for la ing the sealing strip. Excepting for the arrangement of the runnin gear shown in Fig. 5 this machine is similar to the forepart of the machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Consequently, for expedience ofv disclosure, the parts shown in Fig. 5 which correspond to those shown in Figs. 1 and 2 are identied by the same respective reference characters with I the letter a added. Said machine -has a pair of guide rollers |00 and 26a with central ilanges |02 and 32a which project downwardly into the crevice I 0a for holding the course of the machine similarly to the iianges 32 and 33 shown in Fig. v1.

` Of these rollers the roller 26a is also a driving relation therewith. Such a strip will ordinarily position oi these rollers relative to said guiding roller for driving the brushes 24a and 25a through the driven gears, sprockets and chains in the manner hereinabove described. In this manner the cleaning brush 24a is caused to rotate clockwise for sweeping the debris forwardly from the crevice. The applicator brush 25a is adapted to receive a liquid cementitious material from the tank sia through the meting valve a for coating the crevice side walls. This machine is pushed and manipulated manually through a handle member 48a which is anchored in a socket 50a with ibifurcated leg portions '|03 (one being shown) upon opposite sides of the roller 26a and apertured for receiving the axle bolt 22a and frame bolts |04;

'The strip laying machine shown in Fig. 6 is comprised of parts, which, for the most part, correspond respectively to the parts making up the Neither will these burners be active in any event when the strip being laid is not of flanged guide rollers.

back portion oi.' the machine shown in Figs.'1 and 2. 'I'hese corresponding parts are identied'bythe same reference characters with the letter b added. Because of the diminished length of this machine the frame side member |5b is consider'- ably shortened, and a flanged guide wheel ||0,`

An embodiment of the invention shown Figs. '1 and 8 is designed for cleaning and filling irregularly formed cracks and crevices which frequently occur in concrete paving slabs or the like after they have beensubjected to alternate expansions and contractions caused by changing weather conditions. This machine also embodies parts which correspond to and serve the same functions as parts already described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2. These corresponding parts will be identified by the same respective reference characters with the letter c'added.

It will be observed that this machine omits the In lieu of guide rollers the machine has a narrow extended section |20 upon the lower end of the passage member 64e y for projecting into a crevice as |0c. Having but a single projection into a crevice as |00 enables the machine to .be pivoted sharply about this point and thus to follow the tortuous course frequently defined by these fortuitous crevices.

The frame side members spaced apart-at their front sections the same distance as at their back sections which are at opposite sides of the heating drum 34e, such spacing at the front being such as to accommodate In this machine embodiment a hub portion of f the heater drum 34 extending through the frame members |6c carries a gear |22 which meshes with a gear |23. Said gear |23 is disposed rota- .tively upon a shaft anchored in the frame side member [6c and in a side bracket 4|c. Also rotatable upon this shaft is a sprocket wheel |24 which rotates with the gear 23. Driving force is transmitted from the roller drum 34e through the gears |22 and |23, the sprocket wheel |24, a chain |25 and a sprocket wheel |26 which is connected with the hub of the brush 2| for drivingthe same.

The machine as shown in Figs. 9 and 10 is for .unwinding and laying a sheet of roofing paper or the like upon a flat surface and for adhesively attaching the sheet to the surface by means of a semi-liquid sealing material obtained by applying heat to and melting av strip of the sealing material as it isunwound from a reel. This machine is built about a frame which comprises a pair of identical L-shaped side pieces each of which has a horizontal legl |3| and an upright leg |32, said legs being joined by a diagonally" rotatively mounted upon each shaft tion by a spanning plate |33 which has at its ends downwardly directed flanges |34 which are respectively secured to the members |3| by bolts as |35. Crossbars as |36 and |31 are similarly secured between the upright legs |32 to which they are held by means of b'olts as |38. A pair of front wheels are journalled upon a front axle |46.

An axially removable reel-holding rod |39 is carried in the upper ends of the vertical frame members or standards |32 for rotatively supporting a roll |40 of roong paper or the like. An additional rod |4| is removably supported between the upright members |32 for rotatively supporting a pair of reels |42 and |43 comprising flexible strips |44 of meltable sealing material such as asphalt meltable at low temperature.

A flight |41 unwound from the roll |40 extends downwardly in engagementwith the periphery of the strip material upon the reels |42 and |43 and about the forward and under periphery of a roller |41' so that when the machine is advanced, the pressure upon the sheet by this roller, together with the adhesive connection of the laid portion of the sheet with the surface to which it is being applied, will provide an anchorage for pulling -upon the flight |41 and causing the sheet'to be unwound from the roll |40. The

machine is pushed forwardly by manual force applied to a handled bar |48 secured crosswise to the upper end of a .steering shaft |49 which is anchored in a socket |50. Thissocket |50 is secured to a cross-rod |51 extending between and A anchored in the frame uprights |32.

A pair of arms |52 (of which one is shown) are pivotally secured upon a rod |53 which also is anchored in the uprights |32. These arms |52 rotatively carry a roller |54 upon a spindle |55.-

Said arms |52 are urged counterclockwise by a spring |56 so as to constantly press thc roller |54 against that portion of the flight |41 which lengages the wound strip material upon the reels `I58, Fig. 10, is provided for each of the strips |44. Said rolls are carried rotatively between the opposed parts of brackets |59 and |60 which are anchored respectively to a frame diagonal member |33 and to a frame upright |32. An additional guide roller, |6|, is also disposed between the opposed sections of each set of brackets |59 and |50.

' Immediately below and forwardly of each guide roller IBI there is a pair ofl friction rollers |62 and |63 which have grooved peripheries for complementally receiving and gripping the associated strip |44 and pulling it from the adjacent roller |6|. rI'he roller |62 of these paired rollers, Fig. 9, is journalled upon a short shaft |64 reciprocally carried in an elongated opening |65. in a bracket |66 secured to the adjacent frame member |33. The other roller. |63, of these pairs is rotatively mounted upon a stub shaft |61 that is anchored within a bracket |68 secured to the associated frame member |3|.

|61, and connected with its associated gear |63 for mutual rotation, is a sprocket wheel |69 driven by a chain |10 from a sprocket wheel |1| which is Also fixed for rotation with the roller |41'. Each of the reciprocal shafts |64 is connected by a With particular reference to the heating means for the right-most strip |44, Fig. 10, an opening is present in the top of the chamber for receiving the strip'as it passes from the rollers |62 and |63. A flame from the burner is directed against the strip |44 shortly after it enters the heating chamber. The melting point of the strip is such that it melts quickly from the heat absorbed from the chamber walls which become heated from the flame and by the heat absorbed directly from the vflame played upon it. The heated melted liquid material falls into an elongated distributor tube |16. The tubes |16 extend laterally of the machine and slightly downwardly toward one another. The melted materialv in the bottom thereof is constantly heated and thus kept semi-liquid by the hot blast from the burner, which blast is discharged throughv trated as a single opening there may be a series of openings spaced longitudinally of these members, and such a connotation is to be given to the term opening as used in connection with these parts in the appended claims.

The burners |14 are of any conventional construction. A combustible gasis supplied thereto through conduits |18 and |19 from a pressure tank |80. Control handles |82 are rotatable for controlling the degree of opening of valves within the burners to determine the amount of fuel passed into the burner mixing tubes |83 and hence the intensity of the ame directed into the heating chambers |13.

While I have shown two reels of meltable sealing strip material' upon the machine, obviously a machine of this kind is adaptable for using a single reel with a corresponding single set of guide rollers as |51, |58 and |6I, a single heating unit and a single distributor. Also it is within the scope of the present invention to provide any additional number of setsvof guiding rollers, heating units and distributors for handling strips as they are unwound from the like number of reels.

In the operation of this machine, after an unwound end portion of the paper roll |40 has been threaded downwardly between the roller |54 and the periphery of the wound sealing strips and beneath the roller |41', and after the sealing strips have been threadedabout and between their respective rollers and inserted into their respective heating chambers |13 and the burners lighted for melting the portion of the strips within these chambers, the machine may be advanced by an operator while grasping the handle bar |48. The melted material will then be discharged through the bottoms -of the distributors |16 to cover an area with the melted sealing material prior to the paper being laid upon that area and pressed into position by the roller I 41'.

'It will be observed, since the strip material is fed into the melting chambers |13 at the same speed at which the paper is unwound for laying' upon the surface, that the amount of sealing material deposited beneath the paper can be accurately determined by using a strip of selected cross-sectional area. The amount of fuel consumed in the combustion chambers '|13, such amount being regulated by the control handles |82, will be determined by the cross-sectional fed into one or more chambers.

A further advantage of employing a plurality of burners and combustion chambers for melting the material is that the distributors can be shortened so that the sealing liquid may flow a shorter distance before being discharged.

I claim: l. A crevice filling vehicular machine comprising a frame, means on said frame for holding a length of thermoplastic crevice filler strip chorage for the strip whereby it is caused to pay out asv the machine is advanced along the crevice.

,guide means on said frame, said guide means being disposed for embracing an unwound section of said strip night adjacently to the portion inserted in the crevice and in registry with and in close proximity with the crevice for directing the payed out strip into the crevice during such advancement of the machine, means for heating said strip flight to increase its plasticity and thus facilitate the disposal of the stripl into said crevice, and means for disposition in registry with the crevice in trailing relation with respect to said guide means and for pressing the heated strip into the crevice pursuant to advance of the machine.

2. In a vehicular machine for depositing a wound but unwindable sealing strip which is meltable when subjected to heat, the combination of holding means for such a wound strip and adapted for the unwinding of such strip pursuant to advancement of the machine while the free end of the strip is held fast, a heated passage for receiving the strip as it unwinds, andr filled.

4. In a machine for meting out and depositing within a traversed path a strip of sealing material which becomes tacky when subjected to heat, the combination of strip holding means path. and heater means for shrouding a. section of the strip between said strip holding means and said guiding means, and the heatintensity of said heater means being regulatable in intensity to melt only the outer portion of said strip as it passes therethrough for guiding to the place of deposit.

5. In a machine for meting out and depositing within a traversed path a strip of sealing material-which becomes tacky when subjected to heat, the combination of strip holding means fr om which the strip can be withdrawn endwise, guiding means for directing the meted out portion of the strip predeterminedly into said path, a heater passage for shrouding a section of the strip between said strip holding means and said guiding means, and torch means adapted to direct a flame substantially upon the shrouded section of a strip.

6. In a mobile machine for lling paving crevices or the like with a preformed strip which becomes tacky when heated, the combination of means adapted to axially feed said strip, guiding means for directing the strip into the crevice as it is fed from said holding means, heater means adapted to enclose a section of the strip between said feeding means and said guiding means, a heating roller to the rear of said guiding means and adapted to press the strip into the crevice as the machine advances, and said heating roller formingl a side wall of said heating means. A

7. In a machine for lling a paving crevice or the like with a preformed strip, the combination of means for axially feeding said strip, a guide roller adapted to bear weight of the machine and projectable into the crevice to cause the machine to follow said crevice, a cleaner brush rotatable about an axis disposed transversely of the machine and of a width to enable the bristles thereof to project downwardly into the crevice, a crevice liner applicator member rearwardly of said brush and also rotatable about an axis disposed transversely of the machine and of a width and diameter to provide for its projecting downwardly into the crevice, a reservoir above said applicator member, means for directing contents of the reservoir upon said applicator member, means actuated by said guide roller for rotating said applicator member and for rotating said brush in the opposite direction of said roller during machine advancement, and means rearwardly of said applicator member for receiving and directing the axially fed strip into the crevice.

8. In a machine for filling a paving crevice or the like with a preformed strip, the combination of means for axially feeding said strip, a roller adapted to bear `weight of the machine, means projecting into the crevice to cause the machine to follow the crevice, a cleaner brush rotatable about an axis disposed transversely of the machine and of a width to enable the bristles thereof to project downwardly into the crevice, a crevice liner applicator member rearwardly of said brush and also rotatable about an axis disposed transversely of the machine and of a width and diameter to provide for its projecting downwardly into the crevice, a reservoir above said applicator member, means for directing contents of the reservoir upon said applicator member, means actuated by said roller for rotating said applicator member and for rotating said brush in the opposite direction of said roller during machine advancement, and means rearwardly of said applicator member for receiving and directing the axially fed strip into the crevice.

9. In a machine for filling paving crevices or the like with' a preformed strip that tends to liquify when heated, running gear for said machine, a brush member rotatable about an axis disposed transversely of the machine, operating means for said brush and actuated by said running gear for rotating said brush in the opposite direction .to the rotation of said running gear, means adapted to axially feed said strip, means for guiding the axially fed strip into the crevice, and heater means embracing a portion of the strip between said strip feeding means and said guiding means and adapted to heat at least a surface portion of said strip'for transforming such portion of the strip into a semi-liquid condition.

10. In a machine for filling paving crevices or the like with a preformed strip, a running gear including a plurality of rollers of which at least a portion are adapted to project down-- wardly into a crevice to serve as guide means for the machine, an applicator member rotatable about an axis transversely of said machine and adapted to project downwardly into said crevice, means for rotating said applicator, a reservoir on said machine including means for directing contents thereof onto said applicator member, means adapted to axially feed said strip, means rearwardly of said applicator member for receiving and directing the fed portion of the strip into said crevice, and heating means adapted to enclose a portion of the ,strip disposed between said holding means and said guiding means and operable to heat at least the surface portion of the strip to transform such portion into a semiiiuid state preparatory to being directed into the crevice by said guiding means.

1l. The method of lling a crevice with a ller strip-having a surface portion convertible into a, semi-liquid when sufliciently heated, comprising the steps of conveying a wound unit of such strip along the crevice, unwinding the strip from the unit during such conveyance, heating the strip as it unwinds from the unit to so convert said surface portion thereof, and depositing the heated strip in the crevice.

12. A crevice filling vehicular machine comprising a frame, means on said frame for holding a length of thermoplastic crevice filler strip in a manner that it is payable out endwise therefrom so a portion of a flight payed out from said holding means is insertable in a section of a crevice to be lled by the strip to provide an anchorage for the strip whereby it is caused to pay out as the machine is advanced along the crevice, means for heating said strip flight to increase its plasticity and thus facilitate the disposal thereof into said crevice, and means connected with said frame in position to bear upon the portion of the strip flight substantially as it is inserted into the crevice and for pressing upon the inserted portion of said strip iiight for forcing the same into the crevice.

ALBERT C. FISCHER.

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