Curb & Gutter Machine Product

Overview

A curb and gutter machine extrudes concrete road curbing and roadside gutters in a single pass. The machine carries a Slipform Mold shaped to the required curb and gutter profile, fed concrete by a metering Concrete Auger Feeder, and propelled forward by Crawler Track System under the command of an operator watching Stringline & Edge Sensors for line and grade. It is powered by a Diesel Engine and steered through a Hydraulic Control & Steering system.

The essence is extrusion under vibration. Fresh concrete must flow consistently into the mold, be compacted as it moves through, and exit with smooth edges and uniform height. Stringline control and edge sensors keep the path straight and the grade level to within 5 mm over 100 m — tight enough for a clean ride and proper drainage.

How it works

The operator walks alongside or rides the machine, controlling forward speed via a variable-displacement pump or throttle-modulated auger. The Diesel Engine, typically a 4-cylinder diesel, drives a main hydraulic pump in the Hydraulic Power System that supplies pressure to the track drive motors, the auger feed motor, and the mold Vibratory Drive Unit units.

Concrete is deposited into the Material Hopper from a concrete truck, then pushed forward by the Auger Screw, a giant screw, into the back of the Mold Head Assembly. As the concrete enters the mold cavity, it is compressed and vibrated by the eccentric-drive vibrators running at 60–90 Hz. The concrete flows forward through the mold cavity, is shaped on all sides, and exits the front with the mold Mold Shoes riding on the prepared subgrade. The mold shoes, part of Slipform Mold, are ground-engaging wear parts replaced every few million linear metres.

Steering and line control are handled by the Stringline & Edge Sensors. A Stringline Laser Sensor senses a laser line projected across the cut, and an Curb Edge Sensor feeler wheel contacts the outside edge of the curb being formed. Signals from these sensors feed into the Sensor Logic Module, a hydraulic amplifier that biases the Directional Spool Valve to trim left and right Drive Sprocket speeds, keeping the machine parallel to the stringline and the curb edge true.

The Crawler Track System are rubber-over-steel tracks with individual track frames on each side, driven by motor-fed spools. Hydrostatic track motors allow the operator to steer with a single joystick; turning left reduces flow to the right track and increases it on the left. Slopes up to 15 % are normal on highway work; steeper grades are handled by slope-following mold designs.

All hydraulic lines are routed in the Hose Bundle bundle, protected and color-coded. The Hydraulic Tank serves as a reservoir and heat sink, and the Hydraulic Filter protects the pump from contamination. Pressure relief and flow-control circuits in the Operator Control Panel allow the operator to regulate auger speed, track speed, and mold vibration independently, matching the pace to concrete strength and subgrade conditions.