Method And Apparatus For Incorporating Already Used And Extracted Infill Into The Subsurface Of A Newly Installed Field

Abstract

Particulate infill from a worn down infilled artificial turf, particularly a sand/rubber mixture which includes crumb rubber from vehicle tires, is extracted from a prior field and then thereafter incorporated into the top surface of the compacted base at the same site, thereby to assure better drainage conditions in the compacted base for the subsequently installed field. The extracted and incorporated infill helps to maintain open drainage channels throughout the top of the compacted base, particularly in areas where limestone is prevalent. Otherwise, the limestone fines are susceptible to compacting and creating a cement-like crust at the top of the base. An existing infill extractor/collector device is modified to operate in a second mode, so that instead of merely performing the conventional bagging of the already-used infill, the already-used infill is laterally diverted back on to the base at the same site, and thereafter, distributed and tilled into the base. By incorporating the extracted infill into the base of the new field, the need to bag, remove, and dispose of the used infill is eliminated, along with the time and costs associated therewith, while at the same time improving the drainage of the new field. Two structures for diverting the collected infill are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of installing a new athletic field at the site of an existing infilled artificial turf field, the existing infilled artificial turf residing on a compacted base, comprising: moving a strip of the infilled artificial turf upwardly from the base, extracting infill from the moved strip, and then placing the strip of artificial turf back on the base; and directing the extracted infill onto the base in a location that is laterally adjacent to the placed strip of artificial turf.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising: with respect to the extracted infill residing on the base, thereafter incorporating the extracted infill into the base to reduce compaction near the top surface thereof, so as to promote better drainage for the new athletic field to be subsequently installed thereover.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the incorporating further comprises: spreading the extracted infill so as to uniformly distribute the infill on the base; and tilling the distributed infill into the fines located within the upper surface of the base so as to incorporate the infill within the fines.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the moving, extracting, placing, and directing occur via the use of an extractor/collector which includes an extractor portion for extracting infill from the strip and a collector portion adapted to collect extracted infill, wherein the collector portion is configured to be operable in one of two modes, a collection mode whereby the extracted infill is collected, and also in a diverting mode whereby the extracted infill is laterally directed back onto the base along a laterally located line parallel to and spaced from the path of the extractor/collector, for subsequent incorporation into the upper surface thereof, and further comprising: using the diverting mode.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the collector portion of the extractor/collector includes a removable diverter plate operatively connected thereto, and further comprising: during the diverting mode, laterally diverting via the diverting plate the extracted infill from the extractor/collector to a position on the base that is located alongside the replaced strip of artificial turf from which the infill has been extracted.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the extractor/collector has an infill collection bin, and an auger extension chute is removably mounted to the infill collection bin, and further comprising: diverting the extracted infill directly from the infill collection bin to the side of the extractor/collector via the auger extension chute.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the collected and extracted infill comprises at least one of the following: sand, rubber, sand/rubber mixture, coated sand, and organic particulate.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein the collector portion includes an infill collector bag that is engaged by the diverter plate, and the infill collector bag has an open bottom end, and further comprising: causing the infill to flow through the infill collector bag in a downward direction to the base.

9. A method of installing an athletic field on a compacted base comprising: placing already-used and extracted infill on the compacted base, and thereafter incorporating the placed infill into a top surface of the compacted base, thereby to enhance the porosity of the top surface of the base so as to facilitate drainage for a field subsequently installed thereover.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the upper surface of the base extends to a depth of about 3 inches.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the already-used and extracted infill has been extracted from an already existing infilled artificial turf located at the same site as the compacted base.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the extracted infill includes crumb rubber.

13. An apparatus for extracting and collecting particulate infill from an infilled artificial turf field, thereby to facilitate reuse of the collected infill at the same site for a new field or for repurposing of the collected infill for a different use at the same site, comprising: a vehicle having a first forward end and a second rearward end; an infill extractor located at the first end of the vehicle and adapted to extract infill from a strip of the infilled athletic turf field as the vehicle moves therealong, whereby the extracted infill falls into a bottom section of the infill extractor; an infill mover secured to the vehicle and adapted to move the extracted infill from the bottom section of the infill extractor toward the second end of the vehicle; an infill receiver including a wheel-supported frame connected to the second end of the vehicle and operable to cooperate with the infill mover to receive the moved infill, the infill receiver operable in an infill collection mode with a bag suspended on the frame for receiving extracted infill, and also operable in a diverting mode whereby extracted and collected infill is moved laterally to the side, so as to form a row of deposited infill extending alongside the direction of movement of the vehicle.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 and further comprising: a diverter plate mounted on the frame which co-acts with a bottomless bag held within the frame thereby to divert the extracted and collected infill through the bottomless bag.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 and further comprising: an auger extension chute mounted to the infill collection bin to enable the extracted infill to move directly to the side of the vehicle.

16. An athletic field located on a compacted base at an athletic field site and having been made according to the process comprising: removing from the same site an existing infilled athletic turf and extracting the already-used infill from the removed turf; and incorporating the extracted infill into a top surface of the compacted base, prior to installing the athletic field thereover, whereby the extracted and incorporated infill enhances the drainage characteristics of the compacted base and the athletic field which is subsequently installed thereover.

17. The athletic field of claim 16 wherein the athletic field is a newly installed infilled artificial turf.

18. The athletic field of claim 16 wherein the extracted and incorporated infill includes crumb rubber from vehicle tires.

19. The athletic field of claim 16 wherein the infill has been extracted by an extractor/collector equipped with an extractor unit and a collector unit.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein directing the extracted infill onto the base includes depositing the extracted infill onto the base to form at least one pile of extracted infill having a vertical height of between about 2 feet and about 3 feet above the base.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a field showing an extractor/collector of the PCT '514 application modified to divert the collected infill laterally into a row located next to the strip of turf that is being placed back on the base.

[0025] FIG. 2 is a side view of the same structure shown in FIG. 1, with the trailing cart of the extractor/collector equipped with a diverter plate to divert the bottom end of an open ended sack to the side of the travel path.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a rear view of the same structure shown in FIG. 2.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a side view of an alternative embodiment of the invention, with the bottom end of the collector auger removed and an outlet chute bolted in the same place.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a spreader for distributing the deposited parallel rows of infill.

[0029] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a device for incorporating the distributed infill into the base.

[0030] FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of a field including a subsurface or base having repurposed infill incorporated therein, a layer of turf, and fresh infill, in accordance with an aspect of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] This specification refers to the infill extractor/collector 10 disclosed in the above-described PCT '514 application, and particularly to FIG. 9 thereof, which shows a trailing infill collection cart 12. With the present invention, the bag 14 of the trailing cart 12 is modified so as to be operable in an infill diverting mode, for incorporation of the extracted infill 18 into the compacted base 20. To do this, the bag 14 held within the frame 22 has an open bottom end 14a, and the infill 18 is received in the bag 14 as in the conventional collector mode. However, the infill 18 is not collected. Instead, a diverter, e.g. a plate 24 held at an angle that is temporarily mounted within the cart 12, is arranged to hold the bag 14 such that the open bottom end 14a is moved laterally from the forward facing direction of the extractor device 10. In use, in this configuration, the infill 18 falls from the auger 26 and into the bag 14. But instead of being collected in the bottom of the bag 14, the infill 18 is instead routed through the bag 14 and redirected in a lateral direction out the open bottom end 14a, due to the orientation and the location of the diverter 24. This creates an elongated laterally located pile 28 of infill 18 along the compacted base 20, located next to the travel path of the infill extractor/collector 10. The structure of the PCT '514 application that relates to the present invention is primarily shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 9, 10A, 10B thereof.

[0032] Moreover, along with the diverter 24, the bag 14 used in this example includes a hole 14a at the bottom, to enable infill 18 to be diverted laterally away from the travel path of the infill extractor/collector 10.

[0033] FIG. 1 shows a series of parallel rows/piles 28 of redirected infill residing on a compacted base 20, as a result of the redirecting of infill 18 via the device 10, with an open ended bag 14 and a diverter 24 in place. A turf windup device 30 may follow the extractor/collector 10, to collect, i.e., by rolling up, the strip of turf from which the infill has been extracted. FIG. 1 shows parallel rows 28 of already-used and collected infill 18 in place on the base 20, so that this infill 18 can be readily repurposed for use at the same field site 50, but for use other than as an infill for the new artificial turf. The extracted and collected infill 18 may be deposited onto the base 20 into piles 28 having a fairly low vertical height, i.e., about 2 to 3 feet above the surface in order to reduce the impact of wind during the depositing process.

[0034] FIGS. 2 and 3 show side and rear views of the cart 12, respectively, as modified with the diverter plate 24 and the open ended bag 14. Installing a diverter plate 24 and cutting the bag 14 open is the easiest and quickest way to modify this device 10 from its traditional collection mode.

[0035] FIG. 4 is a side view of an alternative embodiment of the invention, for initially depositing the extracted infill 18 on the base 20 alongside the extractor/collector device 60. More specifically, in FIG. 4 the lower end of the collector auger of the extractor/collector 60 is removed and replaced with a generally horizontally oriented auger extension chute 66. Preferably, this chute 66 is removably mounted directly to the infill extracting apparatus 60. This modified structure eliminates the need for the conveyor (or auger) and the corresponding rear cart 12. Instead, the collected infill 18 is routed outwardly from the initial collection volume to an exit point located generally above and outside of, e.g. transverse to, the tread of the vehicle 60. One advantage to this approach is that the driver of the vehicle 60 can more readily see the infill 18 being diverted onto the base 20 as it occurs.

[0036] FIG. 5 shows spreading of the rows 28 of extracted and directed infill 18, via a drag mechanism 70 attached to the rear of a vehicle 72, similar to a device used to drag the dirt infield of a baseball field. This spreads and distributes the previously used infill 18 over the entire surface of the base 20.

[0037] FIG. 6 shows a device 80 known as Blecavator, which is used to till, or incorporate, the extracted and spread and distributed infill 18 into the top surface of the base 20. This Blecavator device 80 includes rotating tines 82 which dig downwardly into the compacted base 20 and pull the compacted material upward to facilitate its distribution within and among the extracted infill 18. Typically, with one to two passes of this device 80 over the surface, the extracted sand and rubber infill 18 becomes substantially uniformly incorporated into the subsurface for the field 50, along with the fines that were previously located at the top of the compacted subsurface, and the presence of this incorporated sand and rubber helps to prevent the limestone fines from crusting back together. More specifically, incorporating the infill mixture 18 of sand and rubber into the top three inches of the base 20 prevents the limestone fines from crusting back together. Once the extracted infill 18 has been sufficiently incorporated into the top of the base 20, the top surface thereof is sufficiently leveled and compacted in a manner sufficient to thereafter install a new (or previously used) turf field surface 40 on top, including one which may now make use of a new type of infill material 90, as shown in FIG. 7. For example, the new infill material 90 may be distributed among grass-like fibers 92 that are attached, i.e., as by tufting, to a primary 94 of the artificial turf component, and the primary 94 may reside on a pad 96 which in turn resides on the base 20 that has the repurposed infill 18 incorporated therein.

[0038] Thus, as described, the present invention involves a simple modification to an existing device, namely the extractor/collector disclosed in the PCT '514 application, so that that device can be used in its original, or conventional mode, to continue to collect and bag extracted infill from a worn out infilled artificial turf. Alternatively, as shown in FIGS. 1-3, the modified device 10 can redirect the extracted and collected infill 18 back onto the compacted subsurface 20, for incorporation into the upper crust thereof, so as to hinder the further compaction of limestone fines into a cement-like structure. Still further, as shown in FIG. 4, a horizontal auger extension 66 can be temporarily mounted to the side of the device 60, such as to the infill collection bin, to achieve the same result. The present invention enables vertical drainage channels to form within the top surface of the base 20 and to remain in place, primarily because the reclaimed infill 18, particularly the resilient crumb rubber particles, prevents the top surface from crusting into an impenetrable barrier within the top 1-3 inches.

[0039] To the extent that the reclaimed crumb rubber from the worn out synthetic turf has not been removed from the field site, but instead has been repurposed into a lower level of the field, within the subsurface, it still remains above the water table. In this condition it presents no greater environmental concern than it previously did, when it resided above the artificial component of the turf as the infill particulate. Moreover, relocating of the crumb rubber particles below the artificial components enables the field owner to make use of newer, more environmentally progressive infills within the artificial turf surface. Thus, the overall environment situation with respect to the water table is made no worse, while the environmental situation with respect to the infill for the artificial turf itself may have been improved.

[0040] To test this concept, applicant used three trial plots. One trial plot had an infill comprising 100% rubber. Another one used an infill with a one-to-one ratio of sand and rubber, by weight, and a third trial plot used a two-to-one ratio of sand to rubber, by weight. For each of these three trial plots, applicant mixed in fine gravel, to mimic the tilled result of incorporating an extracted infill into the uppermost surface of a base at an existing field site. Applicant then spread the three sample mixtures over coarse #57 gravel, to simulate the compacted base onto which an artificial turf is typically installed.

[0041] For each of the three sample plots, one half of the plot had a pad installed below the artificial turf, while the other half did not have a pad. Artificial turf was then installed over the entire trial area and infilled with a sand/rubber mixture. Applicant took G-Max readings (a measure of surface harness) several days later, in an effort to detect any difference resulting from variation in sand/rubber ratios, the infills, or the presence or the absence of the pad. In each case, the pad resulted in a lower G-Max rating relative to the absence of a pad, but for each of the three plots the sand rubber incorporation ratio made no difference.

[0042] Two months later, applicant again took G-Max readings of the three trial plots and again saw no differences based on infill variation. Thereafter, the artificial turf was rolled back from the no-pad halves of the samples to enable the top surfaces of the test bases to be exposed to the elements. After about six weeks, these sample no-pad half sections were analyzed for infill migration. This was done by cutting sections through the incorporation layer and into the #57 gravel layer located therebelow, to determine if any separation, i.e. any horizontal stratification, had occurred between the infill mixture and the fine gravel. No such stratification was detected. In other words, the fine gravel remained thoroughly mixed with the incorporated infill material. Applicant concluded that the infill material remained intermixed with the gravel at the top surface of the base, regardless of the sand/rubber ratio of the infill material. Applicant also concluded that the incorporated mixture minimized the likelihood of compaction over time, and that vertical infiltration rates for the resulting base would be maintained at an acceptable level.

[0043] Based on these test results, applicant believes that the present invention eliminates the need for the current field owner to dispose of between 250,000 and 750,000 pounds of extracted infill from the original field, and thereby represents a significant cost savings for the field owner. Moreover, by incorporating the extracted infill into the top surface of the compacted base, the field owner improves on the existing drainage conditions for the base located at the site of the new athletic field. For those who are responsible for removing an existing field and replacing it with a new field, the present invention simplifies that process, by eliminating the need to bag and collect all of the used and collected infill and then to move the bagged and collected infill to another site. The elimination of these steps presents a significant savings of time and cost for these tasks. Further, the present invention eliminates the need to dispose of the infill at a landfill, and thus represents a significant environmental advantage.

[0044] Those skilled in the art will understand and appreciate that this specification explains the details of the present invention in the context of several exemplary embodiments, and that those exemplary embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, or to be used to limit the scope of the following claims. Further, those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the objects set forth in this specification are not intended to be construed as limitations. Rather, they are intended to provide the reader with a practical understanding of the various benefits achieved via certain aspects of the present invention, particularly according to the presently disclosed preferred embodiments. Also, each claim of this specification recites a combination of subject matter features that applicant considers to be new, useful, and obvious over the prior art, regardless of whether that subject matter achieves one or more of the above-described objects, or maybe even only partially achieves one or more of those objects. This specification explains the story of this invention, i.e. how it came to be, and why it represents an improvement over the existing state of the art. Applicant does not intend for this specification to be used as a roadmap by a would-be infringer to focus unduly on the above-stated objects of the invention, rather than the claims themselves. Stated alternatively, applicant does not intend that each of the appended claims is required to achieve every one of the above-stated objects, and those skilled in the art will understand that.