Abstract

A vacuum-assisted hole digger includes a central vacuum tube extending at an upper end from a handle assembly to a digger head assembly attached at a lower end, the digger head including a scraper blade assembly within a housing formed of an orifice plate and saw blade. The orifice plate attaches to the central vacuum tube, an extraction aperture formed in the orifice plate opening into the tube. Air entry apertures formed in the orifice plate outside of the vacuum tube have a total area smaller than the area of the evacuation aperture, which obtains enhanced airflow rates through the digger housing upon connection of the upper vacuum tube opening with a vacuum source. The blade edges of the scraper blade assembly abrasively engage the soil face when digging in a manner that obtains reduction in soil particle size and enhances soil particle airflow entrainment.

IPC Classes  ?

• E02F 3/88 - DredgersSoil-shifting machines mechanically-driven with arrangements acting by a sucking or forcing effect, e.g. suction dredgers
• E02F 7/00 - Equipment for conveying or separating excavated material
• E02F 3/02 - DredgersSoil-shifting machines hand-operated