November 27, 2024 XJack

Cutting Through Winter: The Evolution of Snow Blades in Snow Removal

Snow can cause significant inconvenience for travel, and in some cases, even lead to serious traffic accidents. Therefore, clearing snow becomes an essential "task" set by winter. So, how can we effectively tackle this task?

To tackle the winter snow removal challenge, over the years, a wide range of workers, including meteorologists and researchers, have been dedicated to finding solutions. They have not only conducted in-depth surveys of each city and snow-prone region but have also carried out extensive studies on the conditions of winter roads.

Since the early 2000s, major universities, research institutes, and companies worldwide have developed a variety of snow removal equipment tailored to local conditions, including snow blade, snow sweeping brushes (angled sweepers), snow blowers, and de-icer spreaders. These specialized tools have demonstrated their unique functionalities and have become indispensable snow removal assistants for municipal workers.

Among the snow removal equipment mentioned above, snow blades are the most commonly used. There are many types of snow blades in use worldwide, ranging from small plows designed for manual snow removal to large plows used for extensive snow clearing operations. Large snow blades are typically mounted on construction vehicles or heavy-duty trucks and are widely used for snow removal on regular roads and highways. They offer effective snow clearing and also expand the operational scope of the vehicles.

Moreover, in the northern winter, due to the low outdoor temperatures, construction work is often unsuitable, and heavy machinery like loaders are frequently idle. Municipal departments or road maintenance units can make full use of loaders' snow removal capabilities by purchasing snow blades, helping to avoid equipment idleness and waste.

The snow blade used on construction vehicles or automobiles, also known as a "snow blade," typically consists of a connection frame, a snow blade, and an angle adjuster. This is one of the most common types of snow blade on the market. The connection frame links the main unit to the snow blade and serves as a movable parallel structure, with the displacement of its connecting plane controlled by a hydraulic cylinder. The snow blade is usually an arc-shaped metal plate welding piece, with a protective cover on top and a metal cutting edge on the bottom.

While the snow blades commonly found on the market are widely used, they come with several issues.

However, this commonly used snow blade has several drawbacks, such as:

Metal Construction: The entire plow blade is made of metal, which has high hardness and a large contact area with the ground. This not only results in high friction but also makes it prone to damaging the road surface, adding extra maintenance costs for future city roads or highways.
Lack of Obstacle Avoidance Function: It lacks adaptability when encountering uneven surfaces. In the event of a hard impact, it cannot ensure the safety of the blade, leading to damage such as cracks, chips, or fractures in the blade or the entire plow.
Improper Curvature Design: The curvature of the plow blade is often not optimal. If the curve is too large, it may limit the amount of snow pushed; if it’s too small, snow piles may "leap" over the plow, leaving snow behind after the plowing process.
Ineffective on Compacted Snow and Ice: Due to its overall structure, standard snow blades are often ineffective at dealing with compacted snow or ice piles.

So, how can these issues be effectively addressed? To comprehensively enhance the safety and reliability of snow blades and achieve more efficient snow removal, Sibom Attachments has been continuously improving and optimizing its designs. Thanks to the efforts of the R&D team, two types of snow blade have been developed (due to space limitations, we will focus on snow blade for loaders and skid steer loaders, excluding truck and pickup truck snow blade):

1. Improved Conventional Road Snow blade

This type of snow blade, which can be mounted on a loader or skid steer loader, is designed for clearing larger layers of loose snow. It offers the following features:

a. The snow blade is equipped with automatic obstacle avoidance and auto-reset functions. When it encounters an obstacle (such as a raised surface), the lower blade will overcome the spring pressure and flip at a certain angle, ensuring that the equipment is not damaged. After passing over the obstacle, the blade will automatically return to its original position with the help of the spring, enhancing its ability to adapt to uneven road surfaces.

b. The snow blade uses hydraulic control for left and right steering, with a turning angle of ±30°, making it easy and quick to change the snow clearing direction. The operator can adjust the steering angle based on the vehicle's speed and the snow thickness, allowing for efficient snow removal on road surfaces.

c. The entire steel structure is reinforced, and the bottom is equipped with a replaceable wear-resistant blade. The blade is connected to the snow blade plate using bolts, allowing for quick replacement (nylon blades are available as an option).

d. The specially designed support wheels help reduce the impact of the blade on the road surface, protecting both the road and the blade.

After solving the problem of efficiently and quickly using snow blades for large-scale snow removal, another persistent challenge faced by industry professionals is how to handle snow removal in narrow spaces, such as sidewalks, bike lanes, and mountain roads.

In such cases, manual methods, such as using shovels and other tools, are commonly employed. However, these methods involve high labor intensity and generally low efficiency. While some improved equipment for manual snow removal has been introduced, these tools often have limited functions and incomplete performance. This is where the Sibom V-shaped snow blade comes into play.

2. Special V-Shaped Road Snow Blade

The Sibom foldable V-shaped snow blade features a clever, simple, and practical design. It is easy to operate and can significantly save labor costs.

Thanks to the compact size and maneuverability of skid-steer loaders, which can turn in place, they are well-suited for working in confined spaces and can operate on a variety of terrain surfaces. This unique advantage, along with their lightweight nature, sets them apart from other equipment. The Sibom V-shaped snow blade is a perfect match for skid-steers, creating an ideal combination for efficient snow removal in tight areas.

The V-shaped snow blade can be positioned into a "V" configuration to gather snow efficiently into a central pile, making it easier to move or remove the accumulated snow

In addition to its automatic obstacle-avoidance flip mechanism and reinforced steel structure, the Sibom V-Type Snow Blade also features the following advantages:

1. Equipped with double-acting hydraulic cylinders and an electromagnetically controlled valve, each plow blade can operate independently

2. The plow blades can adjust into various shapes and widths to accommodate different road conditions and requirements, allowing for lateral movement. Thanks to this flexibility in angle and blade shape, the V-Type Snow Blade can break down harder snow piles and even ice, making it more versatile and efficient across a wider range of applications.

Thanks to its well-engineered structure and functional design, the Sibom V-Type Snow Blade is highly recommended and poised to become a powerful tool for winter snow removal operations.

The Sibom Snow blade is crafted from high-quality materials, offering superior hardness, wear resistance, impact resistance, and strong resistance to bending. Its design minimizes localized deformation and reduces brittleness, ensuring the blade's stability and durability. During snow removal, the Sibom Snow Blade provides powerful cutting force, fast operation, and effectively clears large amounts of snow with high efficiency. Its robust build reduces the likelihood of malfunctions and extends its service life, earning recognition from many clients both domestically and internationally.

The above provides a brief overview of the functions and application scenarios of the snow blade. Attentive readers might now be wondering: when is it best to use a snow blade? When should a snow sweeper (angled broom) be used? And when does a snow blower or even a power snow blower become necessary?

Based on our experience, here’s a general guideline:

For snow thicker than 15 cm, a snow blade is recommended, while snow thinner than 15 cm is best cleared with a snow sweeper brush.