Lock assembly for an excavator wear member

Abstract

A lock assembly for an excavator wear assembly, the lock assembly a locking pin having at least one dowel extending outwardly therefrom. The lock assembly also includes a retaining member having a seat and a cavity and a biasing member located within the cavity of the retaining member. The biasing member is adapted to exert a biasing force on the dowel to releasably retain the dowel within the seat of the retaining member.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A lock assembly for releasably securing an excavator wear member to a separate spigot portion of an adapter, the lock assembly comprising:
 a locking pin having at least one dowel extending outwardly therefrom; 
 a retaining member which is a separate part from the wear member and the adapter and which has a body with a seat and a cavity, the body being configured to be received into a locking aperture of the excavator wear member, and the retaining member also has a ramp extending from within the cavity of the retaining member and terminating outwardly of an exterior surface of the retaining member; and 
 a biasing member located within the cavity of the retaining member; 
 wherein the biasing member is adapted to exert a biasing force on the dowel to releasably retain the dowel within the seat of the retaining member. 
 
     
     
       2. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a detent extends outwardly from a body of the retaining member. 
     
     
       3. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein at least one slot is located through an exterior surface of the retaining member. 
     
     
       4. The lock assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the at least one slot is adapted to receive the dowel of the locking pin. 
     
     
       5. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the biasing member is releasably secured within the cavity of the retaining member. 
     
     
       6. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the seat is formed on an underside of an exterior surface of the retaining member. 
     
     
       7. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the seat is axially offset from a slot formed in an exterior surface of the retaining member. 
     
     
       8. The lock assembly of  claim 1 , wherein a passage is formed between an upper face of the biasing member and an underside of an exterior surface of the retaining member. 
     
     
       9. The lock assembly of  claim 8 , wherein the seat forms part of the passage. 
     
     
       10. The lock assembly of  claim 8 , wherein a land forms part of the passage such that the distance between the land and the upper face of the biasing member is smaller than a cross sectional dimension of the dowel. 
     
     
       11. The lock assembly of  claim 8 , wherein an angled guide surface forms part of the passage, the angled guide surface extending from a slot formed in an exterior surface of the retaining member towards the seat. 
     
     
       12. The lock assembly of  claim 8 , wherein the passage is adapted to receive the dowel when the locking pin is axially rotated such that the dowel is forced against a surface of the biasing member within the passage prior to location of the dowel within the seat. 
     
     
       13. An excavator wear assembly comprising:
 an excavator wear member having: 
 a socket cavity that is configured to receive a spigot portion of an adapter; and 
 a locking aperture extending through a side wall of the excavator wear member, the locking aperture having a receiving passage and a retaining recess that are separate from the spigot portion of the adapter; 
 a lock assembly having: 
 a locking pin having at least one dowel extending outwardly therefrom; 
 a retaining member which is a separate part from the excavator wear member and adapter but which is located within the retaining recess of the locking aperture, the retaining member having a body with a seat and a cavity and the retaining member also having a ramp extending from within the cavity of the retaining member and terminating outwardly of an exterior surface of the retaining member; 
 a biasing member located within the cavity of the retaining member; and 
 an adaptor having: 
 a spigot portion located within the socket cavity of the excavator wear member, and 
 a retaining passage; 
 wherein the locking pin is located through the locking aperture of the excavator wear member and the retaining passage of the adaptor and wherein the biasing member is adapted to exert a biasing force on the dowel of the locking pin to retain the dowel within the seat of the retaining member to thereby releasably retain the spigot portion of the adaptor within the socket cavity of the excavator wear member.