Durable cutting edges with variable density wear protector

Abstract

A cutting edge of a machine is fabricated by cutting one or more grooves within a base cutting edge and incorporating one or more hard tiles in the grooves. An edge groove may be cut into a ground-engaging edge of the cutting edge and hard tiles may be disposed therein. Additionally, a face groove may be cut into a corner of the cutting edge, within which hard tiles may be disposed. At the face of the cutting edge, distanced from the ground-engaging edge, a wear indicator groove may be cut and wear indicator tiles may be disposed therein. Furthermore, laser-clad abrasion resistant material may be provided on a face of the cutting edge to improve the wear resistance of the face. Further still, the corners of the cutting edge may be rounded at its end(s) to remove the sharp corners that wear faster than the rest of the cutting edge.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cutting edge, comprising:
 a ground-engaging edge;   an end edge; and   a face extending up to the ground-engaging edge and the end edge;   a face wear protector disposed on the face, wherein:
 a first portion of the face wear protector is disposed in a first region, 
 a second portion of the face wear protector is disposed in a second region, the second region more distal from the end edge than the first region, and 
 the first portion of the face wear protector has a greater areal density than the second portion of the face wear protector. 
   
     
     
         2 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , wherein the face wear protector comprises tungsten carbide (WC). 
     
     
         3 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , wherein the face wear protector is disposed on the face in a crisscross shape. 
     
     
         4 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , wherein the face wear protector has a hardness exceeding 65 Rockwell Hardness Scale C (HRC). 
     
     
         5 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , wherein the face wear protector protrudes from the face in a range of about 0.5 millimeter (mm) to about 3 mm. 
     
     
         6 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a first wear indicator tile disposed within a first groove within the face, the first wear indicator tile at a predetermined distance from the ground-engaging edge, wherein the face wear protector is disposed more proximal to the ground-engaging edge than the first wear indicator tile.   
     
     
         7 . The cutting edge of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a first tile disposed within a first groove within the ground-engaging edge.   
     
     
         8 . The cutting edge of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 a second tile disposed within a second groove at an interface of the ground-engaging edge and the face, the second tile including a first facet, a second facet, a third facet, a fourth facet, and a ridge between the first facet, the second facet, the third facet, and the fourth facet.   
     
     
         9 . A method of fabricating a cutting edge, comprising:
 forming a base cutting edge using steel, the base cutting edge including a ground-engaging edge, an end edge, and a face extending to the ground-engaging edge and the end edge;   laser cladding a first portion of a face wear protector on a first region of the face; and   laser cladding a second portion of the face wear protector on a second region, the second region more distal from the end edge than the first region, wherein the first portion of the face wear protector has a greater areal density than the second portion of the face wear protector.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein laser cladding the first portion of the face wear protector uses tungsten carbide (WC) powder. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the face wear protector is disposed on the face in a crisscross shape. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the face wear protector protrudes from the face in a range of about 0.5 millimeter (mm) to about 3 mm. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 cutting a first groove into the face at a predetermined distance from the ground-engaging edge; and   providing a first wear indicator tile within the first groove.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 rounding a corner between the ground-engaging edge and the end edge to form a rounded corner.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 cutting a first groove into the ground-engaging edge; and   providing a first tile within the first groove.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 cutting a second groove into an interface between the ground-engaging edge and the face; and   providing a second tile within the second groove, wherein the first tile is harder than the second tile.   
     
     
         17 . A machine, comprising:
 a tool; and   a cutting edge disposed on the tool, the cutting edge further comprising:
 a ground-engaging edge; 
 an end edge; 
 a face extending up to the ground-engaging edge and the end edge; and 
 a face wear protector disposed on the face, wherein:
 a first portion of the face wear protector is disposed in a first region, 
 a second portion of the face wear protector is disposed in a second region, the second region more distal from the end edge than the first region, and 
 the first portion of the face wear protector has a greater areal density than the second portion of the face wear protector. 
 
   
     
     
         18 . The machine of  claim 17 , wherein the cutting edge comprises a rounded corner between the ground-engaging edge and the end edge, wherein the rounded corner is at least one of a quarter circle, chamfered, or fillet. 
     
     
         19 . The machine of  claim 17 , further comprising a first wear indicator tile disposed within a first groove within the face, the first groove a predetermined distance from the ground-engaging edge. 
     
     
         20 . The machine of  claim 17 , further comprising an edge tile disposed within a first groove within the ground engaging edge.