Patent attributes
Apparatus for placing pipe piling (90, 90′) in the ground including a support frame (10) and a motor (66) mounted on the support frame (10). The motor (66) has a downwardly extending rotary output shaft (68) which extends into an opening (70) in a drive head (76). Rotation of the output shaft (68) by the motor (66) will rotate the drive head (76) about a vertical axis. The drive head (76) is drivenly connectable to the upper end portion of the pipe piling (90, 90′). A clamping apparatus is mounted on lower side portions of the support frame. The clamping apparatus includes a pair of horizontally disposed linear hydraulic actuators (128). Each actuator comprises a fixed outer end portion (130) and a retractable/extendable/rotatable inner end portion (132). A pair of pipe piling engaging clamps (148, 150) are connected to the inner end portions (132) of the actuators (128). The clamps (148, 150) confront each other across space between them. The clamps (148, 150) are adapted to receive between them a section of the pipe piling (90, 90′). The actuators (128) can be retracted to move clamps (148, 150) apart and provide between them a pipe piling receiving space. The actuators (128) can be extended to move the clamps (148, 150) toward each other and into clamping engagement with a pipe piling (90, 90′) that has been placed into space between the clamps (148, 150).
