AU2011254089A1 - Road repair assembly and method of road repair - Google Patents

Abstract

ROAD REPAIR ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF ROAD REPAIR In a first aspect the invention concerns a road repair assembly (10). The road repair assembly comprises a wheeled trailer (12.1, 12.2) to be hitched to a vehicle (17). A ground engaging tool (14) is operatively associated with the trailer. The ground engaging tool is adapted in use to level a road surface when the vehicle causes the trailer to traverse 10 the road surface. The road repair assembly further comprises a compacting assembly (26) operatively associated with the trailer. The compacting assembly is adapted to compact the road surface levelled by the ground engaging tool. 5826081 I:AEM FIGURE 1 122 FIUR 21 3. 5 1

Description

S&F Ref: P018335 AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name and Address Geoffrey A Kull, of Applicant: of PO Box 418, Bowral, New South Wales, 2576, Australia Actual Inventor(s): Geoffrey A. Kull Address for Service: Spruson & Ferguson St Martins Tower Level 35 31 Market Street Sydney NSW 2000 (CCN 3710000177) Invention Title: Road repair assembly and method of road repair Associated Provisional Application Details: [33] Country: [31] Appl'n No(s): [32] Application Date: AU 2010905494 15 Dec 2010 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: 5845c(5837369_1) 1 ROAD REPAIR ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF ROAD REPAIR Field of the Invention The invention concerns a road repair assembly and a method of road repair. In particular, but not exclusively, the invention concerns a road repair assembly and a 5 method of repairing an unsealed road surface, particularly the surface of a gravel road. Background of the Invention Gravel roads in rural areas of Australia are normally serviced on an annual basis. In the northern regions of Australia, for example, gravel roads normally deteriorate to such an extent during annual service intervals that large sections of road often virtually 10 require reconstruction at the time of scheduled maintenance work. Servicing of gravel roads in the Northern Territory of Australia, for example, normally takes place towards the start of the dry season. After such servicing, or reconstruction as is often the case, the road surface is left to the elements, unless urgent maintenance is required that cannot be delayed until the next scheduled service. The is combined effects of traffic, wind, water erosion and general decomposition often renders the surface of a gravel road unsafe within a relative short period of time following scheduled maintenance work. Current methods of road maintenance utilise expensive earthmoving equipment and require suitably qualified personnel for operating such equipment. Employing 20 existing earthmoving equipment is expensive and daily progress tends to be slow. During a typical day a grading team can service about 3 to 6km of road at an average cost of between AU$2,000 and AU$3,000 per serviced kilometer. Due to the vast distances of unsealed roads in the rural areas of Australia it will be appreciated that progress of only a few kilometers a day will require substantial time and expense to ensure that all roads in a 25 particular rural road network undergo annual maintenance. Due to the fact that the surface of a gravel road tends to deteriorate relatively quickly after having undergone maintenance, there are prolonged periods of time during which the surface of the road is in a state of serious disrepair before the next scheduled service is to take place. During this time the road may not only damage vehicles 30 travelling therealong, but could also endanger the lives of road users. Object of the Invention It is the object of the present invention to substantially overcome or at least ameliorate one or more of the above disadvantages or to provide a useful alternative.

2 Summary of the Invention According to a first aspect of the present invention there is disclosed herein a road repair assembly comprising: a wheeled trailer to be hitched to a vehicle; 5 a ground engaging tool operatively associated with the trailer, the ground engaging tool adapted in use to level a road surface when the vehicle causes the trailer to traverse the road surface; and a compacting assembly operatively associated with the ground engaging tool, the compacting assembly being adapted to compact the road surface levelled by the ground 10 engaging tool. Preferably the trailer comprises a longitudinally extending trailer body, the trailer body having a road facing side which in use faces the road surface traversed by the trailer, wherein the ground engaging tool is attached to the road facing side of the trailer body. Preferably the trailer comprises a first longitudinal end adapted to be hitched to is the vehicle, and a second longitudinal end, the ground engaging tool being attached to the trailer at a position located between the first and second longitudinal ends. Preferably the ground engaging tool comprises a lifting formation adapted to move the ground engaging tool between (i) a storage position wherein the ground engaging tool is elevated above a road surface and (ii) a ground engaging position 20 wherein the ground engaging tool contacts the road surface so as in use to level the road surface as the trailer traverses the road surface. Preferably the trailer comprises a pivoting formation adapted to pivot the ground engaging tool between a rest orientation and a use orientation. Preferably the ground engaging tool in its use orientation extends beyond 25 longitudinal sides of the trailer. Preferably the pivoting formation comprises a slewing ring. Preferably the pivoting formation comprises a first hydraulic arrangement operatively associated with the slewing ring to pivot the ground engaging tool between the rest orientation and the use orientation. 30 Preferably the lifting formation comprises a second hydraulic arrangement adapted to move the ground engaging tool between the storage position and the ground engaging position. Preferably the ground engaging tool comprises a perimeter body, the perimeter body having a first and a second longitudinally extending side member and a transverse 35 end member longitudinally extending between the first and second side members, the 3 perimeter body defining an open end to allow road surface material to enter the ground engaging tool so as to be displaced across the road surface traversed by the trailer. Preferably the ground engaging tool comprises a plurality of ground engaging members secured in position between the first and second side members. 5 Preferably the ground engaging members are transversely spaced-apart and longitudinally co-extend between the first and second side members. Preferably the ground engaging members have curved outer surfaces. Preferably the road repair assembly includes a sweep operatively associated with the ground engaging tool, the sweep being moveable between an operative and an io inoperative position, in use the sweep being located in the operative position to gather loose material located at positions beyond the reach of the ground engaging tool. Preferably the road repair assembly comprises a liquid reservoir. Preferably the liquid reservoir is secured to an operative upper side of the trailer body. Is Preferably the road repair assembly comprises two liquid reservoirs, both liquid reservoirs being secured to the operative upper side of the trailer body. Preferably the road repair assembly includes a liquid supply system for feeding liquid from the liquid reservoir(s) to a liquid outlet to dispense liquid onto the road surface to be traversed by the trailer. 20 Preferably the liquid outlet is arranged on the trailer so as to dispense liquid onto a section of the road surface located in a direction of travel of the ground engaging tool. Preferably the compacting assembly comprises a row of wheels. Preferably the compacting assembly comprises three rows of eight wheels each. Preferably two rows of wheels of the compacting assembly are axially moveable 25 relative to the axis of rotation of the wheels between a (i) driving position wherein the wheels of the compacting assembly are located between longitudinal sides of the trailer and (ii) a road repair position wherein the wheels are located beyond the longitudinal sides of the trailer. Preferably the road repair assembly comprises an exhaust gas handling system to 30 provide fluid communication between an exhaust outlet of the vehicle and the ground engaging tool. According to a second aspect of the present invention there is disclosed herein a method of road repair comprising the steps of: providing a road repair assembly in accordance with the first aspect; 4 traversing a first section of a road surface with the road repair assembly so as to level the first section with the ground engaging tool and; compacting with the compacting arrangement the levelled first section of the road surface while the ground engaging tool levels a second section of the road surface. 5 Preferably the method comprises the step of dispensing water onto the road surface while the ground engaging tool is levelling the road surface. Preferably the water is dispensed on a section of the road surface located in a direction of travel of the ground engaging tool. Brief Description of the Drawings 10 Preferred embodiments of the invention will be described hereinafter, by way of examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a first embodiment road repair assembly; Figure 2 is a schematic top view of the first embodiment road repair assembly; Figure 3 is a schematic side view of a second embodiment road repair assembly; 15 Figure 4 is a schematic top view of a ground engaging tool for use in the first and second embodiment road repair assembly; Figure 5 is a schematic front view of the ground engaging tool of Figure 4; Figure 6 is a schematic top view of a second embodiment ground engaging tool; Figure 7 is a schematic top view of a third embodiment ground engaging tool; 20 and Figure 8 is a schematic top view of a fourth embodiment ground engaging tool. Description of Preferred Embodiments In the description which follows below, like reference numerals will be used to indicate like components. 25 Figure 1 and Figure 2 show a first embodiment road repair assembly 10. The road repair assembly 10 comprises wheeled trailers 12.1 and 12.2 which are hitched to a prime mover 17. A ground engaging tool 14 is secured to a longitudinally extending trailer body, here in the form of a trailer bed 13 of the trailer 12.1. The trailer bed 13 has a road facing side 23 which in use faces a road surface to be traversed by the trailer 12.1. 30 The ground engaging tool 14 is attached to the road facing side of the trailer bed 13. The trailer 12.1 comprises a first longitudinal end 19 adapted to be hitched to the prime mover 17, in a conventional manner, and a set of wheels 21, located towards a second 5 longitudinal end 25 of the trailer 12.1. The ground engaging tool 14 is located in a position located between the first and second longitudinal ends 19 and 25. The ground engaging tool 14 is moveable between an elevated storage position, not illustrated, wherein it is elevated above a road surface, and a ground engaging 5 position depicted in Figure 1, wherein the ground engaging tool 14 contacts the road surface 27. During road maintenance activities the ground engaging tool 14 is located in the ground engaging position in order to level a road surface as will be described below. When the road repair assembly 10, however, is required to be transported from, for example, a depot to a work site, the ground engaging tool 14 is elevated above the road io surface into the storage position in which it is prevented from contacting the ground or road surface along which the trailer 12.1 travels. The trailer 12.1 comprises a pivoting formation, generally indicated with the reference numeral 16, whereby the ground engaging tool 14 can be pivoted between a rest orientation and a use orientation. The use orientation of the ground engaging tool 14 is is illustrated in Figure 2. It will be noted that in the use orientation the ground engaging tool 14 extends beyond the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailer 12.1. It will be appreciated that this feature allows the ground engaging tool 14 to level sections of a road surface located beyond the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailer 12.1 as the road is traversed. The ground engaging tool 14 is sized such that a road surface having a lane 20 width of up to 5m can be levelled in a single pass. Such dimensions allow traffic to pass an active road repair assembly 10 on another side of the road. The pivoting formation 16 of this embodiment is provided in the form of a slewing ring, illustrated in broken lines in Figure 2. With the ground engaging tool 14 in the use orientation, it will be appreciated 25 that it will constitute an obstacle to traffic seeking to pass the road repair assembly 10. Accordingly, when the road repair assembly 10 is not undertaking road maintenance, but merely travelling along a road between destinations, the ground engaging tool 14 is located in the rest orientation wherein it is pivoted through 900 relative to the use orientation. In the rest orientation the ground engaging tool 14 is located below the trailer 30 bed 13 and between the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailer 12.1. In the rest orientation the ground engaging tool is thus out of the way of vehicles passing the road repair assembly 10. To effect pivotal movement of the ground engaging tool 14 between the rest and use orientations, a first hydraulic arrangement 29 is provided. The first hydraulic 35 arrangement 29 comprises at least one hydraulic ram whereby movement of the hydraulic 6 ram between an extended position and a retracted position causes the slewing ring of the pivoting formation 16 to pivot about a vertical axis, as a result causing the ground engaging tool 14 to move between the rest and use orientations. To move the ground engaging tool 14 respectively between the ground engaging 5 and storage positions, the trailer 12.1 includes a lifting formation 18. The lifting formation 18 comprises a second hydraulic arrangement, here in the form of two hydraulic cylinders 37, only one of which is shown in the accompanying drawings. The hydraulic cylinders 37 are movable between extended positions, when the ground engaging tool 14 is to be located in its ground engaging position, and retracted positions, 10 when it is required to locate the ground engaging tool 14 in its retracted position above the road surface. The slewing ring 16 is pivotally secured to the ground engaging tool 14 via four arms 31 as is discussed below. To enhance the reach of the ground engaging tool 14, specifically to gather loose is material located at locations beyond its reach, a sweep ("radial arm") 22, see Figure 4, is provided. The sweep 22 is secured to the ground engaging tool (as described below) and is moveable between an operative position (not shown) in which the sweep 22 extends beyond the ground engaging tool 14 and an inoperative position (depicted in Figure 4), wherein the sweep 22 abuts an outer wall of the ground engaging tool 14. 20 The road repair assembly 10 comprises four liquid reservoirs 24 which are secured to operative upper sides of the trailer beds 13 of the trailers 12.1 and 12.2. It will be appreciated that the road repair assembly 10 could include various numbers of liquid reservoirs. The road repair assembly 10 further comprises a compacting assembly 26. The 25 compacting assembly 26 comprises (i) a first set of wheels 28 including three rows 33 of 8 wheels each on the trailer 12.1 and (ii) a second set of wheels 32 comprising two rows 35 of 8 wheels each supporting the second trailer 12.2. The trailer 12.2 is hitched to the trailer 12.1 via a load bearing draw bar, here a rigid A-frame 30. The second set of wheels 32 is attached to a modified heavy haulage dolly 34. It 30 will be noted in Figure 2 that the wheels 35 of the second set of wheels 32 extend beyond the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailer 12.2. The reason for this is to ensure that all of the road surface which has been levelled by the ground engaging tool 14 is also subjected to a compaction process. The second set of wheels 32 of the compacting assembly 26 can undergo axial 35 adjustment relative to the axis of rotation of the wheels 35, between a driving position and 7 a road repair position. To enable such axial movement, four wheels 35 of a first row 39.1 on one side of the trailer 12.2 is pivotally connected to four wheels of second row of wheels 39.2 via a trunnion 41. On an opposite side of the trailer 12.2, the four other wheels 35 of the first row 39.1 are pivotally connected to the four other wheels of the s second row 39.2 in a similar manner. The trunnions 41, in turn, are each respectively secured to a male load bearing beam 43. The male load bearing beams 43 are slidably located within a female load bearing beam 45 which, in turn, is secured to a road facing side of the trailer bed 13. Having the wheels 35 secured via the trunnions 41 ensures constant contact with the road surface. 10 An hydraulic ram, not shown, is located within the female load bearing beam 45 and operatively associated with the male load bearing beams 43, so that in extending the hydraulic ram, the male load bearing beams are caused to slide away from one another within the female load bearing beam 45, so that the second set of wheels 32 are located in a road repair position wherein some of those wheels are located beyond the longitudinal 15 sides of the trailer 12.2. When the hydraulic ram is retracted, the wheels of the second set of wheels 32 are moved to a driving position wherein the wheels 35 are located beneath the trailer bed 13 of the trailer 12.2. Compaction of a road surface levelled by the ground engaging tool 14 is thus effected in that the first set of wheels 28 of the trailer 12.1 compacts that section of road 20 surface that passes underneath the trailer bed 13, whereas the second set of wheels 32 compacts that section of road surface levelled by that portion of the ground engaging tool 14 which extends beyond the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailers 12.1 and 12.2. The road repair assembly 10 includes a liquid supply system, not illustrated, to feed liquid, typically water, from the liquid reservoirs 24 to a liquid outlet, not shown, 25 thereby to dispense water onto the road surface to be traversed by the trailers 12.1 and 12.2. In particular, the liquid outlet is arranged on the trailer 12.1 so as to dispense water onto a section of the road surface located just in front of the ground engaging tool 14 in the direction of travel. Water is dispensed, typically via spraying nozzles of a spray bar, not shown, onto that road surface in order to assist with surface bonding and dust 30 suppression. The liquid supply system is driven by a pump system, not shown. The road repair assembly 10 is further provided with a replenishment pump arrangement, also not shown, whereby water can be pumped into the liquid reservoirs 24, for example from a dam located adjacent a road being serviced, when the water in the reservoirs is depleted.

8 Figure 3 shows a second embodiment road repair assembly 36. The second embodiment road repair assembly 36 is similar to the first embodiment road repair assembly 10 in that it includes a trailer 12 hitched to a prime mover 17, a ground engaging tool 14 secured below a road facing side of the trailer bed 13, and two liquid 5 reservoirs 24. The ground engaging tool 14 is shown to be located in its ground engaging position. Typically the ground engaging tool 14 of the second embodiment will in use also extend beyond the lateral sides of the trailer 12 as discussed above. Unlike the first embodiment road repair assembly 10, the second embodiment road repair assembly 36 does not have a second trailer hitched to the trailer 12. Rather, in 10 this embodiment the compacting assembly 26 comprises (i) a first set of wheels 28 comprising one row of 8 wheels and (ii) a second set of wheels 32 comprising two rows of 8 wheels each to effect compaction. Although not depicted in Figure 3, the second set of wheels 32 will typically be attached to an arrangement similar to the second set of wheels 32 of the second trailer is 12.2, as described above, to ensure compaction of the section of road surface levelled by that portion of the ground engaging tool 14 extending beyond the longitudinal sides 15 of the trailer 12. Figure 4 and Figure 5 schematically show the ground engaging tool 14. The ground engaging tool 14 comprises a perimeter body 38. The perimeter body 38 includes 20 first and second longitudinally extending side members 49 and 51. The perimeter body 38 further includes a transverse end member 53 longitudinally extending between the first and second side members 49 and 51. The perimeter body 38 defines an open end 55 to allow road surface material to enter the ground engaging tool 14 so as to be displaced across the road surface as the ground engaging tool 14 traverses a road surface. 25 The ground engaging tool 14 comprises a plurality of ground engaging members 40 secured in position between the first and second side members 49 and 51. The ground engaging members 40 are transversely spaced-apart and longitudinally co-extend between the first and second side members 49 and 51. The perimeter body 38 carries 6 generally parallel metal bars. It will of course be readily understood that the number of parallel 30 bars may vary. The ground engaging tool 14 also comprises a number of cross-members 42 that are transversely orientated relative to the ground engaging members 40 and serve to reinforce the ground engaging members. As mentioned above, the ground engaging formation 14 is attached to the pivoting formation 16 via arms 31. The arms 31, in turn, are pivotally secured to pivot 35 pins, not show. In use, the pivot pins will be suspended between the cross-members 42 at C"A0Q 1. ACA 9 pivot points 57. The pivot points 57 are positioned such that the ground engaging tool 14 will be biased to have its open end 55 pointing slightly upwardly thereby deterring the first and second side members 49 and 51 from digging into the ground during operation. A cover 59, the purpose of which is described below, is provided to overly the perimeter 5 body 38 and the ground engaging members 40. It will be noted that an hydraulic cylinder 61 of the sweep 22 is secured to an operative top side of the ground engaging tool 14. The hydraulic cylinder 61 will actuate the sweep 22 between its operative position, when the hydraulic cylinder is located in an extended position, and inoperative position, when the hydraulic cylinder is located in a io retracted position. In use, the various spacing openings 63 between the ground engaging members 40 will provide storage locations which will serve to hold gravel and soil from the road surface being traversed and will be used to fill voids within the road surface. Figures 6 to 8 depict alternative embodiment ground engaging tools, respectively is indicated by the reference numerals 114, 214 and 314. An important distinction between the ground engaging tools 14, 114, 214 and 314 are the configuration of their respective ground engaging members 40, 140, 240 and 340. The ground engaging members 40 of the ground engaging tool 14 provide an angle of attack of 00. The ground engaging members 140, of the ground engaging tool 114 are, however, angled to provide an angle 20 of attack greater that 0*, thereby allowing soil and other road surface material to travel along the ground engaging members 140 as the ground engaging tool 114 traverses a road surface. It is believed that this arrangement will provide enhanced levelling performance over the ground engaging tool 14. The ground engaging tool 214 operates on similar principles to the ground 25 engaging tool 114, but is distinguished in that the ground engaging members 240 are configured to provide a reinforced structure. The ground engaging tool 314, on the other hand, includes ground engaging members 340 having curved outer surfaces, here substantially circular in form. The curved surfaces of the ground engaging members 340 will make the ground engaging tool 314 particularly suited for heavy duty applications as 30 the curved profiles of the ground engaging members 340 will provide enhanced strength. The road repair assemblies of Figures 1 and 2 and Figure 3 respectively include an exhaust gas handling system 60. The exhaust handling system 60 comprises a conduit arrangement 62, here in the form of piping, to provide fluid communication between an outlet of an exhaust of the prime mover 17 and the ground engaging tool 14. An air pump 35 64 is provided to create an area of low pressure within the conduit arrangement 62 10 whereby exhaust gases are fed from the exhaust outlet of the prime mover 17 to an outlet 66 which mouths into a space 68, see Figure 5, defined between the cover 59 of the ground engaging tool 14 on one side and the road surface on another. The exhaust gases are scrubbed by the mixture of water, from the reservoirs 24, and the dust, resulting from 5 the levelling action, in an enclosed area 79 formed by the ground engaging tool 14, causing a cleaner, washed gas to be released into the atmosphere. It is pointed out that the road repair assembly 10 can service road surfaces varying in width from about 2.5 to about 4.27m. Although not illustrated, the road repair assembly includes a control system 10 whereby communication is provided between the ground engaging tool 14 and a control module located within the cabin of the prime mover 17. The control system also includes a display arrangement for providing an operator with visual data on the operation of the ground engaging tool. The road repair assembly will thus require two operators, one to steer the prime mover across a road surface to be serviced and another to monitor and 15 control the ground engaging tool, the spray of water and adjustment of the compacting assembly. Although not illustrated, the ground engaging tool may include a dampening system to protect the ground engaging tool when impacting an immovable object, for example a hump in a road surface. It is envisaged that to achieve such dampening effect 20 the pivot pins may be slidably located in horizontally orientated slots so that in the event of the ground engaging tool abruptly halting, the pivot pins could momentarily travel along their slotted mountings. An hydraulic shock absorbing mechanism is secured to the trailer at one end and to the ground engaging tool at another, so that as the trailer continues its forward movement, the hydraulic shock absorbing mechanism will move 25 from a retracted position to an extended position until it is caused to apply a slight lifting dynamic to the ground engaging tool. This, in turn, will cause the ground engaging tool in effect to "hop over" the immovable object. It is pointed out that in preferred embodiments the road repair assembly will typically operate at speeds ranging between 12 to 30km/h in order to display reduced 30 carbon emissions as compared to existing road repair machinery. Although the invention has been described with reference to specific examples, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in many other forms.

Claims (29)

1. A road repair assembly comprising: a wheeled trailer to be hitched to a vehicle; 5 a ground engaging tool operatively associated with the trailer, the ground engaging tool adapted in use to level a road surface when the vehicle causes the trailer to traverse the road surface; and a compacting assembly operatively associated with the ground engaging tool, the compacting assembly being adapted to compact the road surface levelled by the ground to engaging tool.

2. A road repair assembly according to claim 1, wherein the trailer comprises a longitudinally extending trailer body, the trailer body having a road facing side which in use faces the road surface traversed by the trailer, wherein the ground engaging tool is is attached to the road facing side of the trailer body.

3. A road repair assembly according to claim 2, wherein the trailer comprises a first longitudinal end adapted to be hitched to the vehicle, and a second longitudinal end, the ground engaging tool being attached to the trailer at a position located between the first 20 and second longitudinal ends.

4. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ground engaging tool comprises a lifting formation adapted to move the ground engaging tool between (i) a storage position wherein the ground engaging tool is elevated 25 above a road surface and (ii) a ground engaging position wherein the ground engaging tool contacts the road surface so as in use to level the road surface as the trailer traverses the road surface.

5. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein 30 the trailer comprises a pivoting formation adapted to pivot the ground engaging tool between a rest orientation and a use orientation.

6. A road repair assembly according to claim 5, wherein in its use orientation the ground engaging tool extends beyond longitudinal sides of the trailer. 35 12

7. A road repair assembly according to either claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the pivoting formation comprises a slewing ring.

8. A road repair assembly according to claim 7, wherein the pivoting formation s comprises a first hydraulic arrangement operatively associated with the slewing ring to pivot the ground engaging tool between the rest orientation and the use orientation.

9. A road repair assembly according to claim 4, wherein the lifting formation comprises a second hydraulic arrangement adapted to move the ground engaging tool 10 between the storage position and the ground engaging position.

10. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ground engaging tool comprises a perimeter body, the perimeter body having a first and a second longitudinally extending side member and a transverse end member 15 longitudinally extending between the first and second side members.

11. A road repair assembly according to claim 10, wherein the perimeter body defines an open end to allow road surface material to enter the ground engaging tool so as to be displaced across the road surface traversed by the trailer. 20

12. A road repair assembly according to either claim 10 or claim 11, wherein the ground engaging tool comprises a plurality of ground engaging members secured in position between the first and second side members. 25

13. A road repair assembly according to claim 12, wherein the ground engaging members are transversely spaced-apart and longitudinally co-extend between the first and second side members.

14. A road repair assembly according to claim 12, wherein the ground engaging tool 30 members have curved outer surfaces.

15. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, including a sweep operatively associated with the ground engaging tool, the sweep being moveable between an operative and an inoperative position, in use the sweep being located in the 13 operative position to gather loose material located at positions beyond the reach of the ground engaging tool.

16. A road repair assembly according to any one of claim 2 to 15, comprising a 5 liquid reservoir.

17. A road repair assembly according to claim 16, wherein the liquid reservoir is secured to an operative upper side of the trailer body. 10

18. A road repair assembly according to any one of claims 2 to 15, comprising two liquid reservoirs, both liquid reservoirs being secured to an operative upper side of the trailer body.

19. A road repair assembly according to any one claims 16 to 18, comprising a liquid is supply system to feed liquid from the liquid reservoir(s) to a liquid outlet to dispense liquid onto the road surface to be traversed by the trailer.

20. A road repair assembly according to claim 19, wherein liquid outlet is arranged on the trailer so as to dispense liquid onto a section of the road surface located in a 20 direction of travel of the ground engaging tool.

21. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the compacting assembly comprises a row of wheels. 25

22. A road repair assembly according to claim 21, wherein the compacting assembly comprises three rows of eight wheels each.

23. A road repair assembly according to claim 22, wherein two rows of wheels of the compacting assembly are axially moveable relative to the axis of rotation of the wheels 30 between a (i) driving position wherein the wheels of the compacting assembly are located between longitudinal sides of the trailer and (ii) a road repair position wherein the wheels are located beyond the longitudinal sides of the trailer. 14

24. A road repair assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising an exhaust gas handling system to provide fluid communication between an exhaust outlet of the vehicle and the ground engaging tool. 5

25. A method of road repair comprising the steps of: providing a road repair assembly in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 24; traversing a first section of a road surface with the road repair assembly so as to level the first section with the ground engaging tool and; compacting with the compacting arrangement the levelled first section of the 10 road surface while the ground engaging tool levels a second section of the road surface.

26. A method of road repair according to claim 25, wherein the method comprises the step of dispensing water onto the road surface while the ground engaging tool is levelling the road surface. 15

27. A method of road repair according to claim 26, wherein water is dispensed on a section of the road surface located in a direction of travel of the road surface being levelled by the ground engaging tool. 20

28. A road repair assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

29. A method of road repair substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 25 15 December 2011 Geoffrey A Kull Patent Attorneys for the Applicant SPRUSON & FERGUSON 30