Crop convergence system for rotary mower

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10842075-B2
Application number	US-201816031689-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 10, 2018
Priority date	Jul 10, 2018
Publication date	Nov 24, 2020
Grant date	Nov 24, 2020

Abstract

In a rotary mower having ten generally horizontal cutter disks forming a total cutting length along the cutter bar of 16 feet, the discharge opening containing the parallel conditioner rolls and a parallel transfer roll has a width of at least 125 inches. This allows a first outermost one of the ten disks and approximately one half of the next adjacent disk to be mounted on the cutter bar outwardly of the discharge opening. A convergence system then includes only first and second impellers with the first impeller mounted on the first disk for rotation therewith and the second impeller mounted on an upper support above the impeller so that the second impeller hangs downwardly toward the second disk for contacting the cut crop and mounted immediately adjacent with the second impeller having a peripheral edge located at or immediately adjacent the vertical plane of the side of the discharge opening.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A crop harvesting header comprising:
a header frame;
a cutter bar mounted on the header frame across a width of the header;
ten generally horizontal cutter disks mounted on the cutter bar at positions spaced transversely of the header with the disks being mounted on the cutter bar and including a drive arrangement for driven rotation of each of the ten cutter disks about respective generally upright axes spaced along the cutter bar, the respective upright axes of the ten cutter disks lying along a plane containing the upright axes;
each disk comprising a central hub fastened by a plurality of bolts lying in a hub circle and a shield plate carried by the central hub;
each disk being generally elliptical in plan to define a longer axis and a shorter axis across the disk and having mounted thereon at ends of the longer axis thereof a respective one of a pair of cutter blade such that rotation of the disk about its upright axis defines a cutting circle and causes a standing crop to be cut by the blades;
the header frame defining a discharge opening through which the cut crop is discharged;
the discharge opening being defined by two parallel, spaced end walls each lying in a vertical plane parallel to the forward direction with an opening between the two end walls;
a conditioning system comprising two parallel conditioner rolls defining a conditioning nip mounted within the discharge opening;
the conditioner rolls being coextensive so that each has an end at a respective one of the end walls;
each end of the header frame including:
a first outermost one of the ten cutter disks mounted on the cutter bar outwardly of the discharge opening;
a second next adjacent one of the ten cutter disks being mounted on the cutter bar with the vertical plane of the respective end of the discharge opening intersecting the hub circle of said second next adjacent one of the ten cutter disks;
and a crop transfer impeller arrangement transferring the cut crop from the first disk to the discharge opening comprising only first and second impellers:
the first impeller mounted on the first cutter disk and rotates therewith about the respective upright axis thereof;
the second impeller mounted on an upper support above the second impeller so that the second impeller extends downwardly toward the second cutter disk, the second impeller being driven about an upright axis thereof in an inward direction;
the first impeller being immediately adjacent the second impeller without an intervening transport element;
wherein the second impeller has a peripheral edge located immediately adjacent the vertical plane;
wherein the second impeller is of larger diameter than the first impeller;
wherein the upright axis of the second impeller is behind the plane containing the upright axes;

and wherein a width of the discharge opening is greater than 110 inches.

2. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second disk has the upright axis thereof within 2.0 inches of the vertical plane.

3. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second impeller has a tangent to the peripheral edge thereof within 1.0 inches of the vertical plane.

4. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second impeller has a tangent to the peripheral edge thereof lying in the vertical plane.

5. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second impeller has a tangent to the peripheral edge thereof forward of a plane containing the upright axes of the disks.

6. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second impeller has a tangent to the peripheral edge thereof forward of an upright plane containing a front tangent to the hub circles.

7. The header according to claim 1 wherein the second impeller has the upright axis thereof overlying the second disk with a portion of the second impeller overlying the cutting circle of the first disk.

8. The header according to claim 1 wherein there is provided an upstanding rear wall behind the first and second impellers which interconnects with the end wall of the discharge opening at a corner and wherein the rear wall includes a recessed portion behind the second impeller which is located rearward of a portion of the rear wall behind the first impeller.

9. The header according to claim 1 wherein each of the first and second impellers comprises a cylindrical wall with a plurality of angularly spaced ribs thereon parallel to the upright axis thereof.

10. The header according to claim 1 wherein the conditioning system comprising a transfer roll in front of the conditioning nip and parallel thereto mounted within the discharge opening.

11. The header according to claim 1 wherein the cutter disks provide a total cutting length along the cutter bar of 16 feet.

12. The header according to claim 1 wherein a width of the discharge opening is greater than 110 inches.

13. The header according to claim 1 wherein a width of the discharge opening is greater than 125 inches.

14. The header according to claim 1 wherein a width of the discharge opening is in the range 120 to 130 inches.

15. The header according to claim 1 wherein a width of the discharge opening is of the order of 129 inches.

Assignees

• Macdon Ind Ltd
• Macdon Ind

Inventors

• Barnett Neil
• Kolegaev Konstantin
• Stephens Matthew James

Classifications

• A01D34/662

  to the front of the vehicle · CPC title

• A01D43/10 Primary

  with means for crushing or bruising the mown crop · CPC title

• A01D34/664 Primary

  Disc cutter bars · CPC title

• A01D34/71

  with means for discharging mown material (A01D57/26 - A01D57/30 take precedence; combined with means for gathering or loading mown material A01D43/06) · CPC title

• A01D34/76

  Driving mechanisms for the cutters · CPC title