Mobile bale and feed processor and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10893645-B2
Application number	US-201816009747-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 15, 2018
Priority date	Jun 15, 2018
Publication date	Jan 19, 2021
Grant date	Jan 19, 2021

Abstract

A bale processor has a towed body that includes one or two hay bale shredders in the form of a flail drum. The bale processor is self-loading such that bales may be loaded in the processing tubs by a set of rear mounted arms and various conveyor chains. The processor also includes a grain tank, a grain metering system, and a grain cracker, all mounted in series. The grain cracker may have a choice of outputs, including back to the grain tank. The cracked grain is fed into the tub to be mixed with other feed materials, such as shredded straw, and is then discharged to the opposite side of the unit. There may be a feed chopper mounted downstream of the tub, such that the feed chopper receives both the grain material and the shredded hay feed. The feed chopper and the grain cracker operate independently, and may have different setting of size, speed, and weight or volume per minute or per unit of distance travelled. The output may have a curtain assembly to facilitate deposit in windrows.

First claim

We claim:

1. A bale processor comprising:
a mobile frame;
a processor body mounted to the frame;
said bale processor including a bale shredder located within the processor body;
a grain tank, and a grain cracker mounted to receive grain material from the grain tank;
the grain tank and grain cracker supported by the frame and mobile therewith; and
the processor body having a grain inlet by which to receive cracked grain from the grain cracker independently of loading of bales into the processor body.

2. The bale processor of claim 1 wherein said grain cracker is independently speed-adjustable.

3. The bale processor of claim 1 further comprising a grain metering section for conveying grain material from the grain tank to the grain cracker.

4. The bale processor of claim 1 wherein said bale processor is self-loading.

5. The bale processor of claim 1 further comprising first and second opposed sides, wherein the bale processor discharges to said first side of the bale processor, and said grain cracker is mounted on said second side of the bale processor.

6. The bale processor of claim 1 wherein said grain cracker and said bale shredder are independently operable.

7. The bale processor of claim 1 further comprising a feed chopper having a chopper inlet connected to receive output from the bale shredder.

8. The bale processor of claim 1 wherein said grain cracker is operable in a recycling mode in which the grain cracker discharges cracked grain back into said grain tank, and a feed preparation mode in which the grain cracker discharges cracked grain into the processor body.

9. A bale processor comprising:
a towable frame mounted on wheels for travel over a ground surface, the frame having a travel direction when being towed, the bale processor being operable while being towed, said frame having a front, a rear, a first side and a second side;
a tub mounted to the frame, and a bale shredder mounted within said tub;
a bale loader mounted at said rear of said frame and operable to load a bale into said tub for processing by said bale shredder;
a grain tank, a grain metering system, and a grain cracker mounted to an exterior of said tub for cracking grain received from the grain tank and discharging cracked grain into said tub; and
a side discharge coupled to the frame for discharging mixed shredded material and cracked grain material from the tub and onto the ground surface for consumption by livestock.

10. The bale processor of claim 9 wherein said side discharge emanates from said first side of said frame, and said grain tank, said metering system, and said grain cracker are mounted at one of the second side and the rear of said frame.

11. The bale processor of claim 9 comprising a feed chopper mounted to receive mixed shredded material and cracked grain.

12. The bale processor of claim 11 wherein said grain cracker and said feed chopper are independently operable.

13. The bale processor of claim 11 wherein said feed chopper is laterally fed, and laterally discharging.

14. The bale processor of claim 9 wherein said bale processor has a discharge curtain assembly mounted downstream of the side discharge to form a windrow of the mixed shredded material and cracked grain material adjacent to said bale processor as said bale processor advances.

15. The bale processor of claim 14 comprising an auger mounted along a lower end of the tub for conveying the mixed shredded material and cracked grain material from the tub toward the side discharge.

16. The bale processor of claim 15 , further comprising a feed chopper mounted downstream of the auger and upstream of the side discharge.

17. The bale processor of claim 9 wherein said grain cracker is operable in one mode to recycle cracked grain back to said grain tank for preparing a batch of pre-cracked grain prior to discharging the cracked grain into the tub.

18. The bale processor of claim 9 , wherein the metering system comprises a grain auger having an upstream end for receiving grain material from the grain tank and a downstream end for delivering the grain material to the grain cracker.

19. A bale processor comprising:
a) a frame mounted on wheels for travelling over a ground surface;
b) a processor body mounted to the frame for receiving a feed bale, the processor body having a bale shredder mounted within the processor body for shredding the bale; and
c) a grain delivery system mounted on board the frame, the grain delivery system including a grain tank for holding a supply of whole grains, and a grain cracker for breaking whole grains received from the grain tank into cracked grain for improved digestion by livestock; and the processor body having a grain inlet by which to receive cracked grain from the grain cracker independently of loading of bales into the processor body.

20. The bale processor of claim 19 , wherein the grain cracker includes a grain discharge outlet for discharging the cracked grain into the processor body for mixture with the shredded bale to form a combined feed ration.

21. The bale processor of claim 20 , wherein the grain discharge outlet of the grain cracker comprises a blower for blowing the cracked grain from the grain cracker into the processor body.

22. The bale processor of claim 19 , wherein the grain delivery system further comprises a grain metering system having an upstream end for receiving whole grains from the grain tank and a downstream end for delivering whole grains to an inlet of the grain cracker.

23. The bale processor of claim 22 , wherein the grain metering system comprises a grain auger for conveying the whole grains from the upstream end to the downstream end, the grain auger powered by a grain metering system motor that is speed adjustable independently of the grain cracker.

24. The bale processor of claim 19 , wherein the grain cracker is speed adjustable independently of the bale shredder for adjusting at least one of the size and concentration of the cracked grain in the combined feed ration.

25. The bale processor of claim 24 , wherein the grain cracker comprises a housing extending between a grain cracker inlet and a grain cracker outlet spaced apart from the grain cracker inlet, and a cracker motor mounted external the housing for driving the grain cracker.

26. The bale processor of claim 25 , wherein the grain cracker comprises a shaft mounted in the housing and coupled to the cracker motor, the shaft having one of milling rollers and milling hammers mounted to the shaft for breaking an outer shell of the whole grain fed into the grain cracker inlet.

Assignees

• Bourgault Ind Ltd

Inventors

• Neudorf Blake
• Maltman John
• Mcnally Pauric

Classifications

• A01F29/01

  specially adapted for being mounted on or drawn by a tractor, e.g. field choppers · CPC title

• A01F29/09

  Details · CPC title

• A01K5/005

  where fodder, e.g. bales, is conveyed by conveyor or slide to mixing or shredding elements on transversal and horizontal axes · CPC title

• B02C21/02

  Transportable disintegrating plant · CPC title

• B02C21/026

  self-propelled · CPC title