AU576264B2 - Weeding or cultivating apparatus - Google Patents

Description

"CULTIVATING APPARATUS" This invention relates generally to apparatus for cultivating, tilling, weeding or otherwise working land and more particularly to mobile apparatus or apparatus which is adapted to be supported or towed by a vehicle such as a tractor or the like. The invention also relates to an improved work head therefor.

The apparatus is particularly suitable for use in areas where ready access by cultivators or weeders is difficult. Examples of such areas include orchards, nurserys Or vinyards where the trees, vines o the like are generally ' arranged in rows and the trees or vines in each row are grown close together. In such situations, it is difficult to cultivate the land between the adjacent plants in each row. Currently known devices of this type generally comprise a rotary cultivating tool which is mounted to a vehicle such as a tractor by means of an arm which is extendable and retractable relative to the vehicle so that the cultivating tool can move between the plants while the tractor moves in a straight line. The cultivating tools for such devices generally comprise a main body which is operatively connected to a drive shaft and a plurality of tynes or like projections extending from one side of the main body towards the ground being cultivated. In operation, the tool is mounted for rotation about a vertical axis with respect to the ground being cultivated and the tynes or other projections are arranged to break the ground up.

One of the problems with the currently known devices .is that the tynes or like projections are prone to disturbing the root system of the vine or plant. Particularly, in the case of vines they tend to catch the vine stems and roots and tear them out. A further problem is that in certain soil conditions (for example high clay content) the tyne type cultivating tools tend to become quickly clogged. This also can occur in certain types of grass such as couch, paspalin, Johnson grass or with canes.

Furthermore, where long grass is encountered, there is a problem with entanglement of the grass around the device. There are also problems with known devices in gauging the depth or position of the work head, and being able to observe the work area; ϊt is therefore an object of the present -3- invention to provide an improved apparatus which alleviates one or more of the aforementioned disadvantages.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided weeding or cultivating apparatus comprising a main housing, a rotatable drive shaft supported by said main housing, a work head operatively connected to said drive shaft for rota.tion about an axis which, in use, is substantially normal to the ground to be worked, said work head comprising a disc-like element having a material working edge around its periphery and being adapted to contact or be positioned adjacent to the ground.

Preferably, the disc-like work head has a domed upper portion and a substantially flat underside base surface which, in use, faces towards the ground and no part of the work head extends beyond the base surface- in the direction of the ground. The working edge may be relatively sharp so as to effect a cutting action although this is not essential. It has been found that a relatively blunt working edge achieves satisfactory results.

In use, the main housing may be operatively supported by a mobile vehicle and adapted to be mounted for movement relative to the vehicle towards and away therefrom. Further, it is preferable that at least the- work head can be raised or lowered relative to the mobile vehicle. .There may also be provided coupling means for enabling movement of the main housing relative to the vehicle 1

-4- towards and away therefrom.

In one form, the main housing may comprise a tubular body having bearings at each end thereof for rotatably supporting the drive shaft, there further being drive means supported by the main housing which may be in the form of an hydraulic motor operatively connected to the drive shaft.

Control members may be provided which are operatively mounted to either the drive shaft or the work head for rotation therewith, the control members being adapted to throw or sling material cut by the work head outwardly therefrom. Preferably, the control members are shaped or configured so that for rotation in one direction, material is thrown away from the work head and rotation in the other direction causes material to be returned to the region being worked. The apparatus may further comprise a guard member which is adapted to inhibit contact of the work head with trees or vines when the apparatus is being used. The guard element may be in the form of a ring which is mounted for free rotation on the main housing or shaft of the apparatus- the ring being of greater dimension than the work head.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a work head for apparatus as described above, the work head being in the form of a disc like element having a material working edge extending around its periphery, the disc like element, in use, being operatively connected to the end of the drive sha-ft, said work head being devoid of protrusions beyond the working edge in the direction of the ground being cultivated or weeded.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will hereinafter be described with reference to the.accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic view of apparatus according to the present invention mounted to a vehicle; and

Figure 2 is an exploded view showing the various features of the apparatus of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, the apparatus generally indicated at 1 comprises a work or cultivating head 11 which is operatively connected to a rotatable drive shaft 8 arranged so that in the normal in use position, the shaft extends generally in a direction towards the ground to be cultivated, weeded or otherwise worked. The work or cultivating head 11 is mounted at or adjacent the end portion of the shaft 8 closest to the ground and is adapted to contact or be positioned adjacent to the ground.

The work head 11 and shaft 8 of the apparatus are adapted to form part of, or be supported by a mobile vehicle such as tractor 30 and adapted to be mounted for movement relative to the vehicle towards and away therefrom. It is also desirable -6- that at least the work head can be raised or lowered relative to the mobile vehicle.

In the form shown, the apparatus 1 • comprises a main housing 2 which is operatively supported by the tractor 30. Connection of the main housing 2 to the vehicle may be by way of coupling means 7 for enabling movement of the housing relative to the vehicle towards and away therefrom.- Such a coupling means 7 may be in the form of the parallelogram linkage details of which are described in Australian Patent No. 285895 although it will be appreciated that other coupling means could be utilized. The main housing 2 may comprise a first tubular body 4 having bearings' 6 at each end thereof for rotatably supporting the drive shaft 8 and a second tubular portion 5. The upper bearing and lower bearings 6 are positioned against the- two shoulders on the upper portion of the drive shaft, the lower of the bearings being retained by circlip 22. Preferably, as shown, drive means is also supported by the main housing and the drive means may be in the form of an hydraulic motor 10 which is secured to the housing by bolts (not shown) operatively connected to the drive shaft 8 by for example a key (not shown). The hydraulic motor 10 may be connected to a suitable power source mounted on the tractor or elsewhere. In a preferred form, the shaft 8 has its longitudinal axis substantially vertically di-sposed when the apparatus is in the normal in use configuration. The work head 11 which may be in the form of a disc like element 12 having a material working or cutting edge 13 extending around its periphery, the disc like element, in use, being operatively connected to the end of a drive shaft for

T__Q example, as described above and which, in use, is adjacent the ground to be cultivated, weeded or otherwise worked. In the form shown, the disc like element 12 includes a substantially flat bottom surface 18 which ι_5 is immediately adjacent the land to be cultivated, weeded or otherwise worked in the in use position and a substantially σonically shaped upper surface 19 between the bottom surface and the end of the drive shaft. The disc

20 is preferably mounted so that, in use, the bottom surface is .generally parallel to the general plane of the land to be cultivated, weeded or otherwise worked.

Control members 14 are provided which

25 are operatively mounted to either the drive shaft or the work head for rotation therewith, the control members being adapted to throw material cut by the work head outwardly therefrom. Preferably, as shown, the control

30 members 14 are mounted to lower tubular portion 5 of the housing and are shaped^' or configured so that for rotation in one direction material is thrown away from the work head and rotation in the other direction causes material to be returned to the region being worked. In one arrangement, the control members are in the form of curved blades extending radially outwardly from the central longitudinal axis of the shaft. As shown, the blades are substantially flat. In one form, two pairs of blades may be provided these pairs of blades being offset and spaced apart in .the longitudinal direction of the drive shaft.

The work head can be arranged relative to the ground being worked so as to carry out a number of different types of operations. For example, it can be positioned just above the ground so that it cuts and cleans material from the surface of the ground. Alternatively, it can be located against the surface so that it tends, to tear the. roots of the material out. In another work position, it can be disposed .just under the ground thereby removing larger roots. It can be also positioned deeper to cause a cultivating or tilling of the soil.

The apparatus of the present invention further comprises a guard member 16 which is adapted to inhibit contact of the work head' with trees or vines when the apparatus is being used. Preferably, as shown, the -9- guard member is in the form of a ring which is mounted for free rotation on the main housing or shaft of the apparatus. In one arrangement, the guard member is adapted to free wheel on a roller bearing secured to the drive shaft and held in place by a circlip. As shown, the ring has an outer circumferential rim and a series of spokes extending inwardly toward a central hub. Preferably, the guard member is dimensioned so that it is larger than the work head. As such, in use, the ring tends to rotate around vines or trees when it engages them and inhibit the work head from striking the plants.

In one preferred form, the apparatus may include sensing means for detecting when the guard contacts a plant which thereby actuates the coupling drive to draw the work head away from the plant.

It will be appreciated that the apparatus of the present invention may comprise more than one cutting member which could be for example mounted on a substantially horizontal bar for operation in the manner described above. In one particular arrangement where a series of cutting members are used, it may be desirable that only the outermost member is adapted to move towards or away from the vehicle.

Having now described the principal component parts of a particular form of the apparatus, a description of the operation of that particular form will be given.

In this particular form, the apparatus will be described with reference to coupling means of the type described in Australian Patent No. 285,895.

With the apparatus mounted to a tractor, the hydraulic drive motor is activated to rotate the drive shaft, the work head and the control members. The disc like work head is positioned just below the surface of the ground where it cuts the roots of the weeds and discharges them out from under the plants by means of the control members. By reversing the direction of rotation, the control members can return soil under the plants.

As the tractor moves along between adjacent rows of plants, the operator activates the coupling means to position the work head between adjacent plants in the rows. If the guard ring engages a plant it tends to rotate around the plant thereby inhibiting damage thereto. It will be appreciated that the apparatus of the present invention in its preferred form exhibits- many advantages over prior art devices. For example, because of the configuration of the work head, it tends not »to disturb the root systems of either vines or plants that are being weeded. . Furthermore, because it has no other blades or tynes attached (unlike prior art rotary weeders), there is little tendency to hook vine stems or root systems. ^■ The apparatus can pass through extreme conditions such as couch grass, paspalin, Johnson grass or canes and debri without clogging. Furthermore, the operator can gauge depth accurately as it leaves the ground relatively flat. If desired, the operator may wind row weeds from the initial pass at a relatively fast speed. The apparatus, owing to its structure, also has the ability to work in difficult soil structures. Wet conditions such as sticky clay soils do not pose a problem to the apparatus unlike known tyne weeders that are prone to clogging in such conditions. Being power driven enables the apparatus to work in hard ground or in soft ploughed conditions, on contours, flat surfaces or depressions with ease. The apparatus is versatile and may operate by just skimming the ground surface or maybe lowered to a depth that will leave an unbroken furrow for those who wish to irrigate under the vines. Furthermore, having no excess blades or tynes, maintenance is kept to a minimum. The work head can be replaced quickly. Also having no blades or tynes enhances the safety factor of the apparatus. ' Other advantages derive from the control members.- For example, because they are mounted to a tubular portion having a relatively large diameter, this aids in the prevention of weeds tangling around the weeder. The control members are such that by reversing the rotation of the hydraulic motor, the members are then capable of throwing dirt back under the vines to create a bank. In this application, the apparatus tends to work better with four control members rather than two.

Claims (11)

1. Weeding or cultivating apparatus comprising a main housing (2), a rotatable drive shaft (8) supported by said main housing (2) a work head (11) operatively connected to said drive shaft (8) for rotation about an axis which, in use, is substantially normal to the ground to be worked said work head (11) comprising a disc-like element (12) having a material working edge (13) around its periphery and being adapted to contact or be positioned adjacent to the ground.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said disc-like work head '(12) has a domed upper portion (19) and a substantially flat underside base surface (18) which, in use, faces towards the ground and no part of said work head extends beyond said base surface in the direction of the ground.

3. Apparatus acco ding to claim 2 wherein said main housing (2) is operatively supported by a mobile vehicle and adapted to be mounted for movement relative to the vehicle towards and away therefrom.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3 wherein at least said work head (11) can be raised or lowered relative to the mobile vehicle.

5. Apparatus according to claim 3 or claim

4 further including coupling means (7) for enabling movement of said main housing relative to the vehicle towards and away therefrom.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said main housing (2) comprises a tubular body (4), (5) having bearings (6) at each end thereof for rotatably supporting the drive shaft (8) , there further being drive means supported by the main housing in the form of an hydraulic motor (10) operatively connected to the drive shaft.

7. Apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 further .including control members (14), operatively mounted to either said drive shaft or said work head for .rotation therewith, said control members being adapted to throw material cut by the work head outwardly therefrom.

8. Apparatus according to cl.aim 7 wherein said control members (14) are shaped or configured so that for rotation in one direction material isthrown away from said work head and rotation in the other direction causes material to be returned to the area being worked.

9. Apparatus according to any one of claims

1 to 8 further comprising a guard member (16) which is adapted to inhibit contact of the work head with trees or vines when the apparatus is being used, said guard member (16) being in the form of a ring which is mounted for free rotation on the main housing or shaft of the apparatus the ring being of greater dimension than said work head.

10. A work head for apparatus according to any preceding claim the work head in the form of a disc like element (12) having a material working edge (13) extending around its periphery, the disc like element, in use, being operatively connected to the -end of the drive shaft (8), said work head being devoid of protrusions beyond the working edge (13) in the direction of the ground being weeded or cultivated.

11. A work head according to claim 10 wherein said disc-like element includes a substantially flat bottom surface (18) which is immediately adjacent the land to _be cultivated, weeded or otherwise worked in the in use position and substantially σonically shaped upper surface (19) between the bottom surface and the end of the drive shaft.