AU736915B2

AU736915B2 - Portable round bale transporter and feeder

Info

Publication number: AU736915B2
Application number: AU53573/99A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Scott Boyd Richardson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1998-10-09
Filing date: 1999-10-11
Publication date: 2001-08-02
Anticipated expiration: 2019-10-11
Also published as: AU5357399A

Description

Australia Patents Act 1990 Complete Specification Standard Patent Portable Round Bale Transporter and Feeder t

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The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me.

IP Australia IDocumnents received on: 1 1 OCT 199 iatch No ROUND BALE TRANSPORTER AND FEEDER This invention relates to improvements in devices for the feeding out of round bales of feed to animals and/or the transport of such round bales.

For farmers wanting to move into the round bale fodder system, a bulk way of feeding, a round bale holding approximately the equivalent of 14 small square bales, the limiting factor has been the necessity of having a tractor or a tractor with remote hydraulics.

There have been many proposals to feed round bales to animals but these have all required a machine such as a tractor equipped with an hydraulic system to lift, secure, move and feed the bales.

For example one previous device uses hydraulically operated arms, to grip each side of the round bale, via a large spike on each arm, to secure, lift, move and feed the bale.

The proposals have the disadvantage that a vehicle with hydraulics and a hydraulically operated machine must be used.

These problems are overcome by the present invention which provides a portable implement to feed and transport round bales, the round bales consisting of axially wound vegetative material, the implement comprising a frame wherein the frame includes an axle for passing through the round bales such that the bales act in the manner of wheels when towed, the axle contained by the frame, the frame attachable to S a suitable towing vehicle via a drawbar, the frame and drawbar being sufficiently rigid to S allow feeding and transporting of said round bales, the sufficient rigidity of said frame and drawbar maintaining an approximately constant distance between the round bales and the towing vehicle thereby preventing fouling, by overrunning, of the towing vehicle by the towed roundbale the material within the bale being orientated in a way which either lends its direction of winding to transport or feeding out of, same material, the frame shaped like a serif o In one form to the invention the axle which is pushed or hammered through the round bale of feed comprises a shaft having a sufficient length to traverse internally the round bale and allow engagement with the portable towing frame which has been lifted manually into position to accept the axle which is positioned through the bale more or less horizontally. This axle has on the hammerable end a sufficient surface area to allow such hammering of the axle through the frame bearings and the round bale. The towed frame accepts and contains the axle and allows the axle and the bale to turn.

The towed frame is attached to the towing vehicle with the round bale orientated in one of two ways; either for towing and no feed out of the fodder material or towing and feed out whilst towing. The towing and no feed out mode may be used to move the bale to another area for feed out. The towing and feed out mode is used for feeding out of the bale. The direction of the winding of the feed in the bale determines the mode when the bale is towed. The bale will either tend to unroll when towed in one direction or stay rolled when towed in the opposite direction in both instances the round bale with its inherent stability, integrity and roundness acting as a wheel in conjunction with the axle and portable towed frame.

In another form of the invention the portable towed frame has an adjustable drawbar to allow for easy attachment of the device obviating any man handling to or fro or repositioning of the towing vehicle.

In another form of the invention that adjustable drawbar is used to turn, by way of leverage, the bale on its axis, and more specifically through one hundred and eighty degrees, for one of the two modes as mentions previously.

In another form of the invention the frame is swung over the bale in order to achieve correct orientation of the bale for either transport or feed out.

To assist with understanding the invention reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which show one example of the invention.

In the drawings; Fig. 1 shows one example of the round bale transporter and feeder according to this invention.

Fig. 2 shows the application of such a round bale transporter and feeder to a round bale of feed.

oo Referring to Figure 1 (Fig.1) it can been seen that the round bale feeder according to this invention comprises a frame 2 which accommodates an axle 1 which is located and captured by housing 6 and secured by a plate 4 and a pin 5 through the axle 1 at 13.

The vehicle towing point is at 10. The drawbar 8 is adjusted depending on the S closeness of the towing vehicle. 8 is a tube with through holes, and slides within S: housing 7. 9 are pins and secure 8 at the desired length. The arrows indicate the direction of tow.

Fig. 2 shows the round bale feeder in operation. The round bale 12 can be seen positioned within the frame 2 the axle 1 having been hammered through the bale by impact at 3. The axle has passed through the housings 6 and the plate 4 and the pin through the axle 1 at hole 13 prevent the axle from departing the round bale 12.

0 The 'captured' bale is now ready for orientation (refer to Figs 4 and 5; to transport the bale it is swung around as in Fig 4. Using the adjustable drawbar acting as a lever :through 1800 to feed the bale out: Fig 5. Points A and B on Figs. 4 and 5 respectively indicate the 'mode' of the bale).

To 'feed out' the bale it is orientated as in Fig. 5 using the adjustable drawbar acting as lever through 1800 the plastic wrap mesh is partly undone and weighted to the ground by a suitable object such as the hammer used to drive the axle through the bale. The towing vehicle is attached at point 10 (Fig. 10) using adjuster 8, and pins 9 then driven forward the bale naturally unrolling (the adjustable drawbar 7 8 Fig 1 assists with vehicle attachment).

By use of this round bale transport and feeder round bales can be transported and fed out using any suitable powered vehicle obviating the need for a tractor with remote hydraulics. At the animal feeding area the transported bale is orientated correctly according to the preceding information, the towing vehicle then driven forward, the animal feed then being deposited along the ground for consumption by the animals over a distance approximating but not necessarily 100 metres, the animals thereby having room for all to consume the forage material without jostling or some failing to be able to consume.

The foregoing describes only one embodiment of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the art, can be made there to without departing from the scope of the present invention.

For example the pins 9 can be clips or the clip 5, a pin.

Or the adjuster can be clamped or otherwise secured at the correct length.

Or the axle can be two stub axles suitably restrained.

Or the sides 2 could be telescoped to perform the function of the adjustable tow length performed here by 7 and 8.

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Claims

1. A portable implement to feed and transport round bales, the round bales consisting of axially wound vegetative material, the implement comprising a frame wherein the frame includes an axle for passing through the round bales such that the bales act in the manner of wheels when towed, the axle contained by the frame, the frame attachable to a suitable towing vehicle via a drawbar, the frame and drawbar being sufficiently rigid to allow feeding and transporting of said round bales, the sufficient rigidity of said frame and drawbar maintaining an approximately constant distance between the round bales and the towing vehicle thereby preventing fouling, by overrunning, of the towing vehicle by the towed round bale.

2. An implement as in claim 1 whereby the frame is shaped like the letter capital sometimes referred to as a ceriph or serif c and where at the two ends of that bearings accept the axle and contain same by, at one end, the head of the axle, that head being of greater diameter than the bearing, and at the other end a washer, larger than the diameter of the bearing and a pin, or similar containments, to prevent the departure of the washer, axle and round bale.

3. An implement as in claim 1 whereby the drawbar is adjustable to facilitate attachment of the frame to the draw bar obviating man handling of the round bales and/or the repositioning of the towing vehicle.

4. The implement as in the claims 1 to 3 whereby the adjustable drawbar acts as a lever to orientate the round bale about its axis, specifically 1800, thereby facilitating either transportation or feeding out of the round bale depending on the direction of the winding of the vegetative material within the bale.

An implement as in the above claims whereby the frame can be swung over the round bale in order to achieve correct orientation of said bale for either transporting or feeding out of the vegetative material axially wound within and composing the said round bale, the said material either by nature of that orientation and winding either 'wanting' to stay rolled up or conversely to unroll, the swinging of the said frame over the bale obviating ~levering as in claim 4.

6. A portable implement for transporting and unrolling round bales substantially as described and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings. Nam e: Date.... m i Scott Boyd Richardson