Description
A DUAL - PURPOSE AGRICULTURAL MACHINE
The present patent application relates to an agricultural bivalent machine, that is a machine adapted to operate as subsoiler or fertilizer spreader. As it is known by experts of agricultural machines, the term "subsoiler" defines a machine adapted to be hauled or supported on the back of a tractor to plow soil surface along a series of closely-spaced parallel directions.
To that end, subsoilers comprise a frame acting as support for a regularly spaced series of teeth with forward inclination according to the direction of travel of the tractor, each tooth ending in lower position with a sort of shovel with sharp borders, adapted to penetrate soil and raise it in order to cut a furrow.
Each tooth is fixed to the frame by means of a pivoting pin with horizontal axis that hinges the top of the tooth to a sturdy fixing bracket obtained on said frame.
Said fixing bracket is provided with tooth-stopping device, in such manner to prevent its oscillation around said pivoting pin.
Said stopping device, however, is of preset-breakage type, meaning that it uses a constraint element adapted to break beyond a preset stress value, in such manner that, in case of anomalous stress, the tooth can recover its freedom of oscillation around its pivoting pin.
Such a measure is taken to prevent the deformation, if not breakage, of the tooth, in the unfortunate case that, when working the soil, the shovel interferes with a large stone or any other type of obstacle that cannot be removed by the simple impact with the plow shovel.
In such a dangerous situation, the stress originated from said violent impact will cause the failure of said preset-breakage stopping device, and the tooth is overturned backwards with respect to the direction of travel of
the tractor, without opposing any resistance to the shock that would otherwise impair the integrity of the tooth or the fixing bracket.
Another agricultural machine, known as "fertilizer spreader", is used to make a preset amount of fertilizer penetrate under the soil surface.
According to their standard configuration, said fertilizer spreaders comprise a frame provided with attachment means for the back of a tractor; said frame acts as support for the fertilizer hopper and for one or more spreading teeth, each of them practically consisting in a shaped arm, with forward inclination according to the direction of travel of the tractor, which ends in lower position with a short of shovel, with sharp edges to favor penetration in soil.
Each tooth is associated with a feed pipe situated on the back of the tooth and shaped in such a way to follow its profile, so that the impact with soil is exclusively borne by the shaped arm, whereas the feed pipe is only adapted to convey the fertilizer from the hopper to the lower outlet mouth, situated exactly on the back of the shovel.
The present invention originates from the examination of these two types of agricultural machines that, in spite of having a different structural configuration and operating purpose, are both characterized by the presence of one or more sturdy teeth, with forward inclination according to the direction of travel of the tractor, and ending at the base with a sort of shovel with sharp edges.
The agricultural machine of the invention has been devised from the observation of these common features, originating from the intelligent combination of the two types of agricultural machines of known type, as illustrated above.
In other words, the present invention consists in an evolution of an ordinary subsoiler with the integration of components from an ordinary fertilizer spreader, in such manner to realize a new, original agricultural bivalent machine to be used both to plow soil and fertilize subsoil.
The peculiarity of the agricultural bivalent machine according to the invention consists in the special design of the fertilizer feed pipe
associated with each tooth of the subsoiler, being aware that, in case of a violent shock with the soil, said tooth must be able to oscillate freely around its pivoting pin to the frame.
To that end, the fertilizer feed pipe is made of two sections, a first upper section fixed to the fixing bracket of the tooth of the subsoiler, and a second lower section fixed to the tooth of the subsoiler and ending with a fertilizer outlet opening situated exactly on the back of the shovel of the tooth.
The outlet mouth of the first section is interfaced and engaged against the corresponding inlet mouth of the second lower section.
Moreover, attention must be drawn on the fact that said design of the feed pipe has also affected the shape of said first and second section, which were given a suitable profile, as well as the shape of the mouths interfaced of the upper and lower sections.
For explanatory reasons the description of the agricultural machine of the according to the present invention continues with reference to the attached drawings, which only have illustrative, not limiting value, wherein:
- Fig. 1 is an axonometric view of the agricultural bivalent machine of the invention;
- Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic side view of the agricultural machine of the invention, showing the fertilizer flow in case the machine is temporarily use as fertilizer spreader;
- Fig. 3 is an axonometric view of one of the teeth of the agricultural machine of the invention, in idle and working position;
- Fig. 4 is a side view of one of the teeth of the agricultural machine of the invention, in idle and working position;
- Fig. 5 is the view of Fig. 4 according to direction V-V ;
- Fig. 6 is a view of one of the teeth of the machine according to the invention, in backward overturned position further to the actuation of the stopping device.
As mentioned above, the agricultural machine of the present invention can be considered as an evolution of an ordinary subsoiler. Therefore the following description will be brief for what regards said subsoiler, which has no innovative features, whereas it will be long and detailed for what regards the structural parts that have been added in order to use an ordinary subsoiler also as fertilizer spreader.
Referring to Fig. 1 , the agricultural bivalent machine of the invention comprises an ordinary subsoiler (R), with teeth associated with fertilizer feed pipes fed from a hopper (TR) installed on board the frame (T) of the subsoiler.
The subsoiler (R) comprises a frame (T) acting as support for a regularly spaced series of teeth (1 ) with forward inclination according to the direction of travel of the tractor, each of them ending in lower position with a sort of shovel (2) with sharp edges.
Each tooth (1 ) is fixed to the frame (T) by means of a pivoting pin (3) with horizontal axis, which hinges the top (1 a) of the tooth (1 ) to a sturdy fixing bracket (4) that is an integral part of said frame (T).
Said fixing bracket (4) is provided with a stopping device (5) of the tooth
(1 ) of preset-breakage type, meaning that it uses a constraint element adapted to break beyond a preset stress value, in such manner that, in case of anomalous stress, the tooth (1 ) can recover its freedom of oscillation around its pivoting pin (3).
Said preset-breakage stopping device (5) consists in a bolt (5a) that is inserted into a hole (1 b) obtained on the top (1 a) of the tooth (1 ) and anchored to the bracket (4).
The agricultural bivalent machine according to the invention also comprises a fertilizer hopper (TR) mounted on said frame (T) and a series of fertilizer feed pipes (6) associated with said teeth (1 ).
Referring to Figs. 3, 4 and 5, it must be noted that each fertilizer feed pipe (6) is obtained in two sections, a first upper section (6a) fixed to the bracket (4) and a second lower section (6b) fixed to the tooth (1 ).
The first upper section (6a) is fixed on the back of the bracket (4) by means of a symmetrical pair of bolts (7) inserted through anchoring flanges that protrude on the two sides of the first section (6a).
The second lower section (6b) is fixed by means of bolts (7) inserted on anchoring flanges on the back of the tooth (1 ) in correspondence of two points, the first point (P1 ) being situated at the height of the top (1 a) of the tooth, and the second point (P2) being situated at approximately half of the length of the tooth (1 ).
Said lower section (6b) is shaped in such manner to closely follow the profile of the back edge of the tooth (1 ), which basically acts as protection screen for the feed pipe (6).
The second section (6b) ends in lower position with an outlet mouth (8) situated immediately below said point (P2) and directed backwards with respect to the direction of travel of the tractor used to haul the agricultural bivalent machine of the invention.
Moreover, it must be noted that the outlet mouth (8) is shaped as a trumpet, and is laterally closed by walls (8a) that prevent soil from penetrating and ascending inside the fertilizer feed pipe (6).
As shown in the diagrammatic view of Fig. 2, each feed pipe (6) is connected to the hopper (TR) of the fertilizer (C) by means of flexible hoses (TF) that are inserted on one hand into outlet mouths (9) provided on the bottom of the hopper (TR), whereas on the other hand they are inserted into the inlet mouth (10) situated at the top of each first upper section (6a) of the feed pipes (6).
The outlet mouth (1 1 ) of the first upper section (6a) is interfaced and engaged against the corresponding inlet mouth (12) of the second lower section (6b), so that - during the normal operation of the machine of the invention as fertilizer spreader - fertilizer (C) descends from the hopper (TR) through the flexible hoses (TF) until it is conveyed into each feed pipe (6), from which it is delivered through the outlet mouth (8) situated on the bottom of the furrow made by the tooth (1 ).
As shown in Fig. 6, the association of feed pipes (6) to each tooth (1 ) of the subsoiler (R) does not impair the possibility for the tooth (1 ) to oscillate around its pivoting pin (3) in case of accidental breakage of said bolt (5a).
As shown in Fig. 6, in such a circumstance the first upper section (6a) remains stationary, whereas the second lower section (6b) oscillates together with the tooth (1 ) around the pivoting pin (3).