GB1560169A

GB1560169A - Hop picking machine

Info

Publication number: GB1560169A
Application number: GB5251377A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: AGROSTROJ PROSTEJOV NP
Current assignee: AGROSTROJ PROSTEJOV NP
Priority date: 1976-12-31
Filing date: 1977-12-16
Publication date: 1980-01-30
Also published as: CS192142B1; BE862533A; DE2757728A1; YU316577A

Description

(54) A HOP PICKING MACHINE (71) We, AGROSTROJ PROSTÉJOV, narodni podnik, a Czechoslovak Body Corporate of Prostéjov, Czechoslovakia, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to a hop picking machine.

The adjustment of the axial distance of the picking barrels of known hop picking machines is usually done by loosening bolts which connect the bearings of these barrels to the machine frame, and after shifting the picking barrels the bolts are again tightened so as to fix the bearings of the barrels in the adjusted position. Re-adjusting the axial spacings of the barrels is a time consuming operation normally requiring the picking machine to be brought to rest. Any interruption of the picking process, however, causes a considerable loss of time and reduces the output of the machine. For this reason the operators quite frequently appear to be reluctant to adjust the axial spacing and the speed of the barrels in accordance with the actual state of the harvested hops and with the ease or difficulty with which the cones are picked, which, in turn, causes losses of productivity due to increased damage of cones or, possibly, also to leaving them on the vines.

Thus, according to the present invention there is provided a hop picking machine comprising a plurality of pairs of picking barrels in which first ones of each pair of the picking barrels are arranged above one another on a first stationary frame of the picking machine, wherein the second ones of each pair of the picking barrels are supported on a second frame which is pivotally mounted with respect to the first frame and wherein the distance between the frames is adjustable.

The picking barrels are driven by preferably one or possibly two electric motors with one or more transmissions, one of them having the form of a variator.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing which is a diagrammatical representation of an embodiment of the part of a hop picking machine according to the present invention.

Three picking barrels 3 forming a first half i.e. first barrels of three pairs are adjustably mounted on a first frame 1 of the picking machine by means of bearings 2. The second half of the picking barrels i.e. second barrels of the three pairs 4 are carried on a second frame 5 which is pivotally mounted on an extension of the first frame 1 (not shown) by means of a pin 6. The first frame 1 also carries brackets 8, preferably two of them, suitably pivoted, by means of pins 7, each of these brackets having a gear mechanism with gear wheels 9, 10. The first gear wheel 9 is connected with a first shaft 11 and the second gear wheel 10 is connected with the bolt 12 having a nut 13 which is pivotably mounted on the second frame 5. The nut 13 is provided with covering tubes 14, 15, and the bolt 12 is provided with a covering tube 16. The first shaft 11 is provided with a detachable manual crank 21.

The first frame 1 of the picking machine also has mounted on it a motor 19 the drive shaft of which is connected to an adjustable pulley 20. The pulley 20 drives the first and second halves of the picking barrels by means of belts 24 driving intermediate pulleys 25 to 31, pulleys 27, 28 and 29 being rotatable about the axis of pin 6 and pulley 28 driving the barrels 4 of the second half. Pulleys 30 and 31 are rotatable about a common axis and pulley 31 drives the barrels 3 of the first half.

Adjustment of the distances between the barrels is achieved by turning the manual crank 21 in the one or the other direction, whereby the distance between the picking barrels 4 and the picking barrels 3 decreases or increases due to the operation of gears 9, 10, the bolt 12, the nut 13, and the frame 5, without stopping the picking process.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. A hop picking machine comprising a plurality of pairs of picking barrels in which first ones of each pair of the picking barrels are arranged above one another on a first stationary frame of the picking machine, wherein the second ones of each pair of the picking barrels are supported on a second frame which is pivotally mounted with respect to the first frame and wherein the distance between the frames is adjustable.

2. A machine as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the distance between the frames is adjustable by means of a screw acting between the frames.

3. A machine as claimed in Claim 2 wherein the screw is connected to a manual adjustment means.

4. A machine as claimed in Claim 3 wherein the screw is connected to the manual adjustment means by means of first and second meshing gears.

5. A machine as claimed in Claim 4 wherein the gears and handle are mounted to a bracket pivotally mounted to the first frame.

6. A hop picking machine substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawing.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. whereby the distance between the picking barrels 4 and the picking barrels 3 decreases or increases due to the operation of gears 9, 10, the bolt 12, the nut 13, and the frame 5, without stopping the picking process. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A hop picking machine comprising a plurality of pairs of picking barrels in which first ones of each pair of the picking barrels are arranged above one another on a first stationary frame of the picking machine, wherein the second ones of each pair of the picking barrels are supported on a second frame which is pivotally mounted with respect to the first frame and wherein the distance between the frames is adjustable.