GB2089315A

GB2089315A - Silage handling unit

Info

Publication number: GB2089315A
Application number: GB8128494A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-09-19
Filing date: 1981-09-21
Publication date: 1982-06-23
Also published as: GB2089315B

Abstract

A silage handling unit is mounted on the elevating arm (2) of a tractor and has a row of tines (9) projecting forwardly from a support frame (7). A cantilever depth- determining structure (10) consisting of parallel arms (11) supporting a transverse roller (12) is also carried by the support frame (7) and determines the thickness of a slice of silage extracted from the tines (9) when the latter are inserted horizontally into a silage clamp. The arrangement facilitates the removal of a compact and predetermined slice of silage by virtue of the relatively small thickness of the slice, set by the depth-determining structure (10). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Silage handling unit This invention relates to a silage handling unit.

The silage clamps commonly employed on farms for the storage of silage usually have a flat concrete floor or hardstanding on which a large mass of silage is stored in a compressed air-tight condition. The silage clamp is usually bounded by at least one end wall.

When silage is being extracted from a clamp for use it is important not to disturb the silage too much since this could result in undesirable aeration of the silage. Accordingly the silage is normally extracted from the top of the clamp using a silage or manure fork attachment on a tractor front end loader. Such an attachment consists essentially of forwardly projecting tines which are inserted horizontally into the silage clamp and then lifted using the hydraulically powered elevating mechanism of the front end loader. This lifting action causes silage to be torn from the clamp by the tines.

The force required to effect this tearing action is high compared with that required for lifting the extracted silage, and in consequence most conventional silage handling attachments tend to be inefficient in their utilisation of the available power. Moreover, the process of tearing the silage out of the silage clamp usually results in an undesirable aeration of the silage, and as often as not causes the silage loaded onto the front ends of the tines to fall away, so that the load eventually extracted by the tines is considerably less than the lifting capacity of the loader.

The present invention seeks to provide an improved silage handling unit in which the extraction of silage from a silage clamp is facilitated and made more efficient.

According to the invention there is provided a silage handling unit comprising a support for attachment to tractor-mountable elevating arms, a row of tines projecting forwardly from the support, and a depth-determining structure projecting forwardly from the support above the tines, the free end of the said structure being spaced from the free ends of the tines to predetermine the thickness of a slice of silage which can be picked up by the tines.

By the simple provision of a depth determining structure located above the tines and projecting forwardly from the support the silage handling unit of the present invention is adapted to remove silage from the top of a silage clamp cleanly in the form of a thin slice, which is compact and easy to handle.

The depth below the top of a silage clamp at which the tines are inserted into the clamp, and therefore the thickness of the silage slice, is predetermined.

The compact slice of silage extracted on the tines would typically have a thickness of about 25 cm or 9 inches. This slice presents a relatively small interface with the main mass of the silage, so that tearing of the slice from the silage clamp can easily be effected, with minimum aeration of the silage. Furthermore, the depth determining structure, by pressing down on the silage loaded onto the tines, keeps the silage in a compact slice during the extraction and subsequent carrying of the silage. Since the handling unit is capable of extracting compact slices of silage of consistent thickness, it is possible to make efficient use of the available power. Thus by suitably gauging the thickness of the silage slice extracted by the unit it is possible to use a small capacity tractor for the mounting and operation of the unit.

The depth-determining structure preferably includes support members projecting forwardly from the support on opposite sides of the row of tines, at least one of the support members being formed with, or carrying, a cutting edge which spans the space between the depth determining structure and the tines to assist the slicing action of the unit when inserted into silage or like material.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the depth determining structure comprises a cantilever element projecting from the support generally parallel to the tines, the free end of the element being located forwardly of the free ends of the tines. This not only assists in breaking off the extracted silage from the main mass of the clamp, but also protects the ends of the tines from damage in the event of collision with an end retaining wall of a silage clamp. The free end of the depth-determining element may be rounded to facilitate its movement over the top of a silage clamp. Preferably, however, the free end of the depth determining element carries a roller which is freely rotatable about a transverse axis so that upon insertion of the tines into a silage clamp the roller rolls freely over the upper surface of the clamp, determining the depth of insertion of the tines.

The depth-determining element is preferably attached rigidly to the support, for example by welding. The support may include a transversely extending sludge plate from which the tines and the depth-determining element project, and to which they are attached. In an alternative embodiment of the invention the depth-determining element may have a pivotal attachment to the support through means which cause upward pivoting of the element relative to the tines upon depression of the free ends of the tines.

The invention will be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying purely diagrammatic drawings, in which: Figure 1 illustrates in perspective part of a tractor front loader attachment fitted with a silage handling unit according to one embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 is a side elevational view of a tractor with a front loader attachment carrying a silage handling unit according to another embodiment of the invention, and Figure 3 is a side elevational view of a silage handling unit according to a further embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings the same reference numerals are used throughout to designate the same or corresponding component parts.

Figs. 1 and 2 show a front end loader of conventional design mounted on an agricultural tractor 1. The front end loader has two elevating arms 2 of steel box section construction which have a pivotal attachment to the tractor at one end and which can be raised and lowered by means of hydraulic actuators 3. The two arms 2 are rigidly interconnected adjacent their free ends by a crosspiece 4, and are further interconnected intermediate their ends by a transverse bracing member 5.

The free ends of the two arms 2 are formed with attachment lugs 6 to which different tools and handling equipment can be attached.

The silage handling unit according to the present invention is designed for attachment to the front end loader illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 and has a rigid support frame 7 with mounting lugs 8 for releasable attachment by means of respective linch pins to the attachment lugs 6 of the end loader arms 2. The frame 7 supports a row of forwardly projecting parallel tines 9 of circular cross section attached rigidly to a lower transverse member of the frame 7. The frame 7 also supports a forwardly projecting depth-determining element 10 which is attached to an upper part of the frame 7.

In the embodiments illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 the depth determining element 10 comprises two cantilever arms 11 which are parallel to the tines 9 and spaced therefrom by a distance equal to the desired width of the slice of silage to be extracted by means of the unit. The arms 11 project forwardly beyond the free pointed ends of the tines 9 and support at their free ends a freely rotatable transversely extending roller 1 2.

A rigid transversely extending sludge plate 1 3 is carried by the support frame 7. The sludge plate 1 3 may be shaped as a scoop or bucket with lateral walls of triangular shape, as shown in Fig. 3.

The depth determining element 1 0 predetermines the thickness of a slice of silage extracted from a silage clamp. As illustrated in Fig. 2, the silage handling unit is used to extract silage from the top of a silage clamp by inserting the tines 9 horizontally into the mass of silage near the top of the clamp, at a level such that the depth-determining element 10 rests on the top surface of the clamp. The roller 12 will pass over the upper surface of the silage clamp without undue resistance, determining accurately the depth below the top of the silage clamp at which the tines are inserted, and, therefore, the thickness of the slice of silage to be withdrawn from the clamp.Since the silage clamp is formed, in effect, of horizontal layers, the tines 9 pass easily into the silage clamp, and effectively split a layer of silage from the clamp along the plane of the row of tines 9.

When the tines 9 have been fully inserted, to a depth limited by the sludge plate 13, the unit is elevated by means of the hydraulic actuators 3 to lift the tines 9. This will cause the slice of silage trapped between the tines 9 and the depth determining element 10 to be torn from the silage clamp, across the relatively narrow interface between the roller 1 2 and the free ends of the tines 9. In consequence, the tearing force required to extract the slice of silage is small compared with that required to extract silage using a conventional silage fork or grab.

The roller 1 2 in passing over the top of the silage clamp exerts a compression force which further assists in shearing the slice of silage from the clamp when the tines 9 are elevated.

In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1, where the unit is equipped with hydraulic power, the support frame 7 is releasably attached to the free ends of the elevating arms 2 and is pivotable about the attachment lugs 6 of the elevating arms 2 by means of hydraulic crowd rams 1 4 which enable the tines 9 and the depth-determining element 10 to be pivoted about the horizontal axis passing through the attachment lugs 6. This facilitates the unloading of an extracted slice of silage by lowering the tines 9 from the horizontal position in which they are illustrated in Fig. 2: the extracted slice of silage will slide off the tines 9 when the latter are lowered, and in the process will break up.

In an alternative, simpler, embodiment, illustrated in Fig. 2, the support frame 7 is rigidly but releasably attached to the free ends of the elevating arms 2.

In the simplest versions of the silage handling unit according to the invention the tines 9 and the depth determining elements 10 are fixed rigidly relative to each other. In an alternative version, illustrated in Fig. 3, the depth determining element 10 may be pivotable relative to the tines 9. As illustrated, the depth determining element 10 in Fig. 3 is pivoted to the elevating booms 2 (not shown) by means of a pivot shaft 15, while the support frame 7 of the tines 9 is pivotally supported on the attachment lugs 6 in the manner illustrated in Fig. 2.The tines 9 and the depth determining element 10 are interconnected through meshing gear sectors 16, 1 7 so that, when the tines 9 are pivoted about the attachment lugs 6 by means of the crowd ram 14, the meshing gear sectors 16, 1 7 cause the depth determining element 10 to pivot about the shaft 15, the arrangement being such that the element 10 remains horizontal while the tines 9 are depressed. This facilitates the unloading of a slice of silage from the tines 9.

When the slice of compact silage slides off the tines 9 upon downward pivotal movement of the unit, or, where the unit is rigidly mounted on the loader arms 2 (Fig. 2), upon lowering of the arms 2, the slice drops cleanly from the unit into, for example, a mixer wagon or dung spreader, where the silage is readily broken up.

To assist the slicing action of the unit one or both of the two arms 11 may be provided with a cutting edge 1 8 which spans the space between the depth determining element 10 and the tines 9 on one or both sides of the row of tines. The cutting edge 1 8 is inclined to the horizontal so that it has a slicing action upon insertion of the tines into the silage.

It will be appreciated that the silage handling unit described and illustrated is also suitable for removing blocks of silage from a stack, the unit can also be used for handling manure with minimal tear-out forces, and the references to "silage" in the present description should therefore be construed accordingly.

Claims

1. A silage handling unit comprising a support for attachment to tractor mountable elevating arms, a row of tines projecting forwardly from the support, and a depth-determining structure projecting forwardly from the support above the tines, the free end of the said structure being spaced from the free ends of the tines to predetermine the thickness of a slice of silage which can be picked up by the tines.

2. A silage handling unit according to Claim 1, in which the depth-determining structure comprises a cantilever element projecting from the support generally parallel to the tines, the free end of the element being located forwardly of the free ends of the tines.

3. A silage handling unit according to Claim 2, in which the depth-determining element is rigidly attached to the support.

4. A silage handling unit according to Claim 2, in which the depth-determining element has a pivotal attachment to the support through means which cause upward pivoting of the element relative to the tines upon depression of the free ends of the tines.

5. A silage handling unit according to any one of Claims 2 to 4 in which the free end of the depth-determining element carries a roller which is freely rotatable about a transverse axis.

6. A silage handling unit according to Claim 3, in which the tines and the depthdetermining element project forwardly from and are attached to a transversely extending sludge plate.

7. A silage handling unit according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the depth-determining structure includes support members projecting forwardly from the support on opposite sides of the row of tines, at least one of the support members being formed with, or carrying, a cutting edge which spans the space between the depth determining structure and the tines to assist the slicing action of the unit when inserted into silage or like material.

8. A silage handling unit substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in Fig. 1 or Fig. 2 or Fig. 3 of the accompanying drawings.