GB2281687A - Tractor attachment linkage. - Google Patents

Abstract

An agricultural furrow press has a transportable frame 1 which can be used to quickly attach the equipment to the front linkage of any suitably equipped tractor. Pivotally mounted on the transportable frame 1 are an inner column 3 and an outer column 5 which rotate via cylinders 4 and 7 through a total angle of 180 degrees so the equipment can operate on the left or right hand side of the tractor. Pivotally attached to the outer column 5 is an arm 8 which is raised and lowered by cylinder 9. Pivotally attached to arm 8 is arm 10 to which is pivotally attached frame 13 and roller 12. Cylinders 9 and 11 are used to raise and lower roller 12 and are also positioned so as to enable the roller to exert more downward pressure onto the ground than could be imposed by the self weight of the equipment.

Description

HYDRAULIC FURROW PRESS The present invention relates to a hydraulic agricultural furrow press roller or cultivator.

Furrow press rollers are well known but are traditionally heavy, time consuming to mount and are used either to the right or left hand side of the tractor to which they are mounted. It is an object of the present invention to provide a furrow press roller substantially lighter than conventional machines, that can be quickly attached to the front linkage of a suitably equipped tractor and that can be easily moved from the left side to the right side of the tractor, or to a central position for road transport purposes.

It is also well known that using conventional means, equipments of soil engaging types cannot normally move through an arc of more than about 120 degrees due to the inherent geometry between the pivot and the hydraulically activating device such as a cylinder. It is therefore a further object of this invention to provide means of moving the press roller through 180 degrees thereby keeping the roller when in its working position as near to the front of the tractor as possible and thus using to its best advantage the weight of the tractor to provide the means to force the roller onto the ground without lifting the front wheels of the tractor from the ground.

Alternatively, a conventional single pivot and single cylinder can be used to pivot the roller from the left side to the right side.

According to the present invention, there is provided a transportable frame to which is attached an upper and lower pivot point and a cylinder mount.

On the transportable frame are mounting lugs which correspond to the front linkage of an agricultural tractor.

Pivotally mounted to the upper and lower pivot points of the transportable frame is a vertically mounted cylindrically shaped column so as to allow the column to rotate about a vertical axis.

Pivotally mounted about this first vertically mounted column is an outer vertically mounted column attached to which is an arm pivotally mounted at its lower end which in turn has a second arm pivotally mounted at its other end. A press roller is then pivotally mounted about the lower end of the second arm.

The geometry is such that the hydraulic cylinders which would normally be used to lower the press roller to the ground can be used to exert downward pressure on the roller and thus a lightweight roller has the same effect upon the soil as a heavy roller. Attached to both the arms are hydraulic cylinders which move the roller in a vertical direction and attached to both the vertically mounted columns are hydraulic cylinders which pivotally move the roller and arms horizontally through an arc of approximately 180 degrees.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which; Figure 1 shows a front view of the furrow press in its right hand working position when viewed from the rear of the tractor.

Figure 2 shows a plan view of the furrow press in its right hand working position when viewed from the rear of the tractor.

Figure 3 shows a front view of the furrow press in its raised position.

Figure 4 shows a plan view of the furrow press when in its left hand working position when viewed from behind the tractor.

Figure 5 shows a plan view of the furrow press in a straight ahead transport position.

Referring now to Fig 1, there is seen a transportable frame 1, having lugs 2 to attach the transportable frame to the front linkage of a tractor. An inner vertically mounted column 3 is pivotally activated by a cylinder 4 attached to the transportable frame 1.

An outer vertically mounted column 5 is pivotally activated by a cylinder 6 attached to the inner vertically mounted column 3 via mounting brackets 7.

Arm 8 pivotally mounted to the outer vertically mounted column 5 is moved from a working angle of inclination of approximately 45 degrees to a vertical position by hydraulic cylinder 9. Arm 10 pivotally mounted to arm 8 is moved from a working angle of approximately 45 degrees to a horizontal raised position as shown in Fig. 3 by cylinder 11.

Both cylinder 9 and cylinder 11 can be used to control the pressure exerted by the furrow press onto the soil.

Press roll 12 is mounted in frame 13 and is free to pivot about arm 10 but can be controlled if required by cylinder 14.

To operate the furrow press from the working position shown in Fig. 1 to the raised position shown in Fig. 3, cylinder 9 and cylinder 14 are closed and cylinder 11 is opened.

To operate the furrow press from a right hand working position as depicted in Fig. 2 to a left hand working position as depicted in Fig. 4, cylinder 4 is first opened which moves the inner column 3 and all those parts attached to it, (outer column 5, cylinder 6, brackets 7, cylinders 9, 11 and 4, arms 8 and 10, frame 13 and roller 12) through 90 degrees to a position as shown in Fig. 5.

Cylinder 6 is then closed which moves the outer column 5 and all those parts attached to it (cylinder 6, bracket 7, cylinders 9, 11 and 14, arms 8 and 10, frame 13 and roller 12) through 90 degrees to a position as shown in Fig. 4.

To move from a left hand working position to a right hand working position, the sequence is reversed and for speed, cylinders 4 and 6 can be operated simultaneously.

In a further embodiment of the invention, the roller 12 and frame 13 can be pivotally mounted at point 14 in order that roller 12 can be mounted in a transverse direction for transport whilst arms 8 and 10 are still longitudinal in relation to the tractor as depicted in Fig.

5.

Claims (6)

1. An agricultural furrow press or cultivator comprising a transportable frame 1 which can be attached to the front linkage of a suitably equipped tractor by lugs 2 to which is pivotally mounted an inner vertical column 3 which can be moved through an angle of approximately 90 degrees by cylinder 4 and about which is a pivotally mounted outer column 5 which can be moved through an angle of approximately 90 degrees by cylinder 6 giving a total angular movement of approximately 180 degrees, and attached to the outer column 5 is an arm 8 pivotally mounted at its respective end whilst at a point towards its other end is a second arm 10 pivotally mounted at its respective both arms being controlled by cylinders 9 and 11 respectively which both raise and lower the arms and can cause a roller 12 and frame 13 which are pivotally mounted on the other end of arm 10 to exert more pressure onto the soil than could be imposed by the self weight of the equipment.

2. Equipment as claimed in claim 1 whereas cylinder 14 can be used to level the press roller for both the working and transport positions.

3. Equipment as claimed in claims 1 and 2 characterised in that cylinder 11 is mounted from a point at the end of arm 8 and attached to a point on arm 10 so as to exert a downward force onto the roller 12.

4. Equipment as claimed in claims 1, 2 and 3 in that cylinder 9 is mounted at a point on outer column 5 and arm 8 so as to exert a downward force on arm 8 and thus a downward force onto roller 12.

5. Equipment as claimed in all preceding claims in that the frame 13 can be pivotally mounted about a vertical axle so that the roller can be turned when in the transport position transversely relative to the tractor.

6. An agricultural furrow press substantially as described herein with reference to figures 1-5 of the accompanying drawings.