GB2370970A

GB2370970A - An attachment for a vehicle

Info

Publication number: GB2370970A
Application number: GB0131083A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Lawrence Kenny
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-01-02
Filing date: 2001-12-31
Publication date: 2002-07-17
Anticipated expiration: 2021-12-31
Also published as: IES20011110A2; GB2370970B; GB0131083D0

Abstract

An attachment (10 figure 1) for a vehicle comprises a first frame member (12,22) attachable to a vehicle and a second frame member (26,42) pivotally mounted to one side of the first frame member. The attachment comprises means 34 for moving the second frame member from a first state, wherein at least a portion 12 of the first member and the second member 26 lie substantially parallel to one another at a first distance apart, to a second state, wherein at least a portion of the first member and the second member lie substantially orthogonal to one another. In this second state the second member extends a second distance from the first member, the second distance being substantially greater than the first distance. The attachment may be used as a scraper or sweeper for silage within a cattle shed.

Description

An attachment for a vehicle

This invention relates to an attachment for a vehicle. In particular, the invention relates to a transportable, materials moving apparatus especially useful in moving silage in a cow-shed.

In a cattle-shed, cattle are generally penned in one or two rows and have their heads extending through the pen bars into a passage where they feed from silage. As the cattle eat the accessible silage at the periphery of the passage, more is pitched over manually from the middle part. Such manual moving of the silage as will be appreciated is labour intensive. Furthermore the passageway is too narrow for a tractor to manoeuvre and push silage across.

GB-A-2,165, 566, Harper discloses a transport or link box attachment for a farm tractor comprising a V-shaped open box member which is adapted to sweep material along the ground when in a lowered position to one or both sides of the box towards the feeding animals.

GB-A-2,215, 974, Redrock discloses an apparatus for moving silage having a main frame mountable on a tractor's three point hitch and comprising two silage pushing gates connected to the main frame by a parallelogram type linkage. The gates are movable from a closed position to an open position by a respective hydraulic rams disposed between each gate and the main frame. In use, the tractor to which the apparatus is mounted is reversed into the cattle-shed, with the apparatus moving the silage by pushing the closed gates into a pile of silage. One or both

gates are subsequently opened by actuating one or both rams and act to push the silage sideways towards the pens of feeding animals. After the gates are closed, the tractor and apparatus are moved further up the passageway and the operation is repeated.

As such, it is known to use an apparatus attached to the back of a tractor for the purpose of pushing silage present in the central passageway of a cattle-shed sideways, using a V-shaped or similar apparatus. The shape of the both the Harper and Redrock apparatus present a problem in that they result in piles of silage being left essentially"stuck"in the corners of the cattle-shed at the end farthest from the entrance, and, due to the shape and mechanics of the apparatus, it is not possible to easily reach this remaining silage. It is therefore necessary to resort to time-consuming manual labour in order to distribute the remaining silage to the feeding animals.

Also, especially in the case of Redrock, the depth of the apparatus when the gates are in a closed position differs little from the depth of the apparatus with the gates in an open position. This makes both apparatus either inconvenient or dangerous to either leave or transport at the rear of the tractor.

According to the invention there is provided an attachment for a vehicle comprising a first frame member attachable to a vehicle and a second frame member pivotally mounted to one side of said first frame member, said attachment comprising means for moving said second frame member from a first state, wherein at least a portion of said first

member and said second member lie substantially parallel to one another at a first distance apart, to a second state, wherein at least a portion of said first member and said second member lie substantially orthogonal to one another and said second member extends a second distance from said first member, said second distance being substantially greater than said first distance.

Therefore in spite of the restrictive breadth of a cow-shed passageway, the present invention can still move the silage therein towards the feeding animals by pushing it sideways relative to the direction of movement of the apparatus.

However, the invention further provides a means of sweeping the silage thus mitigating the chance of having silage stuck in the corners of the cattle-shed.

The sweeping motion of the apparatus of the present invention also provides beneficial breaking up of the silage.

The apparatus of the preferred embodiment, having a hinge about which a panel of the apparatus turns in order to provide the sweeping motion, allows the panel to move outwardly to its full extension and to be retracted back into its initial position. This extension and retraction of the panel allows for the apparatus to be maintained in a compact form when out of use and mounted on, for example, a tractor. This mitigates the necessity to remove the apparatus once it has been used as the apparatus in its first, closed state is not particularly bulky.

Various embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a view of an apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention from a side to which it connects to a three point hitch of a tractor; Figure 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in a first state; Figure 3 is a plan view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in a second state; Figure 4 is an inside view of the apparatus of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a view of the apparatus in an opposite direction to Figure 1; Figure 6 is a perspective view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in the first state; Figure 7 is a perspective view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in the second state ; and Figures 8 and 9 are plan and side views respectively of an apparatus according to a second embodiment of the invention.

Referring to Figures 1 to 7, an apparatus according to a first embodiment of the invention, generally indicated at 10, comprises a generally arcuate barrier with one end

mounted via a three point hitch to the rear of a tractor (not shown).

Referring now to Figure 1, the apparatus 10 comprises a generally A-shaped frame 12 at the end mounted to the tractor. The upper portion of the frame 12 comprises a pair of frame members 14 extending upwardly until they reach the apex at which point they meet to form a bracket 16. The lower portion of the frame 12 comprises a substantially longitudinal horizontal section 17 which section 17 comprises two lugs 18 such that each lug 18 extends from an opposite side of the section 17. Each of the bracket 16 and the two lugs 18 are for attaching the apparatus 10 to the three points of a conventional three point hitch attachment at the rear of the tractor.

The inside of the frame 12 is filled with a first panel 20 which is generally rectangular in shape. To one side of the frame is connected a second panel 22 which is generally rectangular in shape and which is maintained out of the plane of the first panel 20 by a pair of horizontal struts 24 mounted between the first and second panels 20,22. Each strut 24 is box-section in nature and they are separated by a suitable distance. The struts 24 act to support the first and second panels 20,22 and to maintain them at a distance apart, relative to one another.

Referring to Figures 2 and 3, a third panel 26 which is substantially rectangular in shape is pivotally attached to the second panel 22 at the otherwise free end by means of a hinge 28.

Internally on the second and third panels 22, 26 there are located respective brackets 30, 32. A hydraulic ram 34 is mounted between the second and third panels 22,26. The piston 36 of the ram 34 is connected to the bracket 30 of the second panel 22. The sleeve 38 of the ram 34 is connected to the bracket 32 of the third panel 26. Two leads (not shown) extend from the ram 34 and are connected to the tractor, the leads being present for the actuation of the ram 34.

Preferably, the third panel 26 includes three or four arclike projections 40 on its outer surface. These aid in engaging material to be moved by the apparatus 10.

Attached to the otherwise free end of the third panel 26 is a fourth panel 42 which is substantially rectangular in shape and is positioned out of the plane of the third panel 26.

In use, the tractor is driven in a reverse manner such as to allow the apparatus to push through silage dispensed from a conventional silage grab in the central passageway of a cattle-shed.

The third panel 26, in particular, serves to push the silage sideways, in the direction of feeding animals. If desired, the ram 34 may be actuated such that the third panel 26 is pivoted about the hinge 28 from its first closed state, outwardly in a substantially arc-wise motion until it reaches its second, open state, as best illustrated in Figures 2 and 3, and 6 and 7.

In this state, the fourth panel 42 lies substantially orthogonal to the direction of movement of the tractor and also parallel to the side of the cowshed. This means the panel 42 can push silage, which might otherwise have to be pitched manually, to a point where it may be consumed by cattle without manual operator intervention.

In this manner, the silage may be pushed or swept even further in the direction of the animals. The third panel 26 may subsequently be returned to its first state and the process continued, with the vehicle reversing further in order to distribute more silage from the central passageway.

It will be seen that the invention is not limited to the first embodiment described and that variations are possible. For example, to protect the underside of the panels from excessive wear, a rubber skirt 44 is fixed to the underside of the third and fourth panels 26 and 42. Similarly, while advantageous, the invention is not limited to an attachment mountable on the rear of a tractor and could equally be adapted for front mounting or for vehicles similar to a tractor. Also, while the attachment of the first embodiment described is operable in an asymmetric fashion, it will be seen that the invention is equally extensible to operate in a symmetric fashion by having two juxtaposed moving panels.

However, in a second embodiment of the invention, the limitation of the apparatus only being able to operate in one direction as well as some other shortcomings of the first embodiment are resolved.

Referring now to Figure 8, wherein like numerals are used to designate components corresponding to the components of the first embodiment. It will be appreciated that the apparatus of the invention may be attached via, for example, a standard 3 point hitch to a variety of vehicles, in particular, vehicles of differing widths. To allow the apparatus to be correctly positioned, especially when in its second open state, relative to the side of the vehicle, the apparatus of the second embodiment generally indicated at 100 is split into two parts, 10'and 10"movable laterally relative to one another.

The first part 10'comprises a frame 12'corresponding to the frame 12 of the first embodiment, by which the apparatus is mounted on a vehicle. Two horizontally disposed tracks 48 located one above the other bridge the two parts 10', 10". In the embodiment, the tracks comprise a length of generally U-shaped section slidably located over a length of box section, each section having a plurality of holes 49,50 drilled there through. The part 10"can therefore be moved laterally relative to the part 10'and when the desired setting is reached, whereby in the second open state, the panel 22'lies parallel to the side of the vehicle, a pair of bolts can be dropped through holes of the respective U-sections and box sections lying in register with one another and then secured to retain the apparatus in this setting.

In this second embodiment, the first part 10'is further divided to separate the portion of the tracks 48 incorporated in the part 10'from the frame 12'. Between

these a hub 52 driven by an hydraulic ram 53, Fig. 9, connects the frame 12'to a sub-frame incorporating the tracks 48. The ram 53 is in turn controllable from the cab of the vehicle to cause the hub 52 to rotate and so flip the apparatus over from say a right sided mode of operation shown in Figure 8 to a left sided mode of operation.

In a variation of the second embodiment, the hub and ram 52,53 are not employed and the tracks 48 are directly mounted to the frame 12'. In order to flip over the apparatus, the second part 10"must be detached from the first part 10', for example, by sliding the track portions for one part completely out of the track portions for the other part, manually flipped over and re-attached to the first part 10'. This is much more likely to be done only once in the life of an apparatus rather than during normal use.

In another variation, the sliding and rotating mechanism could be integrated with one or more slides being incorporated in a rotating hub. As such, it will be seen that the principle of sliding and/or rotating the barrier with respect to the frame could be implemented in many other ways within the ambit of a man skilled in the art and within the scope of the present invention.

Nonetheless, in any of these variations of the second embodiment, the rubber skirt 44 of the first embodiment needs to duplicated in the form of a second rubber skirt 44'running along the opposite edges of the panels 22', 26' and 42', Figure 9.

Reverting to the illustrated version of the second embodiment, it will be seen that while in the first embodiment, the panels 22 and 26 were linked by the ram 34, in the second embodiment, the panels 20'and 26'are linked by a corresponding ram 34'. On the one hand, this means that a ram with a longer stroke is required and so the sweeping action is in general slower. On the other hand, it means that the ram itself can act as a stay between the panel 26'and the remainder of the apparatus so obviating the need for the struts 24.

In particular, it has been found that if the length of ram 34'and its stroke length are chosen so that when the apparatus is in the closed state, the ram lies approximately orthogonally to the panel 26', the ram acts as a good support for the panel 26'when it is being used to push material along in the direction of travel of a carrying vehicle. Nonetheless, it is also acknowledged that in some cases, this rigidity may cause problems, for example, if the vehicle is reversed into a wall. For this reason, the ram 34'is associated with a release valve (not shown) which opens when hydraulic pressure exceeds a given threshold. This allows the apparatus to close freely if it continues to bear against a large object when in the open state, so preventing damage to the apparatus and the object.

In a further improvement, the apparatus of the second embodiment is provided with an additional panel 54 extending from the side of the apparatus opposite the panel 22'. (In Figure 8, the panel is shown as being fixed rigidly in position, however, it is envisaged that the

panel could also be hinged and its position controlled using hydraulic power.) Nonetheless, the panel 54, allows the apparatus not alone to act as a sweeping attachment for a vehicle, but also to act as a materials gathering apparatus.

In this case, when employed with the apparatus in the open state, the vehicle can be driven into a pile of material to

be gathered. The ram 34'can then be actuated to close the panel 26', moving it from the position indicated by the number 26"in Figure 8 to the position indicated by the numeral 26'. In the second embodiment, the panel 42'is slightly longer than the corresponding panel 42 of the first embodiment, and when in the closed position, it bears against the otherwise free end of the panel 54 to enclose the material, which can then be pushed around as required under the control of the vehicle.

Because of the extended length of the panel 42'in the second embodiment, this panel is hinged relative to the panel 26'under the control of an hydraulic ram 56 connecting the two panels. This means the panel can be extended to the state indicated by the numeral 42'in Figure 8 to the retracted state indicated by the number 42". When the panel retracted, the overall length of the apparatus is reduced so potentially making storage or possibly operation of the apparatus under certain conditions easier.

In a further improvement, the panel 20'can be modified or replaced by a panel including a set of prongs or tines (not shown) extending orthogonally from the face of the panel.

This means that material gathered within the apparatus as described above is engaged by the prongs. As shown in Figure 9, the top member of the three point hitch assembly for a tractor 60 (whose rear wheel is shown) usually comprises an hydraulic ram 58. Actuating this ram causes the apparatus 100 to pivot in the direction of arrow A, so lifting any material gathered within the apparatus and held by the prongs.

It will be seen that as well as materials sweeping, gathering and lifting the apparatus of the second embodiment and even the apparatus of the first embodiment can also be employed as a yard scraper, simply by lowering the three point hitch to the point where the underside of at least one of the panels of the apparatus bears against the ground to be scraped. However, this action can be improved by articulating one or more of the panels 22,26 or 42 of the first embodiment and the corresponding panels of the second embodiment to provide a ground engaging flap (not shown) pivotable about a horizontal axis. (Clearly if employed one a reversible apparatus, flaps would need to be provided on both the upper and lower edges of the panels.) The flap (s) are preferably hinged so that when the apparatus is moving in one direction the flaps are locked and so scrape and clear the ground underneath, whereas when the apparatus is moving in the opposite direction, the flaps pivot and so float over the ground underneath, so tending to move debris in one direction while repeatedly clearing ground by moving a vehicle back and forth.

Claims

Claims :

1. An attachment for a vehicle comprising a first frame member attachable to a vehicle and a second frame member pivotally mounted to one side of said first frame member, said attachment comprising means for moving said second frame member from a first state, wherein at least a portion of said first member and said second member lie substantially parallel to one another at a first distance apart, to a second state, wherein at least a portion of said first member and said second member lie substantially orthogonal to one another and said second member extends a second distance from said first member, said second distance being substantially greater than said first distance.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said first frame member comprises a first frame portion and a second frame portion, said first frame portion being attachable to a vehicle and said second frame portion being maintained out of the plane of said first frame portion and being pivotally connected to said second frame member.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said apparatus comprises an hydraulic ram connected between said first frame portion and said second frame member.

4. An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said apparatus comprises an hydraulic ram connected

between said second frame portion and said second frame member.

5. An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said second frame member comprises a first frame portion and a second frame portion, said second frame portion being maintained out of the plane of said first frame portion and said first frame portion being pivotally connected to said first frame member.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5 wherein said second frame member comprises a first frame portion and a second frame portion, said second frame portion being pivotable out of the plane of said first frame portion and said first frame portion being pivotally connected to said first frame member.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein at least one of said first or second frame members includes at least one resilient ground engaging skirt.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said second frame member includes means for positively engaging material against which, in use, said second frame member engages.

9. An apparatus according to claim 1 in which said first frame member is divided into first and second sub-frames, said first sub-frame being attachable to a vehicle and said second sub-frame being

connected to said second frame member, wherein said first and second sub-frames are slidable relative to one another to locate said second frame member laterally relative to a vehicle.

10. An apparatus according to claim 1 in which said first frame member is divided into first and second sub-frames, said first sub-frame being attachable to a vehicle and said second sub-frame being connected to said second frame member, wherein said first and second sub-frames are rotatable relative to one another to reverse the direction of operation of said apparatus.

11. An apparatus according to claim 1 in which said first frame member is divided into first and second sub-frames, said first sub-frame being attachable to a vehicle and said second sub-frame being connected to said second frame member, wherein said first and second sub-frames are rotatable and slidable relative to one another to locate said second frame member laterally relative to a vehicle and to reverse the direction of operation of said apparatus.

12. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said apparatus comprises a third frame member connected to the other side of the first frame member so that when said apparatus is in said first state, the end of said second frame member remote from said first frame member bears against said third frame member.

13. An apparatus according to claim 12 wherein said first frame member is adapted to receive a plurality of prongs arranged to engage material enclosed within said first, second and third frame members when said apparatus is in said first state.

14. An apparatus according to claim 1 or 7 wherein at least one of said first or second frame members includes at least one pivotable ground engaging flap.

15. An apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said hydraulic ram lies substantially orthogonally to said second frame member when said apparatus is in said first state.

16. An apparatus according to claim 3,4 or 15 wherein said hydraulic ram is associated with a release valve which opens when hydraulic pressure in said ram exceeds a threshold.

17. An apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 7 or Figures 8 and 9 of the accompanying drawings.