GB825515A - Peanut harvester - Google Patents

Abstract

825,515. Peanut-gathering machines. LILLISTON IMPLEMENT CO. Nov. 29, 1956, No. 36501/56. Class 6(3). A machine for gathering peanut plants from a windrow and stripping the nuts from the plants comprises a frame 10 with a forward pick-up portion 19 adjacent to the ground, a conveyer 22 which picks up the plants and carries them over the forward portion to a picking mechanism which is aligned with the forward portion to form a straight passage for the plants through the machine. The frame 10 is triangular in side elevation and is supported by a draught-bar 13 at the front and wheels 12 at the rear. The conveyer 22 comprises chains interconnected by tine-bars 20, the tines 23 of which pick up the plants and carry them around a forward sprocket 24, over a ledge 36<SP>1</SP>, which prevents loose peanuts from rolling back, and across a separator screen 36 to the picking screen 37, Fig. 7. The screens 36, 37 are co-terminous and co-planar and form a perforated base to the conveyer 22 throughout its length. The separator screen removes dirt from the plants as they pass thereover. The picking screen is of expanded metal with lattice openings through which the peanuts dangle as the plants are dragged over it, the plants being simultaneously agitated by short endless tine-bar conveyer 40, arranged above the conveyer 22 and driven at a higher speed. Further combing action is provided by spring tines 30 carried by bars 32 forming a table suspended by chains 33<SP>11</SP> above the entire length of the conveyer 22, the separated peanuts falling through the mesh floor on to an endless belt 47 which carries them to a hopper 49. The hopper is suspended on pivoted links 51 and is reciprocated thereby ; the links carry, at their lower ends, oscillating grids formed by fingers 50 within the hopper, and an air-blast is delivered by a fan 56 to winnow away light trash. Saws, Fig. 2 (not shown), project through the inclined base of the hopper to cut off stems from the peanuts as they roll down towards a bagging elevator 60. The frame 10 is pivoted to the draught-bar 13 about the wheel-axle 11, and the bar carries the engine 29 on a superstructure 16, adjustment of the frame relatively to the draught-bar being effected by a hydraulic ram, Fig. 2 (not shown), connected between them and supplied with fluid from the propelling tractor.