NZ211524A - Tractor mounted harrows with outboard pivot suspension - Google Patents

Description

211524 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 No.: 211524 Djt,; 21 March 1985 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION "IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL CULTIVATORS" I/JMt, STEPHEN JOHN BARNES, a New Zealand citizen of 79 North Street, Palmerston North, New Zealand, hereby declare the invention for which I / WJCpray that a patent may be granted to me/xctx and the method by which it Is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: - 211524 / ^ 0 7 (., RECEIVED No.: 211524 Djte; 21 March 1985 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT. 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION "IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO AGRICULTURAL CULTIVATORS" I/3M, STEPHEN JOHN BARNES, a New Zealand citizen of 79 North Street, Palmerston North, New Zealand, hereby declare the invention for which 1 / Wi^pray that a patent may be granted to me/jwx and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement:- / 211524 This Invention relates to agricultural cultivators.

Agriculture cultivators for working soil have been developed with a gang of spring tynes operating In association with a trailing roller. Availability of more powerful tractors has resulted In larger Implements being developed. When existing designs of tractor mounted tyne cultivators are scaled up, they become less satisfactory for a number of reasons. They are more difficult to transport, they are unable to accommodate any significant variation in ground level over the working width of the Implement, the effective working depth of the tyne Is not easy to control and the working stresses In the tyne support frame Increase substantially.

It Is an object to the present Invention to provide an agricultural cultivator which will reduce some of the above stated difficulties or which will at least provide a useful choice over existing agricultural cultivators at present available.

Accordingly the Invention consists In an agricultural cultivator comprising a tractor mountable frame, twin tyne carrying frames supported transversely from said tractor mounted frame, support means to support the tyne carrying frames so that In use the tyne carrying r o\ <*■ A frames provide effective cultivating over the combined width thereof °i 8 OCT 1987 1 with a connection between the support means and each tyne carrying *?£*rame 'oca"''ec' °ver the respective tyne carrying frame between the sides and away from the adjacent edges of the tyne carrying frames and ..operative to allow pivotal movement between the support means and the tyne carrying frames generally to permit the tyne carrying frames to follow the transverse ground topography over the cultivating width In use, a bank of cultivating tynes mounted on each tyne carrying frame and reaction means supported on each tyne carrying frame to engage the ground In use and operate Tn conjunction with the tynes to limit the depth of cultivation of the tynes. 211524 One preferred form of the Invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings In which: Figure 1 Is a pictorial view of an agricultural cultivator according to the present invention mounted behind a tractor showing one of the t-yne carrying frames In the operating position and the other tyne carrying frame In the elevated position.

Figure 2 Is a pictorial view showing the agricultural cultivator In a working mode mounted behind a tractor.

Figure 3 Is a rear elevation of an agricultural cultivator according to the present Invention with the elevated position of the tyne carrying frames shown In dotted outline.

Figure 4 Is a plan view of the agricultural cultivator according to the present Invention.

Figure 5 Is an end view of figure 4 and Figure 6 Is a detail of the tyne layout.

An agricultural cultivator 1 has a tractor mounted frame 2 designed to pivotal ly support two tyne carrying frames 3 and 4 to have a combined cultivating width transverse to the tractor mounting frame. The frames 3 and 4 have tyne carrying members structurally supported relative one to the other means for mounting a reaction roller at the rear of the frame and a suitable bank or gang of tynes to effect cultivation.

The tractor mounting frame comprises a front section 5 designed to engage with the three point linkage of a tractor having the two side coupling positions 6 and 7 and the top position 8. Projecting rearwardly from the front section 5 Is a support frame made up of two parallel arms 9 and two brace arms 10 extending from adjacent at the top of the front frame 5 to the rear outer edges of the arms 9. The design of this frame Is not critical but of course It Is Important to • 4 - 211524 ensure that ft Is capable of mounting on a three point I Inkage of a tractor and designed to support In operating conditions the tyne carrying frames.

Projecting from the side of the arms 9 are connection positions 11 and 12. The forward connection position 11 Is preferably adjacent to forward edge of the tyne carrying frame and the rearward connection position 12 Is preferably adjacent the rear of the tyne carrying frame. This spread Is desirable for structural reasons but the pivot positions could be closer together. These connection positions wherever located are designed to allow an appropriate pivotal coupling between the support frame and the tyne carrying frame so that In use the tyne carrying frame can "float" to follow ground topography over the cultivating width of the tyne frame.

While the tyne carrying frame must be able to pivot over a reasonable range to accommodate ground variation the pivotal moveinent Is arrested to allow the whole assembly to be elevated on the three point linkage of the tractor without undue dropping of the outer edges of the tyne carrying frames. This movement Is Illustrated In Figure 3 showing approximately the angle of movement In the direction lowering the outer edges of the tyne carrying frames which would be normally acceptable In use.

The movement In the opposite direction Is such as will allow the tyne carrying frames to be raised to a substantially vertical position, again essentially as Illustrated In dotted outline In Figure 3 or as shown on one side In Figure 1. In this case the Inner end In the upright position must retain a working clearance from the ground.

The particular pivotal coupling used at the connection points between the support frame and the tyne carrying frames Is not critical but a convenient and simple coupling can be effected by having two 211524 parallel lugs on the support frame and a compl Imen+ary lug on the tyne carrying frame Interengaged with a pivot pin appropriately fixed In place passing through aligned apertures In the lugs. The control of the downward movement can be effected by the position of the Inner edges of the tyne carrying frames so that as that at the appropriate angle th«y contact one with the other thereby stopping any further downward movement of either.

Each tyne carrying frame 3 and 4 has a front member 13, a rear member 14 and a plurality, preferably three. Intermediate tyne carrying bars 17 parallel with the front and rear members. An Inner side member 15 Joins the aligned Inner ends of these members and outside member 16 Joins the aligned outer ends to provide a rectangular tyne carrying frame.

Mounted on top of the tyne carrying members Is a bracing frame which comprises an anchor support 18 parallel to the Inner side 15 and located outside of the arm 9 so that the connection positions 11 and 12 will be made on the anchor support member 18. A diagonal brace 19 extends from the front of the member 18 to adjacent the rear corner between the members 14 and 16. Any construction which provides a strong support for the tyne carrying bars, which will adequately cope with the ordinary forces generated In use of the agricultural cultivator, and which will allow for the pivotal support may be used.

A lifting mechanism Is Incorporated In the agrlcutural cultivator designed to rotate the tyne carrying frames relative to the support frame and this lifting mechanism preferably Is made up of a hydraulic ram 20 operating between a suitably braced first support 21 on one frame and a similar second braced support 22 on the other frame. The points of support relative to the connection positions are arranged so that a rotating moment will be created to mcve the tyne carrying frames / 211524 relative to the support frame so that operation of the hydraulIc ram 20 will cause the tyne carrying frames to be moved to the elevated position as Indicated In dotted outline In Figure 3. A differential moment Is created between the first and second support positions so that In use one tyne carrying frame will lift and when In the elevated position the second tyne carrying frame will lift. This Is preferably done by providing a different effective height of the supports 21 and 22 and a different distance between the pivotal connections and the supports 21 and 22.

Each tyne carrying frame carries a plurality of spring tynes 23. The tynes 23 are offset In each of the tyne carrying bars made of the front member 13 and the three members 17 to produce diagonal rows of four tynes. These tyne rows 27 are arranged at an angle to the direction of travel so that each tyne In the row 27 Is offset from the tyne In front. The degree of offset can be varied over a considerable range without significantly Impairing the operating efficiency of the cultlvatlon.

A variation In the distance between tyne rows of 20 - 60 centimetres Is possfble but the preferred distance would be between 35 - 45 centimetres.

Preferably spring cultivating tynes are employed In the rows at an angle to the direction of cultivation. The rows 27 will generally be parallel to one another but the angle can be varied particularly at the Inner end row 28 of at least one tyne carrying frame. At least one tyne 29 should be located to the rear and centre of the tyne carrying frame. A tyne so located will minimise any ridging between the rollers by forming a trough Into which the ridge formed between the rollers In use will be moved so that the combined effect Is essentially a flat cultivated area.

The arrangement of tynes In the present agricultural cultivator Is 211524 novel and has considerable advantages over tyne arrangements at present used. As explained above the tynes may be spaced further apart and still achieve satisfactory cultivation. Thus a fewer number of tynes Is able to be mounted on a tyne carrying frame and this leads to lower costs. Also I have found that the pattern of the tynes with at least four tynes In diagonal rows gives a surprisingly good cultivation effect.

At the rear of each tyne carrying frame Is located a ground engaging roller 25 which can be of any conventional design, The roller Is supported from arms 26 projecting belcw the rear member 14 and Is designed to allow for reasonable height adjustment through five positions for the roller 25. The roller 25 provides a reaction means controlling the cultivating depth of the tynes. The roller can be supported In any manner to form a stably supported reaction means In use. In my experience adjustment Is not needed frequently but mounting to allow ready adjustment could be provided.

Supplementary reaction means may In some circumstances be necessary If ground conditions are particularly hard or If It Is desired to have additional levelling facility. The supplementary reaction means could be mounted on the front of the tyne carrying frame. In the simplest form a skid 27 would be located on an arm 28 on the outside front corner of each tyne carrying frame. The skid could of course be replaced by a wheel. As an alternative, a levelling bar or supplementary roller could be supported on appropriate arms projecting across the front of the tyne carrying frame.

The size of the agricultural cultivator according to the present Invention could be scaled over a reasonably wide range consistent with the power of the pulling tractor but the preferred range of operating width would be somewhere between 3.0 and 6,0 metres with each tyne 211524 carrying frame of course covering half of that operating width. As a specific example In a cultivator with an operating width of 4.6 metres each tyne carrying frame would b< 2.3 metres and the pivotal positions for the frame would be approximately 600 mm In from the Inner edge of the frame. A preferred construction technique for the tyne carrying frame would be to employ rectangular hollow sections for the front, rear and Intermediate members connected between two flat end plates for the side members and with appropriate bracing making up the members 18 and 19.

The agricultural cultivator according to the present invention will operate as a tractor mounted cultivator over a wide working width and will accommodate variations In ground level because of the particular pivotal mounting of the cultivator according to the present Invention. The mounting between the tyne carrying frames and the lifting mechanism allows the hydraulics of the tractor to raise the tyne carrying frames to the vertical and transport positions easily and quickly thus making the cultivator easy and convenient for use and transportation. It Is desirable to Include a tie bar so that the elevated tyne carrying frames will not fall In the event of a failure In the tractor hydraulics.

The location of the ground engaging roller and where necessary the supplementary reaction means ensures a controlled working relationship with the tynes to allow cultivation to take place to the desired depth. The whole unit has been designed to withstand the working stresses normally experienced by an agricultural cultivator and to provide a sturdy robust working unit.

Claims (18)

1. / 211524 * -9;wur I CLAIM ISi;1. An agricultural cultivator comprising a trac+or mountable frame, twin tyne carrying frames supported transversely from said tractor mounted frame, support means to support the tyne carrying frames so that In use the tyne carrying frames provide effective cultivating over the combined width thereof with a connection between;«;the support means and each tyne carrying frame located over the respective tyne carrying frame between the sides and away from the adjacent edges of the tyne carrying frames and operative to allow pivotal movement between the support means and the tyne carrying frames generally to permit the tyne carrying frames to follow the transverse ground topography over the cultivating width In use, a bank of cultivating tynes mounted on each tyne carrying frame and reaction means supported on each tyne carrying frame to engage the ground in use and operate In conjunction with the tynes to limit the depth of cultivation of the tynes.;
2. 2. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In Claim 1 including a lifting means to rotate the pivotal ly mounted tyne carrying frames from;"^thelr operating position to a substantially vertical transport position ~8 OCT 1987 *''ower e^9® 1"he +y°® carrying frame arranged to have an operating clearance from the ground. •vv.C_E 1
3. 3. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In Claim 2 wherein the :tf#Hng means comprises a hydrauI leal Iy operated lifting mechanism connected between the tyne carrying frames to generate a lifting moment to rotate first one tyne carrying frame relative to the support frame and then the second tyne carrying frame relative to the support frame and hold the frames In the elevated and substantially vertical pos It Ion.
4. 4. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In Claim 2 or Claim 3 Including a tie means to hold the tyne carrying frames In the elevated positions. ,/ 10
5. 5. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any of the preceding claims wherein the tractor mounted frame comprises t front section designed to be mounted on the three point linkage of a tractor and a braced extension projecting rearward Iy therefrom to support the tyne carrying frames.
6. 6. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any of the preceding claims wherein each tyne carrying frame comprises a plurality of parallel tyne carrying members, a reaction support means and bracing sub-frame connecting the tyre carrying members and the reaction support means.
7. 7. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In claim 6 wherein safd bracing sub-frame Is formed by a support anchor member parallel to the Inner edge and on the outside of the tractor mounting frame and a diagonal member extending from the forward edge of the support anchor member to the rear corner of the rear member and outside member of the frame.
8. 8. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any of the preceding claims wherein the support means comprises two separated connection positions on the tyne carrying frame located parallel to the Inner edge and longtltud I rial operating axis of the cultivator and two complementary connection positions on the tractor mounting frame to allow a pivotal coupling between said connection positions.
9. 9. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In claim 8 wherein the support means comprises a first connection position adjacent the front of the tyne carrying frame and a second connection position adjacent the rear of the tyne carrying frame, the connection positions being !i~ — 4 nrriott7r parallel to the edge of the tyne carrying frame and being formed by two lugs projecting from one member and a complimentary lug projecting from the other member engaged together by a pivot pin extending through aligned apertures In the lugs.
10. 10. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In Claim 8 or Claim 9 wherein the pivotal movement between the tractor mounted support frame and the tyne carrying frames Is controlled In the distance that the outer edges of the tyne carrying frame can lower relative to the tractor frame so that In use when this maximum position has been reached the tyne carrying frames can be lifted on the tractor mounted frame free of the ground.
11. 11. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any of the preceding claims wherein the agricultural tynes are fixed In the tyne carrying frame In diagonal rows of four tynes or more.
12. 12. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In claim 11 wherein the diagonal rows are parallel or substantially parallel to one another.
13. 13. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In claim 11 or claim 12 wherein a tyne Is positioned towards the rear of one tyne carrying frame and adjacent the Inner edges of that tyne carrying frame.
14. 14. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any one of the preceding claims wherein the reaction means comprises a ground engaging roller supported at the rear of the tyne carrying frame said roller being adjustable In height with the height of the roller regulating the operating depth of the spring tynes carried on the tyne carrying frame.
15. 15. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In any one of the preceding claims whecalri the reaction means Includes a supplementary support towards the front o^g^^ie carrying frame. I'M DATED THIS ISiln I A- J- SON | 15SEPI987 / ^ 1 P I vAGErfTS FOR THE APPL££tf^TS - 12
16. 16. An agrFeul+uraI cultivator as claimed In claim 15 wherein the supplementary support Is a skid or a wheel locat&d on the outside forward edge of each tyne carrying frame.
17. 17. An agricultural cultivator as claimed In claim 15 wherein the supplementary reaction means comprises a supplementary roller or a bar mounted at the front edge of the tyne carrying frame.
18. 18. An agricultural cultivator when constructed arranged and operable substantially Is herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. dated this y- day of ie? ") .. fimuiiiiiiii 'linrYnTnyiinp