US1351287A

US1351287A - Beet-topping machine

Info

Publication number: US1351287A
Application number: US267312A
Authority: US
Inventors: Devey John
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1918-12-18
Filing date: 1918-12-18
Publication date: 1920-08-31
Anticipated expiration: 1937-08-31

Description

J. DEVEY.

BEET TOPPING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.18,1918.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

JOHN DEVEY, OF LEH I, UTAH.

BEET-TOPPING MAoHIiIE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Alig. 31, 1920.

Application'flled December 18, 1918. Serial No. 267,312.

invented certain new and useful Improvements in Beet-Topping Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

chines such as shown and described in my pending application Serial No. 221,026 and particularly to the means for regulating the height of the cutting disk which severs the tops of the beets. The regulating means disclosed in my prior application, while perfectly satisfactory for the purpose of regulating the height of the cutting disk when the machine moves transversely of the row, has been found to be unsatisfactoryin several other particulars. The more noticeable defect is that when the roller is elevatedby coming in contact with an unusually large beet or a beetthat protrudes quite some distance from the ground, the cutting disk is" elevated the same distance as the roller, so that only a portion of the beet top isremoved. Another defect is that when the roller comes in contact with the beet whose body portion is a few inches out of the soil, the beet is pushed over, this being particularly true when the machine is operating on beets growing in loose soil.

The object of the present invention is to overcome these defects by providing means for regulating the height of the disk in such manner that the cutting disk is elevated only a portion of the distance that the regulating member iselevated so that practically all of the top of the beet is removed, the regulating member also being of such character that all possibility of pushing the beet over so that it will lie below the cutting disk. is eliminated.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in the improved construction and novel arrangement and combination of the parts which will be hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In vthe accompanying drawings, wherein is illustrated the preferred form of my invention:

Figure 1 is a side elevation. some of the This invention relates to beet top ping maparts being shown in section, of a machine embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the means rflork regulating the height of the cutting Referring to the drawings, the main frame I of the machine is composed primarily of upper and lower side members 2 and 1, each of the members 1 being offset inwardly at 1. and their forward end portions carried forwardly as at 3, between which portions an ordinary tongue is secured in any suitable manner. Members 2 are secured at their front ends to members 1 and are supported at the rear ends by a brace or cross bar 4, the ends of which extend downwardly and are attached to members 1. A seat 5 is supported from cross bar 4 by a spring 6. Near their front ends members 1 are connect- .ed by a' brace 7 and adjacent their rear ends they are provided with the usual bearings for an axle 8, on the ends of which are mounted traction wheels 9.

A supplemental frame 10 is pivotally mounted on axle 8 at a point in rear of its longitudinal center, its forward end dipping or swinging downwardly toward the ground.

Its rear end is provided with an extension 11 on which a counterbalance '12 is adjustably secured by a set screw 13 to permit the forward end of the frame to be more readily adjusted relatively to the ground.

A circular rotary cutting disk 14 is journaled on the front end of the supplemental frame 10 by meansof a cap screw 15 in position to be at an inclination to the ground when the frame is in normal position, the front portion of theperiphery or cutting edge of the disk, which normally severs the beet tops, being located at'a point in close proximityto the ground and the sideportions, which sever the beet tops when the machine moves transversely of the row of beets extending upwardly therefrom. The disk receives'its rotary motion from a bevel gear 16 rigidly mounted on axle 8, by means of a shaft 17 which is mounted in the body portion 18 of the supplemental frame and 1s provided with pinions 19-, 20, at-lts opposlte ends which are adapted to mesh with the beveled gear 16 on the axle and a circular extending arch bar composed of two

member

21, 22, members 21 being secured to the frame and members 22 secured to members 21 by a pivotal connection, this type of K connection being employed for a purpose which will presently appear.

Journaled in brackets 35 on the forward portion of the main, frame is a transverse 'shaft 23 on which are mounted a pair of sprockets 24 spaced transversely of the shaft. Loosely mounted on said shaft and spaced transversely of the. machine are two arms 25, the length of these arms being less than the distance between the cutting disk and the axle 8 for a purpose which will presently appear. The arms 25 are provided at their freeends with bearings for a shaft 26 which is adapted to support a pair of sprockets 27, similar to sprockets 24,

V in proximity to the cutting disk. These arms and sprockets constitute a belt frame .on which an endless belt 28 is carried, the belt being driven from axle 8 by any suitable mechanism, but preferably by a sprocket chain 29 which passes over a sprocket gear 30 on the axle and a sprocket gear 31 on shaft 23, the sprocket gear on shaft 23 being of less diameter than that on the axle. With this arrangement of gearing the belt will travel over the sprockets 30 at a greater rate of speed than the speed of the machine so that the tops of the beets will be gradually pushed down to the cutting disk, thus eliminating all possibility-of pushing 35 tioned. The belt 28 may be of any suitable construction, but it preferably comprises 9 cross pieces 32 that are bowed outwardly transversely of the belt to compensate for irregularities in the ground when the maghine moves transversely of the row of eets.

Arms 25 are v connected intermediate their ends by the forwardly extending arch members of the supplemental frame 10,'the arch members normally being attached to the arms at a point which will permit the belt frame to assume a rearwardly inclined position with the reaF end of belt 28 resting on the ground and in the same horizontal plane as t e edge of the'cutting disk.- The rear lower end of the belt frame will remain in this position except when the belt comes in contact with a beet when it will, of-course,

be elevated. Owing to the difference in loverage of the supplemental frame and the arms 25, however, the cutting disk will not be raised as high as the rear end of the belt thus insuring the severance of practically all of the beet top. To permit the rear end a of the belt to be adjusted vertically with respect to the cutting disk, the arms 25 are provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced holes 36, thus permitting the arch members to be attached at any desired point in the length of the arms.

the beets over, as heretofore men-.

While the machine illustrated and de-- scribed herein is adapted for topping only a single row of beets, it will be understood that the present invention may-readily be utilized onmachines capable of topping two or more rows without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a beet topping machine, the combination with the main frame, of a vertically movable cutting disk, an elongated belt frame pivotally mounted adjacent one of its ends on the main frame with its opposite end in proximity to the surface of the ground, a traveling beltcarrie-d by the. belt frame, and connections between the cutting disk and belt frame, whereby vertical movement of the belt frame will impart a vertical movement to the cutting disk.

2. In a beet topping machine, the com- 5 bination with the main frame, of a cutting disk pivotally mounted on the main frame and adapted to be moved in a vertical plane,

a belt frame pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis in the main frame, an endless belt movable on the belt frame adapted to engage the surface of the ground at a point -'remote from the pivotal point of the belt frame, thedistance between the ground engaging portion of the belt and the pivotal point of the belt frame being-less than the distance between the cutting disk and the pivotal point of the latter, and connections between the belt frame and the cutting disk whereby vertical movement of the belt frame will impart a vertical movement to thecutting disk. I

3 In a beet topping machine, the combination with the main frame, of a cutting disk pivotally mounted on the main frame and adapted to be moved in a vertical plane, a belt frame pivotally mounted on a horizontal axis'in the main frame, an endless belt movable on the belt frame adapted to engage the surface of the ground at a point remote from the pivotal point of the belt frame, the distance between the ground engaging portion of-the belt and the pivotal point of the belt frame being less than the distance between the cutting disk and the pivotal point of the latter, connections between the belt frame and the cutting disk whereby vertical movement of the belt frame will impart a vertical movement to the cutting disk, and means for moving the belt on the belt frame at a rate of speed in excess of the speed of travel of the machine.

4. In a beet topping machine, the combination with'the main frame having traction wheels mounted thereon, of a vertically movable v cutting disk, an elongated belt frame pivotally mounted adjacent one end with its opposite end in proximity to the surface of the ground, a traveling belt carried by said belt frame, connections be- -80 'whereby' vertical movement of the belt frame will impart a vertical movement to the cutting disk, and connections between the traction'wheels and belt for driving the latter at a greater rate of speed. than the machine. D

5. In abeet topping machine, the combination with the main frame, a pivotally mounted supplemental frame adapted to be moved in a vertical plane, a cutting diskcarried by thesupplemental frame, abelt frame pivotally mounted on the main frame, an endless belt'movable on the belt frame adapted to engage the surface of the ground at a point remote from the pivotal' point of the belt frame, the distance between the ground engaging portion of the belt and the pivotal point of the belt frame being less than the distance between the cutting disk and the pivotal point of the supplemenal frame, and connections between the belt frame and supplemental frame whereby a vertical movement of the belt will impart a vertical movement of less de-' gree to the supplemental frame, said connections between the belt frame and supplemental frame being adjustable to regulate the extent of movement of the supplemental frame and cutting disk.

JOHN DEVEY.