GB1142174A - Improvements in turf maintenance - Google Patents

Abstract

1,142,174. Turf maintenance machine. H. PATTISSON & CO. Ltd. 26 Jan., 1968 [4 Feb., 1967], No. 5498/67. Heading B7H. [Also in Division A1] A turf maintenance machine consists of a rigid frame 1, supporting an engine 36 which drives a pair of coaxial tool shafts 21 projecting at right angles, the rear end of the frame supporting a steerable wheel 8, driven by a separate propulsion engine 13. Rotary drums 22 are mounted on the shafts 21 and tines 28 for penetrating the soil are mounted on the check plates 25 of the drum. Each drum has a water ballast cylinder 22a to increase the weight of the drums and hence the depth penetration of the tines. The tools are brought into operation by lowering the front end of the frame. This is done by operating the hydraulic ram 43 which swings the yoke 37, on which the depth control wheels 39 are mounted, backwards. The rear end of the frame has a horizontal rectangular loop 2 which is spanned by an inverted E-bridge structure the central limb 4 of which rests on a turntable subframe 6, supported by the steerable wheel 8. The central limb 4 is bored axially to provide a journalled bearing for the steering shaft 14. The controls for the tooldrive engine 36 and the pump 45 operating the hydraulic ram 43, and a seat or platform for the driver are all mounted on the rear end of the frame. In another embodiment, Fig. 6 (not shown) they are mounted in the middle of the frame The engine 13 is used to steer the machine and to transport it to the area to be worked. The length of the main frame is designed to allow for the mounting of auxiliary implements such as brushes, scarifiers, mowers, dragmats or harrows and the tines in the embodiment described can be replaced by hollow coring tines, rollers, coulters or other forms of tool.