GB2035025A - Trailed agricultural implement - Google Patents

Abstract

The rear end of the oblique frame of a multi-share plough is supported by a land wheel 48 and a rear furrow wheel 36 on leading and trailing pivoted arms 40 and 30 respectively. The wheels are lowered and raised together, to raise and lower the frame respectively, by a double-acting hydraulic cylinder 66 which rocks an arm 62 clockwise to raise the wheels. The arm 62 then pushes an arm 58 clockwise, the arm 58 being integral with the land wheel arm 40, and pulls the arm 30 anticlockwise by a link 78. When the cylinder rocks the arm 62 anticlockwise the wheel 48 rises faster than the wheel 36 (because of different lever arm ratios) until the arm 40 hits a stop 92, this being the illustrated position. This tilts the beam carrying the arms 30 and 40 and rolls the frame in the sense tilting the share points 22 into the ground. Lost motion between the arms 62 and 58 allows the wheel 36 to finish rising so digging the shares into working depth while levelling off the tilt which has helped them to dig in efficiently. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Trailed agricultural implement The present invention relates to ploughs and other trailed implements with a plurality of ground-working devices with points.

A typical trailed plough is supported on front and rear furrow wheels and on a land wheel located forwardly of the rear furrow wheel. The ploughing depth is conventionallycontrolled by adjusting the land wheel and the front furrow wheel. Such a plough is shown, for example, in U.S. Patent Specification No.

3,209,839.

Typical of previous ploughs, a hydraulic cylinder is coupled to the pivoted arms which carry the land wheel and rear furrow wheel.

The arms are lowered to raise the frame and lift the shares out of the ground, and vice versa. A cylinder having an adjustable stop for setting the ploughing depth is commonly required and is more expensive than conventional cylinders.

When the wheels are raised so that the plough enters the ground, the frame lowers in the approximate ploughing attitude. Better and faster ground penetration can be achieved by slightly rolling or tilting the plough frame towards the land wheel so that the point of each of the plough shares tilts downwardly and enters the ground before the remainder of the share contacts and penetrates the soil.

Although numerous lift linkage and hydraulic systems have been devised to adjust the rear furrow wheel with respect to the ground wheel, none have heretofore provided a mechanism for tilting the plough frame while it is being lowered so that ground penetration is enhanced.

According to the present invention there is provided a trailed ground-working implement comprising a diagonal frame carrying a plurality of plough bodies or other ground-working devices with points, one end of the frame being supported by wheels on forward and rear arms which are pivotally mounted and coupled to a common actuator for raising and lowering the frame, the coupling being such that, when the arms are raised to lower the frame, one arm rises more rapidly than the other arm and causes the frame to roll in the sense which tilts the points on the groundworking devices into the ground as the devices enter the ground.

The actuator can be a conventional hydraulic cylinder which is connected for directly controlling a rear furrow wheel, while controlling a land wheel with a higher lever ratio and lost motion allowing the rear furrow wheel arm to complete its raising motion after the land wheel arm has reached its upper limit position.

The implement can comprise a fore-and-aft hollow wheel frame carrying the rear furrow and land wheel arms, the actuator being at least partially contained within this frame itself.

An adjustable depth stop can limit the upward movement of the land wheel so that it supports the plough for the desired ploughing depth. If the stop is adjusted for less than the maximum ploughing depth, the lost motion connection between the cylinder and the land wheel arm allows the furrow wheel to continue to be raised to the desired height so that the plough assumes its conventional ploughing attitude after initial entry into the ground.

The invention will be described in more detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein : Fig. 1 is a top view of a plough embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a side view of the rear of the plough in Fig. 1 with the ground and furrow wheels lowered so that the plough is in the raised position; Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the plough as it is entering the ground; Fig. 4 is a view similar to that of Fig. 2, but with the wheels raised and the plough in the ground-working position; Fig. 5 is a top view of a part of the linkage including the ground wheel arm and the control arm; and Fig. 6 is a side view of the linkage shown in Fig. 5.

Referring to the drawings, the plough embodying the present invention includes a frame assembly having a main frame 10 extending obliquely to the direction of movement of the plough. Pivotally connected to the frame 10 by a vehicle pin 11 is a hitch tube 12. A drawbar 14 that forms part of the hitch is pivotally connected to the hitch tube 1 2 by a horizontal pin 1 5. The forward part of the hitch tube 1 2 is laterally supported by a bar 1 6 extending between the frame 10 and the tube 1 2. The front carries a plurality of coulters 1 8 and a plurality of conventional plough bodies 20, each with a share having a share point 22.Alternately, the frame could carry other earthworking tools having leading edges or points for penetrating the ground as the frame is lowered.

A vertical pin 24 connects a generally horizontal fore-and-aft hollow beam or wheel frame 26 to the rear of the main frame 10 to rock with the latter about its axis. A bar 27 secures the forward end of trie beam 26 with respect to the frame 1 0.

Connected for rocking about a generally horizontal pivot pin 28 is a rear forrow wheel arm 30 which carries a bearing 32. A shaft 34 mounted in the bearing 32 carries a conventional rear furrow wheel 36. As best seen in Fig. 1, the arm 30 is angled inwardly so that the wheel 36 trails the rear plough body 20.

A land wheel assembly 38 includes an arm 40 rockably connected to the beam 26 by a generally horizontal pivot 42 which in turn is connected between brackets 44 welded or otherwise secured on either side of and near the forward end of the beam 26. A pair of land wheels 48 are carried by an axle 50 supported for limited pivoting about an axis 52 on the end of the arm 40.

Connected towards the front of the frame 10 is a conventional front furrow wheel assembly 54. A hydraulic cylinder (not shown) raises and lowers the forward end of the frame with respect to the furrow wheel.

The land wheel arm 40 is welded or otherwise secured to a bushing or sleeve assembly 56 (Figs. 5 and 6) mounted for rocking about the pivot 42. Also secured to the sleeve assembly 56 are two parallel, spaced plates 58. A contact bar 60 extends between and is welded to the plates. The sleeve assembly 56, plates 58, bar 60 and land wheel arm 40 form a single, rigid arm member. A rocking control arm in the form of a plate 62 is mounted for freely rocking about the sleeve assembly 56 between the plates 58 and includes a contact face 63 which abuts against the contact bar 60 as the plate 62 is rotated in the clockwise direction from the position shown in Fig. 6.

An opening 64 is provided in the bottom wall of the beam 26, and the plates 58 and 62 extend upwardly through the opening. A double-acting hydraulic cylinder 66 is anchored within the beam 26 by a bracket 68.

A pin passes through a clevis on the end of the piston rod and through a hole 70 near the upper end of the arm 62 to connect the cylinder to the arm. Pinned to the arm 62 through a hole 72 located radially inwardly from the hole 70 is one end of a rod assembly 74 including a clevis 76 internally threaded for receiving the threaded end of a rod 78. A portion of the pin and clevis 76 and the arm 62 are centrally confined with respect to the sleeve assembly 56 (Fig. 5) by the plates 58 which also prevent the pin from slipping out of the clevis and hole 72. A lock nut 80 screwed on the rod 78 is tightened against the clevis 76 to secure the rod against rotation.The opposite end of the rod assembly 74 extends through and is held by a rear lock nut within a trunnion 82 pivotally connected to a rock arm 84 which is preferably in the form of parallel plates welded on either side of the furrow wheel arm 30 for rocking therewith about the pivot 28.

When the cylinder 66 is extended, the control arm 62 is pivoted against the forward face of the bar 60 and rocks the plates 58 and the arm 40 in the clockwise direction, lowering the ground wheels 48 until the cylinder is fully extended. Movement of the control arm 62 in the clockwise direction also pulls the rod assembly 74 forwardly, pivoting the rock arm 84 and the furrow wheel arm 30 in the anticlockwise direction to lower the furrow wheel 36, lifting the beam 26 and the frame 10. The linkage moment arm lengths are designed to rotate the arm 40 about the pivot 42 at a greater rate than the furrow wheel arm 30 is rotated about the pivot 28. The land wheels 48, therefore, are raised and lowered at a greater rate than the rear furrow wheel 36.As best seen in Figs. 1 and 5, the moving elements of the lift linkage including the arm 40, the plates 58, arm 62, the rod assembly 74, the rock arm 84, and the cylinder 66 are located directly in line with each other to eliminate bending moments.

Retracting the hydraulic cylinder 66 rotates the control arm 62 in the counterclockwise direction and the weight of the plough on the land wheel assembly 38 biases the arm 40 and the plates 58 in the counterclockwise direction so that the bar 60 remains abutted against the contact portion 63 until the ground wheels 48 reach the ploughing position. As the control arm 62 moves in the anticlockwise direction, it shifts the rod assembly 74 rearwardly, allowing the rock arm 84 and the furrow wheel arm 30 to pivot in the clockwise direction to permit the furrow wheel 36 to raise but at a slower rate than the ground wheels 48 are raised because of the linkage arm lengths.Since the ground wheels 48 are raised more quickly than the furrow wheel 36, the front of the beam 26 tilts downwardly below the rear of the beam causing the main frame 10 to roll or tilt in the clockwise direction toward the ground wheels 48 as shown by the arrow encircling the frame 10 in Fig. 1. The plough shares 20 roll with the frame so that the share points 22 are tilted downwardly (Fig. 3) to contact and enter the ground before a larger portion of the plough shares contact the soil. The pivotal connection between the hitch tube 1 2 and the drawbar 14 allows the forward end of the tube to drop as the frame 10 rolls in the direction of the arrow.

An adjustable depth stop 88 (Figs. 2 to 4) is secured to the frame for contacting a plate 90 on the arm 40 to limit the anti-clockwise movement of the arm for adjusting the ploughing depth. The stop 88 preferably includes a stud 92 threaded through a hole in a support 94 bolted to the forward end of beam 26. A bent pin 96 is provided for turning the stud 92 to the adjusted position. When the plate 90 on the arm 40 contacts the stop 88 (Fig. 3), the arm and the plates 58 stop rocking about the pivot 42. With all depth stop settings except the maximum, the arm 40 contacts the stop 88 before the rear furrow wheels 36 has reached its operating or ploughing position. Continued retraction of the cylinder 66 causes the control arm 62, since it is free to pivot about the sleeve 56, to rotate in the anticlockwise direction away from the bar 60.The rod assembly 74 moves rearwardly and the furrow wheel 36 rises to the final ploughing position (Fig. 4). Simultaneously, the beam 26 returns to a generally horizontal attitude as the furrow wheel 36 enters the furrow, and the frame 10 rolls back to its normal ploughing position so the share points 22 are no longer tilted downwardly.

The depth of the furrow wheel can be adjusted by loosening the lock nut 80 on the rod assembly 74 and turning the threaded rod 78 to extend or retract the rod with respect to the internally threaded clevis 76.

To lift the plough from the ground-working position, fluid under pressure is supplied to the cylinder 66 to extend the piston rod and rotate the control arm 62 in the clockwise direction about the pivot 42. The rod assembly 74 is moved forwardly by the control arm 62, rotating the furrow wheel arm 30 in the anticlockwise direction to raise the rear end of the plough. As the control arm 62 contacts the bar 60, the plates 58 begin to rotate with the control arm about the pivot 42, thus lowering the arm 40 and the ground wheels 48 with the furrow wheel 36 to aid in lifting the plough to the raised position. The cylinder 66 can be fully extended, at which time both the furrow wheel 36 and the ground wheels 48 are in the final transport position (Fig. 2).

To lower the plough into the ground, the front furrow wheel 54 is raised so the forward plough bottoms 20 begin to penetrate the soil as the plough moves forwardly. The hydraulic cylinder 66 is retracted, rotating the control arm 62 and allowing the arm 40 and ground wheels 48 to raise with respect to the frame under the weight of the plough. Simultaneously the arms 84 and 30 are allowed to rock as the rod assembly 74 moves rearwardly, and the furrow wheel 36 rises but at a slower rate than the ground wheels 48 to tilt the beam 26 towards the ground wheels. The main frame 10 rolls slightly about its longitudinal axis to angle the share points 22 towards the ground. The stop 88 prevents further rotation of the arm 40 and the plates 58 when the wheels 48 have reached the preselected ploughing position.If the depth stop 88 is set for ploughing at less than the maximum depth (Fig. 4), the furrow wheel 36 continues to rise as the control arm 62 pivots away from the bar 60 between the arm 58 until the cylinder 66 is completely retracted. If the depth stop 88 is adjusted for maximum ploughing depth, both the ground and the rear furrow wheels reach their ploughing positions at approximately the same time. However, it should be noted that, regardless of the depth setting, the ground wheels rise more quickly than the rear furrow wheel. The plates 58, the bar 60 and the freely pivoting control arm 62 on the bushing assembly 56 provide a lost motion connection, and the choice of linkage arm lengths allows the ground wheels 48 to rise faster than the furrow wheel 36 to cause the plough frame 10 to roll or tilt with the beam 26 so that the plough share points are angled toward the ground. Better and quicker ground penetration is achieved by tilting the frame rather than lowering it in the approximate ploughing attitude. The lost motion connection and the adjustable depth stop 88 allow the ground wheels 48 to be set for the desired ploughing depth without affecting the operation of rear furrow wheel and without requiring a cylinder with an adjustable stop. The piston rod is fully extended during transporting and fully retracted during ploughing.

The placement of the cylinder 66 and part of the wheel arm and control arm assemblies within the beam 26 reduces the number of exposed moving parts and enhances the appearance of the unit. The moving parts of the assemblies are placed directly in line to eliminate bending moments and minimize wear.

Claims (9)

1. A trailed ground-working implement comprising a diagonal frame carrying a plurality of plough bodies or other ground-working devices with points, one end of the frame being supported by wheels on forward and rear arms which are pivotally mounted and coupled to a common actuator for raising and lowering the frame, the coupling being such that, when the arms are raised to lower the frame, one arm rises more rapidly than the other arm and causes the frame to roll in the sense which tilts the points on the groundworking devices into the ground as the devices enter the ground.

2. An implement according to claim 1, wherein the arms are at the rear end of the frame, the forward arm carries a land wheel, the rear arm carries a furrow wheel, and the arm which rises more rapidly is the land wheel arm.

3. An implement according to claim 2, wherein the actuator is coupled to the land wheel arm by a lost motion linkage allowing the furrow wheel arm to complete its rise after the land wheel arm has reached its upper limit position.

4. An implement according to claim 3, wherein the actuator operates a first lever arm which in turn bears against a second lever arm integral with the land wheel arm for lowering the land wheel arm, the first lever arm being retractable from the second lever arm to provide the lost motion.

5. An implement according to claim 2, 3 or 4, comprising an adjustable stop establishing the upper limit position of the land wheel arm.

6. An implement according to any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the actuator is a hydraulic cylinder.

7. An implement according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the arms are pivoted to a hollow fore-and-aft beam which houses the actuator.

8. An implement according to claim 7, wherein the arms and actuator are aligned in the fore-and-aft direction.

9. A trailed plough substantially as described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.