US2855085A - Barn cleaning apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 7, 1958 E. M. OLSON.

BARN CLEANING APPARATUS 5 Shee ts-Sheet 1 Filed May 10, 1954 INVENTOR. ZZ/zaardfij 0&50 z,

Oct. 7, 1958' E. M. OLSON BARN CLEANING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 10, 1954 4 INVENTOR. liazrd/f. 0/6622, B Y m fi m 0 a 1% w w MM 5 a a k 2 n W 4 m U: N Na... m o m E. M. OLSON BARN CLEANING APPARATUS Oct. 7, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed May 10, 1954 mmvrm A70d90/7/ 25 w [20 rd BM; a 4 7221 United States Patent BARN CLEANING APPARATUS Edward M. Olson, Lake Geneva, Wis. Application May 10, 1954, Serial No. 428,474 7 8 Claims. (Cl. 198-7) The present invention relates to barn cleaning apparahis and, particularly, to improved apparatus adapted for association with a tractor and a manure spreader, or like vehicles, automatically to remove manure from the troughs or gutters of a barn.

While this general field of application has enjoyed substantial development heretofore, prior endeavors have failed to solve all of the problems involved in a practical and economical manner. It is the object of the present invention to provide improved barn cleaning means that meets all requirements as to practically, operability and efliciency, and at the same time is incorporated in economical embodiments.

Prior developments in the art have extensively employed vertical or inclined flight angers or screw conveyors disposed within a tube for elevating manure and waste matter from barn troughs or gutters to a suitable receptacle, and the present invention follows this general concept since it is a most practical and efl'lcient manner for effecting material transfer. However, the feed or inlet end of the usual screw conveyor and tube is not adapted to effect a cleaning or scouring of the gutters, with the result that only a portion of the gutter has been cleaned with prior devices, thus failing to accomplish the intended function.

An object of the present invention is to provide improved barn cleaning apparatus employing an inclined flight screw conveyor and tube and including a novel inlet or feed end head for the tube adapted to be quite intimately received within a barn gutter to insure complete and eflicient cleaning of the gutter.

Another object of the invention is the provision in barn cleaning apparatus of the character above described, in conjunction with the novel feed end head, of means motivated with the screw conveyor for eifecting a gutter scraping function to insure complete cleaning of the gutter regardless of the consistency or degree of caking of the waste matter in the gutter.

According to the present invention, I provide improved barn cleaning apparatus comprising a ground engaging wheeled carriage adapted to be disposed adjacent a gutter for movement parallel to the gutter, a conveyor tube mounted on the carriage at an inclination to the horizontal, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in the tube,

drive means for rotating the conveyor, a feed end head connected to the feed end of the tube, the head being adapted to be disposed in a gutter for movement therethrough, and means disposed within the head and actuated in conjunction with the conveyor to scrape the gutter as the head is moved through the gutter. The apparatus may be connected to any suitable or customary drive means to be moved thereby, and the tube may be associated with a suitable container or receptacle for removing the manure from the barn. An acceptable and customary arrangement is to employ a tractor drawn manure spreader, wherein the cleaning apparatus is drawn by, and may be operated by the tractor, and wherein the tube of the cleaner is detachably associated with the spreader,

the tube including a discharge outlet disposed to empty into the manure spreader. While this arrangement is referred to herein as preferred, it will be appreciated that other drive arrangements may be employed with the cleaner, all within the scope of the invention.

In use of the cleaning apparatus of the invention, the tractor and the manure spreader, or like vehicles, are driven into the center aisle of the barn and the head of the cleaner is disposed in one gutter and theconveyor is set in operation. The tractor is then driven through the barn to move the head of the cleaner along the gutter to remove all waste material from the gutter and automatically to deposit the same in the manure spreader. The cleaning thus performed is thorough and effective and the manure and waste matter are removed from the barn in a careful and sanitary manner. The old manual removal of manure by shovel is no longer acceptable and does not meet modern sanitation requirements because of the general sloppiness of the method, the possibility of air contamination, and so on. The present invention overcomes these difiiculties and provides a sanitary method of manure removal.

In addition to the foregoing, it is an object of the invention to provide improved barn cleaning apparatus that is adapted for use both in through barns and dead end barns. In through barns, those having exit doors or openings at both ends of the center aisle, cleaning of the troughs or gutters to both sides of the aisles, at the rear of both rows of stalls or stanchions is readily effected by starting at one end of the barn to clean one gutter, driving to the outside of the barn after one gutter has been cleaned, and driving back through the barn in the opposite direction to accommodate cleaning of the other gutter. In dead end barns, those having a door or opening only at one end of the center aisle, turning the tractor around after one gutter has been cleaned cannot be efiected. In these barns, the apparatus of the invention lends itself to two methods of cleaning; the first by backing into the barn in one direction to clean one gutter substantially to the blank wall of the barn, transporting the cleaner to the opposite side of the manure spreader, and driving frontward out of the barn to clean the other gutter. This first method results in a singlepass cleaning of each gutter, i. e. the cleaning head cleans one gutter in an inward direction while the machine is traveling inwardly toward the dead end of the barn, whereupon the entire cleaner is transposed or reversed so that the cleaning head cleans the other gutter in an outward direction while the machine is traveling outwardly away from the dead end of the barn. Thus, in this first method, each gutter receives only one cleaning pass. In the second method, each gutter of the dead end barn receives two cleaning passes, one inward and one outwardr That is to say, one gutter receives a cleaning pass as the machine travels inwardly toward the dead end of the barn, whereupon the cleaning head is rendered operable to clean that same gutter as the machine travels outwardly away from the dead end. This same operation is repeated for the gutter at the other side of the barn, from which it will be seen that each gutter receives two cleaning passes. In the performance of the second method, the entire cleaner is preferably transposed from one side of the machine to the other when transferring the cleaning operation from one gutter to the other, so that the tractor does not have to precede the cleaner in cleaning either gutter, but this is not essential if there is enough linear space at the dead end of the barn to accommodate the tractor and still complete the cleaning of each gutter. According to the second method, the cleaning operation is rendered more efficient, by accommodating cleaning of each gutter in both directions of tractor movement, by the provision of a cleaner head that will alternately provide an inlet opening in reverse directionsa reversible head,

In achieving the foregoing objects, I provide a first embodiment of my invention comprising a carriage, a conveyor and tube mounted on the carriage, a generally rectangular box-like head into which the conveyor extends, and a scraper attachment on the conveyor within the head to be moved by the conveyor to scrape the gutter, the box-like head having an open end constituting an inlet and being pivotally mounted on the conveyor tube to dispose the inlet opening thereof in reverse directions. A second embodiment, achieving the same results or objects, comprises a conveyor, tube and carriage, a generally cylindrical head open at the lower portions of the cylindrical wall thereof, a pair of scraper blade means slidably mounted on the cylindrical wall of the head alternately to open the lower portion of the wall to one side of the center thereof and close the lower portion of the wall to the opposite side of the center thereof to dispose the inlet opening of the head in reverse directions, and a rotary blade assembly mounted within the head and operated with the conveyor, the assembly including a plurality of blades adapted to scrape the gutter and transfer manure and waste materials from the gutter or trough to the feed end of the conveyor.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved barn cleaner of the above type which can be pulled along each gutter by a towing or traction cable instead of by a tractor, this cable being wound on a power driven winch at one end of the barn. This type of apparatus lends itself particularly well to barns provided with cleaning equipment using a system of tracks extending alongside each manure gutter for accommodating a small wheeled hopper type of car into which the manure is ordinarily shoveled from the gutter. My improved cleaner can be coupled to such car and the two propelled together by the traction cable, the cleaner lifting the manure from the gutter anddumping it into the car. In this embodiment of the invention, the manure lifting conveyor of my improved cleaner is driven by a small gasoline engine mounted on the cleaner, or by an electric motor supplied through an extension cord.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the two preferred embodiments of the invention.

Now, in order to acquaint those skilled in the art with certain preferred manners of making and using the apparatus of my invention, I shall describe, in connection with the accompanying drawings, the different embodiments of the invention above referred to.

In the drawings; wherein like reference numerals indicate like parts:

Figure 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic side elevational view of a tractor, a manure spreader and the first embodiment of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention associated therewith, the head of the cleaner being movable. in a barn trough or gutter;

Figure 2 is a front elevation, on an enlarged scale, of the first embodiment of the cleaner and the manure spreader, the view showing the cleaner in its in-use position in solid lines and in its position for transportation in dotted lines;

Figures 3 and 4 are plan views, respectively, and Figures 5 and 6 are side elevational views, respectively, of the head and a portion of the tube of the first embodiment of the cleaning apparatus as disposed for movement in reverse directions in a trough or gutter;

Figure 7 is a front view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical central section, of the second embodiment of the cleaning apparatus;

Figure 8 is a sectional view of the second embodiment of the cleaning apparatus, the view being taken substantially on line 88 of Figure 7, and i Figure 9 is a diagrammatic view of the cable pulled embodiment of my invention.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2, the customary floor plan or configuration of a barn is shown as comprising a fioor level or center aisle portion 10, a manure trough or gutter 12, one being located to each side of the center aisle and running the length of the barn, and a stall or stanchion level 14, also one on each side of the aisle, upon which the cows or other farm animals stand. The aisle 10 is of a width to accommodate passage through the barn of a tractor 16, and a manure spreader 18 drawn by the tractor by means of a draw bar 20. The cleaning apparatus of the present invention is indicated generally at 22 and comprises a conveyor tube 24 associated with the manure spreader 18 and a head 26 movable in the gutter 12, the apparatus being adapted to be drawn by the tractor 16 by means of a draw bar assembly or connection 28 associated with the spreader draw bar 20.

As shown in greater detail in Figure 2, the conveyor tube 24 of the cleaning apparatus is adapted for the reception and rotatable support of a screw conveyor 30 which is adapted to be driven through suitable drive means 32 mounted by a swivel connector 34 on the upper end of the tube 24. The drive means 32 is adapted to be actuated by any suitable or conventional means, such as, an electric motor, a mechanical drive connection from the power take off of the tractor as is indicated at 36 in Figure l, a hydraulic motor actuated from the hydraulic system of the tractor, and so on. Immediately below the swivel connector 34, the upper end of the tube 24 is provided with an outlet or discharge spout 38 disposed to discharge into the manure spreader 18. As will be appreciated, the lower end of the tube is the inlet or feed end thereof and the same communicates with the gutter through the head 26 of the cleaning apparatus. The tube 24 and conveyor 30 are supported at an inclination, preferably at an angle of 45 by means of a wheeled carriage 40 which includes a base 42 supported by a plurality of the swivel casters 44, a framework 46, and a semi-cylindrical support 48 carried by the framework. This caster-wheel supported carriage 40 is provided at opposite ends with duplicate hitches so that either end of the carriage can be coupled to the tractor, this enabling the carriage to be either pulled or pushed along either side of the manure spreader by the tractor, with the conveyor tube discharging over either side of the spreader body. The conveyor tube 24 is slidably supported by the support member 48 and is retained on the support 48 by means of detachable semi-cylinder straps 50 secured to the support. As will be appreciated, the wheeled carriage 40 so supports the tube 24 and head 26 as to accommodate movement of the head longitudinally of the gutter. To associate the cleaning apparatus with the draw bar assembly 28, a bifurcated boss or stud 52 is provided on the surface of the tube 24 adjacent the lower end thereof.

The tube 24 is slidable within the support 48 and the straps 50 and, due to its weight, normally tends to slide downwardly on the support 48 into the gutter 12 so that the body of the head 26 rides along the bottom of the gutter or trough 12, as is indicated in solid lines in Figure 2. To remove the head 26 from the gutter 12 to accommodate transportation of the cleaning apparatus, and to accommodate any desired disposition of the head 26 with respect to the floor 10, any one of a variety of elevating devices may be provided between the support 48 and the tube 24. A suitable arrangement is shown in Figure 2, wherein a chain or other flexible connector 54 is secured to the lower end of the tube 24 and is wound upon a shaft 56 journalled in the framework 46, the shaft 56 being provided with a crank 58 adapted to be operated. manually to wind the chain 54 on the shaft 56, thus to elevate the tube 24- and head 26 to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 2,- the shaft being then latched in this position.

The head 26 of the cleaning apparatus comprises a generally rectangular box-like member open at one end thereof to define an inlet 60 through which waste matter in the gutter or trough 12 is introduced to the feed end of the conveyor 30. The head 26 can be fixedly secured to the conveyor for use in through barns and for singlepass cleaning in closed end barns. However, I have illustrated a reversible type of head 26 because of its greater versatility, particularly for two-pass cleaning of closed end barns. In this construction the closed end of the head, opposite the inlet 60, is somewhat of ellipsoidal configuration for a purpose to be described. To accommodate this reversing of the head 26 to dispose the inlet in opposite or reverse directions, the head 26 is pivotally mounted on the lower end of the conveyor tube 24 by means of a swivel joint 62. Due to the fact that the tube 24 is disposed at a 45 angle, swivelling movement of the head 26 with respect to the tube 24 at the connector swivel 62 through an arc of 180 will result in rotation of the head 26 180 around the transverse axis thereof, that is, around the axis lying in the same vertical plane as the axis of the tube 24. At the same time, the head 26 will be rotated about its own longitudinal axis. This relationship is particularly desirable since the portions of the head 26 disposed in and operating upon the waste matter in the gutter will be dilferent in any two direction movement of the cleaning apparatus to equalize wear upon all parts of the head 26. As will be appreciated, the box-like head 26 includes four side wall portions 26a, 26b, 26c and 26d. The relative dispositions of these various side walls of the head are shown in Figures 3 to 6, wherein Figures 3 and 5 are plan and side elevational views, respectively, of the head as disposed for movement in one direction, to the left as shown in the figures, and Figures 4 and 6 are plan and side elevational views, respectively, of the head as disposed for movement in the opposite direction, to the right. In Figures 2, 3 and 5, the side wall 26a of the head 26 is rested upon the bottom of the gutter or trough 12. It is preferred that the leading edge of the wall 26a be capable of scraping the bottom of the gutter to remove waste material therefrom, and to this end, the Wall preferably does not present a straight edge, but is provided with an elliptical cutout 64a. When the head 26 is rotated with respect to the tube 24 through an arc of at the swivel connector 62, the motion is such as to dispose the wall 26a at the outer side of the head with respect to the tube 24, as is shown in Figure 6. As will be appreciated, the side walls, that is the Walls other than the bottom wall, should be complete or closed walls to insure proper feeding of waste materials to the screw conveyor 30. In view of this fact, a detachable closure plate 66 is adapted to be fitted into the elliptical cutout 64a in the wall 26a, When that wall is disposed as shown in Figure 6. In transposition of the cleaning head, the side wall 26b of the head is rested upon the bottom of the trough 12 and this wall, like the wall 26a, is preferably provided with an elliptical cutout 64b for the purpose described. When the head is returned to the position shown in Figures 2, 3 and 5, the wall 26b is disposed at the outer side of the head with respect to the tube 24 and in this position is adapted to be closed by the detachable plate 66, which is removed from the cutout 64a in the wall 26a upon reversal of the head extending portion turned slightly outwardly of the asso-' 6 ciated side wall of the head 26 so that the free outer end of the plate 66 will act as a scraper to scrape waste matter from the wall of the gutter adjacent the animal stalls or stanchions. The elliptical cutouts 64a and 64b provided in the two walls of the head that are adapted to engage the bottom of the trough provide means for scraping the bottom of the trough. To accommodate scraping of the side of the trough or gutter adjacent the center aisle of the barn, I preferably provide a scraper plate 68 pivotally mounted on the head 26 adjacent the inlet thereto, the scraper blade 68 being continually biased into engagement with the wall of the gutter 12 by means of a spring hinge construction. Since both of the walls 26c and 26d will be disposed next to the wall of the gutter adjacent the center aisle, it will be appreciated that scraper blades 68 should be provided on each of these walls, as is indicated in Figures 3 to 6 at 68c and 68d respectively. Preferably, the spring hinge mounting of these two plates or blades is such that the plates will not be biased to a substantial angle with respect to the associated side wall, but will be biased to such extent as necessary to press forcibly against the wall of the trough 12 adjacent the center aisle of the barn.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the feed end head 26 of the apparatus of the invention, and the association thereof with the conveyor tube 24, assures efiicient and thorough cleaning of the trough or gutter and that the reversability of the head 26 accommodates use of the cleaning apparatus for either through barns or dead end barns and eliminates any concern or problem with respect to which side of the manure spreader 18 the apparatus should be disposed. Regardless of the side of the manure spreader to which disposed, the head of the apparatus can always be manipulated to dispose the inlet 60 thereof in the direction of tractor and spreader movement. Also, the drive means 32 can be disposed in any desired or required direction due to the provision of the swivel connector 34. For example, for mechanical drive of the drive means 32 when the apparatus is disposed to one side of the spreader, the drive means would be disposed with the shaft thereof extending upwardly out of the plane of the paper as the same is viewed in Figure 2, and when the apparatus is transposed in its entirety on the wheeled carriage 40 to the opposite side of the spreader, the drive means shaft would extend downwardly out of the plane of the paper. In use, the tractor, spreader and cleaner can be moved into the barn and the cleaning head fitted into the gutter by lowering the tube and head upon proper operation of the elevating means, i. e. the crank 58 and chain 54. The drive means 32 for the screw conveyor 30 may then be set into operation and the tractor driven through the barn to effect cleaning of the gutter within which the head 26 is disposed. If the barn is a dead end type, either of two alternative methods may be employed. In the first method, the tractor is preferably backed into the barn with the manure spreader being backed ahead of it, the cleaner traveling alongside with the receiving end of the head 26 pointed inwardly to clean the gutter on this side during such inward travel. Thereupon the cleamng apparatus is detached from that side of the spreader and is transposed on its wheeled carriage 40 around to the other side of the spreader to point the receiving end of the head 26 outwardly, the coupling with the tractor being transposed from the hitch at one end of the carriage to the hitch at the other end of the carriage so that the tractor now pulls instead of pushes the carriage 40. In this transposed position the proper disposition of the drive means 32 is accommodated by the swivel connector 34. The tractor is then driven frontwardly out of the barn to effect cleaning of the other gutter. In the second method, after backing to the dead end of the barn, the head 26 of the apparatus is rotated bodily about the axis of the tube 24 to dispose the inlet opening 60 thereof in the opposite direction, namely toward the front of the manure spreader or toward the open end of the barn, and the plate 66 is detached from the side of the head which will now be disposed upon the bottom of the trough and attached to that sidewall of the head which was originally rested upon the bottom wall of the trough. Then, the tractor is driven forwardly so that the gutter or trough 12, is. given a secondpass cleaning in the reverse direction.

At the end of the trough, the head 26 is lifted out of the gutter 12, by suitable operation of the crank 58. The cleaning apparatus is then detached. from one side of the spreader and transposed around on the wheeled carriage 40 for association with the other side of the spreader, at which time the head of the cleaning apparatus will be disposed adjacent the other barn gutter, with the inlet opening thereof facing. toward the rear of the manure spreader. The head is then lowered into the gutter, the screw conveyor is set into operation and the tractor is backed toward the dead end of the barn. When the manure spreader reaches the dead end of the barn, the head 26 of the cleaning apparatus is again reversed, in the manner described, and the tractor is run forwardly toward the open end of the barn to effect a second cleaning operation on the second gutter. At the open end of the barn, the cleaning head is removed from the trough or gutter and the tractor, manure spreader and cleaner are driven to the exterior of the barn. Thereafter, the cleaner may be detached from the tractor and spreader, upon disconnection of the draw bar assembly 28, and the tractor may be driven into the field to spread the manure deposited in the spreader 18 by the cleaning apparatus of the invention.

In the case of through barns, the necessity for backing the tractor, spreader and cleaner into the barn is eliminated, since the three units may be driven directly through the barn, turned around exteriorly of the barn at the end thereof opposite the original entry, and returned through the barn in the forward drive direction of tractor movement. Also, in the case of through barns, there is no necessity for reversing the direction of the cleaning head if the cleaning operation is carried out in the manner described. Otherwise, the operation is the same as that described for a dead end barn.

To guide the cleaning apparatus of the invention with respect to the manure spreader 18, it is preferred to provide a guide 70 on the conveyor tube 24 adapted to engage the side wall ofv the spreader 18. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the spreader 18may beprovided with an inclined. lip at. the top. thereof, in. which case the guide may extend parallel to the wall of the lip to engage fiatly against the same. The guide 70 may, if desired, be detachably. secured to the body of the manure spreader, but it is preferred thatthe same merely rest against the spreader-s0, that the head 26 of the cleaning apparatus may have complete freedom for movement within the trough or gutter 12 regardless of the disposition of the manure spreader with respect to the gutter. Regardless of the disposition of the cleaning apparatus of the, present invention with respect to the spreader body, the spreading mechanism within the spreader body will operate in its usual manner to move the waste materials to the rearward end and into the mechanical broadcaster of the spreader.

While the cleaning apparatus of the present. invention may be constructed and operated in the manner thus far described with successful results, I have found that the bottom wall of the head 26, even when cut out as at 26a and 2.6 and even as weighted down by the full mass of the head, the conveyor tube, the screw conveyor and the drive means, is not always 100% eflicient in removing waste materials from gutters or troughs when such matter has. caked to a very hard degreeand adheres very firmly to the bottom of the gutter. To render the apparatus thoroughly efficient irrespective. of the consistency and degree of caking of the waste materials to be removed from the gutters, I provide means actuated with the screw conveyor to exert an active or motive scraping or scouring effect on the bottom of the troughs. In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figures 1 to 6, the screw conveyor extends through the conveyor tube 24 and directly into and diagonally through the box-like head 26. Within the head 26, I secure a scraper attachment 72 to the blade of the screw, the attachment 72 being in the form substantially of a crescent and being secured to the screw to describe a path of movement wherein the attachment 72 is moved across the bottom cf the gutter, the elliptical cutouts 26a and 26b accommodating such engagement, to insure positive removal of materials caked and adhering to the bottom of the gutter. To accommodate passage. of the attachment 72 in that iortion of the path of movement thereof entirely within the head 26, the head 26 is formed of generally ellipsoidal configuration. at the end thereof opposite the inlet, as was pointed out hereinbefore.

In view of the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present invention provides improved barn cleaning apparatus of a highly economical nature, that is very practical and elficient in operation and that insures thorough cleaning of the gutters or troughs. Since no hand operations are involved, and the waste material is enclosed entirely within the conveyor tube 24 during its transfer to the manure spreader, very high standards of sanitation are maintained.

A sccond embodiment of the present invention is disclosed in Figures 7 and 8, wherein the assembly includes a conveyor tube 24, a screw conveyor 30 and a carriage 45) of the same general character or nature as described hereinbefore. The principal diflerences between the first and second embodiments of the invention reside in the cleaning head itself, the means provided for actively scraping the bottom of the gutter or trough, and the means providerl for driving the activated portions of the assembly. in particular, the second embodiment is shown as comprising in addition to the tube 24, screw 30 and carriage 40, a generally cylindrical cleaning head 126 formed of a pair of spaced parallel end walls 128 which are arcuately curved at the upper portions thereof to conform to arcuate wall portion 130 defining the peripheral surface of the cylinder 126. The peripheral Wall 130 is cut away at the lower portion thereof, as at 132, to provide an enlarged inlet opening in both directions of head movement. To close the inlet 132 in one or the other direction, a

pair of arcuate scraper plates 134 and 136 are slidably mounted on the peripheral wall 130 at opposite sides thereof. Each of the plates 134 and 136 is adapted to be moved to cover one side or half of the inlet 132 as isindicated by the disposition of the scraper plate 136 in Figure 8. At the lower edge thereof, each of the plates 134 and 136 is sharpened or pointed so as to afford a scraper edge 138 adapted to engage the bottom of the manure gutter or trough in the barn. The side walls 128 of the head 126 are of square or rectangular con figuration at the lower portions thereof, and the lower edges thereof ride on the bottom of the gutter to support the cleaning apparatus and to clean the side walls of the gutter.

The cleaning head 126 provides an enclosure and support for a stationary assembly including a gear box or transmission mount 140, preferably a casting, which is supported at the outer side of the head by means of a shaft 142 secured to the outer wall 128 of the head and received within a bore in the casting. At the opposite side of the head, the mount or casting is supported'by means of a tubular extension 144 thereof projecting through the inner wall 128 of the head. The gear mount 140 in. turn. stationarily supports a generally annular material guide 146 within the head, which guide is smaller than the head to define an annular space between the pe- 9 ripheral wall 130 and itself. At the upper portion thereof, the guide 146 is fiatted, as at 148, and inclined downwardly from the outer to the inner walls of the head at an angle of approximately 45 degrees. The conveyor tube 24 extends into the head 126 approximately at a right angle to the flatted surface 148 of the guide, about a 45 degrees angle, and terminates at the surface, the upper portion of the conveyor tube being cut away within the head to provide a tube inlet 158. The blade of the conveyor 30, which is exposed through the inlet 150, is mounted on a tubular shaft 152, which is secured to a shaft 154 journalled at its upper end in the tube 24 (in a manner not shown) and at the lower end thereof in a bearing 156 mounted on the flattecl surface 148 of the guide 146.

To the exterior of the head, on the extension 144, the casting or transmission mount 140 carries a housing 158 enclosing a drive means or assembly including a drive shaft 160 adapted to be driven by suitable means, such as those previously referred to. The drive shaft 160 carries a worm gear 162 which meshes with a gear 164 secured to a shaft 166 which is iournalled in the tubular extension 144 of the casting 140. The shaft 166 adjacent the inner end thereof carries a bevel gear 168 which is meshed with a bevel gear 170 secured to the lower end of the conveyor shaft 154 beneath the bearing 156 within the guide 146. As will be appreciated, actuation of the drive shaft 160 will result in rotation of the screw conveyor 30 through the gear transmission described. The shaft 166 also carries a bevel gear 172, preferably formed integrally with the gear 168, which meshes with a bevel idle gear 174 journalled on a shaft 176 supported by the casting 140. The idle gear 174 also is in meshedengagement with a bevel gear 178 journalled on a sleeve 180 supported by the casting. A shaft 182 is journalled for rotation within the sleeve 180 and this shaft carries a shiftable clutch member 184 which is slidably but non-rotatably connected to the shaft 182. The clutch member 184 is provided at opposite ends thereof with teeth adapted for clutching engagement with either the gear 172 or the gear 178 to effect rotation of the shaft 182 in either direction. The clutch member 184 is shiftable into clutching engagement with the gear 172, into a neutral position, or into clutching engagement with gear 178 by means of a crank 186 which is actuated by suitable means (not shown) extending to the exterior of the cleaning head 17 6. The shaft 182 extends through the casting 140 and at the end thereof adjacent the outer wall 128 of the head 126 carries a pinion 188 which meshes with an internal ring gear 190 journalled on the shaft 142. The ring gear 190 is fixed, by means of rivets or the like, to an annular scraper and transfer assembly 192 which comprises an outer wall 194 disposed between the outer wall 128 of the head 126 and the guide 146, an

inner wall 196 disposed adjacent the inner wall 128 of the head 126, and a plurality of T-shaped members 198 extending between the walls 194 and 196. As will be appreciated, the members 194, 196 and 198 thus comprise a unitary assembly rotatable within the annular space defined between the peripheral wall 130 of the head 126 and the guide 146.

To guide movement of the assembly 192 within the head 126, suitable guide pins 200 may be provided on the walls 128 of the head to engage the walls 194 and 196 of the assembly 192. As shown in Figure 8, the T-shaped members 198 of the scraper and transfer assembly 192 each comprise, With respect to the cylindrical housing, a radial leg 202 and a cord leg 204, extending to the periphery of the walls 194 and 196 of the assembly. Each of the legs 204 is sharpened at both ends thereof to afford scraper edges 206 adapted to engage and remove materials from the bottom of the manure gutter or trough within which the head 126 is adapted to be disposed. As previously described, the arcuate scraper plates 134 and ,136 have sharpened lower edges 138, and the sharpened tion, might tend to clog the cleaning and cutting head- 126 or the screw conveyor 30.

The use and operation of the embodiment of the invention shown in Figures 7 and 8 is very similar to that described hereinbefore with respect of the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 6, with the exception of the par-.

ticular manner in which the cleaning head functions. When the head 126 is placed in a gutter or trough, the proper one of the arcuate plates 134 and 136 is moved upwardly on the peripheral wall of the head to provide an inlet opening facing in the direction of head movement, the other one of the plates being moved downwardly into engagement with the bottom wall of the gutter and being detachably locked in that position by suitable means to afford a scraping edge. For example, the scraper plates 134 and 136 are disposed in proper position as shown in Figure 8 for movement of the head 126 to the left in the figure. When the plates 134 and 136 are thus properly adjusted, the drive means is set in operation to rotate the shaft 160 which results in power transmission to the screw conveyor 30 to rotate the same in such direction as will elevate waste materials through the conveyor tube 24 to the outlet 38 thereof. Also, the crank 186 is actuated to move the clutch 184 into engagement with one or the other of the gears 172 and 178 to effect rotation of the scraper and transfer assembly 192. The assembly 192 may, if desired, be operated in either direction regardless of the direction of movement of the head 24 according to the particular conditions to be met at the time. If the waste matter to be removed from the gutter is not caked in the gutter, it is suitable to operate the assembly 192 in such direction that the T-shaped members 198 assist in what would be the natural flow of matter into the housing if the assembly 192 were not provided. In other words, as shown in Figure 8, the assembly 192 could be operated to rotate in a counter clockwise direction so as to move the waste matter in the gutter from left to right as shown in the figure to transfer the same upwardly to the fiatted surface 148 of the guide 146' At this point, due to the particular disposition of the T-rnembers 198, the waste material will gravitate through the opening in the guide 146 to be directed by the flatted surface 148 into the inlet of the conveyor tube 24, at which point the screw conveyor 30 works on the material to elevate the same through the tube and to discharge the same into a manure spreader or like vehicle. However, if the waste material in the gutter is caked quite badly, the scraping function afforded by the movement of the assembly 192 in a counter clockwise direction, in the example given, may not produce as efficient and thorough a scraping action as desired. In such cases, it is preferable to rotate the assembly 192 in the opposite direction, that is clockwise as shown in Figure 8, to effect a thoroughly efficient cleaning of the gutter. When it is necessary to reverse the direction of movement of the head 126, the apparatus is readily accommodated to such reversal by moving that one of the plates 134 and 136 that was down, upwardly, and vice versa, and by reversing the direction of rotation of the assembly 192 by suitable actuation of the crank 186. The scooping bucket action of the vane or blade portions 202, 204 in Figure 8 makes this embodiment very effective for lifting waste material of very soft or almost liquid consistency, as well as hardened or caked waste material.

In Figure 9 I have illustrated another arrangement or embodiment in which my improved barn cleaning apparatus is adapted to be pulled along the gutter 12 by a towing or traction cable 210 which is adapted to be wound upon a power driven winch or winding drum located at the end of the barn, or outside of the barn. Such winch might be of the type mounted on a tractor or other like vehicle. It will be seen that the wheeled carriage 40 is provided with duplicate draw bar or hitch connections 23, 28 at opposite ends, either one of which is effective to transmit either pushing or pulling propelling force from the tractor to the wheeled carriage 40, and either one of which is also effective to transmit pulling propelling force from the tow cable 210 to the wheeled carriage. The tow cable 210 might also pull a manure spreader or other manure receiving vehicle through the barn alongside the cleaning unit 22. As illustrative of one particular utility of this cable towed embodiment, I have illustrated it as used in cooperation with barn cleaning equipment employing pairs of tracks 212 on which roll one or more wheeled cars 214 generally of the hopper type. Ordinarily, the manure is shoveled from the gutter i2 into these hand cars 214. However, my barn cleaning unit 22 may be coupled up to such a car substantially as shown, and the two wheeled vehicles pulled side by side through the divergent hitch connections 211 leading from the cable 210. In such embodiment, the conveyor is power driven either by a small gasoline engine or an electric motor mounted directly on the unit, as indicated at 216, the latter being coupled to the driving connection 32. This cable pulled embodiment may be of the construction shown in Figures 2-6 or of the construction shown in Figures 7 and 8. Also, due to the provision of the wheeled carriage and reversible cleaning head as described hereinbefore, the cable pulled embodiment is adapted to be moved to the opposite sides of the receptacle or car 214 and to have the head thereof reversed for the reasons and purposes described in conjunction with the other embodiments of the invention.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the present invention provides improved barn cleaning apparatus of a highly economical nature that is practical and that performs a thoroughly efiicient cleaning function. All of the object enumerated hereinbefore are achieved in all embodiments of the invention, particularly the novel objects of the provision of a feed end head for the inclined flight screw conveyor and tube, the provision of means motivated in conjunction with the screw conveyor for effecting scraping of the gutter, the provision of apparatus that affords a truly sanitary method of manure removal, the provision of apparatus that is adapted for use in both through and dead end barns, and the achievement of these objects and advantages in the form of highly economical embodiments.

While I have described what I regard to be preferred embodiments of my invention, it will be appreciated that various changes, rearrangements and modifications may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A cleaning device for removing waste matter from barn gutters comprising a conveyor tube disposed at an inclination to the horizontal and generally transversely of a barn gutter, said tube having an inlet at the lower end thereof and an outlet adjacent the upper end thereof, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in said tube, a cleaning head mounted on said tube at the lower end thereof, said head having a peripheral opening to each side at the bottom thereof, a movable closure for each of said openings, said closures being movable selectively to open and close said openings, whereby the opening to the conveyor inlet may be disposed in either direction to accommodate removal of waste matter from gutters upon movement of said tube in a path parallel to the gutter and passage of said head through the gutter in either direction, and a rotor journalled in said head and operatively associated with said conveyor for actuation therewith, said rotor including a plurality of scraper blades engageable in the gutter for positively scraping the surfaces of the gutter.

2. A cleaning device as set forth in claim 1, including transmission means in the operative association of said conveyor and said rotor to accommodate rotation of said rotor in either direction in accordance with the direction of movement of said head.

3. in apparatus of the class described, the combination of a traveling inclined conveyor tube having its upper end arranged to discharge over the side of a traveling receptacle adapted to travel with the conveyor tube, said conveyor tube being adapted to travel with said receptacle in a direction substantially at right angles to the length of said conveyor tube, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in said conveyor tube for rotation about the inclined axis of said conveyor tube, a head mounted on said tube at the lower end thereof, said head projecting substantially horizontally at an angle to the inclined angle of said conveyor tube, said conveyor tube opening into a side wall of said head, a rotor journaled in said head for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis parallel to the horizontal projection of the axis of said tube, said head having an inlet opening in a lower portion of an end wall thereof substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of said rotor and having an outlet opening in said side wall thereof discharging into the lower end of said inclined conveyor tube, said head otherwise being closed at the top, sides and ends thereof, said rotor including blade means for cutting and lifting material over which the head is traveling, and means for rotating said screw conveyor and said rotor.

4. A device of the character described for use with a receptacle to be moved in a given path, said device comprising a conveyor housing disposed at an inclination to the horizontal and generally transversely of the path of movement of the receptacle, a carriage supporting said housing for movement with the receptacle, said housing having an inlet at the lower end thereof and an outlet adjacent the upper end thereof for discharging into the receptacle, a screw conveyor rotatably supported within said housing axially thereof and operable to carry material from the inlet to the outlet of said housing, a head member connected to said housing at the inlet end thereof, said head member being disposed horizontally and extending outwardly and downwardly relative to the inlet end of said housing, an inlet opening in said head member faced in the direction of movement of said housing and extending to the lower end of said head member, and scraper means mounted within said head member and operatively connected to said screw conveyor for rotation about an axis disposed substantially in the same vertical plane as the axis of the conveyor, said scraper means including portions movable closely adjacent but inwardly of said inlet opening and the lower extremity of said head member for picking up material and elevating the same to the inlet of said housing.

5. A device of the character described comprising an elongate conveyor tube having upper and lower ends, an inlet at its lower end and an outlet adjacent its upper end, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in said tube for conveying material from the inlet to the outlet thereof, a head mounted horizontally on said tube at the lower end thereof and extending outwardly and downwardly therefrom, a rotor journalled in said head for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis disposed in substantially the same vertical plane as the axis of rotation of said conveyor, said head having an inlet opening in an end wall thereof substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of said rotor, said inlet opening extending to the lower end of said head, said rotor including blade means movable closely adjacent but inwardly of said inlet opening and the lower end of said head for picking up and elevating material to said inlet of said tube, and means for rotating said rotor and said conveyor.

6. A device of the character described comprising a conveyor tube disposed at an inclination to the horizontal,

a carriage supporting said tube for movement transversely of its longitudinal axis, said tube having an inlet at the lower end thereof and an outlet adjacent the upper end thereof, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in said tube axially thereof for conveying material from said inlet to said outlet, a relatively narrow head mounted horizontally on said tube at the lower end thereof and extending outwardly and downwardly therefrom, a rotor journalled in said head for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis substantially parallel to the horizontal projection of the axis of rotation :of said conveyor, said head having an inlet opening in the lower portion of an end Wall thereof substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of said rotor and facing in the direction of movement of said tube, said rotor including scraper blades movable closely adjacent but inwardly of said inlet opening and the lower end of said head for scraping up material and elevating it to said inlet of said tube, a drive connection between said rotor and said conveyor connected axially to each, and means for rotating one of said rotor and said conveyor to eifect rotation of both said rotor and said conveyor.

7. In apparatus of the class described, the combination of a traveling inclined conveyor tube having its upper end arranged to discharge over the side of a traveling receptacle adapted to travel with the conveyor tube, said conveyor tube being adapted to travel with said receptacle in a direction substantially at right angles to the length of said conveyor tube, a screw conveyor rotatably mounted in said conveyor tube for rotation about the inclined axis of said conveyor tube, a head mounted on said tube at the lower end thereof, said head projecting substantially horizontally at an angle to the inclined angle of said conveyor tube, said conveyor tube opening into a side wall of said head, a rotor journaled in said head for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis parallel to the horizontal projection of the axis of said tube, said head having an inlet opening in a lower portion of an end wall thereof substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of said rotor and having an outlet opening in said side wall thereof discharging into the lower end of said inclined conveyor tube, said head otherwise being closed at the top, sides and ends thereof, said head including a relatively stationary sharpened cutting edge and said rotor including blade means having rotating sharpened cutting edges moving past said relatively stationary si' cutting edge in cutting proximity thereto for lifting material over which the head is traveling and for cutting up such material preparatory to its introduction into said screw conveyor and conveyor tube, and means for rotating said screw conveyor and rotor.

The combination of claim 4 wherein said head member includes a relatively stationary sharpened cutting edge, and wherein said scraper means includes a rotating sharpened cutting edge moving past said relatively stationary cutting edge in cutting proximity thereto for cutting the material picked up in said head member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,271,627 Stuart July 9, 1918 1,528,258 Michalik Mar. 3, 1925 1,788,995 Fuers tenau Jan. 13, 1931 1,953,100 Blaisdell Apr. 3, 1934 2,490,292 Yost Dec. 6, 1949 2,586,981 Nagel Feb. 26, 1952 2,621,773 Coggins et a1. Dec. 16, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 680,030 France Jan. 17, 1930

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