Earth working – Diverse tools – Rolling and non-rolling
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-20
2001-02-06
Pezzuto, Robert E. (Department: 3643)
Earth working
Diverse tools
Rolling and non-rolling
Reexamination Certificate
active
06182770
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to machines for thinning crops. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved apparatus for thinning row crops that allows selective adjustment of both the frequency and magnitude of plant removal in a thinning operation.
2. State of the Art
The early stages of plant development are full of risks. Temperature, humidity, rainfall, seed viability, sunlight, soil fertility, and other factors all affect whether a young plant will survive to maturity. Some crops, such as sugar beets, are particularly vulnerable in their early stages. To deal with these crop risks, growers typically plant more than the desired stand of crop as insurance against early plant loss. Then, when the plants have grown enough to be likely not to succumb to the above-mentioned dangers, the growers will reduce the number of plants by thinning if the surviving plant population is too high. Thinning involves removing some portion of the young plants, preferably the smallest and least healthy, before they have a chance to grow to maturity.
Traditionally, thinning has been performed by manual labor. However, with changes in agricultural methods and labor practices, manual labor has become very expensive. Consequently, thinning machines have been developed to perform the same task. These machines fall into two categories: selective thinning machines; and random thinning machines. Selective thinning machines use on-the-fly data collection to select which plant to keep and which to eliminate. As will be appreciated, selective thinning machines tend to be quite complex, expensive, and slow. Random thinning machines simply eliminate plants based on an average population desired. Random thinners are less expensive than selective thinners, but they still tend to be slow, and they are generally nonadjustable—one machine will always thin at a certain rate, and leave a crop at a certain spacing and a certain population, regardless of the crop or other conditions. In addition, some random thinning machines operate by dragging a thinning mechanism transversely across the rows of crops. It will be apparent that such an operation is undesirable because it tends to damage crop and irrigation rows, and is especially difficult in those regions which rely upon flood irrigation. Moreover, conventional random thinning machines typically employ only one shape or size of cutting blade, which makes the machine somewhat inflexible.
It would thus be desirable to have a random crop thinner that is designed to operate parallel to crop rows, and is adjustable for a variety of crops and conditions, yet is still simple and inexpensive. It would also be desirable to have a simple, random crop thinner which employs removable blades, such that a single machine may accommodate a variety of plant types and row conditions.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a random crop thinner which operates parallel to crop rows, and wherein the frequency of thinning is selectively adjustable.
It is another object of this invention to provide a random crop thinner wherein the magnitude of thinning is selectively adjustable.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a random crop thinner wherein the thinning blades are selectively removable, and are provided in a variety of shapes and sizes.
The above and other objects are realized in a crop thinning device configured for mounting on a typical attachment for pulling behind a tractor in a field of row crops. The attachment frame is oriented generally transverse to the direction of motion of the tractor, and is provided with support wheels for supporting it upon the ground. Disposed upon the rearward portion of the attachment frame are a plurality of generally upright rotating hubs, each hub having a plurality of elongate sweeps extending radially from its perimeter, each sweep having a radial axis and a substantially planar end blade, and being configured to contact the ground with its end blade such that the hub will rotate as the frame is pulled across the ground. The end blades are selectively rotatable about their radial axes, whereby the aspect of their sweep through the row of crops may be adjusted. The rotating hubs are also pivotally connected to the frame so as to allow selective angular orientation of the plane of rotation of the hub relative to the direction of motion of the machine. As the frame is pulled across the ground, the blades connected to the rotating hubs pass angularly transversely through the row of crops and thereby thin the crop. The crop thinning device is adjustable for obtaining any desired level of thinning of a crop, and may also be advantageously used for aeration of soil and weeding.
Other objects and features of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, based on the following description, taken in combination with the accompanying drawings.
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Photographs, common automated crop thinner.
Pearson Ryan
Pickett J. Paul
Nguyen Son T.
Pezzuto Robert E.
River Valley Manufacturing, Inc.
Thorpe North & Western LLP
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