Harvesters – Gang
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-30
2001-10-30
Pezzuto, Robert E. (Department: 3671)
Harvesters
Gang
C056S016900, C056S320200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06308503
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to lawn mowers, and more particularly to selfpropelled, walk-behind commercial type lawn mowers having a mower deck with a rotatable wing section pivotally attached to one side thereof for movement between a horizontal operating position and a vertical non-operating position.
Most current lawn mowers designed for commercial use are either dedicated walk-behind lawn mowers or conventional riding lawn mowers. Commercial type riding lawn mowers are generally quite large, heavy and difficult to maneuver around obstacles, such as trees and shrubs and the like. An example of such a riding lawn mower is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,796 to Yamaoka et al. Riding lawn mowers are also quite expensive to purchase and maintain. The substantial cost of purchasing and maintaining riding mowers has led many lawn mower service companies to rely more heavily on the use of lower cost, mid-size, walk-behind rotary mowers.
The walk-behind mowers are generally smaller, more maneuverable, and less expensive than riding mowers. Being self-powered, these mowers are capable of cutting large areas of grass. The walk-behind mowers are also relatively simple to operate, and inexpensive to purchase and maintain compared to riding lawn mowers. In addition, these mowers are generally safer and more useful in mowing steep hills. Furthermore, they are small enough to be easily stored and transported by commercial lawn mower service companies. One example of a self-powered, walk-behind mower is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,920,733 to Berrios.
Most prior art walk-behind lawn mowers typically include fixed width mower decks having widths of 32, 36, 48, 52 or 61 inches. In many applications it is desirable to have a mower which can cut a relatively wide path of grass in order to efficiently handle larger lawns and fields. A commercial landscaper would prefer to use the largest width mower deck in order to cut the grass in as short a time as possible. The cost and time of mowing can be substantially reduced by using a mower with a wide cutting path. However, many areas of grass are enclosed by a fence having only a narrow gate or passageway for entering and exiting the area. Therefore, a lawn mower having a relatively wide fixed width mower deck such as a 48, 52 or 61 inch deck will not fit through a narrow opening. In turn, only lawn mowers having smaller width mower decks, such as 32 or 36 inches will be able to be used in such areas. This will decrease mowing efficiency and increase the time for mowing fenced-in areas.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved walk-behind lawn mower having a relatively wide mower deck with a rotatable wing section pivotally attached to one side thereof for movement between a horizontal operating position and a vertical non-operating position so that the mower may be used for mowing grass in enclosed areas.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, in view of the problems associated with the prior art lawn mowers, it is an object of the present invention to provide a lawn mower, which overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art. In particular, it is an object of the prior art to provide a lawn mower having a mower deck with a rotatable wing section pivotally attached to one side thereof for movement between a horizontal operating position and a vertical non-operating position, so that the mower may travel into and out of enclosed mowing areas. It is another object of the invention to provide a lawn mower having a rotatable caster wheel attached to the front of the rotatable wing section of the mower deck for movement between a operable ground engaging position and a non-operable swing-away position when the rotatable wing section is in a vertical non-operating position in order to provide adequate clearance for the wing section. Another object of the invention is to provide a lawn mower that includes a side cutting unit extending from at least one side of the mower deck to increase the cutting area of the mower.
These and other objects are met by the lawn mower of the present invention. The lawn mower comprises a frame and a mower deck with an engine mounted thereon. The engine provides power to a plurality of cutting blades mounted within the mower deck and to a pair of rear drive wheels. The frame includes a substantially horizontal front portion supporting the mower deck and engine, and a substantially vertical rear portion supporting a handle bar assembly with operator controls and an operator console mounted to the handle bar assembly.
The mower deck includes a rotatable wing section. The wing section may be rotated from a substantially horizontal operating position to a substantially vertical non-operating position for maneuvering the mower through narrow passageways such as through gates and the like. The wing section is raised only when the cutting blades are not being driven by the engine. A safety device or interlock is provided to prevent the cutting blades from being driven by the engine when the wing section is raised from its normal substantially horizontal position to its substantially upright transport position. Thus, the cutting blades are automatically disengaged from engine when raised from a mowing position to transport position.
A manually operated locking mechanism secures the rotatable wing section to the main mower deck. The locking mechanism includes an apertured frame member mounted to the top of the mower deck. The frame member includes at least two apertures formed therein for accepting a locking pin. The locking pin is mounted to a link member attached to the wing section. The link member is pivotally fastened to the frame member for rotation around a pivot point. The locking pin is spring biased for movement toward a pin-engaging position in the apertures of the frame member. As the wing section is raised into its vertical position, the biasing force of the spring urges the pin toward the surface of the frame member and into one of the apertures in the frame member.
Another feature of the invention is the swing-away front caster wheel located on the front of the wing section that allows the caster wheel to be rotated away from the bottom of the wing section for clearance purposes. Normally, the caster wheel extends down past the bottom of the wing section in a ground engaging position. When the wing section is rotated upwardly to its vertical position, the caster wheel still extends past the bottom of the deck. Thus, it is preferable for the caster wheel to be rotated out of the way to provide maximum clearance. The caster wheel attached to the front of the wing section is secured in place by a manual pin assembly.
When an operator is required to enter a mowing area through a narrow gate, the wing section is manually rotated upwardly and secured in a vertical position so that the effective width of the mower deck is no greater than the outside distance between the two rear drive wheels. Once inside the mowing area, the wing section is manually rotated downwardly and secured in a horizontal mowing position. Mowing with a large width mower deck is more efficient than mowing with narrow width mower deck lawn mowers.
Various other features, objects, and advantages of the invention will be made apparent to those skilled in the art from the accompanying drawings and detailed description thereof.
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patent: 4858417 (1989-08-01), Priefert et al.
patent: 5177942 (1993-01-01), Hager et al.
patent: 5241808 (1993-09-01), Colistro
patent: 5249411 (1993-10-01), Hake
patent: 5280695 (1994-01-01), Nunes, Jr. et al.
patent: 5463853 (1995-11-01), Santoli et al.
patent: 5771669 (1998-06-01), Langworthy et al.
patent: 6000202 (1999-12-01), Laskowski
Bland Mark C.
Scag Dane T.
Baxter William K.
Godfrey & Kahn S.C.
Great Dane Power Equipment, Inc.
Pezzuto Robert E.
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