Earth working – Plural wheeled implements – Outrigged implement adjustable inwardly
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-28
2001-07-24
Pezzuto, Robert E. (Department: 3671)
Earth working
Plural wheeled implements
Outrigged implement adjustable inwardly
Reexamination Certificate
active
06263977
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to winged agricultural implements and, particularly, to means for controlling the range of wing motion permitted in different modes of operation.
Agricultural implements, such as a planters and tillage devices, have increased in operating width, providing winged configurations that fold into a narrow transport orientations for travel over the roadways, yet expand to operating widths of thirty to sixty feet. When these large agricultural implements are operating and come to the end of the field, i.e. the headlands, the implement must be turned around to go back the other direction in the field. At the headlands, it is desirable to raise the ground working devices to an inoperative, non-ground engaging position while making the turn, including those supported on the wings, without requiring the implement to be placed into the transport orientation.
Furthermore, such implements, particularly the tillage implements, are more effective by increasing the force exerted thereby to press the ground working devices into the ground. The actual weight of the implement itself exerts a force to urge the ground working devices into the ground; however, that force can be increased by transferring weight from the tractor through the use of a hydraulic system that works against the tractor hitch to push the implement toward the ground, thereby increasing the force exerted on the ground engaging devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,687,798, issued Nov. 18, 1997, to Flexi-Coil Ltd. describes a hydraulic lock mechanism for wing lift cylinders to prevent the wings from drooping when the implement middle section is raised. Co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/891,204, corresponding to Canadian Application Serial No. 2,210,238, filed by Flexi-Coil Ltd. describes a down-force system for the tool bar of an agricultural machine including a hydraulic mechanism for maintaining a constant down-force on the rear of the tool bar during operation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to prevent foldable implement wings from drooping in the headland position.
It is an advantage of this invention that the operator is not required to reset the wing control from float mode, or from down pressure mode, depending on how the implement is equipped.
The invention in one aspect provides an agricultural implement including a frame having a pair of wings pivotally mounted thereon for pivotal movement between raised transport positions and lowered working positions, each said wing having a wing actuator connected thereto for affecting said pivotal motion, and a headlands control system including a headlands actuator for providing first and second positions enabling operation in either of two modes such that:
(A) when the headlands actuator is in the first position as during a ground working operation, the wings are provided with sufficient downward range to enable the wings to be pivoted downward below horizontal as may be required during operation over uneven ground; and
(B) when the headlands actuator is in the ;econd position as when the implement is raised at the field headlands, the downward range of pivotal motion of the implement wings is limited in such manner as to assist in preventing excess wing drooping and providing adequate wing-to-ground clearance as when turning the implement at the field headlands.
In one form of the invention the headlands actuator is hydraulically connected in parallel with the implement lift circuit and retracts when the implement is raised at headlands. This prevents wing droop when the wing actuators are operating in float mode or operating in a wing down pressure mode. The actuator system can be used on implements having down pressure and also on those without, in which wing float mode is typically used during operation.
In the preferred embodiment, the wing actuators are either set to float mode or down pressure mode during operation. Alternately a wing float mode can be achieved by using the actuator system in other ways, at least two of which are the following:
a) linkage connections between the actuator system and wing actuators may be arranged to allow some relative movement for floating and to then carry the weight of the wings when the linkage is retracted, thus a float mode setting on the tractor is not required; and
b) the actuator system may be set to float mode with an alternate circuit, with no need for the wing actuators to be in float mode.
These and other objects, features and advantages are accomplished according to the invention by a headlands control system for a winged agricultural implement that includes a headlands actuator operatively connected between implement wing actuators for establishing operation in either of two modes. In the first mode, when the headland actuator is in a first position (e.g.extended), the wing actuators are provided extra downward range to pivot and bias the wing sections downward below horizontal as may occur during operation over uneven ground. In the second mode, when the headland actuator is in a second position (e.g. retracted) and the implement is raised (e.g. at the headlands), the downward range of the implement wings is more limited (as compared with the first mode) at the point where the wing actuators are filly extended. This system thus provides means for preventing implement wings from drooping in the headland position so the operator is not required to reset the wing control from float mode, or from down pressure mode, depending on what is equipped.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4206815 (1980-06-01), Hatcher
patent: 4214637 (1980-07-01), Applequist
patent: 4418762 (1983-12-01), Page
patent: 4790389 (1988-12-01), Adee et al.
patent: 4862758 (1989-09-01), Magee
patent: 5687798 (1997-11-01), Henry et al.
patent: 5921325 (1999-07-01), Meek et al.
Hundeby David R.
Mayerle Dean J.
Flexi-Coil Ltd.
Miller Larry W.
Pezzuto Robert E.
Stader John William
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