Material spreader

Claim 1

A MATERIAL SPREADING ASSEMBLY FOR ATTACHMENT TO THE REAR OF A MATERIAL SPREADING VEHICLE HAVING A CONVEYOR MEANS FOR MOVING MATERIAL IN THE VEHICLE TOWARD THE REAR END THEREOF, SAID ASSEMBLY COMPRISING ROTATABLE SHAFT MEANS EXTENDED TRANSVERSELY ACROSS THE REAR OF SAID VEHICLE, SAID SHAFT ROTATABLE DOWNWARDLY ON ITS SIDE FACING INTO SAID VEHICLE, A PLURALITY OF SPACED SPREADER BLADES EXTENDED SPIRALLY ABOUT SAID SHAFT MEANS WITH EACH PIVOTALLY CONNECTED AT ONE END THEREOF TO SAID SHAFT MEANS, SAID SPREADER BLADES BEING ANGULARLY INCLINED RELATIVE TO SAID SHAFT MEANS AND HAVING WORKING ENDS OPPOSITE SAID PIVOTED ENDS MOVABLE DOWNWARDLY CONTIGUOUS TO THE REAR END OF SAID CONVEYOR MEANS, WITH THE BLADES OVER ONE-HALF THE LENGTH OF SAID SHAFT MEANS BEING REVERSELY INCLINED RELATIVE TO THE BLADES OVER THE OTHER HALF OF SAID SHAFT MEANS, SAID WORKING ENDS EACH HAVING A LEADING EDGE AND A TRAILING EDGE, EACH LEADING EDGE BEING IN A PERIPHERAL FOLLOWING RELATION WITH THE TRAILING EDGE OF AN ADJACENT SPREADER BLADE WORKING END, WHEREBY UPON ROTATION OF SAID SHAFT MEANS, THE WORKING ENDS OF SAID BLADES FORM A CONTINUOUS WORKING EDGE OF SPIRAL FORMATION TO EXERT A FULL LINE DOWNWARD SHEARING ACTION ON THE MATERIAL TO BE SPREAD CONCURRENTLY WITH THE INCLINATION OF SAID BLADES ACTING TO SPREAD THE SHEARED MATERIAL IN A PATH HAVING A WIDTH GREATER THAN THE LENGTH OF SAID SHAFT MEANS.