Combination rake-mower

Claim 1

A POWER OPERATED AND HAND MANEUVERABLE APPARATUS COMPRISING A SUPPORT FRAME HAVING FRONT AND REAR DEPENDING GROUND ENGAGING SUPPORT WHEELS, SAID FRAME DEFINING A LOW GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED PASSAGE EXTENDING GENERALLY LONGITUDINALLY OF SAID FRAME, SAID PASSAGE BEING OPEN AT ITS FORWARD END AND INCLUDING OPPOSITE SIDE WALLS WHICH TERMINATE AT THEIR FORWARD ENDS A SPACED DISTANCE FORWARDLY OF THE BOTTOM WALL OF SAID PASSAGE WHEREBY THE LATTER ALSO OPENS DOWNWARDLY AT ITS FORWARD END, AN ELONGATED ROTARY PICK-UP ASSEMBLY JOURNALED FOR ROTATION ABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS, EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY ACROSS THE DOWNWARDLY OPENING PORTION OF THE FORWARD END OF SAID PASSAGE AND PROJECTING SLIGHTLY OUTWARDLY OF AND BELOW SAID PASSAFE, AN AXIAL FLOW BLOWER JOURNALED FOR ROTATION ABOUT AN AXIS GENERALLY COINCIDING WITH THE LONGITUDINAL CENTER LINE OF SAID PASSAGE AND DISPOSED REARWARDLY OF THE FORWARD END OF SAID BOTTOM WALL AND SAID PICK-UP ASSEMBLY, SAID PASSAGE, A SPACED DISTANCE REARWARDLY OF SAID BLOWER, GRADUALLY TAPERING, REARWARDLY OF SAID REAR DEPENDING SUPPORT WHEELS, INTO A REDUCED CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA PORTION, SAID REDUCED CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA PORTION INCLUDING AN OUTLET HAVING A RECEPTACLE COMMUNICATED THEREWITH, SAID RECEPTACLE BEING SUPPORTED FROM SAID FRAME, A PRIME MOVER SUPPORTED FROM SAID FRAME AND DRIVINGLY CONNECTED TO SAID PICK-UP ASSEMBLY IN SAID BLOWER, SAID REDUCED CROSS-SECTIONAL AREA PORTION OF SAID PASSAGE TERMINATING REARWARDLY IN AN UPWARDLY DIRECTED OUTLET CONDUIT COMMUNICATED WITH SAID RECEPTACLE, SAID RECEPTACLE BEING SUPPORTED FROM SAID FRAME ABOVE SAID TAPERING PORTION OF SAID PASSAGE AND SAID PRIME MOVER BEING DISPOSED ABOVE THE PORTION OF SAID PASSAGE FORWARDLY OF SAID TAPERING PORTION THEREOF AND FORWARDLY OF SAID RECEPTACLE, SAID FRAME INCLUDING A REEL CUTTER ASSEMBLY SUPPORTED FORWARDLY OF SAID PICK-UP ASSEMBLY HAVING A ROTATABLE REEL TO WHICH SAID PRIME MOVER IS DRIVINGLY CONNECTED, SAID REEL CUTTER ASSEMBLY BEING DISPOSED IN GENERALLY HORIZONTAL ALIGNMENT WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF THE FORWARD END OF SAID PASSAGE WHEREBY THE GRASS CUTTING DISCHARGED REARWARDLY AND UPWARDLY FROM SAID REEL CUTTER ASSEMBLY WILL BE DISCHARGED DIRECTLY INTO THE FORWARD END OF SAID PASSAGE.