Row crop harvesting apparatus

Claim 1

A HARVESTER FOR USE WITH ROW CROPS OF THE TYPE HAVING THE FRUIT SUPPORTED AT AN ELEVATED POSITION ON THE STALK, COMPRISING A MOBILE SUPPORTING STRUCTURE TO MOVE ALONG THE GROUND, A HARVESTING UNIT ON THE STRUCTURE AND INCLUDING CROP AND STALK SUPPORTING AND GUIDING MEANS ABOVE THE GROUND SURFACE AND DEFINING A FORE-AND-AFT STALKWAY WITH AN OPEN STALK-RECEIVING FORWARD END, MEANS SPACED REARWARDLY FROM SAID FORWARD END FOR ENGAGING THE STALKS IN THE STALKWAY AND HARVESTING THE FRUIT, SAID UNIT INCLUDING A PAIR OF ELONGATE AND CONTINUOUS CONVEYORS RESPECTIVELY DISPOSED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE STALKWAY, EACH OF SAID CONVEYORS HAVING A GATHERING LEG EXTENDING AND TRAVELING TRANSVERSELY OF AND INWARDLY TO THE STALKWAY IN CLOSELY SPACED RELATION WITH THE GROUND SURFACE, EACH OF SAID GATHERING LEGS BEING DISPOSED FORWARDLY OF THE FOREMOST PORTION OF SAID SUPPORTING AND GUIDING MEANS, SUPPORTING MEANS ON THE HARVESTING UNIT AND SPACED REARWARDLY OF THE GATHERING LEGS OF SAID CONVEYORS THEREBY LEAVING THE FRONT OF THE HARVESTING UNIT FREE OF STRUCTURE FORWARDLY OF THE GATHERING LEGS ANDTHEREBY CAUSING THE GATHERING LEGS OF THE CONVEYORS TO FIRST ENGAGE THE CROPS AS THE HARVESTER MOVES ALONG THE CROP ROW, AND MEANS FOR DRIVING SAID CONVEYORS.