Automatic marking device

Claim 1

IN COMBINATION WITH A TRACTOR HAVING A TRANSVERSELY EXTENDING TOOL BAR ATTACHED THERETO, AND EARTH WORKING TOOLS ATTACHED THERETO, A MARKING DEVICE COMPRISING A CONTROL SUBASSEMBLY AND TWO LAND MARKING SUBASSEMBLIES, SAID LAND MARKING SUBASSEMBLIES BEING SUPPORTED AT THE OPPOSITE ENDS OF SAID TOOL BAR, SAID TOOL BAR EXTENDING LATERALLY OF THE SIDES OF SAID TRACTOR, EACH OF SAID MARKING SUBASSEMBLIES BEING PIVOTALLY ATTACHED AT ONE END TO SAID TOOL BAR AND THERE ROTATABLE ABOUT AN AXIS PERPENDICULAR TO THE LENGTH OF SAID TOOL BAR, TENSION SUPPORTING MEANS CONNECTING SAID CONTROL SUBASSEMBLY TO SAID MARKING SUBASSEMBLIES, SAID MARKING SUBASSEMBLIES EACH COMPRISING A RIGID ELONGATED MEMBER SUPPORTING NEAR ITS OUTER END A LAND MARKING DEVICE, STOP MEANS FOR ENGAGING SAID MARKING SUBASSEMBLY ATTACHED TO SAID TOOL BAR, SAID CONTROL SUBASSEMBLY BEING ATTACHED TO SAID TOOL BAR, SAID CONTROL SUBASSEMBLY COMPRISING A BASE AND A PAIR OF CONTROL ARMS EACH ATTACHED BY PIVOT MEANS AT EITHER SIDE OF SAID BASE TO SAID BASE FOR ROTATION OF EACH OF SAID CONTROL ARMS ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID MARKING SUBASSEMBLY, IN PREDETERMINED SEQUENCE OF ONE, THEN BOTH, THEN THE OTHER CONTROL ARM BEING HELD IN A VERTICAL POSITION, EXTENSIBLE AND RETRACTABLE MEANS CONTINUOUSLY CONNECTED AT ONE END TO ONE CONTROL ARM AND AT ANOTHER END TO THE OTHER CONTROL ARM, SAID EXTENSIBLE AND RETRACTABLE MEANS BEING OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO A SOURCE OF POWER DRIVEN BY SAID TRACTOR AND EACH OF SAID CONTROL ARMS BEING PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO ONE OF A PLURALITY OF LATCH ARM MEANS, A FIXED LATCH ARM HOLDING MEANS FOR EACH OF THE CONTROL ARMS SUPPORTED ON AND ATTACHED TO SAID BASE AND SERVING TO LIMIT THE MOTION OF ONE LATCH ARM MEANS AND THE CONTROL ARM CONNECTED THERETO IN ONE DIRECTION, AND, FOR EACH OF THE CONTROL ARMS, ANOTHER MEANS FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO SAID BASE AND SERVING TO LIMIT THE MOTION OF SAID SAME CONTROL ARM IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, EACH LATCH ARM MEANS ALTERNATELY SERVING TO HOLD ON TO ONE OF SAID FIXED LATCH ARM HOLDING MEANS SUPPORTED ON SAID BASE AND LIMIT THE MOTION OF SAID ONE LATCH ARM IN ONE DIRECTION WHILE SAID ANOTHER MEANS FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO SAID BASE LIMITS THE MOTION OF SAID SAME CONTROL ARM IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, SAID LATCH ARM MEANS EACH TRAVELING IN A PATH THAT DOES NOT OVERLAP THE PATH OF THE OTHER LATCH ARM MEANS, AND MOVABLE LATCH ARM RELEASING MEANS ROTATABLY ATTACHED TO AND SUPPORTED ON SAID BASE AND ALTERNATELY ACTUATED BY EACH ONE OF SAID LATCH ARM MEANS.