Combination feed means and auxiliary threshing cylinder for a thresher

Claim 1

A GRAIN THRESHING MECHANISM, COMPRISING: (A) A ROTATABLE MAIN THRESHING DRUM; (B) A CONCAVE COOPERATING WITH THE MAIN DRUM TO DEFINE A THRESHING ZONE BENEATH THE MAIN DRUM, HAVING ITS ENTRANCE REMOTE FROM A HORIZONTAL PLANE CONTAINING THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF THE MAIN DRUM; (C) UPWARDLY AND REARWARDLY INCLINED CROP SUPPLY MEANS FOR ADVANCING CROP UPWARDLY AND REARWARDLY, SAID CROP SUPPLYING MEANS HAVING ITS DISCHARGE END AT A LOCATION SHAPED A DISTANCE AHEAD OF THE THRESHING ZONE AND AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME LEVEL AS THE ENTRANCE THERETO; (D) MEANS FOR GUIDING CROP DISCHARGING FROM THE SUPPLY MEANS SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY REARWARDLY TO THE THRESHING ZONE; (E) A ROTATABLE AUXILIARY THRESHING DRUM OF A DIAMETER SMALLER THAN THAT OF THE MAIN DRUM, THE AUXILIARY DRUM INCLUDING A SERIES OF MUTUALLY SPACED BEATER BARS WHICH ARE DISPOSED ON THE PERIPHERY OF THE DRUM AND ARE EACH FORMED ON AN OUTER SURFACE THEREOF WITH A SERIES OF TRANSVERSELY EXTENDING FLUTES; (F) MEANS MOUNTING THE AUXILIARY THRESHING DRUM AT A LOCATION BETWEEN THE MAIN DRUM AND THE DISCHARGE END OF THE CROP SUPPLYING MEANS, WITH THE AUXILIARY DRUM SPACED A DISTANCE SUFFICIENTLY FAR ABOVE SAID GUIDE MEANS SO TO SUBSTANTIALLY ASSURE AGAINST RESTRICTION TO FLOW OF CROPS ADVANCING TO THE THRESHING ZONE BUT TO EFFECT INITIAL THRESHING OF EASILY SEPARABLE GRAIN IN CROP TRAVELLING HORIZONTALLY TOWARD THE THRESHING ZONE; (G) MEANS FOR SEPARATING FROM THE CROP GRAIN THRESHED PRIOR TO ENTRY OF THE CROP INTO THE THRESHING ZONE; (H) AND DRIVING MEANS ADAPTED TO ROTATE THE AUXILIARY DRUM AT A LOWER PERIPHERAL SPEED THAN THAT OF THE MAIN DRUM, WHEREBY THE LOWER PERIPHERAL SPEED AND SMALLER DIAMETER OF THE AUXILIARY DRUM SERVES TO SUBSTANTIALLY PREVENT BUILD UP OF CROP BETWEEN THE DRUMS.