Crop harvester adjustable for different row spacings and for different types of finial operation

Claim 2

A crop harvester comprising a main frame supported by wheels, crop-pickup means on said main frame, separating means on said main frame for detaching the crop from the bearing plants, a collecting conveyor on said main frame for receiving the detached crop and moving it rearwardly, a cross conveyor at the rear of said frame for receiving the crop from the collecting conveyor and moving it all to one side only of said harvester, said main frame, crop-pickup means, separating means, collecting conveyor and cross conveyor being elements of a basic unit, attachment means on one side of said main frame enabling pivotal attachment to said basic unit, a manual sorting unit attached to said basic unit by said attachment means for receiving the crop from said cross conveyor and including a forwardly moving conveyor generally parallel to said separating means and positioned at one side only of said main frame and two sorter platforms, one on each side of said forwardly moving conveyor, and a front delivery conveyor, so that one said sorter platform lies between said forwardly moving conveyor and said separating means, and said attachment means including means enabling the folding relative to said basic unit of said sorting unit for thereby narrowing the overall width of said harvester when it is not harvesting, said attachment means also including means for enabling removal of said sorting unit.

Claim 3

A crop harvester comprising a main frame supported by wheels, crop-pickup means on said main frame, separating means on said main frame for detaching the crop from the bearing plants, a collecting conveyor on said main frame for receiving the detached crop and moving it rearwardly, a cross conveyor at the rear of said frame for receiving the crop from the collecting conveyor and moving it to one side of said harvester, said main frame, crop-pickup means, separating means, collecting conveyor and cross conveyor being elements of a basic unit, and attachment means on one side of said main frame enabling pivotal attachment to said basic unit, one at a time, of any of various types of auxiliary units, said basic unit having at least three sets of wheels, each set having a separate wheel frame, supporting at least one wheel, two of said sets being rear wheels, and means for varying the distance between a first said rear wheel frame and the other said rear wheel frame between a minimum said distance and a maximum said distance, while maintaining substantial alignment of the axle line of said two rear wheel sets, said first said wheel frame being moved to approximately said maximum distance when a certain type of said auxiliary unit is attached to said basic unit and is in unfolded position for harvesting, to give direct support for said auxiliary unit.

Claim 4

A crop harvester comprising a main frame supported by wheels, crop-pickup means on said main frame, separating means on said main frame for detaching the crop from the bearing plants, a collecting conveyor on said main frame for receiving the detached crop and moving it rearwardly, a cross conveyor at the rear of said frame for receiving the crop from the collecting conveyor and moving it to one side of said harvester, said main frame, crop-pickup means, separating means, collecting conveyor and cross conveyor being elements of a basic unit, and attachment means on one side of said main frame enabling pivotal attachment to said basic unit, one at a time, of any of various types of auxiliary units, said basic unit having at least three sets of wheels, each set having a separate wheel frame, supporting at least one wheel, two of said sets being rear wheels, and means for varying the distance between a first said rear wheel frame and the other said rear wheel frame between a minimum said distance and a maximum said distance, while maintaining substantial alignment of the axle line of said two rear wheel sets, said first said wheel frame being moved to approximately said maximum distance when a certain type of said auxiliary unit is attached to said basic unit and is in unfolded position for harvesting, to give direct support for said auxiliary unit.

Claim 5

The harvester of claim 2 wherein said means for varying comprises a pivoted arm connecting said first rear wheel frame to said frame means, and means for locking said arm in any of a plurality of desired positions.

Claim 6

The harvester of claim 2 wherein said means for varying includes a parallel link support means for said first rear wheel frame and piston-cylinder means for determining the distance between said first and other rear wheel sets and for retaining them at said distance.

Claim 7

The harvester of claim 2 wherein said means for varying comprises having said rear wheel frames mounted along two telescoping tRansverse shafts, and power means for moving the shafts apart and toward each other.

Claim 8

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, forwardly moving conveyor means entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting station associated with said forwardly moving conveyor means, where culls and trash are removed, having sorting platforms on both sides of said forwardly moving conveyor means, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 9

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, forwardly moving conveyor means entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting station associated with said forwardly moving conveyor means, where culls and trash are removed, having sorting platforms on both sides of said forwardly moving conveyor means, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 10

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, forwardly moving conveyor means entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting station associated with forwardly moving conveyor means, where culls and trash are removed, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said forwardly moving conveyor means and sorting station both being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the harvester is being transported or stored.

Claim 11

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, forwardly moving conveyor means entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting station associated with forwardly moving conveyor means, where culls and trash are removed, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said forwardly moving conveyor means and sorting station both being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the harvester is being transported or stored.

Claim 12

The harvester of claim 7 wherein at least one of the wheels supporting said harvester is supported by a wheel frame that is movable from a position beneath said main frame where it directly supports said main frame to a position beneath said sorter frame when the sorter frame is folded down for use, for direct support by said wheel frame of said sorter frame.

Claim 13

The harvester of claim 7 wherein said front side conveyor is mounted pivotally to said main frame about a vertical pivot for swinging in to a position over and generally parallel with said crop pickup means.

Claim 14

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting means and separating means, a single forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting platform along each side of said forwardly moving conveyor, where culls and trash are manually removed, and both platforms lying on onE side of said frame and parallel thereto, with one said platform between said conveyor and said separating means, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 15

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting means and separating means, a single forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting platform along each side of said forwardly moving conveyor, where culls and trash are manually removed, and both platforms lying on onE side of said frame and parallel thereto, with one said platform between said conveyor and said separating means, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 16

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting platform along each side of said forwardly moving conveyor, where culls and trash are manually removed, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said forwardly moving conveyor and sorting station both being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the sorter is not being used, to narrow the width of said harvester.

Claim 17

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a sorting platform along each side of said forwardly moving conveyor, where culls and trash are manually removed, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said forwardly moving conveyor and sorting station both being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the sorter is not being used, to narrow the width of said harvester.

Claim 18

The harvester of claim 11 wherein at least one of the wheels supporting said harvester is supported by a wheel frame that is movable from a position beneath said main frame where it directly supports said main frame to a position beneath said sorter frame when the sorter frame is folded down for use, for direct support by said wheel frame of said sorter frame.

Claim 19

The harvester of claim 11 wherein said front side conveyor is mounted pivotally to said main frame about a vertical pivot for swinging in to a position over and generally parallel with said crop pickup means.

Claim 20

The harvester of claim 10 wherein said forwardly moving conveyor has a rearwardly moving lower flight and along each edge of said forwardly moving conveyor there is a cull chute for dropping removed culls and trash onto the top of said lower flight, a disposal chute at the rear of said conveyor, and transfer means for transferring culls and trash from said lower flight to said disposal chute.

Claim 21

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a first forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a mechanical sorting unit entirely to one side of said harvester between said forwardly moving conveyor and said separating means, where culls and trash are removed and discharged on the ground, a second forwardly moving conveyor between said mechanical sorting unit and said separating means for receiving the sorted crop from said mechanical sorting unit, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 22

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a first forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a mechanical sorting unit entirely to one side of said harvester between said forwardly moving conveyor and said separating means, where culls and trash are removed and discharged on the ground, a second forwardly moving conveyor between said mechanical sorting unit and said separating means for receiving the sorted crop from said mechanical sorting unit, and a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point.

Claim 23

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for sEparating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a first forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a mechanical sorting unit between said forwardly moving conveyor and said separating means, where culls and trash are removed and discharged on the ground, a second forwardly moving conveyor between said mechanical sorting unit and said separating means for receiving the sorted crop from said mechanical sorting unit, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said first and second forwardly moving conveyors and said mechanical sorting unit all being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the harvester is being transported or stored.

Claim 24

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for sEparating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop and moving it toward the rear of the harvester, the combination therewith of a rear cross conveyor supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means and moving it transversely to one side only of said harvester, beyond said collecting conveyor and separating means, a first forwardly moving conveyor entirely to one side of said harvester for receiving said crop from said rear cross conveyor and moving it forwardly, a mechanical sorting unit between said forwardly moving conveyor and said separating means, where culls and trash are removed and discharged on the ground, a second forwardly moving conveyor between said mechanical sorting unit and said separating means for receiving the sorted crop from said mechanical sorting unit, a front side conveyor to which the sorted crop is delivered for moving the crop transversely to a delivery point, and said first and second forwardly moving conveyors and said mechanical sorting unit all being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the harvester is being transported or stored.

Claim 25

The harvester of claim 16 wherein at least one of the wheels supporting said harvester being movable from a position beneath said main frame where it directly supports said main frame to a position beneath said sorter frame when the sorter frame is folded down for use, for direct support by said wheel frame of said sorter frame.

Claim 26

The harvester of claim 16 wherein said front side conveyor is mounted pivotally to said main frame about a vertical pivot for swinging in to a position over and generally parallel with said crop pickup means.

Claim 27

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop, the combination therewith of preinspection means supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means, mechanical sorting means for receiving the harvested crop from said preinspection means for separating out culls and trash, post-inspection means receiving the cull-free, trash-free crop from said mechanical sorting means, and delivery means to which the sorted crop is delivered from said post-inspection means for moving the crop to a delivery point.

Claim 28

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop, the combination therewith of preinspection means supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means, mechanical sorting means for receiving the harvested crop from said preinspection means for separating out culls and trash, post-inspection means receiving the cull-free, trash-free crop from said mechanical sorting means, and delivery means to which the sorted crop is delivered from said post-inspection means for moving the crop to a delivery point.

Claim 29

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop, the combination therewith of preinspection means supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means, mechanical sorting means for receiving the harvested crop from said preinspection means for separating out culls and trash, post-inspection means receiving the cull-free, trash-free crop from said mechanical sorting means, delivery means to which the sorted crop is delivered from said post-inspection means for moving the crop to a delivery point, and said preinspection means, said mechanical sorting means, and said post-inspection means all being mounted on a sorter frame that is supported pivotally relative to said main frame along a horizontal longitudinally extending pivot line for folding said sorter frame upwardly against the side of said main frame when the harvester is being transported or stored. 21 The harvester of claim 20 wherEin at least one of the wheels supporting said harvester is movable from a position beneath said main frame where it directly supports said main frame to a position beneath said sorter frame when the sorter frame is folded down for use, for direct support by said wheel frame of said sorter frame.

Claim 30

The harvester of claim 20 wherein said delivery means is mounted pivotally to said main frame about a vertical pivot for swinging in to a position over and generally parallel with said crop pickup means.

Claim 31

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop, the combination therewith of preinspection means supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means, mechanical sorting means for receiving the harvested crop from said preinspection means for separating out culls and trash, post-inspection means receiving the cull-free, trash-free crop from said mechanical sorting means, delivery means to which the sorted crop is delivered from said post-inspection means for moving the crop to a delivery point, and said preinspection means comprising a rear cross conveyor and said post-inspection means comprising a forwardly moving conveyor to one side of said main frame.

Claim 32

In a row-crop harvester having a main frame supported by wheels and supporting crop pickup means at a front end followed by and in line with separating means for separating the edible crop from the remainder of the plant and discarding said remainder, and collecting means for collecting the separated edible crop, the combination therewith of preinspection means supported by said main frame for receiving the harvested crop from said collecting means, mechanical sorting means for receiving the harvested crop from said preinspection means for separating out culls and trash, post-inspection means receiving the cull-free, trash-free crop from said mechanical sorting means, delivery means to which the sorted crop is delivered from said post-inspection means for moving the crop to a delivery point, and said preinspection means comprising a rear cross conveyor and said post-inspection means comprising a forwardly moving conveyor to one side of said main frame.

Claim 33

The harvester of claim 1 wherein said basic unit has at least three sets of wheels, each set having a separate wheel frame, supporting at least one wheel, two of said sets being rear wheels, means for varying the distance between a first said rear wheel frame and the other said rear wheel frame between a minimum said distance and a maximum said distance, while maintaining substantial alignment of the axle line of said two rear wheel sets, and said first said wheel frame being moved to approximately said maximum distance when said sorting unit is attached to said basic unit and is in unfolded position for harvesting, to give direct support for said sorting unit.