US3628319A — Method and apparatus for harvesting tobacco

Claim 1

Independent Claim 142 words

A mechanical tobacco harvester comprising: a frame movable along a row of tobacco plants; a vertically positionable platform carried by said frame; a cutting head carried by said platform in position to successively engage the stalks of the tobacco plants in said row, said cutting head including a pair of laterally separable members cooperating to define a cutting area of sufficient sIze to a accommodate the stalk of a tobacco plant in said row when in a predetermined coplanar position with respect to each other and means for biasing said members into said predetermined position, said members being separable upon pressural engagement with each stalk into said row to permit access to and egress from said cutting area; and means for vertically moving said cutting head over a predetermined vertical swath to separate the leaves from the stalk within said cutting area.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 142 words

A mechanical tobacco harvester comprising: a frame movable along a row of tobacco plants; a vertically positionable platform carried by said frame; a cutting head carried by said platform in position to successively engage the stalks of the tobacco plants in said row, said cutting head including a pair of laterally separable members cooperating to define a cutting area of sufficient sIze to a accommodate the stalk of a tobacco plant in said row when in a predetermined coplanar position with respect to each other and means for biasing said members into said predetermined position, said members being separable upon pressural engagement with each stalk into said row to permit access to and egress from said cutting area; and means for vertically moving said cutting head over a predetermined vertical swath to separate the leaves from the stalk within said cutting area.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 43 words

The harvester of claim 1 including a container for the leaves separated from the stalk, means for conveying the harvested leaves from said cutting head to said container, and means for varying the height of said conveyor means with respect to said container.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 21 words

The harvester of claim 2 wherein said height varying means is responsive to the weight of the leaves in said container.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 69 words

The harvester of claim 1 including: a plurality of ground-engaging wheels, mounted on said frame means for controlling the angle of one of said wheels with respect to said frame, a source of power carried by said frame, means for drivingly connecting said source of power to at least one of said wheels, and an operator''s station carried by said platform for selectively operating said wheel angle controlling means.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 79 words

The harvester of claim 1 including: a plurality of ground-engaging wheels; a source of power carried by said frame; means for drivingly connecting said source to at least one of said wheels, means for determining the relative position of said cutting head to the next succeeding stalk in said row of tobacco plants, and means for selectively controlling the angle of one of said wheels with respect to the axis of said frame responsively to said position determining means.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 49 words

The harvester of claim 5 wherein said position determining means includes stalk-sensing means carried by said platform forward of said cutting head on both sides of said row of tobacco plants for generating a control signal upon pressural engagement with the stalk of a tobacco plant in said row.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 47 words

The harvester of claim 6 wherein said stalk-sensing means includes a plurality of horizontally deflectable endless belts driven rearwardly at substantially the same speed as the forward speed of said frame with respect to said row to substantially eliminate relative movement between said stalk and said belts.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 44 words

The harvester of claim 7 wherein the spacing between said belts in the area of said cutting head is slightly less than the diameter of a stalk in said row of plants whereby said stalk is supported during the separation of the leaves therefrom.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 68 words

The harvester of claim 1 including leaf-orienting means carried by said frame comprising: conveyor means for transporting the leaves separated from the stalks of the tobacco plants, means for creating an updraft sufficient to lift at least the major portion of each leaf above said conveyor means whereby continued movement of said conveyor means orients the leaves heavy end in the direction of movement of said conveyor means.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 24 words

The harvester of claim 9 wherein said updraft has a horizontal component in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of said surface.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 25 words

The harvester of claim 9 including means for varying the velocity of said updraft over at least a portion of the length of said surface.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 65 words

The harvester of claim 1 including leaf-orienting means comprising: a moving surface; conveyor means adapted to drop the leaves separated from the stalks of the tobacco plants upon said surface, the vertical separation of said conveyor means and said surface being sufficient for said leaves to assume a butt downward position whereby the butt of each leaf engages said surface prior to the remainder thereof.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 31 words

The harvester of claim 1 including spring means for permitting rearward movement of said members in a substantially horizontal plane in response to pressurAl engagement with each stalk in said row.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 30 words

The harvester of claim 1 including means for permitting pivotal movement of said members in a substantially horizontal plane in response to pressural engagement with each stalk in said row.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 38 words

The harvester of claim 1 including means for permitting clockwise and counterclockwise pivoting of said members and rearward movement of said members in a substantially horizontal plane in response to pressural engagement with each stalk in said row.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 107 words

A cutting head for harvesting leaves from a tobacco plant comprising: first and second members cooperating to define a cutting area of sufficient size to accommodate the stalk of a tobacco plant when in a predetermined position with respect to each other; and means operable only when said members are in said predetermined position for vertically moving said members over a predetermined cutting swath; said members being separable upon pressural engagement with the stalk of a tobacco plant to admit the stalk into said cutting area and being separable following the vertical movement of said members to permit the egress of said stalk from said cutting area.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 107 words

A cutting head for harvesting leaves from a tobacco plant comprising: first and second members cooperating to define a cutting area of sufficient size to accommodate the stalk of a tobacco plant when in a predetermined position with respect to each other; and means operable only when said members are in said predetermined position for vertically moving said members over a predetermined cutting swath; said members being separable upon pressural engagement with the stalk of a tobacco plant to admit the stalk into said cutting area and being separable following the vertical movement of said members to permit the egress of said stalk from said cutting area.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 43 words

The cutting head of claim 16 wherein said members are moved vertically upward and including removable knife means carried by said members substantially enclosing said cutting area, said knife means being beveled generally upwardly toward said cutting area to define a cutting edge.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 104 words

The cutting head of claim 16 wherein at least one of said members pivots away from the other of said members in a generally horizontal plane responsively to said pressural engagement to admit the stalk into said cutting area, wherein both of said members pivot in the same direction in said plane during the vertical movement thereof, and including means for limiting the angle through which one of said members may pivot in said plane, the continued pivoting of the other of said members in the same direction in said plane separating said members to allow egress of the stalk from said cutting area.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 48 words

The cutting head of claim 16 wherein said members are pivotable in said plane about a common axis, and wherein said means for vertically moving said members includes a switch means responsive to the pivoting of one of said members for controlling the vertical movement of said members.

Claim 22

Dependent Claim 102 words

The cutting head of claim 19 wherein at least one of said members pivots responsively to said pressural engagement to admit the stalk into said cutting area, wherein said members are moved vertically upward a predetermined distance, including knife means carried by said members substantially enclosing said cutting area, said knife means beveled generally upwardly toward said cutting area to define a cutting edge, and including means for limiting the angle through which one of said members may pivot whereby continued pivoting of the other one of said members separates said members to allow egress of the stalk from said cutting area.

Claim 23

Dependent Claim 38 words

The cutting head of claim 16 wherein said members are pivotable in opposite directions about substantially vertical axes in a common, substantially horizontal plane in response to said pressural engagement to admit the stalk into said cutting area.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 34 words

The cutting head of claim 21 wherein said members pivot in one direction to admit a stalk and pivot in the opposite direction to permit the egress of the stalk from said cutting area.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 37 words

The cutting head of claim 22 wherein said members are moved vertically upward and including removable knife means carried by said members, said knife means being beveled upward toward said cutting area to define a cutting edge.

Claim 26

Dependent Claim 41 words

The cutting head of claim 16 wherein said members are laterally separable upon pressural engagement with the stalk. 25 The cutting head of claim 16 wherein said members are laterally pivotably separable in opposite directions upon pressural engagement with the stalk.

Claim 27

Dependent Claim 18 words

The cutting head of claim 16 including switch means Carried by said members for vertically moving said members.

Claim 28

Dependent Claim 38 words

The cutting head of claim 26 wherein said members are laterally separable upon pressural engagement with the stalk, including knife means carried by said members and beveled generally upwardly toward said cutting area to define a cutting edge.

Claim 29

Dependent Claim 28 words

The cutting head of claim 27 wherein said members are moved generally upward and wherein said members also pivot oppositely in response to pressural engagement with the stalk.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1974-12-20	1975-06-21	1975-12-21	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1978-12-20	1979-06-21	1979-12-21	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	1982-12-20	1983-06-21	1983-12-21	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Method and apparatus for harvesting tobacco

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