US3678671A — Flail shredder

Claim 1

Independent Claim 222 words

In a mower having a mobile frame for traveling through crops, a flail rotor mounted on said frame for rotation thereon, a drive train mounted on said frame and operative to transmit power to drive said rotor by rotating the same in a direction moving its forward side upwardly to carry material cut thereby over the rotor for discharge behind the rotor, the improvement comprising: flail knife units axially seriately mounted on said rotor in a helical pattern thereabout; a housing mounted on said frame and partially enclosing said rotor along its longitudinal extent, said housing having an open bottom and defined by front, upper and rear portions covering and opposing corresponding portions of the rotor, said front portion having a lower edge spaced closely to the path of the knife units and immediately arcuately gradually receding from said path and merging in a continuous curve into the upper portion which further recedes away from the path, said upper portion merging into the rear portion in an area above the axis of rotation of the rotor, and said rear portion extending from its juncture to a lower edge below said axis in a plane diverging downwardly further away from said path and providing a space accommodating the cut crop outside said path and guiding the crop downwardly and rearwardly toward the ground.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 222 words

In a mower having a mobile frame for traveling through crops, a flail rotor mounted on said frame for rotation thereon, a drive train mounted on said frame and operative to transmit power to drive said rotor by rotating the same in a direction moving its forward side upwardly to carry material cut thereby over the rotor for discharge behind the rotor, the improvement comprising: flail knife units axially seriately mounted on said rotor in a helical pattern thereabout; a housing mounted on said frame and partially enclosing said rotor along its longitudinal extent, said housing having an open bottom and defined by front, upper and rear portions covering and opposing corresponding portions of the rotor, said front portion having a lower edge spaced closely to the path of the knife units and immediately arcuately gradually receding from said path and merging in a continuous curve into the upper portion which further recedes away from the path, said upper portion merging into the rear portion in an area above the axis of rotation of the rotor, and said rear portion extending from its juncture to a lower edge below said axis in a plane diverging downwardly further away from said path and providing a space accommodating the cut crop outside said path and guiding the crop downwardly and rearwardly toward the ground.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 71 words

The invention according to claim 1 and said rotor comprising two sections of substantially different lengths disposed in coaxial end to end relationship, and a support element asymmetrically disposed between the ends of said rotor housing to provide a common support for adjacent ends of said segments, said asymmetrical disposition of said support accommodating positioning the same between rows of row crops to maximize the effective cutting width of the rotor.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 72 words

The invention according to claim 1 and said flail knife units each comprising an elongated V shaped holder mounted on said rotor and having the vertex portion axially disposed in radially spaced relation to said rotor, said holder having a plurality of juxtaposed slots through said vertex portion disposed transversely thereof to receive sets of said knife units therein, and means swingably retaining said sets of knife units in their respective slots.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 91 words

The invention according to claim 3 and said retaining means of each flail knife unit comprising a rod extending through said holder and disposed adjacent said slots and in operative connection with said sets of knife units disposed in their respective slots to swingably retain them therein, and said slots having a different spaced relation with respect to the ends of said holder whereupon an end to end repositioning of said rod with respect to said holder will result in different wear surfaces of said rod to register with said slots.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 50 words

The invention according to claim 4 and each said knife set comprising a reversibly positionable pair of elongated and substantially identical knives each having a shank with a bent cutting portion on one end having reversely sharpened edges and an aperture at the other end to receive said rod therethrough.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 48 words

The invention according to claim 1 and said housing having a rearwardly disposed terminal portion merging with said arcuate portion, and said rear portion terminating at said lower edge in an inwardly extending crop-impinging turbulence-creating lip effective to substantially slow the egress of the crop from said housing.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 32 words

The according to claim 6 and said terminal portion having a substantially straight extent extending from said peripheral path rearwardly and downwardly substantially tangent to the upper rearward quadrant of said path.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 101 words

For use in crops including row crops which are arranged in substantially uniformly spaced rows, a mower comprising a mobile frame, a pair of driven flail rotors of different lengths journaled on said frame in end to end relationship to define a transverse cutting range of said mower, a rotor housing covering upper portions of said rotor, a support element mounted within said housing journaling adjacent ends of said rotors, the rotors being of such lengths as to straddle a maximum number of rows and having said support element asymmetrically located between the ends of the housing for positioning between rows.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 101 words

For use in crops including row crops which are arranged in substantially uniformly spaced rows, a mower comprising a mobile frame, a pair of driven flail rotors of different lengths journaled on said frame in end to end relationship to define a transverse cutting range of said mower, a rotor housing covering upper portions of said rotor, a support element mounted within said housing journaling adjacent ends of said rotors, the rotors being of such lengths as to straddle a maximum number of rows and having said support element asymmetrically located between the ends of the housing for positioning between rows.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 32 words

ThE invention according to claim 8 and said mower having an extensive transverse extent, and ground engaging wheels adjustably positionable along that extent to adapt said mower to various crop row spacings.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 153 words

The invention according to claim 8 wherein said housing comprises a surface having an arcuate concave contour disposed about the axis of said flail rotors, flail knives attached to each of said rotors in radial extension therefrom and being driven in a peripheral path about the axis of their respective rotor within said contour, said housing comprising a forward segment defining a comminuting region from the leading edge of said housing to approximately the top of the rotor, and a rearward segment extending from said forward segment and curving about the upper rear quadrant of the rotor and then extending in a rearwardly diverging downward direction away from said path to define a radially progressively increasing space in the direction of crop flow to accommodate comminutated crops moving free of said knives with a rearward impetus against the adjacent housing portion and slide along the rear segment in a downward and rearward direction.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 130 words

A flail mower having a mobile frame adapted to travel through crops in a predetermined direction, a housing mounted on said frame, a support member mounted on said housing and asymmetrically disposed from the ends thereof, a driven rotor journaled on said frame within said housing in a disposition generally transverse to the direction of travel, said rotor comprising first and second segments having adjacent ends thereof mounted on said support member, a plurality of knife units mounted in axial disposition on said first and second segments of said rotor, and said units mounted in helicoidal pattern about the periphery of said rotor, the location of said support member being such as to be positionable between rows of crops to accommodate said mower to straddle a maximum member of rows.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 130 words

A flail mower having a mobile frame adapted to travel through crops in a predetermined direction, a housing mounted on said frame, a support member mounted on said housing and asymmetrically disposed from the ends thereof, a driven rotor journaled on said frame within said housing in a disposition generally transverse to the direction of travel, said rotor comprising first and second segments having adjacent ends thereof mounted on said support member, a plurality of knife units mounted in axial disposition on said first and second segments of said rotor, and said units mounted in helicoidal pattern about the periphery of said rotor, the location of said support member being such as to be positionable between rows of crops to accommodate said mower to straddle a maximum member of rows.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	1975-07-25	1976-01-24	1976-07-25	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	1979-07-25	1980-01-24	1980-07-25	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	1983-07-25	1984-01-24	1984-07-25	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Flail shredder

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