Portable seed planter

Claim 2

In a hand-pushable seed planter including a frame carrying front and rear wheels anchored to the frame to rotate about fixed axes of rotation thereon and to transfer the weight of and forces applied to the planter to the soil beneath, handle means on the frame for pushing the planter device and a seed-receiving hopper between said front and rear wheels with seed delivery means therein for sequentially delivering seeds to a seed discharge opening, a seed discharge chute extending from said seed discharge opening to drop the seeds sequentially fed thereto at spaced points in a furrow, furrow covering means behind said seed discharge thereto for covering the furrow, and handle means for propelling the seed planter, the improvement in furrow-forming means for forming a furrow ahead of said chute in which the seeds dropping from said chute are deposited, said furrow-forming means including first means which is part of said front wheel carried by said frame and aligned with the bottom of said chute, said front wheel having a ground engaging periphery with relatively flat portions which ride on the surface of the ground, said first means including radially outwardly projecting rib means on the periphery of said front wheel which rib means, due to the downward force applied thereto, is pushed into the ground and forms a relatively narrow furrow into which the seeds involved drop, aid rib means having a flat periphery so the furrow has a flat bottom of a width at least equal to the corresponding width of the largest seed to be dropped therein, second means behind the seed delivery means which second means is vertically adjustable between an elevation where it does not contact the ground so the rib means on the front wheel is effective in forming a furrow for smaller seeds, the second means in its lowered position digging into the ground to cut a furrow of a greater width and depth than the furrow formed by said rib means so that the furrow of the seed planter can accommodate larger seeds.

Claim 3

The portable seed planter device of claim 1 wherein said rib means is a continuous rib on the wheel periphery.

Claim 4

The seed planter of claim 1 wherein said relatively flat portions of the front wheel are on opposite sides of saId rib means where they exert a downward force to help compact the soil lining both sides of the furrow, to form a furrow with well-defined, self-supporting side walls.

Claim 5

The seed planter of claim 1 wherein said front wheel with said rib means is the only front wheel on said frame.

Claim 6

The seed planter of claim 1 wherein said planter has only one rear wheel aligned longitudinally with said only front wheel, and there is provided behind said seed discharge opening furrow-covering means which drags on the ground behind said second means and pushes loose soil into the furrow formed by said rib means of said front wheel, said rear wheel riding over the loose dirt pushed into said furrow by said furrow-covering means to pack the soil pushed into said furrow.

Claim 7

The seed planter of claim 5 wherein the handle means connects to said frame at a point between and substantially spaced from said front and rear wheels so a downward force applied to said handle means is substantially distributed between said front and rear wheels to aid in pushing the rib means of said front wheel into the ground and to aid said rear wheel in compacting the loose soil pushed into said furrow.

Claim 8

In a hand-pushable seed planter including a frame having only one front wheel and only one rear sheel in longitudinal alignment with said only front wheel, a seed-receiving hopper between said front and rear wheels with seed delivering means therein for sequentially delivering seeds to a seed discharge opening, and a seed discharge chute extending from said seed discharge opening to drop the seeds sequentially fed thereto at spaced points in a furrow, means coupling the motion of one of said wheels to said seed delivery means to operate the same as the seed planter is moved along the ground, the furrow-forming means which forms a furrow in the ground in alignment with said front and rear wheels as the seed planter device is moved along the ground, the improvement comprising: means dragging on the ground behind said furrow-forming means for pushing loose soil into the furrow formed by said furrow-forming means, and handle means to be grasped by the operator for propelling the seed planter device along the ground, said handle means being supported at such an elevation and is so positioned rearwardly of the rear sheel so the user can grab the handle means where his arms extend downwardly comfortably from his shoulders where the operator can easily and comfortably exert both a forward and downward component of force against the handle means, said handle means having depending shank means with means for pivotally securing the same to the frame at a point between and substantially horizontally spaced from the front and rear wheels so as to pivot over a limited angle about a horizontally extending lateral axis, so the handle can be held in a position where a small back and forth rocking motion of the handle means caused by the movement of the operator propelling the same is not effective in rocking said seed planter on said front and rear wheels, and wherein said downward force applied to the handle means is distributed substantially upon both said front and rear wheels in a manner to inhibit any rocking of the seed planter device on one or the other of the wheels and so that the downward force aids the rear wheel in packing said loose soil pushed over the furrow.

Claim 9

In a hand-pushable seed planter including a frame having only one front wheel and only one rear sheel in longitudinal alignment with said only front wheel, a seed-receiving hopper between said front and rear wheels with seed delivering means therein for sequentially delivering seeds to a seed discharge opening, and a seed discharge chute extending from said seed discharge opening to drop the seeds sequentially fed thereto at spaced points in a furrow, means coupling the motion of one of said wheels to said seed delivery means to operate the same as the seed planter is moved along the ground, the furrow-forming means which forms a furrow in the ground in alignment with said front and rear wheels as the seed planter device is moved along the ground, the improvement comprising: means dragging on the ground behind said furrow-forming means for pushing loose soil into the furrow formed by said furrow-forming means, and handle means to be grasped by the operator for propelling the seed planter device along the ground, said handle means being supported at such an elevation and is so positioned rearwardly of the rear sheel so the user can grab the handle means where his arms extend downwardly comfortably from his shoulders where the operator can easily and comfortably exert both a forward and downward component of force against the handle means, said handle means having depending shank means with means for pivotally securing the same to the frame at a point between and substantially horizontally spaced from the front and rear wheels so as to pivot over a limited angle about a horizontally extending lateral axis, so the handle can be held in a position where a small back and forth rocking motion of the handle means caused by the movement of the operator propelling the same is not effective in rocking said seed planter on said front and rear wheels, and wherein said downward force applied to the handle means is distributed substantially upon both said front and rear wheels in a manner to inhibit any rocking of the seed planter device on one or the other of the wheels and so that the downward force aids the rear wheel in packing said loose soil pushed over the furrow.

Claim 10

The seed planter of base claim 7 wherein there is only one front wheel and only one rear wheel longitudinally in alignment with said only front wheel.

Claim 11

The seed planter of claim 7 wherein said shank means of the handle means is pivotally connected to said frame at a point between and substantially horizontally spaced from said front and rear wheels.

Claim 12

In a seed planter including a frame having front wheel means and rear wheel means, a seed receiving hopper on said frame, a seed discharge chute extending from said hopper and having a seed passageway of a size to accommodate seeds of a variety of sizes, seed delivery means for causing seeds sEquentially to drop from said hopper and pass through said passageway of said seed discharge chute where the seeds are deposited at spaced points in a furrow, means coupling the motion of said wheel means to said seed delivery means to operate the same as the seed planter is moved along the ground, and flexible soil-pushing means positioned behind said seed discharge chute and adapted to drag on the ground to push loose soil piled up on the sides of the furrow into the furrow formed ahead of the same, the improvement comprising furrow-forming means including a furrow-forming shoe means on the bottom of said seed discharge chute, which shoe means defines a seed passageway which forms a downward continuation of said passageway of said seed discharge chute, means for supporting said furrow-forming means on said seed discharge chute for vertical adjustment into a number of selected positions so the bottom of the shoe means projects varying distances below the plane of said front and rear wheel means to form a furrow of a desired depth and of a width greater than that of said soil-pushing means, said furrow-forming shoe means has front and bottom ground digging surface means for abruptly contacting the ground to minimize the magnitude of earth compacting forces to leave loose soil in the furrow, and the leading edge of said furrow-forming shoe being pointed edge means immediately adjacent to the seed discharge chute for minimizing earth piling forces to leave loose soil inside the furrow whereby as the seeds are dropped into the furrow formed by the furrow-forming shoe loose dirt falls upon said seeds in the furrow before said soil-pushing means can pass over the furrow.

Claim 13

In a seed planter including a frame having front wheel means and rear wheel means, a seed receiving hopper on said frame, a seed discharge chute extending from said hopper and having a seed passageway of a size to accommodate seeds of a variety of sizes, seed delivery means for causing seeds sEquentially to drop from said hopper and pass through said passageway of said seed discharge chute where the seeds are deposited at spaced points in a furrow, means coupling the motion of said wheel means to said seed delivery means to operate the same as the seed planter is moved along the ground, and flexible soil-pushing means positioned behind said seed discharge chute and adapted to drag on the ground to push loose soil piled up on the sides of the furrow into the furrow formed ahead of the same, the improvement comprising furrow-forming means including a furrow-forming shoe means on the bottom of said seed discharge chute, which shoe means defines a seed passageway which forms a downward continuation of said passageway of said seed discharge chute, means for supporting said furrow-forming means on said seed discharge chute for vertical adjustment into a number of selected positions so the bottom of the shoe means projects varying distances below the plane of said front and rear wheel means to form a furrow of a desired depth and of a width greater than that of said soil-pushing means, said furrow-forming shoe means has front and bottom ground digging surface means for abruptly contacting the ground to minimize the magnitude of earth compacting forces to leave loose soil in the furrow, and the leading edge of said furrow-forming shoe being pointed edge means immediately adjacent to the seed discharge chute for minimizing earth piling forces to leave loose soil inside the furrow whereby as the seeds are dropped into the furrow formed by the furrow-forming shoe loose dirt falls upon said seeds in the furrow before said soil-pushing means can pass over the furrow.