Timber harvesting machine

Claim 2

In a timber harvesting machine having an upright mast assembly, a tree gripping and feeding assembly mounted on said mast assembly and comprising a pair of vertically spaced roller assemblies mounted for rotation about generally horizontal axes, an endless drive chain trained about Said roller assemblies, a drive roller movably mounted for movement in a generally horizontal plane disposed between said axes, said drive roller having an axis and being movable between an operating position in which the axis thereof is generally parallel to said axes and an idle position to one side of said operating position, said drive roller being operable in said operating position to clamp a tree against said drive chain, and motor means operable to drive at least one of said roller assemblies so as to move said drive chain in a generally vertical direction.

Claim 3

A tree gripping and feeding assembly according to claim 1 wherein each of said roller assemblies includes dynamic tree centering members, each of said centering members being generally frusto conical in shape, said centering members being mounted in pairs on opposite sides of said drive chain so that the diameters of said centering members increase in directions extending away from said chain whereby said centering members direct a tree toward a centered position engaged with said chain.

Claim 4

A tree gripping and feeding assembly according to claim 1 further including a pair of vertically spaced supporting plates mounted on said mast assembly, each of said plated having forwardly diverging leg portions, said drive chain being located substantially at the juncture of said leg portions, one of said roller assemblies being located above said pair of plates and the other roller assembly being located below said pair of plates, said drive roller being located between said plates.

Claim 5

A tree gripping and feeding assembly according to claim 3 further including means pivotally supporting said drive roller on one of said plates for movement between said operating and idle positions, and fluid actuated cylinder means mounted on said one plate and connected to said drive roller for pivotally moving said drive roller between said operating and idle positions.

Claim 6

A tree gripping and feeding assembly according to claim 4 wherein said drive roller has an inwardly concaved external surface, and further including motor means for rotating said drive roller so that said concave face will move along a tree gripped between said drive chain and said drive roller.

Claim 7

A tree gripping and feeding assembly according to claim 3 further including a backup plate secured to and extending between said plates at a position between said roller assemblies, said backup plate being operable to engage said drive chain to preclude rearward movement thereof in a direction away from said drive roller in the operating position thereof.

Claim 8

In a timber harvesting machine, a tree severing unit, an upright mast assembly extending upwardly from said severing unit, said mast assembly including an upper rotatable section, a pair of tree gripping and feeding assemblies mounted on said upper mast section so that said assemblies are spaced substantially 180* apart on said mast section, a tree cutoff unit disposed below said upper mast section and spaced above said severing unit and substantially 180* on said mast from said severing unit, a tree delimbing assembly mounted on said upper mast section above said gripping and feeding assemblies, said delimbing assembly comprising a pair of delimber units each of which is engageable with a tree trunk so that when the trunk is moved vertically past the unit limbs thereon are cut therefrom, said delimber units being arranged in generally vertical alignment with said gripping and feeding assemblies, and means for rotating said upper mast section between a first position in which one of said gripping and feeding assemblies is in substantial vertical alignment with said severing unit and the other one of said gripping and feeding assemblies is in substantial vertical alignment with said cutoff unit to a second position in which said other gripping and feeding assembly is in substantially vertical alignment with said severing unit and said one gripping and feeding assembly is in substantial verTical alignment with said cutoff unit, whereby a tree severed by said severing unit when said upper mast section is in said first position can be gripped by said one feeding and gripping assembly and moved with said upper mast section to said second position thereof in which said cutoff unit is operable to cut off said tree and a delimbing unit aligned with said one gripping and feeding assembly is operable to remove limbs from the tree during downward feeding of the tree by said one gripping and feeding assembly, said second gripping and feeding assembly being concurrently operable to grip another tree severed by said severing unit.

Claim 9

In a timber harvesting machine, a tree severing unit, an upright mast assembly extending upwardly from said severing unit, said mast assembly including an upper rotatable section, a pair of tree gripping and feeding assemblies mounted on said upper mast section so that said assemblies are spaced substantially 180* apart on said mast section, a tree cutoff unit disposed below said upper mast section and spaced above said severing unit and substantially 180* on said mast from said severing unit, a tree delimbing assembly mounted on said upper mast section above said gripping and feeding assemblies, said delimbing assembly comprising a pair of delimber units each of which is engageable with a tree trunk so that when the trunk is moved vertically past the unit limbs thereon are cut therefrom, said delimber units being arranged in generally vertical alignment with said gripping and feeding assemblies, and means for rotating said upper mast section between a first position in which one of said gripping and feeding assemblies is in substantial vertical alignment with said severing unit and the other one of said gripping and feeding assemblies is in substantial vertical alignment with said cutoff unit to a second position in which said other gripping and feeding assembly is in substantially vertical alignment with said severing unit and said one gripping and feeding assembly is in substantial verTical alignment with said cutoff unit, whereby a tree severed by said severing unit when said upper mast section is in said first position can be gripped by said one feeding and gripping assembly and moved with said upper mast section to said second position thereof in which said cutoff unit is operable to cut off said tree and a delimbing unit aligned with said one gripping and feeding assembly is operable to remove limbs from the tree during downward feeding of the tree by said one gripping and feeding assembly, said second gripping and feeding assembly being concurrently operable to grip another tree severed by said severing unit.

Claim 10

A timber harvesting machine according to claim 7 wherein each of said delimber units includes cutter jaws movable between open and closed positions, said jaws in the closed positions thereof being engageable with a tree trunk, and a supporting frame for said jaws mounted on said upper mast section for horizontal shifting movement relative to the mast section so that said jaws in the closed positions thereof can accommodate irregularities and curvatures in a tree being moved through said closed jaws.

Claim 11

A timber harvesting machine according to claim 8 wherein said supporting frame comprises plate means slidably mounted on said upper mast section for slidable movement transversely thereof, and spring means extending between said mast section and said plate means normally maintaining said plate means in a predetermined position relative to said mast means and allowing yieldable movement of said plate means from said predetermined position.

Claim 12

In a timber harvesting machine, a mast assembly, a tree gripping and feeding assembly mounted on said mast assembly for feeding a tree in a downward direction, a tree cutoff unit mounted on said mast assembly below said gripping and feeding assembly and operable to cut a tree fed thereto into logs of substantially equal length, a log storage rack located below and to one side of said cutoff unit, said rack comprising an upright frame having an open side, and arm means operable to push a log cut by said cutoff unit horizontally through said open side of said frame into said log storage rack.

Claim 13

In a timber harvesting machine, a mast assembly, a tree gripping and feeding assembly mounted on said mast assembly for feeding a tree in a downward direction, a tree cutoff unit mounted on said mast assembly below said gripping and feeding assembly and operable to cut a tree fed thereto into logs of substantially equal length, a log storage rack located below and to one side of said cutoff unit, said rack comprising an upright frame having an open side, and arm means operable to push a log cut by said cutoff unit horizontally through said open side of said frame into said log storage rack.

Claim 14

A timber harvesting machine according to claim 10 wherein said log storage rack comprises a fixed position base, said upright frame being pivotally mounted on said base, a spring-pressed cable extended across said open side of said frame, and means for moving said frame between a loading position in which said open side faces inwardly in the direction of said arm means so that logs pushed by said arm means can move into said frame, and a discharge position in which said open side faces outwardly for discharging logs from said storage rack.

Claim 15

A timber harvesting machine according to claim 11 wherein said spring-pressed cable means is forced inwardly by logs pushed into said frame by said arm means, said cable means being operable to forcibly eject logs from said frame in the discharge position thereof.

Claim 16

A timber harvesting machine according to claim 12 further including a stuffer funnel disposed below said tree cutoff unit in substantial vertical alignment therewith, said funnel being located above said arm means and being operable to direct logs from said cutoff unit into the path of said arm means which is in turn operable to push the log into said storage rack.