Portable apparatus for removing poultry from a poultry house

Claim 2

A portable apparatus for removing live poultry from a poultry house having a floor comprising a vehicle having a frame, at least two upright side walls mounted on said frame and extending longitudinally thereof, a drive shaft rotatably mounted on said vehicle, means for driving said shaft, at least one reel freely rotatably mounted on said shaft between said walls, conveyor belt means normally carried by said reel but capable of being partially pulled therefrom and extended into the poultry house, said conveyor belt means resting on the floor of the poultry house when extended, clutch means selectively connecting said reel to said drive shaft to drive said reel in one direction, a floor movably mounted on said frame, and resilient cushioning means engaging said floor to urge said floor upwardly and maintain the floor substantially in tangential alignment with the upper portion of said reel under normal load conditions, whereby when said conveyor belt is extended into a poultry house, poultry are herded onto the belt means and thereafter the clutch means is operated to cause the reel to rotate and wind the conveyor belt means thereon while discharging poultry from the vehicle.

Claim 3

The structure of claim 1 in which said vehicle includes an intermediate wall located between said side walls, a pair of reels freely rotatably mounted on said shaft, and said clutch means selectively connects either or neither of said reels to said drive shaft.

Claim 4

The structure of claim 2 including barrier means located between the conveyor belt means when extended.

Claim 5

The structure of claim 1 including means on said trailer providing a connection to a propelling vehicle.

Claim 6

The structure of claim 1 including guide rollers located at each end of said floor.

Claim 7

The structure of claim 1 including fence means carried by one end of said conveyor belt means.

Claim 8

A portable apparatus for removing live poultry from a poultry house having a floor comprising a vehicle having a frame supported by earth-engaging wheels, a pair of upright side walls mounted on said frame and extending the full length thereof, an intermediate wall located between said side walls and being substantially parallel therewith, a drive shaft rotatably carried by said side walls, a power plant mounted on said vehicle and drivingly connected to said shaft, a first reel freely rotatably mounted on said drive shaft between one of said side walls and said intermediate wall, a second reel freely rotatably mounted on said drive shaft between the other side wall and said intermediate wall, clutch means for selectively connecting either or neither of said reels to said drive shaft, a flexible conveyor belt normally carried by each of said reels but capable of being pulled therefrom and extended into the poultry house, said conveyor belt resting on the floor of the poultry house when extended, a pair of floor members swingably mounted at one end on said frame and disposed substantially in alIgnment with said first and second reels, pressure operated cushioning means connecting the other end of each floor member to said frame to swing said other ends upwardly substantially into tangential alignment with the upper portions of said reels under normal load conditions, whereby when at least one of said conveyor belts is extended into a poultry house, a plurality of live birds are herded onto said belt and thereafter said clutch means is selectively operated to drivingly connect the reel of the extended belt to said drive shaft to cause the reel to wind the conveyor belt thereon while discharging poultry from the vehicle.

Claim 9

A portable apparatus for removing live poultry from a poultry house having a floor comprising a vehicle having a frame supported by earth-engaging wheels, a pair of upright side walls mounted on said frame and extending the full length thereof, an intermediate wall located between said side walls and being substantially parallel therewith, a drive shaft rotatably carried by said side walls, a power plant mounted on said vehicle and drivingly connected to said shaft, a first reel freely rotatably mounted on said drive shaft between one of said side walls and said intermediate wall, a second reel freely rotatably mounted on said drive shaft between the other side wall and said intermediate wall, clutch means for selectively connecting either or neither of said reels to said drive shaft, a flexible conveyor belt normally carried by each of said reels but capable of being pulled therefrom and extended into the poultry house, said conveyor belt resting on the floor of the poultry house when extended, a pair of floor members swingably mounted at one end on said frame and disposed substantially in alIgnment with said first and second reels, pressure operated cushioning means connecting the other end of each floor member to said frame to swing said other ends upwardly substantially into tangential alignment with the upper portions of said reels under normal load conditions, whereby when at least one of said conveyor belts is extended into a poultry house, a plurality of live birds are herded onto said belt and thereafter said clutch means is selectively operated to drivingly connect the reel of the extended belt to said drive shaft to cause the reel to wind the conveyor belt thereon while discharging poultry from the vehicle.