Terrain traversing device having impeller means for propelling grass clippings and leaves into a receptacle

Claim 1

In a device which includes a frame supported by wheels for movement over the terrain, a cutter blade housing carried by said frame and including a discharge opening, rotating cutter means within said housing and positioned adjacent said terrain for cutting grass or picking up leaves and causing the clippings of said grass or said leaves to be collected within said housing and ejected therefrom through said housing discharge opening, means for rotating said cutter means, the improvement wherein said device includes receptacle means for collecting said clippings or leaves as they are ejected from said cutter housing, conduit means extending between said housing discharge opening and receptacle means defining in conjunction with said housing a path from said cutter means into the interior of said receptacle means, impeller means located within said path and adjacent said cutter means for contacting and propelling said discharged clippings or leaves along the remainder of said path into the interior of said receptacle means, means for rotating said impeller means, said housing including a top and side wall joining said conduit means, said housing supporting said impeller means at the discharge opening therein and adjacent said housing side wall, vertically oriented shaft means supporting each cutter means and said impeller means for rotation in a plane generally paralleling said terrain, said impeller means including a disk-shaped wall part carried by said shaft means, said wall part lying in substantially the same plane as the plane of rotation of said cutter means, said impeller means wall part positioned adjacent said housing side wall and conduit means and defining a substantially continuous lower wall means from said housing discharge opening to said conduit means for conducting said discharged clippings or leaves into said conduit means, said impeller means wall part including an upper surface, a plurality of blade parts carried upon said upper surface and extending generally radially outwardly from said wall part supporting shaft means to contact and propel said discharged clippings or leaves through said conduit means and into said receptacle means.