Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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POWER ASSISTED DEVICE FOR BREAKING LAND
AN~ PU~.LING RO~S
BAC~GROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to new and useful
improvements in devices ~or 6011 cultivation, and partic-
ularly in-the clearing of scrub land which may contain
bushes, small trees and the like or raw land from which
trees have been removed.
Several conventional methods are presently
practiced for such c:Learing and include firstly, plowing
the land then discing the same and picking the roots
therefrom.
The disadvantages of such a method include the
fact that most roots are in the top portion of the soil
and when same is turned over by a plow, the root crown is
usually underneath the surface and is difficult to work
out of the soil and will often continue to grow if left
in the soil. Furthermore many areas of top soil cleared
in this manner, will not grow well for several years
where the top soil is plowed under and the subsoil is
exposed.
Another method is rototilling in which the
roots are cut into small chips and mixed in with the
soil. While decaying, these roots use all of the avail-
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able nitrogen so that it is several years before nitrogenis available for crop growth.
A large amount of energy is required to roto-
till land so that it is extremely costly. Furthermore
the rototiller teeth rotate at a fast speed and will
often break if they strike rocks or stones over a few
inches in dia~eter so that they are not particularly
suitable in soils where rocks are present. The same
difficulty occurs when relatively large roots are
encountered by the rototiller.
The third method in common use includes discing
with a heavy disc implement. However, once again most
of the wood stays in the soil thereby consuming nitrogen
while it decays and many areas require repeated discing
to get to the required cultivating depth and is therefore
very costly.
SU~MARY OF TH~ IN~E~TION
The present invention overcomes all of these
disadvantages and is de~igned to reduce the cost of
breaking and clearing roots fro~ raw 1and that has small
trees only or breaking and clearing root~ from raw land
in which the trees have been removed previously.
The present device shears a layer of soil a
predetermined depth below the surface but does not turn
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it over like a plow so that the top soil remains in
position. At the same time it shears ~ff the roots of
any bushes or trees at this level and includes a toothed
roller whic~- then pul~s the roots free of the soil and
drops them on top of the soil in one operation.
This single implement therefore breaks the
land, cultivates the soil and puts the roots on the
surface thereof where they can be raked easily into
windrows thereby leaving the good top soil at or near the
surface ~or maximum crop growth. Once the roots are
sheared they are easier to rake to the surface than if
they have been turned over as with a plow or the like.
Furthermore, the majority of the wood content
is removed thereby ireeing available nitrogen for crop
growth rather than for rotting .he wood which normally
remains in the soil when cleared by conventional
methods.
One aspect of the invention is to provide a
device for breaking land and pulling roots comprising in
combination a frame, means supporting the frame a pre-
determined distance above the ground surface, a subsoil
blade depending from the frame and extending thereacross,
said subsoil blade adapted to lift and return a layer of
soil and to shear off tree roots and the like at a pre-
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determined depth below the ground surface, root pullermeans journa~led for rotation in said frame rearwardly of
said blade, for raking severed roots from the layer of
soil and depositing same on the surface of the layer of
soil and means to ret~rd rotation of said root puller
means.
Another aspect of the invention is to provide a
frame with a traction drum at the front end thereof, a
shear plate behind the traction drum set at a predeter-
mined level below the surface, and a toothed raking
roller behind the shear blade that drives the traction
drum. The energy producted by retarding the rotation
speed of the toothed roller assists in pulling the
machine foreward. As the implement moves forward the
teeth on the raking drum tears and lifts roots from the
sheared layer and to deposit same upon the surface.
A further advantage of the present device is to
provide an implement of the character herewithin describ-
ed which is simple i~ construction, economical in manu-
facture and use a~ otherwise well suited to the purpose
for which it is designed.
With the foregoing in view, and other advan-
tages as will become apparent to those skilled in the art
to which this invention relates as this specification
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proceeds, the invention is herein described by reference
to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, which
includes a description of the best mode known to the
applican~ and o~ the preferred typical embodiment of the
principles of the present invention, in which:
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a partially schematic side view of
the device.
Figure 2 is a partially schem~tic top plan view
of Figure 1.
In the drawings like characters of reference
indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Proceeding therefore to describe the invention
in detail, reference to the accompanying drawings will
show a frame collectively designated 10 consisting of a
pair o~ spaced and parallel longitudinally extending
members 11 together with transverse members 12 thus form-
ing a substantially rectangular frame when viewed in
plan.
A hitch assembly collectively designated 13
consists of a hitch member 14 for attachment to a tractor
or the like with a p~ir of diverging hitch pulls 15
extending rearwardly and outwardly from the hitch member
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14 and being pivoted by means of pivot pins 16, to the
front ends 17 of the longitudinal frames members 11.
Transport wheel assemblies 18 are situated
adjacent the rear ends 19 of the frame members 11 and
consist of crank arms 20 carrying ground engaging wheels
21 which ar~ conventional in construction and which may
be engaged or disengaged with the ground by means of
hydraulic piston and cylinder assemblies 22 extending
between the frame and the crank arms 20 and operated from
the source of hy~rau7ic power within the towing means
such as a tractor (not illustrated).
Mounted transversely within the frame adjacent
the front end thereof is a shaft 23 journalled within
pillow bearing blocks 24 on each side member 11. A trac-
tion wheel or drum 25 is secured to the shaft between the
longitudinal Erame members 11 and is provided with trans-
versely extending ground engaging teeth 26 as shown in
the drawings and these teeth engage the surface 27 of the
ground when the device is in operation as will herein-
after be described.
Situated rearwardly of this traction drum 25,
is a soil shearing blade assembly collectively designated
28. It consists of a pair of downwardly depending stand-
ards 29, one from each of the side frame members 11 with
2~
a transversely situated soil shearing blade 30 secured to
the lower ends thereof and situated substantially par-
allel t~ the ~r~nd qu~face 27, when in operation.
It will be seen fro~ ~igure 1, that this shear
blade 30 is situated a predetermined distance below the
ground surface controlled by the depth of the standards
29 and the engagement of the traction drum 25 with the
ground surface, together with a raking and root pulling
means collecti~ely designated 31 situated within the
frame 10 adjacent the rear end thereof and rearwardly of
the shearing blade assembly 28.
This assembly 31 consists of a shaft 32 jour-
nalled transversely within the frame 10 by pillow blocks
33 and having a drum 34 secured thereto and for rotation
therewith. A plurality of raking teeth 35 extend from
the surface of the drum in parallel rows as shown in
Figure 2 and equidistantly spaced around the surface of
the drum as shown in Figure 1. The drum rotates in the
direction of arrow 36 as will hereinafter be described
and the teeth extend from the surface of the drum in
trailing relationship therewith, with reference to the
direction of rotation of the drum, as clearly shown in
Figure 1.
The diameter of drums 25 and 34 are substan
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tially similar so that when the device is in the ground
working position shown in Figure 1, the surfaces o both
of these drums engages the ground surface and maintains
the frame substantially level a predetermined distance
above the ground and the blade 30, substantially hori-
zontal to the surface and a predetermined depth below the
surface of the grou~d.
Tooth cleaning scraper means collectively
designated 37 consist of a heavy duty plate 38 extending
across the frame between members 11 immediately rearward-
ly of the raking drum 31 and a plurality of recesses or
cut outs 39 are formed in the front edge of this plate
through which the rows of teeth 35, pass as they leave
the soil and move upwardly through these recesses or cut
outs thus c].eaning any debris such as mud, roots or the
like, from the teeth immediately after they have left the
soil.
Retarding the root puller means collectively
designated 31 produces the rotative power that drives
traction drum 25.
The aforementioned traction of drum 25 and
shaft 23 supply the rotative power to the root puller
means collectively designated 31 and in this connection a
sprocket or pulley 40 is secured to shaft 23 outboard of
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frame 11.
A sprocket ~hain or belt 41 extends around this
sprocket or pulley and a correspo~ding sprocket or pulley
~2 secured to the drum shaft 32, also outboard of the
frame member 11 and it will be observed that although the
two drums 25 and 34 are similar in diameter, the sprocket
or pulley 42 is larger than the sprocket or pulley 40
thus causing the drum 34 to rotate at a slower speed than
the traction drum 25.
This means that the rotational speed of the
drum 34 is less than the rotational speed of the drum 25
and hence is less than the speed of movement of the frame
across the ground so that, with the drum 34 rotating in
the direction o~ arrow 36, the teeth speed is retarded to
make each tooth tear through the soil for a certain
distance thus assisting in pulling the roots free.
The roller 34 continues to rotate so that new
teeth penetrate the soil and loosen the roots while the
teeth already in the soil move back to the cleaning
scraper whereupon roots are removed and deposited upon
the surface of the soil layer sheared off by the shear
blade 30. It should be noted that this soil layer is not
turned over as wlth a plow or discer or the like so that
the top soil remains in the upper most desired position
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and is thoroughly raked and cleaned by the action of the
assembly 31.
~ r~ .ivel~ large amount of energy is there-
fore absorbed by the trac~ion dru~ 25 as it is driven
from the raking drum 34, which reduces the power require-
ments of the source of power such as a tractor (not
illustrate~)~
It will be observed that, due to the pivoting
of the hitch assembly 13, to the frame, the frame is
supported upon the drums 25 and 34 within use but for
transportation purposes, the transport wheels 21 may be
lowered by the hydraulic piston and cylinder assemblies
22 thus raising the frame and lifting the drum 34 to-
gether with the shear blade 30, clear of the ground.
It will therefore be seen that the assembly is
relatively simple in construction with the rotational
retarding power of the root pulling drum assembly 31
being supplied to tl~e traction drum 25 in a simple and
economical manner.
Since various modifications can be made in my
invention as hereinabove described, and many apparently
widely differerlt embodiments of same made within the
spirit and scope of the claims without departing from
such spirit and scope, it is intended that all matter
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contained in the accompanying specification shall be
interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting
sense.
