Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
Ground-Driven Rotary Row Clean_r
~ hP present invention relates to a rotary, ground
driven, row cleaner for a conservation tillage row crop
planter systPm. More particularly, it relates to a pair
of inclined sharply toothed wheel members mounted on a
row planter unit ahead of and aligned with the opening
mechanism of the planter to clear away surface mulch and
residual vegetation.
Historically, farmers have relied upon conventional
lo or '7deep" tilling to prepare their fields for planting.
In essence, a moldboard plow, chisel plow, or other
tilling implement is dragged over the fields after
harvest of the pxior crop to break up the soil to a
substantial depth, to cut and bury the residue of the
harvest, and to bring deep soil up to the surface.
Thereafter, the field must be secondarily tilled by
discs or other implements to pulverize the soil, reduce
large soil clumps, and level the field to facilitate
planting operations. Thereafter, yet another change of
implements and pass over the fields wi~h planting
apparatus is necessary to place the crop seed in the
ground. This method of farming has several
disadvantages, principally the susceptibility of
cultivated fields to erosion by wind and water run-off
and the time and fuel required for the multiple passage
of the various implements over the fields.
Within the past several years, the concept of
conservation tilling (also known as "no-till" or
"low-till" farming) has emerged, whereby the fields are
not plowed or cultivated to any substantial degree
between crops~ Instead, the planter used opens a furrow
of predetermined depth in the soil, deposits seeds
therein at a predetermined rate, and closes the furrow
over the seeds, all in a single pass. Typically,
multiple
,
rows are planted simultaneously by a plurality of lat2rally
~pac~d planter units mounted upon the ~ame implement frame.
~ he harvestlng o~ row crops typically 1eaves behand
dead plant stubble and residual vegetation. In no-till and low~
tlll farming, moreover, mulch ls conventlonally left or placed on
the ~ield after harvest. The mulch and residual vegetation serve
the dual Punction of aiding ~n control of erosioA and in
fertilizing the soil through decompositl4n. ~he benefits of a
mulch and residual veget~tion cover, however, may be o~fset by
1~8 disadvantages. Many 6hallow 80ils have a permanent pan at a
depth of 20" to 30" which makes them wet during the early
planting season. The mulch and residual ve~etation cover retards
evaporation therefrom such that 80il molsture remains at
unacceptably high levels past optimum planting dates. Unless
~uch soils are planted at low rates of speed, on the order of 3~
miles psr hour, the planter unit leaves a ~urrow which fills with
water at the next rain. In addition, surface mulch and residue
may be orced into the seed furrGw, r~taining moisture at the
bottom of the furrow. The resultant presence of hi~h moisture
levels around the seeds re~ards germination by maintaining soil
temperatures too low an~ promotes seed rot, thereby having an
adverse ~mpact upon crop yield.
The mulch and residual vegetatlon cover also causes
signi~icant depth control problems. Ideally, seeds should be
planted at a uniform, optimum depth from th~ ~urface. However,
the mulch and res~dual vegetation cover usually exhlbits
conslderable variation ln thickness from row-to~row and along
each row. Thus, the planter must be ad~usted to reach adequa~e
depth through the thlckest portion of the cover. At that
adjustment, however, the seeds may be placed at excessive depths
ln areas of thin cover. In additlon, clumps of mulch may cause
the pla~ter heads to "bounce," thereby leaving seeds on or too
close to the surface.
~l~d ~
These drawbacks have led a number of growers to
dispen~e with ~ulch entirely, planting into ground essentially
cleared of everythin~ but closely-clipped crop stubble~ ~hlle
this solves the problems outllned above, ~he lmportant advantages
of mulch and residual vegetation cover are thereby ~acrlficed.
The above-describ~d clearlng operations, moreover consume tlme
~d fuel. The present invention removes the mulch and residual
vegetation cover from in front of the advancing planter units,
thereby permitting rapid planting with good depth contr~l, yet
retains the cover between the rows for erosion control and yield
enhancement. The row cleaner described and claimed herein,
moreover, leaves the soil substantially undisturbed, thereby
retalning the desirable ~eatures of ~o-till farming and avoiding
excessive moisture levels i~ the soil around the planted seeds.
The prior art reflects a number of planting implements
employing residue clearing appartus mounted ahead of the planter
units. Examples of uch prior art apparatus may be found in ~he
following United States patents:
No. 4,430,952 2/84 Murray
No. 4,3~,797 3/83 Peterson et al
No. 4,278,036 7/81 Buchele
No. 3,362,361 1/68 Morrison
These prior art devices, however, themsel~es cultivate the soil
to a æignificant degree or are useable only in conventionally
tilled soils. Thus, the advantages o~ no-till farming in mulched
~ield~ cannot be exploited with the referenced prior art.
Moreover, signi~icant cultivation of the seed furrows permits
deep penetration of ratnfall, therby retarding germlnatlon.
The prior art likewise reflects a number of cultivators
employing rotating, intermeshed tlnes. Examples thereof may be
found in the following United States patents:
No. 3,605,907 9~71 Schuring et al.
3'7~
No. 2, ~82, 982 4/59 Hobbs
However, these prior art devices are designed and used for
deep cultivation of the soil and are thus contrary to the
teachings of the present invention.
In accordance with the present invention, each planter
unit carries a pair of intermeshed, sharply toothed wheels
ahead of and aligned with the furrow opening and closing
means of the planter. The rotational axes of the toothed
wheels are disposed at an angle relative to one another and
to the line of travel of the planter and are likewise
inclined with respect to the vertical plane passing through
the seed furrow. The wheels are located along a vertical
plane so that the teeth penetrate the soil to a depth no
grea~er than that required to cause them to rotate about
15 their respective axes without significant disturbance of
the soil. The rotary motion thereby imparted to the
toothed wheels tends to move the mulch and residual
vegeta-tion cover aside and prevents clogging.
Various aspects of this invention are as follows:
In a tractor propelled implement including at least one
planter unit,
each su~h planter unit including means for opening a
furrow in minimally or untilled soil to a predetermined
depth and means for depositing seed in said furrow,
wherein the improvement comprises means for selectively
cleaning mulch ~rom the surface of said soil comprising:
a pair of pointedly toothed wheels journaled for
rotation about respective axes and carried by said
implement positioned with the centers of said toothed
wheels disposed above sa:id sur~ace on opposite sides of an
imaginary vertical plane passing through the direction of
travel of said planter unit and the teeth of said wheels in
shallow contact with the ground ahead of said furrow
opening means, whereby the forward motion of said implelTlent
rotatably drives said toothed wheels about their respective
axes of rotation so that the teeth thereof successively
penetrate the surface of said soil to a depth insufficient
to substantially cultivate or otherwise disturb the soil,
1~ ,~ .
.... ,,~
the rotary and forward motion of said toothed wheels
substantially clearing the mulch from the path of the
advancing furrow opening means of said planter unit.
In a tractor propelled implement including at least one
planter unit,
each such planter unit including means for opening a
furrow in minimally or untilled soil to a predetermined
depth and means for depositing seed in said furrow,
wherein the improvement comprises means for selectively
cleaning mulch from the sur~ace of said soil comprising:
a pair of toothed wheels operatiny in lateral
opposition to one another, said toothed wheels being
~ournaled for rotation about respective axes an~ carried by
said implement positioned with the centers of said toothed
wheels above said surface and the teeth thereof in shallow
contact with the ground ahead of said furrow opening means,
whereby the forward motion of said implement rotatably
drives said toothed wheels about their respective axes of
rotation to simultaneously pull surface mulch in laterally
opposite directions away from the path of the advancing
furrow opening means of said planter unit.
In a tractor propelled implement including at least one
planter unit,
each such planter unit including means for opening a
furrow in minimally or untilled soil to a predetermined
depth and means for depositing seed in said furrow,
wherein the improvement comprises means for selectively
cleaning mulch from the surface of said soil comprising:
a pair of ground driven rotary row cleaners disposed
about an imaginary vertical plane passing through the
direction of travel of said planter unit operating in
lateral opposition to one another, each of said row
cleaners inc:Luding
a hub member rotatably carried by said implement for
rotation about a predetermined axis extending downwardly
away from said imaginary vertical plane forwardly in
relation to said direction of travel, a plurality of
angularly spaced tines mounted on and extending radially
~/
~ a
from said hub member and means for maintaining the angular
relationship among said tines, said row cleaners being
positioned on said implement with their respective hubs
above said surface and the outer ends of said tines in
shallow contact with the ground ahead of said furrow
opening means, whereby the forward motion of said
implement rotatably drives said tines about their
respective axes of rotation to simultaneously pull surface
mulch in laterally opposite directions away from the path
of the advancing furrow opening means of said planter unit.
The present invention may best be understood by
reference to the following detailed description when
considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in
which:
FIGURE 1 is a simplified side view of a row crop planter
unit carrying the row cleaner of the present invention;
FIGU~E 2 is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the
angular and spatial relationships among the ground engaging
components of the planter unit and row cleaner of the
present invention;
FIGURE 3 is a diagrammatic front elevation view
illustrating the angular disposition of the ground engaging
components of the row cleaner of the present invention;
FIGURE 4 is a side view of one embodiment of the row
cleaning wheel employed in the present invention; and
FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along lines 5 - 5' of
FIGVRE 4.
4b
3 s ~
Referring now to the drawings in which th~ same
reference numerals designate the same elem~nts throughout the
sever l views, there is shown in FIGURE 1 a ~implifled side
elevational view of a row planter unit carryi~g the residue
cleaner of the precent lnvention. Since th~ planter unit and
assoc~ated frame are convent~onal, they are not lllustrated in
deta~l, the schematic representation o~ FIGURE 1 being ~ufficient
to depict the relation~hip between the residue cleaner of the
present invention and the key components of the planter unlt. As
~hown in FIGUR~ 1, the planter unit generally designated 30 is
mounted to a frame generally desi~nated 12 and lncluding a
transverse tool bar 13 rigidly connected together by means of
cross members (not illustrated in FIGURE 1 in the interests of
clarity). Preferably, tool bar 13 is constructed of tubular
steel of a length dependent upon the number of crop rows for
which the sys~em is designed. It will be appreclated that, while
FIGURE l depicts a single planter unit, the frame typically
carr~es a plurality of planter un1ts, one for each crop row, the
planter units being laterally spaced from one another at
distances corresponding to the desired spacing between crop rows
in the fleld. As an illustrative example, corn or soybean rows
are typically spaced 30 inches or 36 ~nches apart.
The ~rame 12 may also be provided with support wheels
(again omitted ~rom FIGURE 1 in the interests of clar~ty). Such
support wheels and their associated mounting structure are
conventional and for~ no part o~ the present invention.
As depicted in FIGURE 1, the lin~ designated 10
represents the ~ur~ace of the ground and the movement of the
system during normal operation is from r~ght to left. The
~orward end oP ~rame 12 i5 provided with a bracket generally
desi~nated 15 for mounting the frame to the lower draw ~oints of
a conventional three-point hitch carried at the rear of ~ ~arm
tractor. In add~t~on, one or more rear support wheels 18 may be
provided to raise the entlre system for road travel. The road
wheel is moun~ed by means of spindle 19 to an artlcula~ed ~rame
includlng pivotally connected members 20 and 21, frame member 21
being rigidly connected to tool bar 13. Hydraulic cylinder 22 is
pivotally connected at one ~nd to frame member 20 ~y ~eans of
bracket 23 and pivotally conne~ted at the opp~site end to frame
mem~er 21 by means of bracket 25. Hydraul~c cylinder 22, when
extended, lowers wheel 18 ln the directlon indicated by arrow 2~
to the surface of the ground 10 and, as hydraulic cylinder 22 i5
further extended, the entire frame carrying the planter units is
ralsed for over the road travel. Conversely, when hydraulic
cylinder 22 is retracted, wheel 18 i5 ralsed of~ the ground,
allowing planter unit 30 to be supported by gauge wheels 31, as
will be more fully described hereinafter. ~ydraulic fluid
pumping means and tubing for actuation of hydrauli~ cylinder 22
are conventionally carried by the pulling tractor, but are
omitted from FIGURE 1 in the interests of clarity.
Planter unit 30 is mounted behind and to tool bar 13 by
means oP a separate four-bar linkage generally designated 28.
Linkage 28 accomoda~es variations in the sur~ace of the ground 10
and allow~ planter unit 30 to generally follow the contours
thereof. The conventional plan~er unit 30 has three key
operational components in contact with the ground. The angular
and spatial relationships among these components i5 illustrated
ln FIGURE 2, in which the direction of movement is likewise from
right to left. The Pirst such component opens a furrow in the
earth to a predetermined depth without substantial disturbance of
ad~acent soil and, in FI~URES 1 and 2, is depicted as a pair of
inc1ined discs 32 and 42. It will be apprecia~ed that the
details of the furrow opening means form no part of the present
lnvention and that any apparatus performing that ~unction is
acceptable, the disc opener described herein being purely
illu~tratlve. A pair of laterally spaced gauge wheels 31 and 41
~, _
Pollow the furrow opening means and support planter unit 30 as it
is pulled acros~ the ~ield. Gauge wheels 31 and 41 are ~ournaled
ror rota~ion about axes ~ubstantlally perpendicular to the
direction of travel and are substantially equid~stant Prom and on
opposite ~ides of the Qeed furrow. It will be appreciated that
gauge wheels 31 and 41 may rotate in substantially vertical
planes, in which ease they will share a common axis ~f rotation,
or may rotate in planes whlch are inclined from the vertical, in
which case their respective axes o~ rotation will intersect. The
vertical relationshlp between the furrow opening means and the
gauge wheels 91 and 41 determine the depth o~ the seed furrow.
Conventionally, the furrow opening means are vertically fixed in
position and gauge wheels 31 and 41 raised or lowered by means
(not shown~ to regulate the seed furrow depth. However, it will
be appreciated that depth regulation may be likewise obtained by
vertlcally fixing the axes of rotation of gauge wheels 31 and 41
and providing for vertical adjustment of the ~urrow opening ~eans
or by providing for vertical adjustment of both the furrow
opening means and gauge whe~ls 31 and 41. In ~ny event, the
depth of the furrow will be the distance which the furrow opening
means projects below the rims of gauge wheels 31 and 41.
Tra~ling behind gauge wheels 31 and 4~ are furrow
closing ~eans, depicted in the figures as a pair of inclined
pinch wheels 33 and 43. Once a~ain, this component of planter
unit 30 is conventional and the embodiment illu~trated herein is
merely illustrative. A single wheel or other conventional furrow
closing means may readily be substituted therefor without
departing from the present invention.
Planter unit 30 includes seed storage hopper 34, the
latter beir~g provideù with a conventional metering mechanism (not
shown) to regulate the flow of seed ~rom hopper 34. Planter unit
30 may also ~nclude a pesticide/fertilizer storage hopper 3~ with
.. ,
7-
) S'J~
associated metering mechanism (not shown) to regulate the flow of
pestic~de or fertillzer from hopper 35.
The opera~ion of planter u~i~ 30 is well known in the
art. As the sys~em is moved acros~ ~he field by a tractor (not
~hown) to which mounting bracket 15 has been attached, discs 32
and 42 open a narrow furrow in the earth. The meterlng me~hanlsm
(not shown) as~ociated with hopper 34 dispenses seed into a tube
~not shown) at a rate bearlng a predet0rmined relationship to the
travel of the planter unit 30. The outlet o~ the tube ls located
between gauge wheels 31 and 41, 60 that the metered seed fromm
hopper 34 is deposited in the furrow. If pesticide or ~ertilizer
i8 stored in hopper 35, it may likewise be metered and deposited
v~a another tube into the furrow between gauge wheels 31 and 41.
Trailing pinch wheels 33 and 43 turn close the furrow over ~he
seed.
The foregoing de~cribes the idealized operatlon of a
plan~er unit without the row cleaner of the present invention,
assuming operation over bare earth. As noted earier in this
application, howevér, significant advantages accrue from a mulch
and residual vegetation cover over the field. But, as also
outlined above, in a conventional planter un1~ the ~ulch and
residual vegetation may be forced into the furrow by disce 32 and
42 or may cause gauge wheels 31 and 41 to raise above ground
level, thereby reducing the depth of the furrow. The present
invention, comprlsing intermeshed, sharply toothed wheels 50 and
60, reliably clears the mulch and residual vegetation cover from
the path of the planter unit 30 such that the furrow opening
means, gauge wheels, and furrow closing means operate over
esser~t~ally bare earth while the desireable mulch and residual
vegetation cover i5 maintained between rows.
As shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, toothed row cleaning
wheels 50 and 60 are independently Journaled for rotation about
lnclined, intersect~ng axes. In particular, row cleaning wheel
50 rotates about axis 52 and row cleaning wheel 60 rotates about
axis 62. The details of m~ans for rotably mounting cleaning
wheels 50 and 60 to ~lanter unit 3~ are not a part of the present
invention and may, f~r ~xample, be those d~scribed in United
States Pat~nt. No. 4,425,973 issued on January 1~, 19~4, in the
name of Donald E. Williams and Forest E. Robertson. It wil be
observed that the axes of rotation 52 and 62 inter~ect at a point
substantially within an imaginary vertical plane, indicated in
FIGURES 2 and 3 by broken line 70 passing midway between gauge
wheels 31 and 41, said point of intersectlon being behind and
above (as viewed from the side as in FIGURE 1) the respective
centers of rotation o~ wheel members 50 and 60. Thus, the
compound angular relationship between each axis of rotat~on and
that imaginary vertical plane may be defined by its vertical
component o~ and its horizontal component ~. It will be
appreciated that the compound angular relationship above
described may also be defined by the vertical and horizontal
components of the angle between each plane of rotation of
cleaning wheels 50 and 60 and the aforementioned imaginary
vertical plane. Since the axes of rotation are, by definition,
perpendicular to the plane of rotation, the vertical component o~
the angle between the plane of rotation and the imaginary
vertical plane is the complement of o~ and the horizontal
component of that angle is the complement of ~.
FIGURES 4 AND 5 illustrate one embodiment of the row
cleaniny wheels which may be readily fabricated from materials
~enerally available to the average farmer. As shown therein,
row cleaning wheel 50 is comprised of hub member 53 carrying
bearing 56, a plurality of sharpened spoke members 55, rim
members 54 and 58, and washer-shaped backing plate member 57.
Bearing 56 is mounted rOr rotation about axis 52 and, although
illustrated as a sleeve ~earing, may be o~ any conventional
construction, such as rolller or ball bearing. Spoke members 55
-.:
may be fabricated f~om mild steel bar stock by cutting to length
and grinding one end to a sharp point. In a pr~ferred embod~ment
%" x ~" bar 6tock is used. The inner ends of 5poke members 55
are dispossd, generally equdistantly ~rom one another around a
circle centered at axis of rotatlon 62, between the flanged
portlon of hub member 53 and backing plate member 57 and attached
thereto, by rivets, ~crews, or other conventional fasteners (not
~hown). ~poke members 55 are likewise sandwiched, near their
outer ends, between and affixed to rims 54 and 56, generally
equally spaced about the circumference thereof. Thus, hub member
53 and backing member 5~ support the spoked members S5 at thelr
~nner ends for rotation about axis 52 and r~m members 54 and 56
support and maintain the angular relationships between the spoke
members 55 near their sharpened, outer ends. It will be
appreciated that rim member 56 or backing member 5~ may be
omitted if rim member 54 or hub member 53 are sufficiently strong
to support spoked ~embers 55.
Returning to FIGURES 1 - 3, cleanin~ wheels 50 and 60
are angularly disposed and dimensioned 80 as to ~ntersect, with
teeth intermeshed, above the surface of the ground 10 at a height
les~ ~han one-half o~ the~r root diameter. It is believed that
the intermeshing of the teeth prevents ~ulch and residual
vegetation from clinging to the teeth. In a preferred
embodiment, residue clearlng wheels 50 and 60 each have an outer
dlameter o~ 16" with 16 equally spaced 1%" deep teeth and are
each ~ournaled for rotation about an axis disposed at anglec~ of
75 from the vertical and angle ~ of 60 ~rom the path of travel
of the planter unit. Using the alternate definition descrlbed
~bove, the respective planes of rotation of residue cleaning
wheels 50 and 60 are each disposed at 15 ~rom the vertical and
30 from the path of travel of the planter unit.
It must be recognlzed that the above-referenced
preferred embodiment i8 only one wlthin a w~de range of
3~;j
~ariables. Thus, the diameter of cleaning wheels 50 ~nd 60,
which may be limited by the planter dimensions and cDnfiguration,
may range fr~m ~bout 10" to 20" and their tooth depthQ may range
rom about ~" to 3". Likewise, the cleaning wheels ~ay be
inclined ~uch that the vertical component of the angle at which
their axes of rotation intersect (twiceo~) range~ between about
120~ and 160 and the horizontal component of the angle at wh~ch
their axes of rotation intersect (twice ~) ranges between about
90 and 150
Row cleaning wheels 50 and 60 are mounted to planter
unit 30 at a height such that the teeth thereof penetrate the
soil to a depth sufficient for the forward motion o~ the system
to cause the wheel~ to rotate, yet not so deep as to
substantially cultivate or till the 80il. The rotation of the
residue clearing wheels causes the mulch and residual vegetation
cover to be moved aslde as the syste~ traverses the field. The
sharp teeth of the cleaning wheels 50 a~d 50 aid that ac~ion by
loose~ing and cutting the roots of residual vegetation so that
the same may be more easily swept aside. The effect~ of the
shallow soil disturbance caused by the cleaning wheels 60 and 60
are minimized by the actio~ of the pinch wheels 33 and 43 or
other conventional furrow closin~ means as they close the seed
furrow and tamp the soll. And, as outlined above, this contrasts
with the tilling action o~ prior art residue clearing apparatus
whlch result~ in undesirable 80il erosion, higher fuel
consumption, and slower plantin~ rates .
The detail~ of the means for mounting the row
cleanlng wheel assemblie~ to the ~rame of planter unit 30 ar~ not
a part of the present invention and may, for example, be as
described in the above-cited William~ et al patent. In the
preferred embodlment referenced above, the residue clearing wheel
te~th penetrate the ~oil to a depth of approximately ~". It will
be ~ppreci~ted that, where the planter unit whlch carries the row
~ / ,
~ 3t~
cleaner of th~ present invention regulates planting depth by
vertically adjustin~ the gauge wheels, the residue cleaner must
likewi e be carried so as to be vert~cally adjustable in like
amounts, thereby regulating the depth of penetration of the teeth
carried by the row clearing wheel~. The above-referenced
Will~ams et al patent illustrates o~e such vertically-ad~ustable
mounting structure. On the other hand, if the carrying planter
unit employs vertically fixed gauge wheels, with vertlcally
adjustable furrow opening mean3, the resldue cleaner o~ the
present invention need not be mounted to permlt vertlcal
adjustment.
~ aving thus described ~ detall a preferre~ embodiment of
the invention, persons skilled in the art will be able to modify
certain of the structure illustrated and described h~rein and
substitute therefor equivalent elements while contlnuing to
practice the principl~s oP the invention. Theref~re, it is
intended that any and all such modifioatio~s and substitutions be
covered and they are embraced wi~hin the scope and spirit of the
appended claims.
: - /
