Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1
VERTICAL STACKING BALE ACCUMULATOR
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to bale accumulators, and
more particularly to bale accumulators configured for vertical stacking of
rectangular
bales ejected from the baler behind which the accumulator is towed.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Balers and similar machines have been employed for many years in
the agricultural industries for gathering and packaging agricultural crops,
for example
hay, into bales. The bales are then used for purposes including feeding
livestock. As
.. baler technology developed, and particularly with the advent of balers for
producing
large rectangular bales, bale accumulators were produced for towing behind the
baler to collect a plurality of bales as they are individually ejected from
the baler, and
then deposit the collected plurality of bales in an organized group on the
ground.
Such deposit of multiple bales in a collective group provides greater
efficiency in
.. later collecting of the bales from the field compared to dropping of bales
individually
onto the ground directly from the baler.
The present invention relates particularly to bale accumulators that are
configured to deposit an accumulation of rectangular bales on the ground in a
vertical stack.
Vertical stacking accumulators are known in the art that arrange
rectangular bales in a single vertical stack by lifting the first bales that
arrives at a
stacking station of the accumulator into an elevated position to accommodate
conveyance of the next bale into a position underlying the elevated bale at
the
stacking station, whereupon the elevated bale is then seated atop the
underlying
bale to achieve a stacked condition of these two bales. The process of lifting
the
current bales at the stacking station to admit a next bale beneath them, and
seating
the lifted bales on the newly admitted lower bale may be repeated at least
once,
thereby creating a vertical stack of at least three bales. Examples of such
vertical
stacking accumulators are disclosed in European Patent Application
Publications
0687408, 2064936 and 0959661. U.K. Patent Application GB 2053081 teaches a
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vertical stacking accumulator that likewise lifts bales from a first station
to an
elevated position to admit the next bale beneath the raised bales, but instead
of then
lowering the raised bales down onto the latest bale, it instead then feeds the
latest
bale upwardly to a platform level at which the previously raised bales are
situated.
The disclose accumulator of the present application follows this same
general stacking routine as the forgoing prior art, raising the first bale to
admit the
next bale on which the first bale is then seated, but includes several unique
features
that are lacking in the prior art accumulators and are believed to provide
notable
advantage over same.
Other types of bale accumulators known in the art, but also differing
significantly from the present invention, are disclosed in US Patent Numbers
1,763,446 by Sancken, 2,649,982 by Ray, 3,189,387 by Nieto Jr., 4,053,064 by
Stewart, 4,215,964 by Schrag et al., 5,844,675 by Strosser et al., 5,829,238
by
Branson, 5,842,823 by Kohnen et al., 6,851,908 by Bergen et al., 5,295,776,
5,477,668, 5,511,921 and 6,240,712 by Meijer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a vertical
stacking bale accumulator comprising:
a trailer frame having opposing front and rear ends spaced apart in a
longitudinal direction and opposing sides horizontally spaced apart in a
transverse
direction;
ground wheels rollably supporting the trailer frame;
a hitch connection mounted to the front end of the trailer frame for
coupling the vertical stacking bale accumulator to a tow hitch of a baler;
a series of non-powered rollers lying transversely of the trailer frame
and spaced apart from one another along the longitudinal direction from
adjacent the
front end of the trailer frame to adjacent the rear end of the trailer frame,
the series
of non-powered rollers including front and rear groups of rollers residing
respectively
adjacent the front and rear ends of the trailer frame;
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a bale stacking mechanism installed on the trailer frame and arranged
to automatically maneuver sequentially-received individual bales into a
stacked
configuration atop the rear rollers;
a rear gate movably carried on the trailer frame proximate the rear end
thereof for movement between a closed position obstructing deployment of the
bales
from the rear end of the trailer frame and an open position allowing
deployment of
the bales from the rear end of the trailer frame; and
a control system arranged to automatically move the rear gate from the
closed position to the open position upon accumulation of a predetermined
number
of stacked bales atop the rear rollers;
wherein the trailer frame, the hitch connection, the ground wheels and
the series of non-powered rollers are positioned relative to one another in a
manner
placing the rear group of rollers in an order of sequentially descending
elevation
toward the rear end of the trailer frame with the hitch connection coupled to
the baler
so as to gravitationally bias the bales toward the rear end of the trailer
frame.
Preferably the bale stacking mechanism and the control system are
arranged to lift an initial bale into an elevated state from atop the rear of
rollers upon
arrival of said initial bale at said rear group of rollers from the front
group of rollers, to
maintain said elevated state of the initial bale until a next bale arrives at
said rear
group of rollers, and release said initial bale onto said next bale.
Preferably there are a pair of upright support structures mounted to the
trailer frame and spaced apart from one another in the transverse direction
across
the series of non-powered rollers, each upright support structure comprising a
pair of
upright guide members spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal
direction of
the trailer frame on the same side of the conveyance path, with the bale
stacking
mechanism preferably comprising:
a lift arm arrangement comprising at least one lift arm having a pivotal
connection at an elevation above the trailer frame for movement of the lift
arm
arrangement about a pivot axis lying in the transverse direction;
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at least one actuator carried on the trailer frame and arranged to effect
pivoting of the lift arm arrangement about the pivot axis;
a pair of lift frames spaced apart from one another in the transverse
direction across the series of non-powered rollers and suspended from the lift
arm
arrangement adjacent a lifting end thereof distal to the pivot axis, each lift
frame
comprising a pair of followers attached thereto at longitudinally opposite
ends of the
lift frame, each follower being engaged to a respective one of the upright
guide
members for constrained movement upward and downward therealong; and
a pair of bale engaging devices respectively carried on the pair of lifting
frames and operable to engage a bale seated on the rear group of rollers from
opposing sides thereof for subsequent lifting of said bale from said rear
group of
rollers by raising of the lifting end of the lift arm arrangement by the at
least one
actuator.
Preferably the lift arm comprises two lift arms from which the pair of lift
frames are respectively suspended and two actuators that each drive motion of
a
respective one of the lift arms about the pivot axis, each lift arm being
positioned on
a respective side of the series of non-powered rollers.
Preferably each bale engaging device comprises at least one lifter that
is pivotal about a longitudinal axis, is biased by a spring force into a
default position
in which a free edge of a lift pad of said lifter points inwardly toward a
transverse
center of the series of non-powered rollers, and is movable against the spring
force
into a retracted position in which the free edge is tilted upward and
transversely
outward relative to the default position, whereby the retracted positions of
the lift
pads clear the opposing sides of the bale during downward movement therealong
to
the lowered position, at which point the lift pads return to the default
position to
reach under the bale from the opposing sides thereof for lifting of the bale.
Preferably each lifting pad is elongated in the longitudinal direction to
span at least a majority length of each bale.
Preferably an underside of each lifter that faces downward and
transversely inward in the default position of the lifter is concavely
contoured.
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Preferably there are provided a pair of bale guides suspended
respectively below the bale engaging devices and extending in the longitudinal
direction to block movement of an incoming bale from overshooting either of
the
opposing sides of the series of non-powered rollers.
Preferably each bale guide comprises a downwardly tapered portion
that narrows in a direction moving away from a top end of the bale guide
toward a
bottom end thereof.
Preferably the rear gate comprises an upright blocking member and at
least one bracket carrying said blocking member at a position adjacent the
rear end
of the trailer frame and a respective one of the sides thereof, the bracket
being
pivotally supported for pivotal movement thereof about an upright axis and
having a
curved shape reaching rearwardly and inwardly to face concavely toward the
front
end of the trailer frame in the closed position to place the upright blocking
member at
an intermediate location between the opposing sides of the trailer frame.
Preferably gate actuator coupled to the rear gate to effect movement
thereof is coupled to the rear gate adjacent a lower end thereof.
Preferably the rear gate is adjustable in position to accommodate
varying bale lengths by adjusting a distance between the rear gate and front
end of
the trailer in the longitudinal direction thereof.
Preferably the rear gate comprises a shear pin connection arranged to
release the gate from the closed position under application of a predetermined
rearward force by one or more bales stacked atop the rear group of rollers.
Preferably at least some of the non-powered rollers are adjustable in
position relative to the frame.
Preferably the front and rear groups of the non-powered rollers are
independently adjustable in position relative to the frame to adjust a slope
of
respective travel paths followed by the bales over said front and rear groups
of the
non-powered rollers.
Preferably each group of rollers is mounted on a respective sub-frame,
which is adjustable in position relative to the trailer frame. The sub-frame
may
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comprise a pair of longitudinal support rails on which bearings are mounted in
aligned pairs to rotatably support the rollers in positions spanning
transversely
between the support rails.
Preferably there is an additional rear discharge roller situated
.. rearwardly beyond the rear group of rollers and adjustable in height
relative to the
frame independently of the front and rear groups of rollers.
Preferably an adjustable mounting arrangement for at least some of
the non-powered rollers enables adjustment of an angle of inclination between
the
frame and a plane containing rotational axes of said at least some of the non-
powered rollers.
Preferably the ground wheels are adjustable in height relative to the
trailer frame to adjust angle of inclination of the trailer frame relative to
ground for a
given height of a particular baler hitch.
Preferably the control system comprises front and rear sensors
positioned respective adjacent the front and rear ends of the trailer frame to
detect
presence of bales on the front and rear groups of non-powered rollers, and the
control system is arranged to automatically open the rear gate upon detecting
simultaneous presence of bales at both the front and rear groups of rollers.
Preferably there is provided a hitch mount for installation on the baler,
the hitch mount comprising a plurality of selectable connection points via
which the
hitch connection of the vertical stacking bale accumulator is connectable to
the hitch
mount, the plurality of selectable connection points being vertically spaced
from one
another such that selection from among said plurality of selectable connection
points
sets a height of the hitch connection of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator
relative to the baler.
Preferably there is provided a bale transition plate carried forwardly of
the front group of rollers to provide a sliding support surface over which
bales
transition from the baler to the front group of rollers.
Preferably the bale transition plate is adjustable in position relative to
the trailer frame.
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Preferably the bale transition plate is adjustable in elevation relative to
the trailer frame.
Preferably the bale transition plate is adjustable in longitudinal position
relative to the trailer frame.
According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a
vertical stacking bale accumulator comprising:
a frame having a bale conveyance path running in a longitudinal
direction for movement of bales in said longitudinal direction toward a
stacking area
of said conveyance path;
a pair of upright support structures spaced apart from one another in a
transverse direction across the stacking area of said conveyance path, each
upright
support structure comprising a pair of upright guide members spaced apart from
one
another in the longitudinal direction on the same side of the conveyance path
a lift arm arrangement comprising at least one lift arm having a pivotal
connection at an elevation above the conveyance path for movement of the lift
arm
arrangement about a pivot axis lying in the transverse direction;
at least one actuator carried on the frame and arranged to effect
pivoting of the lift arm arrangement about the pivot axis;
a pair of lift frames spaced apart from one another in the transverse
direction across the stacking area of said conveyance path and suspended from
the
lift arm arrangement adjacent a lifting end thereof distal to the pivot axis,
each lift
frame comprising a pair of followers attached thereto at longitudinally
opposite ends
of the lift frame, each follower being engaged to a respective one of the
upright
guide members for constrained movement upward and downward therealong; and
a pair of bale engaging devices respectively carried on the pair of lifting
frames and operable to engage an initial bale seated atop the stacking area of
said
conveyance path from opposing sides thereof for subsequent lifting of said
bale from
the stacking area of the conveyance path by raising of the lifting end of the
lift arm
arrangement by the at least one actuator to accommodate conveyance of a next
incoming bale into the stacking area beneath the initial bale.
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According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a vertical
stacking bale accumulator comprising:
a frame having a bale conveyance path running in a longitudinal
direction for movement of bales in said longitudinal direction toward a
stacking area
of said conveyance path;
a pair of bale engaging devices respectively disposed on opposing
sides of the stacking area of the conveyance path and each arranged for upward
and downward displacement relative to the conveyance path into and out of a
lowered position and for engagement of an initial bale seated at the stacking
area
.. from opposing sides thereof while in the lowered position for subsequent
lifting of
said bale from said stacking area of the conveyance path by raising of the
bale
engaging devices to accommodate conveyance of a next incoming bale into the
stacking area beneath the initial bale; and
a pair of bale guides suspended respectively the bale engaging
devices and extending in the longitudinal direction to block movement of the
next
incoming bale from overshooting either of the opposing sides of the conveyance
path.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention there is provided a vertical
stacking bale accumulator comprising:
a frame having a bale conveyance path running in a longitudinal
direction for movement of bales in said longitudinal direction toward a
stacking area
of said conveyance path; and
a pair of bale engaging devices respectively carried on opposing sides
of the stacking area of said conveyance path and each arranged for upward and
downward displacement relative to a said conveyance path into and out of a
lowered
position and for engagement of an initial bale seated at the stacking area of
said
conveyance path from opposing sides thereof while in the lowered position for
subsequent lifting of said initial bale from said conveyance path by raising
of the bale
engaging devices;
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wherein each bale engaging device comprises at least one lifter that is
pivotal about a longitudinal axis, is biased by a spring force into a default
position in
which a free edge of a lift pad of said lifter points inwardly toward a
transverse center
of the conveyance path and is movable against the spring force into a
retracted
position in which the free edge is tilted upward and transversely outward
relative to
the default position, whereby the retracted positions of the lift pads clear
the
opposing sides of the bale during downward movement therealong to the lowered
position, at which point the lift pads return to the default position to reach
under the
bale from the opposing sides thereof for lifting of the bale.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate an exemplary
embodiment of the present invention:
Figure 1 is a rear right perspective view of a vertical stacking bale
accumulator of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator of the present invention.
Figure 3 is a front right perspective view of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a front left perspective view of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking
accumulator with a first individual bale raised into an elevated position at a
stacking
station of the accumulator to accommodate arrival of a second bale beneath the
first
bale.
Figure 6 is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking
accumulator with the first bale stacked atop a second bale, and the two bales
raised
into the elevated position to accommodate arrival of a third bale beneath the
first
bale.
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Figure 7 is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking
accumulator illustrating arrival of the third bale beneath the elevated first
and second
bales.
Figure 8 is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking
accumulator showing a completed three-bale stack ready for release from the
accumulator.
Figure 9 is a is a rear left perspective view of the vertical stacking
accumulator illustrating release of the three-bale stack to the ground behind
the
accumulator.
Figures 10A ¨ 10E are partial rear views of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator with select components omitted to better illustrate operation of
spring-
biased lift pads that pivot outwardly away from the sides of a newly inserted
bottom-
bale as they move downwardly therealong from the elevated position at which
the
last-raised bale was stacked atop the newly inserted bottom-bale, before
automatically pivoting back inward upon reaching a lowered position beneath
the
bottom bale for a subsequent lifting operation.
Figure 11 is a partial close-up perspective side view of a front portion
of the vertical stacking bale accumulator.
Figure 12 is a partial rear left perspective of the vertical stacking bale
accumulator of Figure 2 from a different angle.
Figure 13 is a schematic illustration of a control system for the vertical
stacking bale accumulator.
Figure 14 schematically illustrates use the accumulator in use in a
towed position behind a baler.
Figure 15 is a partial rear left perspective view of the accumulator with
select components omitted to reveal one of two matching mounting plates at
side of
the accumulator by which ground wheels thereof are mounted for adjustable
height
relative to the trailer frame.
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Figure 16 is a partial perspective rear view of the accumulator with a
bale lifting mechanism in an elevated position to reveal details of a bale
engagement
mechanism thereon from a viewpoint inside a bale lifting station of the
accumulator.
Figure 17 is a partial perspective side view of the accumulator of
Figure 16 to illustrates details of the bale engagement mechanism from a
viewpoint
laterally outside the lifting station.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Figures 1 to 4 illustrate a vertical stacking bale accumulator 10 of the
present invention which features a generally rectangular trailer frame 12
having a
front end 14 and an opposing rear end 16 spaced apart in a longitudinal
direction.
As shown in Figures 3 and 4, a hitch connector 18 is fixed to a front end
cross-beam
of the trailer frame and extends forwardly therefrom for connection to the
hitch H
of a baler B (Fig. 14) for towed conveyance of the accumulator behind the
baler in
the longitudinal direction. The terms 'front' or 'forward' are thus used
herein to
15 denote the end of the accumulator that leads the opposing 'rear' or
'back' end when
the accumulator is towed behind the baler.
As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a horizontal rear cross-beam 22 of the
trailer frame 12 lies parallel to the front cross-beam 20 in a transverse
direction
perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. A pair of upright support
structures 24
20 are spaced apart in the transverse direction to lie in vertical planes
parallel to the
longitudinal direction of the trailer frame at respective sides thereof. Each
one of
these structures 24 connects the front and rear cross-beams 20, 22 together
near a
respective pair of matching ends thereof. Each support structure 24 features a
front
upright frame post 26 standing perpendicularly upward at or near the front
cross-
beam 20, a parallel rear upright frame post 28 standing perpendicularly upward
at or
near the rear cross-beam 22, a header 30 lying perpendicularly to the frame
posts
26, 28 to interconnect the top ends thereof in the longitudinal direction, and
a pair of
intermediate upright frame posts 32, 34 spanning perpendicularly downward from
the header and having their lower ends connected to respective front and rear
footer
beams 36, 38 that are perpendicularly attached to the front and rear cross-
beams
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20, 22 respectively. Each upright support structure 24 further includes a pair
of
upright guide poles 40, 42 each residing between a respective one of the front
and
rear upright frame posts 26, 28 and a nearest one of the intermediate upright
frame
posts 32, 34. A stiffening plate 44 interconnects the front and rear footer
beams 36,
38, whereby these three elements define a respective longitudinal side of the
generally rectangular trailer frame 12.
A near-front intermediate cross-beam 46 lies parallel to the front cross-
beam 20 at a short distance rearward therefrom in the longitudinal direction.
A first
pair of upright mounting brackets 48 are fixed to the front cross-beam 20 on
opposite
sides of the transverse center thereof to stand vertically upward therefrom,
each
lying in a vertical plane spaced inwardly from the respective longitudinal
side of the
trailer frame. A second pair of upright mounting brackets 50 are likewise
attached to
the intermediate cross-beam 46 in the same vertical planes as the first pair
of
brackets 48, and each slope upwardly and rearwardly toward the rear end of the
trailer frame 12. A front roller assembly or roller bed features a pair of
front support
rails 52 lying in the longitudinal direction and each fastened to a respective
one of
brackets in the first and second pairs of brackets on the front and
intermediate
cross-beams, and a pair of cylindrical front rollers 54 that lie parallel to
one another
in the transverse direction. Each front roller is rotatably carried by a pair
of pillow
block bearings 56 respectively mounted on the two front support rails 52.
A rear roller assembly or roller bed features a pair of rear support rails
58 lying in the longitudinal direction and each having one end fastened to a
respective one the mounting brackets 50 on the intermediate cross-beam 46, and
the other end fastened to a respective one of two forwardly-extending mounting
brackets 60 that are attached to the rear-cross beam 22 to lie in the same
planes as
the intermediate mounting brackets 50. A set of cylindrical rear rollers 62
lie parallel
to one another in the transverse direction, each being rotatably carried by a
pair of
pillow block bearings respectively mounted on the two rear support rails 56.
The
front and rear roller assemblies are thus similar in structure, but differ in
that the rear
set of rollers is notably larger, with longer support rails and a greater
number of
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rollers, particularly seven rollers in the illustrated embodiment. The number
of rollers
in each of the front and rear sets may vary from those of the illustrated
embodiment.
The front and intermediate mounting brackets 48, 50 each feature a
plurality of different-height mounting sites at which the support rails 52, 58
of the
roller assemblies can be connected. For example, in the illustrated
embodiment, the
front and intermediate mounting brackets 50 each feature several pairs of bolt
holes
at which the respective end of the respective front support rail can be bolted
to the
bracket, each pair of bolt holes residing at a different height from the
respective
cross-beam 20, 46. Height adjustability of the front end of the rear support
rails 58 is
similarly provided, for example by way of a single pair of bolt holes in the
intermediate bracket 50 that is spaced rearward from the multiple pairs of
bolt holes
in the same bracket 50 for the front support rails 52, and two or more pairs
of bolts
holes in each rear support rail 58 at different heights thereon for selective
alignment
of one pair of rail-holes with the single available pair of bracket holes. For
each rail,
front or rear, height adjustability thus may be provided by having more than
one
available bolting location in either the rail, the mounting bracket, or in
both. These
adjustable-height arrangements are presented as examples only, and other
arrangements for adjusting the height of the front and rear ends of the front
support
rails and the front end of the rear support rails may alternatively be
employed. In the
illustrated embodiment, height adjustability is not provided at the rear end
of the rear
support rails, but other embodiments may incorporate such functionality.
The front and rear rollers collectively define a longitudinal pathway
along which an individual rectangular bale of hay or other material is
conveyed along
the trailer frame upon ejection of the bale from the baler whose outlet is
positioned
slightly ahead of and slightly above the forwardmost roller when the
accumulator is
hitched to the baler B. The hitch connector 16 and the trailer frame 12 are
tilted out
of plane with one another so as to be separated by more than 180-degrees at
their
topsides, and by less than 180-degrees at their undersides. Accordingly, with
reference to Figure 14, when the hitch connector 16 is hooked up to the hitch
H of
the baler B and extends rearward therefrom, the trailer frame 12 slopes
downwardly
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and rearwardly from the hitch connector at an oblique angle rather than
extending
horizontally straight in the rearward direction.
The selectable bolt hole pairs at the connection of the front end of the
rear support rails 58 to the intermediate brackets 50 are arranged such that
in any of
the available mounting positions, the plane occupied by the axes of the
identical
rollers of the rear roller set is either parallel to the plane of the trailer
frame 12, or
sloped in a direction slanting rearwardly downward relative to the plane of
the trailer
frame. With the use of same-size rollers, this slope of the plane containing
the axes
of the rear rollers means that the plane of contact between the rollers and a
bale
riding over the rollers (i.e. a common tangential plane of the rear rollers at
the
topsides thereof) is likewise sloped. in combination with the rearward and
downward slope of the trailer frame, this relative slope of the rear roller
set plane
with respective to the trailer frame 12 means that the rollers 62 of the rear
set will
always decrease in elevation from one roller to the next moving in the
rearward
direction.
As a result of this downward slope of the rear roller set, no motive
force for conveying the bales rearwardly along the longitudinal path of the
accumulator is required. None of the front and rear rollers 54, 62 are
rotationally
driven in any way, but rather are all non-powered, free-rotating rollers. The
ejection
force applied to a bale as it exits the baler, as applied by a plunger
thereof, displaces
the rear end of the bale onto the front rollers, which are turned by
frictional contact
with the bale to encourage further rearward displacement thereof along the
roller-
lined longitudinal bath of the accumulator. As the bale reaches a position
lying atop
the rear set of rollers, it likewise frictionally engages the same to rotate
the rear
rollers and continue moving rearwardly on the longitudinal path of the
accumulator,
as gravitationally encouraged by the downward slope of the rear roller set in
the
longitudinal direction.
The adjustable height of the front roller support rails at both the front
and intermediate cross-beam allows the height and slope of the front set of
rollers to
be adjusted relative to the trailer frame. The bolt holes of the mounting
brackets are
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configured to allow the front roller set to be set in an aligned position
coplanar with
the rear roller set, or other planes sloped relative thereto, for example to
allow the
plane of the front rollers to be set parallel or nearly parallel to the
discharge plane P
of the baler outlet (Fig. 14) so as to maximize a smooth transition from the
baler to
the accumulator to minimize the potential for jams or bale damage. In
addition,
adjustment of the front and rear roller planes relative to one another to
provide the
rear roller set with a downwardly rearward slope relative to the front roller
set acts to
encourage better separation of sequentially adjacent bales exiting the baler,
as
movement of the rear end of a bale rearwardly past the rearmost front roller
will
place the rear end of the bale in a position hanging over the rear roller
plane,
whereby gravity will eventually tip the rear end of the bale downward onto the
rear
rollers, thereby tilting the front end of the bale rearwardly to encourage
better
separation from the next bale trailing it out of the baler.
A rear gate assembly 70 is mounted to the rear upright frame post 28
of the one of the upright support structures 24. The gate assembly 70 features
an
upright blocking member 72 lying parallel to the upright frame post 28 at
distance
spaced horizontally therefrom. A plurality of curved or arc-shaped gate
brackets 74
each have one end fixed to the blocking member 72 at a respective position
therealong and another end pivotally coupled between respective mounting lugs
76
on the upright frame post by a pivot pin 78. The gate brackets 74 and attached
blocking member 72 are pivotable about a shared axis of the pivot pins, which
lies
parallel to the upright frame post 28. Figures 1 to 4 show the gate assembly
in a
closed position in which the blocking member 72 lies at an intermediate
location
between the two upright structures 24, and more particularly at a vertical
plane
disposed intermediately between the vertical planes of the rear support rails
58 on
which the rollers 62 are rotably mounted. This way, when in the closed
position, the
blocking member 72 obstructs passage of a bale or stack of bales from out of
the
space between the two upright structures 24 adjacent the rear end of the
frame,
which defines a stacking station at which bales are lifted and compiled into a
vertical
stack. Figures 5 through 8 illustrated blocking of rearward discharge of bales
from
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the accumulated by the closed gate assembly 70. On the other hand, Figure 9
shows the gate assembly 70 swung laterally outward from the closed position
into an
open position in which the blocking member 72 is withdrawn laterally outward
from
between the upright vertical structures 24 at the sides of the trailer frame
12 to allow
gravitational discharge of a stack of bales from the accumulator.
With reference to Figure 2, movement of the gate assembly between
the open and closed positions is provided by a suitable actuator, as defined
in the
illustrated embodiment a hydraulic cylinder 78 having its cylinder end
pivotally
attached to the rearmost one of the intermediate upright frame posts 34 of the
respective support structure 24 at the outside thereof. The rod end of the
hydraulic
cylinder is pivotally coupled to an intermediate link 80 that is releasably
fastened to a
respective one of the arc-shaped gate brackets 74 and extends laterally
outward
from the link 80 to a point beyond the respective upright support structure
24. The
intermediate link 80 has multiple bolt holes therein from which a user can
select for
the purpose of attaching the link 80 to the gate bracket 74. Use of a
different one of
the bolt holes 80 in the intermediate link changes the distance from the pivot
axis of
the gate assembly 70 to the point on the link 80 at which the cylinder rod is
pinned,
thereby changing the travel distance experienced by the gate assembly about
its
pivot axis for a given travel length of the cylinder's piston rod. By reducing
the travel
distance of the gate about its pivot axis under extension of the cylinder 78,
the
position of the blocking member 72 in the longitudinal direction when the gate
is
closed is shifted further rearward, allowing bales to hang further from the
rear end of
the trailer frame when abutted against the gate, thereby accommodating a
greater
length of bale in the stacking station of the accumulator. Where a baler
configured
for short bale lengths is used, the closed position of the blocking member 72
can be
shifted forward to better position the bale relative to the pickup or lifting
mechanism
at the stacking station when the bale is in a lift-ready position in abutment
with the
blocking member 72 of the gate assembly 70.
The use of curved gate brackets 74 whose arc-shape curves firstly
inwardly and rearwardly and then forwardly and inwardly so as to face
concavely
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forward in the longitudinal direction has been found to better avoid breakage
of the
bale strings during opening of the gate versus a flat gate structure that
would extend
straight across the rear of the stacking station, as the upright blocking
member 72
carried on the curved brackets forms the sole area of contact with the bale at
a
narrow upright strip near the transverse center of the bale. As shown, the
blocking
member 72 is preferably cylindrical in shape, whereby the curved periphery of
the
blocking member where its front side contacts the bales further reduces any
damage
to, or catching on, the bales. The connection of the gate cylinder 78 to the
lowermost one of the gate brackets 74 in Figures 1 to 4 is preferable over the
top-
bracket attachment in Figures 5-9, as testing has found the gate to experience
most
of its loading at its lower portion, and lower placement of the cylinder has
thus been
found to better resist twisting of the gate under loading conditions. The
hydraulic
cylinder 78 is connected to the intermediate link 80 by a shear pin 82 of a
selected
strength configured to fail under the application of a rearward force on the
gate that
is less than the maximum plunger force of the baler, whereby in the event of
hydraulic failure under which automated opening of the gate by the cylinder 78
does
not occur, the shear pin 82 will fail and release the gate from the cylinder
78, thereby
allowing the gate to automatically swing open under the force applied against
the
blocking member 72 by the stacked bales at the accumulator's rear-end stacking
station.
Attention is now turned to the mechanism by which individually arriving
bales fed onto the roller pathway of the accumulator from the baler are
arranged into
a single vertical stack at the stacking station adjacent the rear end of the
trailer
frame 12. A lift arm assembly 90 features a pair of identical lift arms 92
each
disposed at the interior side of a respective one of the upright support
structures 24
and pivotally supported thereon by a horizontal stub shaft 94 mounted to the
front
side of the upright frame post 26 of the support structure 24 near the header
30
thereof. An interconnecting box-beam 96 horizontally attaches the two lift
arms 92
together in the transverse direction to encourage synchronous motion of the
two
arms 92 about their common horizontal pivot axis defined in the transverse
direction
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by their aligned stub-shafts 94 and corresponding bearings. A respective
hydraulic
cylinder 98 is pivotally coupled between each lift arm 92 and a rearward lug
100 that
is fixed to the respective front upright frame post 26. Each cylinder 98
extends
upward and rearward from its mounting lug 100 and connects to the respective
lift
arm 92 within the longitudinal space between the front upright frame post 26
and the
front guide pole 40 of the respective support structure 24. The two hydraulic
cylinders 98 are operated in parallel to drive pivotal motion of the lift arms
92 about
their shared pivot axis.
A respective arc-shaped hanger link 102 pivotally hangs from each lift
arm 92 proximate a distal lifting end thereof that is furthest from the arm's
pivot axis
and resides in alignment with the space between the two intermediate upright
posts
32, 34 of the respective upright support structure 24. A lift frame 104 is
pivotally
suspended from each arc-shaped hanger link 102. The lift frame 104 features a
generally triangular panel 106 that is pinned to the hanger link 102 near an
upper
point of the panel's generally triangular shape for pivoting of the panel 106
relative to
the hanger link 102 about a transverse horizontal axis parallel to that of the
pivotal
connection of the hanger link 102 to the lift arm 92, The panel 106 lies in a
vertical
plane adjacent and parallel to that of the respective support structure 24 on
the inner
side thereof, and overlies an open space that is left between the support
rails 58 of
the rear roller assembly and the support structure 24 in the transverse
direction of
the trailer frame 12. A bottom edge of the panel 106 lies parallel to the
longitudinal
side of the trailer frame 12. At opposite ends of this bottom edge of the
panel 106,
i.e. at tapered forward and rearward ends of the generally triangular panel
106, a
pair of guide followers 108 are fixed to the panel. Each guide follower
features a
bracket 108a that is attached to the panel 106 and carries a rigid hollow
cylinder
108b, which may be defined by metal pipe or tubing and is oriented axially
upright in
a position closing around a respective one of the guide poles 40, 42 of the
respective upright support structure 24 for sliding displacement upward and
downward therealong under raising and lowering of the lift arms 92 by the
parallel
pair of hydraulic cylinders 98. The sliding fit of the hollow cylinders 108b
of the
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guide followers 108 on the guide poles 40, 42 restrains motion of the ends of
the lift
frame panel 106 to the parallel linear axes of the upright guide poles 40, 42,
thereby
preventing pivotal or tilting motion of the panels 106 about a horizontal
axis. This
provides stability to the lifting/stacking mechanism to maintain a consistent
orientation of the bales handled thereby regardless of variations in bale
sizes that
may result in the weight of a given bale not being perfectly centered in the
longitudinal direction relative to the pivotal support of the lifting frame
panels 106 at
the top peaks thereof.
Attention is now turned to devices carried on the lift frames to engage
a bale that is seated on the rear rollers from opposing sides thereof for
lifting of the
bale under elevation of the lift frames via raising of the lift arms 92 by the
parallel
hydraulic cylinders 98. The two brackets 108a at each end of each lift frame
panel
106 each carry a respective bearing whose rotational axis lies in the
longitudinal
direction at a spaced distance below the bottom edge of the panel 106. These
two
bearings on the end brackets 108a of each lift panel align with one another,
and
rotatably support a longitudinal shaft 110 that spans between them on their
shared
longitudinal axis. The shaft 110 is best seen in Figures 5 to 7 in which the
lift frames
are in an elevated position having lifted a bale from the rear rollers 62.
Near each
end of the shaft 110, a bracket plate 112 is welded or otherwise fixed to the
shaft to
lie in a plane perpendicular thereto. The two bracket plates 112 of each shaft
110
have matching shape and are in alignment with one another around the shaft
axis_
Each bracket plate 112 has a right-angle cutout on a side thereof that
normally faces
laterally inward toward the transverse center of the machine so that in this
normal
default position, one side of the right-angle cut out lies horizontally and
faces
.. vertically upward and the other side lies vertically and faces laterally
inward toward
the center of the machine. A respective length of angle iron 114 is fixed to
the two
bracket plates 112 on each shaft 110 to extend longitudinally between the
bracket
plates 112 in a position seated in the right-angle cutouts thereof so that the
two legs
of the angle-iron's right-angle cross-section seat against and match the
orientation of
the two sides of the right-angle cutouts in the bracket plates 112.
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As best shown in Figure 10E, with the bracket plates 112 and angle
iron 114 in the normal default position, a lever portion 112a of each bracket
plate
112 projects laterally outward from the rest of the bracket plate 112 at the
outer side
thereof opposite the right-angle cutout in which the angle iron 114 is seated.
In this
default position, the angle iron 114 lies just slightly inward from the
vertical plane of
the lift frame panel 106 in the transverse direction of the machine and just
outside
the vertical plane of the respective support rail 58 of the rear roller
assembly. Still
referring to Figure 10E, when the lift frame is in its fully lowered position
corresponding to the fully collapsed state of the lift cylinders 98, the angle
iron 114
lies in the space between the respective rear support rail 58 and the upright
support
structure 24 on which the lift frame rides. In this fully lowered position,
the upward-
facing leg of the angle iron 114 lies at an elevation a short distance below a
tangential bale-contact plane shared by the topsides of the set of rear
rollers 62, and
the inward facing leg of the angle iron reaches upward a short distance past
this
tangential contact plane of the rear rollers 62. The rear rollers of the
apparatus are
of a predetermined length that is somewhat exceeded by the expected bale-
width,
so that the bale supported on the rear rollers slightly overhangs both sides
of the
rear roller assembly so that the longitudinal bottom edge at each side of the
bale
overlies the upward facing leg of the angle iron 114 of the fully lowered bale
engagement device on the respective lift frame.
Still referring to Figure 10E, raising of the lift frames and attached bale
engagement devices by the lift arms 92 from their lowermost position thus
draws the
upward facing legs of the angle irons 114 up against the underside of the bale
at the
longitudinal bottom side edges of the bale, whereby continued lifting of the
lift frames
acts to lift the bale upwardly from off the rear rollers. The upward facing
legs of the
angle irons 114 thus form respective lift pads whose distal edges point toward
the
transverse center of the machine in their default machine to reach under the
bale
when in the fully lowered position to enable lifting of the bale from off the
rear rollers
by these lift pads.
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As best shown in Figure 11, each bracket plate 112, and thus the
angle iron 114 thereon, is biased into the described normal default position
by a
tension spring 116 that is hooked between a hole near the outermost distal end
of
the lever portion 112a and an eyebolt 118 that depends downward from a gusset
plate 120 that is fixed between the outer side of the lift frame panel 106 and
the
respective one of the end brackets 108a thereof. In their default collapsed
conditions, the tension springs 116 maintain the above-described normal
default
position of the bracket plates 112 and angle iron 114 of the bale engagement
mechanism. A concave cutaway of each bracket plate 112 underlies the right-
angle
cutaway therein when in the default position, so that this concave cutaway
faces
downwardly and laterally inward. A concave plate 122 spans longitudinally from
one
bracket plate 112 to the other bracket plate 112 on the same lift frame panel
106 to
lie parallel to the angle iron 114 therebeneath and provide a concave contour
that
conforms to that of the bracket plate cutaways over the full length of the
bale
engagement mechanism spanning the lengthwise bottom edge of the lift frame
panel
106
The bale engagement device of each lift frame thus defines a lifter
formed by the combination of the bracket plates 112, the lift pad angle irons
114
carried thereby, and the concave bottom plate 122 attached to the bracket
plates.
As described above with reference to Figure 10E, these lifters are operable to
reach
beneath a bale that is seated atop the rear rollers for lifting of the bale
therefrom by
raising of the lift arms 92. The lift arm hydraulic cylinders 98 extend far
enough from
their collapsed positions to raise the lift frames and attached bale
engagement
devices by a height exceeding the height of the bales produced by the baler,
whereby the bottom of the lifted bale is positioned high enough that a next
bale from
the baler can slide along the rollers into a position below the raised bale
into
abutment against the blocking member 72 of the rear gate 70. At this point,
the two-
way lift arm cylinders 98 are collapsed so as to lower the lift frames and
bale
engagement mechanisms back toward the lowered position.
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The initial stage of this lowering motion is shown in Figure 10A, where
a newly introduced bale 200A underlies a previously raised bale 200B that was
lifted
to an elevated position over the rear rollers by the angle-iron lift pads 114.
Lowering
the lift frames on which the raised bale 200B is carried brings the concave
bottom
plate 122 of the lifters down against the top longitudinal side edges of the
underlying
bale 200A, the resistance of which forces this concave underside of the lifter
to
move upwardly and laterally outward about the axis of the longitudinal shaft
110
against the biasing force of the tension springs 116 that pull upwardly on the
bracket
plate levers 112a on the other side of the longitudinal shaft 110. The free
distal
edge of the lifting pad leg of the angle iron 114 thus tilts upwardly and
outwardly,
thereby withdrawing it from beneath the raised bale 200B, whereby the raised
bale
seats itself atop the underlying bale 200A. The curved underside 122 of the
lifter
helps to encourage the lifter to pivot outward in this manner, rather than
being driven
downward through the edge-adjacent portion of the underlying bale 200A. With
reference to Figures 10B through 10D, the side of the bottom bale 200A
continues to
keep the lifter in its retracted position tilted outwardly from the bale-
accommodating
space of the stacking station until the distal free edges of the lift pads
reach the
bottom longitudinal side edges of the sides of the bottom bale 200A, whereupon
the
collapse of the tension springs 116 automatically forces the lifters back into
their
normal default position as they reach the lowered state at an elevation below
the
bottom bale 200A. Here, the stacking mechanism is ready to repeat the lifting
process, thereby lifting the first two already-stacked bales 200A and 200B via
the
underside of the bottom bale 200A to allow introduction of third bale beneath
them to
form a three-high stack of bales.
As best shown in Figures 5, 7 and 10A-10C, an elongated hanging
guide member 130 is attached to the two end brackets 108a of each lift frame
just
below the rotatably supported longitudinal shaft 110 so as to hang parallel to
the
shaft 110 in a position thereunder. This way, when the lift frames are in the
raised
position placing the bale engagement devices high enough to accommodate the
next bale under the lifted bale(s), the hanging guide members 130 reach
downward
CA 2841188 2019-01-21
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to an elevation lower than that the height of the next incoming bale arriving
at the
stacking station of the accumulator. Hanging just inside the respective
upright
support structure 24 on which the lift frames ride, each guide member 130 thus
blocks a respective side of the bale from overshooting the respective side of
the rear
roller assembly too far and impacting the upright support structure 24 at this
side of
the trailer frame. The rear corner of a misshapen or mis-oriented bale coming
out of
the baler will thus run into the bale guide 130 and be guided longitudinally
of the
machine rather than jamming, catching or tearing in the framework of the
support
structure 24.
As best seen in 10A-10C, the transverse cross-section of each guide
member 130 of the illustrated embodiment features a tapered or wedge-shaped
upper portion 130a that reduces in width in a downward direction from the top
end of
the guide member, and a planar lower 130b portion depending further downward
from the narrowed lower end of the upper portion. This way, during lowering of
the
lift frames from the elevated position after lifting of one or more bales, if
the bottom
bale is offset more to one side of the machine than the other, the sliding of
the
downwardly tapered guide members down along the two sides will impart a
centering action on the bale, nudging the overshot side of the bale laterally
inward
toward the center of the machine to reduce the likelihood of the respective
lifter
catching on the top longitudinal side edge of the bottom bale as it is
conveyed
downward therepast toward the fully lowered position.
When the lift frames are in the fully lowered position, during arrival of
the first one of the bales to be placed in the stack, it is the panels 106
that instead
provide the bale guiding function to prevent the incoming bale from
overshooting the
sides of the roller path and encourage longitudinal alignment of the bale
therewith.
Having described the bulk of its structure, operation of the accumulator
is now described with reference to Figures 5 to 9. A first bale 300a is
ejected from
the outlet of the baler by the plunger thereof, thus being forced rearwardly
on the
front rollers of the accumulator into a position reaching over an initial few
of the rear
rollers, at which point the bale automatically tips rearwardly downward under
gravity
CA 2841188 2019-01-21
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due to the oblique inclination of the rear set of rollers, whereby the bale
continues
automatically rearward over the unpowered rear rollers of the accumulator,
which
thus lacks need for of any powered bale-conveyance means along the
longitudinal
path of the machine. One or more position sensors 400a, 400b proximate the
rear
end of the trailer frame detect arrival of this first bale at the lift-ready
position
abutting the contact member 72 of the rear gate, thus marking the arrival of
the bale
at the stacking station defined at this rearward area of the longitudinal
roller path.
Preferably two sets of sensors are used at the rear of the machine, for
example an
electronic optical sensor 400a and a mechanical switch 400b tripped by actual
physical contact by the bale, whereby a 'presence detected' signal from the
electronic sensors triggered by a operator inspecting the rear of the machine
will not
alone trigger any actuation of the stacking mechanism or gate actuators.
Upon receiving indication from the rear sensors of successful arrival of
the first bale at the stacking station, a programmable logic controller (PLC)
402 or
suitable control configuration checks for a similar 'presence detected' signal
from a
similar bale-detection sensor 404 proximate the front of the trailer frame. If
no bale
is detected at the front of the machine (i.e. the next bale from the balder
has not yet
reached the position of the sensor in the longitudinal direction of the
accumulator
frame 12), then the controller proceeds to initiate a bale-lifting action on
the first bale
300a. If a bale is detected at the front of the machine, it is recognized as
an
indication that this earlier than expected arrival of the next bale at the
front rollers
relative to the detected arrival of the first bale at the lift-ready position
means than
there is insufficient time to raise the first bale before the second bale will
reach the
stacking station, and the controller thus actuates opening of the rear gate 70
to allow
the first bale 300a to exit the rear of the accumulator alone and fall to the
ground
without first attempting to stacking the first bale on the second bale.
However, provided that no simultaneous front and rear presence of
bales is detected, the controller initiates the above described bale-lifting
action on
the first bale at the stacking station by controling appropriate valving 406
between a
hydraulic pump 408 of the accumulator and the parallel hydraulic cylinders 98
to
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extend these cylinders and thereby effect raising of the lift arms 92. Figure
5 shows
this state where the first bale 300a has been lifted to accommodate receipt of
an
expected second bale beneath same.
The controller maintains the extended state of the lift arm cylinders 98
.. until arrival of a second bale at the stacking station is confirmed by the
rear sensors,
at which time the controller switches the state of the control valving to
cause
collapse of the lift arm cylinders 98 so as to lower the lift frames and bale
engaging
devices, thereby seating the elevated first bale 300a atop the newly arrived
second
bale 300b and returning the bale lifters to their fully lowered position. At
this point,
.. provided that a third bale has not yet been detected at the front of the
accumulator
(based on which an early gate opening procedure would be initiated as
described
above in view of an insufficient window of time for raising the stacked first
and
second bales before arrival of a third bale at the rear of the machine), the
lift process
is repeated, whereby the stacked first and second bales 300a, 300b are lifted,
as
shown in Figure 6, to accommodate displacement of a third bale 300c along the
roller-lined conveyance pathway into a position beneath the first two bales at
the
stacking station, as shown in Figure 7. Once the third bale 300c is confirmed
by the
rear sensors 400a, 400b to have fully slid into place beneath the raised first
and
second bales and into contact with the blocking member 72 of the gate 70, the
lift
.. frames and bale-engaging devices are fully lowered again by collapse of the
lift arm
cylinders 98, as shown in Figure 8, at which time actuation of the gate
cylinder 78 to
open the gate 70 is effected by the controller to allow gravitational ejection
of the
three stacked bales from the rear of the machine to the ground, as shown in
Figure
9.
It will be appreciated that although the above embodiment has been
described in term of forming three-bale stacks as the normal default operation
when
no bale-feeding errors are detected, other embodiments may be configured to
stack
only a maximum of two bales, or stack more than three bales.
As shown in the illustrated embodiment, in addition to the rear set of
.. rollers 62 on which each bale is seated at the stacking station, a
separately mounted
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and independently height-adjustable rearmost roller 140 may be provided, for
example mounted behind the rear cross-beam 22 by a respective pair of mounting
brackets 142 that are attached to the rear footer beams 36, 38 of the upright
support
structures 24 at the sides of the trailer frame 12. The height adjustability
of this roller
may be provided in a similar manner to that described above for the grouped
front
and rear roller sets, where multiple bolt hole pairs at different heights are
provided in
the mounting brackets 142 such that the bearings that rotatably support this
individual rearmost roller 140 can be attached to the mounting brackets 142 at
different heights. The selectable heights preferably include a height at which
the
shared tangential plane of the rear roller set is also tangential with a
topside
circumferential point of the individual rearmost roller 140, and at least one
height
lower than this. Setting the rear roller in a position offset below the
inclined plane of
the grouped rear rollers 62 can be used to reduce the drop height from the
accumulator to the ground in order to provide a smoother transition between
the
accumulator and the ground, for example to reduce potential tipping over of
the
stack of bales as it is released from the accumulator at notable travelling
speeds.
The front sensor 404 may be mounted on a pair of incoming bale
guides 144 that, as best shown in Figures 3 and 4, are attached to the front
upright
frame posts 26 of the upright support structures 24 and present inwardly
directed
vertical faces that flare laterally outward in the forward direction where
they extend
forwardly past the front upright frame posts 26 so as to encourage centering
of the
incoming bales from the baler as they enter the roller-equipped longitudinal
pathway
of the accumulator 10. The sensor 404 may comprise a transmitter/emitter
mounted
to the one incoming bale guide and a receiver/detector mounted to the other of
the
incoming bale guide, whereby interruption of a signal travelling from the
transmitter
to the receiver across the longitudinal roller path marks the presence of a
bale or
other object at the location of these devices along the longitudinal direction
of the
machine. The sensor components are mounted to the outer side of each bale
guide
so as not to protrude from the bale-contacting inner faces of the guides 144.
As
shown by the presence of multiple holes in the inward faces of the incoming
bale
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guides 144, the sensor components may be mountable at a user-selectable one of
several possible mounting sites in order to determine how far a bale reaches
into the
accumulator before setting of the front sensor, thereby allowing customization
of the
control system, for example to accommodate different bale lengths.
The rear electronic sensor 400a may similarly be mounted on outgoing
bale guides 146 (Fig. 12) attached to the upright support structures and
present
inwardly directed vertical faces that flare laterally inward in the rearward
direction
where so as to encourage centering of the incoming bales from the baler. The
rear
mechanical sensor 400b may be mounted on an intermediate transverse support
member 146 spanning between the support rails 58 of the rear roller set, as
best
shown in Figures 1 and 2, to place the contact member of the sensor switch in
an
open position reaching a short height above the tangential contact plane of
the rear
rollers from the space between an adjacent pair of the rear rollers for
rearward
pivoting of the contact down into a switch-closing position in the space
between the
.. rollers as the rear end of a bale moves rearwardly past the switch.
A set of ground wheels 150 rollably support the trailer frame 12 over
the ground at a distance rearward from the front end of the accumulator frame
12,
for example as represented by the pair of ground wheels situated
intermediately of
the two trailer frame ends, but nearer the rear end thereof, in the
illustrated
.. embodiment. In addition to the above described adjustability of the rear
roller set
inclination angle relative to the frame, which allows an owner/operator to
choose
angle of incline to adjust the speed at which the bales are gravitationally
conveyed to
the stacking station, a mechanism for adjusting the height of the ground wheel
axes
relative to the frame may also be provided to allow adjustment of the downward
and
rearward angle of incline of the trailer frame itself, thereby also
contributing to user-
adjustment of the roller plane's angle of inclination to control the speed of
bale travel
along, and subsequently off the rear end of, the machine.
For optimal following of the towed accumulator behind the baler, the
illustrated embodiment employs castering ground wheels, where a lateral
overhead
support 152 attached to the respective upright support frame 24 extends
laterally
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outward therefrom in the transverse direction and an axle support arm 154
depends
downward from the overhead support 152 near the outer end thereof. The axle
support arm 154 freely swivels on an upright axis of its connection to the
overhead
support 152, and carries a horizontal stub shaft or axle 155 on which the
respective
.. ground wheel 150 is rotatably supported near the lower end of the axle
support arm.
The height adjustability of one of the ground wheels 150 is most visible
in Figure 15, which shows a mounting plate 156 fixed in place between the two
intermediate upright frame members 32, 34 of the respective upright support
structure 24 to lie in a vertical plane at the side of the machine. The plate
features
.. bolt holes 157 therein by which a corresponding vertical plate at the inner
end of the
overhead support 152 of the wheel assembly is bolted. The bolt holes in the
mounting plate 156 are laid out to present at least two duplicated sets of a
bolt hole
pattern found in the wheel assembly plate, and each bolt hole set in the
mounting
plate 156 resides at a different respective height relative to the trailer
frame 12.
Accordingly, the wheel assembly plate can be mounted at any selectable one of
a
number of different heights relative to the trailer frame, thereby likewise
setting the
position of the wheel axle relative to the trailer frame to one of a number of
heights.
Although only one wheel height adjustment arrangement is shown, a matching set
of
mounting and wheel assembly plates is used at the other side of the machine,
whereby the two ground wheels are set at the same height relative to the
trailer
frame in order to set the rear-end height of the trailer frame relative to the
ground,
and thereby set the trailer frame's angle of inclination.
As with the height adjustment of the roller support rails, multiple
fastening point heights may be defined on either one or both of the elements
.. concerned (i.e. the mounting plate and/or the wheel assembly plate). That
is, while
the illustrated embodiment employs a single bolt hole set in the wheel
assembly
plate, and multiple bolt hole sets in the mounting plate, the reverse
arrangement
may be employed, just as multiple bolt hole sets in both plates is possible.
Alternatively, other wheel height-adjustment mechanisms may be employed.
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Turning back to Figure 11, a transition plate 160 is carried at a position
situated in front of the forwardmost one of the front rollers 54 by a pair of
L-shaped
or J-shaped rail extensions 162 respectively fastened to the front support
rails 52 to
extend longitudinally therefrom before turning a short distance upwardly to
carry the
transition plate 160 in a transverse position parallel to the rollers 54, 62.
Upwardly
extending slots 164 in the upturned ends of the rail extensions 162 align with
bolt
holes in a pair of vertically oriented end brackets 166 depending downwardly
from
the transition plate 160 near the ends thereof, whereby the height of the
transition
plate 160 can be adjusted relative to the rail extensions 162, and thus
relative to the
plane of the front support rails 52 and the front rollers carried thereon.
Longitudinal
slots 168 in the longitudinal portion of each rail extension are provided near
the rear
end thereof that overlies the side of the respective front support rail for
alignment
with bolt holes in the front support rails, whereby the extensions can be
adjusted
forward and rearward relative to the front support rails to adjust the
distance by
which they reach forward therefrom to support the transition plate 160.
Accordingly,
the user can tighten the bolts at a selected position to set a desired
position of the
transition plate in the longitudinal direction. The illustrated embodiment
shows a
number of longitudinal slots that exceed the number of bolt holes used to
fasten the
extensions, whereby longitudinal adjustment is possible through both relative
sliding
along the slots, and selection from among different alienable openings.
With reference to Figure 14, the transition plate 160 helps the bales
300a, 300b, 300c transition smoothly from the baler B to the rollers of the
accumulator. The bolt-on rail extensions can easily be detached from the
trailer
frame to remove the transition plate for baler models in which the position of
the
hitch H and its cooperation with the hitch connection 18 of the accumulator
sets the
forwardmost roller of the accumulator close enough to the baler output that
the
transition plate is not required. For other baler models, with a larger gap
between
the baler output and accumulator rollers, the transition plate may be required
to
avoid damage to or jamming of the bale as it exits the baler B and transitions
onto
the rollers, particularly since it is known that the bales from some balers
are still
CA 2841188 2019-01-21
30
undergoing compression into their final form as they initially start to eject
from the
rear of the baler. The transition plate 160 helps support the fluffy rear end
of such
bales. The height adjustability of the transition plate accommodates varying
heights
between the baler output and baler hitch among different brands and models of
balers.
With continued reference to Figure 14, the accumulator 10 is
preferably sold to the customer in combination with hitch H that includes a
hitch
mount 170 for attachment to an underside of the baler B at the outlet end
thereof.
Different models of the hitch mount 170 may be produced with different
mounting
details for different models of balers. Each hitch mount features a series of
vertically
spaced holes 172 therein for pinned connection of a linking member 174 to the
hitch
mount at any selected one of the holes 170. The linking member extends
downward
from the mount and connects to the hitch connection 18 of the accumulator 10.
Accordingly, selection from among the different pin holes 170 allows the
operator to
.. set the height at which the hitch connection 18 resides relative to the
outlet of the
baler B. As shown, the hitch may further incorporate stabilizer bars 176 (only
one of
which is visible in Figure 14) that each extend rearwardly from the underside
of the
baler B to pivotally connect to a pair forward projecting lugs 178 at a
respective end
of the front end cross-beam 20 of the accumulator's trailer frame 12.
Since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein
above described, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying
specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting
sense.
CA 2841188 2019-01-21
