Vermeer Manufacturing Company, Inc.

Brian Michael Johnson

James L O'Halloran

Ivan Ray Brand

Mark Robert Stelter

Dennis K Gabler

Jeffrey D Kernwein

Duane Allen Harthoorn

Jeffrey Belloma

Gary Verhoef

John Gary Gardner

Scott A Weishaar

Matthew William Dykema

Gary D Moffet

Curtis J Steenhoek

Jay C Van Roekel

John G Gardner

A material reducing machine includes a rotary reducing drum that is rotatable about an axis of rotation and defines a reducing boundary that extends at least partially around the axis of rotation. The material reducing machine includes an infeed conveyor for transporting material to a front portion of the rotary reducing drum and defines a conveyor plane. The material reducing machine includes a mill box at least partially surrounding the rotary reducing drum and including a mill box lid mounted generally above the rotary reducing drum. The mill box lid has an inlet edge positioned above a rear portion of the rotary reducing drum and an outlet edge positioned above the front portion of the rotary reducing drum. The mill box includes an infeed opening that is configured to receive material from a feed table and has an upper opening defined by the outlet edge of the mill box lid.

Mill box for a horizontal grinder

A bale processing machine that removes a binding from a bale allows for rapid bale processing. A method for removing the binding from the bale includes supporting the bale with a bale support at an elevated positon and securing the binding to a binding engagement device. The method also includes cutting the binding and removing the bale support from beneath the bale, such that at least a portion of the bale falls by gravity away from the binding secured to the binding engagement device.

Bale processor and binding remover

An improved brush cutter having an upper feed control member with stop, forward, neutral, and reverse positions also has a lower feed stop member with selectable sensitivity. Another aspect of the invention is to predict the feed roller shutoff point according to the rate of engine deceleration. According to another aspect, when the feed rollers stop feeding material into the cutters, to overcome drag on the cutters, a controller stops the feed rollers and then reverses them for a short time, and then reverses the rollers again if the problem is still present. To prevent jamming, a pressure switch senses when oil in a hydraulic motor system for rotating the feed rollers is too high and the controller momentarily reverses the feed rollers and then causes them to go forward, a cycle which can occur several times until the feed rollers are no longer stalled. By another aspect of the invention, the controller senses characteristics of the brush cutter and chooses an operating system based on the characteristics sensed. The controller can also sense if the brush chipper has not been used for a predetermined period of time and automatically reduce the idle speed of the engine until the brush chipper is used again, and then automatically return the engine to a normal idle speed before the feed rollers will pull brush into the brush chipper.

Method of controlling a brush chipper

Brush chipper and methods of operating same

Method of operating brush chippers

Growing community of inventors

Monroe, IA, United States of America

Brian Michael Johnson