The Toro Company

Gerald Eugene Goman

Robert David Patton

Donald B Schnotala

Nicholas John Sirek

Ricky A Galewski

Christopher C Dickey

Joel M Dunlap

Gary R Lamusga

Michael J Gilberg

Ronald L Eichten

Steve A Sallstrom

Larry W Schmidt

Thomas F Langworthy

Malachy P Fay

Donald A Keeney

Todd P Legault

John E Close

Joseph W Pfankuch

Rodney W Woock

Neil R Whitman

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries a handle assembly to accommodate users of different heights. The handle assembly can extend rearwardly and upwardly from the traction frame and can include a lower support, operatively coupled to the traction frame, and an upper mount carrying a handle which is gripped by a user during operation of the mower to guide and manipulate the mower. The upper mount can be slidingly movable relative to the lower support to raise or lower the handle relative to the ground to adjust the height of the handle above the ground to suit users of different heights who walk on the ground behind the traction frame while operating the mower. A latch can also be provided that is carried on the handle assembly and that engages between the lower support and the upper mount in one of a plurality of positions of the upper mount relative to the lower support.

Walk reel mower with adjustable handle assembly

A walk reel mower has a pivotal rear traction drum that can be selectively disposed in two different mowing positions that allow a single mower to cut grass on golf course greens as well as tee boxes with no degradation in cutting or power performance. The reel cutting unit has a pivotal rear shield to allow the rear shield to be pivotally adjusted to maintain its radial spacing relative to the orbit of the reel at a desired amount as the reel diameter decreases due to wear.

Walk reel mower with pivotal shield

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries at least one ground engaging member operatively powered by a prime mover. A rotatable cutting reel is operatively powered by the prime mower for pushing grass against a bedknife to cut the grass. A handle assembly is used to guide and manipulate the mower, and a traction bail on the handle assembly disengages and engages the traction drive. The traction bail is movable between first and second positions that have a range of motion large enough to permit the user to move the control into at least one intermediate position to produce a reduced ground speed greater than zero but less than the nominal ground speed.

Walk reel mower with handle assembly

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries at least one ground engaging member operatively powered by a prime mover The mower includes a handle assembly that extends rearwardly and upwardly from the traction frame. The handle assembly includes a handle to be gripped by a user when operating the mower. The handle guides and manipulates the mower. The mower also includes a common mount adapted to attach a reel cutting unit to the traction frame. The common mount has a first pair of laterally spaced mounting surfaces on the traction frame and a second pair of laterally spaced mounting surfaces on the reel cutting unit. The first pair of mounting surfaces face forwardly with respect to a forward direction of movement, and the second pair of mounting surfaces face rearwardly with respect to the forward direction of movement.

Walk reel mower with common mount

A walk reel mower has a traction frame that carries a rotatable cutting reel that pushes grass against a bedknife for cutting the grass. A handle assembly extends rearwardly and upwardly from the traction frame. The handle assembly carries a handle that is gripped by a user to operate the mower as the user walks on the ground behind the traction frame. The handle assembly has upper and lower portions that have a telescopic connection to one another to adjust the height of the handle above the ground to accommodate users of different heights.

Walk reel mower with a telescopic handle assembly

A fixed head walk reel mower has a frame supported for rolling over the ground. A reel cutting unit comprising a rotatable reel and a cooperating bedknife has a fixed orientation on the frame. The frame pivotally carries a ground engaging pivotal rear traction drum that can be selectively disposed in two different mowing positions when cutting grass at lower or higher height of cut ranges, respectively. This allows a single mower to cut grass at lower heights of cut on golf course greens as well as at higher heights of cut on tee boxes while minimizing degradation in cutting or power performance.

Fixed head walk reel mower with a pivotally adjustable traction drum having different mowing positions

A turf groomer is coupled to a reel cutting unit in advance of the cutting reel and is powered by a gearbox having a rotary gear drive that is capable of selectively rotating the turf groomer in opposite directions at different speeds. The rotary gear drive is symmetrical about a plane through the axes of the input and output shafts thereof to permit the gearbox to be inverted to drive the turf groomer from either the left or right sides without requiring that two different models of the gear drive be available. The gearbox is connected to the reel cutting unit only by connecting the end of the input shaft to a shaft of the cutting reel and through a connection to a height adjuster for the turf groomer.

Reel mower having left or right hand drive turf groomer

A turf groomer is coupled to a reel cutting unit in advance of the cutting reel and is powered by a gearbox having a rotary gear drive that provides alternately usable first and second drive paths capable of selectively rotating the turf groomer in opposite directions at different speeds. The rotary gear drive includes an axially slidable input gear on an input shaft. An actuator is coupled to the input gear to slide the input gear from one position in which the input gear is within the first drive path to select rotation of the turf groomer in a first direction at a first rotational speed. Alternatively, the actuator can slide the input gear into a second operational position in which the input gear is within the second drive path to select rotation of the turf groomer in an opposite direction at a different speed.

Reel mower having bidirectional turf groomer capable of left or right hand drive

A reel mower has a double A arm suspension that lowers a reel cutting unit into a cutting position in a tail down orientation and that levels the reel cutting unit out as it lifts the reel cutting unit into a transport position. The reel cutting unit yaws during turns about a substantially vertical axis having a negative caster angle. The suspension has clamps that can be flipped open or closed to quickly attach or detach the reel cutting unit. A drive motor can be quickly attached or detached to the reel cutting unit using a pivotal wire form. An active counterbalance system automatically offsets the increasing weight of a grass basket on the reel cutting unit to maintain quality of cut. The grass basket maintains a constant spacing relative to the reel cutting unit when the reel cutting unit pitches to improve clipping collection.

Reel mower with easily removable cutting units having easily removable motors

Reel mower with cutting units having yaw pivot structure at a negative caster angle

A reel mower has a plurality of reel cutting units. Each reel cutting unit is connected to a frame of the reel mower by its own double A arm suspension that lowers a reel cutting unit into a cutting position in a tail down orientation and that levels the reel cutting unit out as it lifts the reel cutting unit into a transport position.

Reel mower with cutting units suspended by double A arm suspensions

A walk reel mower includes a pair of inclined rigid links for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for rolling about a longitudinal axis, and a pair of vertical support arms for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for pitching about a transverse axis. An integrated gearbox houses both the traction and reel drives, including the differential that is part of the traction drive, as well as a parking brake. A flexible drive shaft powers the cutting reel from the gearbox and is made from materials that do not require petroleum based lubricants to avoid the possibility of damage to the turf or grass. A single control handle located on the handle of the mower actuates both the reel and traction drives. The reel cutting unit includes a back plate which has a portion formed as a hollow beam for strength. The reel cutting unit also has a pivot axis for the bedknife allowing adjustment of the bedknife relative to the cutting reel without changing the longitudinal location of the front edge of the bed-knife to ensure consistent cutting of the cutting unit. Finally, an improved mounting for the grass basket used on he cutting unit is disclosed which mounting avoids inadvertent disengagement of the grass basket from the cutting unit.

Reel mower having transversely spaced, pivotal, and rigid links permitting cutting unit roll

An autonomous mass damper is positioned proximate to each reel cutting unit in a ganged configuration of such cutting units. One mass damper is preferably mounted or directly carried on each such reel cutting unit. The mass damper is free to move independently of vertical up and down movement of the reel cutting unit as the reel cutting unit travels over the ground. The mass damper is connected to the reel cutting unit by a coupler or by coupling components that allow the mass damper to move in a counter motion to vertical up and down bouncing or bobbing of the reel cutting unit. The counter motion of the mass damper lessens or damps the bouncing or bobbing of the reel cutting unit to provide a more consistent height of cut.

Riding mower carrying a plurality of cutting units with tuned mass dampers for decreasing cutting unit bobbing

A walk reel mower includes a pair of inclined rigid links for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for rolling about a longitudinal axis, and a pair of vertical support arms for mounting the reel cutting unit to the reel mower frame for pitching about a transverse axis. An integrated gearbox houses both the traction and reel drives, including the differential that is part of the traction drive, as well as a parking brake. A flexible drive shaft powers the cutting reel from the gearbox and is made from materials that do not require petroleum based lubricants to avoid the possibility of damage to the turf or grass. A single control handle located on the handle of the mower actuates both the reel and traction drives. The reel cutting unit includes a back plate which has a portion formed as a hollow beam for strength. The reel cutting unit also has a pivot axis for the bedknife allowing adjustment of the bedknife relative to the cutting reel without changing the longitudinal location of the front edge of the bedknife to ensure consistent cutting of the cutting unit. Finally, an improved mounting for the grass basket used on the cutting unit is disclosed which mounting avoids inadvertent disengagement of the grass basket from the cutting unit.

Growing community of inventors

Spring Valley, WI, United States of America

Gerald Eugene Goman