Deere + Company

James R Allen

Bernard Brandt Poore

William P Wohlford

Christopher Allen Myers

Jack C Wiley

Daniel L Leemans

LaVerne Anderson, Jr

A drawbar pickup system includes a drawbar in the form of a shaft rotatably coupled between aft ends of a pair of draft links, and a latch fixed to the shaft to define an aperture therebetween. A hook is fixed to an implement tongue so that it opens towards the drawbar. The drawbar is rotatable to a position wherein the hook can be inserted into and removed from the aperture and to a position wherein the latch member engages the bight portion of the hook to prevent separation of the hook from the drawbar. A locking mechanism is operable to rotate the drawbar and to releasably hold the drawbar in its positions.

Tractor/implement hitch

A powered vacuum is mounted between a tractor carrying a rotary mower and a trailer carrying a receptacle for moving material from the mower discharge to the receptacle. A mounting frame carries a blower which may include either an internal combustion engine or gearbox and a fan coupled directly to the engine or gearbox. The mounting frame is mounted to the tractor by connections defining three coplanar ball joints located to permit relative pitch and roll between the tractor and trailer. The mounting frame is easily releasably secured to the tongue of the trailer. The mounting frame is articulated between its opposite ends for movement about a tight vertical axis. The mounting frame, in one form, defines a receptacle for receiving a support member of a wheeled dolly for supporting the powered vacuum when the mounting frame is disconnected from the tractor and trailer, and in another form includes retractable wheels which may be selectively placed in an operative condition for supporting the vacuum.

Easily releasable mounting for supporting powered equipment between a

In an articulated combine, front and rear bogies are connected by spaced-apart upper and lower links. The upper link permits relative lateral movement between the bogies due to oscillation about a longitudinal axis. At the lower link, a rigid tongue of the rear bogie is connected to the front bogie by a ball hitch. Steering of the vehicle is through a pair of hydraulic cylinders controlled in part by a feedback cylinder. The steering cylinders are connected together to the rear bogie, at a common ball joint. All other connections of the hydraulic cylinders are ball and socket type and their effective pivot centers define respective transverse (kneel) and longitudinal (oscillation) axes, intersecting at the ball hitch. Forward connections of the steering cylinders and one end of the feedback cylinder lie on the kneel axis. The common rearward steering cylinder connection and the connection of the other end of the feedback cylinder lie on the oscillation axis. This arrangement isolates the steering system from oscillation and tipping movement of one bogie relative to the other in the sense that such movement, by itself, does not directly impose length changes or axial loading in the steering system cylinders.

Steering arrangement for an off-highway articulated vehicle

In an articulated combine, the hinge arrangement connecting the front and rear bogies consists of spaced-apart upper and lower links. The lower link construction provides for oscillation between the bogies as well as establishing a steering pivot center. The upper link normally lies in a fore-and-aft plane and is pivotally connected between rearward upper portions of the respective bogies, thus spanning the length of the rear bogie. The hinge arrangement also provides part of the structure for a conveyor for conveying clean grain between the front and rear bogies. In one embodiment, the upper link comprises an auger tube into which clean grain is introduced by a clean grain elevator and cross auger. In another embodiment, the lower link assembly does double duty as an auger conveyor housing.

Growing community of inventors

Bettendorf, IA, United States of America

James R Allen