Deere + Company

Matthew Jay Mentzer

Stephen K Parsons

James C Walters

An implement hitch is mounted to the forward end of an implement tongue for swivelling about an upright axis. The hitch includes right- and left-hand arm assemblies which each include separate inner and outer arms mounted for swinging about a horizontal transverse axis defined by a connection pin located in respective rear ends of the arms. A first embodiment of the inner and outer arms includes apertured balls universally mounted in forward ends of the arms, with the balls of each adjacent pair of inner and outer arms having a hitch pin extending therethrough which is adapted for being received in the receptacle of the hook of the corresponding side of a quick-coupler carried by the three-point hitch of a tractor. In a second embodiment, radiused apertures are provided in the forward ends of the inner and outer arms in lieu of the apertured balls. In the first, embodiment, the arms pivot vertically relative to each other and the balls swivel within the arms when the quick-coupler tilts relative to the implement swivel hitch whereby the hitch pins also tilt without generating undue loads on the arms. The operation of the second embodiment is similar to that of the first embodiment, however, in this case the radiused apertures in the arms together with the separate movement of the arms permit the pins to tilt without generating undue loads.

Implement swivel hitch for use with a quick-coupler

The forward end of a draft tongue of a towed, power take-off driven implement carries a transmission including an upper right-angle gear box rigidly fixed to the tongue and a lower right-angle gear box swivelly mounted to the tongue for rotation about a vertical yaw axis. A swivel hitch includes a frame secured to the lower right-angle gear box and to an upright extending pivot member forming part of the swivel mounting of the lower right-angle gear box. A longitudinal pivot member is swivelly mounted to the hitch frame along a roll axis. In one embodiment, a vertical clevis is fixed to a forward end of the longitudinal pivot member and is pivotally connected to a drawbar adaptor for relative rotation about a horizontal transverse pitch axis, the latter being located close to the rear end of a drawbar received in a receptacle defined by the adaptor. In a second embodiment, a transverse arm is fixed to the forward end of the longitudinal pivot member and carries forwardly extending vertical clevises respectively at its opposite ends, the pair of clevises being adapted for connection to a pair of tractor draft links with the connection pins effecting the connection being located along a pitch axis.

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Zweibrucken, Germany

Matthew Jay Mentzer