Fuqua Industries, Inc.

Orville R McDonner

A walk-behind power driven lawn mower having a transverse handlebar rearwardly of the mower, a pair of hand operated control levers located forwardly of and adjacent to the handlebar and extending generally parallel thereto for establishing the drive and applying the brakes to a pair of driven wheels of the lawn mower. A park brake lever is mounted between said control levers for simultaneously applying the brakes to the driven wheels through a connection between the park brake lever and the control levers. A releasable latch mechanism releasably holds the park brake lever in the braking position. Another control lever in the form of a bail is mounted to be pivoted rearwardly relative to the handlebar for engaging idler pulleys when the transmission is shifted to provide reverse movement. Each drive to the wheels includes a drive pulley and belt and another idler pulley for engaging the belt to establish drive when the transmission is shifted for forward movement. During shifting of the transmission, the drive from the engine to the transmission is automatically disengaged. A dead man control lever is also mounted to be movable against the handlebar on a side opposite where the hand levers are located.

Lawn mower drive and control systems

A bearing assembly housing having at least one pair of spaced-apart bearing races surrounding a heavy duty drive shaft of a commercial lawn mower is provided with a critically located single grease fitting for introducing a lubricant to the housing to thereby allow the lubricant to enter at the top of the upper bearing race and migrate by force of gravity to the lowermost bearing race, thereby insuring sufficient lubrication of all the bearings in the housing.

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Conyers, GA, United States of America

Orville R McDonner