Deere + Company

Roger A Noyes

Edward T Kaczmarczyk

Rory Rae

A tractor-mounted loader includes a yoke member having legs joined by a bight member that carries a latch that is L-shaped in cross section and is pivotally mounted for movement between a closed position, wherein a first leg of the latch extends generally horizontally above and is engaged with a front-end weight bracket of the tractor carrying the loader, and an open position wherein the first leg is located in a generally upright position forwardly of the bracket. A control rod extends along one of the legs of the yoke member and has its forward end connected to the latch so that rearward and forward shifting of the rod respectively moves the latch to and from its closed position. A cylindrical lock member is adjustably threaded onto the rear end of the rod and is received for movement along a slot provided in the a rear portion of the one yoke member leg and is dimensioned for fitting closely in an enlarged rear end portion of the slot to establish a locked condition in the rod which corresponds to the closed position of the latch. A necked down intermediate section of the lock member is movable into register with the slot to permit the latch rod to be moved forwardly to place the latch in its open position.

Control system for latch that secures loader yoke member to tractor

A tractor-mounted loader has a quick coupler mounted to forward ends of the boom arms thereof. The quick coupler includes a pair of attachment holders having their lower ends respectively pivotally connected to the pair of arms and selectively pivotable by a pair of attachment tilt cylinders. An attachment in the form of a bucket includes a pair of connecting brackets including pins engageable by recesses in the upper ends of the holders and receptacles for receiving coupler elements carried by the holders. A pair of latch mechanisms are respectively carried by the pair of brackets and include spring-loaded latch pins which normally assume a latch position blocking passage of the coupler elements to or from the receptacles but which include ramp surfaces that cooperate with ramp surfaces of the coupler elements to cause the pins to be automatically moved from their latch positions to permit passage of the coupler elements into the receptacles during mounting of the attachment to the attachment holders. The latch pins may be manually moved to an unlatch position from which they are automatically released by being contacted by wedges carried by the holders when the latter are moved to a position disposing the coupler elements free of the receptacles during detachment of the attachment from the holders. An alternate embodiment shows the coupler elements formed by the mounting brackets and the receptacles formed by the holders with the latch mechanisms being mounted to the holders.

Mounting structure for a loader attachment

A method and apparatus for quickly mounting a loader on a tractor which eliminates need for loose connecting pins or bolts and tools. A pair of slotted brackets include sliding wedge blocks which automatically secure the mast post pins in position during mounting. The mast post pins are moved into the slots, and then the forward portion of the loader frame is rotated upwardly about the axis of the pins to engage forward mounting structure. The tractor is then driven forward to slide the mast post pins into the respective slotted brackets. Thereafter, the boom cylinders are actuated to rock the loader frame about the forward mounting structure and move the mast post pins into vertically disposed portions of the slots and to permit the wedge blocks to slide into their latching positions. A handle operated cam arrangement moves the block away from the slot portion for dismounting the loader. The slots are angled to help break the loader frame away from the brackets during dismounting without requiring excessive load drag. Pivoting hose support structure and a forwardly projecting hose bracket assembly minimize hydraulic hose length and reduce hose routing problems both during loading and mounting/dismounting operations.

Growing community of inventors

Niagara Falls, Canada

Roger A Noyes