Snapper, Inc.

Briggs & Stratton, LLC

Snapper Products, Inc.

Stephen C Price

Frank H Hancock

James R Powers

Steven D Smyly

Lucius Levon Cole

Brian D Grewe

Fielder Fields Glass

William Lowe

David Tiedeman

Stephen Barry McCane

Brian D Neeley

Scott Chartrand

Tandrea Lea Sperfslage

Kenneth R Breitenstein

Kevin D Craddock

A handlebar coupling and adjustment unit comprises a housing, a pivot pin, a manual grip and a retaining pin. The housing receives an end portion of a handlebar. The pivot pin joins the housing to the handlebar and pivotally supports the handle relative to the handle bracket. The retaining pin is connected to the manual grip and is linearly translatable in a first direction from an extended positioned projecting beyond the housing to a withdrawn position within the housing. The manual grip is rotatable while the retaining pin is in the withdrawn position between a locked position in which the housing holds the manual grip with the retaining pin in the withdrawn position and an unlocked positioned in which the manual grip is linearly translatable in a second direction to return the retaining pin to the extended position.

Handlebar coupling and adjustment unit

A height of cut adjustment system for use with a walk behind mower. The height of cut adjustment system includes a single drive motor that is operable in a first direction and a second direction. The single drive motor is connected to a linkage assembly that supports the four wheels of the walk behind mower relative to the mower deck. When the single drive motor is operated in a first direction, the mower height of cut increases and when the drive motor is operated in the second direction, the height of cut is decreased. The height of cut adjustment system includes a height of cut indicator system that visually indicates the relative position of the wheels relative to the mower deck. The height of cut indicator system includes one or more position indicators that can be selectively positioned to visually indicate the desired height of cut for the mower.

Height of cut adjustment system for a walk behind mower

Walk behind mower

Walk behind mower handle

Embodiments of the invention provide a control assembly and method of manufacturing a walk-behind mower having a transmission and an engine electrically connected to an operator presence switch. The control assembly can include a left drive lever and a right drive lever. The control assembly can also include a left control member and a right control member each coupled to the transmission. The control assembly can further include a left operator presence lever and a right operator presence lever coupled to the operator presence switch. The operator presence switch can allow the engine to operate when either the left operator presence lever is moved toward the left drive lever or the right operator presence lever is moved toward the right drive lever.

Walk-behind mower control system and method

One or more elongate barriers are provided that are movably (in one configuration pivotably) mounted proximate the outside of a grass cutting deck. When one of the barriers encounters a foreign object in a certain manner, the barrier moves towards its 'tripped' position, thus causing a corresponding change to the operating characteristic of the lawn mover, be it a termination of the cutting process, the mower drive process, or both. The barriers can be used with electric or mechanical control elements.

Elongate barrier system for use with lawn mower decks

A grass cutting blade is provided which can be rotated in either direction while providing cutting and airlift in either direction. This can be used in cooperation with a cutting deck housing which includes a particular discharge opening and channel configuration which facilitates side discharge for one blade direction and mulching in the other. By controlling the blade direction, such as by an electric switch controlling electric blade shaft drive motor, side discharge or mulching can be had at a flip of a switch.

Lawn mower with improved blade and blade housing

One or more elongate barriers are provided that are movably (in one configuration pivotably) mounted proximate the outside of a grass cutting deck. When one of the barriers encounters a foreign object in a certain manner, the barrier moves towards its &ldquo;tripped&rdquo; position, thus causing a corresponding change to the operating characteristic of the lawn mover, be it a termination of the cutting process, the mower drive process, or both. The barriers can be used with electric or mechanical control elements.

A disabling feature used with a lawn mower, for disabling the drive wheels of a lawn mower when an obstacle is encountered. Braking, engine kill, blade stopping, and declutching is contemplated upon the tripping of a pivotable contact device which in one embodiment is configured to be tripped when contacting an object while in reverse. A directional extension flap is also provided.

Lawn mower having disabling feature

A shield configuration for a snowthrowing discharge chute, which may be pivoted out of the way for clean-out purposes while reducing the opportunity for the user to extend a body part or other object into the chute while the engine is running. The apparatus makes a clean-out rod readily available to the user just after the shield has been opened.

Snowthrower discharge assembly clearance method and apparatus for facilitating same

A lock out feature for preventing a lawn mower from going into reverse unless the lawn mower blade is first disengaged, while allowing the lawn mower cutting blade to be reengaged upon being placed in reverse, the latch nevertheless allowing the lawn mower to be moved out of reverse without disengaging the lawn mower blade. An override feature is also allowed by use of a separate override control to allow the user to override the reverse lock out latch in order to go from forward or neutral into reverse without disengaging the cutting blade.

Method and apparatus for restricting grass cutting of a lawn mower in reverse

A lockout feature for preventing a lawn mower from going into reverse unless the lawn mower blade is first disengaged, while allowing the lawn mower cutting blade to be reengaged upon being placed in reverse, the latch nevertheless allowing the lawn mower to be moved out of reverse without disengaging said lawn mower blade. An override feature is also allowed by use of a separate override control to allow the user to override the reverse lock out latch in order to go from forward or neutral into reverse without disengaging the cutting blade.

This invention relates in general to lawn mowers, and particularly relates to a front wheel swivel assembly which can be selectively locked into a straight-ahead orientation during operation of the mower and by use of controls within the operator's reach during normal cutting operation of the mower.

Growing community of inventors

Barnesville, GA, United States of America

Stephen C Price