The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 17, 2004
Filed:
Oct. 24, 2001
Edwin Milton Gerber, Hooppole, IL (US);
Russell Andrew Huesmann, Jr., Bettendorf, IA (US);
Chad Allen Dow, East Moline, IL (US);
Mark Charles DePoorter, East Moline, IL (US);
Garrick William Herbst, Bettendorf, IA (US);
Lawrence Paul Begyn, Bettendorf, IA (US);
Deere & Company, Moline, IL (US);
Abstract
Rigid cover panels of the cover for grain storage tubes on combines, harvesting machine, are preferably fabricated of double-wall plastic to limit weight of the cover while providing desired strength and rigidity. The rigid cover panels can be pivoted about top edges of an underlying grain tank whereby the cover panels function as a height extension of the underlying tank, thus to increase the grain-carrying capacity of the tank. Flexible transition panels are preferably mounted to the rigid cover panels to bridge spaces between edge regions of the rigid cover panels when the rigid cover panels are raised to their upright, tank-extending orientations. A preferably single underlying actuator in the tank, in combination with mechanical linkages, can simultaneously raise all the rigid cover panels, all the flexible transition panels, and the discharge end of a clean grain elevator which discharges grain into the tank.