Patents by Inventor Jonathan E. Ricketts

Jonathan E. Ricketts has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10602666
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis and a header connected to the chassis. The header includes a frame and a plurality of row units connected to the frame. Each row unit includes at least one gathering chain having a plurality of protuberances affixed thereto and a rotational path, and at least one hood connected to the frame. The header also includes a down crop gatherer mounted to the at least one hood and having a rotational path, and a drive unit mounted to the at least one hood, operably connected in between the at least one gathering chain and the down crop gatherer. The drive unit is configured for translating a respective movement of each protuberance as the plurality of protuberances rotate with the at least one gathering chain to drive the down crop gatherer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2020
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Publication number: 20200084971
    Abstract: A cleaning system for a combine harvester includes a fan, at least one duct having an interior passageway that is positioned to receive an air stream from the fan, and a surface defined within the interior passageway of the at least one duct that is configured to restrict a volume of the flow of air passing through the at least one duct and increase a pressure of the air stream passing through the duct.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 11, 2019
    Publication date: March 19, 2020
    Inventors: Frank R.G. Duquesne, Jonathan E. Ricketts, Curtis F. Hillen, Michiel Vanderstichele
  • Patent number: 10588262
    Abstract: An auger bed for a threshing and separation system of an agricultural harvester includes a bed having a trough and two augers positioned in the trough for conveying material along the trough.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Curtis F. Hillen, Herbert M. Farley, Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Patent number: 10582662
    Abstract: A header for an agricultural vehicle includes: a header frame; a first deck plate carried by the header frame; a second deck plate carried by the header frame, the first deck plate and the second deck plate forming a gap therebetween defining a gap width and a width direction; a rotatable tube carried by the header frame and connected to at least one of the first deck plate and the second deck plate such that rotation of the rotatable tube adjusts the gap width; and a spring fixed to the rotatable tube and having at least one end captured by the second deck plate such that a force directed in the width direction acting on the second deck plate produces a spring force in the spring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2020
    Assignee: CNH Industial America LLC
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Publication number: 20190357432
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis and a sectional header system carried by the chassis. The sectional header system includes a center section connected to the chassis, at least one additional section, and at least one coupling assembly that removably connects the center section to the at least one additional section. The at least one coupling assembly includes at least one actuator connected to the center section and the at least one additional section. The at least one actuator is located underneath the pivot point. The at least one additional section is configured for being coupled to the center section in harvesting of a crop material and decoupled from the center section and subsequently towable in transportation of the sectional header system.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2019
    Publication date: November 28, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Craig D. Roberts
  • Patent number: 10470373
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle, includes a chassis; a cleaning system carried by the chassis including at least one sieve and configured to clean crop material; and an unloader carried by the chassis and supplied with cleaned crop material from the cleaning system. The unloader includes: a roller; a belt wrapped around the roller; and an oblong housing at least partially enclosing the belt.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Publication number: 20190327890
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis, at least one rotor supported by the chassis and configured for threshing a crop material, at least one exterior side member supported by the chassis and including at least one outlet, and an air conduit located underneath the at least one rotor. The air conduit is configured for providing an airstream directed to the at least one exterior side member such that the airstream forces a material other than grain out through the at least one outlet.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2018
    Publication date: October 31, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Patent number: 10405492
    Abstract: A self-cleaning sump for an agricultural harvester may include a collection chamber defining a top end and a bottom end. The self-cleaning sump may also include a sump door positioned at the bottom end of the collection chamber, with the sump door being movable between an opened position and a closed position. Additionally, the self-cleaning sump may include a cleaning device movable within the collection chamber between a raised position and a lowered position and an actuator coupled to the cleaning device. The actuator may be configured to actuate the cleaning device between the raised and lowered positions independent of the sump door. When the actuator is activated, the cleaning device may be configured to contact collected material contained within the collection chamber as the cleaning device is moved within the collection chamber between the top and bottom ends of the chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Todd W. Stegmiller, Kevin Hammer, William L. Cooksey
  • Publication number: 20190254231
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis and a header connected to the chassis. The header includes a frame and a plurality of row units connected to the frame. Each row unit includes at least one gathering chain having a plurality of protuberances affixed thereto and a rotational path, and at least one hood connected to the frame. The header also includes a down crop gatherer mounted to the at least one hood and having a rotational path, and a drive unit mounted to the at least one hood, operably connected in between the at least one gathering chain and the down crop gatherer. The drive unit is configured for translating a respective movement of each protuberance as the plurality of protuberances rotate with the at least one gathering chain to drive the down crop gatherer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 21, 2018
    Publication date: August 22, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Publication number: 20190254232
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis and a header connected to the chassis. The header includes a frame and at least one crop divider rotatably connected to the frame at an axis of rotation. The at least one crop divider is configured for dividing and lifting a crop material. The header also includes at least one drive unit mounted to the frame and operably connected to the at least one crop divider such that as the header is moved in a forward direction the at least one drive unit rotates the at least one crop divider about the axis of rotation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 21, 2018
    Publication date: August 22, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Herbert M. Farley
  • Patent number: 10375881
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle including a chassis and a sectional header system carried by the chassis. The sectional header system includes a center section connected to the chassis and having a pair of lateral ends, at least one additional section, and at least one coupling assembly. The at least one coupling assembly includes at least one actuator and at least one connector. The at least one coupling assembly removably connects the center section to the at least one additional section. The at least one additional section is coupled to the center section in harvesting of a crop material and the at least one additional section is decoupled from the center section in transportation of the sectional header system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Craig D. Roberts
  • Patent number: 10368492
    Abstract: An agricultural harvester has a chassis carrying a threshing and separating system for separating grain from Material Other than Grain (MOG). The threshing and separating system has a threshing rotor and at least one concave. At least one rasp bar is attached to the threshing rotor. The at least one rasp bar has an upper threshing surface and a trailing surface. The trailing surface is set at a draft angle. At least one trailing surface interrupter is located on the trailing surface and may be inclined slightly rearward from vertical. The trailing surface interrupters may be used with rasp bars with or without rasp bar spikes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Wayne T. Flickinger
  • Patent number: 10334783
    Abstract: An agricultural harvester row unit has side-by-side stalk rolls oriented to receive crop stalks. Each of the stalk rolls have a forward section with an annular base tapered towards the forward end and spiral auger flights that overlap one another and cooperate with adjacent bases to positively move crop stalks in an aft direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Eric L. Walker, Brian P. Crow, Dariusz Adamczyk, Eric Fredricks, Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Patent number: 10334784
    Abstract: A stripper plate system includes a first stripper plate movably mounted to a frame, a second stripper plate movably mounted to the frame in an opposing orientation to the first stripper plate, and an elongated gap in-between the first and second stripper plates. A first tensioning mechanism biases a proximal end of the first stripper plate toward a center of the elongated gap, a second tensioning mechanism biases a distal end of the first stripper plate toward the center of the elongated gap, a third tensioning mechanism biases a proximal end of the second stripper plate toward the center of the elongated gap, and a fourth tensioning mechanism biases a distal end of the second stripper plate toward the center of the elongated gap. A biasing force of the first and third tensioning mechanisms is lower than a biasing force of the second and fourth tensioning mechanisms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Michael L. Berggren
  • Publication number: 20190174677
    Abstract: An agricultural vehicle includes a chassis, a threshing and separating mechanism supported by the chassis and configured for threshing and separating a crop material, a cleaning system positioned downstream of the threshing and separating mechanism in a direction of crop material flow, and an auxiliary processing system positioned downstream of the threshing and separating mechanism in the direction of crop material flow. The auxiliary processing system has an inlet and an outlet, and includes a discharge chopper having an end and a first direction of rotation about an axis of rotation. The auxiliary processing system also includes at least one rethreshing element coaxially aligned with the discharge chopper and adjacent to the end of the discharge chopper and having a second direction of rotation opposite to the first direction of rotation of the discharge chopper.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2017
    Publication date: June 13, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Wayne T. Flickinger
  • Patent number: 10271477
    Abstract: A spreader system of an agricultural vehicle for spreading crop residue including a spreader device and a fan. The spreader device includes a plurality of paddles configured to rotate about a first axis, with the rotation of the paddles producing a stream of crop residue. The fan includes a plurality of impellers configured to rotate about a second axis, with the rotation of the impellers producing a stream of air. The stream of air is directed to exit the spreader system beneath the stream of crop residue as the crop residue leaves the spreader device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Bradley J. Wagner
  • Publication number: 20190090425
    Abstract: A header for an agricultural vehicle includes: a header frame; a first deck plate carried by the header frame; a second deck plate carried by the header frame, the first deck plate and the second deck plate forming a gap therebetween defining a gap width and a width direction; a rotatable tube carried by the header frame and connected to at least one of the first deck plate and the second deck plate such that rotation of the rotatable tube adjusts the gap width; and a spring fixed to the rotatable tube and having at least one end captured by the second deck plate such that a force directed in the width direction acting on the second deck plate produces a spring force in the spring.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2017
    Publication date: March 28, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventor: Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Publication number: 20190082604
    Abstract: An auger bed for a threshing and separation system of an agricultural harvester includes a bed having a trough and two augers positioned in the trough for conveying material along the trough.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2017
    Publication date: March 21, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Curtis F. Hillen, Herbert M. Farley, Jonathan E. Ricketts
  • Patent number: 10231381
    Abstract: A combine including a frame, power unit and a crop gathering and processing device. A grain tank is mounted on the frame. An elongated closed end tube is vertically oriented within the grain tank and has a plurality of uniformly spaced openings along its length. A pneumatic pump pressurizes the interior of the tube. A pressure sensor senses the interior pressure of the elongated tube, so that grain building up therein selectively covers the plurality of openings to cause a proportionate increase in air pressure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Edmund N. Holt, II, Michael A. Conrad, Jonathan E. Ricketts, Bart M. A. Missotten
  • Publication number: 20190069489
    Abstract: A transition cone for a threshing system of an agricultural harvesting machine has an inner surface with a tapering inner circumference between a wider upstream end and a narrower downstream end, and a plurality of vanes in the transition cone. Each vane extends between the upstream end and the downstream end and at least partly around the tapering inner circumference. Each vane includes an upstanding segment extending away from the inner surface, and a base segment extending from the upstanding segment along the inner surface on the downstream side of the upstanding segment. The base segment has a thicker proximal region adjacent the upstanding segment and a thinner distal edge opposite thereto.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2018
    Publication date: March 7, 2019
    Applicant: CNH Industrial America LLC
    Inventors: Jonathan E. Ricketts, Wayne T. Flickinger