Abstract: A cotton harvester and baler (20) to be towed by a vehicle (24), carries at least one mechanized cotton picking unit (30), a mechanized cotton baler (32) having packing apparatus (76) for compacting the picked cotton into bales (84) which are successively discharged. Cotton conveying apparatus (34) extends between the picking unit or units (30) and the baler (32), for receiving the picked cotton and conveying it to a baling chamber (72) of the baler (32) for compaction by the packing apparatus (76). The conveying apparatus (34) can comprise all mechanical, all pneumatic, or a combination of mechanical and pneumatic apparatus. The picking unit or units (30) can be removed to allow picking up and baling material such as straw or hay.

Abstract: A pneumatic seeder is provided, which is configured to be fixedly attached to a farming machine. The seeder includes an element for contacting with the ground, an element for storing a product to be sown, a pneumatic distributor of said product, a suction fan having at least one air inlet connected to the pneumatic for distributor and at least one air discharge outlet, an air extractor connected to the discharge outlet, the end of the air extractor leading out to face the ground. The seeder includes a damper and/or diverter for damping and/or diverting the flow of air coming from the air extractor. The damper and/or diverter is placed downstream from the end of the air extractor.

Abstract: A drag-type cotton harvester operated by an independent driving unit, which comprises a stripper-type cotton picker platform having a series of fingers that are aligned parallel to the forward direction of the machine, wherein the front ends of the fingers are close to ground level and the back ends thereof are ramped in an upward direction; a cleaning apparatus that receives the picked cotton from the picker platform, which cleaning apparatus comprises a set of rotary dentate cylinders that engage the cotton and remove the heavy masses or impurities therefrom, while a rotary brush that is disposed tangential to the dentate cylinders disengages the clean cotton from the aforementioned fingers; and a trailer that receives the clean cotton from the cleaning apparatus, then stores it and transports it.

Abstract: A picker bar includes spindles which are nonaligned in the vertical direction to define two or more offset sets of spindles on the bar and increase the number of spindles per unit length of the spindle bar. A spindle assembly includes a support carrying two spindles driven from a picker bar drive shaft by a single drive gear. Driven spindle gears are spaced on opposite sides of the shaft axis to facilitate close spacing of the spindles. A doffer column includes doffer pads of differing diameters to optimize doffing of the offset sets of spindles.

Abstract: A broadcast cotton harvester header assembly containing two or more header units wherein each header unit includes (1) a paddle chain frame unit having a length and a width and operatively attached to a (2) stripper bar unit having an upper surface to harvest crops, and (3) a height sensing unit which senses and maintains the distance of the stripper bar unit relative to the ground. The broadcast cotton harvester header assembly unit includes two parallel frame members having a front and rear end. The rear end of the frame members have rotatably mounted thereon two drive sprockets. The front end of the frame members have mounted thereon two idler sprockets. The drive sprockets and idler sprockets have wrapped around them conveyor chains which rotate around the front and rear sprockets. The conveyor chains have attached to them, evenly spaced apart, two or more paddles, the paddles are attached to chain links by hinges.

Abstract: A vine shield for a finger-type header with feeder shafts includes a plurality of curved channel-shaped bars having upper ends releasably secured to supports extending transversely over the stripping fingers. A shaft support structure mounts two timed feeder shafts of large radius with feeder fingers projecting between the bars to define overlapping paths which eliminate most of the dead space between the shafts for improved cotton flow rearwardly over the stripping fingers. The channel-shaped bars prevent vine wrapping and open away from the axes of the shafts for improved trash shedding capabilities. The shaft support structure pivots about the rear feeder shaft axis for on-the-go vertical adjustment of the forward feeder shaft to accommodate substantial plant height variations. The feeder fingers are designed for easy attachment and removal and have a symmetrical design so they can be reversed.

Abstract: A flexible insert for a cotton stripper finger assembly adapted for stripping cotton bolls from cotton plants planted in narrow row or broadcast configuration. The insert comprises a flexible plastic strip sandwiched between a conventional metal stripping finger and a metal hold-down member. The insert has edges extending outwardly from the metal stripping finger edges to reduce the effective width of the gap between fingers to more efficiently strip cotton bolls from cotton plants having relatively thin stalks. The portions of the insert which project beyond the metal stripping finger are sufficiently flexible to permit efficient stripping of cotton plants with thicker stalks. Since the effective gap width can change with changing plant conditions, the need to change gap-adjusting inserts is eliminated. The plastic material, which preferably is polyurethane having a durometer of approximately 93, resists sap build-up and improves cotton flow over the fingers.

Abstract: A stripping finger insert is attached with a single bolt for easy adjustment of the gap between fingers on an ultra narrow row cotton stripper. The point of the insert wedges underneath a rearwardly angled edge of an upright planar fin member located at the front and center of the finger. The single bolt secures the insert near the center of the finger where cotton snagging is less likely to occur, and a clip allows the bolt to be placed through the center of the angle iron, rather than in the legs of the angle, to eliminate an obstruction for the cotton between the fingers. The clip fits precisely into the profile of the insert and has a flat surface on top for clamping the bolt with gently sloping front and rear surfaces for smooth cotton can flow. Two insert sizes provide five different gap adjustments to optimize productivity.

Abstract: A vine shield for a finger-type header with feeder shafts includes a plurality of curved channel-shaped bars having upper ends releasably secured to supports extending transversely over the stripping fingers. A shaft support structure mounts two timed feeder shafts of large radius with feeder fingers projecting between the bars to define overlapping paths which eliminate most of the dead space between the shafts for improved cotton flow rearwardly over the stripping fingers. The channel-shaped bars prevent vine wrapping and open away from the axes of the shafts for improved trash shedding capabilities. The shaft support structure pivots about the rear feeder shaft axis for on-the-go vertical adjustment of the forward feeder shaft to accommodate substantial plant height variations. The feeder fingers are designed for easy attachment and removal and have a symmetrical design so they can be reversed.

Abstract: The combing machine comprises a detaching roll and an oscillating nipper unit comrising bottom and top nippers. The predetermined spacing for the oscillating nipper unit with respect to the detaching roll is adjustable, such predetermined spacing being the spacing between the front edge of a bottom-nipper plate and the nip location at the detaching roll when the oscillating nipper unit is in its front end position. A top comb is held in top-comb holders. Each top-comb holder on a top-comb bed is pivotably adjustable about an axis substantially parallel to the detaching roll, the top-comb bed being secured at the bottom nipper. Subsequent to an adjustment of the predetermined spacing, the top-comb holders are reset such that pins of the top comb are again located at the same predetermined distance from the detaching roll.

Abstract: A cotton stripper of the finger type in which attachments (26, 26') are releasably secured to selected fingers (12, 12') to provide reduced spacing (b) when the attachments (26, 26') are mounted on alternate fingers (12, 21') and further reduced spacing (c) when the attachments (26, 26') are mounted on every finger (26, 26').

Abstract: Cotton bolls, along the fingers of a cotton stripper, are brushed upward to the conveyor by brushes mounted upon chains which run on sprockets on either side of the fingers. The speed of the brushes along the finger is slower than the speed of the stripper along the ground and also slower than 300 feet per minute to prevent throwing the light fluffy cotton from the stripper.

Abstract: An arrangement of parallel fingers within the head of a cotton stripper is twisted in response to the operation of a pair of supporting cylinders disposed between the head and a vehicle frame to which the head is pivotably mounted to vary the heights of the opposite ends of the arrangement of parallel fingers in response to height sensors mounted at the opposite ends. The parallel fingers are mounted on an elongated tubular structure which extends between and is attached to the opposite ends of the head and which twists in response to the action of the cylinders and the weight of the head to twist the normally planar arrangement of parallel fingers. Transversely mounted stalk walker and feeder shafts in the region of the fingers are journaled in universal bearings at the opposite ends of the head to permit distortion of the head and twisting of the arrangement of parallel fingers.