Abstract: A track assembly for moving a vehicle which includes a track having lugs including both drive and guide portions on its inner surface. The guide portions substantially abut against the track rollers of the assembly. Such abutment maintains alignment of the track between those rollers so as to prevent it from moving from side to side and interfering with feeding of the drive portions onto the assembly drive sprocket. Further, the guide portions grab against the drive sprocket to maintain contact of the drive portions therewith. Each of the above functions permits uninterrupted movement of the vehicle since the track is enabled to move in a continued path.

Abstract: A pneumatic coupler for an agricultural seeding machine comprises a hollow tube having an inner portion and an outer portion that are separated by a radially extending flange. The radially extending flange has an inner surface adjoining the inner portion and an outer surface adjoining the outer surface. A flexible and resilient gasket is fitted over the inner portion and adjoins the inner surface of the radially extending flange. The inner portion is further provided with radially extending catches that are located on resilient axially extending tongues formed in the inner portion. When mounted to receiving apertures the catches contact the interior side of the receiving aperture and the flexible and resilient gasket forms an air seal between the exterior surface of the receiving aperture and the inner surface of the radially extending flange.

Abstract: A boom lock having an actuator and a hook assembly locks a boom of a work vehicle to a swing frame. The hook assembly is pivotally coupled to the swing frame and comprises two hooks and an actuator plate. The hook assembly has a locked position wherein the hooks contact a catch assembly located on the boom and an unlocked position wherein the hooks do not engage the catch assembly. The hook assembly is moved between these two positions by the actuator. The actuator is provided with a fork having an upper tine that contacts the top surface of the actuator plate and a lower tine that contacts the bottom surface of the actuator plate. The actuator is pivotally mounted to the vehicle by a bracket and is provided with a latch for latching the actuator in a first or second position.

Abstract: A bearing wear guard includes a slotted body portion cast from a wear-resistant metal. The slots receive two bearing mounting bolts which secure the guard in a protecting position in the path of rocks and abrasive debris traveling towards the bearing and bearing support. An upper edge portion conforms generally to the shape of the lower portion of the bearing. The casting includes a grease zerk-protecting area extending upwardly and outwardly from the upper edge portion to protect the zerk from rocks and abrasive material. Leading and trailing trash shedding surfaces on the body portion prevent trash from catching and building up on the guard. The body portion has an L-shaped cross section also providing protection for the bearing mounting bracket.

Abstract: Disclosed is a sensor for detecting the presence of a crop flow in a harvesting machine. The sensor is designed to emit an output signal containing information on whether crop material is passing through the harvesting machine or not. It is suggested that the sensor be designed to detect vibrations produced during the processing and/or transporting of the crop flow in the harvesting machine. Such a sensor is especially suitable for use with arrangements for calculating the area from which crop is being harvested and for mapping yields.

Abstract: Disclosed are various embodiments of a drive system for use in utility vehicles, such as agricultural forage harvesters and combines. The drive system includes a hydrostatic transmission having a pump driven by a main engine of the vehicle and having first and second motors respectively coupled to front and rear axles of the vehicle by way of first and second differential gear sets. The pump and one or both of the motors have a variable displacement determined by positioning respective swash plates through the agency of a lever, in the case of the pump, and by electronic devices, in the case of the motors, the electronic devices acting in response to control signals sent by a control arrangement, which in turn, operates in response to signals produced by pressure sensors associated with the motors and by signals produced by speed sensors associated with output shafts of the hydraulic motors.

Abstract: A large round baler is provided with a wrapping arrangement which supplies wrapping material to a baling chamber inlet at a location above the floor of a baling chamber. The wrapping arrangement includes a wrapping material supply roll positioned at, or in frictional contact with, a feed roll, which conveys the wrapping material and delivers it such that it gravitates downwardly through a gap provided between an anvil and movable part of a cut-off device, the cut-off device being located at the inlet to the baling chamber so that the gravitating material passes into the baling chamber where it is caught between the formed bale and a rotatable bale-forming device which delimits at least a portion of the circumference of the baling chamber.

Abstract: A spout control system controls and aims a spout and a spout cap of a crop harvesting vehicle with respect to a separate crop hauling vehicle moving with the harvesting vehicle. The control system includes a video camera which is mounted on the cap and which views a field of view which includes a portion of the hauling vehicle. An image signal generated by the camera is received by an image processing unit. The image processing unit processes a digitized form of the image signal and automatically generates spout and cap control signals as a function thereof. Actuators automatically aim the spout and the cap in response to the control signal.

Abstract: A first embodiment of a drive arrangement for a large rectangular baler includes hydraulic pump and motor sets, and second and third embodiments include only gear and shaft arrangements, for driving the plunger for compressing the crop being baled, and for driving all of the auxiliary functions. In all embodiments, power delivered by a main shaft is divided between an auxiliary function drive shaft and a plunger drive shaft. In the first and second embodiments, a flywheel is located for smoothing the power flow to the plunger drive arrangement, and in the third embodiment the flywheel is located for smoothing power flow to both the plunger drive arrangement and the auxiliary function drive arrangement. In all embodiments, the rotation of the shaft carrying the flywheel due to the inertia of the flywheel is ineffective for driving the plunger and auxiliary function drive arrangements when power to the main drive shaft is cut off.

Abstract: A PTO transmission includes a split power transmission unit having an output member connected to a PTO shaft, a first input connected to an engine output shaft and a second input connected the output of a variable speed drive unit. A control unit controls the speed of the variable speed drive unit as a function of sensed engine speed and maintains the PTO shaft at a constant speed. The split power transmission is preferably a planetary gear unit. The variable speed drive unit preferably includes a variable displacement hydrostatic pump driving a fixed displacement hydrostatic motor which drives a sun gear of the planetary gear unit. This system transmits power to the PTO shaft from both the engine and from the variable speed drive unit. The control unit may also control the variable speed drive unit so that the speed of the PTO shaft is maintained at a desired ratio with respect to the ground speed, or so that the speed of the PTO shaft is maintained at a speed set by an operator.

Abstract: Disclosed is a drive system for a crop processing device and for a crop transport device of a forage harvester, which drive system can be operated at least in a first operational mode and in a second operational mode. In the first operational mode, the crop processing device is driven by a first drive power supplying device, and at least part of the drive power is made available to the crop transport device by a second drive power supplying device. The second drive power supplying device is a reversible, variable speed device and is solely coupled to the crop processing device when the drive system is in a second operational mode. In order to prevent a movement of the crop transport device in the second operational mode, in which, e.g., the crop processing device can be worked with a sharpening device, a stop device is suggested that stops the crop transport device in the second operational mode.

Abstract: A bearing block structure for an implement rockshaft includes a two-piece ultra high molecular weight (UHMW) polyethylene wear insert located between a cast iron or welded steel bearing block and a rockshaft. In one embodiment, identical insert halves are supported in corresponding insert cavities in the bearing block sections, and a small thin clip is secured between the sections to prevent relative rotation between the insert halves and the bearing block. In another embodiment, a stop member projects into the cavities to prevent rotation of the insert halves.

Abstract: A work vehicle having spring applied hydraulically released brakes is provided with a secondary hydraulic system having a manually operated pump that directs fluid to a cylinder through a secondary system hydraulic line. The secondary system hydraulic line has first and second quick couplers that are coupled to one another to direct fluid to the cylinder. A brake system hydraulic line is hydraulically positioned between the brakes and a source of pressurized fluid. An electrically actuated brake valve is hydraulically positioned between the source of pressurized fluid and the brakes, along the brake system hydraulic line, for selectively directing pressurized fluid to the brakes. The brake system hydraulic line is further provided with a third quick coupler that is coupled to the first coupler to direct pressurized fluid from the manually operated pump to the brakes to release the brakes, when towing the vehicle.

Abstract: The invention concerns an arrangement for the movement of a working unit of an agricultural working implement between a first position and a second position, with an actuator that is provided with a chamber to which a pressurized medium can be applied and that is coupled to the working unit in such a way that it brings the working unit into the second position when the medium is applied to the chamber and the working unit reaches the first position when the medium is not applied to the chamber. An accumulator control arrangement serves to connect the chamber of the actuator to the accumulator only when the working unit moves into the first position.

Abstract: A rotary cutterbar includes a gear case containing a series-parallel set of gears including idler gears and pinion gears for driving the cutting discs of the cutter units. The gear case includes top and bottom walls and the idler gears are each received on a hub including an enlarged upper end located in a hole provided in the top wall and a threaded lower end screwed into a hole provided in the bottom wall. The hubs each have a plastic outer shell encasing a metal insert extending axially within the shell, with the shell forming the sole contact between each hub and the gear case whereby vibrations and shock loads respectively due to gear tooth contact and a cutter knife contacting an obstacle are absorbed by the shell to lessen the transmission of noise and the magnitude of the impact force. O-ring grooves are provided in the plastic shell and receive o-rings for preventing leakage from the gear case through the holes in the top and bottom walls.

Abstract: A baler is equipped with a pick-up for elevating a crop windrow from the ground and delivering it to a rotary conveyor which delivers the crop through an inlet to the baling chamber. Suspended for operation in conjunction with the pick-up so as to aid in achieving continuous, even delivery of crop to the baling chamber is a crop control arrangement including a baffle located in front of the path swept by the pick-up teeth and a plurality of hold down rods which are mounted to the baffle and extend to the rear to the rotary conveyor. The suspension of the baffle allows it engage the top of a windrow and to flex vertically in a quick, responsive manner both to changes in thickness along the length of and crosswise to the width of the windrow.

Abstract: A simplified, low component harrow attachment includes several clevis-like mounting castings pivotally connected between two identical flat side sheets. A link which pivots the ranks in unison is pinned to the legs of the mounting castings between the sheets by free-floating pins captured between the sheets. The castings can pivot to a retracted position and be secured by a pin for increased clearance between the teeth and the ground during transport. The rear mounting casting has a longer clevis structure than the remainder of the castings and serves as a tine depth stop when a stop pin is inserted through apertures in the sheets.

Abstract: A mower-conditioner is provided with a crop deflector mounted at the end of an outlet guide element through the medium of a pair of slots provided in each of the opposite sides of the guide element and overlapping slots provided in slot-carriers in the form of flanges provided at opposite sides of a planar section of the deflector, with releasable fasteners securing the deflector in a desired one of an infinite number of possible positions permitted by the slot and fastener arrangement.

Abstract: A drive arrangement for controlling the tying function of a large rectangular baler includes a knotter drive shaft having a drive member mounted on it for free rotation. A one-way clutch is connected between the drive member and the drive shaft for rotating the drive shaft only when the drive member is rotated in a first direction. The drive member has an elongate flexible element associated therewith and is driven in the first direction by retraction of an extensible and retractable hydraulic motor having its rod end coupled to one end of the flexible element, the other end of the flexible element being coupled to a spring that stores energy only when the hydraulic motor is retracted. At the end of the tying function, the hydraulic motor is extended to its beginning position, the loaded spring then taking up the slack in the flexible element and the one-way clutch then free-wheeling.

Abstract: An engine has cylinders, a fuel injection unit with a valve operable in response to a valve control signal to cause fuel to be injected into the cylinders, and a control unit which generates the valve control signal. A method of controlling the valve includes sensing a time associated with movement of the valve corresponding to start of a fuel injection event, and modifying the valve control signal as a function of the sensed time. The method further includes determining a rise time of the valve control signal, determining a valve operation delay time as a function of the rise time, determining a difference time representing a difference between a desired valve operation time and the sensed time, comparing the valve operation delay time to the difference time, and adjusting timing of the valve control signal as a function of the comparison.