Abstract: The normally horizontal frame of a wheeled farm implement, such as used for tillage purposes, has a center section at the ends of which are hinged a pair of wing sections that are fully foldable into overlying, substantially parallel relationship to the center section through use of hydraulic cylinder assemblies. At each hinge a pair of links, pivotally connected to corresponding hinge straps, have a common pivotal connection at their upper ends with the piston rod of the cylinder. A pintle-receiving slot, strategically located in the wing section hinge strap not only permits limited rise and fall of the wing section over uneven terrain but causes smooth swinging movements of the wing sections to and from their folded conditions. Entirely eliminated is free falling of the wing sections because of constant control by the hydraulic assemblies made possible by abutment at all times of the spring-loaded pintles against one end of the slots.

Abstract: The double-acting hydraulic cylinders of the lift system are connected in a master-slave series relationship. When the cylinders have been retracted to a predetermined extent, a control valve between the last slave and a primary selector valve of the system is mechanically closed responsive to the arrival of the cylinders at such retracted condition and, simultaneously, the master is prevented from further retraction by either mechanical means or another hydraulic control valve between the master and the primary selector valve. Thus, the cylinders and their interconnecting lines are cut off from inadvertent overcharging, as well as fluid escape, so that all cylinders remain uniformly extended with drift from their established positions. Several circuit arrangements are disclosed, including provision for bleeding off higher than necessary operating pressures tending to become trapped within the cylinders and their associated flow lines after the cylinders have reached the intended point of retraction.

Abstract: The cutter box which houses a cutting cylinder on a harvester has an access opening in its top wall through which an abrasive, full-length sharpening stone may be alternately inserted and removed to engage and sharpen the peripherally located knives of the cylinder as the latter is rotated. Each time the stone is rocked down into the opening for a sharpening operation, it is indexed slightly further into the opening than during the previous operation in order to accommodate the slightly reduced diameter of the cylinder due to material which has been removed from the knives and the stone during the previous sharpening operation. A cover coupled with the stone is caused to move into closing relationship with the opening as the stone is rocked out of the same and, conversely, to pull away from and expose the opening as the stone is subsequently reinserted. All of the mechanical movements involved, including indexing of the stone, may be accomplished remotely through the use of an electric motor.

Abstract: The knife is normally clamped tightly against a supporting arm by a retaining bolt, but when the bolt is sufficiently loosened, the bolt itself and the knife through which it passes may be forced radially inwardly or outwardly by shifting a transversely reciprocable slide plate in the appropriate direction along its path of travel. An oblique slot in the slide plate receives the bolt and pushes it in the selected adjusting direction as the slot is displaced transversely by shifting of the plate. A pair of counter-acting set screws serve as means for shifting the plate and for releasably retaining the same in a selected position. A long key on the slide plate slidably fits into a mating key way on the supporting arm to guide the plate in its transverse movement, and because the key extends transversely of the path of in-and-out adjusting travel of the knife, it helps absorb and resist radial loading on the knife which occurs during the cutting operation.

Abstract: The rectangular forage receiving box or hopper of a crop transporting vehicle is stowed in a compacted, generally upright and squared-up position for over-the-road travel, yet may be rotated into a tilted more spacious and functional position for field operations. When in its field operating position, the bottom of the box is inclined upwardly and outwardly toward an unfolded spout along which crop materials can be conveyed to unload the contents of the box on-the-go into a moving truck pulled alongside of the vehicle and beneath the overhanging spout. The conveyor may be selectively deactivated when the truck is filled and until the next empty truck is moved into position, during which intermediate time the harvesting operations may continue and materials may be temporarily accumulated within the box.

Abstract: The forage receiving container box of a crop transporting vehicle has a shiftable top that may be closed down to compact the box for over-the-road travel without exceeding applicable roading height and width restrictions and may be projected up when the box is prepared for field operations whereby to expand the holding capacity of the box. When the box is rotated from its over-the-road position to its field-operating position, an unloading spout may be swung down from one lateral side of the box to come into alignment with the upwardly and outwardly inclined floor of the box whereby a conveyor extending along the floor and the spout may be utilized to unload the box on-the-go into a truck or trailer pulled alongside the moving box. Projecting up the top of the box or closing it down is coordinated with moving the box between its field-operating and over-the-road positions, particularly with respect to swinging of the unloading spout between its stowed and operating positions.

Abstract: The cutting cylinder of a forage harvester is provided with a plurality of fragmenting bars interspersed between the circumferentially spaced apart knives of the cylinder. Each of the fragmenting bars has a generally radially outwardly projecting portion that terminates in an outermost, serrated margin located inwardly adjacent the extremity of the cylinder as defined by the cutting edges of the knives during rotation thereof. Such serrations of the bars present rasping teeth that abraid, fracture and fragment crop cuttings produced by the knives so as to provide more uniformly sized, finer crop fragments and cracked kernels for the production of high quality silage.

Abstract: A self-propelled farm implement has independent front and rear, wheel supported frames articulated therebetween for execution of turns by operator steering of the front frame from within a cab that is, in turn, mounted on the front frame. The rear frame carries a crop receiving bin which, except for my oscillator limit incorporated in the combination, would be engaged by the cab under certain unlevel ground conditions, causing substantial damage. The front frame is tiltable about a fore and aft axis within a range defined by interengageable stops between the front frame and its coupling link. The stops on the front link are in the form of pivoted members which abut lugs on the rear frame causing the members to swing about their pivots during turning movements. The effect is to progressively limit the extent of tilt as full turns are approached to prevent cab-bin interengagement regardless of the nature of ground contour as the vehicle is steered off a straight path of travel.

Abstract: The dispensing end of a round baler's swingable twine dispenser projects outwardly through an aperture in the baler sidewall when the dispenser is in a standby position, and a twine severing blade is mounted to the sidewall proximal to the aperture. The twine is drawn across the severing blade and is thereby severed when the dispenser is returned to the standby position after twine has been dispensed along the length of a bale formed within the round baler's baling chamber.

Abstract: The header has generally transversely disposed, flat, apron-like conveyor mechanism for receiving the stalks of grain or other crop materials severed along the leading edge of the header and for gathering such materials so that they might be discharged in a continuous stream for producing a windrow. The conveyor mechanism comprises a pair of largely self-contained sections which may be latched together and shifted to one end of the header with their upper surfaces driven in a common leftward direction for left delivery and discharge, or shifted to the opposite end of the header and driven with their upper surfaces in a righthand direction for right end delivery of the materials, or they may be unlatched and separated while their upper surfaces are driven in opposite directions centrally toward one another for centered delivery of the materials.

Abstract: The baler has an internal chamber within which crop materials are coiled up into a cylindrical bale by oppositely moving belts which are looped around a pair of spaced apart guide rollers at the bottom of the chamber to define a wide-open, entrance throat to the chamber from the windrow pickup device of the baler. Located within the throat is a control gate positioned to partially span the throat and to prevent retrograde outflow of crop material during bale formation while permitting unobstructed inflow of material from the crop pickup device. When swung upwardly to its opened position, the gate permits incoming material to be fed upwardly in the chamber and acted upon by a generally upwardly moving belt thereof while preventing outflow of material being acted upon by a downwardly moving belt of the chamber.

Abstract: The cylinder supports a series of knives at its outer periphery which extend generally parallel to the axis of rotation of the cylinder, spanning a plurality of supporting bulkheads that are provided with special mounting assemblies which adjustably attach the knives thereto. The knives are positioned in such a way that in order to adjust the radial position of a cutting edge, the knives are adjustably shifted either inwardly or outwardly in a direction that is normal to the plane of the knives being adjusted. As a result of a degree of inherent flexibility of the knives, certain of the attaching points may be adjustably positioned more inwardly or outwardly than others by causing the knives to flex appropriately at the needed locations. Each attaching or mounting assembly includes a pair of threadably interengaged components, one of which shifts inwardly and outwardly upon rotation of the other so as to correspondingly position the proximal knife portion after a clamping bolt has been sufficiently released.

Abstract: A rotary crop baler belt roller mount is provided which facilitates the changing and installation of endless bale-forming belts. A mount is provided adjacent one end of each transverse belt-supporting roller and includes an annular spacer removably mounted between the end of the roller and the adjacent baler sidewall. Preferably, the spacer is maintained in its operative position by means of a bolt, the bolt passing through the baler sidewall and spacer and being received within a hub assembly secured within the belt roller. In belt changing operations, the spacer can be rapidly removed simply by loosening the associated bolt and withdrawing the spacer. Removal of the spacer from each of the roller mounts in the baler presents a series of belt-clearing gaps adjacent the baler sidewall, allowing quick, easy installation of belts around the belt rollers.

Abstract: The windrower, which may be of the mower or mower-conditioner type, is provided with a double windrowing attachment at the rear thereof which may be lowered into a double windrowing mode or raised into a non-operative position for single windrowing. Severed crops are converged centrally of the machine from opposite sides of the cutting path taken by the machine so as to be discharged onto the ground in a single, centrally disposed windrow when the attachment is in its raised position. Actuation of the hydraulic circuitry associated with the attachment to lower the same into its operating position during a next pass around the field causes a conveyor of the attachment to intercept the centrally and rearwardly discharged crop so as to instead divert and convey the same to a laterally outboard position in order that the windrow of that crop cutting pass will be laid adjacently alongside of the previously formed single windrow for the next preceding pass.

Abstract: The thrower is attached to the discharge end of a baler in position to receive bales successively issuing therefrom. A pair of generally superimposed conveyors of the thrower operate at relatively high speeds compared to the speed at which the bales issue from the baler, and as the leading end of each bale enters the awaiting thrower, the high speed conveyors grab the bale and propel it upwardly and rearwardly toward an awaiting receptacle such as a trailing wagon. The upper conveyor is so mounted that it clamps down in a self-actuating manner against the bale as the latter enters the thrower and makes engagement with the propelling surfaces of the conveyors, such clamping action arising from the reaction force generated by the slowly moving bale contacting the rapidly moving surface of the upper conveyor.

Abstract: The low-profile, lightweight tiller of compact, uncluttered design is adapted to be rigidly mounted upon the rear, powered lifting links of a garden tractor so as to be raised and lowered by the latter between transport and ground-working positions. Driving power for the transverse rotor of the tiller is obtained by a direct drive connection with the power takeoff shaft of the tractor. A right angle gearbox located inside the open bottom housing for the rotor is supported by the rotor shaft itself and has an upwardly and forwardly directed input shaft that connects directly with a telescoping, universal joint drive line connection with the power takeoff shaft.

Abstract: The bale-forming machine has rolling mechanism that initially tumbles loose crop material forwardly between the mechanism and the ground as the machine advances along a windrow. Thereafter, the rolling material becomes confined off the ground in an elevated forming chamber as additional material is fed into the chamber and as the mechanism rolls the material into a bale. Upon reaching a predetermined size, the bale can be tied and then ejected from the chamber through the raised rear section of the machine.

Abstract: A multi-purpose rear attachment for power lifts and drawbars of tractors has a bucket for handling bulk materials which is self-filling when used as a scoop and the capability of use as a scraper, a spreader and a leveler of the materials it transports. Linkage connected to the drawbar tilts the bucket as it is raised by the lift to a position retaining its contents, the linkage itself being variable to control the range of tilt. A trip accessible to the tractor operator releases one of the links such that the bucket becomes self-dumping. Camming actions by the trip effect positive release and relatching.