Patents by Inventor Masatsugu Tone

Masatsugu Tone 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: 5367861
    Abstract: A small riding lawn mower having a grass cutting unit suspended from a body frame between a front axle and a rear axle, an engine supported by a body frame in a position forwardly of the rear axle with respect to a longitudinal direction of the body frame, a hydrostatic transmission disposed rearwardly of the rear axle, and a driver's seat disposed forwardly of the engine. The body frame includes profile members disposed at opposite sides and extending longitudinally of the mower, and a cross plate interconnecting the profile members. A belt transmission mechanism connecting the hydrostatic transmission to an engine output shaft is surrounded by a plate frame structure formed below the body frame. The plate frame structure defines a further independent chamber for accommodating a muffler of the engine. This chamber has peripheral walls shaped to guide cooling air from the engine to the muffler and laterally outwardly of the mower.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 1992
    Date of Patent: November 29, 1994
    Assignee: Kubota Corporation
    Inventors: Masatake Murakawa, Mikio Yuki, Ryozo Imanishi, Masatsugu Tone, Akira Minoura
  • Patent number: 5224327
    Abstract: A lawn mower includes a blade housing enclosing grass cutting blades and having a lateral discharge opening, a blower unit connected to the discharge opening, and a duct connected to the blower unit for transporting grass clippings to a grass catcher. The blower unit includes an elbow-like lower blower housing connected to the blade housing, an upper blower housing having a substantially vertical cylindrical side wall connected to the duct, and an impeller mounted in the upper blower housing to be rotatable about a vertical axis. The impeller has a plane of rotation above a plane of rotation of the blades. The lower blower housing includes a flange for connection to the upper blower housing. The flange has an opening elongated in a direction along a passage defined by the two blower housings. This opening has width approximately half of the diameter of the impeller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 1992
    Date of Patent: July 6, 1993
    Assignee: Kubota Corporation
    Inventors: Akira Minoura, Masagi Kure, Yoji Fujiwara, Masatake Murakawa, Masatsugu Tone, Mikio Yuki
  • Patent number: 5215056
    Abstract: An engine speed control system for a working vehicle having an engine, and a propelling transmission and a power takeoff device driven by the engine. Engine speed is adjustable by an accelerator controlled by control signals outputted from a control unit. The control unit is connected to a clutch operation detecting switch for detecting an operative state of a power takeoff clutch for operating a power takeoff device and to a shift condition detecting switch for detecting a shift of the propelling transmission. The control unit outputs a control signal for rotating the engine at an idling speed when the propelling transmission is in neutral and the power takeoff clutch is disengaged, and a control signal for rotating the engine at a high rotating rate when the propelling transmission is in a drive transmitting position or the power takeoff clutch is engaged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 1992
    Date of Patent: June 1, 1993
    Assignee: Kubota Corporation
    Inventors: Eriya Harada, Mikio Yuki, Masatsugu Tone, Masatake Murakawa, Ryozo Imanishi
  • Patent number: 5042604
    Abstract: A working vehicle comprising an engine mounted on a vehicle frame, a control box mounted on the vehicle frame, and a radiator erected on the vehicle frame between the engine and the control box structure. A dust-proof space is defined by the control box, the radiator and a hinged hood covering the engine. Elastic sealing elements are arranged between opposite lateral sides of the control box and the radiator, and between an upper end of the radiator and the hood. The hood in a closed position presses upon the upper elastic elements to provide an additional support for the radiator and to seal the dust-proof space.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 1989
    Date of Patent: August 27, 1991
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masatsugu Tone, Mikio Yuki, Ryozo Imanishi, Yoji Fujiwara, Akira Minoura
  • Patent number: 4926624
    Abstract: A lawn mower comprising a cutting unit disposed between front and rear wheels, a grass discharge duct extending rearwardly from the cutting unit, and grass collecting containers each defining a top opening for receiving grass clippings sent through the discharge duct. The containers are supported by an E-shaped frame connected to, and retained by pins in, open rear ends of right and left pipe frames extending rearwardly and then upwardly from a mower body. The E-shaped frame engages the open rear ends of the pipe frames to interconnect the rear ends with a selected spacing therebetween.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 3, 1989
    Date of Patent: May 22, 1990
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masatake Murakawa, Niro Bando, Masatsugu Tone, Mikio Yuki, Junji Miyata, Tetsuaki Hayashi, Kazuaki Kurohara
  • Patent number: 4903469
    Abstract: A lawn mower comprising a cutting unit disposed between front and rear wheels, a grass discharge duct extending rearwardly from the cutting unit, and a grass collecting container defining a top opening for receiving grass clippings sent through the discharge duct. The grass collecting container includes a mouthpiece extending along peripheries of the top opening to rest on a U-shaped support frame mounted at a rear end of the mower. The mouthpiece is connected to the support frame by a projection and bore engagement. The support frame includes a holder defining an upwardly opening recess, and the container has a cover defining a downwardly opening recess at a position opposed to the holder. The two recesses define an opening for receiving a rear end of the grass discharge duct. The grass discharge duct includes an annular engagement portion extending peripherally of the rear end thereof for engagement with inner edges of the two recesses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 1987
    Date of Patent: February 27, 1990
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masatake Murakawa, Niro Bando, Masatsugu Tone, Mikio Yuki, Junji Miyata, Tetsuaki Hayashi, Kazuaki Kurohara
  • Patent number: 4677866
    Abstract: There is disclosed a transmission structure for an agricultural tractor wherein a clutch housing and a gear transmission case are interconnected by a transmission housing formed of sheet metal. The transmission housing contains an inner and outer double shaft construction comprising a propelling system drive shaft and a power takeoff system drive shaft. These drive shafts are connected to corresponding input shafts extending from the gear transmission case by means of a ball coupling and a flange type elastic coupling, respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 1985
    Date of Patent: July 7, 1987
    Assignee: Kubota Ltd.
    Inventor: Masatsugu Tone
  • Patent number: 4373597
    Abstract: A tractor for agriculture comprising an engine, a hydraulic stepless speed change mechanism having an output shaft, an input shaft connecting the engine with the hydraulic stepless speed change mechanism and having an extended portion, a PTO shaft connected in association with the extended portion, a running device, a transmission shaft connected in association with the output shaft, and a transmission change mechanism disposed at an intermediate portion of the transmission shaft, said transmission change mechanism being connectable and disconnectable of power transmission from the output shaft to the running device and capable of power transmission from the extended portion to the running device when said power transmission from the output shaft to the running device is cut. The tractor may be running even if the hydraulic stepless speed change mechanism is in trouble.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 1981
    Date of Patent: February 15, 1983
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Itatani, Masatsugu Tone, Kazuaki Kurohara
  • Patent number: 4323137
    Abstract: A work vehicle having an oil cooling path through which a working oil within the transmission housing for the hydraulically driven transmission means is circulated to the transmission case through the cooler.There is disposed a bypass adapted to return the working oil directly to the transmission case from said transmission housing without passing through the cooler when the pressure in said transmission housing exceeds a predetermined value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 29, 1980
    Date of Patent: April 6, 1982
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Niro Bando, Junji Miyata, Masatsugu Tone, Haruo Watanabe
  • Patent number: 4304141
    Abstract: In a tractor power take-off system in which first and second PTO shafts are disposed in the transmission case, the transmission case has at the bottom wall thereof an opening for taking off power to the second PTO shaft and there is disposed a PTO gear speed-change mechanism commonly used for both the first and second PTO shafts. The PTO gear speed-change mechanism has a PTO speed-change shift gear meshed all the times with a large-width speed-change gear for transmitting power to the second PTO shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 1980
    Date of Patent: December 8, 1981
    Assignee: Kubota, Ltd.
    Inventors: Masatsugu Tone, Yasuhisa Matsushita