1. Field of the Invention
The present invention refers to a chain-type flexible cutting edge, in particular for bush-cutters.
2. Background Art
As known, the bush-cutter is a tool used for cutting bushes, shrubs and grass in places not accessible with other machines. It is carried on straps or on the shoulders by an operator and is equipped with an engine of the electric or combustion type that, through a transmission shaft placed inside a rod, actuates, by rotating it, a rigid toothed disk or a mowing head that usually supports from two to four flexible cutters, made as nylon wires, thin metal cables or chains.
In the particular case of mowing heads, the chains used as flexible cutting edges usually are of three types:
Object of the present invention is solving the above prior art problems, by providing a chain-type flexible cutting edge, particularly for a bush-cutter, that is equipped both with a smooth cutting-start edge, suitable for example for mowing grass or thin shrubs, and with a toothed cutting-start edge suitable for example for pruning bushes or for cutting trees or plants whose stock has a small diameter.
Moreover, an object of the present invention is providing a chain-type flexible cutting edge that is more flexible and resistant with respect to prior art chain-type cutting edges.
Another object of the present invention is providing a mowing head equipped with a chain-type flexible cutting edge according to the present invention.
A further object of the present invention is providing a bush-cutter equipped with a mowing head according to the present invention.
The above and other objects and advantages of the invention, as will appear from the following description, are obtained by a chain-type flexible cutting edge as claimed in claim 1. Moreover, the above and other objects and advantages of the invention are obtained by a mowing head equipped with the above chain-type flexible cutting edge and by a bush-cutter equipped with such mowing head. Preferred embodiments and non-trivial variations of the present invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.
The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments thereof, provided as a non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:
a shows a plan view of a type of link composing the chain-type flexible cutting edge of
b shows a plan view of another type of link composing the chain-type flexible cutting edge of
With reference to the Figure, it is possible to note that the chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 according to the present invention is the articulated joining, preferably according to the configuration of a roller-type chain, of at least two different links: in particular, the chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 therefore comprises at least one linear connecting and cutting link 3 and at least one toothed connecting and cutting link 5 mutually connected in an articulated manner. In a preferred embodiment thereof, and as can be noted in particular in
With reference to
With reference to
With reference in particular to
The arrangement of links 3, 5 along the chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 according to the present invention is therefore advantageously such as to arrange all toothed connecting and cutting links 5 in such a way that they have, with respect to a median axis M-M of the cutting edge, their own cutting teeth 5d all on the same side. In such a way, the chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 is simultaneously equipped with a smooth cutting-start edge TL (in
Therefore, by abandoning the chain structure with ring-shaped links, the chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 according to the present invention has therefore a flexibility, and consequently a reliability to breakage, that is greater than what has been known in the art so far, since it has not the structural stiffening phenomenon any more in case of impact against hard obstacles.
With reference now to
Taking into account an example of rotation direction of the head 10, shown in
It is clear that an operator, every time different working needs occur, can at any time modify the connection modes of the flexible cutting edge 1 to the head 10 in order to exploit, when choosing it and indifferently, the smooth cutting-start edge TL or the toothed cutting-start edge TD.
The present invention further comprises a bush-cutter equipped with the cutting head 10 with chain-type flexible cutting edge 1 as previously described.
The contents of all references (including literature references, issued patents, published patent applications, and co-pending patent applications) cited throughout this application are hereby expressly incorporated herein in their entireties by reference.
Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents of the specific embodiments of the invention described herein. Such equivalents are intended to be encompassed by the following claims.
This application is a continuation pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §111 of PCT international application Ser. No. PCT/IT2007/000265, filed Apr. 10, 2007, designating the United States and published in English on Oct. 16, 2008 as publication WO 2008/123000 A1. The entire disclosure of the aforementioned patent application is incorporated herein by this reference.
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Number | Date | Country |
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2651089 | Mar 1991 | FR |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20100050442 A1 | Mar 2010 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | PCT/IT2007/000265 | Apr 2007 | US |
Child | 12574433 | US |