BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a detailed perspective view of one of the rotary mower decks of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the steer-by-wire control system utilized by the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower 10 of the present invention is shown best in FIGS. 1-4 as including a mower body 12 which includes an engine 14, preferably diesel, which is mounted on the mower body 12 to provide power for the entire mower system of the present invention. In the preferred embodiment, the engine 14 would be an approximately sixty-seven horsepower (67 HP) unit and would be coupled to a single variable displacement pressure compensated hydraulic pump 16 that provides pressure and flow of hydraulic fluid to the various hydraulic functions of the mower 10 of the present invention. The engine 14 is connected via a gear box or transmission to the drive wheels 18a and 18b which are mounted on a pair of axles 20a and 20b mounted on the underside of mower body 12, as shown best in FIG. 1. A pair of rear wheel mounting structures 22a and 22b are mounted on the rear of the mower body 12, with a pair of rear wheels 24a and 24b being provided to support the rear of the mower body 12, one of the rear wheels 24a and 24b being mounted on each of the rear wheel mounting structures 22a and 22b. It is further preferred that the rear wheels 24a and 24b be mounted on swivels or casters 26a and 26b mounted on the rear wheel mounting structures 22a and 22b such that the rear wheels 24a and 24b may be rotated through three hundred sixty degrees (360°) as will be described later herein. Finally, mounted atop the mower body 12 is an operator's seat 28 which may be of any appropriate size and shape, although it is preferred that the operator's seat 28 be mounted on a seat suspension device (not shown) which will increase the comfort level for the operator seated in the operator's seat 28, although the inclusion of such a device is not necessary to the functionality of the present invention.
Mounted on the underside of the mower body 12 are a pair of independently mounted rear mower decks 32 and 34 which are mounted in a side-by-side configuration underneath the mower body 12, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In the preferred embodiment, each of the rear mower decks 32 and 34 would be mounted on an independent rear deck mounting on 36 and 38 which is pivotally mounted on the mower body 12 and is held in place by an hydraulic cylinder 40 and 42 which is operative to raise and lower the left and right rear mower deck arms 36 and 38 and hence the left and right rear mower decks 32 and 34 which are mounted on the end of the respective left and right rear mower deck arm 36 and 38.
A forward mower deck mounting structure 50 is mounted on and extends forwards from the mower body 12, as shown in FIG. 1 and 2, and would preferably include left, middle, and right forward mower deck mounting arms 52, 54 and 56 at the outer ends of which are pivotably mounted the left, middle, and right forward mower decks 58, 60, and 62. Each of the left, middle, and right forward mower deck mounting arms 52, 54 and 56 would preferably be pivotably mounted on the mower body 12 to permit raising and lowering of the forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62, which will be performed by one or more hydraulic cylinders which will be operative to lift each of the forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62 to a transport position and likewise lower the decks into their cutting position, as shown in FIG. 1. Alternatively, it may be preferable to raise and lower the forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62 as a single unit, and in this case, the left, middle, and right forward mower deck mounting arms 52, 54 and 56 would then be mounted on a single pivoting hinge mount mounted on the front of the mower body 12.
An important feature of the mounting of the left, middle, and right forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62 and left and right rear mower decks 32 and 34 is that they would be aligned such that an optimum cut width is provided which leaves no uncut grass between the decks. The preferred arrangement for the five mower decks than is an offset arrangement in which the left and right forward mower decks 58 and 62 are mounted outwards and spaced from the middle forward mower deck 60 such that the mower 10, when moving forward, will cut three swaths in the grass via the left, middle and right forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62. The uncut grass which remains between the left and middle and middle and right forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62 is then cut by the left and right rear mower decks 32 and 34, and therefore the total cut width of the present invention extends from the outer edges of the left forward mower deck 58 to the outer edge of the right forward mower deck 62 with no uncut grass being found there between. In the preferred embodiment, this results in approximately a one hundred eight inch (108″) wide swath of cut grass, although this is dependent on the size of the mower decks themselves and the desired spacing between the mower decks, which is not critical to the functionality of the present invention so long as the five mower decks cooperate in quickly and efficiently cutting the wide cut in the grass.
As each of the left and right rear mower decks 32 and 34 and left, middle and right forward mower decks 58, 60 and 62 are generally identical to one another, the following description of left forward mower deck 58 should be understood to apply generally to each and every one of the elements of the other four mower decks. Specifically, as shown best in FIG. 3, left forward mower deck 58 would include a generally cylindrical mower deck 80 underneath which is rotatably mounted a cutting blade 82 which, in the preferred embodiment, would have a width of approximately twenty to thirty inches and would also preferably be a mulching-type blade in order to provide the proper mulching for grass being cut by the present invention. Mounted on and extending forwards from the mower deck are a pair of front caster wheels 82a and 82b and mounted on the back of the mower deck 80 is a rear roller 84 which engages the ground surface over which the mower deck 80 is traveling. The rear roller 84 is pivotally mounted on the mower deck 80 by arms 86a and 86b such that the rear roller 84 may be pivoted upwards or downwards relative to the mower deck 80 along with the height of the pair of front caster wheels 82a and 82b via a mechanical linkage height adjustment mechanism 83 to set the cutting height for the mower deck 80, the rear roller 84 also operative to prevent turf scuffing and achieve turf stripping, both of which are desirable features of such a mowing device. Finally, rotation of the mower blade 81 is achieved via an hydraulic drive mechanism 88 which is connected via feed and return hoses 89a and 89b to the hydraulic pump 16 connected to engine 14, and as hydraulic fluid is circulated through the feed and return hoses 89a and 89b, the hydraulic drive mechanism 88 rotates the mower blade 81 at a high rate of revolutions to cut the grass passing there underneath.
One of the key features of the present invention, however, which is shown best in FIG. 4, is the steer-by-wire system which is used for controlling speed and direction of the rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower 10 of the present invention. Specifically, the steer-by-wire system 90 would include a computer control module 92 which serves as the interface between the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96, the operator control panel 98 which includes deck engagement switch 100 and deck lift switch 102 and the various hydraulic valves 110 which include the left drive motor valve 112, right drive motor valve 114, forward three-deck motor valve 116, rear two-deck motor valve 118, and two-deck boom lift valve 120. In operation, the steer-by-wire system 90 would be used as follows. The left and right operator control levers 94 and 96 would be used to respectively control the left drive motor valve 112 and right drive motor valve 114 to drive the drive wheels 18a and 18b mounted on the pair of axles 20a and 20b, such that the drive wheels 18a and 18b are independently operable to permit operation and control of the present invention as zero-turn mowing device. The computer control module 92 is programmed to interpret the relative position of the left and right control levers 94 and 96 via sensors and forward appropriate commands to the left and right drive motor valves 112 and 114 to open or close the valves in conjunction with the positioning of the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96. For example, when both levers are pushed forwards, the computer control module 92 engages the left and right drive motor valves 112 and 114 to drive the drive wheels 18a and 18b to move the rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower 10 of the present invention forwards at a rate of speed proportional to the amount of forward movement of the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96. Likewise, when both levers are pulled rearwards, the computer control module 92 engages the left and right drive motor valves 112 and 114 to drive the drive wheels 18a and 18b to move the rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower 10 of the present invention rearwards at a rate of speed proportional to the amount of rearward movement of the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96. Various combinations of positions of the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96 will result in steering and turning of the mower 10, and such driving procedures are well-known to operators of mower vehicles. However, the steer-by-wire control system 90 is not known in the prior art, and it is this improvement which is unique as compared to other mowers found in the prior art.
One of the key reasons for including the steer-by-wire control system 90 is to facilitate the eventual implementation of radio frequency guidance (RFG) or unmanned vehicle (UV) control during operation of the mower 10. Specifically, RFG or UV control would serve to remove the human operator from potentially unsafe operating environments, such as locations with poor air quality, extreme grade slopes which need to be mowed and other such unsafe grass cutting situations. The steer-by-wire control system 90 may be connected to a remote control device which bypasses the left and right operator control levers 94 and 96 and simply commands the operations of the computer control module 92 to control operation of the mower 10, the controls for which would be provided by any appropriate remote control device currently available, modified for use with the present invention. It should be further noted that the specific operational characteristics of such a remote control system would generally be determined through experimentation, and therefore further discussion of the specific details of such a system will not be entered into in this disclosure.
It is to be understood that numerous additions, substitutions, and modifications may be made to the mower 10 of the present invention which fall within the intended broad scope of the above description. For example, the size, shape and construction materials used in connection with the various elements of the present invention may be modified or changed so long as the functionality of the invention is neither degraded nor destroyed. Also, it should be noted that although the steer-by-wire control system 90 is described as including certain hydraulic valves operative to control various elements of the mower 10, the steer-by-wire control system 90 may include further control elements for other operative devices of the mower 10 so long as the critical features of controlling speed and direction of the mower 10 are maintained. Finally, it should be noted that the mower 10 of the present invention may include more or fewer mower decks depending on the size of the grass cut swath that is to be produced.
There has therefore been shown and described a rotary zero-turn steer-by-wire mower 10 which accomplishes at least all of its intended purposes.
Patent Application
20080072556
