Patent Application
20140227068
Agricultural seed carts are often used for transporting bulk seed to the field. Prior art carts typically include a wheeled trailer with a large seed hopper and a conveyor to discharge seed from the hopper to a seed planter or other container. More recently, some seed carts have a conveyor which can be pivoted or moved to a reversed position for loading the seed cart. See, for example, Applicant's co-pending application, Publication No. 2012/0201631. However, prior art seed carts have limited versatility with respect to the position of the conveyor on the trailer or hopper. More particularly, while the conveyor can be pivoted or swung to various positions along the side of the trailer or hopper, the conveyor cannot be moved more than approximately 135°, and the position of the conveyor behind the cart is substantially limited.
Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved seed cart having a greater range of movement for the conveyor.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart trailer having a track for guided movement of the conveyor.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart trailer with a hopper, and a conveyor which can move approximately 180° or more relative to the hopper.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart trailer wherein the conveyor can be moved between loading and unloading positions relative to the hopper.
Yet another objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart trailer having a conveyor which can be used for loading and unloading of external or independent containers spaced from the seed cart.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart having a conveyor which rolls along rails for adjustable positioning of the conveyor relative to the cart.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a seed cart trailer having an adjustable conveyor which is economical to manufacture, and safe and simple to use.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.
A seed cart trailer of the present invention includes a trailer with support wheels and a tongue for hitching the trailer to a tractor or other tow vehicle. A seed cart or hopper is mounted on the trailer and includes an upper inlet for loading seed into the hopper and a lower outlet for discharging seed from the hopper. A conveyor with opposite inlet and outlet ends is mounted on the trailer and is moveable between various positions to load and unload the hopper. The trailer includes a track or rails which extend along one side and along the rear or back end of the trailer. The conveyor is mounted on a carriage with rollers which roll along the track for positioning the conveyor in a desired location. A motor actuates the rollers for ease of movement of the conveyor. The conveyor is pivotally mounted on the carriage so that the inlet can be positioned beneath the hopper for discharging seed from the hopper, or the outlet can be positioned over the hopper for loading seed into the hopper. As a further alternative, the conveyor can be pivoted away from the hopper, such that both the inlet and outlet are spaced from the hopper for use in loading and unloading two separate and independent containers. Hydraulic cylinders extend between the trailer and the conveyor to control pivotal movement about horizontal and vertical axes.
The seed cart of the present invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 10. The cart 10 includes a trailer frame 12 with a seed container, such as a hopper 14, mounted on the trailer 12. The hopper 14 is supported by a frame 16, which effectively cantilevers the hopper 14 over the trailer 12 from the right side of the trailer 12 toward the left side of the trailer 12. As an alternative to the hopper 14, one or more seed boxes 15, as are known in the art, can be mounted on the trailer 12 via a frame 17, as seen in
The hopper 14 includes an upper inlet 24 and a lower outlet 26. The hopper 14 has a sloped floor so that seed in the hopper 14 flows by gravity to the outlet 26. A conventional gate (not shown) is provided on the hopper 14 adjacent the outlet 26 and moves between open and closed positions so as to control discharge of seed from the hopper 14.
The conveyor 18 includes an inlet 28 and an outlet 30. The conveyer 18 includes a belt and a belt drive system for transporting seed from the inlet 28 to the outlet 30. Preferably, the belt and belt drive system are the same or similar to that described in Applicant's co-pending application Ser. No. 13/106,168, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,292,065, issued on Oct. 23, 2012, entitled CROSS CLEATED CONVEYOR BELT FOR A TUBULAR CONVEYOR and filed on May 12, 2011 which is incorporated herein by reference. Alternatively, other belts and drive systems, as known in the art, may be utilized.
The trailer 12 has a track 32 comprised of one or more rails 34 which extend along the left side of the trailer 12 and along the rear or back end of the trailer 12. The rails 34 are curved at the left rear corner of the trailer 12, as best seen in 1B and 2B. The conveyor 18 is mounted upon a carriage 36 which runs along the rails 34 of the track 32. More particularly, the carriage 36 includes a plurality of rollers 38 which roll along the rails 34 to guide movement of the conveyor 18 on the track 32. As seen in
For example, the carriage 36 can be positioned on the side of the trailer 12 adjacent the front end of the track 32 in a lowered transport position, as shown in
The cart 10 includes multiple hydraulic cylinders to further control the movement of the conveyor 18. A first cylinder 42 with an extendable and retractable arm 40 adjusts the position of the conveyor outlet 30. The height of the conveyor outlet 30 is adjusted by a second cylinder 46, which has a lower end connected to the carriage 36 and an upper end connected to the first cylinder 42 for pivotal movement of the conveyor 18 about a substantially horizontal axis 43. A pivot connection 45 is provided between the conveyor 18 and the arm 44 of the cylinder 42. This connection has a substantially vertically oriented pivot axis, such that the conveyor 18 can pivot about the point 45 whereby the conveyor inlet 28 of the conveyor 18 can be moved beneath the hopper outlet 26, as shown in
The conveyor 18 can also be moved to the position shown in
A lock assembly or mechanism 50 is provided on the carriage 36, as best shown in
In the preferred embodiment, the rotational movement of the conveyor about the pivot pin 62 is achieved manually. However, such rotation can also be achieved via a hydraulic cylinder assembly which can push and/or pull the conveyor through an angular range, as best seen in
A second lock assembly 50 may be optionally be provided on the conveyor 18 adjacent the pivot axis 45, as seen in
The legs 16 of the hopper 14 provide an unobstructed path for movement of the conveyor 18 from the forwardly extending transport position shown in
The invention has been shown and described above with the preferred embodiments, and it is understood that many modifications, substitutions, and additions may be made which are within the intended spirit and scope of the invention. From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.
