Beet Harvester (Patent No: 425247)

Inventor: Braun, Frank

Location: Nobleford

Comments: N/A

Description: -CLAIMS-

Having regard to the foregoing disclosure, the patent of which this specification forms part confers, subject to the conditions prescribed in The Patent Act, 1935, the exclusive right. privilege and liberty of making, constructing, using and vending to others to be used, the invention as defined in claims submitted by the patentee as follows:-

1.A mobile beet harvesting and beet topping machine of the type described comprising in combination a chassis frame; a pair of leading swivelled wheels journaled to said frame; a pair of axle mounted rear wheels bearably carrying the machine load through said frame; a drive sprocket on one of said rear wheels; a chain and sprocket combination driven from said rear wheel sprocket; a countershaft driven by, said chain and sprocket; a hand manipulated clutch between said chain and sprocket and said countershaft; a twin-bladed beet digging and lifting shovel slotted for shedding dirt; means to adjust the height of said shovel; a symetrically disposed and operated sprocket driven and sprocket guided twin endless chain beet conveyor in rear of said shovel, said drive sprocket being driven by crown wheels and shafts from said countershaft; an interiorly mounted height adjustable frame rearwardly pivoted on and swingable arcuately from the axle of said rear wheels and bearably supporting said conveyor with said shovel; brackets on said interior frame supporting said conveyor elements; an endless chain-and-spike beet directing unit bearably supported by and driven through sprockets mounted on the arms comprising said interior frame; a ratable self-adjusting beet-top slicing disc mounted above said conveyor on said interior frame; a rotable beet-top trimming device mounted above said conveyor on said interior frame in rear of said slicing disc; spirally rigid beet cleaning rollers receiving therebetween topped and trimmed beets from said conveyor; and a bucket-elevator for delivery of cleaned beets to an elevated bin for disposal.

2. A beet harvester, topping and trimming machine comprising in combination, a four-wheel mounted chassis; an interiorly mounted height adjustable frame rearwardly pivoted on and swingable radially from the transverse chassis mounting axle of the rear pair of said wheels; lever, pawl and ratchet means to raise and lower said pivoted frame; beet digging and lifting shovel rigidly suspended from the forward end of said pivoted frame; a twin-member beet conveyor with endless chains, said conveyor being mounted on said pivoted frame to receive the beets from said shovel in orderly selected upright manner in pockets formed between such opposing chains; an endless travelling chain beet-directing unit bearably supported on the arms of said pivoted frame and disposed above said conveyor; sprockets mounting and for driving said unit; spiked lugs mounted on said chain to assist and maintain progress of beets through the machine; idler sprockets guiding said chain; frame members bearably supporting said sprockets; swingable arm .supported sprockets engaging said chain in a chain tightening manner; a countershaft mounted on said pivoted frame and driven from one of the rear wheels of the machine; clutch means controlling the operation of said countershaft; means-to drive said beet directing unit from, said countershaft; means to drive said twin member conveyor from said countershaft; a circularly bladed rotable beet-top slicing unit above said conveyor and arm supported from said interior pivoted frame; means to drive said slicing unit indirectly from a power take-off driving pulley; a bladed rotable beet-top trimming unit above said conveyor in rear of said slicing unit and arm supported from said interior pivoted frame; means to drive said trimming unit indirectly from a power take-off pulley; and means for beet cleaning and elevating with beet top disposal by a conveyor driven indirectly from a power take-off drive pulley.


3. A beet harvesting, topping, trimming and cleaning machine comprising in combination a chassis framework mounted on a pair of leading swivelled wheels journaled thereto and a pair of rear axle mounted wheels, one of which latter is the power transmission communicating wheel transmitting such power for certain operational purposes by chain and sprocket to a power transmission countershaft; an interiorly mounted height adjustable frame rearwardly pivoted on and to swing radially from the axle of said rear wheels and supporting said countershaft bearably; a spring partially supporting by suspension the said pivoted frame; crank and lever means, hand operated, with pawl and ratchet control to support and to pivotally adjust the height of said frame with respect to ground level; a beet digging and lifting shovel rigidly suspended from the forward end of said pivoted frame; a two-member beet conveyor with twin endless chains travelling in symetrical directions and sprocket mounted on said adjustable frame in rear of said shovel, and bevel gears and shaft driven from said countershaft, lugs on said endless chains forming beet-holding pocket-shaped spaces in between the opposing conveyor chains; an endless chain beet directing unit pivotally supported between the arms of said pivotally adjusted frame and disposed above said conveyor and spring suspended from said machine chassis; sprockets shaft mounted on said frame for driving said beet directing unit; driving means for said sprockets from said countershaft; a rotable beet-top slicing unit self adjustable for the different sizes of beets disposed: in rear of said directing unit and arm-supported from said pivoted frame above said conveyor and sprocket and chain-driven from a power take-off pulley; a power driven spiked beet guiding roller sprocket and chain driven from said countershaft cooperating with and to maintain proper beet feeding to said slicing unit and to assure uniform depth of beet slicing unit; a rotable beet-top trimming unit above said conveyor in rear of said slicing unit arm-supported from said pivoted frame and driven by means of a power take-off pulley; and trip means for tilting automatically said trimming unit operated by a cam system as rotated by shafts and crown gears from said countershaft and cooperating with and timed in unison with the travelling speed of said conveyor unit to permit thorough trimming of each beet being timed for this purpose.

4. All as in claim 3 together with an auxiliary manually operated means for lifting said trimming unit away from the beet tops by lever cooperation with said unit supporting arm; and a transversely disposed conveyor with beet shifting slats and prongs indirectly driven from the said power take-off pulley.

5. A beet harvesting, topping, trimming and cleaning machine comprising in combination a four-wheel axle mounted chassis framework; an interior frame arcuately pivoted on theerear axle of the machine and supported by spring and crank from said chassis framework; means to adjust the height of said interior frame through manipulation of said crank; a beet digging and lifting shovel attached to said interior frame; a beet conveyor in rear of said shovel with a beet directing unit above said conveyor, both mounted on said interior frame and power driven f from a countershaft driven by chain and sprocket connection with one of the rear wheels of the machine; a beet topping unit and a beet trimming unit each arm supported :from said interior frame and each driven from a power take-off pulley in connection with belt guiding pulleys; spirally ridged beet cleaning rollers and a beet elevator in rear of said trimming unit, and all operated by the same power take-off pulley and drive shaft of a tractor or other power supply unit; an elevated bin fed by said elevator for beet storage and disposal; hand lever pawl and ratchet mechanism for operation of said bin door; and clutch means controlling coaction between the rear wheel sprocket drive and said countershaft.

6. A mechanical beet harvesting machine of the type described comprising in combination a beet digging and lifting shovel mounted n the machine and slotted for shedding dirt, means on the machine to adjust the height and depth of said shovel with respect to the ground level, a symmetrically disposed and operated sprocket driven and sprocket guided twin endless chain beet conveyor in rear of said shovel, said drive sprockets being driven indirectly by one of the rear wheels mounting the machine, lugs and ridge members on each alternate and oppositely disposed link of said chains, top and bottom extension plates on each ridge member, bolts connecting said plates, springs enclosing said bolts and anchored to same, wing members supported by said bolts and rotably influenced by said springs to form varying sized pockets with said lugs and ridge members to accommodate varying sized beets, and endless chain beet directing unit, beet top slicing and trimming units, a refuse conveyor, beet cleaning rollers, a beet cleaned elevator and receiving bin, and means for operating all said beet handling units as driven by a rear wheel mounting the machine during travel of the machine.