An implement for seeding "fluffy" grass seed comprising a seed box defining a plurality of seed compartments having a seed dispensing slot in a lower portion thereof. Seed delivery tubes are connected to the seed box so that each of the seed delivery tubes encompasses one of the seed dispensing slot
An implement for seeding "fluffy" grass seed comprising a seed box defining a plurality of seed compartments having a seed dispensing slot in a lower portion thereof. Seed delivery tubes are connected to the seed box so that each of the seed delivery tubes encompasses one of the seed dispensing slots. A picker wheel assembly is rotatably supported on the seed box such that a picker wheel is disposed in each of the seed dispensing slots and a directional flow agitator assembly is rotatably mounted in each of the seed compartments for agitating and directing seed toward the seed dispensing slots and into contact with the picker wheels. A packer assembly, designed to substantially "float" over the surface of the ground, is rotatably connected to the frame assembly so as to support the frame assembly while at the same time firming soil over and around seed dispensed from the seed compartments through the seed delivery tubes. The packer assembly, which is disposed rearward of the seed delivery tube, is provided with a substantially resilient ground engaging portion so as to provide the packer assembly, and thus the implement, with a "floating-type" motion as the packer assembly firms the soil over and around the seeds and thereby assures that the seeds are substantially uniformly planted to a desired depth.
대표청구항▼
1. An implement for seeding grass comprising: a frame assembly having a forwardly extending end portion connectable to a towing vehicle; a seed box supported on the frame assembly, the seed box defining a plurality of seed compartments, each of the seed compartments having a seed dispensing slot
1. An implement for seeding grass comprising: a frame assembly having a forwardly extending end portion connectable to a towing vehicle; a seed box supported on the frame assembly, the seed box defining a plurality of seed compartments, each of the seed compartments having a seed dispensing slot in a lower portion thereof; seed delivery tubes connected to the seed box such that each of the seed delivery tubes encompasses one seed dispensing slot; picker wheel means rotatably supported in the seed dispensing slots for selectively removing seed from each of the seed compartments; directional flow agitator means rotatably mounted in the seed box for agitating and directing seed toward the seed dispensing slots and into contact with the picker wheel means; packer means rotatably connected to the frame assembly for supporting the frame assembly and for firming soil over and around seed dispensed from the seed compartments through the seed delivery tubes, the packer means having a substantial resilient ground engaging portion disposed rearward of the seed delivery tubes so as to provide the packer means with a floating type motion as same firms the soil over the seeds thereby insuring that the seeds are substantially uniformly planted to a desired depth regardless of minor variations in soil elevation, the packer means comprising: a packer axle rotatably connected to the frame assembly such that the packer axle is disposed in a substantially perpendicularly, spatial relationship with the seed delivery tubes; a cylindrically shaped packer casing supported by the packer axle, the cylindrically shaped packer casing having a first end, an opposed second end and an outer surface; a plurality of tires having hollow, non-inflated interior portions disposed on the packer casing; and means for securing the tires on the packer casing comprising: a plurality of spatially disposed rod members secured to the outer surface of the packer casing so as to be substantially parallel to the elongated central axis of the packer casing, each of the rod members having a first end and an opposed second end, each of the rod members having a length less than the length of the packer casing; rod extension members connected to the first and second ends of each of the rod members such that the extension members are spatially disposed relative to the packer casing; a first tire stabilization member having a centrally disposed packer casing receiving bore and a tire side wall engaging portion disposed about the packer casing receiving bore, the tire side wall engaging portion having a plurality of spatially disposed apertures therein such that when the first tire stabilization member is slidably positioned on the first end of the packer casing each of the apertures in the tire side wall engaging portion receives the extension member connected to the first end of one of the rod members and the tire side wall engaging portion abuttingly engages a side wall of an adjacently disposed tire; a second tire stabilization member having a centrally disposed packer casing receiving bore and a tire side wall engaging portion disposed about the casing receiving bore, the tire side wall engaging portion having a plurality of spatially disposed apertures therein such that when the second tire stabilization member is slidably positioned on the opposed second end of the packer casing each of the apertures in the tire side wall engaging portion receives the extension member connected to the second end of one of the rod members and the tire side will engaging portion abuttingly engages a side wall of an adjacently disposed tire; and connector means for connecting the first and second tire stabilization members to the extension members; and drive means for operably connecting the packer means to the directional flow agitator means and to the picker wheel means such that when the packer means is rotated rotational movement is imparted to the directional flow agitator means and to the picker wheel means and seed is uniformly discharged from the seed compartments via the seed dispensing slots and the picker wheel means into the seed delivery tubes. 2. The implement of claim 1 wherein the packer means further comprises: a first end cap member connected to the first end of the packer casing, the first end cap member having a centrally disposed bore extending therethrough for receiving one end portion of the packer axle; and a second end cap member connected to the second end of the packer casing, the second end cap member having a centrally disposed bore extending therethrough for receiving an opposed end portion of the packer axle. 3. The implement of claim 2 wherein the packer axle is characterized as having a medial portion and wherein the packer means further comprises: a disc member having a centrally disposed bore for receiving a medial portion of the packer axle, the disc member positionable within a central portion of the packer casing so as to reinforce the packer casing and stabilize the medial portion of the packer casing. 4. The implement of claim 3 wherein the packer axle is further characterized as having a first end portion and an opposed second end portion, the frame assembly is provided with a pair of substantially parallel, spatially disposed axle support members, and wherein the implement further comprises: first flange bearing means for rotatably connecting the first end portion of the packer axle to one of the axle support members; and second flange bearing means for rotatably connecting the second end portion of the packer axle to the other of the axle support members. 5. The implement of claim 4 further comprising: lock collar means secured to the first and second end portions of the packer axle for abuttingly engaging the first and second end cap members of the packer means and thereby stabilize the packer casing on the packer axle. 6. The implement of claim 1 wherein the seed compartments of the seed box are each provided with at least one lower seed subcompartment having a substantially inverted frusto-pyramidal configuration, the seed box is provided with opposed end walls, and wherein the directional flow agitator means comprises: an agitator shaft rotatably journaled in the opposed end walls of the seed box; and a plurality of spatially disposed, substantially V-shaped agitators supported on the agitator shaft such that the agitators extend radially therefrom, each of the V-shaped agitators skewed relative to the elongated axis of the agitator shaft such that a plane formed by the V-shaped agitators intersects the elongated axis of the agitator shaft at an acute angle. 7. An implement for seeding grass comprising: a frame assembly having a forwardly extending end portion connectable to a towing vehicle; a seed box supported on the frame assembly, the seed box having opposed end walls and defining a plurality of seed compartments, each of the seed compartments provided with at least one lower seed compartment having a substantially inverted frusto-pyramidal configuration, each of the lower seed compartments having a seed dispensing slot in a lower portion thereof; seed delivery tubes connected to the seed box such that each of the seed delivery tubes encompasses one seed dispensing slot; picker wheel means rotatably supported in the seed dispensing slots for selectively removing seed from each of the seed compartments; directional flow agitator means rotatably mounted in the seed box for agitating and directing seed toward the seed dispensing slots and into contact with the picker wheel means, the directional flow agitator means comprising: an agitator shaft rotatably journaled in the opposed end walls of the seed box; a plurality of spatially disposed, substantially Vshaped agitators supported on the agitator shaft such that the agitators extend radially therefrom, each of the V-shaped agitators skewed relative to the elongated axis of the agitator shaft such that a plane formed by the V-shaped agitators intersects the elongated axis of the agitator shaft at an acute angle; and a plurality of collar members positioned along the agitator shaft such that one of the collar members is positioned in each of the seed compartments above the seed dispensing slot, the V-shaped agitators supported by the collar members such that each collar member is provided with two inner disposed V-shaped agitators and two outer disposed V-shaped agitators, the two inner disposed V-shaped agitators extending from the collar member in opposite direction such that planes formed by leg components of each of the inner disposed V-shaped agitators are parallel and in a spatial relationship, the two outer disposed V-shaped agitators extending from the collar member in opposite direction such that planes formed by leg components of each of the outer disposed V-shaped agitators are parallel and in a spatial relationship; packer means rotatably connected to the frame assembly for supporting the frame assembly and for firming soil over and around seed dispensed from the seed compartments through the seed delivery tubes, the packer means having a substantial resilient ground engaging portion disposed rearward of the seed delivery tubes so as to provide the packer means with a floating type motion as same firms the soil over the seeds thereby insuring that the seeds are substantially uniformly planted to a desired depth regardless of minor variations in soil elevation, the packer means comprising: a packer axle rotatably connected to the frame assembly such that the packer axle is disposed in a substantially parallel, spatial relationship with the seed delivery tubes; a cylindrically shaped packer casing supported by the packer axle, the packer casing characterized as having a first end, an opposed second end and an outer surface; a plurality of tires having hollow, non-inflated interior portions disposed on the packer casing; and means for securing the tires on the packer casing comprising: a plurality of spatially disposed rod members secured to the outer surface of the packer casing so as to be substantially parallel to the elongated central axis of the packer casing, each of the rod members having a first end and an opposed second end, each of the rod members having a length less than the length of the packer casing; rod extension members connected to the first and second ends of each of the rod members such that the extension members are spatially disposed relative to the packer casing; a first tire stabilization member having a centrally disposed packer casing receiving bore and a tire side wall engaging portion disposed about the packer casing receiving bore, the tire side wall engaging portion having a plurality of spatially disposed apertures therein such that when the first tire stabilization member is slidably positioned on the first end of the packer casing each of the apertures in the tire side wall engaging portion receives the extension member connected to the first end of one of the rod members and the tire side wall engaging portion abuttingly engages a side wall of an adjacently disposed tire; a second tire stabilization member having a centrally disposed packer casing receiving bore and a tire side wall engaging portion disposed about the casing receiving bore, the tire side wall engaging portion having a plurality of spatially disposed aperture therein such that when the second tire stabilization member is slidably positioned on the opposed second end of the packer casing each of the apertures in the tire side wall engaging portion receives the extension member connected to the second end of one of the rod members and the tire side wall engaging portion abuttingly engages a side wall of an adjacently disposed tire; and connector means for connecting the first and second tire stabilization members to the extension members; and drive means for operably connecting the packer mean to the directional flow agitator means and to the picker wheel means such that when the packer means is rotated rotational movement is imparted to the directional flow agitator means and to the picker wheel means and seed is uniformly discharged from the seed compartments via the seed dispensing slots and the picker wheel means into the seed delivery tubes. 8. The implement of claim 7 wherein the picker wheel means comprises: a picker wheel axle rotatably supported by the frame assembly such that the picker wheel axle is disposed below the seed box; and a plurality of picker wheels mounted on the picker wheel axle such that one of the picker wheels extends upwardly into each of the seed dispensing slots of the seed box. 9. The implement of claim 8 wherein the drive means comprises: a drive sprocket mounted on the packer axle; a shaft member rotatably mounted on the frame assembly so as to be aligned with the packer axle; a driven sprocket mounted on the shaft member so as to be vertically aligned with the drive sprocket; first chain means disposed about the drive sprocket and the driven sprocket for connecting same and for imparting rotational movement to the driven sprocket and the shaft member in response to rotational movement of the packer axle and the drive sprocket; a transfer sprocket mounted on the shaft member so as to be spatially disposed relative to the driven sprocket; a picker wheel sprocket mounted on the picker wheel axle so as to be aligned with the transfer sprocket; a directional flow agitator sprocket mounted on the agitator shaft so as to be aligned with the transfer sprocket and the picker wheel sprocket; and second chain means disposed about the transfer sprocket, the picker wheel sprocket and the directional flow agitator sprocket for imparting rotational movement to the picker wheel sprocket and the directional flow sprocket, and thus the picker wheels and the substantially V-shaped agitators, in response to rotational movement of the transfer sprocket. 10. The implement of claim 9 wherein the drive means further comprises: a spring-biased support arm pivotal connected to the frame assembly, the support arm having a distal end portion; and a tension sprocket rotatably mounted on the distal end portion of the support arm so as to engage the second chain means and provide tension on the second chain means. 11. The implement of claim 10 further comprising: wrench means connectable to the shaft member for selectively rotating the shaft member in order to calibrate the seed dispensing rate of the implement when the first chain means is disconnected from the drive sprocket and the driven sprocket.
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이 특허에 인용된 특허 (3)
Dobbins John B. (9442 Mayrene Dr. Garden Grove CA 92641), Mobile spreader.
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