Lawn mower and fertilizer spreader combination
원문보기
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
A01G-025/09
A01C-003/06
A01C-007/00
A01C-017/00
출원번호
US-0906650
(2010-10-18)
등록번호
US-8668154
(2014-03-11)
발명자
/ 주소
O'Daniel, Harold
출원인 / 주소
O'Daniel, Harold
대리인 / 주소
Gunter, Jr., Charles D.
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
0인용 특허 :
9
초록▼
A riding lawn mower mounted drop spreader apparatus is used for spreading a granular material while mowing. The spreader includes a hopper for holding a quantity of a granular material to be dispensed with a control gate which controls the amount of material distributed while mowing. An auger locate
A riding lawn mower mounted drop spreader apparatus is used for spreading a granular material while mowing. The spreader includes a hopper for holding a quantity of a granular material to be dispensed with a control gate which controls the amount of material distributed while mowing. An auger located in the hopper has a drive motor which can also be controlled by an operator of the mower. The hopper has a mounting frame for mounting the hopper and agitator mechanism on a rear chassis region of the lawn mower. An operator can visually observe the amount of material distributed by observing the mowed path behind the mower during use.
대표청구항▼
1. A riding lawn mower mounted drop spreader combination for spreading a granular material while mowing, comprising: a hopper for holding a quantity of a granular material, the hopper having a generally vertical front wall and a slanted rear wall and opposing end walls which together with the front
1. A riding lawn mower mounted drop spreader combination for spreading a granular material while mowing, comprising: a hopper for holding a quantity of a granular material, the hopper having a generally vertical front wall and a slanted rear wall and opposing end walls which together with the front and rear walls define an initially open interior space for the hopper, the hopper front and rear walls meeting in a bottom region in which is located at least one opening through which granular material can be distributed;a control gate mounted adjacent the bottom region of the hopper for adjusting the relative size of the opening in the bottom region to thereby control the amount of granular material being distributed from the hopper interior space;an auger element supported for rotation within the interior space of the hopper in proximity to the opening in the bottom region of the hopper;a drive mechanism including a source of driving torque for causing rotation of the auger element when placed in an active operating mode upon demand by an operator to break up the granular material in the hopper, the drive mechanism also having an inactive mode in which the auger does not rotate;a drive actuator for selectively shifting the drive mechanism between the two modes of operation;a dispensing control for adjusting the position of the control gate relative to the opening located in the bottom region of the hopper to thereby control the amount of granular material being dispensed; anda mounting frame for mounting the hopper and agitator mechanism on a rear chassis region of the lawn mower;wherein the drive mechanism for the agitator includes a 12-Volt windshield washer motor with an output shaft connected to the auger shaft in operative fashion, the motor being electrically connected to a battery located on the lawn mower for powering the motor. 2. The combination of claim 1, wherein the mounting frame has a vertical front wall and a pair of spaced apart end walls, and wherein the agitator motor is mounted on one of the spaced apart end walls of the mounting frame, the auger element running between mounting locations on each of the end walls. 3. The combination of claim 2, wherein the drive actuator for the drive mechanism is an electrical on/off switch. 4. The combination of claim 3, wherein the dispensing control for adjusting the position of the control gate relative to the opening in the hopper includes a positioning cable and hinge arrangement, the control cable having a first end which runs to a hinge mounted on the hopper to the control gate and having a second end which connects to a foot pedal located on the lawn mower. 5. A combination zero turn lawn mower and granular material drop spreader, the combination comprising: a zero turn lawn mower having a chassis with a front region, a rear chassis region and intermediate side regions which together with the front and rear regions define a mowing width for the mower;a hopper for holding a quantity of a granular material, the hopper having a generally vertical front wall and a slanted rear wall and opposing end walls which together with the front and rear walls define an initially open interior space for the hopper, the hopper front and rear walls meeting in a bottom region in which is located at least one opening through which granular material can be distributed;a mounting frame for mounting the hopper and agitator mechanism on the rear chassis region of the zero turn lawn mower, the mounting frame having a vertical front wall and a pair of spaced apart end walls;a pair of downwardly extending leg elements carried by the hopper and mounting frame;a pair of upstanding channel members mounted on the lawn mower chassis, the channel members being spaced-apart a predetermined distance for receiving the respective downwardly extending leg elements in mating fashion to thereby provide a quick attachment/detachment point for the hopper and mounting wall on the lawn mower chassis;a control gate mounted adjacent the bottom region of the hopper for adjusting the relative size of the opening in the bottom region of the hopper to thereby control the amount of granular material being distributed from the hopper interior space;an auger element supported for rotation within the interior space of the hopper in proximity to the opening in the bottom region of the hopper;a drive mechanism including a source of driving torque for causing rotation of the auger element when placed in an active operating mode upon demand by an operator to break up the granular material in the hopper, the drive mechanism also having an inactive mode in which the auger does not rotate;a drive actuator for selectively shifting the drive mechanism between the two modes of operation; anda dispensing control for adjusting the position of the control gate relative to the opening located in the bottom region of the hopper to thereby control the amount of granular material being dispensed. 6. The combination of claim 5, wherein the drive mechanism for the agitator includes a 12-Volt windshield washer motor with an output shaft connected to the auger element in operative fashion, the motor being electrically connected to a battery located on the lawn mower for powering the motor. 7. The combination of claim 6, wherein the agitator motor is mounted on one of the spaced apart end walls of the mounting frame, and wherein the auger element runs between mounting locations on each of the end walls. 8. The combination of claim 7, wherein the drive actuator for the drive mechanism is an electrical on/off switch. 9. The combination of claim 8, wherein the dispensing control for adjusting the position of the control gate relative to the opening in the bottom region of the hopper is a positioning cable and hinge arrangement, the control cable having a first end which runs to a hinge mounted on the hopper to the control gate and having a second end which connects to a foot pedal located on the lawn mower. 10. A method of simultaneously mowing and fertilizing a substrate area with a zero turn lawn mower having a chassis with a front region, a rear region and opposing sidewalls which define a given mowing width therebetween, the method comprising the steps of: mounting a drop spreader on the rear region of the lawn mower chassis, the drop spreader having a hopper for holding and distributing a granular fertilizer material, the hopper having a bottom region with a longitudinally arranged series of apertures provided in the bottom region, an interior space, and a given spreading width which is approximately the same as the mowing width of the zero turn lawn mower along the entire spreading width of the hopper;providing a control gate mounted adjacent the bottom region of the hopper for adjusting the relative size of the apertures in the bottom region to thereby control the amount of granular fertilizer material being distributed from the hopper interior space;providing an auger element supported for rotation within the interior space of the hopper in proximity to the apertures in the bottom region of the hopper;providing a drive mechanism including a source of driving torque for causing rotation of the auger element when placed in an active operating mode upon demand by an operator to break up the granular fertilizer material in the hopper, the drive mechanism also having an inactive mode in which the auger does not rotate;providing a drive actuator for selectively shifting the drive mechanism between the two modes of operation, the drive actuator being an electrical on-off switch located on the lawn mover chassis;operating the lawn mower to mow a path along the substrate area while simultaneously discharging the fertilizer material through the longitudinally arranged series of apertures provided in the bottom region of the hopper which constitute a discharge region for distributing the granular fertilizer material by gravity through the apertures along the entire spreading width of the hopper;turning the lawn mower periodically to move in a reverse direction along a new mowing path which is parallel to the original mowing path and which effectively covers the area between the original path and the new path with no appreciable dead zones of coverage, the discharged granular fertilizer material covering the entire mowing width of the zero turn lawn mower.
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이 특허에 인용된 특허 (9)
Bogart,Bruce E.; Taylor,Steven H., Broadcast spreader with a directional control assembly.
Palladino John M. (2106 Cemetery Rd. Fabius NY 13063) Rosenberg Wesley A. (R.D. 2 ; Box 211A Tully NY 13159), Material spreader for conveyor-type hopper body.
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