Hay baler with windrow pickup diverter and extendible wheel rake mounting on elongated drawbar

A hay baling assembly, comprising:

• a tractor providing towing and a hydraulic power;
• an elongated draw bar rigidly and permanently extending from a roll baler to said tractor;
• said roll baler including a pickup for feeding cut hay into said roll baler for baling;
• a sweep rake mounted on said elongated draw bar before said roll baler, said sweep rake including a first and a second articulated swing arm pivotally connecting to said elongated draw bar operable by at least one hydraulic cylinder connecting each said swing arm to said draw bar and in fluid communication with said hydraulic power of said tractor, said first and said second articulated swing arms diverging outwardly from a contracted transport position adjacent said elongated draw bar in an outwardly direction generally opposite from one another at a selected angle and distance in an extended position, each of said swing arms including a plurality of tined sweep raking wheels rotatably mounting on said swing arms at a selected acute angle to the ground surface, and each swing arm including at least one caster wheel unit for supporting said swing arm while in said extended position;
• and
• a windrow crowder and diverter assembly including a frame mounting on said elongated draw bar behind said sweep rake and in front of said roll baler pickup, said windrow crowder and diverter assembly including at least one tined diverter raking wheel rotatably and swingably mounting therefrom and extending from said frame at a selected angle and engageable with the ground causing rotation thereof toward said roll baler pickup, said windrow crowder and diverter assembly including means of counterbalancing said tined diverter raking wheel enabling same to float with a selected tined arc portion engaging the ground during rotation, said windrow crowder and diverter assembly including at least one hydraulic cylinder in fluid communication with said hydraulic power of said tractor and controllably movable to laterally move said tined diverter raking wheel in cooperative engagement with a hay windrow shifting a marginal edge of said hay windrow laterally to a selectable position aligned with respect to said roll baler pickup diverting said windrow to selected different positions laterally across a selected width of said roll baler pickup as needed for evenly distributing the windrow across the width of said roll baler pickup during initial formation of a roll relative to an intake of said roll baler pickup moving in and back independently diverting said windrow of hay to the side of roll baler pickup as needed, wherein said at least one tined diverter rake wheel is not fixed and is capable of adjustably moving a windrow from side to side during operation, shifting a marginal edge of a windrow of hay laterally to a selected position in alignment with respect to said roll baler pickup and diverting said windrow to selected different positions aligned laterally across the width of said roll baler pickup.

A windrow diverter assembly comprising:

• a frame member mounting on an elongated draw bar in front of a roll baler having a roll baler pick-up of greater width than a width of a windrow of hay, said diverter assembly including a pair of opposing tined diverter raking wheel units rotatably and swingably mounting onto said frame member each one of said tined diverter raking units including at least one hydraulic cylinder in fluid communication with a hydraulic power unit of a tractor connecting to each one of said tinted diverter raking units and controllably movable to move the windrow of hay laterally to a selected position with respect to said roll baler pick-up, diverting said windrow to selected different positions laterally across the width of said roll baler pick-up providing a windrow of hay moving from one lateral edge of said roll baler pickup to the opposing lateral edge of said roll baler pickup forming a uniform roll of hay having a width greater than said width of said windrow moving in and back independently diverting said windrow of hay to the side of the roll baler pickup as needed, wherein said tined diverter raking wheels are not fixed and are capable of adjustably moving a windrow from side to side during operation, shifting a marginal edge of a windrow of hay laterally to a selected position in alignment with respect to said roll baler pick-up and diverting said windrow to selected different positions aligned laterally across the width of said roll baler pick-up;
• and
• said tined assembly comprising said tined diverter raking wheel detachably attaching to an end of a shaft journalled for rotation extending a link assembly comprising an upper link and a lower link pivotally attaching to said frame member, a link assembly hydraulic cylinder extending from a selected attachment position of said frame member to said link assembly for raising and lowering said tined diverter raking wheel, and at least one tension spring extending from a selected attachment position of said frame member connecting to said link assembly providing means for counterbalancing said tined diverter raking wheel and enabling said tined diverter raking wheel to float at a raking level with a selected tined arc portion engaging the ground causing rotation of same, and said tined diverter raking wheel assembly including a second hydraulic cylinder in fluid communication with the hydraulic power of the tractor including a first end mounting to an attachment position on said crossbar and a second end connecting to an attachment position on said link assembly providing lateral movement of said tined diverter raking wheel mounted thereon and controllably movable for shifting a marginal edge of a windrow of hay laterally to a selected position in alignment with said roll baler pick-up.

A roll baler and windrow diverter assembly, comprising:

• a roll baler having a draw bar and a frame member positioned in front of a roll baler pick-up;
• a windrow diverter apparatus including a pair of tined diverter raking wheel units, each one comprising a wheel or basket rotatably and swingably mounting onto a diverter assembly extending from said frame member defining a crossbar supported by said draw bar extending from said roll bale, said at least one pair of tined diverter raking wheel units positioned to rotate a tined diverted raking wheel in a plane inclined at a selected acute angle to the horizontal causing said tined diverter raking wheel to rotate by frictional engagement with the ground during the raking and baling operation;
• said tined diverter raking wheel comprising a hub with a plurality of longitudinal members extending outwardly therefrom maintained in circumferential spaced apart relation circumscribing and radially spaced apart from the hub, said tines extending downward a selected length from said hub;
• said tined diverter raking wheel detachably attaching to a rotatable plate on an end of a shaft journalled for rotation proximate the lower end of a first post extending from an upper and lower spaced apart pair of links pivotally attaching to a second post extending from said crossbar including diagonal link connecting said upper link and said lower link;
• at least one tension spring extending downward from said second post toward said first post and said tined diverter raking unit providing counterbalancing means for allowing said tined diverter raking wheel to float at a raking level with a selected tined arc portion engaging the ground during raking;
• at least one hydraulic cylinder in fluid communication with a hydraulic cylinder unit of a tractor with said a first end of said hydraulic cylinder connecting said second post and an opposing second end of said hydraulic cylinder connecting to said cross member providing lateral movement of said diverter assembly controllably movable to move the windrow of hay laterally to a selected position with respect to said roll baler pick-up diverting said windrow to selected different positions laterally across the width of said roll baler pick-up providing a windrow of hay for pickup by a selected portion of said baler pickup by moving from a first lateral edge of said roll baler pickup toward an opposing lateral edge of said roll baler pickup.