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US 12,426,543 B2Granted
Lawn mowers, detachable mower decks, and methods associated therewith
AssigneeTechtronic Cordless GP
InventorsTrent J. Dingman, Michael Feng
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A lawn mower including a frame; and mounting hardware configured to couple the frame to a detachable mower deck, wherein the mounting hardware includes: a quick release engagement interface; and a latched interface, the latched interface includes a self-closing latch and an engageable interface to permit selective opening of the self-closing latch.
Claims19
A lawn mower comprising:
- a frame;
- a mower deck;
- and
- mounting hardware configured to detachably couple the frame to the mower deck, wherein the mounting hardware comprises:
- a quick release engagement interface;
- and
- a latched interface comprising:
- a mating interface coupled to the frame;
- a support coupled to the mower deck, the support defining a receiving area configured to receive the mating interface;
- a self-closing latch movable relative to the support between an open configuration and a closed configuration to selectively restrict access of the mating interface to and from the receiving area;
- and
- an engagement mechanism coupled to the self-closing latch, the engagement mechanism actuatable to move the self-closing latch from the closed configuration to the open configuration;
- wherein the mating interface is disposed in the receiving area of the support when the frame is coupled to the mower deck,
- wherein the mating interface remains disposed within the receiving area of the support after the self-closing latch is moved to the open configuration until the mower deck is raised in a vertical direction relative to the support, and
- wherein a size of the receiving area is reduced when the self-closing latch is in the open configuration.
12 more elements
A detachable mower deck for a lawn mower, the detachable mower deck comprising:
- a quick release engagement interface;
- and
- a latched interface comprising:
- a support coupled to the mower deck, the support defining a receiving area configured to receive a mating interface coupled to the frame of the lawn mower;
- a self-closing latch movable relative to the support between an open configuration and a closed configuration to selectively restrict access of the mating interface into and out of the receiving area;
- and
- an engagement mechanism coupled to the self-closing latch, the engagement mechanism actuatable to move the self-closing latch from the closed configuration to the open configuration,
- wherein the receiving area defines a space that is elongated in a direction oriented perpendicular to a rotational axis of the self-closing latch, and
- wherein a size of the receiving area is reduced when the self-closing latch is in the open configuration.
6 more elements
A method of detaching a mower deck from a lawn mower frame, the method comprising:
- moving a self-closing latch from a closed configuration to an open configuration, wherein in the closed configuration a mating interface coupled to a frame of the lawn mower is captured and retained in a receiving area defined by the mower deck, wherein a size of the receiving area is reduced when the self-closing latch is in the open configuration, and wherein in the open configuration the mating interface is removable from the receiving area;
- with the self-closing latch in the open configuration, raising the mower deck in a vertical direction until the mating interface is removable from the receiving area in a lateral direction, the lateral direction being perpendicular to the vertical direction;
- translating the mower deck relative to the frame in the lateral direction until the mating interface is clear of the receiving area;
- and
- releasing the self-locking latch from the open configuration, the self-closing latch being spring biased to the closed configuration.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.