Aeration device
AssigneePlanetAir Turf Products, LLC, a Minnesota Limited Liability company
InventorDavid Maas
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A soil aeration device may include a plurality of arcuate blades mounted to an assembly adapted to rotate and translate the blades proximate a ground surface, thereby forming aeration pockets in the soil. In certain embodiments, the arcuate tines penetrate and fracture the soil while minimizing the amount of soil lifted from the pocket deposited on the top of the soil. In various embodiments, a planetary gear assembly imparts to the tine a translational and rotational movement which creates a fractured pocket in the soil while minimizing the amount of soil lifted from the pocket and deposited on the surface of the soil. In still other embodiments, the arcuate tine may have mounted thereon a coring tube that cuts and removes a plug from the pocket formed in the soil.
Claims20
An aeration tine, comprising:
- an elongated curved member having a concave portion and a substantially complementary and opposed convex portion, the curved member being operable to fracture soil and form an aeration pocket;
- and
- an aeration tube coupled to the curved member at one of the convex portion or the concave portion, the aeration tube being operable to remove a soil plug as the curved member fractures soil and forms an aeration pocket.
An aeration tine, comprising:
- a proximal portion including an adapter to secure the tine to a tine holder member, the proximal portion being substantially straight;
- and
- a blade portion disposed distally of the proximal portion, the blade portion being substantially curved and including a concave blade edge and an oppositely disposed convex blade edge that converge near a distal tip portion so that, as the blade portion is urged in a compound motion through a ground surface, the curved blade portion fractures soil to form an aeration pocket.
A tine for aerating a ground surface, comprising:
- a proximal portion including means for mounting the tine to a tine holder member, the proximal portion being substantially straight;
- and
- means for fracturing soil to at least partially form an aeration pocket, the fracturing means being disposed distally of the proximal portion and being substantially curved so that, when the curved fracturing means is urged in a compound motion through a ground surface, the curved fracturing means forms an aeration pocket.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.