Row crop means for a harvesting unit

In a row crop means for a mobile harvesting unit adapted to advance over a field of crop planted in rows, said means including, laterally spaced generally fore-and-aft gathering members mounted on the frame and defining at least one elongated fore-and-aft passageway adapted to receive crop as the unit advances, each of said gathering members adapted to move crop rearwardly along the passageway to feed the crop to said unit, at least one of said gathering members having a relatively smooth upwardly and rearwardly inclined top surface adapted to slideably engage down crop as the unit advances;

• the improvement comprising:
• a rotary member disposed in a rear portion of at least one of said gathering members for assisting in the feeding of said down crop being draped over said member to said unit, said at least one gathering member having a pocket defined at the rearward end thereof by a downwardly and rearwardly sloping surface on which said rotary member is mounted so as to provide a rotating surface which is substantially a continuation of the top surface of said gathering member but increasing in slope such that the draped crop which moves rearwardly over the top surface of said gathering member continues upwardly on said rotary member which is adapted to rotate in a direction causing said crop to move rearwardly along said passageway.

A row crop unit for a forage harvester or the like adapted to be moved forwardly over a field of row crop comprising:

• a. a frame having a rear discharge opening for the introduction of crop material to said harvester,
• b. a plurality of fore-and-aft dividers mounted on the frame and defining at least one elongated passageway for receiving stalks of crops as the unit advances over the field, at least one of said dividers having a top surface which gradually slopes upwardly and rearwardly and then bends downwardly and rearwardly for a short distance and then upwardly and rearwardly to a top portion of said frame thereby forming a pocket in said top surface of said one divider,
• c. a rotary member disposed within said pocket of said one divider having its axis of rotation generally perpendicular to the rearward downwardly sloping portion of said top surface of said one divider and having its outer surface meeting with the top surface of said one divider to thereby form a rearward and upwardly inclined continuous path for the sliding over of down crop stalks toward said discharge opening.