US 4,098,346 A · Steering for plow with adjustable plow bottoms · patentgrep

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Abstract

A plow having a main frame beam disposed in a diagonal direction with respect to the direction of travel and having a plurality of plow bottoms equally spaced along the diagonal beam, each bottom being vertically pivotally supported on the beam. A furrow wheel frame is carried on the rear of the beam to swing about a vertical axis. The plow bottoms and wheel frame are connected together and are power operated so that the plows may have their effective plowing width adjusted while at the same time positioning the furrow wheel frame. A hitch connection is carried on the forward end of the plow and is composed of a first part which is adapted for connection to a tractor and a second part which is rearward of the first part and adapted to shift with the plow frame. The two parts are connected by a vertical pivot to permit relative lateral swinging between the parts. Master and slave cylinders extend respectively between the first and second parts of the hitch and furrow wheel frame and the furrow wheel so that upon adjusting the width of cut of the plow bottoms on the go which would tend to shift the hitch parts relative to one another the position of the rear furrow wheel with respect to the wheel frame is automatically adjusted. The master and slave cylinders are so mounted and dimensioned that the rear wheel will automatically adjust itself with respect to the direction of travel in order to achieve desired steering of the rear wheel and resultant positioning of the rear position of the frame.

Claims29

Dependent claims

A plow adapted to be pulled by a tractor comprising:

a main frame extending diagonally with respect to the direction of travel between forward and rear ends;
a fore-and-aft extending wheel frame supported at its forward end on the rear end of the main frame for lateral swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis;
a steerable wheel assembly mounted on the rear end of said wheel frame;
a hitch structure for connecting the main frame to a tractor including a forward portion connectible to a tractor and shiftable therewith, a rear portion connectible to the main frame and shiftable therewith, said forward and rear portions being connected to one another by vertical pivot structure permitting relative lateral swinging between the portions;
a plurality of plow bottoms spaced along said main frame, each being vertically pivotally supported thereon, said vertical axis about which the wheel frame swings being offset rearwardly from the vertical axis about which the rearwardmost plow bottom is vertically pivotally supported;
means connecting the plow bottoms and said wheel frame so that the plow bottoms and said wheel frame shift laterally in unison on said main frame;
power means on the main frame connected to and for shifting said plow bottoms so as to selectively adjust the width of cut of said plow bottoms;
and master and slave cylinders connected respectively to the forward and rear portions of said hitch structure and said wheel frame and wheel assembly for adjusting the latter in response to relative lateral swinging movement between the hitch portions.

5 more elements

A plow adapted to be pulled by a tractor comprising:

a plow frame having forward and rear ends;
a plurality of plow bottoms spaced along a diagonal row on said plow frame, each being vertically pivotally supported thereon;
a fore-and-aft extending wheel frame supported at its forward end on the rear end of the plow frame for lateral swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis offset from the vertical axis about which the rearmost plow bottom is pivotally supported;
a steerable wheel assembly mounted on the rear end of said wheel frame for tracking in the furrow left by the rearwardmost plow bottom;
a hitch structure for connecting the plow frame to a tractor including vertical pivot structure permitting relative lateral swinging between the plow and tractor;
linkage means connecting the plow bottoms and said wheel frame so that the plow bottoms and said wheel frame shift laterally in unison on said plow frame but at different angular amounts;
means on the plow frame connected to and for shifting said plow bottoms so as to selectively adjust the width of cut of said plow bottoms;
and master and slave cylinders connected respectively to said hitch structure and said wheel frame and wheel assembly for steering the latter in response to relative lateral swinging movement between the tractor and plow frame.

5 more elements

A plow adapted to be pulled by a tractor comprising:

a plow frame having forward and rear ends with said forward end being pivotally connected to the tractor for shifting about a vertical axis;
a plurality of plow bottoms vertically pivotally mounted from front to rear on the plow frame;
means interconnecting the plow bottoms to cause said plow bottoms to pivot in unison through a range having an infinite number of positions;
means on said frame for adjusting the angular positions of the plow bottoms;
a wheel frame vertically pivotally connected to the rear end of said plow frame rearwardly of the rearmost plow bottom and extending rearwardly therefrom to a rear end;
a steering wheel assembly carried on the rear end of said wheel frame having a wheel in tracking relation to the rearmost plow bottom;
link means connecting the plow bottoms to said wheel frame and capable of shifting said wheel frame through a range having an infinite number of laterally offset positions with respect to the furrow wall cut by the rearmost plow bottoms, each of said positions being correlated to an angular position of said plow bottoms;
a hydraulic master cylinder positioned to sense lateral shifting of said plow frame relative to said tractor in response to varying landside forces against the plow bottoms as said bottoms are angularly adjusted;
a slave cylinder responsive to extension or retraction of the master cylinder and extending between the wheel frame and steering wheel assembly to cause the wheel of said assembly to vary its lead as said master cylinder extends and retracts.

6 more elements

A plow adapted to be pulled by a tractor comprising:

a main frame extending diagonally with respect to the direction of travel between forward and rear ends;
a fore-and-aft extending wheel frame supported at its forward end on the rear end of the main frame for lateral swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis;
a wheel assembly on the rear end of said wheel frame;
a hitch structure for connecting the main frame to a tractor including a forward portion mountable on the three points of a tractor three-point hitch, a rear portion connectible to the main frame and shiftable therewith, and a rigid member connecting the forward and rear portions including a vertical pivot between the portions and a transverse horizontal pivot permitting relative vertical movement between the portions;
a plurality of plow bottoms spaced along said main frame, each being vertically pivotally supported thereon;
means connecting the plow bottoms and said wheel frame so that the plow bottoms and said wheel frame shift laterally on said main frame in unison;
power means on the main frame connected to and for shifting said plow bottoms so as to selectively adjust the width of cut of said plow bottoms;
and a hydraulic master cylinder extending between the forward portion of said hitch structure and the rigid member;
and a slave cylinder extending between the frame and wheel assembly for angularly adjusting the latter in response to extension and retraction of the master cylinder.

6 more elements

A plow adapted to be pulled by a tractor comprising:

a main frame extending diagonally with respect to the direction of travel between forward and rear ends;
a fore-and-aft extending wheel frame supported at its forward end on the rear end of the main frame for lateral swinging movement about a substantially vertical axis;
a steerable wheel assembly mounted on the rear end of said wheel frame and having a spindle whose axis is in angled relation to the wheel so that an extension of said axis would contact the ground in the area of ground engagement of said wheel;
a hitch structure for connecting the main frame to a tractor including a forward portion connectible to a tractor and shiftable therewith, a rear portion connectible to the main frame and shiftable therewith, said forward and rear portions being connected to one another by vertical pivot structure permitting relative lateral swinging between the portions;
a plurality of plow bottoms spaced along said main frame, each being vertically pivotally supported thereon;
means connecting the plow bottoms and said wheel frame so that the plow and said wheel frame shift laterally in unison on said main frame;
power means on the main frame connected to and for shifting said plow bottoms so as to selectively adjust the width of cut of said plow bottoms;
and master and slave cylinders connected respectively to the forward and rear portions of said hitch structure and said wheel frame and wheel assembly for adjusting the latter in response to relative lateral swinging movement between the hitch portions.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.