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US 4,114,762 AGranted
Worm harvesting
OwnerSteven G. Beal, Arthur Ceballos +1inventors
InventorsSteven G. Beal, Arthur Ceballos, Dolores D. Ceballos
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Worm harvesting apparatus and method for recovering worms from their accompanying habitat soil, utilizing worm gathering projections, on the interior of a drum rotatable about a substantially horizontal axis, to gather worms from accompanying soil disposed in the lower portion of the drum as such soil cascades upon itself during drum rotation and in turn to carry such worms to the upper portion of the drum for gravity release thereat from such projections to permit gravity deposition of the worms in a collecting receptacle disposed in the drum.
Claims16
Worm harvesting method which comprises
- subjecting soil from which worms are to be harvested to rotation about a substantially horizontal axis in a peripherally confined rotating path which has a plurality of correspondingly rotating and inwardly projecting worm gathering projections operatively distributed in spaced apart relation thereon and which includes a lower path portion containing the soil and an upper path portion containing a gravity release zone extending in intersecting relation to the vertical plane of such horizontal axis, cascading the soil upon itself and gathering worms therefrom by the projections in the lower path portion and carrying such worms by the projections to the gravity release zone in the upper path portion during the rotation, and
- collecting the gathered worms by depositing such worms by gravity upon gravity release thereof from the projections at the gravity release zone.
Worm harvesting method which comprises
- rotating soil from which worms are to be harvested in a drum mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis and having an interior surface provided with a plurality of worm gathering projections operatively distributed in spaced apart relation thereon, said drum including a lower portion containing the soil and an upper portion containing a gravity release zone, cascading the soil upon itself and gathering worms therefrom by the projections in the lower portion and carrying such worms by the projections to the gravity release zone in the upper portion during rotation, and
- collecting the gathered worms by depositing such worms by gravity upon gravity release thereof from the projections at the gravity release zone in a worm collecting receptacle operatively disposed within the drum and extending in intersecting relation to the vertical plane of such horizontal axis and radially inwardly spaced from the worm gathering projections sufficiently to permit unhindered drum rotation relative thereto and such depositing by gravity thereto.
Worm harvesting apparatus which comprises
- a drum mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis and having an interior surface provided with a plurality of worm gathering projections operatively distributed in spaced apart relation thereon,
- a worm collecting receptacle operatively disposed in the drum and extending in intersecting relation to the vertical plane of such horizontal axis and radially inwardly spaced from the worm gathering projections sufficiently to permit unhindered drum rotation relative thereto and gravity deposition thereinto of worms gathered by the projections from accompanying soil disposed in the lower portion of the drum and carried by the projections to the upper portion of the drum during rotation, and
- means for breaking up lumps of soil in the drum during rotation.
Worm harvesting apparatus which comprises
- an axially elongated hollow drum having an inlet opening at one end thereof, an outlet opening at the other end thereof and an interior surface provided with a plurality of substantially radially inwardly projecting worm gathering fingers operatively distributed in axially and circumferentially spaced apart relation thereon,
- means for mounting the drum for rotation about an axis disposed at a slight angle to the true horizontal in a downward direction from the inlet opening end to the outlet opening end,
- drive means for rotating the drum,
- a delivery chute operatively disposed at the inlet opening for feeding into the drum soil from which worms are to be harvested,
- an axially elongated substantially upwardly facing worm collecting receptacle operatively removably disposed in the drum and extending in intersecting relation to the vertical plane of said axis and radially inwardly spaced from the worm gathering fingers sufficiently to permit unhindered drum rotation relative thereto and gravity deposition thereinto of worms gathered by the fingers from accompanying soil disposed in the lower half portion of the drum and carried by the fingers to a gravity release zone defined above the level of the soil and along the upper half portion of the drum during rotation, and
- mechanical probe means disposed in the drum adjacent the receptacle and extending operatively selectively outwardly from the vicinity of the receptacle in a direction toward the drum interior surface and arranged in sufficiently spaced relation to the worm gathering fingers to permit unhindered drum rotation relative thereto for breaking up lumps of soil in the drum during rotation.
3 more elements
Worm harvesting apparatus which comprises
- a drum mounted for rotation about a substantially horizontal axis and having an interior surface provided with a plurality of worm gathering projections operatively distributed in spaced apart relation thereon,
- a worm collecting receptacle operatively disposed in the drum and radially inwardly spaced from the worm gathering projections sufficiently to permit unhindered drum rotation relative thereto and gravity deposition thereinto of worms gathered by the projections from accompanying soil disposed in the lower portion of the drum and carried by the projections to the upper portion of the drum during rotation,
- support means for selectively removably positioning the receptacle within the drum, and
- mechanical means on the support means and extending operatively selectively outwardly therefrom and toward the drum interior surface for breaking up lumps of soil in the drum during rotation,
- the mechanical means including a plurality of aligned soil lump engaging probes arranged in the form of a selectively adjustable positionable comb disposed substantially coextensively along at least a portion of the adjacent interior surface of the drum.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.