Row crop attachment for combines

In a crop harvester having a cutter bar and cutter means supported thereupon for severing rows of standing crops at the stalks beaneath the fruit, an improved row attachment assembly including:

• a pair of divider structures mounted on said cutter bar and projecting forwardly therefrom in laterally spaced relation to one another for defining a stalk-receiving throat therebetween extending generally fore-and-aft of the harvester;
• means for variably constricting said throat to the minimum width dimension required to permit passage of said stalks through the throat,
• said constricting means including a pair of opposed crop-catching wings each pivotally mounted on a respective one of said pans for cooperable shifting movement opening and closing said throat;
• means yieldably biasing said wings toward a position closing the throat whereby the wings are tightly held against said stalks as the latter pass through the throat such that fruit dislodged from the stalks by the harvester is caught by the underlying wings.

A row crop attachment for the cutter bar of a combine, said attachment including:

• a crop-receiving divider pan having front and rear ends and a pair of opposed, fore-and-aft side edges;
• means adjacent rear end for attaching the pan to the cutter bar with the pan extending forwardly from the cutter bar and normally disposed in a generally horizontal plane,
• a pair of spaced, crop-receiving wings overlying the pan,
• each wing having an essentially upright pivot mounting the same on the pan for swinging movement of the wings toward and away from each other;
• and
• means yieldably biasing the wings away from each other to a position where each extends laterally beyond the proximal of said edges of the pan.

A row crop assembly for attachment to the cutter bar of a combine, said assembly comprising of a row of side-by-side row divider units having stalk-receiving throats therebetween, each unit including:

• a crop-receiving divider pan having front and rear ends and a pair of opposed, fore-and-aft side edges;
• means adjacent said rear and for attaching the pan to the cutter bar with the pan extending forwardly from the cutter bar and normally disposed in a generally horizontal plane;
• a pair of spaced, crop-receiving wings overlying the pan,
• each wing having an essentially upright pivot mounting the same on the pan for swinging movement of the wings toward and away from each other;
• and
• means yieldably biasing the wings away from each other to a position where each wing of each pan is substantially contiguous to the proximal wing of the next adjacent pan whereby to close said throats.

In a harvester:

• Means for cutting the stalks of a standing crop;
• A pair of wings having fruit retention means for catching the fruit of said crop shattered therefrom;
• Support means for said wings;
• Means mounting said wings on the support means for movement of the wings toward and away from each other;
• and
• Means normally holding said wings yieldably biased toward each other in a normal position of relative adjacency,
• There being a crop inlet throat between the wings when the same are in said position for reception of said standing crop and for spreading of the wings apart by said stalks against the action of said holding means when the crop engages the wings.

In a harvester:

• means for cutting the stalks of a standing crop;
• means mounting said cutting means proximal to the forward end of said harvester;
• a pair of fruit catchers having fruit retention means for catching the fruit of said crop falling therefrom;
• means mounting said fruit catchers proximal to and ahead of said cutting means and on opposite sides of a row of fruit-producing stalks for movement of the fruit catchers toward and away from each other to accommodate the stalks between the fruit catchers, and for yieldably biasing said catchers toward each other and the standing crop therebetween to a normal position of relative adjacency;
• there being a crop inlet throat between the adjacent fruit catchers when the same are in said position for reception of said standing crop and for spreading of the fruit catchers apart by said stalks against the closing action of said fruit catchers so that the crop maintains engagement with the fruit catchers on both sides thereof forming a closure to prevent the fruit of said crop from falling to the ground when said stalks are cut;
• and
• means operatively associated with said fruit catchers to direct said fruit to a container therefor.

In a harvester:

• means for cutting the stalks of a standing crop;
• means mounting said cutting means proximal to the forward end of said harvester;
• a pair of juxtaposed fruit supporting catchers having fruit retention means;
• means supporting said catchers ahead of and proximal to said cutting means, and in a position to define therebetween a stalk-receiving inlet throat, for receiving fruit from said stalks;
• and
• means operably coupled with said catchers for normally maintaining said throat closed;
• said last-mentioned means being yieldable for allowing said stalks to pass through the throat.

In a harvester:

• means for cutting the stalks of a standing crop;
• means mounting said cutting means proximal to the forward end of said harvester;
• means for catching the fruit of said crop, including a pair of fruit catchers having a stalk-receiving crop inlet throat therebetween, and for normally and yieldably maintaining said throat closed for engaging said stalks and allowing the same to pass through the throat, and
• means supporting said catchers proximal to and ahead of said cutting means, and relative to said stalks entering said throat in position for receiving the fruit of said crop falling therefrom,
• said catchers having fruit retention means.