Corn head snapping rolls

In a corn head attachment adapted to be mounted at the forward end of a corn harvester, said corn head having a forward projecting row unit which includes a subframe on which is supported a stripper plate having a fore and aft extending slot for receiving stalks of corn, said row unit also including a pair of spaced apart forward projecting gear driven elements, said elements being arranged equidistant and symmetrically below and at the rearmost end of the slot in said stripper plate, the leftmost one of said elements as viewed from a position forward of said row unit being rotatably driven clockwise by said gear means whereas the rightmost one of said elements is driven counter-clockwise by said gear means, the axes of said elements being parallel both to each other and with the plane containing said stripper plate, the improvement which comprises:

• a pair of fore and aft extending snapping rolls, each having a central shaft, said snapping rolls being transversely spaced apart beneath said stripper plate on opposite sides of the slot therein, the base end of the first roll being drivingly connected to and in axial alignment with the leftmost of said elements, the base end of the second roll being drivingly connected to and coaxially aligned with the rightmost of said elements;
• a number of longitudinally extending flutes arranged in two sets around the periphery of each of said snapping rolls;
• one set of flutes extending in a radially outward direction relative to the axis of the snapping rolls;
• a second set of flutes extending outwardly in a non-radial angle relative to the axis of said rolls, said second set of flutes being interspersed between the radially outward directed set of flutes;
• the height of said flutes being such that the tips of said odd and even numbered flutes all lie on an imaginary circle placed concentric with and perpendicular to the axis of said snapping rolls, the maximum height of said flutes being such that the flutes of one roll must interleave with the flutes of the other roll throughout a portion of the length of said snapping rolls;
• and
• synchronizing means for rotating said snapping rolls in unison such that the sequence of intermeshing flutes in the region between the axes of said snapping rolls comprise the repetitious rotational passage of a non-radial flute from one roll, a non-radial flute from the second roll, a radial flute from the first roll, a radial flute from the second roll and repeat, the rotational passage of a non-radial flute generating an action whereby the stalk of corn is deeply pinched as it is drawn through said corn head.