Material treatment and windrowing apparatus

Windrowing apparatus for treating elongate parallel rows of biodegradable material located upon a surface, comprising:

• a chassis having wheel means including front and rear wheels, for effecting the movement thereof along said surface;
• a material treating assembly supported forwardly upon said chassis and including an elevating and shredding member having a cylindrical component driveably rotatable about a horizontally disposed axis, said component having a plurality of spaced flails pivotally coupled therewith;
• collecting means mounted upon said chassis including a spiral conveyor mounted for drivable rotation about a horizontal axis positioned upwardly and rearwardly of said cylindrical component axis and along a radius of about 45.degree. with respect to a vertical reference extending from said cylindrical component axis, said spiral conveyor comprising a right-hand spiral flight and a left-hand spiral flight, each said flight being mounted within a housing having an elongate, forwardly disposed opening for receiving material thrust therein by said elevating and shredding member and having a downwardly disposed opening intermediate said right- and left-hand spiral flights defining a collection position;
• and
• conveyance means supported on said chassis for receiving said material at said collection position and transferring said material to the centerline of a select said row.

Windrowing apparatus for treating an elongate row of biodegradable material located upon a surface, comprising:

• a chassis having front and rear ground-engaging wheels;
• a housing removably mounted forwardly upon said chassis, said housing having a substantially open forwardly disposed portion extending substantially to said surface and having a rearwardly disposed collection opening;
• elevator means mounted within said housing including a plurality of elongate thrust components driveably rotatable about a horizontally disposed axis for confronting, contacting and elevating said material engaged thereby substantially upwardly and rearwardly;
• collecting means mounted within said housing at a location upwardly and rearwardly disposed with respect to said elevator means including a trough structure having an elongate first opening substantially coextensive with said elevator means, positioned for receiving said material elevated thereby, said trough structure having a second opening of substantially lesser extent than said first opening and configured to define a forward collection position, conveying means within said trough extending from the opposite ends thereof and actuable to move material received through said first opening into said second opening, said second opening corresponding with said housing collection opening;
• and
• conveyance means supported upon said chassis for receiving said material at said collection opening for transferring said material to the centerline of a select said row.

Windrowing apparatus for treating an elongate row of biodegradable material located upon a surface, comprising:

• a chassis having front and rear ground-engaging wheels;
• a housing having a widthwise extent at least coextensive with the width of said chassis, said housing being rearwardly mounted upon said chassis forwardly of said front wheels and having a substantially open forwardly disposed portion extending substantially to said surface and having a rearwardly disposed collection opening positioned substantially at the middle of the widthwise extent thereof;
• an elevating and shredding member mounted within said housing including a cylindrical component, driveably rotatable about a horizontally disposed axis, and a plurality of spaced flails, each pivotally coupled with said cylindrical component;
• collecting means mounted within said housing and positioned upwardly and rearwardly of said elevating and shredding member including a spiral conveyor mounted for drivable rotation about a horizontal axis and along a radius of about 45.degree. with respect to vertical reference extending from said cylindrical component axis, said spiral conveyor comprising a right-hand spiral flight and a left-hand spiral flight, each said flight being positioned within a housing component having an elongate, forwardly disposed opening for receiving material elevated thereinto by said elevator means, said collection opening being intermediate said right- and left-hand flights;
• and
• conveyance means supported upon said chassis for receiving said material passing thereto from said collection opening and including an elongate, row-forming conveyor having a receiving end pivotally coupled with said chassis and selectively manipulatable upwardly, outwardly and laterally therefrom for transferring said material to the center of a select said row.