Machine for loading and disintegrating large bales of forage material

A machine for chopping large bales of forage material comprising:

• a frame with a longitudinal axis;
• means on one end of the frame for connection to a prime mover for movement of the frame in direction along the longitudinal axis;
• a flail rotor having a central shaft mounted for rotation on the frame about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis and being adapted to be driven by a power take off of a prime mover, the flail rotor having flail knives that extend outwardly under centrifugal force as the rotor is driven;
• bale support means comprising a plurality of bale support slats supported on the frame above at least portions of the rotor to form a bale support plate positioned so that the tips of the flail knives pass between adjacent slats and outwardly of the bale support plane;
• a cradle pivotally mounted on the frame for movement about an axis generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the frame and parallel to the axis of the flail rotor, the cradle comprising a bale lifting structure;
• and
• means to pivotally move said cradle between a first working position and a lowered position in which the bale lifting structure is positioned near the ground, and in which lowered position said bale lifting structure is positioned laterally of the frame and is adapted to engage a bale positioned on the ground as the frame is moved to location adjacent such bale;
• said frame including means defining a guide panel extending along the length of the rotor and partially surrounding the rotor and defining a chopped material outlet opening facing laterally from the rotor and extending along the longitudinal axis so that material engaged by the flail knives is discharged laterally along the length of the rotor;
• said bale lifting structure lifting an engaged bale above the rotor axis and above at least portions of the bale support slats so that when the cradle is moved to its working position such bale is moved sufficiently high so that it is urged by gravity toward the bale support slats wherein it is engaged by the flail knives of the rotor, and material chopped by the flail knives is guided out through the outlet opening.

A mobile machine for loading and chopping large bales of forage material including:

• a support frame having a longitudinal axis, a leading end and a trailing end, means at the leading end for mounting said support frame to a prime mover having a power take off, and caster wheel means at the rear end of said support frame for supporting said rear end for movement along the ground in direction of the longitudinal axis when the prime mover is moved;
• a flail type rotor mounted relative to said support frame for rotation about an axis generally parallel to the longitudinal axis extending a substantial length from the leading end toward the trailing end of said support frame and being positioned adjacent lower portions of said frame;
• means supporting a bale support structure mounted on said frame relative to said rotor of size to support a bale of forage material for movement toward the rotor and extending along the length of said rotor and above the axis of said rotor and arranged so that gravity tends to hold the bale in position on the bale support structure to be engaged by the flail rotor for shredding material from the bale;
• means on said frame partially surrounding said rotor and extending below said rotor providing a guide wall for shredded material and cooperating with the bale support means to provide an outlet opening extending along substantially the length of said rotor to eject material in a direction laterally of the direction of movement of said support frame;
• a cradle member including a bale engaging structure;
• means to pivotally mount said cradle member relative to the frame for pivotal movement about a pivot axis generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of said support frame, said bale engaging member extending laterally from said pivot axis, said cradle being movable about said pivot axis from a position wherein said bale engaging member is adjacent the ground and positioned laterally of below and alongside said support frame, to a position wherein said bale engaging member engages and support a bale and is moved about the pivot axis of said cradle member to a position raised above working portions of the flail type rotor so that a bale supported on the bale engaging member will move therefrom under gravity into a position on the bale support structure wherein the lower portions of said bale may be engaged by the flail type rotor for shredding;
• and
• a first portion of the bale support structure comprising an upwardly inclined slotted support overlying a portion of the flail type rotor and a second portion of said bale support structure comprising a conveyor engaging the lower portions of said bale and being powered to move such lower portions in a direction tending to urge said bale against said upwardly inclined slotted support overlying the rotor and through which flails of the rotor extend when the rotor is powered to shred the outer peripheral portions of such bale, said shredded material being guided by said guide wall to discharge substantially along the length of said rotor laterally through said outlet opening.

A machine for grinding large bales of forage material comprising a support frame;

• bale support means mounted on said frame and positioned so that a bale supported on said bale support means is urged under gravity to a first location on the bale support means;
• rotary bale grinding means mounted on the frame in position generally below the bale support means and positioned to engage a bale supported in the first location;
• said bale support means including means on lateral sides of the bale grinding means inclining upwardly from the bale grinding means to guide and support a bale in position on the bale support means to have the periphery of such bale engaged by the bale grinding means;
• and
• means on said frame adjacent said rotary bale grinding means providing a guide wall for guiding ground material ground by the bale grinding means to provide a laterally facing outlet opening positioned below the level of the bale support means and extending along the length of said bale grinding means to eject material laterally of the support frame;
• the means inclining upwardly comprising a plurality of spaced apart slats inclining upwardly in a first direction relative to the rotary bale grinding means axis of rotation, and a movable conveyor member having a movable portion extending to one side from the bale grinding means adapted to engage a bale in the first location on a lower surface of such bale and to move in direction toward the slats to tend to urge such bale to rotate relative to and along the slats as the conveyor member is moving to thereby present different portions of a bale supported in the first location to be ground by the bale grinding means.