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US 4,860,529 AGranted
Shaking mechanism for fruit harvesting
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of Agriculture
InventorsDonald L. Peterson, Tadeusz Kornecki
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved shaking mechanism for small fruits is described. The shaker comprises panels of radially spaced flexible rods which are oscillated by a positive displacement, direct drive that gives more uniform acceleration and displacement along the length of the rods than do conventional inertia and cam-drive shakers. Shaker design is mechanically simple and reliable.
Claims7
An improved spiked-drum fruit harvester comprising:
- a ground-traversing carriage;
- one or more spiked-drum shakers;
- means attached to said carriage for supporting and powering said shaker;
- collecting means supported by said carriage below said shaker designed to collect fruit removed by said shaker;
- wherein the improvement comprises:
- an oscillating means capable of oscillating said spiked drum or drums in a motion parallel with the plane of rotation of said drum and with substantially uniform acceleration of the spikes;
- said oscillating means comprising an eccentric drive means mounted on a stationary frame, said eccentric drive being operationally connected to an oscillating arm or arms, said oscillating arm or arms being movably connected to said stationary frame and rotatably supporting said spiked drum.
4 more elements
An improved spiked-drum fruit harvester comprising:
- a ground-traversing carriage;
- one or more spiked-drum shakers;
- means attached to said carriage for supporting and powering said shakers;
- collecting means supported by said carriage below said shaker designed to collect fruit removed by said shaker;
- wherein the improvement comprises:
- adjustable control means to vary the force required to rotate said spiked-drum shaker.
3 more elements
An improved spiked-drum fruit harvester comprising:
- a ground-traversing carriage;
- one or more spiked-drum shakers;
- means attached to said carriage for supporting and powering said shakers;
- collecting means supported by said carriage below said shaker designed to collect fruit removed by said shaker;
- wherein the improvement comprises:
- an oscillating means capable of oscillating said spiked drum in a motion parallel with the plane of rotation of said drum and with substantially uniform acceleration of the spikes;
- and adjustable control means to vary the force required to rotate said spiked-drum shaker.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.