Agricultural sweep manufacturing process

A process for producing an agricultural sweep having upper and lower generally parallel major surfaces of a predetermined curvilinear shape, wherein said sweep includes an earth engaging head portion having a convex lateral cross-section with a pointed nose region and including a pair of wings that extend rearwardly, downwardly, and outwardly relative to the nose region, each wing having a bevel like-configuration on the upper major surface of the sweep and extending along a leading edge thereof, and an attachment portion that extends rearwardly and curves upwardly from the head portion, and wherein said attachment portion defines a pair of countersunk holes therein, said process comprising the steps of:

• providing a unitary generally planar blank having a material thickness ranging between about 0.250 inches and about 0.312 inches and a length ranging between about 4.5 inches to about 12 inches, and wherein said blank is shaped to include an arrow-headed configuration including a pointed head section with wing sections angularly diverging rearwardly therefrom, said planar blank further including an elongated attachment section arranged in generally planar relation relative to and extending rearwardly from the pointed head section, with said attachment section defining two throughbores therein, and wherein said blank requires no additional material to be added thereto during formation of the sweep;
• heating said planar blank to a predetermined elevated temperature between about 1700 degrees F. and about 2300 degrees F.;
• loading said heated planar blank into a first die of a die set, said first die having a mirror image of said upper surface of the predetermined shape of said agricultural sweep;
• pressing said planar blank between said first die and a second die of said die set with sufficient pressure causing the material of said blank to plastically deform and flow under the pressure established between said dies of the die set, with said second die having a mirror image of said lower surface of the predetermined shape of said agricultural sweep, said second die being movable along a predetermined path and for a predetermined distance relative to said first die, such that during the pressing step the planar blank is formed into the predetermined shape of the sweep with the convex cross-sectional configuration extending laterally thereacross and with the pointed head of the blank being formed into the pointed head portion of the sweep and with the wing sections of the blank being formed into the pair of wings on the sweep that extend rearwardly, downwardly, and outwardly relative to the nose portion of the sweep and having the bevel-like configurations on the upper major surface thereof, and wherein the attachment section of the blank is simultaneously formed into the attachment portion for the sweep with countersunk formations being defined about the througbores without requiring additional material to be added to the blank thereby forming the complete predetermined shape of the sweep in a single press cycle.

A process for producing an agricultural sweep having upper and lower generally parallel major surfaces and a predetermined shape including an earth engaging head portion having a convex lateral cross-section with a pointed nose region, wherein the width of said nose region is defined by two laterally spaced generally vertical walls, said sweep further including a pair of wings that extend rearwardly, downwardly, and outwardly relative to the nose region, each wing having a bevel like-configuration on the upper major surface of the sweep and extending along a leading edge thereof, and wherein said sweep further includes an attachment portion extending rearwardly and upwardly from the head portion having two countersunk holes therein, said process comprising the steps of:

• providing a one-piece generally planar blank having a material thickness ranging between about 0.250 inches and about 0.312 inches and a length ranging between about 4.5 inches to about 12 inches, and wherein said blank is shaped to include an arrow-headed configuration including a pointed head section with wing sections angularly diverging rearwardly therefrom, said planar blank further including an elongated and apertured attachment section arranged in generally planar relation relative to and extending rearwardly from the pointed head section, and wherein said blank requires no additional material to be added thereto during formation of the sweep;
• heating said planar blank to a predetermined elevated temperature between about 1700 degrees F. and about 2300 degrees F.;
• loading said heated planar blank into a first die of a die set, said first die having a mirror image of the upper major surface of the predetermined shape of said agricultural sweep, said first die further including, toward one side thereof, a triangularly shaped opening for locating the pointed head section of the blank in the die set and for forming the two generally vertical walls of the nose region in predetermined and spaced relationship relative to each other, said first die being further configured toward an opposite side thereof to releasably accommodate and locate the attachment section of the blank in the die set;
• pressing said planar blank between said first die and a second die of said die set, said second die being movable along a predetermined path and for a predetermined travel toward said first die, with said second die having a mirror image of the second major surface of the predetermined shape of said agricultural sweep such that during the pressing stop the planar blank is formed into the predetermined shape of the sweep following predetermined movement of said second die such that the convex cross-sectional configuration extending laterally thereacross and with the pointed head of the blank being formed into the pointed head portion of the sweep and with the wing sections of the blank being formed into the pair of wings on the sweep that extend rearwardly, downwardly, and outwardly relative to the nose portion of the sweep, and wherein the attachment section of the blank is simultaneously formed into the attachment portion with countersunk formations extending about the apertures thereby forming the complete shape of the sweep in a single press cycle without requiring material to be added to the blank.