Harvesting platform with an in-line cutterbar drive
AssigneeDeere & Company
InventorPaul John McCredie
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A harvesting platform having a frame and a cutterbar supported by the frame, a reciprocal knife that moves relative to the cutterbar, a drive motor having a rotary input and a linearly reciprocating output shaft. The output shaft is coupled to the knife for reciprocating the knife and a one piece mounting bracket is coupled to the cutterbar and the drive motor to establish the position of the drive motor relative to the cutterbar. The bracket has machined surfaces engaging the drive motor and the cutterbar to establish the relative positions of the drive motor and the cutterbar within the machining tolerances. This provides proper alignment of the drive motor output with the cutterbar that is necessary for an in-line drive motor.
Claims16
A harvesting platform comprising:
- a frame;
- a cutterbar supported by the frame;
- a reciprocating knife movable relative to the cutterbar;
- a drive motor having a housing, a rotary input device carried by the housing and a linearly reciprocating output shaft carried by the housing, the output shaft being coupled to the knife for reciprocating the knife;
- and
- a one piece mounting bracket carried by the frame, the mounting bracket having a cutterbar mounting face with a machined engaging portion engaging the cutterbar and attached to the cutterbar, the mounting bracket further having a drive motor mounting face with a machined engaging portion engaging the drive motor housing and to which the drive motor housing is attached to establish the position of the drive motor housing and output shaft relative to the cutterbar.
A mounting bracket for attaching a cutterbar drive motor to a harvesting platform comprising a one piece metal casting having a cutterbar mounting face with a machined engaging portion for engagement with a cutterbar to attach the cutterbar to the mounting bracket and a drive motor mounting face with a machined engaging portion for engagement with a drive motor housing to attach the drive motor housing to the mounting bracket, the drive motor mounting face having spaced regions for engagement with spaced mounting legs of the drive motor housing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.