US 12,446,491 B2
Swath lifter
Ryan Ray Sommerfeld, Medstead (CA); and Ben K. Voss, Saskatoon (CA)
Assigned to Aerow Manufacturing Ltd., Saskatoon (CA)
Appl. No. 17/421,485
Filed by Aerow Manufacturing Ltd., Saskatoon (CA)
PCT Filed Jun. 19, 2020, PCT No. PCT/CA2020/050855
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jul. 8, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/003557, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 14, 2021.
Application 17/421,485 is a continuation in part of application No. 16/506,460, filed on Jul. 9, 2019, granted, now 11,172,616.
Prior Publication US 2022/0061220 A1, Mar. 3, 2022
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. A01D 78/00 (2006.01); A01D 80/02 (2006.01)
CPC A01D 78/006 (2013.01) [A01D 80/02 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. Apparatus for lifting a swath comprising:
a wheeled frame for movement over ground carrying a swath of harvested crop material;
a support rotor mounted on the wheeled frame for rotation around a longitudinal axis of the support rotor with the axis of the support rotor arranged generally transversely across the swath;
a drive arrangement driving the support rotor in rotation in a direction so that an underside of the support rotor adjacent the ground is driven opposite to the direction of movement of the ground relative to the support rotor as the support rotor moves forwardly;
a plurality of rows of tines mounted on the support rotor for rotation therewith, each row extending longitudinally of the support rotor with the rows arranged at angularly spaced positions around the support rotor with the tines extending generally outwardly from the support rotor;
wherein each tine row is carried on an elongate support member mounted on the support rotor parallel to the longitudinal axis of the support rotor;
wherein each elongate support member is rotatable about an axis longitudinal of the member so as to adjust an angle of the tines on the elongate support member relative to a radius of the longitudinal axis of the support rotor;
and wherein the support rotor is arranged so that the lifted crop material in the swath is carried over a top of the support rotor;
a plurality of flexible strips of a resilient material;
each flexible strip being located angularly in advance of a respective one of the rows of tines relative to said direction of rotation with the flexible strip thus being presented to the swath on the ground in advance of the tines of the respective row of tines;
each flexible strip extending longitudinally along the respective row of tines so as to cover a portion of each tine of the respective row of tines;
each flexible strip extending from the support rotor to an outer edge of the flexible strip spaced from the support rotor and spaced inward of an outer end of the tines of the respective row of tines with an outer portion of each of the tines of the respective row of tines being exposed beyond the outer edge of the flexible strip and with an inner portion of each of the tines of the respective row of tines being covered by the strip.