Agricultural row planter mounting bracket

• US 10,512,211 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2017
• Issued: 12/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harvest International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Harvest International Inc.
• Inventors: Sivinski, Jeffrey Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Novosad, Christopher J.
• Application Number:
  US15/688,299
• Publication Number:
  US 20190059208A1
• Time in Patent Office: 848 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 49/027 with a rotating, soil working support element, e.g. a roller
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 49/04 Combinations of soil-working tools with non-soil-working tools, e.g. planting tools
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 5/04 drawn by tractors
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 5/064 with rotating tools
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/201 Mounting of the seeding tools
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 40/22 Improving land use; Improving water use or availability; Controlling erosion

Abstract

A bracket assembly for row unit planters to withstand draft forces created by high speed and no tillage planting. The upper and lower link arms of the bracket assembly are pivotally connected to the front and rear mounting plates using full-length crossed shafts or shortened stub spindles. Tapered bearing races and tapered bushings are utilized at each end of the link arms to minimize wear and maintenance.

Claims

1. A bracket assembly for a row planter, comprising:

front and rear mounting plates;

left and right link arms extending between the front and rear mounting plates;

a tapered bearing in each end of each link arm;

a shaft extending into each tapered bearing to pivotally mount the left and right link arms to the front and rear mounting plates; and

each tapered bearing and each shaft having flat surfaces which matingly engage to prevent rotation between the shaft and the tapered bearing.

2. The bracket assembly of claim 1 further comprising a tapered race in each end of each link arm, and the tapered bearing being rotatably mounted in the tapered race.

3. The bracket assembly of claim 2 wherein each shaft is fixed to one of the front and rear mounting plates, whereby the left and right link arms and the tapered races rotate on the tapered bearing without rotation of the tapered bearings or shafts.

4. The bracket assembly of claim 1 further comprising collars on each front and rear mounting plate, and the shaft extending through at least one of the collar.

5. The bracket assembly of claim 4 wherein the shaft is fixed to the collar surrounding the shaft.

6. The bracket assembly of claim 5 wherein the shaft is pinned to the collar.

7. The bracket assembly of claim 1 wherein the shaft extends through both the left and right link arms.

8. A method of pivotally mounting link arms onto front and rear plates of a mounting bracket of an agricultural row planter, comprising;

extending a tapered bushing into a hole in each end of each link arm;

extending shafts through the tapered bushings to mount the link arms onto the front and rear plates of the mounting bracket;

the shafts and the tapered bushings having mating flats to prevent rotation of the tapered bushings on the shafts; and

whereby the ends of the link arms are pivotal about the tapered bushings.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising inserting a tapered race into the hole in the end of the link arm, with the tapered bushing matingly residing within the tapered race.

10. The method of claim 8 further comprising fixing the shaft to the mounting bracket to prevent rotation of the shaft relative to the mounting bracket.

11. The method of claim 8 further comprising extending the shaft through a collar on the mounting bracket.

12. The method of claim 11 further comprising pinning the shaft to the collar.

13. The method of claim 8 further comprising extending the shaft through spaced apart collars adjacent opposite lateral edges of the mounting bracket.

14. The method of claim 13 further comprising fixing the shaft to the tapered bushings.