TREE HARVESTING APPARATUS

• US 3,675,691 A
• Filed: 09/03/1969
• Issued: 07/11/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Timberjack Inc. (Deere & Company)
• Original Assignee: John J. Denovan, John Kurelek
• Inventors: Denovan, John J., Kurelek, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Dost, Gerald A.
• Application Number:
  US04/854,971
• Time in Patent Office: 1,042 Days
• Field of Search: 144/2Z,3D,34R,34E,28R,242R,39AC,246C,246F
• US Class Current: 144/4.1
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 23/085 having the shearing head mounted on a first boom and the delimbing head mounted on a second boom

Abstract

A telescopic tower is mounted on a mobile chassis and carries equipment for producing logs from a tree that has been severed at its base from the ground and transferred to a raised position adjacent the top of the contracted tower. An upstroke of a reciprocable upper part of the tower delimbs the butt end of the raised tree to desired log length, and a downstroke lowers the tree a corresponding distance. After a log has been cut from the lowered tree, the operating cycle is repeated as needed to process the usable remainder of the tree into logs. The tower is leanable to one side to let the slash fall to the ground rather than on the chassis of the apparatus.

Claims

1. In a tree harvesting apparatus the combination of a mobile chassis, a tower structure comprising a lower column member supported on said chassis, and a reciprocable column member connected in upwardly extendable and downwardly retractable relation with said lower column member;

selectively contractable and expandable tree holding means mounted on said lower column member adjacent its upper end;

selectively contractable and expandable tree gripping means mounted on said reciprocable column member so that, in the retracted condition of the latter, said tree gripping means will overlie said tree holding means;

delimbing knife means operatively associated with said tree gripping means for up and down movement therewith relative to said tree holding means; and

log shear means mounted on said lower column member in underlying relation to said tree holding means;

said log shear means comprising a pair of shear arms swingably mounted on said lower column member for swinging movement transversely thereof toward and away from each other; and

a log tipping device operable to direct a log away from said lower column member upon completion of a cutting stroke of said shear means;

said log tipping device comprising a thrust element movably mounted at the under side of one of said arms, and resilient means reacting between said one shear arm and said thrust element for urging the latter against the side of a log being cut by said shear means.

2. A tree harvesting apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein a reciprocable rod forming said thrust element is slidably mounted on said one shear arm in such angular relation thereto that its thrust, upon completion of a cutting stroke of said shear means, will be directed transversely of said lower column member and generally toward the rear of said chassis.

3. In a tree harvesting apparatus comprising:

a mobile vehicle;

tree felling means mounted adjacent one end of said vehicle, said tree felling means including a pivotable boom adapted to sever standing trees and move the same in a generally vertical condition to said vehicle;

log storage means on said vehicle for storing logs cut from trees felled by said tree felling means;

log transfer means on said vehicle for transferring logs to said log storage means;

the improvement comprising tree processing means for receiving generally vertical trees from said tree felling means, said processing means including a lower structure pivotally connected adjacent its lower end to said vehicle for swinging movement about a horizontal axis, said tower structure comprising;

a lower column member pivotally supported on said vehicle adjacent said log felling means;

a reciprocal column member connected in vertically movable relation with said lower column member;

selectively actuable tree holding means connected to said lower column member;

selectively actuable tree gripping means connected to reciprocable column member adapted to be vertically aligned with said tree holding means;

delimbing knife means operatively associated with said tree gripping means for movement therewith relative to said tree holding means through a delimbing zone;

log shear means operatively associated with said tree holding means for severing a portion of a tree below said tree holding means;

log tipping means for directing logs sheared by said shear means to said log transfer means; and

motor means operatively conNected between said vehicle and said tower structure for swinging said tower structure about said horizontal axis to move the tower portion adjacent said delimbing zone laterally away and remote from said vehicle whereby a severed tree is received by said tower structure in a generally vertical condition from said tree felling means after which said tower structure is adapted to be moved to an upwardly and outwardly vertically inclined position whereby branches removed from the tree during delimbing are free to fall to the ground at locations remote from said vehicle.

4. In a tree harvesting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said vehicle comprises pivotally connected front and rear sections, said front section supporting said felling and processing means, said rear section supporting said log storage means;

and said transfer means including log guiding means operatively connected between said sections.