Portable shredder/lawn mower for garden use and the like

• US 4,796,416 A
• Filed: 08/17/1987
• Issued: 01/10/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Donna A. Bendig, Thomas J. Bendig
• Original Assignee: Donna A. Bendig, Thomas J. Bendig
• Inventors: Bendig, Donna A., Bendig, Thomas J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hart, Douglas
• Application Number:
  US07/085,774
• Time in Patent Office: 512 Days
• Field of Search: 56/16.9, 56/16.7, 56/16.4, 56/10.7, 56/13.4, 241/101 R, 241/101.1, 241/114, 241/227, 241/292.1
• US Class Current: 56/16.9
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 2101/00 Lawn-mowers
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 42/005 Mulching shredders or like cutting implements for comminuting plant waste per se A01G3/002
• CPC Class Codes: B02C 18/06 with rotating knives

Abstract

The device includes a wheel mounted frame having a detachable base plate, when used as a shredder, a small engine on the upper side of the frame and an internal blade enclosure within said frame, a small chute to limit the intake and prevent overloading from occurring, and a discharge on the internal enclosure opposite to the intake or loading chute. Two cutting blades are mounted on the motor drive shaft which extends vertically into the internal enclosure, an upper blade having a downturned outer end portion to draw air in through the air intake chute and a lower blade radially spaced from the upper blade by 90 degrees and having an upturned outer end portion to prevent material from building up upon the base plate. When used as a lawnmower, the base plate is removed and a plurality of radially extending stabilizer rods is substituted thus providing an open base so that the lowermost cutting blade can engage the grass. In both cases a central bearing, either on the base plate or from which the stabilizing rods extend radially, supports the lower end of the driver shaft.

Claims

1. A shredder for relatively soft garden refuse and the like comprising in combination a susbtantially rectangular frame having an upper plate, a vertical surrounding wall and a base plate substantially spaced and parallel to said upper plate, an internal, cylindrical blade enclosure within said frame, an intake chute on said internal enclosure adjacent the upper side thereof and communicating through said wall and a discharge chute on said internal enclosure and also communicating through said wall, a source of power mounted on said upper plate with a substantially vertical drive shaft extending downwardly therefrom, at least two shredder blade assemblies in said internal enclosure and measns mounting said shredder blade assemblies to said drive shaft for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane within said internal enclosure, and in spaced apart relationship, one adjacent the underside of said upper plate and the other adjacent the upper side of said lower plate, said means mounting said shredder blade assembly for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane to said drive shaft including a spacer coupling between said blades with said upper blade being detachably secured to the upper end of said spacer coupling and the lower blade being detachably secured to the lower end of said coupling and means securing said coupling to said drive shaft whereby said coupling and said blades rotate therewith, ground engaging wheels mounting said frame for ease of movement, a handle assembly extending upwardly and outwardly from one side of the said frame, and further means detachably securing said spacer coupling into said shaft, said further means including a drive coupling secured to the distal end of said drive shaft and extending into said internal blade enclosure substantially centrally through the upper plate of said frame, the upper end of said spacer coupling being secured to the lower end of said drive coupling with said upper blade being clamped therebetween, a bearing shaft being secured axially to said spacer coupling and extending downwardly therefrom and a bearing assembly in said base plate, the lower end of said bearing shaft being supported for rotation within said bearing assembly.

2. The shredder according to claim 1 in which said blade assemblies each include an elongated flat strip with the leading edges of at least the outer end portions of said strip being edge sharpened, said blades being secured to said drive shaft at substantially ninety degrees radially from one another.

3. The shredder according to claim 2 in which at least the outer end portion of said upper blade is provided with a downturned trailing edge, and at least said outer end portion of said lower blade is provided with an upturned trailing edge.

4. The shredder according to claim 1 in which said base plate is detachable from said frame to provide access to the interior of said internal blade enclosure.

5. The device according to claim 1 which includes means to selectively convert said shredder to a lawnmower and vice versa, said last mentioned means including a further bearing assembly for supporting said bearing shaft and a plurality of stabilizer rods secured to said bearing assembly by one end thereof and extending radially therefrom, said further bearing assembly and said stabilizer rods being substituted for said base plate and said firstmentioned bearing assembly, and means on said vertical surrounding walls selectively retaining said base plate and/or said stabilizer rods to the underside of said surrounding mower, said bearing shaft selectively engaging one of said bearing assemblies.

6. The device according to claim 5 in which said means on said vertically situated wall selectively retaining said base plate and/or said stabilizing rods includes a plurality of resilient clips, and upturned ends formed on the other ends of said stabilizer rods selectively engagable with said resilient clips, said ground engaging wheels being adjustable in height relative to said frame.

7. The shredder according to claim 5 in which said blade assemblies each include an elongated flat strip with the leading edges of at least the outer end portions of said strip edge sharpened, said blades being secured to said drive shaft at substantially ninety degrees radially from one another.

8. The shredder according to claim 6 in which said blade assemblies each include an elongated flat strip with the leading edges of at least the outer end portions of said strip edge sharpened, said blades being secured to said drive shaft at substantially ninety degrees radially from one another.

9. The shredder according to claim 5 in which at least the outer end portion of said upper blade is provided with a downturned trailing edge, and at least said outer end portion of said lower blade is provided with an upturned trailing edge.

10. The shredder according to claim 6 in which at least the outer end portion of said upper blade is provided with a downturned trailing edge, and at least said outer end portion of said lower blade is provided with an upturned trailing edge.

11. A garden implement for selective use as a shredder for relatively soft garden refuse and the like, and a lawnmower, said implement comprising in combination a substantially rectangular frame including an upper plate, a vertical surrounding wall and a base assembly substantially spaced and parallel to said upper plate, and internal cylindrical blade enclosure within said frame, a refuse intake chute on one side of said internal enclosure adjacent the other side thereof and communicating through said wall and a discharge chute on the other side of said internal enclosure and also communicating through said wall on the opposite side of said frame to said intake chute, a source of power mounted on said upper plate with a substantially vertical drive shaft extending downwardly therefrom, at least two blade assemblies in said internal enclosure and means mounting said blade assemblies to said drive shaft for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane within said internal enclosure and in spaced apart relationship one with the other, one blade assembly being adjacent the underside of said upper plate and the other blade assembly being adjacent the upper side of said base assembly, said base assembly supporting said drive shaft by the lower end thereof, said base assembly being one of a base plate detachably securable to said surrounding wall with a bearing assembly centrally thereof supportingly engageable by said drive shaft;

and a plurality of stabilizer rods extending radially from a further bearing assembly supportingly engageable by said drive shaft and selectively detachably securable to said surrounding wall, said implement being adapted to be used as a shredder when said base plate and said bearing assembly is detachably secured to said surrounding wall and as a lawnmower when said stabilizer rods and said further bearing assembly is detachably secured to said surrounding wall in place of said base plate.

12. The implement according to claim 11 in which said blade assemblies each include an elongated flat strip with the leading edges of at least the outer end portions of said strip being edge sharpened, said blades being secured to said drive shaft at substantially ninety degrees radially from one another.

13. The implement according to claim 12 in which at least the outer end portion of said upper blade is provided with a downturned trailing edge, and at least said outer end portion of said lower blade is provided with an upturned trailing edge.

14. The implement according to claim 11 in which said means mounting said shredder blade assembly for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane to said drive shaft includes a spacer coupling between said blades with said upper blade being detachably secured to the upper end of said spacer coupling and the lower blade being detachably secured to the lower end of said coupling and means securing said coupling to said drive shaft whereby said coupling and said blades rotate therewith, wheels mounting said frame for ease of movement and a handle assembly extending upwardly and outwardly from one side of said frame.

15. The implement according to claim 12 in which said means mounting said shredder blade assembly for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane to said drive shaft includes a spacer coupling between said blades with said upper blade being detachably secured to the upper end of said spacer coupling and the lower blade being detachably secured to the lower end of said coupling and means securing said coupling to said drive shaft whereby said coupling and said blades rotate therewith, wheels mounting said frame for ease of movement and a handle assembly extending upwardly and outwardly from one side of said frame.

16. The implement according to claim 13 in which said means mounting said shredder blade assembly for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane to said drive shaft includes a spacer coupling between said blades with said upper blade being detachably secured to the upper end of said spacer coupling and the lower blade being detachably secured to the lower end of said coupling and means securing said coupling to said drive shaft whereby said coupling and said blades rotate therewith, wheels mounting said frame for ease of movement and a handle assembly extending upwardly and outwardly from one side of said frame.

17. The implement according to claim 14 which includes further means detachably securing said spacer coupling into said shaft, said further means including a drive coupling secured to the distal end of said drive shaft and extending into said internal blade enclosure substantially centrally through the upper plate of said frame, the upper end of said spacer coupling being secured to the lower end of said drive coupling with said upper blade being clamped therebetween, a bearing shaft being secured axially to said spacer coupling and extending downwardly therefrom and a bearing assembly in said base plate, the lower end of said bearing shaft being supported for rotation within said bearing assembly.

18. The implement according to claim 15 which includes further means detachably securing said spacer coupling into said shaft, said further means including a drive coupling secured to the distal end of said drive shaft and extending into said internal blade enclosure substantially centrally through the upper plate of said frame, the upper end of said spacer coupling being secured to the lower end of said drive coupling with said upper blade being clamped therebetween, a bearing shaft being secured axially to said spacer coupling and extending downwardly therefrom and a bearing assembly in said base plate, the lower end of said bearing shaft being supported for rotation within said bearing assembly.

19. The implement according to claim 16 which includes further means detachably securing said spacer coupling into said shaft, said further means including a drive coupling secured to the distal end of said drive shaft and extending into said internal blade enclosure substantially centrally through the upper plate of said frame, the upper end of said spacer coupling being secured to the lower end of said drive coupling with said upper blade being clamped therebetween, a bearing shaft being secured axially to said spacer coupling and extending downwardly therefrom and a bearing assembly in said base plate, the lower end of said bearing shaft being supported for rotation within said bearing assembly.