A sickle cutting system is mounted on a header for forward travel over ground having a standing crop thereon and includes a cutter bar with a plurality of knife guards and at least one sickle bar with a drive system for driving the sickle bar through repeated cycles of reciprocating movement from start-up of the system through to a shut-down. The drive system includes an arrangement to halt the sickle bar on shut-down at a predetermined position of the knife blades relative to the knife guards and preferably the position where the blades lie intermediate two knife guards. The system can be halted by either a physical stop member at the required position or by detecting the position of the sickle bar during operation and causing it to halt the required position. The detection can be carried out by counting pulses generated by markers on a rotary member of the drive system.

A sickle cutting system is mounted on a header for forward travel over ground having a standing crop thereon and includes a cutter bar with a plurality of knife guards and two opposed sickle bars driven in opposite phase with a drive system for driving the sickle bar through repeated cycles of reciprocating movement from start-up of the system through to a shut-down. The drive system includes a control device responsive to the sensor signals from both of the first and second drive systems for advancing or retarding one of the first and second drive systems so that a number of sensor signals obtained from the first drive system is continually maintained so as to be substantially equal to a number of sensor signals obtained from the second drive system to maintain the sickle bars in opposite phase.

A header for stalk crop has a multi-part cutter bar with oscillatingly driven cutter bar parts. Cutter bar knives of the cutter bar interact with counter knives connected to header frame. A drive shaft ends in a first plane inside a gear housing arranged behind the cutter bar. An eccentric shaft supported in the gear housing carries a gear wheel arranged in a second plane above or below the first plane. The drive shaft drives the gear wheel through a bevel gear. First and second eccentric discs, arranged in third and fourth planes, respectively, are connected to the eccentric shaft; first and second eccentric levers are correlated therewith. First and second pivot levers are connected to the first and second eccentric levers and connected to stationarily supported pivot shafts. Crank arms connected to the pivot shafts, respectively, transmit their pivot movement to the cutter bar parts.

A reciprocating knife assembly of an agricultural implement includes first and second elongate reciprocating knives disposed along a leading edge of an agricultural implement, the reciprocating knives being disposed end to end and extending colinearly for simultaneous reciprocation in opposite directions, the first and second reciprocating knives being supported for sliding movement on the agricultural implement in a lateral direction generally perpendicular to the direction of travel of the agricultural implement as it travels through an agricultural field harvesting crop, a first bell crank coupled to the first reciprocating knife to reciprocate said knife, a second bell crank coupled to the second reciprocating knife to reciprocate the second reciprocating knife, and a common drive coupled to the first and second bell cranks to drive both the first and second bell cranks in opposite directions simultaneously.

A reciprocating knife assembly of an agricultural implement includes first and second elongate reciprocating knives disposed along a leading edge of an agricultural implement, the reciprocating knives being disposed end to end and extending colinearly for simultaneous reciprocation in opposite directions, the first and second reciprocating knives being supported for sliding movement on the agricultural implement in a lateral direction generally perpendicular to the direction of travel of the agricultural implement as it travels through an agricultural field harvesting crop, a first bell crank coupled to the first reciprocating knife to reciprocate said knife, a second bell crank coupled to the second reciprocating knife to reciprocate the second reciprocating knife, and a common drive coupled to the first and second bell cranks to drive both the first and second bell cranks in opposite directions simultaneously.

A drive (100) has two gearing arrangements (101, 102) both with a first gearing (103) and a second gearing (104). Each gearing (103, 104) has at least one transfer element (106) for transferring a reciprocating motion of a driving hinge point (107) into a reciprocating motion of an output hinge point (108). Output elements (117) are coupled to the output hinge points (108) of the two gearings (103, 104). A drive element (116) is coupled to the driving hinge points (107). A common drive element (116) is connected to the driving hinge points (107) of the gearings (103, 104) of the two gearing arrangements (101, 102). The gearing arrangements (101, 102) are mirror-symmetrically arranged so that the output elements (117) are driven on a common output axis in an opposed manner with respect to each other.

A drive (100) has two gearing arrangements (101, 102) both with a first gearing (103) and a second gearing (104). Each gearing (103, 104) has at least one transfer element (106) for transferring a reciprocating motion of a driving hinge point (107) into a reciprocating motion of an output hinge point (108). Output elements (117) are coupled to the output hinge points (108) of the two gearings (103, 104). A drive element (116) is coupled to the driving hinge points (107). A common drive element (116) is connected to the driving hinge points (107) of the gearings (103, 104) of the two gearing arrangements (101, 102). The gearing arrangements (101, 102) are mirror-symmetrically arranged so that the output elements (117) are driven on a common output axis in an opposed manner with respect to each other.

A sickle drive incorporated into a generally flat package or enclosure or floor. The drive includes an epicyclic mechanism, including a rotatable input element in an upper region of a cavity of the enclosure, and an eccentric element below the input element rotatable eccentrically thereby. A drive arm is connected to the eccentric element for rotation about, and eccentric rotation with, the eccentric element, and extends to a pivot element which can be the only component extending upwardly from the enclosure or floor, such that the shaft will be pivoted by the eccentric movement of the drive arm. A knife arm connects to the pivot element and a sickle knife assembly which will be reciprocated by the pivoting action. A second epicyclic arrangement can be employed such that opposite forces generated by operation of the drive will be largely canceled.

The drive has an input rotatable about an upstanding rotational axis and carries a cam followed by a pivot arm pivotable about an upstanding pivotal axis. A power source is connected in rotatably driving relation to the input. The pivot arm connects to a knife assembly of a sickle. The input, cam and pivot arm are generally flat, and the power source is vertically coextensive therewith for incorporation in or below the floor of a header of a plant cutting machine. Rotation of the input causes offset movement of the cam about the rotational axis, resulting in sideward pivoting of the pivot arm and sickle knife. A second cam drive can oppositely drive a second sickle knife, such that opposite forces generated by operation of the drives will be largely canceled.

The drive has an input rotatable about an upstanding rotational axis and carries a cam followed by a pivot arm pivotable about an upstanding pivotal axis. A power source is connected in rotatably driving relation to the input. The pivot arm connects to a knife assembly of a sickle. The input, cam and pivot arm are generally flat, and the power source is vertically coextensive therewith for incorporation in or below the floor of a header of a plant cutting machine. Rotation of the input causes offset movement of the cam about the rotational axis, resulting in sideward pivoting of the pivot arm and sickle knife. A second cam drive can oppositely drive a second sickle knife, such that opposite forces generated by operation of the drives will be largely canceled.