A bale accumulator for towed conveyance behind a rectangular baler features a bale platform for receiving the bales, a variable length drawbar enabling selective adjustment of the platform between a working field position of close working adjacency and statically in-line relation to the baler, and a road transport position trailing further therebehind and movable relative thereto about a yaw axis. Using an actuated coupler/decoupler, a bale pusher movable longitudinally of the platform to dump accumulated bales onto the field is selectively couplable to, and decouplable from, one or more elongated front bale supports slidably engaged with the baler, over which ejected bales can ride continuously from the baler without awaiting reset of the bale pusher. The front bale supports are coupled to the pusher for working use therewith in the working field mode, and decoupled therefrom to permit yawing of the platform in road transport mode.

The present invention relates to a collecting apparatus for round bales. The collecting apparatus has a frame device and a conveying device, which is designed to convey a plurality of round bales relative to the frame device in a conveying direction. The conveying device comprises at least two traction members, which are spaced apart from one another transversely to the conveying direction and are designed to rotate about a front deflection axis and a rear deflection axis and have a conveying run and a return run. The conveying device also comprises at least two conveying elements, which are arranged offset to one another in the conveying direction, extend longitudinally between the conveying runs of the traction members transversely to the conveying direction, are attached to the traction members, and in each case have a conveying section arranged centrally between the traction members.