Agricultural planter having tapered bearings on row unit mounting bracket

Abstract

Tapered bearings are used on each end of each link arm on an agricultural seed row planter mounted on a toolbar. The bearing is a low friction material and greaseless. The tapered design of the bearings allows the bearings to be adjusted as wear occurs, by tightening the link arm mounting nut which extends through the tapered bearing. The tapered bearing has an increased life and reduced maintenance, as compared to prior art roller bearings.

Claims

1. An agricultural row planter comprising: a tool bar; a plurality of row units; a plurality of mounting assemblies for coupling the row units to the tool bar, and each mounting assembly having a front bracket, a rear bracket, and linkage arms pivotally extending between the front and rear mounting brackets; each linkage arm having opposite front and rear ends, with a hole in at each end; a cup mounted in the hole of each end of the line arms; a tapered bearing extending into each cup, the bearing having a tapered outer surface and the cup having a tapered inner opening to matingly receive the tapered outer surface of the bearing so that the bearing is adjustable from an initial position to a second position; a bolt extending through the tapered bearing to mount one of the linkage arms to one of the brackets; and a pin locking the bolt and bearing together to fix the bearing in one of the initial or second positions.

2. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the tapered bearings are a composite material.

3. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the tapered bearings are free from rollers.

4. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the tapered bearings are oil impregnated.

5. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the bearing has a slot to receive the pin and prevent rotation of the bearing on the bolt.

6. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 further comprising a washer on the bolt between a head of the bolt and the bearing.

7. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 further comprising a washer on the bolt between the bearing and the link arm.

8. The agricultural row planter of claim 7 wherein the washer includes a shoulder extending into the bearing.

9. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 further comprising a pair of washers on the bolt and on the opposite sides of the bearings.

10. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the bearing has an outer flange and a tapered body.

11. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the bearing has a tapered outer surface and the cup has a tapered inner opening to matingly receive the tapered outer surface of the bearing.

12. The agricultural row planter of claim 1 wherein the cup and the bearing have mating tapered surfaces.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the row planter using tapered bearings on the row unit, according to the present invention.

(2) FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the row planter shown in FIG. 1.

(3) FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the row planter shown in FIG. 1.

(4) FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along lines 4-4 of FIG. 2.

(5) FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of the front right upper corner of the row unit mounting assembly.

(6) FIG. 6 is an enlarged exploded view of the tapered bearing, bolt, and anti-rotation pin, taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 1.

(7) FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 7-7 of FIG. 4.

(8) FIG. 8 is a side elevation view of a second embodiment of the row unit mounting assembly with tapered bearings, according to the present invention.

(9) FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the row unit shown in FIG. 8.

(10) FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along lines 10-10 of FIG. 8.

(11) FIG. 11A is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 11-11 of FIG. 10, showing a tapered bearing worn over time.

(12) FIG. 11B is a view similar to FIG. 11A, wherein the bolt has been tightened to accommodate the worn bearing.

(13) FIG. 12 is a partially exploded view of the row unit mounting assembly shown in FIGS. 8 and 9.

(14) FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the tapered bearing according to the second embodiment of the invention.

(15) FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of the tapered bearing shown in FIG. 13.

(16) FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along lines 15-15 of FIG. 14.

(17) FIG. 16 is an end elevation view of the tapered bearing shown in FIG. 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(18) Agricultural row planters are commonly used in farming. The planter typically includes a tool bar hitched to a tractor and having a plurality of row unit planters mounted to the tool bar. FIG. 1 shows the basic structure of a row unit 10, which includes a frame 12 to support a pair of guide wheels 14 and pair of closing wheels 16. The row unit 10 is mounted to the tool bar (not shown) with a mounting bracket assembly 18. The mounting bracket assembly 18 includes a front plate 20, a rear plate 22, and upper and lower linking arms 24 extending between the plates 20, 22 on each side of the assembly 18.

(19) The present invention is directed towards a tapered bearing 26 used in mounting each end of each link arm 24 to the front plate 20 or to the rear plate 22. The tapered bearing 26 has a tapered body 28, with an outer flange 30 and a center opening 32. In a first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-7, the flange 30 includes a slot 36. The bearings 26 are preferably made of a low friction composite material, such as Nylatron, or alternatively may be an oil impregnated material, such as brass or aluminized bronze, or plastic.

(20) The bearing 26 is received in a tapered cup or race 38 press fit or otherwise mounted in a hole 40 in the end of the link arm 24. The inside diameter of the cup 38 and the outside diameter of the bearing 26 matingly engage, as seen in FIG. 7. A bolt 42 extends through the center hole 32 of the bearing 26 and through a threaded hole in the respective front or rear plate 20, 22 to pivotally connect the link arm 24 to the respective plate 20, 22. A jam nut 44 is threaded on the inner end of the bolt 42 to prevent the bolt 42 from loosening. A spacer washer 46 is preferably used on the bolt 32 between the link arm 24 and the plate 20, 22. The washer 46 may include a guide shoulder 48, is also shown in FIG. 7. A second washer 47 is placed on the bolt 42 between the bolt head and the bearing flange 30. The washers 46, 47 are preferably made from a low-friction material, such as Nylantron. A spring pin 50 extends through a pin hole 52 in the bolt 42, with the ends of the pin 50 being received in the slot 36 in the bearing flange 30. The pin 50 prevents the bearing 26 from rotating relative to the bolt 42 when the link arms 24 pivot relative to the plates 20, 22.

(21) In a second embodiment of the bearing is shown in FIGS. 8-16, the spring pin 50 and the associated slot 36 and bolt hole 52 are eliminated. Otherwise, the structure, operation and function of the second tapered bearing embodiment is the same as the first embodiment described above for FIGS. 1-7.

(22) When the linkage arms 24 are initially mounted on the plates 20, 22, the bolt 42 and nut 44 are tightened such that the tapered bearing is in a first position, as shown in FIG. 11A. Over time and through usage of the row planter, wear takes place between the bearing 26 and the cup 38. When wear becomes excessive, the bolt and nut 42, 44 can be tightened to draw the bearing 26 further into the cup 38, thereby accommodating the wear and increasing the useful life the bearing 26. This adjustment method is simpler, and saves time and money, as compared to replacement of bearings. The tapered bearings 26 also eliminate the need to grease the bearings 26 at each end of each link arm 24.

(23) The invention has been shown and described above with the preferred embodiments, and it is understood that many modifications, substitutions, and additions may be made which are within the intended spirit and scope of the invention. From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.