Technical Field

The present invention relates to rollers used in agriculture such as crimp rollers, barrel rollers and aerator rollers.

Background to the Invention

Rollers of various types are often used in agricultural operations and include rollers of various types including crimp rollers, barrel rollers and aerator rollers.

A crimp roller is a type of roller used in no-till farming operations and typically consists of a barrel which is rotatably mounted in a carrier or housing. The housing is attached to a tractor which pulls the crimp roller around an area of land. The barrel bears against the ground and rotates in the housing as the crimp roller is pulled along. The barrel has outwardly protruding blades or fins which are often provided in a chevron type pattern a twisted pitch to maintain constant contact with material underneath. As the barrel rotates the pressure on the blades splits from the center and moves outwards laying over and “crimping” vegetation, bruising the stalk of the plant and effectively stunting or shutting down the plant.

Barrel rollers are used to flatten land or break up large clumps of soil. Aerator rollers typically include spikes or protrusions of some kind which are designed to introduce air into the soil.

Rollers can be of lengths of around 4.5 to 6 metres. They are typically attached to a tractor using a three point linkage to be pulled around an area to be treated. Due to their size, rollers are not able to be easily transported by road and so are transported around an agricultural property to treat different areas of land using the tractor.

Summary of the Invention

In a first aspect the present invention provides a roller including: a roller housing; a barrel is rotatably mounted in the housing; wheels are attached to the housing; the roller is configurable to adopt either a towing configuration in which the wheels bear against the ground or a rolling configuration in which the barrel bears against the ground; wherein when in the towing configuration the roller can to be towed on its wheels in a direction that is generally parallel to the length of the barrel.

A hitch point may be provided on a drawbar which is pivotally mounted to the housing, and the hitch point is used to tow the roller in both of the towing and the rolling configurations.

The roller may further include a hydraulic actuator for rotating the drawbar.

The wheels may be provided on moveable members which are moved when configuring the roller into either the towing or the rolling configuration.

The moveable members may be rotatably mounted to the housing.

The moveable members may include a detent mechanism which retains the moveable members in either of the towing or the rolling configuration.

The roller may further include at least one hydraulic actuator for moving the moveable members

The barrel may include a watertight internal cavity which can be filled with water to add weight to the barrel.

The roller housing may include three attachment points for attaching the roller to a three point linkage of a tractor.

The wheels may also be deployed to enable the roller to be towed in a direction that is generally orthogonal to the length of the barrel.

The roller may be a crimp roller, and the barrel includes outwardly extending fins for crimping plants. Brief Description of the Drawings

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is side view of a roller in the form of a crimp roller shown in a towing configuration;

Figure 2 is an end view of the crimp roller of figure 1 in a rolling configuration;

Figure 3 is a top view of the crimp roller of figure 2;

Figure 4 is an end view of an alternative embodiment of a crimp roller;

Figure 5 is a rear side view of the crimp roller of figure 4 with wheels removed;

Figure 6 is a top view of a third embodiment of a crimp roller;

Figure 7 is a top view of a fourth embodiment of a crimp roller; and

Figure 8 is a top view of a fifth embodiment of a crimp roller.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment

An embodiment of the invention in the form of a crimp roller will now be described in detail, although the invention can also be applied to other types of rollers.

Referring to figure 1, a roller in the form of a crimp roller 10 is shown including a housing 12. A crimping barrel 20 is rotatably mounted in the housing. The crimping barrel includes a series of spaced apart outwardly extending fins 22 which are formed in a chevron type pattern in a known fashion. In use the fins 22 act on plant matter to crimp the stems of the plants.

A pair of wheels 30 are attached to housing 12 by way of a pair of rotatable members 32. The rotatable members 32 are attached to the housing by way of detent mechanisms 34 such as toothed Hirth couplings or dog clutches. A hitch point 40 is provided at the end of a goose-necked drawbar 42 which is pivotally attached to housing 12 at pivot point 44. The drawbar 42 lies alongside the upper region of the roller housing and is secure in this position by a removable pin (not shown). In figure 1, the crimp roller is shown in a towing configuration in which wheels 30 are in contact with the ground and which maintain the roller 20 away from the ground. When in the towing configuration, the hitch point 40 can be used to attach the crimp roller to a road vehicle, such as a truck or ute, to tow the crimp roller 10 in an endwise fashion in a direction generally parallel to the length of the roller 20 as indicated by arrow A in the figure. The crimp roller 10 can thereby be moved from place to place on public roads for use at various locations and can be easily fitted through gate openings.

The crimp roller 10 is reconfigurable to adopt a rolling configuration as shown in figures 2 and 3 in which the crimp roller can be pulled around an area to crimp plants in a direction generally orthogonal to the length of the barrel.

To configure the roller into the rolling configuration the following procedure is carried out:

1. Goose necked drawbar 42 is rotated 90 degrees and is secured in place with brace chains 46 which are tensioned with turnbuckles (not shown). A jockey wheel (not shown) maintains the hitch point 40 in a position elevated from the ground surface.

2. A high-lift jack is engaged at point B of the housing and is actuated to lift the housing to elevate the wheels 30 off the ground.

3. Bolts which engage the Hirth couplings 34 are then loosened. The rotatable members 32 are then rotated to an upwardly pointing orientation and the Hirth couplings are secured again to retain the wheels in their upward position.

4. The high-lift jack is then let down and removed, this causes the roller 20 to bear against the ground.

The crimp roller is now in the rolling configuration (as seen in figures 2 and 3). The hitch point 40 can be attached to a vehicle, such as a ute or tractor to pull the crimp roller around an area. The crimp roller crimps plants in the area as part of a no-till farming operation. The barrel 20 includes a watertight internal cavity which can be filled with water to add weight to the barrel if desired.

After use, the crimp roller is re-configured back to the towing configuration by repositioning the wheels 30 back to their down/ground engaging position and folding the drawbar 42. The crimp roller 10 can then be transported to another location.

Referring to figures 4 and 5, in some embodiments the rear side of the housing of the roller may be fitted with attachments 102, 104 which enable to the roller to be attached to a three point linkage to provide for more versatile towing options. This embodiment can thus be towed either by way of a vehicle or ute by way of the drawbar, or alternatively by a tractor the three point linkage attachment points.

Referring to figure 6, a third embodiment of a crimp roller 200 is shown. This embodiment differs from the first described embodiment in that an additional pair of Hirth coupling mountings 234 are provided along the rear edge of the roller housing. When the roller is in the rolling configuration, the existing wheels 30 on their rotatable members can be removed and relocated on the rear Hirth mountings 234. The wheels 30 are thus oriented in the direction of travel in which the roller moves in the crimping configuration and are rotatable to either support the roller away from the ground surface, or to be stowed in an upwardly oriented configuration.

The roller 200 is useful when moving the roller from place to place where the roller does not need to be towed on public roads, such as when moving between paddocks located at the same property. To deploy the wheels each end of the roller is jacked up in turn to rotate the wheels on their Hirst couplings 234. The roller 200 can then be towed in the rolling direction to a new location where the wheels 30 can be again rotated upwards to continue crimping operations at the new location.

Referring to figure 7, a fourth embodiment of a crimp roller 300 is shown. This embodiment differs from the first described embodiment in that hydraulic systems are used to change the configuration of the roller between the towing configuration and the rolling configuration. A hydraulic ram 350 actuates the goose necked drawbar 42 between a folded and extended condition. The Hirst couplings are omitted. Instead, wheels 30 are attached to a common mounting 362 which is movable by a hydraulic ram 360 to deploy and lift the wheels.

Roller 300 can be controlled by an operator sitting inside a tractor and allows the roller to be moved between the towing and rolling configuration by the operator without them having to leave their vehicle.

Referring to figure 8, a fifth embodiment of a crimp roller 400 is shown. This embodiment is based on the fourth hydraulically powered embodiment 300. It differs in the addition of an additional pair of wheels 31. These wheels serve the same function as the wheels 30 shown in the roller 200 of figure 6, to allow the roller to be towed in the rolling direction. The wheels 31 are able to be hydraulically raised and lowered, allowing deployment and retraction of the wheels 31 to be made by an operator from the cabin of a tractor.

The barrel of the crimp roller can be formed in various lengths such as 3m, 4.5m or 6m.

Although the invention has been described in particular detail in relation to a crimp roller, the invention can be applied to other types of rollers which differ only in the nature of the barrel used in the roller. The barrel could be any other type of roller barrel such as a ridged or plain roller, or an aeration roller.

It can be seen that embodiments of the invention have at least one of the following advantages:

• Roller can be put into a folded configuration for transport. By towing the roller from one end, the roller can be manoeuvred through gates, and can be towed on public roads to move it to various locations.

• Roller can be towed around an area using a ute or other road going vehicle.

• Roller can be towed to a location using a road vehicle, and then used at that location by attaching to the three point linkage of a tractor

Any reference to prior art contained herein is not to be taken as an admission that the information is common general knowledge, unless otherwise indicated.

Finally, it is to be appreciated that various alterations or additions may be made to the parts previously described without departing from the spirit or ambit of the present invention.