Patent ID: 6412570
Filing Date: 2002-07-02
Classification: A01B

Abstract:
In a pull-type farm implement having driven operating components, the improvement comprising:a tongue; a drive line carried by the tongue for supplying driving power to said components; an upper right angle gear box fixed to the tongue and operably coupled with said drive line; a lower right angle gear box operably coupled with the upper gear box, said lower gear box being supported for swiveling movement about an upright axis passing through the two gear boxes, said lower gear box having an input shaft adapted to be operably coupled with a power take-off shaft of a towing vehicle; a hitch pivotally connected to the tongue for horizontal swinging movement about said upright axis, said hitch including a receiver having a forwardly opening socket configured to accept the rearwardly extending draw bar of the towing vehicle; and a connector for releasably retaining the draw bar within the receiver to establish a draft connection between the towing vehicle and the tongue that allows the tongue and the vehicle to turn left and right about said axis relative to one another during field operations, said hitch remaining substantially in line with the vehicle during such turns and being operable to swivel the lower gear box about said axis to the extent necessary to keep the input shaft of the lower gear box substantially aligned with the power take-off shaft of the towing vehicle, said socket of the receiver being configured to allow the draw bar a limited amount of up and down pivoting movement about a transverse axis relative to the receiver and a limited amount of rotational movement about a fore-and-aft axis relative to the receiver when the draw bar is retained in the socket by the connector.