Patent ID: 7677324
Filing Date: 2010-03-16
Classification: A01B

Abstract:
1. A turf slicer for penetrating and aerating turf, comprising: a support frame, a drive shaft rotatably supported by the support frame, power takeoff means arranged to rotate the drive shaft, a series of slicer wheels supported on the drive shaft, each of the slicer wheels including a series of substantially flat slicer blades extending radially about the drive shaft and oriented perpendicular to the drive shaft, the slicer wheels being freely rotatably supported on the drive shaft such that when the slicer wheels are lowered and some of the flat slicer blades of each slicer wheel contact the turf below the support frame and the support frame is advanced over the turf below the support frame the slicer wheels rotate freely about the drive shaft in response to the advancement of the support frame and penetrate the turf, and a circular hub mounting each slicer wheel to the drive shaft, each circular hub having an off center opening mounted to the drive shaft with a lobe protruding on one side of the off center opening and configured for oscillating the slicer wheels in an orbit perpendicular to the drive shaft in response to rotation of the drive shaft such that the flat slicer wheels more deeply penetrate the turf below the support frame, the lobes of adjacent ones of the circular hubs extending at different radial directions from the drive shaft, such that when the drive shaft is rotated the lobes of the circular hubs move about the drive shaft and cause the slicer wheels to oscillate in vertical planes about the drive shaft and penetrate downwardly into the turf below the support frame at different times from adjacent slicer wheels.