Housing for holding a supply roll of large round bale wrap material

A mechanism for enveloping a large round bale with a surface wrap material such as plastic sheet or net includes a housing for holding a supply roll of the wrap material. The mechanism and, hence, the housing is mounted on the rear of a bale discharge gate. The housing includes a front wall, defined by an upright secured across the rear of the gate, and a bottom wall sloped upwardly and rearwardly relative to the front wall. The bottom wall and front wall converge toward a wrap material passage defined between a forward edge of the bottom wall and the front wall. A wrap material loading arm is vertically pivotally mounted to the support walls at locations adjacent the rear end of the bottom wall, the arm being shaped so as to be able to receive and cradle a supply roll in a relatively low position for ease in loading and for having a length of material pulled therefrom and placed around the forward part of a spreader roll of the material feed mechanism, when the arm is in a lowered roll-receiving position, and so as to deposit the cradled roll onto the bottom wall when the arm is lifted to a raised position.

ASSIGNMENT 
The entire right, title and interest in and to this application and all 
subject matter disclosed and/or claimed therein, including any and all 
divisions, continuations, reissues, etc., thereof are, effective as of the 
date of execution of this application, assigned, transferred, sold and set 
over by the applicant(s) named herein to Deere & Company, a Delaware 
corporation having offices at Moline, Ill. 61265, U.S.A., together with 
all rights to file, and to claim priorities in connection with, 
corresponding patent applications in any and all foreign countries in the 
name of Deere & Company or otherwise. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a mechanism for enveloping large round 
bales, formed in a bale-forming chamber, with a wrap material such as 
plastic sheet or net and more particularly relates to a housing for 
holding a supply of such wrap material in a position for being fed into 
the bale-forming chamber. 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,503, granted to Josef Frerich on Sept. 8, 1987, 
discloses a surface wrap housing structure, of the type described above, 
mounted on the rear of a round baler discharge gate and being 
substantially enclosed except for an open front which is closed by a panel 
mounted transversely across the rear of the gate. The housing is 
vertically pivotally mounted for swinging away from the gate to a lowered 
position disposing its open front at a height approximating that of the 
bed of a pickup truck or wagon so that rolls of wrap material carried on 
such a bed may be loaded into the housing without the need for lifting the 
relatively heavy rolls of wrap material through any great distance. Also, 
a spreader roll is rotatably supported from legs which depend from a 
forward portion of the housing when the latter is in its raised, operative 
position. Once the roll of wrap material is placed in the lowered housing, 
a length of material may be pulled from the latter and threaded about the 
spreader roll and inserted into the nip of a pair of feed rolls. The 
housing may then be raised to position the roll for use in wrapping bales 
formed in the bale-forming chamber. While this structure provides for easy 
loading of wrap material rolls into the housing and threading of the wrap 
feed mechanism, the housing is somewhat expensive to fabricate as an 
integral piece and substantial clearance must be provided for permitting 
the suspended spreader roll to pivot with the housing. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
According to the present invention, there is provided an improved housing 
for holding a supply roll of surface wrap material for large round bales, 
and, more particularly, there is provided a housing incorporating a wrap 
material roll loading structure which represents an improvement over the 
structure disclosed in the above-mentioned patent. 
An object of the invention is to provide a surface wrap housing 
incorporating a simply constructed wrap material roll loading structure 
for lifting and loading a roll onto a support wall of the housing. 
Another object of the invention is to provide a wrap material roll loading 
structure, as mentioned above, which is shaped for cradling a roll of 
material when the arm is in a lowered roll-receiving position so as to 
facilitate the threading of the material across the front of a material 
spreader roll, mounted in place below the housing, with the completion of 
threading by inserting the wrap into the nip of a pair of feed rolls being 
done once the arm is raised. 
A more specific object of the invention is to provide a surface wrap 
housing incorporating a wrap material roll loading arm that is vertically 
pivotally mounted for movement between a lowered, roll receiving position 
and a raised, roll depositing position wherein it deposits a roll on a 
bottom wall or floor of the housing. 
Still a more specific object of the invention is to provide a wrap material 
roll loading arm, as described above, which is constructed of a formed rod 
having transversely spaced apart leg portions shaped arcuately about a 
radius approximating that of a complete roll of wrap material, the legs 
each having an out-turned end pivotally received in an aperture for 
establishing the pivot axis of the arm and being joined together, at a 
location remote from these ends, by a transverse, handle-forming portion. 
These and other objects will become apparent from a reading of the ensuing 
description together with the appended drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a rear portion of a large round 
baler 10 of a type including an expansible bale-forming chamber 12 formed 
in part by opposite sidewalls 18 of a bale discharge gate 20, these walls 
supporting a second set of belt support rolls including a lower rear roll 
21 (FIGS. 2 and 3). A pair of ground wheels 22 support the baler for being 
towed over the ground by a tractor. 
Referring now also to FIGS. 2 and 3, a bale wrapping mechanism 24 includes 
opposite support walls 26 having forward, upright, transverse flanges 
bolted to similar flanges formed at the respective rear ends of the gate 
sidewalls 18. Extending between and having their opposite ends rotatably 
mounted in the support walls 26 are a pair of wrap material feed rolls 28 
and 30, with the roll 28 being disposed above and forwardly of the roll 30 
such that a material flight path, defined by a plane located tangentially 
to the rolls at their bite or nip, extends substantially into a bite or 
nip area 32 defined by a guide pan portion 34 and a portion of the belts 
14 engaged with the lower rear support roll 21 carried by the gate 20. 
Located forwardly and above the upper feed roll 28 is a spreader roll 36 
having its opposite ends rotatably supported by respective bearings (not 
shown) mounted in an upper forward location of the support walls 26 by 
respective bolts 37, the roll 36 carrying spiral flights (not shown) at 
its opposite ends with the flights being of opposite hand so as to spread 
wrap material engaged therewith to the full width of the spreader roll. 
The bale wrap mechanism 24 includes a supply roll housing 38 having a front 
wall 40 defined by a vertical panel extending between and bolted to the 
rear ends of the gate sidewalls 18. The housing 38 further includes a 
downwardly and forwardly extending bottom wall 42, the bottom wall 42 and 
the front wall 40 converging toward a wrap material passage 43 defined 
between a forward edge of the wall 42 and the wall 40. The bottom wall 42 
has an upper surface 44 curved convexly from front to rear with the 
curvature being specially selected to cooperate with the front wall so as 
to frictionally engage a roll of wrap material in a manner and for a 
purpose explained in more detail below. A pair of L-shaped straps 46 
having out-turned upper ends are respectively secured to upper rear 
portions of the support walls 26 by a pair of spaced bolts 48. Upper rear 
locations of the curved housing bottom wall 42 overlie and are bolted, as 
at 50, to the out-turned ends of the straps 46. It is here noted that the 
rear end of the bottom wall 42 is bent downwardly so as to form a rounded 
corner 52 for engagement by a new supply roll of wrap material being 
loaded into the housing, in a manner described below. The wall 42 has its 
forward end captively engaged in respective notches or recesses 54 
provided in upper forward locations of the support walls 26. A third point 
of support for the bottom wall 42 is provided by respective corners 56 
defined at respective intermediate locations along upper edges of the 
walls 26. A roll of wrap material resting on the bottom wall 42 has its 
sideways movement limited by opposite containment plates 58, each being 
mounted to the support walls 26 by the pair of bolts 48 and by the bolt 
37. The upper portion of each of the containment plates 58 is bent 
outwardly, as at 60, so that a rounded corner will be presented to the 
ends of the roll of wrap material being contained by the plates. 
A wrap material roll loading bail or arm 62 is vertically pivotally mounted 
to upper rear locations of the support walls 26. Specifically, welded to 
respective upper edges of the walls 26 and defining a horizontal pivot 
axis are a pair of transversely aligned washers 64. The arm 62 is defined 
by a rod formed so as to define opposite legs 66 curved arcuately at a 
radius approximating that of a complete roll of wrap material, the legs 
terminating at respective out-turned ends 68 received in the washers 64 
and provided with respective holes receiving containment pins 70. The ends 
of the legs 66 opposite the out-turned ends are joined together by a 
transverse section which serves as a handle 72. When the loading arm 62 is 
in a lowered, roll receiving position as shown in FIG. 2, the curved legs 
66 will be disposed at a relatively low height for having a roll of wrap 
material 74, including a tubular core 75 made of cardboard or the like, 
placed thereon either from the ground or preferably from a truck or wagon 
bed or the like so as to minimize or eliminate the need for lifting the 
roll, it being noted that a complete roll may weigh from 75-80 pounds. 
Once the roll 74 is cradled by the arcuate legs 66, a length of wrap 
material can be pulled from the roll and threaded into the feed mechanism 
by first placing the material around the front portion of the spreader 
roll 36, the loading arm 62 then being raised to deposit the roll of wrap 
onto the bottom wall surface 44 and then the threading operation being 
completed by inserting the material into the nip of the feed rolls 28 and 
30. The fact that only the legs 66 of the arm 62 are in contact with the 
cradled supply roll 74 is important since the frictional drag imposed on 
the roll as the latter unrolls when material is pulled therefrom is 
relatively small. It is to be noted that the arm 62 is structured about 
its pivot axis such that the maximum lifting force needed to lift the roll 
is about one-half the roll weight and, that once the arm is in its roll 
deposit position it will remain there due to the action of gravity. In any 
event, a cover 76, here shown in an upwardly pivoted open position, may be 
lowered about respective pivot connections 78, its upper forward corners 
have with angle brackets 80 bolted to the rear edges of the gate walls 18, 
to a closed position wherein top and rear walls 82 and 84, respectively, 
of the cover will be proximate the arm so as to prevent it from moving 
from its raised position. It is here noted that a pair of gas springs 86 
are connected between respective brackets carried at lower rear locations 
of opposite sidewalls 88 of the cover 76 and the brackets 80 such that the 
springs are moved over center as the cover is moved between its open and 
closed positions and thus act to bias the cover to its open position when 
it is open and to it closed position when it is closed. 
The operation of the wrap material supply roll lift arm or bail 62 is 
thought to be clear from the description above and will not be reiterated 
for the sake of brevity.