ROTARY CUTTER FOR MOWER

There is provided a rotary cutter for a mower capable of replacing a cord includes: a reel that houses the cord; a cover that covers a case main body; a pressing body that protrudes from the case main body and move in an axial direction by pressing the pressing body to intermittently rotate the reel; and a flange protruding body that protrudes from a surface of a reel flange of the reel and has a concave-convex shape on an outer circumferential side surface of the flange protruding thereof. The flange protruding body and the reel are housed in the cover during grass mowing, the concave-convex shape is a shape for rotating the reel by being gripped by a finger, and a region where there is no obstacle to a movement of the finger when the reel is rotated by gripping the concave-convex shape by the finger is provided outside an outer circumferential surface having the concave-convex shape.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a rotary cutter for a mower for performing a mowing work of grass or the like using a cord (mainly made of nylon) extending in a radial direction of a case which is rotationally driven by power of a prime mover or the like via a rotation shaft.

BACKGROUND ART

In the related art, in this type of rotary cutter, when a cord is worn and the cord housed in a reel is consumed, it is necessary to disassemble the rotary cutter to take out the reel, wind a new cord, and reassemble components.

However, in such a method, when the reel is disassembled and taken out, since related components of the reel and other components are also removed at the same time, there is a high risk of losing these components. For this reason, there are rotary cutters in which a replacement work when the cord is consumed is simplified and in which the cord can be replaced without assembling and disassembling the rotary cutters. For example, a rotary cutter has been proposed in which a through hole is formed in a cylindrical portion (cord winding portion) of a reel, and a cord is passed through the through hole and wound around the cylindrical portion of the reel (see Patent Literatures 1 to 3 and the like).

The rotary cutter described in the related art has a complicated structure and a high production cost, and it takes time and effort to insert and conduct the cord when winding the cord around the reel.

In order to solve this problem, there is known a rotary cutter in which a reel is provided with a recessed groove to simplify manufacturing and processing, and a cord can be replaced without a risk of losing the reel and related components (see Patent Literatures 4 and 5).

CITATION LIST

Patent Literature

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

Technical Problem

However, in the related art described above, there is a problem that a pressing body is worn as the grass is mown by the rotary cutter, and it is difficult to perform replacement of the cord (a turning operation by hand).

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a rotary cutter having continuous stability in terms of ease of cord replacement even when the rotary cutter is used for a long time.

Solution To Problem

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a rotary cutter for a mower capable of replacing a cord includes: a cord configured to mow grass by rotating: a reel that houses the cord and configured to feed out the cord while intermittently rotating: a case main body that houses the reel: a cover that covers the case main body: a pressing body that protrudes from the case main body and configured to move in an axial direction by pressing the pressing body to intermittently rotate the reel: and a flange protruding body that protrudes from a surface of a reel flange of the reel and has a concave-convex shape on an outer circumferential side surface of the flange protruding body. The flange protruding body and the reel are housed in the cover during grass mowing. The concave-convex shape is a shape for rotating the reel by being gripped by a finger. A region where there is no obstacle to a movement of the finger when the reel is rotated by gripping the concave-convex shape by the finger is provided outside an outer circumferential surface having the concave-convex shape.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the rotary cutter for the mower according to the first aspect of the present invention, the flange protruding body is provided on the reel flange of the reel by any of a fixing method, an adhering method, and a fastening method.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the rotary cutter for the mower according to the first aspect of the present invention, the flange protruding body is integrally formed with the reel flange of the reel.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a rotary cutter for a mower capable of replacing a cord includes: a cord configured to mow grass by rotating: a reel that houses the cord and configured to feed out the cord while intermittently rotating: a case main body that houses the reel: a cover that covers the case main body: and a pressing body that protrudes from the case main body and configured to move in an axial direction by pressing the pressing body to intermittently rotate the reel. An upper end portion of the pressing body has a concave-convex shape.

Advantageous Effects of Invention

According to the present invention, since the flange protruding body and the reel are housed in the cover during grass mowing, the concave-convex shape is a shape for rotating the reel by being gripped by the finger, and a space area that does not cause a rotation obstacle when the concave-convex shape is gripped by the finger and the reel is rotated is provided outside the outer circumferential surface having the concave-convex shape, it is easy to operate by a hand. Since the reel flange is housed in the cover during grass mowing, the reel flange is not worn, so that a cord replacement performance can be maintained even if a grass mowing work is performed for a long time.

Since dust is hardly accumulated inside the pressing body, it is possible to obtain a stable operation of the pressing body.

Further, the above means also has an effect of improving a degree of freedom of design of the pressing body.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

FIGS.1to3show a rotary cutter for a mower according to an embodiment of the present invention, in whichFIG.1is an external view,FIG.2is an explanatory view showing an internal structure of the rotary cutter for a mower in a state where a cover2is removed, andFIG.3is a cross-sectional view taken along a line A-A ofFIG.2. RC denotes a rotary cutter,1denotes a case (case main body),2denotes a cover,3denotes a reel,31T denotes a reel flange upper portion,31U denotes a reel flange lower portion,3-1denotes a concave-convex shape of a reel flange protruding body,4denotes a pressing body,8denotes a cord guide,9denotes a cord, and S denotes a region where there is no obstacle to a movement of fingers.

First, a structure of the rotary cutter for a mower according to the embodiment of the present invention shown inFIGS.1to3will be described.

A rotary cutter RC for a mower according to the embodiment is a type in which the rotary cutter (pressing body) is hit to feed out a cord. In this structure, a reel3provided integrally or separately with a bottomed cylindrical pressing body4is incorporated in a central portion of a case1so that the pressing body4protrudes below the case1.

Further, a cord guide8is provided on an outer circumference end portion of the case1.

A reel flange upper portion31T (seeFIG.4A), or the reel flange upper portion31T and a reel flange lower portion31U (seeFIG.4B) of the reel according to the embodiment shown inFIGS.4A and4Bincludes a flange protruding body32that protrudes from a surface of the upper portion or protrudes from the surfaces of the upper portion and the lower portion, the flange protruding body32having a concave-convex shape3-1on an outer circumferential side surface. The flange protruding body32and the reel3are housed in the cover2during grass mowing. The concave-convex shape3-1is a shape for rotating the reel3by being gripped by fingers. A region S (see reference numeral S inFIG.3) where there is no obstacle to the movement of the fingers when the reel3is rotated by gripping the concave-convex shape3-1by fingers is provided outside an outer circumferential surface having the concave-convex shape3-1.

The flange protruding body32is provided on a surface of the reel flange by any of a fixing method, an adhering method, and a fastening method, but fastening using fitting or screws is preferable.

The flange protruding body32may be integrally formed with the reel flange.

FIGS.5A to5Care a view showing another embodiment of the pressing body, and the upper end portion41of the pressing body40may have an upper end portion concave-convex shape42formed on a circumference of the upper end portion so as to protrude upward from an upper end portion surface41A.

In other embodiments of the pressing body shown inFIGS.6and7, upper end portions141and241of pressing bodies140and240are provided with upper end portion concave-convex shapes142and242having hardness or structure that does not interfere with operations of the pressing bodies140and240, or both.

The upper end portion concave-convex shapes142and242protrude upward from the upper end portion surfaces141A and241A, are attached in plural numbers at equal intervals or randomly on circumferences of the upper end portions as separate bodies by adhesion, welding, insert molding, fastening, or the like with the pressing body, or are provided in an integral form by integral molding (the same part) with the pressing body.

The upper end portion concave-convex shapes42,142, and242provided on the upper end portions41,141, and241of the pressing body have a function of hitting the pressing body against the ground surface in order to feed out the cord when a work is performed using the rotary cutter for a mower according to the present invention, scraping out dust that has entered and accumulated particularly from a gap G of the pressing body during a grass mowing work, when the pressing body is pressed, and discharging the dust from the gap (corresponding to a concave portion) formed by the upper end portion concave-convex shape, thereby stabilizing the operation of the pressing body.

This function also acts at the time of cord replacement to stabilize the operation of the pressing body.

In addition, since the rotary cutter for a mower according to the present invention has such a function, it is possible to obtain a stable operation of the pressing body since dust is hardly accumulated inside the rotary cutter for a mower.

The rotary cutter for a mower has a structure in which the case1and the reel3are engaged with each other and the reel3and the cover2are engaged with each other by a concave-convex fitting method. When the pressing body4is hit against the ground surface, the engagement between the case1and the reel3is released by pressing the pressing body4inward, the reel3is rotated, and a cord (not shown) wound around the reel3is fed out, and further the reel3pressed inward is engaged with the cover2, temporarily stops the rotation, but returns to an original position by an elastic force of an incorporated spring (not shown), and the case1and the reel3are engaged again to fix the reel3. It is noted that a drive rotation shaft (not shown) of a prime mover is connected via a nut member fixed in the cover2.

In the rotary cutter for a mower having the configurations shown inFIGS.1to7, when the cord is replaced in a case where the cord is consumed, the cover2is removed, a portion located at a center of a new long cord having a desired length is fitted from above and attached to a cord fitting concave groove provided in the reel3in an empty state engaged with the case1and the cord guide8disposed on the same straight line as the cord fitting concave groove, and in a state in which both end portions of the cord respectively protrude from the cord guide8by an appropriate length, a portion of the pressing body4, which is a separate body from the reel3or to which the reel3is rotatably attached, is gripped, the concave-convex shape3-1provided on the reel flange upper portion of the reel3or outer circumferential side surface portions of the flange protruding bodies32provided on the reel flange upper portion and the reel flange lower portion is used as a handhold to be gripped by a hand and is manually rotated, so that the cord9can be wound around the reel3, and a winding operation of the cord can be easily and quickly performed. Since the cord can be wound in a state where the reel3is fixed to the case1, attachment and winding works of the cord9on the reel3can be easily and quickly performed. Further, in the replacement work of the cord, since it is only necessary to remove the cover2as described above, and other components are not removed, there is little risk of losing components of the rotary cutter.

Although various embodiments have been described above with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to these examples. It is apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes or modifications can be conceived within the scope described in the claims, and it is understood that the changes or modifications naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention. In addition, the constituent elements described in the above embodiments may be freely combined without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The present application is based on a Japanese patent application (Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-196971) filed on Dec. 3, 2021, and the contents thereof are incorporated herein by reference.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The rotary cutter for a mower according to the present invention has a structure in which there is little risk of losing related components of the reel or other components when replacing the cord, and the reel is easily rotated by a hand when the cord is wound around the reel, and therefore the cord can be easily and quickly attached to the reel, the cord can be rapidly and reliably wound, the structure can be easily manufactured and processed, and manufacturing cost is low.

Accordingly, the rotary cutter for a mower according to the present invention is extremely practical for a mower for lawn or weeds.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

3-1concave-convex shape (of side surface of flange protruding body)

31U reel flange lower portion

31T reel flange upper portion

41,141,241upper end portion of pressing body

41A,141A,241A upper end portion surface of pressing body

42,142,242concave-convex shape of upper end portion of pressing body

G gap of pressing body

RC rotary cutter

S region where there is no obstacle to a movement of fingers when the reel3is rotated by hand