Improvements in Potato Diggers and Combined Potato Diggers and Ploughs.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd Sept., 1897-Accepted, 23rd Oct., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Potato Diggers and Combined Potato Diggers and
Ploughs.
I, BENJAMIN WILLCOX of 47 Lincoln's Inn Fields in the County of London Patent
Agent do hereby declare the nature of this Invention (which has been communi-
cated from abroad by Daniel Y. Hallock, of Southold, New York, in the United
States of America) and in what manner the same is to be performed to be
particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:—
The object of this Invention is to furnish an improved construction of potato
digger which can readily be converted into a plough and by which the soil and
tubers can be more effectively separated by working a part of the soil and tubers
at the rear and part at the side or sides of the digger.
The present invention comprises a standard, a shovel with rearwardly-curved
and upwardly-extended scattering-tongue at its outer end, or corner, sifting-rods
in its rear, and a skeleton mouldboard or device for lifting and conveying laterally
the centre and surface soil of the row, and turning it bottom side up on the rear-
wardly-curved, and upwardly-extended, tongue, or tongues, of the shovel, where it
is effectively scattered and separated while part of the soil and tubers pass through
the skeleton mouldboard (which operates as a lifting and laterally conveying
device) onto sifting-rods forming a screen in the rear of the shovel. In the
drawings the lifting and laterally-conveying device is shewn as a skeleton mould-
board on one side only of the standard, as one side is sufficient in practice for
ordinary depth of planting, and when thus used the draft-clevis at the forward end
of the beam may be so set as to draw the lower end of the mouldboard centrally
through the row of potatoes, thus lifting and conveying all the tubers and earth,
in the centre of the row, to one side. The skeleton mouldboard may be duplicated,
and by making the draught central the earth and tubers in the centre of the row
will be divided and conveyed to both sides.
To facilitate the application of a skeleton mouldboard or a solid mould-board
to the aforesaid shovel, the said shovel is formed with parallel edges, so that when
the lower edge rests upon the ground the upper edge is horizontal or practically
so, so that a mouldboard, may be removably fitted to the top edge of the same.
The shovel thus constructed presents a flat surface inclined upwardly from the
front towards the back, and in order to throw a greater proportion of the earth from
the surface of the shovel upon the screen in the rear of the same the outer end
of the shovel-blade is provided with a rearwardly-curved and upwardly-extended
tongue, which is preferably made detachable, so that when the implement is
converted from a digger into a plough the said tongue can be readily removed.
The fixtures for the convertible digger and plough therefore consist of the standard
provided with such a shovel as described, having the detachable tongue at the
outer end and interchangeable mouldboards removably fitted to the top of the
shovel, and a detachable screen to be secured behind the shovel when used as a
digger, which will be replaced by an ordinary landside when the implement is
used as a plough. To perform its function properly, the curved tongue at the end

page_text: of the shovel is formed to prevent a surface continuous with the surface of the
shovel, although curved upwardly in the manner described.
The invention also includes various details of construction, as hereinafter
described.
In the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the double-shovel digger.
Figure 2 is a side view of the standard, with the digger fixtures, the shovel
being in section on the line 2. 2. in Figure 3.
Figure 3 is an inverted plan of the digger with double shovel.
Figure 4 is an inclined view of the double-shovel digger viewed in the direction 1
of the arrow 4 in Figure 2.
Figure 5 is a perspective view of one of the detachable shovel-tongues.
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the plough point for the single-shovel plough,
and
Figure 7 a perspective view of the plough point for the double shovel plough.
The drawings shew the construction of both a single and a double shovel
implement. A is the standard, adapted at the lower end to receive either a single
shovel B upon one side, or two shovels B B¹, one upon each side.
A is the head of the standard and Aº the beam.
I will first describe the construction required for a single-shovel-implement. 2
The shovel B is narrow in width and of uniform height on practically so with its
inner end, or point, attached to the side of the standard A and its outer end
provided with the tongue C, the upper surface of which tongue forms a continuation
of the upper surface of the shovel B rearwardly and upwardly, as shown in
Figure 4. The tongue C is detachably fastened to the outer end of the shovel by
lapping under the end thereof, where it is secured by bolts. Where the foot of the
tongue C is lapped under the end of the shovel, the foot of the tongue is offset,
as shewn in Figures 4 and 5, so that the upper surface of the tongue and shovel
is flush or continuous. The bolts by which the tongue is secured to the shovel pass
through the shovel and the foot of the tongue and the heads of the bolts are 3
countersunk flush with the upper surface of the shovel. A screen is projected in
the rear of the shovel the said screen being formed of a flat bar, or head piece D,
attached to the standard by the arm d, and having fingers D₁ secured to the head-
piece by bolts d'. The fingers are projected backwardly and bear on the grounds
and their rear ends are inclined upwardly, as shewn in Figure 2. The arm d of 3
the head piece is secured by a pivot-bolt a and a bolt inserted through a slot a¹
at the outer end of the arm, the slot permitting the screen to pivot on the lower
bolt, by which the angle or bite, of the shovel may be adjusted.
The front edge of the standard is formed with a flange as to which the shovel
and mouldboard are attached. A skeleton mouldboard E is fitted to the standard
by bolts e when the implement is intended for use as a potato digger. The skeleton
mouldboard E consists, substantially of a metallic clip extending upwardly along
the front of the standard and then curved laterally and rearwardly, like the rear
corner of the ordinary mouldboard, so as to turn over the earth which is encount-
ered by the same. Such construction leaves an opening e¹ below the arched portion 4
of such mouldboard through which the earth passes over the shovel onto the
screen-bars D¹.
A point H (Figure 6) or H¹ (Figure 7) is secured over the inner end of the
shovel and the front edge of the standard to close the joint between the same and
thus avoid careful and expensive fitting. The potato-digger with a single shovel 5
comprises one shovel B, one tongue C, one screen, and one skeleton mouldboard E,
as shown in Figure 2, and to constitute a double-shovel-digger the parts are
duplicated upon opposite sides of the standard, as shown, in Figures 1, 3, and 4,
the two screens in such case being secured by the same bolts a and a¹, extended
through the standard, and the arm d, as shewn in Figure 3. The angle-shaped 5
point H', adapted to cover the contiguous ends of the two shovel-blades, is used
in such case.

page_text: The two points are made interchangeable by providing holes in suitable
positions to receive the bolts b, which pass through the point, shovel blades, and
the standard. Thus all are locked together.
When operated as a digger, the shovel runs under the potato row, loosening and
lifting the soil and the tubers, part of which pass between the skeleton mouldboard
and the shovel to the screen, which bears on the ground to give a force of traction
from the soil below to force the tubers and soil through and over the elevated
ends of the screen as it is drawn forward, leaving the tubers on the surface, while
the skeleton mouldboard lifts and turns the balance of the row and the vines and
trash laterally, to be effectively scattered and sifted by the forward motion of the
rearwardly and upwardly curved tongue C of the shovel.
The skeleton mouldboard performs a different function from any spreading device
heretofore used, as its arched shape, running continuously from the shovel
upwardly and laterally, conveys the soil and vines from the centre of the row
easily to one side and turns the mass upside down upon the upwardly and rear-
wardly curved tongue of the shovel, while at the same time the opening e¹ permits
the lower soil to pass without obstruction to the top of the screen.
The solid and skeleton mouldboards are made interchangeable by forming the
bolt-holes to fit the same bolts and the construction thus constitutes two important
implements at little more than the expense of one.
The point H (or H¹) is arranged to fit over the end of the shovel, which is secured
to the flange a, upon the standard, and these parts are securely locked together
by the same bolts b. This arrangement of the point and shovel blades, especially
when intended for a double shovel plough or digger, greatly reduces the waste of
material incident to making the shovel and point of sheet-steel in a single piece
and provides for a cheap renewal of that part which is most exposed to wear.
The putting of the point H or H¹ upon the top of the shovel-blade, obviates the
necessity for close-fitting joints, which would be required if the blade were fitted
against the side of the point instead of running under the same. The bolts b for
securing these points pass through the shovel and increase its strength, and the
point H for the double shovel is made interchangeable with the shovel point H
by forming holes on each of its edges which are adapted to fit the same bolts
upon one side as are used for securing the single point. Forming the inclined
arm d of the screen-head D with the bolting slot a provides not only a strong
construction, but enables the screen to be adjusted in the required direction to
incline the digger upward or downward as may be required. When the imple-
ment is to be used as a plough a solid mouldboard and landside are attached to
the standard by bolts and projected backwardly in the usual manner, and the
plough is thus adapted to perform every function. Although a number of parts
are removed from the digger when converting it into a plough only two additional
parts are required to complete both implements, namely, the solid mouldboard and
the land-side which may be of ordinary construction-and the additional expense
required to furnish two complete instruments is very slight.
I am aware that analogous constructions have been employed for converting a
plough into a potato-digger, and I do not, therefore, claim such a construction
broadly.
In the construction according to this invention the top of the shovel is required
to extend horizontally, that a convenient joint may be made between the same
and the lower end of the skeleton mouldboard, which as below stated, extends
continuously from the shovel upwardly and laterally, so that its lower end
penetrates the soil and turns a mass of the same upside down upon the tongue C
and screen behind the shovel. The tongue and the mould-board thus form, when
attached to the horizontal shovel, continuous extensions of its surface, which are
curved to perform the particular functions described.
The scattering tongue which is formed upon the outer end of the shovel, in this
improved potato-digger, differs from any heretofore used, in operating beneath the

page_text: soil, and in having an appreciable breadth transverse to the line of draught, so
that it operates to sustain a considerable portion, of the soil, which, as it slides up
the rearwardly-inclined surface of the tongue, is very considerably loosened, and
therefore scattered, before its discharge upon the screen, or upon the ground
outside of the potato-ridge. The lifting and scattering of the soil, which are
affected by this rearwardly-inclined tongue, are a very material portion of the
digging operation and serve to separate the potatoes from the soil in a very con-
siderable degree. The breadth of the scattering-tongues, which enables them to
perform this function, is very clearly shewn at the rear ends of the tongues in
Figure 3, where it will be observed that they extend parallel for some distance
to the line of draught, so that the earth is retained upon the surface of the tongues
as it slides backwardly, and is thus broken up and loosened before it is discharged.
This construction of the tongue adds materially to the efficiency of the digger.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1. A potato-digger comprising the standard A, the parallel-bladed shovel B
attached at its inner end to the same, and provided, at the outer end, with a
tongue C having the offset foot secured detachably to the under side of the shovel,
with the upper surface of the tongue and shovel continuous, the tongue being
curved rearwardly and upwardly as set forth, and having a considerable breadth
transverse to the line of draught as herein shewn and described, and projected
rearwardly and upwardly in the line of draught and operated beneath the soil
to lift and scatter it, and the screen having a head D provided with an arm d
inclined upwardly and rearwardly and formed with a bolting-slot a¹ and with a
hole for the bolt a for attaching it adjustably to the standard at the bottom line
of the shovel, and the screen-bars 11 drawn upon the ground to subject the
material upon the screen to friction upon the under side, substantially as herein-
before set forth.
2. A potato-digger, comprising the standard A, the parallel-bladed shovel B
having its outer end provided with the tongue C forming a continuous extension
of its surface curved rearwardly and upwardly, the screen projected backwardly
from such shovel to receive the earth which passes over the same, and the skeleton
mould-board E consisting of the strip extended upwardly along the front of the
standard and then curved laterally and rearwardly, so that its lower end may
penetrate the soil and lift and turn over the same upon the screen and tongue C,
as, and for the purpose hereinbefore set forth.
3. A convertible plough and potato-digger, comprising the standard A, with the
parallel-bladed shovel B attached at its inner end to the standard, the shovel B1
fitted detachably thereto, the tongues C upon the outer ends of the shovel curved
rearwardly and upwardly as set forth, the screens D, D¹ arranged to drag upon
the ground behind the shovels, and having inclined arms d fitted to opposite
sides of the standard and secured by the two bolts a, the mould-board E fitted to
the upper edge of the shovel and detachably to the standard, and the double
plough-point H¹ adapted to fit over the contiguous ends of the shovels B, B', and
secured by bolts passing down from the point H¹ and shovels B, B₁, and closing
the joint between the shovels and the standard, the whole being arranged and
operated as hereinbefore set forth.