Patent ID: 7871029

Claim:
A bale processor, comprising: a. a support surface for supporting a bale of crop material; b. a shredding roller positioned at one end of the support surface, the shredding roller having an elongate roller body, the roller body configured to rotate about an axis of rotation; and c. a feed mechanism positioned on the support surface, the feed mechanism configured for urging the bale towards the shredding roller along a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the roller body; d. wherein the shredding roller includes: i. at least one separating section having at least one impacting member that protrudes outwardly from the elongate roller body, the at least one impacting member configured to impact the bale when the roller body rotates so as to separate the crop material therefrom; and ii. a first and second conveying section, each conveying section having at least one auger-shaped conveying member with at least one generally helical flight that wraps around the roller body; iii. wherein the separating section is located between the first and second conveying sections, and the first and second conveying sections are configured to engage outer portions of the bale and to direct those outer portions of the bale towards the flails of the separating section in a longitudinal direction aligned with the axis of rotation of the roller body; e. wherein the at least one impacting member comprises a plurality of flails, each flail pivotally coupled to the elongate roller body and extending outwardly from the roller body beyond a diameter of the at least one conveying section by a distance selected so that the plurality of flails cause separation of the crop material from a central portion of the bale allowing the outer portions of the bale to be pushed inwardly by the conveying sections towards the flails; and f. a discharge chute aligned with the at least one separating section, the discharge chute configured to receive the separated crop material from the shredding roller and to direct the separated crop material.