Patent ID: 8225588

Claim:
An agricultural machine including a carrying vehicle and plural work units configured to cut a standing product, the work units being connected to the carrying vehicle, the agricultural machine comprising: at least two pivotable front work units, each front work unit including a housing that includes a cutting device including a plurality of cutting members, which cutting members are each driven in rotation about a respective one of a plurality of upwardly directed axes, the front work units being arranged, during work and viewed in a direction of forward travel of the carrying vehicle, at a front of the carrying vehicle such that the two front work units are located in front of an axis of rotation of a front wheel of the carrying vehicle, the housings of the two front work units being separate and distinct from each other; and at least two lateral work units, each lateral work unit including a housing that includes a cutting device including a plurality of cutting members, which cutting members are each driven in rotation about a respective one of a plurality of upwardly directed axes, the lateral work units being arranged, during work, on either side of the carrying vehicle and mostly outside of a total work area of the cutting devices of the front work units such that a work area of the cutting device of each lateral work unit partially overlaps the total work area of the cutting devices of the front work units, the housings of the two lateral work units being separate and distinct from each other; and wherein the front work units and the lateral work units are configured to be moved with respect to the carrying vehicle so as to occupy a transport or a work position, and wherein in the work position, a work area of one of the cutting members of the cutting device of a first of the at least two front work units partially overlaps a work area of one of the cutting members of the cutting device of a second of the at least two front work units, and a first front work unit and a second front work unit pivot in mutually opposite directions, with respect to each other, from the transport position to the work position, wherein the at least one of the front work units is connected by a respective articulation to a hitching structure, which hitching structure is in turn connected to a height adjustable front hitching device of the carrying vehicle, and wherein said front hitching device is configured to move said hitching structure and said at least one of the front work units in a substantially vertical direction.