Patent ID: 8740117

Claim:
An apparatus for processing poultry litter comprising: a frame movable in a forward direction of travel, said frame including a rear wall; a transverse primary beater assembly rotatably supported on said frame forwardly of said rear wall, said primary beater assembly including a central core having a plurality of radially projecting beater paddles mounted thereon, said primary beater assembly being rotated in an undershot manner to convey poultry litter engaged by said beater paddles beneath said central core and then upwardly along said rear wall behind said central core; a transverse auger mechanism rotatably supported on said frame above and rearwardly of said primary beater assembly, said auger mechanism including a screw conveyor rotatably operable within an elongated transverse housing, said housing having an inlet opening facing downwardly and being positioned adjacent said rear wall to receive the poultry litter conveyed upwardly along said rear wall by said primary beater assembly, said auger mechanism conveying the poultry litter received thereby to a discharge end of said apparatus to be dropped from said auger mechanism into a windrow, said auger mechanism extending laterally beyond said beater paddles to enable the discharge of said poultry litter from said apparatus outboard of said beater paddles; and a drive mechanism for rotating said primary beater assembly and said auger mechanism to engage and disintegrate the poultry litter and to discharge the disintegrated poultry litter into a windrow along the discharge end of said apparatus.