Electrically operated turf stacking system for sod harvesting machine

摘要

The present invention extends to a stacking mechanism having electrical actuators for stacking slabs of sod on a sod harvesting machine. The electrical actuators allow the stacking head to be driven in three axes. The stacking mechanism also includes position feedback sensors for reporting the position of the stacking head to enable precision when operating the stacking head at a fast rate. The stacking mechanism of the present invention also provides temporary pallet support wings to enable the continued stacking of slabs of sod on one pallet even while another pallet is being dropped from the sod harvesting machine.

主权项

1. A sod harvesting machine comprising:
a cutting head configured to cut slabs of sod from the ground; a main conveyor and a secondary conveyor, the main conveyor being inclined between the cutting head and the secondary conveyor to allow the main conveyor to carry slabs of sod received from the cutting head to the secondary conveyor; a pallet support structure for supporting a pallet on which the slabs of sod are stacked, the pallet support structure being positioned alongside the main conveyor; an electric actuator based stacking mechanism for removing the slabs of sod from the main conveyor and stacking the slabs of sod on the pallet, the stacking mechanism comprising:
a gantry frame comprising a first beam positioned above and extending along a first side of the pallet support structure opposite the secondary conveyor and a second beam positioned above and extending along a first side of the secondary conveyor opposite the pallet support structure;a first gantry rail and a second gantry rail, each gantry rail extending between the first and second beams of the gantry frame, each gantry rail being configured to travel in unison along a length of the first and second beams;a first motor coupled to the gantry frame, the first motor being configured to cause the first and second gantry rails to travel along the first and second beams of the gantry frame;a stacking head that is coupled between the first and second gantry rails via a shuttle, the shuttle being configured to travel along a length of the first and second gantry rails to position the stacking head over the secondary conveyor to remove one or more slabs of sod from the secondary conveyor and to position the stacking head over the pallet support structure to stack the one or more slabs of sod on the pallet;a second motor coupled to one or both of the first and second gantry rails, the second motor being configured to cause the shuttle to travel along the length of the first and second gantry rails;a third motor coupled to the stacking head, the third motor being configured to cause the stacking head to rotate with respect to the first and second gantry rails;a plurality of sensors configured to output signals that identify a current position of the first, second, and third motors; anda control unit configured to receive the signals and generate control signals for controlling the first, second, and third motors based on the identified current position of the first, second, and third motors.