Side loading transport apparatus for swathers and the like

摘要

A side loading transport apparatus for swathers and the like is disclosed comprising a transport vehicle such as a truck or a trailer with one or more load bearing ramps hingably attached along a loading edge thereof, at positions corresponding to the wheel paths of the equipment to be loaded. Each load-bearing ramp has an outboard section that is at least as long as the wheelbase of the wheeled vehicle to be loaded. The swather or equipment can then be driven up onto the load bearing ramp or ramps, and the weight of the equipment will level the load-bearing surface back down onto the transport vehicle-the ramps can be folded up or retracted and the load locked down. No hydraulic or other powered mechanical drive mechanism is needed to raise or lower the load-bearing surface during loading or unloading.