CLIPPING COLLECTOR FOR RIDING MOWER

摘要

A grass catcher for collecting clippings from a rotary mower that is mounted beneath a riding vehicle and has a clipping outlet opening to one side of the vehicle comprising an upwardly opening clipping receptacle on the rear of the vehicle; extending across substantially the full width of the vehicle, and a duct extending rearward and upward from the clipping outlet along the side of the vehicle and having a rearmost portion that comprises an elbow which defines a duct outlet. The grass catcher has substantially rigid supporting structure on the vehicle for supporting the clipping receptacle. The duct outlet defined by the elbow is supported by the supporting structure at the one side of the vehicle, above the receptacle, and opens substantially towards the other side of the vehicle. A cover is hingedly connected with the supporting structure to swing between an operative position overlying the receptacle and the elbow and an inoperative position clear of the receptacle. The cover has deflection means thereon for controlling the trajectory of clippings issuing from the duct outlet to constrain them to move downward into the receptacle. The deflection means comprises: (1) a top wall on the cover at a level above the duct outlet; (2) a side wall at each side of the vehicle projecting down from the top wall to substantially the level of the top of the receptacle; (3) a front wall extending between the side walls, projecting down from the top wall to near the front upper edge of the receptacle and being forwardly adjacent to the duct outlet, and (4) an elongated baffle projecting edgewise downward from the top wall a distance to have a bottom edge spaced above the top of the receptacle but below the top of the duct outlet, the baffle having opposite ends inwardly adjacent to the side walls. The baffle end at the one side of the vehicle is rearwardly adjacent to the duct outlet, and at the other side of the vehicle is in rearwardly offset relation to its first mentioned end, so that the baffle cooperates with the top and front walls to define a diverging channel that extends from the duct outlet towards the opposite side of the vehicle.