Agricultural spreader having multiple distribution members broadcasting material simultaneously to generally the same area

Claims

Having disclosed my invention, what I claim as new and to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A spreader for granular or powdery material which comprises a frame, a hopper, and at least three spreader members carried by said frame which rotate about substantially vertical axes and are constructed and arranged to receive said material from said hopper, said hopper having at least three discharge outlets and an adjustable doser member for each said discharge outlet, all of said spreader members adapted to receive said material from said discharge outlets so that such material received by all of said spreader members is simultaneously broadcast onto ground and/or crop areas which substantially coincide throughout as said material is being so broadcast, two of said spreader members being disposed at the same height above the ground and at least one of said spreader members being disposed at a lower height above the ground and overlapping as seen in plan with at least one of said two higher spreader members, and drive means connected to rotate said two higher spreader members in opposite rotational directions so that said higher spreader members closest edges are moving in the spreader's operative direction of travel, the remaining said lower spreader member arranged and constructed so that it is paired with and driven by said drive means in the same direction of rotation as one of said higher spreader members.

2. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, in which four of said spreader members are provided and disposed in a row extending transversely of the normal intended direction of travel of the spreader, the innermost two said spreader members being spaced from but at the same height above the ground as each other and the outermost two said spreader members being at a greater height above the ground but respectively overlapping said innermost spreader member immediately inboard thereof.

3. A spreader as claimed in claim 2, in which said overlapping spreader members overlap each other for a distance which is approximately one-quarter of the rotational diameter of at least one of such spreader members.

4. A spreader as claimed in claim 2, in which said spreader members are disposed symmetrically about a central vertical plane of the spreader which extends in the intended direction of operative travel of the spreader.

5. A spreader as claimed in claim 2, comprising drive means connected to rotate said spreader members which, in operation, causes said two innermost spreader members to rotate in opposite rotational directions and causes each of said outermost spreader members to rotate in the same rotational direction as the respective said innermost spreader member that it overlaps.

6. A spreader as claimed in claim 5, wherein said four spreader members are arranged so that there are two on each side of a central vertical plane through the spreader's center and extending in its usual direction of travel, said spreader members being connected to said drive means so that, in operation, said spreader members on one side of said vertical plane both rotate in one direction and said spreader members on the other side of said central vertical plane both rotate in the opposite direction.

7. A spreader as claimed in claim 6, in which each said spreader member on its inboard side is rotating during operation in the same direction as the spreader's usual direction of travel.

8. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, in which said spreader members' said rotary axes are parallel to each other and lie in a plane which extends substantially perpendicular to the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader.

9. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, comprising fastening means for coupling the spreader to variously sized 3-point lifting devices provided on prime movers, irrespective of whether said lifting devices are at the front or the rear of said prime movers said spreading members being arranged with respect to said fastening means in a manner that distribution of material over substantially the same area during operation by said spreading member is substantially undiminished.

10. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, wherein the construction and disposition of said spreader members are such that said areas on which said spreader members distribute material are disposed symmetrically with respect to a central longitudinal vertical plane of the spreader extending in its usual direction of travel.

11. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, wherein each said spreader member is in the form of a spreading disk provided with at least two equidistantly spaced spreader blades, said spreader blades having a curved cross-section that is approximately "U" shaped, open to the front with respect to the direction of rotation of said disk on which it is provided, and extend outwardly at a slight rearward angle with respect to a plane containing such disk's axis of rotation and tangent to the innermost part of the corresponding said blade.

12. A spreader as claimed in claim 11, wherein the relative orientation of said spreader blades of all of said spreader members as seen in plan are different from each other.

13. A spreader as claimed in claim 11, wherein the relative orientation of said spreader blades of said two innermost spreader members as seen in plan are different from each other.

14. A spreader as claimed in claim 13, in which said spreader blades of said spreader members located on one side of said central vertical plane have the same said relative orientation as each other.

15. A spreader as claim in claim 1, in which the difference in heights above the ground of said overlapping spreader members is approximately twice the vertical, dimensions each of of said spreader members, said vertical dimensions being substantially equal.

16. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, in which said two innermost spreader members are spaced from each other by a distance which is approximately one-sixth of the diameter of at least one of such spreader members.

17. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, in which at least one of said spreader members further comprises a central ring and a circular plate on which at least two equidistantly spaced spreader blades are provided, said central ring being higher than said circular plate, and securing means that removably secures said circular plate to said central ring.

18. A spreader as claimed in claim 17, comprising spreader blades which extend from a radially inner position adjacent said central ring to the circumference of the respective said spreader member in a direction inclined to the rear with respect to the normal direction of operative rotation of such spreader member.

19. A spreader as claimed in claim 18, in which each said spreader blades' radially inner end extends obliquely upwardly and is in an imaginary upwardly incline conical surface the axis of which coincides with the rotary axis of the spreader member.

20. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, further comprising shafts extending upwardly from said spreader members to locations above said spreader members, a drive assembly including a drive shaft to which said spreader member shafts are drivably connected at said locations, and bearings in said drive assembly supporting said member shafts.

21. A spreader as claimed in claim 20, in which said drive assembly extends horizontally and transversely of the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader.

22. A spreader as claimed in claim 21, in which said drive assembly extends along the lower region of said hopper and is disposed at a higher level than the bottom of said hopper.

23. A spreader as claimed in claim 22, in which said drive assembly is situated on the side of said hopper to which material is spread during operation.

24. A spreader as claimed in claim 23, in which said drive assembly comprises gear housings at said locations by which said spreader member shafts are supported in said bearings and intermediate sections, said gear housings being connected to each other by said intermediate sections, said drive assembly also comprising a transmission gearbox incorporating a coupling shaft which is connectible to a drive such as a power take-off shaft of a prime mover.

25. A spreader as claimed in claim 24, in which said transmission gear box is entirely disposed higher than said spreader members and comprises a transmission means for changing the gear ratio between that input by said coupling shaft from said power take-off shaft and that further input to said gear housings by said drive shaft which extends horizontally above all of said spreader members.

26. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, comprising outlet openings in said hopper, one of said outlet openings over each said spreader member, a respective dosing plate slidably received over each said opening selectively covering and uncovering said opening to varying degrees.

27. A spreader as claimed in claim 20, comprising a frame, said drive assembly for the spreader members being supported from said frame independently of said hopper.

28. A spreader as claimed in claim 27, wherein said frame comprises portions in front of said hopper and frame arms extending respectively therefrom under said hopper, said drive assembly being attached behind said hopper at the ends of said frame arms.

29. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, wherein each end of said discharge portion further comprises a discharge outlet and an adjustable doser member, each said spreader member being adjacent to a corresponding discharge portion of said hopper and receiving material from said discharge portion's discharge outlet.

30. A spreader as claimed in claim 27, in which said hopper discharge outlets are provided symmetrically relative to a central vertical plane which contains the longitudinal center line of the spreader and extends in the intended direction of operative travel.

31. A spreader as claimed in claim 30, in which said hopper discharge outlet for each said spreader member are nearer to said central vertical plane than is the rotary axis of the respective said spreader member.

32. A spreader as claimed in claim 29, in which a material guide member is disposed between at least one said hopper discharge outlet and its corresponding said spreader member, said material guide member having one end situated near said one discharge outlet and the other end situated over the circumference described by the inner ends of a spreader blade of said corresponding spreader member.

33. A spreader as claimed in claim 29, in which said adjustable dosing members are provided near each said hopper discharge outlet, said dosing members being coupled to each other whereby they are fixed relative to each other, said dosing members including doser plates which are rigidly fastened during operation to an adjusting arm which extends along said hopper discharge outlets and is adjustable by a control mechanism which is associated with said adjusting arm, each said doser plate being movable by said adjusting arm to open and close to a greater or lesser extent a corresponding said hopper discharge outlet opening, said opening and said adjustable dosing members being so configured that the angular width of the uncovered opening increases both in a clockwise and counterclockwise direction as said dosing member uncovers said opening.

34. A spreader as claimed in claim 1, in which four of said rotary spreader members are disposed so that their rotary axis of rotation are adjacent and contained in a vertical plane transverse to the spreader's normal operational direction of travel, the outboard of said spreader members each being higher than and overlapping the inboard of said spreader members, the overall width of said four spreader members being about seventy-five to eighty-five percent of said hopper's overall width, said hopper having an overall width which is not less than approximately two hundred and sixty centimeters and is not more than approximately three hundred centimeters.

35. A spreader as claimed in claim 34, in which said spreader members are disposed within said width and the length of said hopper as seen in plan, a drive assembly for said spreader members extending over a distance which is approximately equal to said overall width of spreader members, measured transversely of the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader.

36. A spreader as claimed in claim 34, in which said hopper is rectangular in plan view, its broader sides extending transversely of the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader, said hopper being symmetrical with respect to a longitudinal central plane of the spreader and with respect to a transverse central plane which is perpendicular to the longitudinal central plane, the hopper comprising four discharge funnels, one for each of said spreader members.

37. A spreader as claimed in claim 34, comprising a drive assembly in which said spreader members are provided on frame portions of the spreader, the spreader's frame comprising an upwardly extending said frame portion which is located predominantly at one side of said hopper and to the upper end of which said hopper is attached, this frame portion being connected to horizontally extending supporting arms which extend under said hopper and to which said drive assembly is attached.

38. A spreader for granular or powdery material, which comprises;

a frame,

at least three spreader members carried by said frame which rotate about substantially vertical axes and are constructed and arranged to receive the material to be spread,

a hopper for holding the material to be spread,

said hopper comprising at least three discharge portions, one said discharge portion for and adjacent to each said spreader member for feeding material from said hopper to the corresponding said spreader member, said discharge portion further comprising a discharge outlet, and adjustable dosing member and a material guide member, said hopper discharge outlets being triangular, one side of each such discharge outlet extending perpendicularly to the normal direction of operative travel of the spreader, the other two sides being of equal length and being inclined to a direction of displacement of said doser member, said doser member having a dosing edge which is inclined to the direction of displacement of said doser member by an angle which is smaller than the angle enclosed by the sides of said triangular discharge outlet having said direction, two of said spreader members being disposed at the same height above the ground and at least one of said spreader members being disposed at a lower height above the ground and overlapping as seen in plan with at least one of said two higher spreader members, and drive means connected to rotate said two higher spreader members moving in opposite rotational directions so that said higher spreader members' closest edges are moving in the spreader's operative direction of travel, the remaining lower said spreader member being paired with and having a direction of rotation the same as one of said higher spreader members so that said material received by all of said spreader members is simultaneously broadcast onto ground and/or crop areas which substantially coincide throughout as said material is being so broadcast.

39. A spreader comprising a frame, a hopper and a spreader member for spreading material, said hopper having at least three discharge outlets, a doser member for each said discharge outlet, said doser members being rigidly connected to each other by a single adjusting arm for simultaneous movement through the same distance so that the respective said discharge outlets can be simultaneously opened or closed by the same amount of movement of said doser members to a greater or lesser extent, each said doser member and said discharge outlet being configured and cooperating so that the angular width of each discharge outlet as it is opened increases simultaneously in both clockwise and counterclockwise directions.

40. A spreader as claimed in claim 39, in which said doser members are rectilinearly movable over said discharge outlets, said single adjusting arm extending along said discharge outlets and being movable in its lengthwise direction which is transverse to the spreader's operative direction of travel.

41. A spreader as claimed in claim 40, in which each of said dozer members comprises doser places adjustably connected to said adjusting arm.

42. A spreader as claimed in claim 40, in which said adjusting arm is horizontal and extends horizontally along the bottom of said hopper.

43. A spreader as claimed in claim 42, in which said doser members are movable in a direction parallel to a row of spreader members including said spreader member, said hopper having for each member spreader member a discharge funnel with at least one said discharge outlet, said adjusting arm for said doser members extending along these discharge funnels.

44. A spreader as claimed in claim 43, in which each said doser member has a dosing edge which is inclined by less than 90.degree. to the direction of displacement of said doser members.

45. A spreader as claimed in claim 44, comprising a central mechanism to which said adjusting arm is coupled, said control mechanism comprising a hydraulically operable adjusting member for displacing said adjusting arm in an opposite direction for closing or opening said discharge outlets to a greater or less extent.

46. A spreader as claimed in claim 40, in which a stirrer member is provided in said hopper near said discharge outlet, said stirrer member being rotatable about a horizontal axis.

47. A spreader as claimed in claim 46, in which said stirrer member is coupled to a stirrer shaft which is drivably connected to a drive shaft of said spreader member, transmission means being provided between said drive shaft and said stirrer shaft, said transmission means being adjustable to change the gear ratio between said stirrer shaft and said drive shaft.

48. A spreader as claimed in claim 47, in which said stirrer shaft is supported in bearings provided near side walls of said hopper and spaced from these hopper side walls.

49. A spreader as claimed in claim 47, comprising a change gear wheel gearbox in which said stirrer shaft is supported at one end and also in which an end of said drive shaft is located, two change gear wheels being provided between said drive shaft and said stirrer shaft, said change gear wheels being interchangeable and/or exchangeable for a different set of change gear wheels.

50. A speader as claimed in claim 47, in which said stirrer member comprises a disc having at its periphery projections, ends of said projections being located near said hopper's bottom.

51. A spreader as claimed in claim 50, in which at least a portion of each of said projections extends in the plane of said disc and has an edge which extends rearwardly towards said periphery with respect to the direction of operative rotation of said stirrer member.

52. A spreader as claimed in claim 50, in which said stirrer member has at its periphery at least one stirrer fin which extends laterally from said disc and has an edge which extends away from said disc to the rear with respect to the direction of operative rotation of said stirrer member.

53. A spreader as claimed in claim 52, in which two spaced-apart stirrer members, having said stirrer fin and further like stirrer fins which face each other and move along said discharge outlet during operation, are disposed near a said dicharge outlet.

54. A spreader as claimed in claim 50 in which the rotary axis of said stirrer member extends parallel to said hopper's bottom.

55. A spreader as claimed in claim 54, in which said hopper's bottom extends arcuately about the stirrer member, said stirrer members extending adjacent said arcuate bottom of said hopper.

56. A spreader as claimed in claim 55, in which said hopper has a width, measured transversely of the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader, which is not less than approximately two hundred and sixty centimeters and is not more than approximately three hundred centimeters.

57. A spreading for granular or powdery material which comprises a frame, a hopper, and at least three spreader members carried by said frame which rotate about substantially vertical axes and are constructed and arranged to receive said material from said hopper, all spreader members adapted to receive said material thereon so that such material is simultaneously broadcast onto the ground and/or crop areas which substantially coincide throughout as said material is being so broadcast, two said spreading members being disposed at the same height above the ground and at least one of said spreader members being disposed at a lower height above the ground and overlapping as seen in plan with at least one of said two higher spreader members, and drive means connected to rotate said two higher spreader members in opposite rotational directions so that said higher spreader members closest edges are moving in the spreader's operative direction of travel, the remaining lower spreader member arranged and constructed so that it is paired with and driven by said drive means in the same direction of rotation as said higher spreader member with which it is paired, all the said spreader members having substantially the same diameter and being substantially identical to each other except that the structure of one of said higher spreader members is symmetrical to the structure of the other said higher spreading member.

58. A spreader for granular or powdery material which comprises a frame, a hopper, and at least three spreader members carried by said frame which rotate about substantially vertical axes and are constructed and arranged to receive said material from said hopper, said hopper having at least three discharge outlets, each said discharge outlet disposed above a respective said spreading members so that each spreading member has its own discharge outlet from which it receives material to be broadcast simultaneously by all spreading members onto the ground an/or crop areas that substantially coincide throughout as said material is being so broadcast, at least two of said spreading members being disposed at the same height and at least one of said spreading members overlapping with another said spreading member as seen in plan, said two spreading members which are the same height being rotated in opposite directions and said overlapping spreading member being rotated in the same direction as the spreading member with which it overlaps, the outlet openings over said spreading members which are at the same height being closer together than the axes rotation of those said spreading members, and the axes of rotation of said two spreading members which are overlapping being located relatively on the same side of their respective axes of rotation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an agricultural machine in the form of a spreader for spreading material over the land. Known spreaders for this purpose comprise a frame having at least one hopper and at least two spreader members which, during operation, both distribute the material over at least substantially the same area.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a spreader comprising a frame, a hopper and at least three spreader members which, in operation, all distribute material over substantially the same area as each other.

With such a construction, any irregularities in the spreading action of one of the spreader members will be compensated for by any irregularities in the spreading action of the other spreader members.

As the quantity of material to be distributed over the field per unit of time is to spread by at least three different spreader members, the quantity of material to be spread will be done so via at least three trajectories, which has a very advantageous effect on the uniform distribution.

In an embodiment in accordance with the present invention, at least one of the spreader members is disposed higher above the field than the other spreader member or members. Because of this difference in height the material will likewise be distributed over the field from different heights, which may be advantageous for a uniform spread. This difference in spreader member height will further prevent material spread from one spreader member from being hindered or otherwise affected by material spread by the other spreader member.

An advantageous embodiment is obtained when the machine is provided with four spreader members, two of which are at one height and the other two being at a different height.

In a preferred embodiment, the spreader members are provided on shafts which extend upwardly and are supported by bearings in a drive assembly including a drive shaft to which the spreader member shafts are drivably connected. In this way an advantageous drive of the spreader members is obtained. The spreader members can be mounted in a simple way while the construction of the spreader can be simple.

In accordance with a still further embodiment, each spreader member and a stirrer member are both connected to drive means which includes transmission means with variable transmission ratios, so that both the spreader member and the stirrer member can optionally be driven at either one of at least two different speeds. In this way the spread of the material can be advantageously influenced and a constant feed of material from the hopper of the spreader members can be ensured.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a spreader comprising a frame, a hopper and a spreader member for spreading the material, the hopper having at least three discharge outlets near each of which a doser member is provided, the doser members being rigidly connected to each other by a single adjusting arm for simultaneous movement over the same distance as each other for closing the respective discharge outlets to a greater or lesser extent.

With this construction, the doser members have fixed positions relative to each other and perform the same motions, so that differences between the flow of material through the different outlets are substantially prevented and a more uniform distribution is ensured to a better extent.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a spreader comprising a frame, a hopper and at least two spreader members, the hopper having a width, measured perpendicular to the normal intended direction of operative travel of the spreader, which is not less than approximately two hundred sixty centimeters and is not more than approximately three hundred centimeters.

For a better understanding of the present invention and to show how it may be carried into effect reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a spreader;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the spreader of FIG. 1 on a reduced scale;

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the spreader;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the spreader, taken in the direction of the arrow IV in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken on the line V--V in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line VI--VI in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is an underneath view taken in the direction of the arrow VII in FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view of spreader members of the spreader, showing their relative orientations; and

FIG. 9 corresponds to FIG. 8 but shows different relative orientations for the spreader members.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The spreader shown in the Figures has a frame 1 which supports a hopper 2 and spreader members 3, 4, 5 and 6. The spreader members are situated under the hopper 2.

The frame 1 has two parallel supporting pillars 10 and 11, which are vertical when the spreader is in a horizontal position. The upper ends of these supporting pillars 10 and 11 are interconnected by a horizontal upper beam 12. The bottom ends of the supporting pillars are interconnected by a horizontal lower beam 13 which is parallel to the upper beam 12. The distance 14 between the supporting pillars 10 and 11 is less than the length 15 of the lower beam 13. The length 16 of the upper beam 12 is greater than the length 15. The length 16 is more than twice the distance 14. The vertical frame portion formed by the pillars 10 and 11 and the beams 12 and 13 is in front of the hopper, with respect to the normal intended direction 17 of operative travel of the spreader. Two bottom beams 18 extend rearwardly from the lower beam 13. The bottom beams 18 converge towards the rear, and are connected together where they meet by a U-shaped coupling bracket 19. The members 10 to 18 are preferably box sections of rectangular cross-section.

Two coupling plates 20 are provided near the mid-point of the upper beam 12. Coupling plates 21, 22 and 23 are fixed to the front of each of the supporting pillars 10 and 11. The frame 1 has two -U-shaped, parallel bearing arms 24 and 25, which extend horizontally to the rear from the rear sides of the supporting pillars 10 and 11.

The front side of the hopper is fastened to lugs 28, which are provided on the upper beam 12. The upper periphery of the hopper 2 is rectangular with its major dimension 29 extending transversely of the direction 17. Preferably, the length 29 exceeds two hundred and sixty centimeters and is less than three hundred centimeters. The width 30 of the upper periphery of the hopper 2 extends in the direction 17 and is less than the length 29. In the illustrated embodiment, the width 30 is somewhat less than two-thirds of the length 29. The hopper 2 has a depth 31, which is approximately equal to one third of the length 29. Thus, the hopper has a large storage capacity of, for example, two thousand liters. The hopper 2 converges downwardly and has at its bottom four separate discharge funnels 32, 33, 34 and 35. The bearing arms 24 and 25 extend to between the discharge funnels 32, 33 and 34, 35, respectively. The oppositely facing sides of the respective discharge funnels rest on the upper sides of the bearing arms 24 and 25, as shown in FIG. 1.

The frame 1 and the hopper 2 are symmetrical about a central plane 36, which contains the longitudinal center line of the machine and, when the spreader is in the horizontal position, is vertical and extends in the direction 17. The hopper 2 is in all further respects substantially symmetrical about a transverse vertical plane 37, which is perpendicular to the plane 36. The bottom ends of the discharge funnels 32 to 35, which constitute the lower ends of the hopper, are arcuate, being centered on a transverse axis 38, which, when the spreader is horizontal, extends horizontally and lies in the plane 37. The resultant curved bottoms 39 of the discharge funnels 32 to 35 each have an outlet opening 40. The outlet openings are polygonal; in the illustrated embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, they are triangular. One side 41 of the triangle is parallel to the plane 37 and the axis 38. This side 41 is situated behind the plane 37. The opening narrows in the forward direction, its sides 42 and 43 converging to form an equilateral triangle with the side 41. The triangular opening 40 is symmetrical about a plane 44, which is perpendicular to the side 41 and to the plane 37 and passes through the point where the sides 42 and 43 meet. Each plane 44 is disposed symmetrically relative to the respective discharge funnel. Thus, each of the four discharge funnels 32 and 35 has only one outlet 40, all four outlets extending in the same direction as the outlet 40 shown in FIG. 6. The plane 44 is parallel to the plane 36. Viewed from above, the outlet 40 of each discharge funnel 32 to 35 opens above the respective spreader members 3 to 6, as shown more specifically in FIG. 2.

The spreader members 3, 4, 5 and 6 are mounted on a drive assembly 50, which is disposed behind the discharge funnels 32 to 35 with respect to the direction 17. The center line of the drive assembly 50 is parallel to the axis 38 and is situated at a distance 52 behind the axis 38 and the plane 37. The distance 52 is somewhat larger than one quarter of the diameter 53 of the spreader members, which have equal diameters to each other; in the illustrated embodiment the diameter 53 is approximately sixty centimeters. When the spreader is in the horizontal position, the drive assembly 50 extends horizontally. It comprises gear housings 54 in which shafts 62 and 63 are supported by bearings. The drive assembly 50 is for the greater part disposed higher than the bottoms of the discharge funnels 32 to 35. The spreader members 3 to 6 are connected to transmission members in the drive assembly 50 via their shafts 62 and 63, so that the spreader members are rotated during operation about upwardly extending rotary axes 55, which extend vertically when the spreader is in the horizontal position. Each spreader member is substantially perpendicular to its rotary axis 55. Viewed from above, the spreader members are arranged in a row which extends transversely of the direction 17. The rotary axes 55 of the four spreader members lie in a transverse plane 56, which is parallel to the plane 37. The plane 56 contains the center line 51 and is a distance 52 from the plane 37. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the spreader members 4 and 5 which are nearest to the center of the machine are at the same height as each other and their axes 55 are spaced from each other by a distance 57, which is slightly larger than the diameter 53 of the spreader members 4 and 5. In this embodiment the distance 57 is approximately one sixth as large again as the diameter 53 of the spreader members 4 and 5. The spreader members 3 and 6 are at the same height as each other but at a higher level than the spreader members 4 and 5. The spreader members 3 and 6 are a distance 58 higher than the spreader members 4 and 5. The distance 58 is approximately twice the height 49 of a spreader member, measured from the bottom of its peripherial edge to the upper aspects of its spreader blades. The rotary axes 55 of the spreader members 3 and 6 are spaced by equal distances 59 from the adjacent rotary axes 55 of the spreader members 4 and 5, respectively. The distance 59 is less than the diameter 53 of the spreader members, so that the spreader members 3 and 6 overlap the respective spreader members 4 and 5 by a distance 60 which is approximately equal to one quarter of the diameter 53 of the spreader members. The spreader members 3, 4, 5 and 6 are disposed symmetrically about the longitudinal plane 36. The overall distance 61 over which the spreader members extend transversely of the direction 17 is approximately two hundred and twenty centimeters in the illustrated embodiment.

The spreader members 3 and 6 are fastened to the shafts 62, which are supported by bearings in the gear housings 54, as is shown in greater detail in FIG. 5 for the shaft 62 of the spreader member 6.

The spreader members 4 and 5 are fastened to the shafts 63, which are supported by bearings in the relevant gear housings 54 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 5 for the shaft 62. Because the spreader members 3 and 6 are higher, their shafts 62 are shorter than the shafts 63 of the lower spreader members 4 and 5. The respective gear housings 54 are identical and comprise bevel gearwheels 64, fitted to the upper ends of the shafts 62 and 63.

The drive assembly 50 includes a drive shaft 65 which is supported in bearings and carries bevel gearwheels 66 housed in the relevant gear housings 54. The gearwheels 66 cooperate with the bevel gearwheels 64. The drive assembly 50 also includes a transmission gearbox 67. A coupling shaft 68 is supported in bearings in the gearbox 67 and extends horizontally when the machine is in the horizontal poisition. The coupling shaft 68 projects from the front of the transmission gearbox 67, with respect to the direction of travel 17. The centerline of the shaft 68 lies in the plane 36, the gearbox 67 being symmetrical about that plane. The drive assembly is predominantly constituted by the four gear housings 54, the transmission gearbox 67 and intermediate sections 69 and 70 by which the housings 54 and the gearbox 67 are connected to each other. The intermediate sections 69 are identical to each other and are provided one each side of the gearbox 67. The gear housings 54 of the spreader members 3 and 6 are connected to the gear housings of the spreader members 4 and 5 by the intermediate sections 70, which are identical to each other and are somewhat longer than the intermediate sections 69. The drive shaft 65 extends through the gear housings 54, the gearbox 67 and the intermediate sections 69 and 70, transmission members being provided in the gearbox 67 for transmitting drive between the coupling shaft 68 and the drive shaft 65. The transmission members comprise two change gearwheels 71 and 72, the gearwheel 71 being provided on the coupling shaft 68. Access can be gained to the change gearwheels 71 and 72 by means of a removable cover 73 of the gearbox 67, so that these change gearwheels can be interchanged with each other and/or exchanged with other wheels. The change gearwheel 72 is mounted in a manner not shown on an intermediate shaft which extends parallel to the shaft 68 and is drivingly connected to the drive shaft 65, for example by means of bevel gearwheels.

The drive assembly 50 comprises lugs 75 (FIG. 5) which are connected to the intermediate sections 70 and are bolted to coupling plates 74. The coupling plates 74 are rigidly secured to the rear ends of the supporting arms 24 and 25 and extend transversely of and laterally from these supporting arms 24 and 25. Each intermediate section 70 is connectd to the coupling plates 74 by four bolts. As shown in FIG. 5, the coupling plates 74 are parallel to the rear wall of the hopper 2, which rear wall slopes upwards and to the rear. The drive assembly 50 with the spreader members 3 to 5 are consequently connected only to the frame 1, independently of the hopper 2.

The spreader members 3 to 6 are constructed identically with each other, the construction being shown in greater detail for the spreader members 5 and 6 in FIGS. 5 and 6. The spreader members each comprise a central supporting ring 76, which is rigidly fitted to the respective shaft 62 or 63. Circular plates 77 are secured by bolts 80 to the bottom surface of the ring 76. The plates 77 have downwardly turned peripheral edge regions 78. The plates 77 are perpendicular to the rotary axes 55 and are centered on downwardly directed circular bosses 79 of the rings 76. Each of the plates 77 has four spreader blades 81, which are identical to each other and are arranged. in a similar manner equidistantly about the rotary axis 55. The spreader blades have a curved cross-section and are somewhat U-shaped, opening to the front with respect to the direction of rotation (145,146) of the spreader members in operation. The bottom surfaces of the radially inner ends of the spreader blades 81 are contiguous to the circumference of the supporting ring 76. The radially inner ends of the spreader blades have edges 82 which slope upwardly and outwardly from the point where they are contiguous to the supporting ring 76, so that these edges 82 can be regarded as lying on the surface of an imaginary cone, which widens towards the top and has the rotary axis 55 of the spreader member as its central axis.

Viewed from above, the spreader blades 81 extend in a straight line outwardly and slightly to the rear from the circumference of the supporting ring 76 at an angle 83 to a radial line 84 which passes through the outer end of the rear wall 85 of the spreader blade 81. In this embodiment the angle 83 is approximately 12.degree., but different angles may be selected. The spreader blades 81 extend from the periphery of the supporting ring 76 to the periphery of the plates 77.

A doser plate 88 is provided near each of the outlets 40 of the discharge funnels 32 to 35. The doser plates engage the bottom surface of the curved bottom 39 with a tight fit and are supported by supporting rails 89 and 90 which are secured to the bottom 39 of the discharge funnels 32 to 35 by four bolts 91. The supporting edges 89 and 90 have portions spaced from the bottom 39 to provide grooves in which the edges of the doser plate 88 are slidably received. Each doser plate has a dosing edge 92, as shown in FIG. 7, situated under the outlet 40 of the discharge funnel 35. The dosing edge 92 is straight and the distance 93 between its ends, measured parallel to the direction 17, is larger than the corresponding dimension 94 of the discharge outlet 40. The dosing edge 92 is inclined to the sides 42 and 43 of the outlet 40, being at an angle 95 to the plane 37. The angle 95 is less than the angle 96 at which the edge 43 is inclined to the plane 37. Each of the four doser plates 88 has a turned over edge 97 which is secured by a bolt 98 to a connecting arm 99 of an adjusting arm 100. The bolt 98 is secured to the edge 97 and extends through a hole 101 in the arm 99. The bolt 98 is fixed to the arm 99 by two nuts 102. The adjusting arm 100 extends horizontally (when the spreader is horizontal) in front of the discharge funnels 32 to 35, as shown in the drawings. The adjusting arm 100 is connected to a control mechanism by which the doser plates 88 can be moved in a appropriate manner along the outlets and optionally maintained in any one of a plurality of positions relative to these outlets, to make it possible to cover the outlets 40 optionally to a greater or lesser extent. In this embodiment the control mechanism, not shown in detail, comprises a hydraulically operable adjusting member 103. The adjusting member 103 has one end con