Lawn maintenance equipment

Abstract

A rotary lawn mower with various interchangeable parts can be utilized not only as a standard lawn mower but also a vegetation chopper or shredder, a leaf blower or a snow blower. A vacuum attachment is also provided to permit inaccessible areas to be maintained.

I claim: 
     
       1. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising: a. a housing having a top wall, sidewalls, and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation;   b. a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing;   c. a cutting blade rotatably mounted on said shaft to sweep a generally horizontal plane above said inlet;   d. a chopper blade rotatably mounted on said shaft to sweep a generally horizontal plane above said cutting blade;   e. a discharge port for comminuted vegetation; and   f. means for effecting the flow of air from said inlet downstream to said port;   the improvement which comprises: first baffle means positioned near said inlet and adapted to effect an increase in the rate of said air flow; and   second baffle means positioned downstream from said first baffle means and extending generally horizontally between said two planes, said second baffle means adapted to effect an increase in the rate of said air flow.     
     
     
       2. The equipment as defined in claim 1 wherein said first baffle means extends generally horizontally between sid cutting blade plane and said inlet. 
     
     
       3. The equipment as defined in claim 1 wherein said first baffle means is a plate covering a portion of the area of said inlet. 
     
     
       4. The equipment as defined in claim 1 wherein said second baffle means is an annular perforated plate wherein the perforations are of a size sufficient to accommodate the passage of vegetation particles therethrough. 
     
     
       5. The equipment as defined in claim 1, wherein said second baffle is positioned below said discharge port. 
     
     
       6. The equipment as defined in claim 1 and wherein said air flow effecting means produces toroidal air movement and said equipment additionally comprising a discharge chute secured to said housing to communicate with said port and positioned to be generally tangential to said toroidal air movement. 
     
     
       7. The equipment as defined in claim 1 wherein said second baffle means is spaced closely to said cutter blade and to said chopper blade in a manner to provide a shearing action on vegetation particles passing therethrough. 
     
     
       8. The equipment as defined in claim 1 and further comprising a vacuum attachment comprising: a. a fitting removably attached to said housing, said fitting having an inlet port and an outlet port, said outlet port being in registration with said inlet; and   b. a vacuum hose operatively connected to said inlet port.   
     
     
       9. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 1 and in which said chopper blade, said first baffle means and said second baffle means are each individually removably mounted whereby said equipment can be used with just said cutting blade to provide a standard lawn mower, said equipment can be used with just said cutting blade and said chopping blade to provide a chopper or a snowblower, said equipment can be used with said cutting blade, said chopper blade and said first baffle disposed intermediate said cutting blade and said chopper blade to provide a leaf shredder and said equipment can be used with said cutting blade, said chopper blade, said first baffle means disposed intermediate said cutting blade and said chopper blade and said second baffle means disposed on the side of said cutting blade opposite said first baffle means to provide a fine shredder. 
     
     
       10. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a front wall, a rear wall and a top wall, sidewalls, a bottom inlet for air and vegetation and a discharge chute disposed in the upper part of one of said walls, a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing, a cutting blade mounted to said shaft in a horizontal plane disposed below said discharge chute, a fan blade fixed to said shaft above said cutting blade to rotate at the same speed as said cutting blade, a baffle mounted to said housing and extending from said front wall generally horizontally between said cutting blade and said fan blade, said baffle being adapted to effect an increase in the rate of air flow and to direct said air flow toroidally in said housing. 
     
     
       11. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 10 and including a plate mounted to said housing beneath said cutting blade, said plate being provided with an inlet opening. 
     
     
       12. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising: a housing having a top wall, sidewalls, and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation, said housing having a central cylindrical inner wall depending downwardly from said top wall to define a cylindrical chamber and an annular chamber between said cylindrical wall and said sidewalls, a shaft extending into said chamber, a fan mounted to said shaft, said fan having blades carried within said annular chamber, said annular chamber and said fan blades being dimensioned to provide relatively close clearance between said blades and the adjacent walls; a cutting blade .Iadd.independent of said fan and removably .Iaddend.mounted to said shaft below said fan .Iadd.and a plate removably mounted in a horizontal plane between said fan and said cutting blade.Iaddend.. 
     
     
       13. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 12 including a discharge opening formed in said housing above said cutting blade and adjacent said fan. 
     
     
       14. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 13 .[.and including.]. .Iadd.wherein said plate is .Iaddend.a substantially semi-circular baffle removably mounted to said housing to extend horizontally between said cutting blade and said fan blades in position to prevent discharge from said cutting blade directly to said discharge chute. 
     
     
       15. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 12 .[.and including.]. .Iadd.wherein said plate is .Iaddend.an annular, perforated plate removably mounted to said housing to extend horizontally between said cutting blade and said fan blades. 
     
     
       16. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 15 and including a plate removably mounted to the bottom of said housing below said cutting blade, said plate having an opening to provide an inlet to said cutting blade. 
     
     
       17. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 16 and in which said cutting blade is mounted at an angle to the horizontal to rotate closer said plate in the area of said opening. 
     
     
       18. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 16 and including a vacuum attachment comprising: a fitting removably attached to said housing, said fitting having an inlet port and an outlet port, said inlet port being in registration with the opening in said plate; and   a vacuum hose operatively connected to said inlet port.   
     
     
       19. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 12 and including a plate removably mounted to the bottom of said housing below said cutting blade, said plate having an opening to provide an inlet to said cutting blade. .Iadd. 20. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a top wall, sidewalls and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation; a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing; a cylindrical flange extending downwardly from the top of said housing; an annular plate removably mounted to said housing and extending substantially horizontally; a cutting blade mounted on said shaft to sweep a generally horizontal plane below said generally horizontal annular plate; said cutting blade having radially extended sharpened end portions with upwardly extending trailing edges, said sharpened end portions being radially located outside the circumference of said cylindical flange, said plate having perforations only adjacent to the path of the upwardly trailing edge portions of the blade for 360° rotation of said trailing edge portions, said perforations and said cutting blade being closely adjacent to produce an impact and a shearing action, said annular plate having its central opening substantially closed by a fan hub mounted on said shaft providing close clearance therebetween. .Iaddend. .Iadd.21. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 20 and in which said annular plate is provided with a downwardly extending mounting flange, said downwardly extending portion being provided with perforations and being positioned to surround the cutting blade to cooperate therewith to provide a close clearance therebetween and a shearing action, said downwardly extending portion being tightly surrounded on the entire circumference by the cylindrical downwardly extending inner wall of the housing..Iaddend.  .Iadd. 22. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a top wall, sidewalls and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation; a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing; a cylindrical flange extending downwardly from the top of said housing; an annular plate removably mounted below said cylindrical flange to said housing and extending substantially horizontally; a cutting blade mounted on said shaft to sweep a generally horizontal plane below said generally horizontal annular plate; said cutting blade having radially extended sharpened end portions with upwardly extending trailing edges, said plate having perforations only adjacent to the path of the upwardly trailing edge portions of the blade for 360° rotation of the blade, said perforations and said cutting blade being closely adjacent to produce an impact and a shearing action, said annular plate having a central opening, the diameter of said central opening being less than that of the cylindical flange so that the annular plate effectively covers the bottom surface of the downwardly extending cylindrical flange, providing close clearance therebetween. .Iaddend..Iadd. 23. The lawn maintenance equipment as defined in claim 22 and in which said annular plate is provided with a downwardly extending mounting flange, said downwardly extending portion being provided with perforations and being positioned to surround the cutting blade to cooperate therewith to provide a close clearance therebetween and a shearing action, said downwardly extending portion being tightly surrounded on the entire circumference by the cylindrical downwardly extending inner wall of the housing. .Iaddend..Iadd. 24. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a top wall, a cylindrical downwardly extending inner wall sidewalls and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation; a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing; a cylindical flange extending downwardly from the top of said housing; a plate removably mounted to the bottom of said housing and extending substantially horizontally; a cutting blade mounted on said shaft to sweep a plane at an acute angle to said plate to position said cutting blade approximately the same height in the front of the housing as the bottom edge of the cylindrical downwardly extending inner wall, said plate having an arc shaped aperture between the forward edge of the plate and the cylindrical downwardly extending inner wall in the front portion of the housing adjacent to the path of the sharpened end portions of the cutting blade to provide an inlet to said cutting blade, said inlet being formed to extend from one side to the opposite side of said housing to permit a full width of cut by said cutting blade. .Iaddend..Iadd. 25. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a top wall, sidewalls, and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation; a power driven generally vertically disposed shaft extending downwardly into the interior of said housing, a cylindrical flange extending downwardly from the top of said housing; a fan removably mounted to said shaft, said fan having a central hub portion, positioned to provide close clearance to the bottom surface of said downwardly extending cylindrical flange, and a plurality of peripherally spaced substantially L-shaped blades, each of said blades having a portion extending at an inclined angle upwardly from said hub portion and relatively close to the adjacent walls of said housing whereby said fan is a combination axial flow, centrifugal type fan for supplying air flow for various applications and for drawing vegetation upwardly into said housing to be chopped between said blades and the closely adjacent walls of said housing, .Iadd.a plate removably mounted to the bottom inlet of said housing, said plate having an aperture, a vacuum attachment mounted to said aperture for use in cleaning up refuse.Iaddend.. .Iadd.26. Lawn maintenance equipment comprising a housing having a top wall, sidewalls, and a bottom inlet for air and vegetation; a power driven, generally vertically disposed shaft within said housing, a cylindrical flange extending downwardly from the top of said housing, a fan and a cutting blade removably mounted to said shaft, a generally horizontal annular plate removably mounted to said housing above the cutting blade, a generally horizontal plate removably mounted to the bottom of the housing, said bottom plate having an aperture therein a vacuum attachment mounted to said aperture for use in sucking up and shredding leaves in inaccessible areas.