Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a crop cart and more specifically it relates to a crop cart unloading system for efficiently unloading a harvested crop from a crop cart.
Description of the Related Art
Any discussion of the related art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such related art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.
Crop carts are used to receive a crop from a harvester directly in the field during harvest. Crop carts can also be used to transport seed to a planter. Crop carts are typically used to receive, transport and unload various types of field crops such as, but not limited to, sugar beets, carrots, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn silage and the like. Conventional crop carts are comprised of a trailer that is pulled by a tractor through the field next to the harvester. Conventional crop carts include an open topped hopper that receives various volumes of harvested crop from the harvester in real-time. When the hopper of the crop shuttle is full, the crop cart is transported to a location in the field to unload to a truck or other transport device using an unloading conveyor at the front of the hopper. The hopper includes a floor conveyor that moves the crop forwardly towards the unloading conveyor where the unloading conveyor is angled upwardly to lift the crop upwardly from the crop shuttle into the transport vehicle.
One problem with conventional crop carts is that the unloading conveyor extends upwardly at a relatively steep angle thereby resulting in the crop falling downwardly on the unloading conveyor during the unloading procedure. When the crop falls downwardly on the unloading conveyor, crops such as sugar beets can become damaged. Another problem with conventional crop carts is that the front unloading conveyor extends upwardly above the upper edge of the container when in the storage position thereby creating potential problems of hitting the harvester during loading of the crop. Another problem with conventional crop carts is that they require a significant volume of pressurized hydraulic fluid from the tractor pulling the crop cart to unload the crop which some older tractors are unable to handle.
Because of the inherent problems with the related art, there is a need for a new and improved crop cart unloading system for efficiently unloading a harvested crop from a crop cart.