1. A soil conditioning rotary reel comprising:
an elongate support shaft having first and second opposing ends;
a plurality of generally circular support plates rotatably affixed to and uniformly spaced along the length of said support shaft, said plurality of support plates including two end plates, one adjacent to each said first and second ends of said support shaft, each said support plate including a plurality of connection points regularly spaced along the periphery thereof;
a plurality of elongate bars affixed to each support plate, said bars each having a formed transverse cross-sectional shape with first and second generally flat portions at each side of a radial portion, and each bar affixed to one of said plurality of connection points on each said support plate such that a generally open face, comprising said radial portion and said first and second generally flat portions, faces generally outwardly;
a plane of said first portion of each said bar passing through the forward travel side of said support shaft; and
each said bar containing a helical twist and said connection points on said support plates positioned relative to one another on adjacent support plates such that said bars form a helical cutting edge across the width of the reel
wherein: said connection points are slots, and said bars fit into said slots.
2. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 1, wherein:
the straight-line distance between adjacent bars is about ten inches.
3. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 2, wherein:
the diameter of said support plates is approximately 16 inches, and the plurality of bars is five.
4. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 3, wherein:
said rectangular cross-section of said bars is approximately 3.5 inches by approximately 0.313 inches.
5. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 4, wherein:
the angle of snack of each said bar is in the range of approximately 20 to 30 degrees to a line transverse to the direction of travel at 270 degrees, where 180 degrees is the direction of travel, 0 degrees is opposite the direction of travel, 90 degrees is upward and 270 degrees is toward the ground.
6. The soil conditioner rotary reel of claim 5, wherein:
said plurality of support plates are positioned relative to each a distance in the range of approximately 12.5 inches to 18 inches.
7. The soil conditioner rotary reel of claim 6, wherein:
each of said plurality of bars has an inwardly angled edge of approximately 45 degrees with said cutting edge.
8. The soil conditioner rotary reel of claim 4, wherein:
said angle of attack is approximately 25 degrees.
9. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 1, wherein:
the diameter of said support plates is approximately 16 inches, and the plurality of bars is five.
10. The soil conditioning rotary reel of claim 1, wherein:
said rectangular cross-section of said bars is approximately 3.5 inches by approximately 0.313 inches.
11. An agricultural seedbed finishing implement comprising:
an elongate tongue having a forward end and an opposing rear end, said forward end having a hitch thereon for affixing the implement to a tractor or a primary tillage system, and said rear end affixed to a transverse toolbar;
at least two spaced-apart support wheels adjustably affixed to said toolbar and movable between a transport position and a working position;
a plurality of soil conditioning rotary reels affixed to said toolbar and engagable with the ground when said support wheels are in said working position, each soil conditioning rotary reel comprising:
an elongate support shaft having first and second opposing ends;
a plurality of generally circular support plates affixed to and uniformly spaced along the length of said support shaft, said plurality of support plates including two end plates, one adjacent to but spaced from each said first and second ends of said support shaft, each said support plate including a plurality of connection points regularly spaced along the periphery thereof;
a plurality of elongate bars affixed to each support plate, said bars having a formed transverse cross sectional shape and each affixed to one of said plurality of connection points on each said support plate such that a relatively thin generally fiat edge of the bar is directed generally radially outward; and
each said bar containing a helical twist and said slots in said support plates positioned relative to one another on adjacent support plates such That said bars form a helical cutting edge across the width of the reel
wherein: said connection points are slots, and said bars fit into said slots.
12. The implement of claim 11, wherein:
the straight-line distance between adjacent bars is about ten inches.
13. The implement of claim 12, wherein:
the diameter of said support plates is in the range of approximately 14 to 18 inches, and the plurality of bars is five.
14. The implement of claim 13, wherein:
said rectangular cross-section of said bars is approximately 3.5 inches by approximately 0.313 inches.
15. The implement of claim 14, wherein:
the ends of said plurality of bars are flush with the end plates and each has art inwardly angled edge of approximately 50 degrees with said cutting edge.
16. The implement of claim 15, further including:
an indexed tillage system having multiple transversely spaced row units along the width thereof, each said row unit including a longitudinal frame member;
a plurality of said rotary reels; and
a generally inverted u-shaped support yoke affixed to said first and second ends of each said support shaft such that said reel may rotate freely within the support yoke, said yoke is attached to said frame member such that a rotary reel trails each row unit.
17. The implement of claim 15, further including:
a broadcast tillage system having multiple transversely spaced tillage units along the width of the implement, said tillage system including a main frame structure;
a plurality of said rotary reels; and
a generally inverted u-shaped support yoke affixed to said first and second ends of each said support shaft such that each said reel may rotate freely within the support yoke, said yoke attached to said frame member such that each rotary reel trails more that one tillage unit.
18. The implement of claim 17, wherein:
the gap between adjacent rotary reels, as measured from the ends of said bars, is less than the straight-line distance between two adjacent bars on a particular reel.
19. The implement of claim 11, wherein:
the angle of attack of each said bar is in the range of approximately 20 to 30 degrees to a line transverse to the direction of travel at 270 degrees, where 180 degrees is the direction of travel, 0 degrees is opposite the direction of travel, 90 degrees is upward and 270 degrees is toward the ground.
20. The implement of claim 19, wherein:
the weight per foot of implement width of down pressure is in the range of approximately 140 to 180 pounds.
21. The implement of claim 20, wherein:
The weight per foot of implement width of down pressure is approximately 160 pounds.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A medical implant for treating a heart comprising:
a first anchor configured for deployment in a blood vessel;
a second anchor configured for deployment within a circulatory system;
an elongate bridge extending from the first anchor, the elongate bridge comprising a longitudinal axis and providing tension between the first and second anchor; and
a reinforcement mechanism secured to the bridge and extending to the first anchor, wherein the reinforcement mechanism comprises a generally flexible elongated structure secured to the bridge structure and to the first anchor, the reinforcement mechanism comprising a first reinforcement mechanism portion extending from the bridge to the first anchor at a first angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the bridge.
2. The medical implant of claim 1, wherein the first anchor is configured for deployment in a coronary sinus.
3. The medical implant of claim 2, wherein the second anchor is configured for deployment at or adjacent a coronary ostium.
4. The medical implant of claim 1, wherein the first reinforcement portion is generally unsupported as it extends from the bridge to the first anchor at the first angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the bridge.
5. The medical implant of claim 1, wherein the reinforcement mechanism comprises a second reinforcement mechanism portion extending from the bridge to the first anchor at a second angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the bridge, wherein the second reinforcement mechanism portion is positioned on an opposite side of the bridge from the first reinforcement mechanism portion.
6. The medical implant of claim 5, wherein the first angle is generally equal to the second angle.
7. The medical implant of claim 1, wherein the first angle is generally between 30 degrees and 60 degrees.
8. The medical implant of claim 6, wherein the first angle is generally between 40 and 50 degrees.
9. A medical implant for treating heart valve pathologies, comprising:
a first anchor, the first anchor comprising a bridge-adjacent end comprising plurality of bridge-facing peaks;
a second anchor;
an elongate bridge, the elongate bridge extending between the first and second anchors, the elongate bridge connected to the first anchor via a generally rigid bridge arm secured to a bridge-arm-connected peak on the bridge-adjacent end of the first anchor; and
a generally flexible reinforcement mechanism extending from the bridge to at least one of the plurality of bridge-facing peaks, wherein the at least one of the plurality of bridge-facing peaks is positioned away from the bridge-arm-connected peak and axially away from the elongate bridge, whereby the reinforcement mechanism provides strain relief for the generally rigid bridge arm and bridge-arm-connected peak;
wherein the medical implant is sized for deployment at least partially in a blood vessel and the bridge is configured to apply a force along a portion of a valve annulus.
10. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the elongate bridge is formed of a shape memory material
11. The medical implant of claim 9, further comprising a resorbable material disposed along the elongate bridge for maintaining the bridge in a stretched length.
12. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the reinforcement mechanism comprises a fiber thread threaded through one or more openings in the device.
13. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the reinforcement mechanism is attached to the first and second anchors.
14. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the bridge comprises a link hole, the first anchor comprises one or more openings therein, and the reinforcement mechanism is passed through the link hole and through one or more openings in the first anchor.
15. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the reinforcement mechanism is wound through a plurality of openings in the first anchor, wherein the reinforcement mechanism is wound through the first anchor so that the reinforcement mechanism passes across itself at multiple points on the first anchor.
16. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the generally flexible reinforcement mechanism extends from the bridge to the at least one of the plurality of bridge-facing peaks at an angle generally between 30 and 60 degrees relative to a longitudinal axis of the bridge.
17. The medical implant of claim 16, wherein generally flexible reinforcement mechanism extends from the bridge to the at least one of the plurality of bridge-facing peaks at an angle generally between 40 and 50 degrees relative to a longitudinal axis of the bridge.
18. The medical implant of claim 9, wherein the generally flexible reinforcement mechanism is generally unsupported as it extends from the bridge to the at least one of the plurality of bridge-facing peaks.
19. The medical implant of claim 18, wherein the generally flexible reinforcement mechanism is wound around the generally rigid bridge arm and extends from the bridge to the bridge-arm-connected peak.