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Tractor
A tractor is a device intended for drawing, towing, pushing or pulling something which cannot propel itself and, often, powering it too. Most commonly the word is used to describe a vehicle intended for pulling some other vehicle or object. more...
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In Britain and India the word "tractor" usually means "farm tractor", and the use of the word "tractor" to mean other types of vehicles is familiar to the vehicle trade but unfamiliar to much of the general public. In Canada and the US the word is also used to refer to a road tractor .
The word comes from the Latin trahere "to pull". A conflicting history of the name suggests that steam tractors were originally referred to as traction engines, with the word "tractor" eventually deriving from a contraction of 'traction' and 'motor'.
Farm tractor
The most common use of the term is for the vehicles used on farms. The farm tractor is used for pulling or pushing agricultural machinery or trailers, for plowing, tilling, disking, harrowing, planting, and similar tasks.
History
The first mechanized farm implements in the 1800's and early 1900's were steam tractors. These were built around steam engines, which were not very safe and could explode or entangle their operators in the belt-driven attachments. In 1892, John Froelich built the first practical gasoline powered tractor in Clayton County, Iowa. Only two were sold, and it was not until 1911, when the Waterloo Gasoline Traction Engine Company developed the design, that it became successful.
In Britain, the first recorded tractor sale was the oil-burning Hornsby-Ackroyd Patent Safety Oil Traction engine, in 1897. However, the first commercially successful design was Dan Albone’s three-wheel Ivel tractor of 1902. In 1908, Saundersons of Bedford introduced a four-wheel design, and went on to become the largest tractor manufacturer outside the USA.
While unpopular at first, these gasoline-powered machines began to catch on in the 1910s as they became smaller and more affordable. By the 1920s, tractors with a gasoline-powered internal combustion engine had become the norm.
The classic farm tractor is a simple open vehicle, with two very large driving wheels on an axle below and slightly behind a single seat (the seat and steering wheel consequently are in the center), and the engine in front of the driver, with two steerable wheels below the engine compartment. This basic design has remained unchanged for a number of years, but enclosed cabs are fitted on almost all modern models, for reasons of operator safety and comfort.
There are also lawn tractors. Cub Cadet, Husqvarna, John Deere, Massey Ferguson and Toro are some of the better-known brands.
Operation
Modern farm tractors usually have five foot-pedals for the operator on the floor of the tractor. The pedal on the left is the clutch. The operator presses on this pedal to disengage the transmission for either shifting gears or stopping the tractor. Two of the pedals on the right are the brakes. The left brake pedal stops the left rear wheel and the right brake pedal does the same with the right side. This independent left and right wheel braking augments the steering of the tractor when only the two rear wheels are driven. This is usually done when it is necessary to make a tight turn. The split brake pedal is also used in mud or soft dirt to control a tire that spins due to loss of traction. The operator presses both pedals together to stop the tractor. For tractors with additional front-wheel drive, this operation often engages the 4-wheel locking differential to help stop the tractor when travelling at road speeds.
Read more at Wikipedia.org
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