We’ve all been in situations where an extra hand or a longer reach would have made a particular task much easier.
Kurtis Howardson, owner of Implement Solutions, combined those ideas for an invention and added a degree of safety to it as well.
“The Drawhand was designed to save the elder person from getting in and out of the tractor,” said Howardson, “and more importantly, making sure that no one is behind the tractor to get injured.”
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The Drawhand is a tool that lets tractor operators disconnect a hitch pin from farm implements from the safety and convenience of the tractor seat. At Manitoba Ag Days in January, Howardson’s invention won runner-up in the Farm Safety category in the show’s Innovation Showcase.
How it works
With tool in hand, a tractor operator reaches out the open rear window of a tractor, inserts the hitch pin into place once the implement is lined up and gives the tool a twist to release the pin.
The tool extends in length as needed and a pivot feature with a locking handle allows the pin to be lined up vertically to insert the pin into the hitch. A compression spring inside the Drawhand toolbar locks the specially designed pin in place.
From hay field idea to prototype
Howardson credits the idea for his invention to a moment helping his father-in-law during hay season. He was standing between a tractor and a sickle mower, preparing to drop in the hitch pin as the operator backed up to connect to the implement.
“I thought I was kind of in the line of fire there,” said Howardson. “So I wanted to ensure a little more safety in that aspect.”
The tool Howardson had at Ag Days was engineered at a shop in Winnipeg. The Drawhand is not yet in production, but Howardson is looking for someone to buy it from him so it can be built at scale.
