Dare to dream: tropical vacations, lottery jackpots, spanking new Cadillacs … .
Not necessarily.
When Manitoba farmer Elgin Routledge slumbers, his brain often turns to more practical matters.
“It came to me in a dream. It really did,” he said.
Routledge has long known that bending over the hopper of a grain auger while operating the truck’s endgate was a recipe for disaster. A slip, a dangling sleeve, reaching automatically for dropped objects, any of these could lead to tragedy. Dust too is always heaviest where grain is poured into the auger hopper.
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The Handi-arm, a remote handle for a grain truck endgate, allows farmers to stay out of harm’s way.
Designed to be operated from the driver’s side of the truck at the rear of the grain box, the Handi-arm is attached with a rod that forms the pivot of the sliding gate at the back of the truck. As the handle rotates upward, small links lift the gate as far as operator wants.
“It’s easier on the back and lungs, it’s safer and I think it is just a good idea,” said Routledge, who developed his dream into a corporeal product this summer.
The handle also comes with an attached flag so the driver can tell from the cab whether the gate is open, saving field stops at harvest time to double check the gate.
Routledge, a Virden, Man., farmer and retired municipal administrator, entered the Handi-arm in the Canadian Federation of Agriculture national farm innovation competition eight weeks ago and harvested a second place award.
Patents are pending in both Canada and the United States. Meanwhile Routledge has sold more than 100 units in Manitoba. Federated Co-operatives Ltd., is promoting the item across the Prairies and a Saskatoon company has offered to distribute it in the U.S.
Routledge and his sons made the first units on their farm but growing demand has forced the inventor to have the devices built at local welding shops.
“There is very little markup on the Handi-arm so I won’t get rich from selling them. But I’ll get paid each time I see one on a grain truck,” he said.
Contact: Elgin Routledge, Box 2339 Virden, Man., R0M 2C0, phone 204-748-3783.
