Kubota Logo Mystery

Precision Small Engines, a business in College Park, has a big sign in front with an eye-catching symbol above the word "Kubota". It looks like a stylized gear with disconnected pipes inside. Is it an ancient logo for the Kubota Corporation of Japan? Or something unrelated? I haven't been able to find it anywhere else via image search. But the icon is one of the most captivating I've seen in years. What is its source?

(cf. LogoVision (2003-05-03), ...) - ^z - 2008-02-15

(correlates: MeaningOfLife, CharlesRodrigues, EyeCandy, ...)