Traveling Mechanism for Agricultural Machines and Off-Road Vehicles Having an Endless Belt -Band Traveling Gear and a Corresponding Belt-Band Traveling Gear

Abstract

The invention relates to a spring-suspended, bearing force-optimized belt-band traveling gear (10) for ground vehicles, particularly for self-propelled agricultural machines and other off-road vehicles, comprising at least two outer deflection rollers (14, 15, 16, 17) over whose periphery an endless belt-band (22) rolls off, and at least one supporting roller (24) for supporting the belt-band section, which is in contact with the ground, between both deflection rollers (14, 15, 16, 17). A bogie truck (12, 13), in which the at least two deflection rollers (14, 15, 16, 17) are mounted in a manner that enables them to rotate, is supported against a body frame of the vehicle by means of a first fluidic suspension unit and/or damping unit. The at least one supporting roller (24) is supported on the bogie truck (12, 13) by means of a second fluidic suspension unit and/or damping unit. A fluidic coupling of the suspension units and/or damping units of the bogie truck (12, 13) is provided against the vehicle frame and the at least one supporting roller (24) mounted on the bogie truck (12, 13).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a traveling mechanism for agricultural machines and off-road vehicles having an endless belt-band traveling gear. The invention further relates to a belt-band traveling gear, particularly a spring-mounted, belt-band traveling gear with optimum bearing strength specifications, said belt-band traveling gear being suitable inter alia for self-propelled agricultural machines and other off-road vehicles. Furthermore, the invention relates to a ground vehicle having a spring-mounted belt-band traveling gear with optimum bearing strength specifications. STATE OF THE ART [0002] Ground vehicles used in agriculture usually comprise pneumatic tires, which create the interface to the ground. The tires have to support the weight of the vehicle on the one hand while providing the required traction on the other. In very heavy vehicles, for example, in self-propelled harvesters, relatively high surface pressures result below the contact surfaces in spite of v...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0030] In addition, the belt-band traveling gear according to the present invention enables a very easily realizable, automatically controllable or manually adjustable slope compensation since a certain inclination can be compensated during travel uphill or downhill by a corresponding pressurization of the traveling gear supporting cyl

Problems solved by technology

These high surface pressures can lead to an impermissibly high soil compaction especially in wet farmlands.

Even a reduced internal pressure of tires cannot change much about this problem since in the case of a clearly reduced tire pressure as would be desirable per se for traveling on soft or wet farmlands, the load on the tires is reduced as a result of which the weight of the vehicle can no longer be supported.

The typical disadvantage of these rigidly mounted deflection rollers is a very limited driving and rolling comfort as compared to a wheeled traveling mechanism, particularly during on-road operation.

An addi

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