Harvester for root crops and receiving unit for harvester

Abstract

The invention relates to a harvester for root crops, comprising a machine frame, a screening section, in particular designed in the form of a screening channel, and an alternating receptacle for an exchangeable receptacle unit, the alternating receptacle having an alternating frame for fixing the receptacle unit and a holding device connected to the alternating frame in an articulated manner, the retaining device extends from the replacement frame along the screening section and supports the replacement frame at at least one portion of the machine frame located on the rear side when viewed from the front side starting portion of the screening section.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a harvester for tuber crops, in particular a harvester in the form of a towed digger or a self-propelled digger, the harvester having a frame, in particular a screening section designed in the form of a screening channel, and a replacement receiving part for a replaceable receiving unit. In addition, the invention also relates to a receiving unit for a harvester, the receiving unit having a receiving frame, on which tools for receiving tuber crops and specific to the needs of tuber crops are arranged, and the receiving unit also has at least one coupling element for fixing the receiving unit to the replacement frame of the harvester. Background Art

[0002] Harvesters for root crops are used, for example, for harvesting different types of potatoes and vegetables, for which it is necessary to adjust the receiving unit arranged at the front side of the harvester to the corresponding crop. The following harvesters are known on the market: their respective receiving units are supported on their side relative to the front of the harvester and therefore pointing forward. The receiving unit is therefore pulled from the front. Adjacent to the receiving unit, viewed from the front to the back, is a screening section with a screening channel, which is particularly defined laterally by side frames, for example in the form of screening plates, and at the bottom, for example, by screening belts or roller segments. Arranging the receiving unit at the beginning of the screening channel or between the beginning of the screening channel and the support at the front side limits the installation space for the receiving unit. Summary of the invention

[0003] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a harvester which has more installation space for different variants of receiving units.

[0004] This object is achieved by the subject matter according to claim 1 and by the subject matter according to claim 16. Preferred embodiments of the invention are revealed by the dependent claims and the following description.

[0005] The harvester according to the present invention is characterized in that the replacement receiving part has a replacement frame for fixing the receiving unit and a holding device articulated with the replacement frame, the holding device extending from the replacement frame along the screening section and supporting the replacement frame at least one part of the frame located at the rear side as viewed from the front starting part of the screening section. Therefore, the receiving unit is articulated from the rear side by the holding device, which extends from the rear side along the screening section, especially beside the screening channel. Therefore, the receiving unit is not restricted in the direction toward the front of the machine, and receiving units extending forward to different lengths can be assembled on the same replacement frame, especially for the specific needs of root crops and / or according to the harvesting conditions. In addition, the assembly and disassembly of the receiving unit is easier because the receiving unit is no longer located between the supporting part of the frame on which the receiving unit is fixed and the screening section. In particular, when the receiving unit is placed on the ground, the harvester can approach the receiving unit. This further makes assembly easier.

[0006] Usually, the receiving unit arranged at the front side is provided with a blade, a coulter disc and other tools for lifting and guiding soil and harvest. By means of a holding device extending backwards from the receiving unit along the screening section and thus at least substantially horizontally, the tensile and / or compressive forces generated during the operation of the receiving unit are introduced more linearly into the frame, so that the forces are better absorbed and interfering influences are reduced. Here, in the side view, the axes between the bearing points on the side of the replacement frame of the individual guide rods or parts of the holding device and the bearing points on the side of the frame are at least substantially horizontal, and these axes are in particular at an angle of no more than ±30° to the horizontal ground. The holding device extends along the screening section so that it absorbs the forces generated in the receiving unit during the operation of the harvester, which are at an angle of ±30° to the horizontal (for example corresponding to the horizontal ground). Since the holding device extends along the screening section, the support of the holding device on the side of the frame is arranged closer to the end of the harvester than at least one support of the holding device on the side of the replacement frame. The longitudinal extension of the holding device does not have to be parallel to the screening channel.

[0007] In particular for the above-mentioned angle range, but also for other embodiments of the present invention, when the harvester is equipped with an additional height guide device for the changing frame, the movement range of the changing frame can be between 300 mm and 900 mm.

[0008] The frame refers to the frame that supports the harvester. For example, for a trailed harvester, the frame extends rearward from the connection with the tractor to the chassis and transfers the weight of each functional group to the running gear or the connection with the tractor.

[0009] In order to enable the screening channel to be swiveled together, according to a further development of the invention, the screening channel is supported on the front side on the replacement frame. For this purpose, components of the screening channel (e.g. screening frames, rollers or other components that together form the screening channel or the screening path) can be fixed to the replacement frame. Therefore, lifting the replacement frame also lifts the screening channel, so that the harvest to be transferred from the receiving unit to the screening channel can be appropriately further conveyed.

[0010] Preferably, the holding device forms a double-arm guide in the side view of the harvester, so that the change frame can preferably be adjusted in height without swinging. In particular, a parallelogram guide of the change frame is realized by the double-arm guide. Since the holding device extends longitudinally along the screening channel, the forces from the receiving unit are introduced into the frame essentially horizontally. A double-arm guide refers to a design of the holding device in which at least two guide rods or arms of the double-arm guide are arranged so as to at least partially overlap in the side view.

[0011] The holding device of the replacement receiving part preferably has at least three guide rods which are at least substantially horizontal to the ground and extend along the screening section, which are hingedly supported on the frame at one end and on the replacement frame at the other end, and the frame and the replacement frame are connected to each other via these guide rods. These guide rods (for example in the form of elongated tubes, rods or columns) enable the forces acting in the receiving unit and on the replacement frame to be introduced into the frame further back along the screening section in a structurally simple but sufficiently stable manner. In order to connect the guide rods, the replacement frame is particularly equipped with a crossbeam and side parts connected thereto in a single or multi-piece manner, which side parts are respectively connected to the holding device in an articulated manner.

[0012] Preferably, also in side view, at least two supports of the guide rod are arranged on the change frame with a height offset relative to one another, thereby forming the above-mentioned double-arm guide. This height offset allows for good absorption of moments occurring in the receiving unit and the change frame during operation, wherein the height difference between the supports of the guide rod of different heights is at least 30 cm.

[0013] The replacement frame is preferably designed in a side view to extend both in the direction of travel and vertically in the side area next to the upper transversely extending beam, so that the installation space available for the receiving unit is covered by the replacement frame and a solution for coupling the receiving unit from the side and / or above is realized.

[0014] Preferably, the guide rods comprise at least one upper guide rod and at least one, preferably two, lower guide rods relative to the replacement frame. Likewise, two upper guide rods can be used in addition to one upper guide rod, so that the replacement frame is supported by two guide rods below and above. The two lower guide rods extend backwards, in particular, along the left and right sides of the screening channel, and the upper guide rods are preferably also located laterally of the replacement frame in order to hinder the design of the screening channel as little as possible. The upper guide rods also extend along the screening channel. Due to the forces introduced into the frame due to the orientation of the holding device, no high requirements are placed on the bending stiffness of the holding device.

[0015] In particular, the lower guide rod is a push rod, so that the receiving support for the receiving unit is at least approximately at the same height as the support of the lower guide rod on the side of the replacement frame. "Approximately at the same height" means that the height difference of the corresponding support points relative to the ground does not exceed 10 cm when viewed in a side view. In particular, the support part of the receiving unit on the replacement frame is at the same height as the support of the lower guide rod on the side of the replacement frame. In this regard, at least most of the thrust generated during operation is introduced into the frame on the left and right sides of the screening channel.

[0016] The upper guide rods for the height guidance of the change rack in the double-arm guide are designed in particular as tension rods and are accordingly loaded with tension during operation. Any torques that may occur in the receiving unit and the change rack during operation are absorbed and the resulting forces are also transmitted to the machine frame, wherein the height guidance of the receiving unit is only minimally affected.

[0017] Preferably, the receiving unit has a height guide device for height guidance, which is particularly arranged in the front end of the replacement frame. The height guide device is supported on the replacement frame at one end and is held on the frame at the other end. In particular, the axis extending through the support point of the height guide device (in a side view) advantageously extends at least approximately perpendicularly to the axis through the support points of the upper guide rod and the lower guide rod of the holding device. An optimal decoupling is achieved for the thrust and pull forces generated during the operation of the receiving unit due to the forward movement of the harvester and due to gravity and forces exerted by the ground. This improves the height guidance of the receiving unit.

[0018] For example, the height guide device comprises cylinder rods which respectively hold the side parts of the change frame and are part of a double-acting cylinder for height adjustment.

[0019] The upper link is preferably designed as a tie rod in order to withstand the torques which occur in the receiving unit and the change frame during (harvesting) operation of the harvester about an axis which extends transversely to the direction of travel.

[0020] In particular, the support of the upper link on the side of the change frame is arranged to be offset forward in the travel direction in front of the support of the lower link on the side of the change frame. In particular, the height guide arranged at the front end of the change frame is as close as possible with its support point to the support point of the upper link, so as to achieve an optimal distribution of the introduced forces.

[0021] Advantageously, at least a portion of the portion of the holding device extending in the longitudinal direction of the screening channel can be changed in length. In particular, one or more guide rods can be changed in length so that the replacement frame can be tilted or swung around an axis extending transversely to the travel direction before or during operation, which increases the adjustability of the receiving unit.

[0022] For example, the upper guide rod can be changed in length by means of a threaded rod. The same is true for the lower guide rod.

[0023] Preferably, a locking device, in particular a self-locking one, is arranged on the change rack to fix the coupling element of the receiving unit. In particular, the locking device tightly holds the coupling element at a support of the holding device on one side of the change rack. The self-locking is achieved, for example, by means of a catch that is locked in a dead center position or an over-dead center position by means of one or more levers. By automatically operating the locking device, the receiving unit can be assembled more conveniently.

[0024] Advantageously, according to the embodiments described above or below, the harvester according to the invention also has a receiving unit for receiving root crops, in particular potatoes, onions or other vegetables.

[0025] Preferably, the receiving frame and / or the replacement frame of the receiving unit is provided with a guide surface, which enables or defines the relative positioning of the receiving unit with respect to the replacement frame. The necessary movement of the replacement frame along the guide surface of the receiving unit or the necessary movement of the guide surface of the receiving unit along the replacement frame defines a coupling movement along which the replacement frame and possibly relevant parts of the screening channel can be matched to each other without difficulty. The receiving unit is optimally guided to the front of the screening channel.

[0026] The object specified at the outset is also achieved by a receiving unit for a harvester as described above or below, wherein the receiving unit has a receiving frame on which tools for receiving root crops and for the specific requirements of root crops are arranged, and at least one coupling element for fixing the receiving unit in a replacement frame of the harvester. The receiving unit is characterized in that the replacement frame has a guide surface with an edge, preferably at the top in a side view, which is inclined downwards towards the support area of ​​the replacement frame defined by the hook.

[0027] In particular, the support area of ​​the changing rack is formed by the hook-shaped area of ​​the side parts of the receiving rack, wherein, in order to fix the receiving unit to the changing rack, its crossbeam or possibly transversely extending bolts must be slid into the support area along the guide surface. Due to the higher area of ​​the guide surface in the side view, in order to introduce the changing rack into the support area, the changing rack must be lifted to approach the receiving unit located on the ground, and the lowered area must be accompanied by a lowering movement. Overall, the changing rack must approach the receiving unit by a combined height movement and forward movement. This movement causes the attachment connected to the changing rack to be lifted so that it is accordingly brought into the correct position relative to the receiving unit.

[0028] A receiving support for the receiving unit, which is located in the area of ​​the lower guide rod and is preferably at the same height as the support of the lower guide rod on the replacement frame side on the replacement frame, is particularly located within the range of action of a locking device, which, for example, uses a grab hook at the side column of the receiving frame to grab a supported coupling element, for example in the form of a bolt, and holds it tightly to the lower guide rod support. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] Further advantages and details of the present invention are obtained from the following description of the drawings. The drawings schematically show:

[0030] Figure 1 shows a side view of the subject matter according to the invention,

[0031] Figure 2 Shows Figure 1 A partial view of the subject,

[0032] Figure 3 Shows Figure 2 A further simplified partial view of the subject,

[0033] Figure 4 Shows Figure 2 Another partial view of the subject,

[0034] Figure 5 Another partial view of the subject matter according to the invention is shown,

[0035] Figure 6 Shows Figure 5 Another view of the subject,

[0036] Figure 7 A further subject matter according to the invention is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] The individual technical features of the embodiments described below can also be combined with the features of the embodiments described above and the independent claims and possible other claims to form the subject matter according to the present invention. Whenever it makes sense, functionally at least partially identical components are marked with the same reference numerals.

[0038] The harvester 2 according to the invention for root crops (in the present case in the form of potatoes) is a trailed potato digger. The harvester 2 has a frame 4 with the functional elements of the harvester, such as an upper separation device 6, a bucket 8 and a screening channel 12 located behind the side panels 10 and formed by them. The screening channel 12 is defined by the two side panels 10, starts in the area of ​​the receiving unit 14 and extends from the front 16 of the harvester 2 slightly rising to the rear end 18 of the harvester 2 ( Figure 1 ).

[0039] The receiving unit 14 is fixed by an alternate receiving part. The alternate receiving part comprises an alternate frame 20, which is supported in supporting parts 23 and 25 on one side of the frame by a holding device comprising an upper guide rod 22 and two lower guide rods 24 and extending backward from the receiving unit along the screening channel 12. At the same time, the alternate frame is hingedly connected to the holding device.

[0040] In accordance with Figure 2 In the side view of the upper guide rod 22 and the lower guide rod 24 form a parallelogram guide portion, that is, the guide rod lengths of the upper guide rod and the lower guide rod are currently equal, wherein the vertical distances between the support portions 23, 25 on one side of the frame and the support portions 21, 27 on one side of the replacement frame projected onto a line perpendicular to the ground are also equal (see Figure 2 and Figure 3 ). The axes 32 of the supports of the individual guide rods extend in parallel. However, within the scope of the invention and possible other embodiments, the upper and / or lower guide rods can be designed so that their length can be changed, so that the parallelogram guide degenerates into a double-arm guide, which is accompanied by a swinging of the replacement frame 20 and the corresponding swinging of the receiving unit 14.

[0041] The height guide 26 comprises a piston rod 28 which is guided in a double-acting cylinder 30 and is likewise fixed to one side of the machine frame. The axis 32 extending through the bearings 21, 23 of the upper guide rod 22 and the axis 34 extending through the bearings 31, 33 of the height guide 26 (in a side view) are at least approximately perpendicular, i.e. at an angle of 85° to 105°, preferably 80° to 100° to each other, so that the force flow generated by the receiving unit 14 moving due to the soil is effectively separated. For this purpose, the holding device is designed as a double-arm guide, wherein the lower guide rod 24 also has an axis 32 extending accordingly.

[0042] Generally speaking, the retaining device extends from the front to the rear (relative to the projection to the ground) along at least 30%, preferably at least 50% of the screening section (i.e. the screening channel 12, or more precisely the length of the screening belt on which the screening channel is based), so that even when the height adjustment part of the receiving unit moves due to the height guide device 26, the retaining device formed by the upper guide rod 22 and the lower guide rod 24 will still transmit the pulling or pushing force in the receiving unit 14 to the frame almost horizontally when the receiving unit 14 moves due to the soil.

[0043] During harvesting operation of the harvester 2 according to the invention provided with the receiving unit 14, the receiving frame 36 is connected to the replacement frame 20 via the hook 40 held on the crossbar 38 and via the coupling element 44 located in the receiving support 42 and designed as a bolt. In addition to the crossbar 38, the replacement frame 20 also has a side part 48 (see Figure 3 and Figure 4 ), which connect the upper guide rod 22 and the lower guide rod 24 to each other.

[0044] The screening channel 12 extends between the side plates 10, which are supported on the replacement frame 20. In order to be able to carry out a height adjustment of generally up to 60% by means of the height guide 26 without exerting too much pressure on the side plates 10, the side plates are floatingly supported at their ends 47 close to the rear end of the harvester 2. The lower guide rods 24 and the upper guide rods 22 extend laterally to the screening channel 12, which are delimited below by schematically indicated screen bars 46. The side plates are part of a screening frame which, for example, carries rollers on which a screening belt with screen bars 46, not shown in detail here, is supported.

[0045] In addition to the crossbar 38, the change frame 20 also includes side parts 48, at the front end of which the piston rod 28 is operatively supported. The catch hook 50 is part of a locking device, by which the coupling element 44 is tightly held on the support 27 of the lower link 24, so that horizontal forces can be optimally introduced into the frame 4 via the lower link 24. The lower link 24 also serves to absorb transverse forces acting transversely to the travel direction F, which are transmitted from the receiving unit 14 to the change frame 20, in particular during harvesting operations.

[0046] The side parts 48 of the replacement frame 20 extend essentially from bottom to top in the lower region and are bent forward almost horizontally in the upper region to the crossbeam 38 and the support of the height guide 26, and thus in the side view ( Figure 2 and Figure 5 ) in the installation space covering the receiving unit 14. Therefore, the replacement rack 20 can approach the receiving unit 14 from the rear side along the driving direction F in the following manner, that is, according to Figure 6The crossbar 38 is guided along a guide surface 54 formed by the surface of the side part 48 and corresponding to the upper edge of the side part in a side view, so that the functional component is correctly positioned partially in the installation space of the receiving unit 14 according to the movement path 56. Accordingly, the side part 48 is formed with a raised edge in the area where static state is no longer required, which edge is inclined downwardly toward the support area 58 defined by the hook 40.

[0047] Figure 7 The receiving unit 14 according to the invention is shown, which is designed to be fastened to the replacement frame 20 of the harvester 2 described above. For this purpose, the receiving frame 36 has a receiving crossbeam 60, on which the receiving side parts 62 are arranged. These receiving side parts carry the coupling elements 44 for fastening to the replacement frame and form the hooks 40. Different tools 64, for example in the form of blades, plow discs or furrow rollers, can be fastened to the receiving frame 36 for the specific requirements of root crops.

Claims

1. A harvester for root crops, in particular a harvester in the form of a trailed digger or a self-propelled digger, comprising: Rack (4), In particular, a screening section is designed in the form of a screening channel (12), and A replacement receiving part for a replaceable receiving unit (14), It is characterized in that The replacement receiving part has a replacement frame (20) for fixing the receiving unit (14) and a holding device hingedly connected to the replacement frame, the holding device extending from the replacement frame (20) along the screening section and supporting the replacement frame (20) at least one part of the frame (4) located on the rear side when viewed from the front starting part of the screening section.

2. The harvester according to claim 1, characterized in that: The screening channel (12) is supported on the front side on a replacement frame (20).

3. The harvester according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The holding device forms a double-armed guide, in particular a parallelogram guide, of the changeover frame (20) in a side view of the harvester (2), so that the height of the changeover frame (20) can be adjusted, preferably without pivoting.

4. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that The holding device of the replacement receiving part has at least three guide rods which are at least substantially horizontal to the ground and extend along the screening section, the guide rods being hingedly supported on the frame (4) at one end and on the replacement frame (20) at the other end, and the frame and the replacement frame are connected to each other via the guide rods.

5. The harvester according to claim 4, characterized in that: In a side view, at least two supports of the guide rod are arranged on the replacement frame (20) in a manner offset in height relative to one another.

6. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims 3 to 5, characterized in that The guide rods form at least one upper guide rod (22) and at least one, in particular two, lower guide rods (24) relative to the replacement frame.

7. The harvester according to claim 6, wherein the harvester has two lower guide rods, characterized in that: The lower guide rod (24) is a push column, so that in a side view, the receiving support (42) for the receiving unit (14) is at least approximately at the same height as the support of the lower guide rod on the replacement frame side.

8. Harvester according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that The upper guide rod (22) is arranged on one side of the replacement frame (20).

9. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims 6 to 8, characterized in that The upper link (22) is designed as a tension rod in order to withstand torques occurring in the receiving unit (14) and the replacement frame (20) about an axis extending transversely to the direction of travel during operation of the harvester.

10. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims 6 to 9, characterized in that The support portion of the upper link (22) on the replacement frame side is arranged in front of the support portion of the lower link on the replacement frame side, offset forward in the travel direction.

11. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that In particular, a height guide device (26) is arranged at the front end of the replacement frame (20).

12. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that At least a portion of the portion of the retaining device extending in the longitudinal direction of the screening channel (12) is capable of varying length.

13. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that A locking device, in particular a self-locking locking device, is arranged on the replacement frame (20) for fixing a coupling element (44) of the receiving unit (14).

14. A harvester according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that The harvester has a receiving unit (14) for receiving root crops, in particular potatoes.

15. The harvester according to claim 14, characterized in that The receiving rack (36) of the receiving unit (14) and / or the replacement rack (20) have guide surfaces (54) for positioning relative to each other.

16. A receiving unit for a harvester (2) according to any one of the preceding claims, the receiving unit having a receiving frame (36) on which a tool (64) for receiving root crops and for specific needs of root crops is arranged, the receiving unit also having at least one coupling element (44) for fixing the receiving unit (14) in a replacement frame (20) of the harvester (2), characterized in that: The changing rack (20) has a guide surface (54) having an edge, preferably at the top in a side view, which is inclined downwardly toward a supporting area (58) of the changing rack (20) defined by the hooks (40).

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