Combination of an agricultural implement and a carrier or towing vehicle with a sensor for detecting a hazardous situation and automatically shutting off the power take-off (PTO).

Abstract

Combination of an agricultural implement (12) and a carrier or towing vehicle (10), wherein: the carrier or towing vehicle (10) has a power take-off shaft (32) which can be switched on and off selectively by means of a clutch (26), the device (12) comprises driveable elements (50, 52, 56, 58, 60) which can be connected to the power take-off shaft (32), an electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) is connected via a bus (79) to an electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10), the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) is connected to an externally operated actuator (38) for switching the clutch (26) of the power take-off shaft (32) on and off, the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) is connected to a sensor (72) for detecting a living being present in a danger zone (74) of the device (12), the device (12) is a round baler equipped with pressing means (56), in the rear area of ​​which the pressing means (56) are freely accessible to the outside, and the sensor (72) is assigned to the rear area of ​​the device (12), characterized in that the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) causes the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) to instruct the actuator (38) to disconnect the coupling (26) of the power take-off shaft (32) and / or to prevent the actuator (38) from closing the coupling (26) in the event of detection of a living being within the danger zone (74) by the sensor (72). the sensor (72) comprises an infrared sensor and false triggering of the sensor (72) by bales (78) ejected from a baler is avoided by informing the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) or a circuit associated with the sensor (72) about the ejection of the bale (78) and ignoring a response of the sensor (72) that is temporally related to the ejection of the bale (78).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a combination of an agricultural implement and a carrier or towing vehicle according to the preamble of claim 1. State of the art

[0002] For safety reasons, moving elements of agricultural equipment are usually covered from the outside by covers to protect the operator and other persons. However, since the interior of the equipment must be accessible for inspection and maintenance purposes, the covers are removable or pivoting. To prevent accidents, the covers can generally only be opened using suitable tools. This has the disadvantage that they cannot be opened without the appropriate tools. If these are not available, work on the equipment is not possible. It has been proposed that the combustion engine of a self-propelled agricultural machine should stop automatically if a sensor detects that a cover of the machine has been opened (DE 43 09 668 A1). An arrangement for detecting an open cover of a baler, which maywhich leads to the tractor's PTO being switched off, is described in the subsequently published DE 10 2008 018 541 A1.

[0003] The disadvantage of covers is that they are fundamentally unnecessary for the operation of the tractor-driven implement; they only increase the weight and manufacturing costs. In many cases, operators remove them to make work on the implement easier. Furthermore, even with covers, the operator is not completely protected. For example, the openings through which the implement takes in the crop (in the case of a baler, the crop pick-up and the rotor located downstream of it) cannot be covered, as otherwise the crop would not be able to feed in. However, blockages do occasionally occur in this area. Operators often attempt to clear these blockages while the implement is running, putting themselves in great danger.

[0004] GB 2 206 662 A describes a baler with an emergency stop device that can be actively activated by the operator if they encounter a dangerous situation while working on the baler, for example, when clearing a blockage. However, this emergency stop device cannot prevent injury to the operator.

[0005] It was further proposed to install an infrared sensor on a self-propelled bale wrapper to detect heat from living beings, motors, etc., which would shut down the bale wrapper (DE 196 08 014 A1). Similarly, for an unmanned combine harvester, it was proposed to install a sensor in a danger zone to detect living beings and, if necessary, stop the combine harvester (DE 102 44 822 A1). The subsequently published EP 2 106 688 A1 describes a bale wrapper pulled behind a tractor whose wrapping speed is reduced if a sensor detects an obstacle in the immediate vicinity of the bale wrapper.

[0006] DE 197 18 110 A1 describes a tractor with a haymaking machine whose rear areas not protected by covers are monitored by a sensor. If the sensor detects a living being in its monitoring area, a warning signal is emitted and a shutdown signal is sent to a clutch in the machine's drivetrain, causing the machine to shut down.

[0007] EP 1 813 146 A2 describes a combination of a tractor and a baler, each equipped with an electronic control unit. The control units communicate with each other via a bus, so that the baler's control unit can instruct the tractor's control unit to stop the tractor for wrapping and ejecting a bale. Before starting a baling process, the baler's control unit causes the tractor's PTO to rotate.

[0008] A similar combination is described in US 2009 / 0107102 A1, which is considered to be generic. There, after the end of a wrapping process, a check is first made to see whether a sensor behind the baler door detects an obstacle. If this is not the case, the door is opened to eject the bale, the bale is ejected, the baler door is closed, and the tractor's PTO is started rotating again. If, on the other hand, the sensor detects an obstacle, the door is not opened. Although this prevents anyone from being injured by the opening door, covers are still provided on all sides of the baler to prevent access to moving parts. The tractor's PTO is switched off after the bale has been ejected, but not based on the sensor signal. Task

[0009] The problem underlying the invention is seen in providing a combination of an agricultural implement and a carrier or towing vehicle in which accidents are prevented or at least made less likely without great effort. Solution

[0010] This problem is solved according to the invention by the teaching of patent claim 1, wherein the further patent claim lists features which further develop the solution in an advantageous manner.

[0011] A combination consists of an agricultural implement and a carrier or towing vehicle by which the implement can be carried, pulled, or otherwise moved across a field. The carrier or towing vehicle includes an electronic control unit connected to an actuator with which a clutch for a power take-off shaft can be engaged and disengaged. The implement, in turn, has drivable elements that can be driven by the power take-off shaft. The implement also includes an associated electronic control unit connected to a sensor that detects whether a person, other living being, or obstacle is within a danger zone of the implement. This is usually a predetermined area adjacent to the implement. The two control units communicate with each other via a bus connection, which can be wired, via a fiber optic cable, or wirelessly, e.g., via radio or light waves.The bus connection can be designed, in particular, according to the ISO 11783 standard. If the sensor informs the device's electronic control unit that a person or similar object is located within the monitored danger zone, the device's electronic control unit transmits the instruction to the electronic control unit of the carrier or towing vehicle to cause the actuator to open the PTO clutch in order to prevent the danger to the operator or other nearby persons or animals. If the PTO clutch is not yet closed when the cover is opened, the electronic control unit of the carrier or towing vehicle prevents the actuator from being caused to close the clutch, even if an operator switches on the PTO switch. In both cases, a warning is preferably given to the operator.

[0012] Since stopping or preventing the PTO from starting (with the exception of the sensor) is generally based on existing components, this approach allows for the automatic stop of the machine's moving parts without significant additional effort, thus avoiding the risk of accidents when a person is near the machine. These safety requirements can now also be met with machines that are not equipped with covers, either in whole or in part. Furthermore, working on the machine is made easier when covers are eliminated.

[0013] The invention is used on a baler for round bales, in which, for example, the rear door or the movable covers provided instead of the door are omitted. The sensor monitors the rear area of ​​the round baler. It would also be conceivable to omit the side and / or front covers of the device, for example, a baler for round or rectangular bales, and to use the sensor to monitor the sides and / or front of the device as well.

[0014] The sensor is designed as an infrared sensor that detects people and living beings based on the infrared waves they emit. Appropriate data processing prevents false alarms from occurring when bales ejected from a baler heat up due to friction against the baler's side walls. The device's electronic control unit or a suitable circuit assigned to the sensor is notified of the bale ejection for this purpose. Any sensor response that occurs at the same time as the bale ejection is then ignored.

[0015] The size of the sensor's sensitive area preferably depends on the speed at which the combination moves across a field. At higher speeds, a person or animal is less likely to approach the device and touch driven elements than when moving relatively slowly or at a standstill. Therefore, it is advisable to design the sensitive area relatively large at low speeds or when stationary to avoid accidents in these particularly dangerous situations. At higher speeds (e.g., above 5 km / h), the sensitive area can be made smaller, or the sensor can be switched off completely. This also reduces the likelihood of false triggering of the sensor, for example, due to overhanging branches, fences, or other obstacles. Example

[0016] The drawings illustrate an embodiment of the invention, described in more detail below. They show: Fig. 1 a schematic side view of a combination of a tractor and a machine in the form of a round baler during the formation of a bale and Fig. 2 the combination of Fig. 1 when ejecting a bale.

[0017] The illustrated combination consists of a towing vehicle 10 in the form of a tractor and an implement 12 in the form of a round baler. The towing vehicle 10 comprises a chassis 14 equipped with a frame, which is supported on the ground via front, steerable wheels 16 and rear, drivable wheels 18. Attached to the chassis 14 are a cabin 20 with an operator's workstation, on which a seat (not shown) and a steering wheel 22 are arranged, and an internal combustion engine 24. The crankshaft of the internal combustion engine 24 is connected via a clutch 26 to a power take-off transmission 28, which in turn drives a power take-off output 30 via a power take-off shaft 32.An electronic control unit 34 is electrically connected to an engine control unit 36, which monitors and controls the operating parameters of the internal combustion engine 24, and to a power-operated actuator 38, which can open and close the clutch 26 and is actuated, for example, electrically or hydraulically. The electronic control unit 34 is also connected to an actuator 40, with which the gear ratio and thus the output speed of the power take-off transmission 28 can be selected. The internal combustion engine 24 also drives the wheels 18 and, if applicable, 16 via a further transmission (not shown).

[0018] The device 12 comprises a chassis 42, which is supported on the ground via wheels 44 and is connected to a trailer coupling 48 of the towing vehicle 10 via a drawbar 46. The device 12 comprises a crop collector 50, which, during operation, conveys crop lying on the field overshot and feeds it to a rotor 52, which conveys it into a baling chamber 54. The baling chamber 54 is enclosed at the top by pressing means 56 in the form of belts and at the bottom by rollers 58 and optionally by a further belt 60. In the rear area of ​​the device 12, a housing part 62 is provided, which can be pivoted backwards and upwards and is hinged to the upper side of the chassis 42 about an axis 64 running horizontally and transversely to the forward direction for ejecting a finished bale. The housing part 62 supports rollers 70 around which the pressing means 56 rotate. The housing part 62 covers the pressing means 56 only to the sides, but not to the rear.However, the device 12 has side, front, and top covers, some of which are not shown in the figures for reasons of clarity. The rollers 58, rollers for driving the pressing means 56 and the belt 60, the rotor 52, and the crop pickup 50 are drivingly connected to the PTO output 30 of the towing vehicle 10 via a drive shaft 66 and a gearbox 68. Such or similar balers, to which the present invention is applicable, are described in US Pat. No. 3,964,246 A, DE 102 50 425 A1, EP 1 512 320 A2, and the subsequently published DE 10 2009 002 585 A1, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0019] A sensor 72 is assigned to the upper, rear area of ​​the device 12. This sensor is designed as an infrared sensor or a camera with an image processing system and monitors a danger zone 74 of a defined size, located rearward of the device 12, to determine whether a person, an animal, or another object is located behind the device 12. The sensor 72 is connected to an electronic control unit 76, which is connected to the electronic control unit 34 of the towing vehicle 10 via a bus 79. The bus 79 can operate according to the ISO 11783 standard. The engine control unit 36 ​​and the actuators 38 and 40 can be connected to the control unit 34 via dedicated lines, as shown in the figure, or via the bus 79. Analogously, the sensor 72 can be connected to the control unit 76 via a dedicated line, as shown in the figures, or via the bus 79.

[0020] Preferably, the electronic control units 34, 76 serve for the automatic control of the combination of towing vehicle 10 and implement 12, e.g., for the automatic speed control of the towing vehicle 10 depending on the rate of harvested crop and the current bale size, and for the automatic stopping and restarting of the combination after completion and ejection of a bale. Reference is made to the disclosure of EP 1 813 146 A2, which is incorporated by reference into the present documents.

[0021] In order to prevent the operator from leaving the cabin 20 and approaching the device 12 in order to rectify a malfunction, to check the function of the device or for other reasons while the drive shaft 66 is rotating and the rollers 58, pressing means 56, belt 60, the rotor 52 and the crop pickup 50 are rotating or moving and injuring himself on moving parts of the device 12, the control units 34, 76 are programmed such that the control unit 76 of the device 12 sends an instruction to the control unit 34 of the towing vehicle 10 to move the actuator 38 into a position that separates the coupling 26 when the sensor 72 informs the control unit 76 of the device 12 that a person, an animal or an obstacle is located in the monitored danger zone 74. This results in the PTO shaft 32 being stopped immediately, which also leads to the stopping of the driven elements (rollers 58, pressing means 56, belt 60, rotor 52 and crop pickup 50).In this case, it would also be conceivable to activate a PTO brake (not shown) of the towing vehicle 10 via the control unit 34. If the PTO 32 was not yet in operation at the time the sensor 72 was triggered, the electronic control unit 34 of the towing vehicle 32 prevents the actuator 38 from closing the clutch 26. Furthermore, the operator is given a warning, either visually via a display device or via a voice message. Alternatively or additionally, the control unit 76 could also disengage a clutch (not shown) in the transmission 68 to stop the driven elements of the device 12.

[0022] The control unit 76 informs the control unit 34 that the safety conditions have been restored when the sensor 72 has informed the control unit 76 that there is no longer any person, animal, or obstacle in the danger zone 74. However, the control unit 34 then preferably only instructs the actuator 38 to close the clutch 26 after the operator has pressed a confirmation button or switched on a PTO switch.

[0023] In the Fig.2, the device 12 is shown with the rear housing section 62 raised for ejecting a finished bale 78. The sensor 72 is not attached to the housing section 62 and therefore does not pivot upwards with it, but is rigidly connected to the chassis 42 via a strut 80. It therefore continues to monitor the danger zone 74 to the rear of the device 12. This further prevents the control system 76 from lowering the rear housing section 62 as long as the sensor 72 detects that a person, animal, or obstacle, e.g., a bale 78, is still present in the danger zone 74. Similarly, the rear housing section 62 is only raised to eject a bale 78 if the sensor 72 detects no living being within the danger zone 74.

[0024] The size of the danger zone 74 is dimensioned such that, when the device 12 and the towing vehicle 10 are stationary, such a large area is covered that no person can touch moving parts on the rear of the device 12 without automatically shutting down the driven elements of the device 12. When the device is moving, the probability of interference with the device 12 is lower, so that the danger zone 74 can be reduced or the sensor 72 can be completely shut down.

Claims

[1] Combination of an agricultural implement (12) and a carrier or towing vehicle (10), wherein: the carrier or towing vehicle (10) has a power take-off shaft (32) which can be selectively switched on and off by means of a clutch (26), the device (12) comprises drivable elements (50, 52, 56, 58, 60) which can be connected to the power take-off shaft (32), an electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) is connected via a bus (79) to an electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10), the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) is connected to an externally powered actuator (38) for switching the clutch (26) of the power take-off shaft (32) on and off, the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) is connected to a sensor (72) for detecting a living being present in a danger zone (74) of the device (12), the device (12) is a round baler equipped with pressing means (56), in the rear area of ​​which the pressing means (56) are freely accessible to the outside, and the sensor (72) is assigned to the rear area of ​​the device (12), characterized by that the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) causes the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) to instruct the actuator (38) to disengage the clutch (26) of the power take-off shaft (32) and / or to prevent the actuator (38) from closing the clutch (26) in the event of the sensor (72) detecting a living being located within the danger zone (74), the sensor (72) comprises an infrared sensor and false triggering of the sensor (72) by bales (78) ejected from a baler is avoided by informing the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) or a circuit associated with the sensor (72) about the ejection of the bale (78) and ignoring a response of the sensor (72) that is temporally related to the ejection of the bale (78). [2] Combination according to claim 1, characterized bythat the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) is operable to instruct the actuator (38) to close the coupling (26) again after the detection of a living being within the danger zone (74) only when the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) has informed the electronic control unit (34) of the carrier or towing vehicle (10) that the sensor (72) detects that there is no longer a living being within the danger zone (74) and an operator has pressed a confirmation button or switched on a PTO switch. [3] Combination according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized by that the size of the danger zone (74) monitored by the sensor (72) depends on the respective speed of the combination. [4] Combination according to claim 3, characterized by that the danger zone (74) monitored by the sensor (72) is smaller at higher speeds than at low speeds. [5] Combination according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized by that the electronic control unit (76) of the device (12) is operable to raise or lower a rear housing part (62) only when the sensor (72) detects no living being in the danger zone (74).

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