EARTHQUAKE

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a harvesting attachment for use on a self-propelled harvesting machine and to a self-propelled harvesting machine equipped with such a harvesting attachment.

[0002] Harvesting attachments that cut the stems of a crop to be harvested in order to then collect the parts of the plant farther from the ground, generally including the fruit clusters, and feed them to a self-propelled harvester for threshing or chopping are known in many different designs. The stubble remaining in the field after harvest, even if plowed under, hinders the sowing of the following crop. Furthermore, it can serve as a refuge for pests such as the European corn borer, which can lead to significant crop losses if the same crop is planted again the following year on the same or a neighboring field.

[0003] Removing the stubble in a single operation following harvesting is laborious and uneconomical. DE 10 2014 219 694 therefore proposes a harvesting header for maize that combines a harvesting unit for cutting and collecting the parts of a maize plant far from the ground with a unit for extracting and shredding the maize stubble during harvesting.

[0004] Pulling out maize stubble requires considerable effort; at the same time, it is only effective if the stubble is almost completely removed, since a small number of stubble remaining intact may be sufficient to call into question the effectiveness of the measure.

[0005] EP 2 107 867 B1 discloses a harvesting attachment in which a shredding unit is limited to destroying the above-ground parts of the stubble. Complete processing of all stubble is possible more easily and with less energy consumption, but only if the shredding unit can be guided close enough to the ground. However, its mobility relative to the harvesting unit tends to be limited by the plant residues knocked off and stirred up by the shredding unit.

[0006] Further harvesting attachments or devices for stubble shredding can be found, for example, in DE 10 2017 222587 A1, EP 0 365 019 A1, EP 3 199 010 A1 and DE 10 2018 105858 A1.

[0007] An object of the invention is to provide a harvesting header that enables reliable and complete destruction of stubble with little expenditure of time and energy.

[0008] The problem is solved, on the one hand, by a harvesting attachment for a self-propelled harvester with a harvesting unit for cutting and collecting parts of a crop to be harvested that are far from the ground, and a shredding unit for shredding parts of the crop near the ground that are not collected by the harvesting unit. The shredding unit comprises at least one underfloor chopper that is movably coupled to the harvesting unit, surrounded by a housing, and supported on the ground during operation. Because the housing prevents the stubble fragments produced by the underfloor chopper from spreading, a blockage of the shredding unit relative to the harvesting unit can be avoided, so that the shredding unit can reliably follow the ground contour and completely grasp the stubble at a height suitable for complete destruction.

[0009] According to the invention, a cap that scans the ground contour is driven in rotation about a vertical axis and serves as a support for several shredding elements rotating around a rotation axis. The rotation of the cap facilitates gliding over uneven ground. By preventing the cap and shredding elements from rotating relative to each other, the design of the underfloor shredder can be simplified, and the likelihood of rotation being impeded by dirt penetrating between mutually moving parts is minimized.

[0010] In order to avoid blockage of the underfloor shredder by immovable obstacles, according to the invention each of the shredding elements is pivotally connected to the circumference of the calotte about an axis parallel to the axis of rotation.

[0011] To facilitate gliding over uneven surfaces, the underside of the spherical cap is preferably convexly curved without steep flanks. More specifically, the radius of the circumference of the spherical cap, where the shredding elements are located, should be larger than the distance measured along the rotational axis between the circumference and a lowest point of the spherical cap.

[0012] The underside of the calotte is preferably spherical or flattened ellipsoidal at least around the axis of rotation.

[0013] The purpose of the underfloor chopper is not to cut the crop stalks already cut by the harvesting unit a second time closer to the ground, but to destroy the structure of the stalk residue so completely that it is no longer usable as a winter shelter for pests. To achieve this, it is desirable to break the stalk residue into several fragments not only lengthwise but also circumferentially, so that any soft inner parts of the stalk are exposed to the weather over a large area. Shredding elements with blunt impact surfaces are better suited for this than rotating knives, for example. A shredding element can be considered blunt in this sense if the radius of curvature on a surface that comes into contact with the stubble during operation is greater than 1 mm, preferably greater than 5 mm.

[0014] It is also advantageous if each shredding element has a front and a rear impact surface, depending on its direction of rotation. This allows the shredding elements to be mounted on the calottes without having to consider their direction of rotation; and it also allows a shredding element to be reversed and reused when a first impact surface is worn.

[0015] To increase the service life of the cap and / or crushing elements, a PTA coating can also be applied. PTA (plasma powder deposition welding) is a welding process that enables a metallurgical bond between the coating and the base material; this technique can also be used to create high-hardness carbide surface layers.

[0016] The housing can be common to several, preferably two, underfloor shredders.

[0017] By bringing the spherical caps of both underfloor shredders into contact with the ground, a rolling movement of the shredding unit can be controlled, allowing the shredding elements to adapt to a slope of the ground surface perpendicular to the direction of travel. If there are two underfloor shredders in each housing, the spherical cap of each can be kept in contact with the ground.

[0018] The movable coupling of the shredding unit to the harvesting unit can be achieved by several links connecting the housing to the harvesting unit. These links can form a four-bar linkage in a side view to keep the orientation of the axis of rotation constant in this side view even when the shredding unit moves relative to the harvesting unit. To prevent yaw rotation of the shredding unit when it comes into contact with an obstacle, the links should be spaced apart in the width direction. Furthermore, at least one of the links can be coupled to an actuator to raise or lower the shredding unit relative to the harvesting unit as needed, or to pivot the axis of rotation about an axis running in the transverse direction of the harvesting header.

[0019] The housing may have a ceiling plate through which the rotational axis extends, and walls extending downward from edges of the ceiling plate to capture the stubble fragments generated by the shredding unit. These walls preferably extend below the perimeter level in which the shredding elements are mounted. They are preferably at least partially flexible to accommodate uneven ground.

[0020] When the shredding elements rotate, they move in the direction of travel for part of their path and in the opposite direction for the other part. To ensure the speed required to shred the stubble throughout their entire path, the shredding unit should be coupled to a drive system of the harvester so that the rotational speed of the shredding elements is several times the forward speed of the harvester.

[0021] To ensure that all stubble is reliably captured and shredded, even those located in front of the spherical heads in the direction of travel, the shredding elements must follow one another so quickly that they capture the stubble before it reaches the spherical heads. The shredding unit should therefore be coupled to the harvester's drive system in such a way that the product of the radial extension of the shredding elements, the number of shredding elements on a spherical head, and the spherical head's rotational speed is greater than the harvester's forward speed.

[0022] Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying figures. They show: Fig. 1 shows a harvesting attachment according to the invention in an oblique view from the front; Fig. 2 shows the harvesting attachment in an oblique view from the rear; Fig. 3 shows side views of the harvesting attachment in an operating position and during lifting from the operating position; Fig. 4 shows a detailed view of a shredding unit on the rear of the harvesting attachment; and Fig. 5 shows an underfloor chopper of the shredding unit.

[0023] Fig. 1 shows a harvesting header 1 for attachment to a self-propelled harvester for harvesting corn in a diagonal front view. The components of the harvesting header 1 visible in this figure are referred to collectively here as harvesting unit 2. Tips 3 of a comb extending along the front edge of the harvesting header 1 are spaced such that a row of corn plants is grasped between each two tips 3 and their stalks are fixed laterally, while they are cut a few centimeters above the ground by knives rotating below the tips and not visible in the view. Extending behind the comb is a collecting trough 4 into which the harvested material falls.The harvested crop can be the entire maize plants, for example, if the harvesting machine is a forage harvester; in the case of a combine harvester considered here, it is preferably only the cobs, which are fed to the combine harvester by the harvesting head, while the stalks are chopped and deposited on the ground without passing through the combine harvester.

[0024] A conveyor screw 5 rotating in the collecting trough 4 serves to gather the harvested material in the middle of the collecting trough 4 and to discharge it via a rear opening 6 (see Fig. 2 ) to the harvesting machine on which the harvesting header 1 is mounted.

[0025] The harvesting header 1 shown here is divided transversely into a central section 7 and two lateral sections 8. The lateral sections can be pivoted by means of two hydraulic actuators 9 about axes 10 adjacent to an upper edge of the harvesting header 1 into a transport position in which they rest on the central section 7. In the transport position, the harvesting header 1 is no longer wider than the body of the harvesting machine carrying it, so that the harvesting machine with the harvesting header 1 mounted can move in road traffic.

[0026] In the view of the Fig. 2 Several shredding units 11 can be seen on a rear lower edge of the harvesting header 1. The shredding units 11 each have a flat housing with a substantially horizontal ceiling plate 12 and side walls 13 made of sheet steel and a flexible rear wall in the form of a rubber apron 14, which hangs down from a rear edge of the ceiling plate 12. At a Fig. 2 The housing is open at the front, which is not visible, so that the stubble left behind when the corn stalks are cut by the knives of the harvesting unit 2 can enter the housing of the shredding units 11.

[0027] At the rear of the collecting tray 4, a gear is mounted, which is intended to drive the knives and the conveyor screw 5 of the harvesting unit 2 as well as movable elements of the crushing units 11 (which will be described later on the basis of Fig. 5 described in more detail below) to a power take-off shaft of the harvesting machine with a predetermined transmission ratio. Parts of the transmission are housed in housings 15 on both sides of the central section 7. Shafts 16, 17 extending in opposite directions from the housings 15 each drive a shredding unit 11 of the central section 7 and one of the lateral sections 8. The shafts 17 of the lateral sections 8 are detachably plug-connected to an output of the housings 15 in order to enable the above-mentioned pivoting of the lateral sections 8 into the transport position.

[0028] The shredding units 11 are vertically movable relative to the harvesting unit 2 to a limited extent; to accommodate this mobility, the shafts 16, 17 are coupled at their ends to the gearbox or to the shredding unit 11 via universal joints (here concealed in elastic bellows 18).

[0029] Fig. 3 shows a part of the harvesting header 1 in side view, once in a ground-level operating position and once during a lifting movement, which is carried out by the harvester, for example, when it drives from a just-harvested field into a neighboring headland. In the left part of the Fig. 3 In the operating position shown, the cover plate 12 of the housing lies slightly above a plane in which the knives (here designated 19) of the harvesting unit rotate. A calotte 20 protruding downwards from the housing rests on the floor 21. The shredding unit 11 is connected to the collecting trough 4 via two links 22, 23. These links 22, 23 can be parallel and of equal length in order to enable the orientation of the shredding unit 11 relative to the floor 21 to be maintained when the harvesting unit is raised while maintaining its orientation; in the case shown here, the length and arrangement of the links 22, 23 are selected such that the orientation of the shredding unit 11 does not change when the harvesting unit is raised, although its lifting is associated with a slight pivoting movement, as can be seen when comparing the right and left parts of the figure.As long as the calotte 20 remains in contact with the ground, the effect of the shredding unit 11 remains unchanged. Consequently, if the harvester begins to raise the header 1 upon leaving a crop stand, this initially has no effect on the shredding unit 11, and if the speed of the raising is sensibly adapted to the driving speed and the freedom of movement of the shredding unit 11, the shredding unit can destroy the recently cut stubble even during the raising process.

[0030] The links 22, 23 can be rigid components; in the case shown here, the upper of the two links 23 is formed by an actuator; by varying its length, the shredding unit can be driven to perform a pitching movement.

[0031] Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a shredding unit 11 and its connection to the collecting trough 4. A fitting for attachment to the rear of the collecting trough 4 is designated 24. The link 22 has the shape of a bracket that is hinged at both ends to the fitting 24 and centrally to the housing of the shredding unit 11. An actuator 25 engages the fitting 24 and the link 22 in order to raise the shredding unit 11 into a protected position, close to the collecting trough 4, when necessary. The link 23 is provided twice, on either side of the link 22; the chambers of their double-acting actuators are coupled to one another via hydraulic lines 26 such that the compression of one of the actuators drives the extension of the other, thus enabling a rolling movement of the shredding unit 11. Thus, the orientation of the crushing unit 11 can adapt to the contour of the ground during operation.

[0032] Mounted on the cover plate 12 of the housing are two angular gears 27, which are coupled to each other by a shaft 28 and to shaft 16 or 17 by another gear 29. The angular gears 27 each drive an output shaft that extends perpendicular to the cover plate 12 into the interior of the housing.

[0033] As in Fig. 5 As can be seen, each of these output shafts 30 is rotationally fixed to one of the shafts already described with reference to Fig. 3The outer side of the cap 20 facing the ground 21 is spherically or rotationally ellipsoidally curved, with a rotational axis 31 of the output shaft 30 coinciding with the short axis of the ellipse. On a circumference 32 of the cap 20, two shredding elements 33 are mounted in a mirror image of each other to form an underfloor shredder 34. The shredding elements 33 are connected to the cap 20 by an articulated pivot axis 35 parallel to the rotational axis 31, so that the shredding elements 33 can deflect if they strike a non-yielding obstacle.

[0034] The radius of the circumference 32 is smaller than the distance between the plane defined by the radius 32 and a point 36 at which the axis of rotation 31 crosses the underside of the cap 20. The surface of the cap 20 therefore always runs at a small angle to the ground 21, so that the cap 20 can safely follow a moderately uneven ground surface.

[0035] When striking a corn stubble, the shredding element 33 must not retreat, but rather shatter it and break it into a multitude of fragments. To achieve this, the weight of the shredding element 33 should exceed that of the stubble several times over. Therefore, the shredding element 33 is not a narrow blade, but rather a squat metal body with an extension in the direction of the rotation axis of several millimeters or even centimeters. In the case shown here, the shredding element 33 has an H-shaped cross-section, which can be derived from a basic cylindrical shape by cutting out a groove 37 on the top and bottom.

[0036] The cap 20 and the crushing element 33 are subjected to considerable frictional stress during operation and should therefore be made of sufficiently wear-resistant steel. To further improve the service life of the cap 20 and the crushing element 33, a hard, durable coating, particularly a PTA coating, can be provided on the outside of the cap 20 and the impact surfaces of the crushing element 33.

[0037] The cross-section of the shredding element 33 is symmetrical with respect to a plane passing through the rotation axis 31. The shredding element 33 thus has two impact surfaces 38, of which only one is used at a time. This simplifies the assembly of the shredding units 11, since the subsequent direction of rotation of the underfloor shredder 34 does not need to be taken into account. Furthermore, the detachable fastening of the shredding elements 33 shown here allows the user to reverse them when one of the impact surfaces 38 becomes worn.

[0038] The extension of the shredding element 33 in the radial direction is determined by the requirement that during operation no stubble may reach the calotte 20 intact and be pressed to the ground by it, but that it must be reliably hit and shattered beforehand by a shredding element 33 rotating about the axis 30. Consequently, in the time that the harvesting machine needs to cover the length of the shredding element 33, the area in front of the calotte 20 must be swept over at least once by a shredding element 33, i.e. the gears of the harvesting machine and the harvesting attachment, which couple the shredding unit to the engine of the harvesting machine, must ensure a transmission ratio in which the product of the radial extension of the shredding elements 33, the number of shredding elements 33 on a calotte 20 and the rotational speed of the calotte 20 is greater than the driving speed of the harvesting machine.

[0039] The rocking motion of the shredding unit 11 allows each of the two calottes 20 to be kept essentially continuously in contact with the ground 21, so that the shredding elements 33 can grasp and shred the stubble at a constant, small distance from the ground, even on moderately uneven ground, so that any residues remaining in the ground are no longer large enough to serve as a winter shelter for a pest. Reference symbol

[0040] 1 Harvesting header 2 Harvesting unit 3 Tip 4 Collecting tray 5 Auger 6 Opening 7 Middle section 8 Side section 9 Actuator 10 Axle 11 Shredding unit 12 Top 13 Side wall 14 Skirt 15 Housing 16 Shaft 17 Shaft 18 Bellows 19 Blade 20 Cap 21 Base 22 Link 23 Link 24 Fitting 25 Actuator 26 Hydraulic line 27 Angle gear 28 Shaft 29 Gearbox 30 Output shaft 31 Rotation axis 32 Circumference 33 Shredding element 34 Underfloor chopper 35 Swivel axis 36 Point 37 Groove 38 Impact surface

Claims

1. A harvester front attachment (1) for a self-propelled harvesting machine, with a harvesting unit (2) for cutting and collecting parts of a plant crop to be harvested which are at a distance from the ground, and a shredding unit (11) for shredding parts of the plant crop which are close to the ground and which are not collected by the harvesting unit (2), which comprises at least one underfloor chopper (34) that is movably coupled to the harvesting unit (2), surrounded by a housing (12 - 14) and supported on the ground (21) during operation, characterized in that the underfloor chopper (34) is supported on the ground (21) by a dome (20) which is driven in rotation about an axis of rotation (31), which in particular is vertical, and which carries at its periphery (32) a plurality of shredding elements (33) which revolve about the axis of rotation (31).

2. The harvester front attachment according to claim 1, in which each of the shredding elements (33) is pivotally articulated on the periphery (32) of the dome (20) about an axis (35) which is parallel to the axis of rotation (31).

3. The harvester front attachment according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the radius of the periphery (32) of the dome (20) on which the shredding elements (33) are disposed is larger than the distance measured along the axis of rotation (31) between the periphery (31) and a lowermost point (36) of the dome (20).

4. The harvester front attachment according to one of claims 1 to 3, in which an underside of the dome (20) is spherical or is a flattened ellipse, at least around the axis of rotation (31).

5. The harvester front attachment according to one of claims 1 to 4, in which the shredding elements (33) have blunt impact surfaces (38).

6. The harvester front attachment according to claim 5, in which each shredding element (33) has a respective front and a rear impact surface (38) with respect to its direction of rotation.

7. The harvester front attachment according to one of claims 1 to 6, in which the shredding elements (33) and / or the dome (20) have a PTA coating.

8. The harvester front attachment according to one of the preceding claims, in which the housing (12 - 14) is common to a plurality of, preferably two, underfloor choppers (34).

9. The harvester front attachment according to claim 7, in which the housing (12 - 14) is movable relative to the harvesting unit (1) by tilting.

10. The harvester front attachment according to claim 7 or claim 8, in which the housing (12 - 14) is connected to the harvesting unit (1) via a plurality of connecting rods (22, 23) which form a four-bar linkage in side view and / or which are separated in the width direction and / or of which at least one comprises an actuator or is coupled to an actuator (25).

11. The harvester front attachment according to one of the preceding claims, in which the housing has a top plate (12) through which the axis of rotation (31) extends, and walls (13, 14) which extend downwards from edges of the top plate (12), wherein the walls (13, 14) preferably extend to below the plane of the periphery (32) and are preferably flexible, at least in part.

12. A harvesting machine with a harvester front attachment (1) according to one of claims 1 to 7, in which the shredding unit (11) is coupled to a propulsion unit of the harvesting machine in a manner such that the speed of rotation of the shredding elements (33) is a multiple of the driving speed of the harvesting machine.

13. The harvesting machine with a harvester front attachment according to one of claims 1 to 7, in which the shredding unit (11) is coupled to a propulsion unit of the harvesting machine in a manner such that the product of the radial extent of the shredding elements (33), the number of shredding elements (33) on one dome (20) and the rotational speed of the dome (20) is larger than the driving speed of the harvesting machine.