ELECTRIC GRINDING DEVICE

Abstract

Electric grinding device The present invention relates to a grinding device (1) arranged to reduce vine shoots or the like, remarkable in that it comprises at least: - a frame (2) determining a grinding chamber (4) provided with an upper inlet opening (5) and a lower outlet grid (6), and - grinding means arranged at least partly in said grinding chamber (4) between said inlet opening (5) and the outlet grid (6), said grinding means comprising at least: - a shaft (9) pivotally mounted on the frame (2) and driven in rotation by an electric motor (10) associated with a reduction gear (11), - cutting members (12) each comprising at least two blades (13) parallel to each other, and - counter-blades (14) fixed on and along said shaft (9) and each cooperating with two adjacent cutting members (12). Fig 1

Description

Title of the invention: ELECTRIC GRINDING DEVICE Technical field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to the general field of viticulture. It relates more specifically to a vine shoot crusher. State of the art

[0002] In the field of viticulture, more and more winegrowers are faced with the phenomenon of soil compaction. To counteract this phenomenon, some use the technique of plant cover: the practice of completely covering a plot of vines with various plants.

[0003] However, this phenomenon of soil compaction is further accentuated during the vine pruning season, because winegrowers have to destroy the cut vine shoots.

[0004] Indeed, for the destruction of cut vine shoots, wine growers implement one of the following solutions consisting of: - the use of thermal machines compacting the soil and emitting a large quantity of greenhouse gases (GHG), - the use of “conventional” vine shredders destroying plant cover, even on a light “tracked” type machine, - the destruction of vine shoots by fire, but this practice is increasingly prohibited in certain geographical areas due to the obvious risks of uncontrolled fires, or - the removal of vine shoots from the vineyard plot to destroy them outside the latter, this practice being considered less and less because the transformation of vine shoots into compost is preferred because it is useful to the vine (around 1.5t / hectare).

[0005] To limit soil compaction, some winegrowers opt for manual destruction, by personnel equipped with pruning shears, consisting of reducing the vine shoots into small pieces to allow their composting. However, this solution is painful, long and expensive. Summary of the invention

[0006] The aim of the present invention is therefore to propose a device for grinding cut vine shoots that is efficient, rapid, easy to implement and makes it possible to limit soil compaction while respecting the cover crops and the environment, said grinding device making it possible to reduce said vine shoots into pieces whose length is suitable for correct and rapid composting.

[0007] According to the invention, there is therefore proposed a crushing device arranged to reduce vine shoots or the like into pieces whose length is suitable for correct and rapid composting, remarkable in that it includes at least: - a frame in the form of a hollow cylindrical tube closed at each of its longitudinal ends by a lateral cheek and determining an internal grinding chamber, said frame comprising a longitudinal upper inlet opening and a lower outlet grid formed by a plurality of cutouts extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said frame and arranged one after the other along said longitudinal axis, and - grinding means arranged at least partly in said grinding chamber between said inlet opening and the outlet grid, said grinding means comprising at least: - a shaft pivotally mounted on the two side cheeks of the chassis around an axis of rotation A and driven in rotation by an electric motor arranged outside said chassis and associated with a reducer, - cutting members each fixed to a portion of the chassis wall located between two adjacent cutouts and each comprising two blades parallel to each other and extending at least partly inside the grinding chamber, and - counter-blades fixed on and along said shaft and each cooperating with two adjacent cutting members to reduce the cut vine shoots arriving through the inlet opening of the crushing chamber, the counter-blades being fixed so that they cooperate with the cutting members one after the other.

[0008] Advantageously, each cutting member has a generally U-shaped cross-section, the wings of which are formed by the two blades and connected to each other by a core, so as to define an internal space between said blades.

[0009] Each of the blades of each cutting member is advantageously generally diamond-shaped and comprises two lower inclined edges meeting at right angles to the core and two upper inclined edges coming from the free ends of said lower inclined edges and meeting in the vicinity of the axis of rotation A of the shaft of the grinding means, when said cutting member is fixed to the chassis.

[0010] Advantageously, each of the two upper inclined edges comprises a beveled edge.

[0011] According to a particular embodiment, each beveled edge of the two blades of each cutting member are oriented from bottom to top and in the direction of the inside towards the outside of said cutting member, so as to have the edge of each blade located on the outside of said cutting member.

[0012] Advantageously, each counter-blade comprises at least one curved tooth in the general shape of a hook.

[0013] According to a preferred embodiment, each tooth is in the form of a plate. presenting at least one fold.

[0014] The grinding means preferably comprise six counter-blades fixed in a helicoid on and along the shaft.

[0015] Advantageously, the electric motor is arranged along a substantially vertical axis, the reducer is then of the angle transmission type and the electric motor is associated with energy storage means. Brief description of the figures

[0016] Other advantages and characteristics will emerge more clearly from the following description of an embodiment of the invention with reference to the appended figures in which:

[0017] [Fig-1] is a perspective view of a device for crushing vine shoots according to the invention,

[0018] [Fig.2] is a front view of the grinding device of [Fig.l],

[0019] [Fig.3] is a perspective view from below of the grinding device of [Fig.l],

[0020] [Fig.4] is a top view of the grinding device of [Fig.l],

[0021] [Fig.5] is a vertical sectional view of the grinding device of [Fig.l] according to the VV axis of [Fig.4],

[0022] [Fig.6] is a perspective sectional view of the grinding device of [Fig.l] along the axis VV' of [Fig.4],

[0023] [Fig.7] is a vertical sectional view of the grinding device of [Fig.l] along axis VILVII' of [Fig.4],

[0024] [Fig.8] is an enlarged view of detail D of the grinding device of [Fig.7],

[0025] [Fig.9] is a front view of a counter-blade of the grinding device according to the invention,

[0026] [Fig. 10] is a side view of the counter blade of [Fig.9],

[0027] [Fig. 11] is a perspective view of a cutting member of the grinding device according to the invention,

[0028] [Fig.12] is a side view of the cutting member of [Fig.11]. Description of the embodiments

[0029] In Figures 1 to 12, there is shown, in accordance with the invention, a grinding device 1 intended to reduce the cut vine shoots, during the pruning of the vine, into pieces of 2 to 5 cm long, this length being adapted to obtain correct and rapid composting. Indeed, it is understood that pieces that are too long will take longer to degrade and will harm the quality of the compost.

[0030] Said grinding device 1 is arranged to rest on horizontal ground, advantageously by means of wheels not shown in the figures. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the ground may be more or less inclined, terms such as, for example, horizontal, vertical, upper or lower will then have to be adapted.

[0031] According to an advantageous embodiment, said grinding device 1 comprises at least: - a frame 2 in the overall shape of a hollow cylindrical tube closed at each of its longitudinal ends by a lateral cheek 3 and determining an internal grinding chamber 4, said frame 2 comprising an upper longitudinal inlet opening 5 and a lower outlet grid 6 formed by a plurality of cutouts 7 extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said frame 2 and arranged one after the other along said longitudinal axis, - grinding means arranged at least partly in said grinding chamber 4 between said inlet opening 5 and the outlet grid 6 and, preferably, - a feed hopper 8 secured to the chassis 2 at the right of the inlet opening 5 to allow the arrival of the cut vine shoots to the crushing chamber 4 via said inlet opening 5.

[0032] In the present application, the term "cylindrical" refers to the shape of a solid generated by a moving straight line, called a generator, passing respectively through the points of a closed curve (circle, ellipse, polygon, etc.) while remaining perpendicular to the plane of said closed curve.

[0033] Furthermore, to facilitate the installation of the grinding means in the grinding chamber 4, it is understood that the frame 2 is advantageously formed of several parts assembled together by suitable means such as, for example, screws or bolts.

[0034] The grinding means comprise at least: - a shaft 9 pivotally mounted on the two lateral cheeks 3 of the chassis 2 around an axis of rotation A, corresponding in a conventional manner to the longitudinal axis of said chassis 2, and driven in rotation by an electric motor 10 arranged outside said chassis 2 and associated, advantageously, with a reducer 11, - cutting members 12 each fixed on a portion of wall of the chassis 2 located between two adjacent cutouts 7, and each comprising two blades 13A, 13B parallel to each other and extending at least partly inside the grinding chamber 4, - counter-blades 14 fixed on and along said shaft 9 and each cooperating with two adjacent cutting members 12 to reduce the cut vine shoots arriving through the inlet opening 5 of the grinding chamber 4 into pieces 2 to 5 cm long.

[0035] Said axis of rotation A is advantageously substantially horizontal and preferably belongs to the longitudinal vertical plane of symmetry of the chassis 2.

[0036] Here, the term "substantially horizontal" or "substantially vertical" means an element or part of an element making an angle with the horizontal or the vertical between -15 and +15°.

[0037] In order to reduce the size of the crushing device 1 according to the invention to facilitate its movement between the rows of vines, the electric motor 10 is advantageously arranged along a substantially vertical axis and the reducer 11 is then of the angle transmission type. Furthermore, the electric motor 10 is supplied with energy by electrical energy storage means, not shown, such as, for example, at least one rechargeable or non-rechargeable battery.

[0038] With reference to Figures 11 and 12, each cutting member 12 advantageously has a generally U-shaped cross-section, the wings of which are formed by the two blades 13A, 13B and connected to each other by a core 15, advantageously in a removable manner, so as to define an internal space between said blades 13A, 13B. It goes without saying that the core 15 may be permanently fixed between the blades 13 without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0039] According to an advantageous embodiment, each cutting member 12 is fixed to a portion of wall of the chassis 2 located between two adjacent cutouts 7 so that the internal face of its core 15, that is to say the face located between its two blades 13A, 13B, is in abutment against the external face of said portion of wall and that each of its two blades 13 passes through the corresponding cutout 7 (Cf. [Fig.3]).

[0040] In this configuration, the width of the core 15 of each cutting member 12 is configured so that the blades 13A, 13B are each against one of the edges of the corresponding wall portion.

[0041] However, this configuration with a removable core 15 - blade 13 assembly is interesting, because it allows in particular: - replace blades 13 individually, - calibrate the internal space 16 between said two blades 13 (Cf. [Fig. 11]), and - fixing said cutting member 12 to the corresponding portion of the wall of the chassis 2 by means of the core 15 and suitable means such as, for example, screws or bolts.

[0042] Furthermore, each of the blades 13A, 13B of each cutting member 12 is advantageously generally diamond-shaped and comprises two lower inclined edges meeting at right angles to the core 15 and two upper inclined edges coming from the free ends of said lower inclined edges and meeting in the vicinity of the axis of rotation A of the shaft 9 of the grinding means, when said cutting member 12 is fixed to the chassis 2.

[0043] To cut the vine shoots, each of the two upper inclined edges comprises a beveled edge 17. Advantageously, the beveled edges 17 of the two upper inclined edges of the two blades 13A, 13B of each cutting member 12 are oriented from bottom to top and in the direction of the inside towards the outside of said cutting member 12. cutting member 12, so as to have the wire 18 of each blade 13A, 13B located on the outer side of said cutting member 12, that is to say on the side opposite the internal space 16 between the two blades 13 of the latter.

[0044] Here, the "edge" of a blade is the sharp edge which first penetrates the material being cut and which, consequently, will withstand the cutting pressure and break the material to be cut.

[0045] With reference to Figures 9 and 10, each counter-blade 14 comprises at least one tooth 19 in the form of a plate having at least one fold 20 to be advantageously curved in the general shape of a hook so as to be able to catch the vine shoots passing through the inlet opening 5 of the grinding chamber 4, then apply them against the blades 13A, 13B of two associated adjacent cutting members 12, in order to reduce them into pieces of 2 to 5 cm. Once the vine shoots have been cut by the blades 13A, 13B, each tooth 19 continues its rotation, driving the pieces of shoots towards the outside of the grinding device 1 according to the invention by passing through the corresponding cutout 7.

[0046] Furthermore, in order to limit the energy expenditure and consequently to increase the autonomy of the crushing device 1 according to the invention, the counter-blades 14 are fixed on and along said shaft 9 in such a way that said counter-blades 14 never cooperate simultaneously with their associated cutting member 12, but on the contrary that they cooperate one after the other. Thus, the electric motor 10 only needs to provide a torque necessary to make a single cut of at least one vine shoot at the level of one of the cutting member 12 - counter-blade 14 assemblies. Therefore, it is clear that at a constant rotation speed of the shaft 9, by limiting the necessary torque, the power and the energy expenditure are limited.

[0047] For this, according to an advantageous embodiment, the counter-blades 14 are fixed in a helical manner on and along said shaft 9. It goes without saying that the counter-blades 14 may be fixed in a completely different shape than a helical manner, without departing from the scope of the present invention. The important thing is that the counter-blades 14 are fixed in such a way that they only cooperate with the cutting members 12 one after the other.

[0048] In addition, the counter-blades 14 are advantageously six in number. Thus, the grinding means make six cuts per revolution of the shaft 9.

[0049] Similarly, if the blades 13A, 13B can be identical, it is advantageous to have one of the blades 13A, 13B higher than the other. This configuration makes it possible, for the same cutting member 12, to start cutting on one blade before attacking the second, which has the effect of limiting the torque required at the electric motor 10, of limiting the energy expenditure and consequently of increasing the autonomy of the grinding device 1 according to the invention.

[0050] A person skilled in the art will have no difficulty in sizing the various elements of the crushing means, in particular as a function of the usual diameters of the vine shoots and the capacity of the counter-blades 14 to catch several shoots at a time.

[0051] The grinding device 1 according to the invention finds a particular application for grinding vine shoots, but it goes without saying that it could be adapted for grinding plants or other similar types of branches.

[0052] Finally, it goes without saying that the examples of grinding device 1 in accordance with the invention which have just been described are only particular illustrations, in no way limiting the invention.

Claims

Claims

1. Crushing device (1) arranged to reduce vine shoots or the like into pieces whose length is suitable for correct and rapid composting, characterized in that it comprises at least: - a frame (2) in the form of a hollow cylindrical tube closed at each of its longitudinal ends by a lateral cheek (3) and determining an internal crushing chamber (4), said frame (2) comprising an upper longitudinal inlet opening (5) and a lower outlet grid (6) formed by a plurality of cutouts (7) extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said frame (2) and arranged one after the other along said longitudinal axis, and - crushing means arranged at least partly in said crushing chamber (4) between said inlet opening (5) and the outlet grid (6),said grinding means comprising at least: - a shaft (9) pivotally mounted on the two lateral cheeks (3) of the chassis (2) around an axis of rotation A and driven in rotation by an electric motor (10) arranged outside said chassis (2) and associated with a reduction gear (11), - cutting members (12) each fixed on a portion of wall of the chassis (2) located between two adjacent cutouts (7) and each comprising two blades (13A, 13B) parallel to each other and extending at least partly inside the grinding chamber (4), and - counter-blades (14) fixed on and along said shaft (9) and each cooperating with two adjacent cutting members (12) to reduce the cut vine shoots arriving through the inlet opening (5) of the grinding chamber (4), the counter-blades (14) being fixed in such a way that they cooperate with the cutting members (12) one after the other.,

2. Crushing device (1) according to claim 1 characterized in that each cutting member (12) has a generally U-shaped cross section, the wings of which are formed by the two blades (13A, 13B) and connected to each other by a core (15), so as to define an internal space between said blades (13A, 13B).

3. Crushing device (1) according to claim 2 characterized in that each of the blades (13A, 13B) of each cutting member (12) is generally diamond-shaped and has two lower inclined edges joining at the right of the core (15) and two upper inclined edges coming from the free ends of said lower inclined edges and joining in the vicinity of the axis of rotation A of the shaft (9) of the grinding means, when said cutting member (12) is fixed on the chassis (2)

4. Grinding device (1) according to claim 3 characterized in that each of the two upper inclined edges comprises a beveled edge (17).

5. Grinding device (1) according to claim 4 characterized in that each beveled edge (17) of the two blades (13A, 13B) of each cutting member (12) is oriented from bottom to top and in the direction of the inside towards the outside of said cutting member (12), so as to have the edge (18) of each blade (13A, 13B) located on the outside of said cutting member (12).

6. Crushing device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that each counter-blade (14) comprises at least one tooth (19) curved in the general shape of a hook.

7. Grinding device (1) according to claim 6 characterized in that each tooth (19) is in the form of a plate having at least one fold (20).

8. Grinding device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the grinding means comprise six counter-blades (14) fixed in a helical manner on and along the shaft (9).

9. Grinding device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the electric motor (10) is arranged along a substantially vertical axis and the reducer (11) is then of the angle transmission type and in that the electric motor (10) is associated with energy storage means.

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