Modular design wheel drive system for sugarcane harvesting machine

Abstract

MODULAR DESIGN WHEEL DRIVE SYSTEM FOR SUGARCANE HARVESTING MACHINE The present disclosure provides a wheel drive system (100) for a sugarcane harvester.The wheel drive system (100) includes a variable displacement pump (102) driven by a prime mover (104),a hydraulic motor (106) connected with the variable displacement pump (102), a gearing arrangement (108) connected with the hydraulic motor (106),a chain drive (110) connected with the gearing arrangement (108) and one or more pairs of wheels (112) of the vehicle connected with the chain drive (110).The prime mover (104) operates the variable displacement pump (102) which actuates the hydraulic motor (106) which in turn operates the chain drive (110) through the gearing arrangement (108) and the chain drive (110) turns the one or more pairs of wheels (112) to provide driving force for movement of the vehicle. The wheel drive system (100) is advantageous to reduce fuel consumption during driving the vehicle mounted with the sugarcane harvester.

Description

Field of the Invention:

[0001] The present invention relates to agricultural equipment. More specificallyfocuses on the development of a wheel drive system that improves the efficiencyof the harvester. Background of the Invention:

[0002] Harvesting crops is a fundamental agricultural practice involving thecollection of ripe crops from the fields for further use. Traditionally, harvestinghas been performed manually, but with the advancement of technology, machinessuch as automatic harvesters have been introduced. Sugarcane harvesting, inparticular, presents unique challenges due to the labor-intensive tasks involved.These tasks include cutting the sugarcanes, removing leaves, and bundling them.To address these challenges, various sugarcane harvesting machines have beendeveloped and are currently available in the market. These machines are typicallymounted on a vehicle and powered by the engine of the vehicle. The movement ofthe vehicle is facilitated by the engine, wheels, and a transmission system thatconnects the engine to the wheels.

[0003] A hydro-mechanical wheel drive system is a type of power transmissionsystem that combines hydraulic and mechanical components to drive the wheelsof a vehicle. In this system, hydraulic power is utilized to transfer torque from theengine to the wheels, enabling efficient and controlled movement of the vehicle.The use of wheel drive systems is common in various types of vehicles, includingagricultural equipment like sugarcane harvesters. Conventionally, such systemsrely on mechanical components like gears and axles to transfer torque from theengine to the wheels, enabling movement of the vehicle. However, this traditionalapproach has certain limitations, particularly in heavy-duty applications wherehigh torque output is required.

[0004] A hydro-mechanical wheel drive system system includes an engine,hydraulic pump, hydraulic motor, and transmission system. The engine powersthe hydraulic pump, which pressurizes hydraulic fluid. This pressurized fluiddrives the hydraulic motor, converting hydraulic energy back into mechanicalenergy to rotate the wheels. The transmission system distributes torque from thehydraulic motor to the wheels. The hydro-mechanical system provides high torqueoutput, enhancing traction and maneuverability for heavy-duty applications likesugarcane harvesters. It also offers fuel efficiency benefits by optimizing energymanagement. This system improves the performance and productivity ofagricultural equipment in challenging harvesting conditions.

[0005] In the context of sugarcane harvesters, conventional wheel drive systemsoften struggle to provide sufficient torque to drive the heavy machinery, resultingin inefficiencies and reduced productivity. As a result, there has been a growingneed for more advanced wheel drive systems that can deliver the necessary powerand control to efficiently operate sugarcane harvesters.

[0006] Still, one significant issue faced by sugarcane harvesters is the lack ofsufficient torque provided by the engine to drive the vehicle and operate theharvesting functions. The substantial size and weight of the sugarcane harvestersmake it difficult for the engine to deliver the required torque for effectiveperformance. Attempts have been made to solve the problem of low torque insugarcane harvesters. One such solution is the use of a hydro-mechanical wheeldrive system, which combines hydraulic pumps and hydraulic motors to drive thewheels of the vehicle.

[0007] However, the conventional hydro-mechanical wheel drive systems havetheir own limitations. These systems employ separate hydraulic motors andhydraulic pumps for each wheel of the vehicle. As a result, they drain more powerfrom the engine, increasing fuel consumption and adding to the overall cost of thesugarcane harvesting machines.

[0008] Therefore, there is a need for an improved apparatus for sugarcaneharvesting that addresses the shortcomings of conventional sugarcane harvesters.The invention aims to develop a wheel drive system that overcomes the lowtorque problem encountered in conventional sugarcane harvesters whileminimizing power consumption and cost. By enhancing the efficiency of thewheel drive system, the invention seeks to improve the overall performance andproductivity of sugarcane harvesting operations. Object of the Invention:

[0009] The main objective of the present invention is to provide a wheel drivesystem for sugarcane harvester.

[0010] One more objective of the present invention is to provide a wheel drivesystem for sugarcane harvester, which requires less number of components ascompared to existing sugarcane harvesters.

[0011] Further, objective of the present invention is to provide a wheel drivesystem for sugarcane harvesters that is cost-effective compared to conventionalhydro-mechanical wheel drive systems.

[0012] Another objective of the invention is to create a wheel drive system that iseasy to manufacture and assemble.

[0013] Yet another objective of the present invention is to develop a wheel drivesystem that utilizes spare parts that are readily available in the local market andare low in cost.

[0014] Yet another objective of the present invention is to design a wheel drivesystem that can be easily integrated into the existing vehicle structure ofsugarcane harvesters.

[0015] Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a wheel drivesystem for sugarcane harvester, which is lesser in weight and reduces fuelconsumption. Summary of the Invention:

[0016] The present invention provides a wheel drive system for a sugarcaneharvester. The sugarcane harvester can be mounted on a chassis of a vehicle. Thewheel drive system may include variable displacement pump, hydraulic motor,gearing arrangement, chain drive and one or more pairs of wheels. The variabledisplacement pump can be arranged over the chassis. The variable displacementpump can be driven by a prime mover. Further, the hydraulic motor may berotatably connected with the variable displacement pump. The gearingarrangement may be rotatably connected with the hydraulic motor. Furthermore,the chain drive can be operatively connected with the gearing arrangement and theone or more pairs of wheels of the vehicle may be connected with the chain drive.During operation of the wheel drive system, the prime mover may operate thevariable displacement pump, which can actuate the hydraulic motor which in turnmay operate the chain drivethrough the gearing arrangement. In addition, thechain drive may turn the one or more pairs of wheels to provide driving force formovement of the vehicle.

[0017] In an implementation form, the prime mover may be a petrol engine or adiesel engine or an electric motor. In another implementation form, the wheeldrive system may include hydraulic reservoir having a predefined amount ofliquid stored therein. During operation, the variable displacement pump mayextract the liquid from the hydraulic reservoir and operates the hydraulic motor. Inyet another implementation form, the gearing arrangement may be a planetarygearbox or a spur gearbox or a helical gearbox.

[0018] In an implementation form, the chain drive may include one or more firstsprockets connected to an output shaft of the gearing arrangement, one or moresecond sprockets connected to wheel hubs of each wheel out of the one or morepairs of wheels and one or more chains arranged over the one or more firstsprockets and the one or more second sprockets. During operation of the wheeldrive system, the gearing arrangement may provide rotational motion to the one ormore first sprockets. The one or more first sprockets may transfer the rotationalmotion to the one or more second sprockets to drive the one or more pairs ofwheels. Brief description of drawings:

[0019] Figure 1 is a block diagram that depicts a wheel drive system for asugarcane harvester, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 2 is a layout of sugarcane harvesting machine mounted on wheeldrive system , in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Description of the Invention:

[0021] In order to overcome the defects of the prior art, the invention aims towheel drive system for a sugarcane harvester. The present invention proposes animproved wheel drive system for a sugarcane harvesting that aims to overcomethe limitations of conventional wheel drive mechanisms.

[0022] The use of a wheel drive hub with a hydraulic motor system presentscertain challenges that need to be addressed. One of the main concerns is the highcost associated with this type of system. Implementing a hydraulic motor systemfor wheel drive can involve significant expenses due to the specializedcomponents and engineering required. Additionally, the use of a hydraulic motorsystem for a two-wheel drive configuration typically requires the installation oftwo separate hydraulic motors, further contributing to the overall cost. This dualmotor setup adds complexity to the system and increases the expenses involved inmanufacturing and maintenance.

[0023] Moreover, the integration of a hydraulic motor system with the wheel drivehub often necessitates the use of specially designed wheel drives. Thesespecialized components are tailored to work with hydraulic motors, but they cancome at a higher cost compared to standard wheel drive systems. Another aspectto consider is the potential increase in fuel consumption associated with the use ofa hydraulic motor system. Hydraulic systems, including hydraulic motors,typically require a constant supply of pressurized hydraulic fluid to function. Thiscontinuous power requirement can result in higher fuel consumption, impactingthe overall efficiency and operating costs of the vehicle.

[0024] To address the challenges associated with low torque in heavy-dutyvehicles like sugarcane harvesters, the development of a hydro-mechanical wheeldrive system has been introduced. This innovative system combines hydraulic andmechanical components to transfer power from the engine to the wheels. Byutilizing hydraulic power, the hydro-mechanical wheel drive system providesenhanced control, flexibility, and torque output.

[0025] Referring to Fig. 1, the present disclosure provides a wheel drive system(100) for a sugarcane harvester. In an implementation, the sugarcane harvesterrefers to a self-propelled machine, which is configured to perform operations suchas cutting of sugarcanes, removing top portion and dry leaves from the sugarcanesand bundling of the sugarcanes for further disposal. In an implementation, thesugarcane harvester is mounted on a chassis of a vehicle. Examples of the vehiclemay include, but are not limited to, a petrol vehicle, a diesel vehicle, an electricvehicle and the like.

[0026] The wheel drive system (100) includes a variable displacement pump (102)arranged over the chassis. Moreover, the variable displacement pump (102) isdriven by a prime mover (104). In an implementation, the variable displacementpump (110) is a type of hydraulic pump that allows the flow rate and pressure of afluid being pumped to be varied based on the needs of the wheel drive system(100), by changing the volume of the fluid displaced with each revolution. In animplementation, the variable displacement pump (110) is an axial piston pumpor aswash plate pump. The variable displacement pump (110) maintains a precisecontrol over the flow rate of the fluid, which is advantageous to increase in energysavings and better performance over pumps used in the conventional hydromechanical wheel drive systems. The prime mover (104) refers to a device ormechanism, which is responsible for generating an initial or primary source ofpower that drives the vehicle. In accordance with an embodiment, the primemover (104) is a petrol engine or a diesel engine or an electric motor. In animplementation, the vehicle is a petrol vehicle and the prime mover (104) is thepetrol engine. In another implementation, the vehicle is a diesel vehicle and theprime mover (104) is the diesel engine. In yet another implementation, the vehicleis an electric vehicle and the prime mover (104) is the electric motor.

[0027] The wheel drive system (100) further includes a hydraulic reservoir havinga predefined amount of a hydraulic fluid stored therein. Moreover, duringoperation, the variable displacement pump (102) extracts the hydraulic fluid fromthe hydraulic reservoir and operates the hydraulic motor (106). The variabledisplacement pump (110) receives the hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic reservoirand supplies the pressurized fluid to the hydraulic motor. Examples of thehydraulic fluid may include, but are not limited to, mineral oil, synthetic oil, waterand the like.

[0028] The wheel drive system (100) further includes a hydraulic motor (106)rotatably connected with the variable displacement pump (102). The hydraulicmotor (106) refers to a rotary actuator, which rotates continuously in one directionwhen supplied with a pressurized fluid. The hydraulic motor (106) is a radialhydraulic motor or an axial hydraulic motor. The variable displacement pump(102) supplies the pressurized fluid to operate the hydraulic motor (106). Thehydraulic motor (106) is advantageous provide a high output torque and a widespeed range. In addition, the wheel drive system (100) includes a gearingarrangement (108) rotatably connected with the hydraulic motor (106). Thegearing arrangement (108) refers to a combination of plurality of gears, which aremeshed with each other to vary speed and torque from an input shaft to an outputshaft. In an implementation, an output shaft of the hydraulic motor (106) isoperatively connected with the input shaft of the gearing arrangement (108). Inaccordance with an embodiment, the gearing arrangement (106) is a planetarygearbox or a spur gearbox or a helical gearbox or a bevel gearbox. The gearingarrangement (108) is advantageous to vary torque transmitted from the hydraulicmotor (106) based on the requirements of the wheel drive system (100).

[0029] The wheel drive system (100) further includes a chain drive (110)operatively connected with the gearing arrangement (108) and one or more pairsof wheels (112) of the vehicle operatively connected with the chain drive (110).The chain drive refers to a mechanical power transmission system that uses achain to transfer rotational motion from the gearing arrangement (108) to the oneor more pairs of wheels (112). The one or more pairs of wheels (112) enables themovement of the vehicle from one position to another position. During operationof the wheel drive system (100), the prime mover (104) operates the variabledisplacement pump (102), which actuates the hydraulic motor (106). Furthermore,the hydraulic motor (106) operates the chain drive (110) through the gearingarrangement (108) and the chain drive (110) turns the one or more pairs of wheels(112) to provide driving force for movement of the vehicle.

[0030] In accordance with an embodiment, the chain drive (110) includesone ormore first sprockets connected to an output shaft of the gearing arrangement(106), one or more second sprockets connected to wheel hubs of each wheel outof the one or more pairs of wheels (112) and one or more chains arranged over theone or more first sprockets and the one or more second sprockets. In animplementation, the one or more first sprockets and the one or more secondsprockets are wheels with teeth or cogs around circumference and are used totransmit power between the gearing arrangement (108) and the one or more pairsof wheels (112). The number of one or more first sprockets and the one or moresecond sprockets depend on the number of the wheels from the one of more pairsof wheels (112). The diameter and number of teeth on the one or more firstsprockets and the one or more second sprockets depend on an output torqueneeded to cause movement of the vehicle. In the present embodiment, thediameter (and number of teeth) of the one or more second sprockets is greater thanthe diameter (and number of teeth) of the one or more first sprockets. The gearingarrangement (108) is advantageous to provide a variable output torque to theoutput shaft of the gearing arrangement (108). The amount of variable outputtorque is changed by a user or driver operating the vehicle by changing gearingrations.

[0031] In operation, the prime mover (104) provides rotational motion to thevariable displacement pump (102) and the variable displacement pump (102)sucks the hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic reservoir and supplies the pressurizedhydraulic fluid to the hydraulic motor (106). Further, upon receiving the hydraulicfluid, the hydraulic motor (106) rotates. The rotational motion from the hydraulicmotor (106) is transferred to an input shaft of the gearing arrangement (108). Thegearing arrangement (106) provides rotational motion to the one or more firstsprockets through the output shaft of the gearing arrangement (108). In animplementation, the output shaft of the gearing arrangement (108) providesrotational motion to the one or more first sprockets. The one or more firstsprockets further transfer the rotational motion to the one or more secondsprockets through the one or more chains to drive the one or more pairs of wheels(112).The wheel drive system (100) is capable of driving a 2-wheel drive withwheel hub with a single hydraulic motor, whereas the conventional hydro-mechanical wheel drive systems require two separate hydraulic motors for drivingthe 2-wheel drive.

[0032] Unlike the conventional hydro-mechanical wheel drive systems, whichrequire separate hydraulic motor to drive each wheel, the wheel drive system(100) is configured with only one hydraulic motor (106) for driving the one ormore pairs of wheels (112) (through the chain drive). Therefore, the wheel drivesystem (100) reduces fuel consumption of the vehicle mounted with the sugarcaneharvester by reducing the number of hydraulic motors without affecting outputtorque required to drive the one or more pairs of wheels (112). Furthermore, thewheel drive system (100) reduces weight of the vehicle and is cost-effective andfuel-efficient due to lesser number of components as compared to theconventional hydro-mechanical wheel drive systems.

Claims

1. A wheel drive system (100) for a sugarcane harvester, the sugarcane harvester is mounted on a chassis of a vehicle, the wheel drive system (100) comprises: a variable displacement pump (102) arranged over the chassis, the variable displacement pump (102) is driven by a prime mover (104), a hydraulic motor (106) rotatably connected with the variable displacement pump (102), a gearing arrangement (108) rotatably connected with the hydraulic motor (106), a chain drive (110) operatively connected with the gearing arrangement (108) and one or more pairs of wheels (112) of the vehicle connected with the chain drive (110), wherein, during operation of the wheel drive system (100), the prime mover (104) operates the variable displacement pump (102) which actuates the hydraulic motor (106) which in turn operates the chain drive (110) through the gearing arrangement (108) and the chain drive (110) turns the one or more pairs of wheels (112) to provide driving force for movement of the vehicle.

2. The wheel drive system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the prime mover (104) is a petrol engine or a diesel engine or an electric motor.

3. The wheel drive system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wheel drive system (100) further includes a hydraulic reservoir having a predefined amount of a hydraulic fluid stored therein, wherein during operation, the variable displacement pump (102) extracts the hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic reservoir and operates the hydraulic motor (106).

4. The wheel drive system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gearing arrangement (106) is a planetary gearbox or a spur gearbox or a helical gearbox or a bevel gearbox.

5. The wheel drive system (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the chain drive (110) includes one or more first sprockets connected to an output shaft of the gearing arrangement (106), one or more second sprockets connected to wheel hubs of each wheel out of the one or more pairs of wheels (112) and one or more chains arranged over the one or more first sprockets and the one or more second sprockets, wherein during operation of the wheel drive system (100), the gearing arrangement (106) provides rotational motion to the one or more first sprockets and the one or more first sprockets transfer the rotational motion to the one or more second sprockets to drive the one or more pairs of wheels (112).