Underground crop harvester

Abstract

To provide an underground crop harvester having a colter which can surely cut foliages.SOLUTION: An underground crop harvester which digs and harvests the underground crop while traveling along a ridge, includes: a digging part for digging the underground crop; and a deliver part for delivering the underground crop dug by the digging part. The digging part includes a digging blade and a colter. The colter includes: a first colter provided on right-left outer lateral sides of the digging part; and a second colter provided at least on one outer side of the right-left sides of the digging part and provided on a front side of the first colter.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an in-ground crop harvester for harvesting in-ground crops such as potatoes. [Background technology]

[0002] Harvesting machines for potatoes, beets, etc. are equipped with a digging section that travels along the furrows and digs up the crops from the ground, a transporting and separating section that separates the dug-up crops from the soil during transport and also removes the stems and leaves, and a tank to store the transported crops.Self-propelled or tractor-towed types are widely used. The digging section of such an underground crop harvester is known to use a cutter located in front of the digging mouth to create a slit on the side of the ridge, and then dig up the ridge cut by the cutter with a digging blade (shovel) and pile it up onto a transport conveyor (Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-77081 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When digging up crops, if long stems and leaves are dug up, they can become tangled in the digging blade or conveyor, making harvesting impossible. This requires the harvester to be stopped temporarily to remove the tangled stems and leaves. To address this issue, the long stems and leaves are prevented from being dug up by using a coulter to cut off the stems and leaves that extend over the sides of the ridges, but this is not effective enough, and there is a problem in that the long stems and leaves often become tangled in the digging blades or transport conveyors, making it impossible to carry out the harvesting work.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an in-ground crop harvester equipped with a coulter that can solve the above-mentioned problems caused by the coulter and reliably cut stems and leaves. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve such problems, the present invention has the following configuration. An in-ground crop harvester that digs up and harvests in-ground crops while traveling along furrows, The system includes a digging unit that digs up underground crops and a transport unit that transports the underground crops dug up by the digging unit, The digging unit has a digging blade and a coulter, An in-ground crop harvester characterized in that the coulters include a first coulter arranged on both the left and right outer sides of the digging section, and a second coulter arranged on at least one of the left and right outer sides of the digging section and in front of the first coulter. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The underground crop harvester of the present invention can reliably cut stems and leaves using coulters including a first coulter located on both the left and right outer sides of the digging section and a second coulter located in front of the first coulter on at least one of the left and right outer sides of the digging section, thereby preventing long stems and leaves from becoming tangled in the digging blades or transport conveyor, making it impossible to carry out the harvesting work. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a right side view of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 1 is a left side view of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 1 is a front view of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 1 is a plan view of a digging section 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 is a perspective view of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the upper right. [Figure 6] 1 is a perspective view of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from above left. [Figure 7] 1 is a right side view of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention, with the digging unit 1 and the right side plate 21R of the first transfer conveyor 2 removed. [Figure 8] 1 is a front view of a main part of a digging unit 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 1 is a plan view of a main part of a digging section 1 and a first transfer conveyor 2 of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] [Embodiment] Hereinafter, a potato harvester will be described as an example of an in-ground crop harvester according to an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals in different drawings indicate parts with the same functions, and duplicated descriptions in each drawing will be omitted as appropriate. For ease of explanation, terms indicating directions such as up, down, front, rear, right, and left are used, but the direction of gravity is downward, and the opposite is upward. Furthermore, the direction in which the in-ground crop harvester moves is forward, and the opposite is backward. Furthermore, when facing forward, the right side is the right side, and the left side is the left side.

[0010] [Overall structure] The underground crop harvester of this embodiment is attached to the towing hitch of a tractor (not shown) and is towed with at least the digging part protruding (offset) to the right from the rear of the tractor, and harvests potatoes, an underground crop, in the adjacent ridge to the right of the ridge that the tractor is driving across. In addition, the underground crop harvester may be towed with at least the digging unit offset to the left from the rear of the tractor, so as to harvest the ridge adjacent to the left of the ridge that the tractor is driving across, or it may be towed with at least the digging unit positioned behind the tractor, so as to harvest the ridge that the tractor is driving across. Furthermore, the in-ground crop harvester may be a self-propelled type, rather than being towed by a tractor.

[0011] The underground crop harvester includes a digging section 1, a first transfer conveyor 2, a second transfer conveyor (not shown), a storage tank (not shown), and the like. The underground crop harvester travels along the ridges, digging up the crops underground using the digging section 1, and then transports the dug-up crops using the transport section consisting of multiple transport conveyors, including the first transport conveyor 2 and the second transport conveyor, while also separating soil, sand, stems and leaves from the crops and storing them in a storage tank. The first transfer conveyor 2 and the second transfer conveyor are driven by power transmitted from a PTO (not shown) of a tractor.

[0012] A transport frame 22 extending horizontally in the front-to-rear direction is attached to the outside of the left plate 21L and right plate 21R of the first transport conveyor 2. The transport frame 22 is made up of a left transport frame 22L attached to the outside of the left plate 21L, a right transport frame 22R attached to the outside of the right plate 21R, and a front transport frame 22F connecting the front end of the right transport frame 22R with the front end of the left transport frame 22L. In a plan view, the front transport frame 22F is positioned behind the cutting edge of the digging blade 11, which will be described later (see Figures 1, 2, and 4). The right conveying frame 22R further extends forward to form the right digging frame 15R that constitutes the digging frame 15. In this embodiment, the right conveying frame 22R and the right digging frame 15R are formed integrally, but they may also be formed separately and the right conveying frame 22R and the right digging frame 15R may be connected together. The digging frame 15 is composed of a left digging frame 15L attached to the left side of the front conveying frame 22F facing forward, a right digging frame 15R, and a front digging frame 15F connecting the front ends of the right digging frame 15R and the left digging frame 15L. In a plan view, the front digging frame 15F is positioned in front of the suppression roller 12 (see FIG. 9), which will be described later.

[0013] [Excavation section] The digging section 1 has a digging blade 11, a pressure roller 12, a first coulter 13, a second coulter 14, and a digging frame 15. The digging unit 1 is arranged at the front of the underground crop harvester, and digs up the crops buried in the soil of the furrows together with the soil, and places them on the first transport conveyor 2 at the rear. The digging blade 11 is attached to a support rod protruding forward from a digging blade support frame 24, which is installed between the left side plate 21L and the right side plate 21R of the first conveying conveyor 2, in front of the front end of the first conveying conveyor 2 (see Figure 9). Digging blade 11 is a rectangular plate in plan view, with a pointed front end and a shovel-like function that penetrates into the soil of the furrows and digs up the soil and crops. In this embodiment, three digging blades, left digging blade 11L, center digging blade 11C, and right digging blade 11R, are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the direction of travel (horizontal direction). Center digging blade 11C is wider than left digging blade 11L and right digging blade 11R.

[0014] The suppression roller 12 is attached to the front digging frame 15F of the digging frame 15 in front of the digging blade 11. The pressing roller 12 has a drum-like shape that matches the shape of the ridges, and presses the stems and leaves on the ridges against the ridge surface, making it possible to dig up the soil and stems and leaves in the ridges all at once. In this embodiment, the suppression roller 12 is mounted on the front digging frame 15F with a suppression roller position adjustment mechanism 121 that can adjust its vertical position according to the height of the ridges, etc. The suppression roller position adjustment mechanism 121 is attached to the front digging frame 15F and has a suppression roller position adjustment rod 121a that is extendable and retractable by a screw mechanism, and the vertical position of the suppression roller 12 can be adjusted by rotating a suppression roller position adjustment handle 121b attached to the upper end of the suppression roller position adjustment rod 121a.

[0015] In this embodiment, a first coulter 13 and a second coulter 14 are provided as the coulters. The first coulter 13 is composed of a left first coulter 13L arranged on the left outer side of the digging section 1 and a right first coulter 13R arranged on the right outer side. The second coulter 14 is disposed on the right outer side of the digging section 1 and in front of the right first coulter 13R. The left first coulter 13L is supported by a left first coulter support arm 131L attached to the rear end of the left digging frame 15L of the digging frame 15, and the right first coulter 13R is supported by a right first coulter support arm 131R attached to the rear end of the right digging frame 15R. The first coulter 13 is disposed on the outside of the section extending from the rear of the suppression roller 12 to the digging blade 11. The rear end of the first coulter 13 is located near the rear end of the digging blade 11 (the front end of the conveyor belt 23), and the front end of the first coulter 13 is located slightly behind the center of rotation of the suppression roller 12. The front-to-rear position of the first coulter 13 can also be appropriately modified in design. A disc coulter with an uneven outer periphery cut into an arc shape is used as the first coulter 13. The first coulter 13 cuts grooves on both the left and right sides of the ridge where digging work is to be performed, making it easier for the digging blade 11 to dig up, and by cutting the stems and leaves on the ridge where digging work is to be performed and the stems and leaves extending from the ridges on either side of that, it prevents long stems and leaves from being dug up and becoming entangled in the digging blade 11 or transport conveyors such as the first transport conveyor 2 and the second transport conveyor.

[0016] The second coulter 14 is rotatably supported by a second coulter support arm 141 attached to a portion of the intermediate digging frame 15C, which is erected near the midpoint between the left digging frame 15L and the right digging frame 15R of the digging frame 15 (above the suppression roller 12), that protrudes outward from the right digging frame 15R (see Figures 4, 5, 7, etc.). The second coulter support arm 141 is attached to the intermediate digging frame 15C so that its position can be adjusted left and right, allowing the left and right position of the second coulter 14 to be adjusted depending on the row width, the condition of the stems and leaves, etc. A rotating frame 142 is rotatably connected to the lower end of the second coulter support arm 141, and an axle frame 143 is attached to the front end of the rotating frame 142. The second coulter 14 is pivotally supported at the lower end of the axle frame 143.

[0017] Between the tip of the upper rod mounting frame 1411 protruding forward from the second coulter support arm 141 and the side (upper end) of the shaft frame 143 opposite to the side supporting the second coulter 14, there are interposed a second coulter position adjustment mechanism 144 for adjusting the vertical position of the second coulter 14, and a biasing means 145 for biasing the second coulter 14 to rotate downward. The second coulter position adjustment mechanism 144 has an upper rod 144a and a lower rod 144b. The upper rod 144a and the lower rod 144b are connected so as to be slidable in the axial direction, and a biasing means 145 is interposed between the upper rod 144a and the lower rod 144b. The upper rod 144a is attached to an upper rod mounting frame 1411 by a screw mechanism so as to be movable forward and backward. By turning a handle 144c attached to the upper rod 144a, the upper rod 144a can be moved forward and backward relative to the upper rod mounting frame 1411, and the vertical position of the second coulter 14 can be adjusted via the biasing means 145 and the lower rod 144b. In this embodiment, a compression coil spring is used as the biasing means 145, but other known biasing means can also be used.

[0018] The second coulter 14 is positioned outward from the suppression roller 12. The rear end of the second coulter 14 is located forward of the center of rotation of the suppression roller 12 and rearward of the front end of the suppression roller 12, while the front end of the second coulter 14 is located forward of the front end of the suppression roller 12. The second coulter 14 cuts the stems and leaves forward of the suppression roller 12. By positioning the second coulter 14 slightly forward of the suppression roller 12 in this way, it is possible to prevent long stems and leaves from becoming entangled in the suppression roller 12. The second coulter 14 is positioned outward of the right first coulter 13R, and the rear end of the second coulter 14 is positioned forward of the front end of the right first coulter 13R. In other words, the right first coulter 13R and the second coulter 14 are positioned so that they do not overlap in a side view. The second coulter 14 is a disc coulter with a circular outer periphery.

[0019] The first coulter 13 can also cut stems and leaves. However, as in this embodiment, when the in-ground crop harvester is towed offset to the right of the tractor and harvests the furrow to the right of the furrow the tractor is traveling across, the furrow the tractor is traveling across is a harvested furrow, the furrow to the right of that furrow is being harvested, and the furrow to the right of the furrow being harvested is an unharvested furrow. In other words, the furrow to the right of the in-ground crop harvester is unharvested, and long, uncut stems and leaves may extend from this furrow to the furrow being harvested. For this reason, on the right side of the digging unit 1, the right first coulter 13R alone cannot adequately cut stems and leaves, and it is not possible to adequately prevent the long stems and leaves from becoming entangled in the digging blade 11 or the conveyors such as the first conveyor 2 and the second conveyor. Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to reliably cut the stems and leaves extending from this right lateral ridge, a second coulter 14 is attached to the outer right side of the digging unit 1. The ridge on the left side of the digging unit 1 (the ridge that the tractor is straddling) has already been harvested, and the stems and leaves have been cut, so they will not become entangled in the digging blade 11 or the transport conveyors such as the first transport conveyor 2 and the second transport conveyor, and so a second coulter 14 is not attached to the outer left side of the digging unit 1.

[0020] Depending on the travel route for harvesting work, there may be unharvested ridges on the left side of the digging section 1. In such cases, it is sufficient to attach the second coulter 14 to the left outer side of the digging section 1. Furthermore, if there are unharvested ridges on both the left and right sides of the digging section 1, or if unharvested ridges alternate on the left and right sides of the digging section 1, the second coulter 14 can also be installed on both the left and right outer sides of the digging section 1. In the case of an in-ground crop harvester that is towed in an offset position to the left outside of the tractor and harvests the furrow to the left of the furrow that the tractor is driving across, or in the case of an in-ground crop harvester that is towed in a position behind the tractor and harvests the furrow that the tractor is driving across, the second coulter 14 can be attached to the right outside and / or left outside of the digging section 1 depending on the type of work.

[0021] In this embodiment, the second coulter 14 is positioned in front of the right first coulter 13R, so that the long stems and leaves are first cut by the second coulter 14, and then the remaining long stems and leaves are cut by the right first coulter 13R, thereby reliably preventing the long stems and leaves from being dug up by the digging blade 11 or the first conveying conveyor 2.

[0022] There are also various types of coulters, including disc coulters with an uneven outer periphery, which has arc-shaped notches cut into it, and disc coulters with a circular outer periphery. Disc coulters with uneven outer peripheries rotate independently in the field, reducing the running resistance of the underground harvester, but the cutting effect is reduced in the notched areas. Circular disc coulters may slip and not rotate in the field, increasing the running resistance of the underground harvester, but they can reliably cut stems and leaves over the entire periphery. Therefore, in this embodiment, a circular disc coulter is used as the second coulter 14 and an uneven disc coulter is used as the first right coulter 13R. This allows most of the long stems and leaves to be cut first by the front second coulter 14. Then, the rear first right coulter 13R cuts the remaining long stems and leaves, and the cut stems and leaves are buried in the field with their cutouts to prevent them from being dug up. This more reliably prevents not only the long stems and leaves but also the cut short stems and leaves from being dug up by the digging blade 11 and the first transport conveyor 2.

[0023] Furthermore, in this embodiment, by positioning the second coulter 14 outward of the right first coulter 13R, the ridge-side portions of the stems and leaves cut by the second coulter 14 can be buried in the ground by the right first coulter 13R, and the stems and leaves that could not be cut by the second coulter 14 can be re-cut at a location other than the location that could not be cut by the second coulter 14, thereby ensuring that the stems and leaves are not dug up by the digging blade 11 or the first transport conveyor 2.

[0024] In this embodiment, the first coulter 13 and the second coulter 14 are not driven by power, but it is also possible to configure either one or both of them to be rotationally driven by power. In addition, in this embodiment, the first coulter 13 is a disc coulter with uneven surfaces and the second coulter 14 is a circular disc coulter, but depending on the type of harvested crop, the condition of the stems and leaves (long / short, thick / thin, etc.) and the working method will vary, so it is possible to freely select and install the first coulter 13 and the second coulter 14 from a disc coulter with uneven surfaces, a circular disc coulter, etc., depending on the actual harvested crop and working method.

[0025] [Transport section] The transport section has a first transport conveyor 2 and a second transport conveyor, and of these, the first transport conveyor 2 that transports the crops dug up by the digging section 1 will be described. The first transfer conveyor 2 has side plates 21, a transfer frame 22, and a transfer belt . The first transport conveyor 2 transports the crops dug up in the digging section 1 rearward and separates the crops from soil, sand, stems and leaves, etc. The side plates 21 have a left side plate 21L and a right side plate 21R, and support the entire first transfer conveyor 2. As described above, the left transfer frame 22L and the right transfer frame 22R are supported on the outsides of both the left side plate 21L and the right side plate 21R. The conveyor belt 23 is composed of a number of rod-shaped conveyors 234 stretched between a plurality of rollers 231 supported by the left conveyor frame 22L and the right conveyor frame 22R, and left and right support belts 233 stretched around the rearmost gear 232. The conveyor belt 23 is inclined so that it becomes higher from the front to the rear. Note that, of the conveyors 234, those returning from the rear to the front are not shown in Figures 3 to 6. A conveyor 234 fixed to the support belt 233 is driven by the rearmost gear 232. The support belt 233 is also supported by a plurality of intermediate rollers.

[0026] In this embodiment, a potato harvester has been described as an example of an in-ground crop harvester, but the present invention can also be applied to harvesters for potatoes such as sweet potatoes and taro, and beets.

[0027] The embodiments of the underground crop harvester according to the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings, but the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and the present invention also includes design changes that do not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0028] 1 Excavation section 11 Digging blade 11L left digging blade 11R Right digging blade 11C Central digging blade 12 Suppression Roller 121 Suppression roller position adjustment mechanism 121a Suppression roller position adjustment rod 121b Suppression roller position adjustment handle 13 First Coulter 13L Left 1st Coulter 13R Right 1st Coulter 131L Left first coulter support arm 131R Right first coulter support arm 14 Second Coulter 141 Second coulter support arm 1411 Upper rod mounting frame 142 Rotating frame 143 Axle Frame 144 2nd coulter position adjustment mechanism 144a Upper rod 144b Lower rod 144c handle 145 Actuation means 15 Excavation Frame 15L left digging frame 15R Right Excavation Frame 15F Front Excavation Frame 15C Intermediate Excavation Frame 2. First conveyor 21 Side panel 21L left side plate 21R Right side plate 22 Transport frame 22L left transport frame 22R Right transport frame 22F Front transport frame 23 Conveyor belt 231 Laura 232 Gear 233 Support Belt 234 Carrier 24 Digging blade support frame

Claims

1. An in-ground crop harvester that digs up and harvests in-ground crops while traveling along furrows, The system includes a digging unit that digs up underground crops and a transport unit that transports the underground crops dug up by the digging unit, The digging unit has a digging blade and a coulter, The coulters include a first coulter arranged on both the left and right outer sides of the digging section, and a second coulter arranged in front of the first coulter on at least one of the left and right outer sides of the digging section.

2. 2. The underground crop harvester according to claim 1, wherein the second coulter is disposed outside the first coulter.

3. 2. The underground crop harvester according to claim 1, wherein the rear end of the second coulter is located forward of the front end of the first coulter.

4. 2. The underground crop harvester according to claim 1, wherein the second coulter is adjustable in its position in the left-right direction.

5. 2. The underground crop harvester according to claim 1, wherein one of the first coulter and the second coulter is a disc coulter having a circular outer periphery, and the other is a disc coulter having an uneven outer periphery.

6. A compression roller for compressing the ridges is disposed in front of the digging section, 6. The underground crop harvester according to claim 1, wherein a front end of the second coulter is located forward of a front end of the pressure roller.

7. 7. The underground crop harvester according to claim 6, wherein the rear end of the second coulter is located rearward of the front end of the packing roller.

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