Adjustable Axle Assembly for Varying Row Spacing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Agricultural vehicles with fixed wheel-track widths are unable to navigate fields with varying row spacings, as the distance between crop rows can differ significantly, leading to inefficiencies in product delivery and potential damage to crops.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable axle assembly that allows the wheel-track width of agricultural vehicles to change by moving axles within a frame member, utilizing a body and arm configuration that provides structural support and stability, enabling customization of wheel paths to accommodate different row spacings.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the wheel-track width is fixed, then the structural design is simple, but the vehicle cannot accommodate different row spacings
Solution Approach 1:
The axle assembly is designed with movable axles that can be adjusted along the longitudinal axis within the frame members. The axles transition from a fixed position to a dynamically adjustable position, allowing the wheel-track width to be modified according to different row spacing requirements while maintaining structural integrity through guide ways and positioning mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The axle assembly is divided into independent movable axle components and a stationary frame structure. Each axle can be independently adjusted within its frame member, allowing flexible configuration of wheel-track width without requiring redesign of the entire vehicle chassis, thus managing complexity through modular segmentation
2Adaptability or versatility
If the axle is made movable to adjust wheel-track width, then adaptability improves, but structural stability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Guide ways are introduced as intermediary structures between the movable axles and the frame members. These guide ways constrain the movement of axles to predetermined paths, ensuring that axial movement occurs only along the longitudinal axis while preventing lateral displacement or rotation, thus maintaining structural stability during adjustment
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic stabilization through controlled movement mechanisms. The axles are designed to move smoothly along defined trajectories within the frame, with positioning mechanisms that ensure stable placement at desired positions, balancing mobility with structural integrity
3Adaptability or versatility
If the axle moves within the frame member, then wheel-track width adjusts, but structural support during movement is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The first and second arms act as intermediary support structures that connect the movable axles to each other and to the frame members. These arms provide continuous structural support during the adjustment process, distributing loads and maintaining rigidity even as the axles move to different positions
Solution Approach 2:
The structural support system is designed to adapt dynamically during movement. The arms are configured to provide maximum support when axles are in motion and maintain stable load-bearing capacity at all positions, ensuring that structural strength is preserved throughout the adjustment range
Data Source
AI summary
An axle assembly for an agricultural vehicle that includes an axle configured to be coupled to a wheel. The axle comprises a body and a first arm extending from the body. The body is configured to be disposed within a frame member of the agricultural vehicle and to contact an inner surface of the frame member. Also, the axle is configured to move within the frame member to adjust a distance between the wheel and the frame member, and the first arm is configured to contact a second arm disposed within the frame member to provide structural support to the axle assembly as the axle moves within the frame member.