Angled Flange Attachment for Corn Stalk Flattening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Stronger corn stalks are causing wear and damage to harvesting equipment, particularly combine tires, due to their resilience and the inefficiency of current solutions to address this issue.
Innovation Solution
An attachment for a combine harvesting head, featuring a plate with a flange connected at an angle, which is mounted to the toolbar and designed to knock over corn stalks without requiring the attachment to contact the ground, thereby reducing tire damage and facilitating equipment transport.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If corn stalks are left standing after harvest, then harvesting efficiency is improved, but equipment wear and tire damage increase due to resilient stalks
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment knocks over corn stalks immediately after harvest while the harvesting head is still in position, eliminating the need for separate stalk management operations. This preliminary action prevents stalks from interfering with equipment during transport and subsequent field operations, thereby reducing wear and damage while maintaining harvesting efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment serves as an intermediary device between the harvesting head and the corn stalks, physically contacting and flattening the stalks. This intermediary action protects the combine tires and other equipment from direct contact with resilient stalks, reducing damage while allowing the harvesting operation to proceed efficiently.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If harvesting head is removed from combine for transport, then equipment protection is improved, but operational time and convenience deteriorate due to manual manipulation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment design extracts the stalk-flattening function from the main combine body, allowing it to be easily removed and transported independently. The flange with mounting apertures enables quick detachment and attachment operations, eliminating the need for complex manipulation during loading and unloading, thus saving operational time while maintaining equipment protection benefits.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment is segmented into distinct components (flange, mounting apertures, main body) that can be independently assembled and disassembled. This segmentation facilitates rapid attachment removal and reinstallation during transport operations, reducing the time and effort required for manual manipulation while preserving the protective function when attached.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If attachment contacts ground to flatten stalks, then stalk flattening effectiveness is improved, but equipment complexity and potential damage increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of contacting the ground directly to flatten stalks, the attachment operates in a different dimensional approach by positioning the main body above the ground and using its geometry to lever and flatten stalks as they pass underneath. This eliminates the need for complex ground-contact mechanisms while achieving effective stalk flattening, reducing device complexity and potential damage from ground contact.
Data Source
AI summary
An attachment of a harvesting head of a combine is disclosed. The attachment includes a main body and a flange fixedly connected to the main body. The flange is connected to the main body at an angle and the flange has at least one mounting aperture. The flange is configured to be attached to the harvesting head of a combine by the at least one mounting aperture. When the flange is attached to the harvesting head of the combine and the combine is performing a harvesting operation, a furthest portion of the main body away from the flange is positioned above a lowest portion of the harvesting head from a ground surface.