Eccentric Star Conveyor for Maize Picker Crop Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing corn picker attachments for self-propelled combine harvesters face high wear and maintenance costs, uneven crop conveyance, and self-locking issues due to conveyor chains and star conveyors with changing angle of attack.
Innovation Solution
A self-propelled combine harvester attachment featuring a rotatably driven star conveyor with eccentric control, ensuring a constant angle of attack for driver fingers, reducing wear and maintenance, and preventing self-locking, while maintaining uniform crop conveyance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conveyor chains are used for conveying crops, then crop conveyance is achieved, but wear and maintenance costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive conveyor chains with star conveyors that have replaceable driver fingers. These fingers are simpler, cheaper components that can be easily replaced when worn, eliminating the high maintenance costs associated with conveyor chains while maintaining continuous crop conveyance capability.
2Reliability
If a star conveyor is used to reduce wear, then maintenance is reduced, but the angle of attack changes causing uneven crop conveyance
Solution Approach 1:
The driver fingers are designed to be rotatable about their own axes in addition to rotating with the star conveyor. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the fingers to maintain a constant angle of attack relative to the crop throughout the conveying cycle, ensuring uniform crop conveyance while preserving the low-maintenance advantage of the star conveyor design.
3Productivity
If driver fingers engage in the conveying area, then crop is grasped, but self-locking occurs and crops are deformed
Solution Approach 1:
The rotatable driver fingers dynamically adjust their orientation during the conveying cycle. By maintaining a constant angle of attack, the fingers grasp crops effectively during engagement while automatically reducing clamping pressure during disengagement, preventing self-locking and crop deformation caused by excessive or inconsistent gripping forces.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The attachment achieves low maintenance, uniform crop conveyance, and reduced self-locking risks, with a compact design that simplifies installation and improves crop separation efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
the rotational movement is effected by means of an eccentric control, it is ensured that the driver finger has the same angle of attack to the picking gap at all times when the star conveyor is rotating
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3a~3b
AI summary
Attachment (1) for a self-propelled combine harvester for harvesting maize with several intake and picking devices (4), each comprising a picking gap (8) formed from two spaced-apart picking plates (9), picking rollers arranged in pairs below the picking gap (8) and driven in opposite directions, and a chopping unit arranged below the picking rollers, wherein at least one rotatably driven conveying star (10) having at least one conveying finger (11) is associated on the upper side of the picking gap (8) in such a way that the conveying finger (11) captures crop material and conveys it along the picking gap (8), wherein the conveying star (10) rotatably receives the at least one conveying finger (11) and the rotational movement is effected by means of an eccentric control (25).