Forage Harvester Feed Roller Splined Coupling for Easy Disassembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing agricultural harvesters face difficulties in easily disassembling intake rollers for repair or maintenance due to their engagement with the main intake transmission, requiring heavy lifting equipment that is impractical in the field.
Innovation Solution
A connection arrangement featuring a gearbox shaft with ridges, a feed roller shaft with aligned ridges, a connecting shaft with a splined sleeve, and a locking element, allowing for easy disassembly and maintenance of the feed rollers without removing the main intake gear box.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the roller shafts are engaged into the main intake transmission, then the torque transmission is reliable, but the disassembly of intake rollers requires disassembly of the main intake gear box and heavy lifting equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The connection between the roller shaft and gearbox shaft is segmented into modular components: a roller shaft with external splines, a gearbox shaft with internal splines, and a separate locking element. This segmentation allows the roller shaft to be disconnected and removed independently from the gearbox, eliminating the need to disassemble the entire gear box while maintaining reliable torque transmission through the splined engagement during operation.
2Power
If the roller shafts are engaged into the main intake transmission, then the power transmission is efficient, but the weight of the assembly requires heavy lifting equipment for removal
Solution Approach 1:
The power transmission system is divided into separable modules: the roller shaft assembly can be detached from the gearbox shaft by removing the locking element, allowing the roller shaft to be lifted and removed independently. This maintains efficient power transmission during operation while enabling lightweight field maintenance without heavy equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The roller shaft is extracted as a separate serviceable component from the main transmission assembly. By providing a detachable connection through the splined interface and locking element, the roller shaft can be removed independently for field maintenance, eliminating the need to extract the entire gearbox assembly and heavy lifting equipment.
3Strength
If a rigid connection is used between feed roller and gear box, then the torque transmission is direct, but the disassembly requires disassembly of the main intake gear box
Solution Approach 1:
The rigid connection is segmented into a splined interface with a separate locking element. The external splines on the roller shaft engage with internal splines in the gearbox shaft to provide strong torque transmission, while the locking element secures the connection. This segmentation allows the roller shaft to be disconnected by simply removing the locking element, greatly simplifying disassembly compared to a permanently rigid connection.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking element is designed to be readily removable to allow preliminary disassembly of the roller shaft from the gearbox shaft before any further maintenance operations. This preliminary action enables field service without requiring disassembly of the entire gear box, reducing overall disassembly complexity.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~2A
Figure 3
AI summary
A connection arrangement for use in a forage harvester between a feed roller (6) and a gear box of a forage harvester is disclosed. A gearbox shaft (32) with a central through bore (34) is rotatingly supported in a gearbox housing (30) around an axis of rotation, an outer surface of a distal end of the gearbox shaft (32) being provided with ridges (36). A feed roller shaft (42) is rotatingly supported around the axis of rotation, the feed roller shaft (42) having a central blind bore (44) aligned with the central through bore (34) of the gearbox shaft (32), an outer surface of a distal end of the feed roller shaft (42) being provided with ridges (46). A connecting shaft (50) is located within the central bores (34, 44) of the gearbox shaft (32) and the feed roller shaft (42). A sleeve (70) having internal splines (72) is provided, surrounding the distal ends of the gearbox shaft (32) and the feed roller shaft (42). The splines (72) of the sleeve (70) match the ridges (36, 46) of the gearbox shaft (32) and the feed roller shaft (42) so as to provide torque transmission between the gearbox shaft (32) and the feed roller shaft (42). A locking element (80) secures the splined sleeve (70) axially in position about the distal ends of the gearbox shaft (32) and the feed roller shaft (42).