Picking Roller Spiral Drivers for Crop Chopping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing front attachments for harvesting stalky crops suffer from inefficiencies in chopping plant stalks due to overlapping crop treatment elements on picking rollers, leading to increased non-grain components processing, material clogging, and higher crop losses, especially with green stalks and tall weeds.
Innovation Solution
A front attachment with picking rollers featuring a helical inlet section and radially protruding crop treatment elements arranged in a spiral pattern, where drivers are offset in the circumferential direction, creating a continuous spiral-shaped gap for improved shearing and grinding, reducing the need for additional shredding devices and enhancing seed head separation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If overlapping arrangement of crop treatment elements is used on picking rollers, then plant stalks can be drawn in effectively, but intermediate spaces form in the longitudinal direction causing material to pass through without proper chopping
Solution Approach 1:
The invention transitions from a longitudinal gap arrangement to a circumferential offset arrangement of drivers. Instead of having gaps between drivers in the longitudinal direction, the drivers are offset in the circumferential direction around the roller axis, eliminating longitudinal intermediate spaces while maintaining effective stalk engagement.
Solution Approach 2:
The drivers are arranged with asymmetric offset in the circumferential direction rather than symmetric longitudinal spacing. This asymmetric circumferential arrangement ensures continuous coverage along the longitudinal axis while creating effective shearing action between adjacent drivers.
2Ease of operation
If overlapping crop treatment elements are used, then stalks can be gripped, but material gets stuck or clogging occurs especially with green stalks and tall weeds
Solution Approach 1:
The invention eliminates longitudinal intermediate spaces by arranging drivers with circumferential offset. This dimensional change ensures continuous coverage in the longitudinal direction, preventing green stalks and tall weeds from slipping through or causing clogging.
3Ease of operation
If overlapping arrangement is used, then plant stalks can be drawn in, but dry stalk material breaks off above the picking rollers entering the downstream harvesting machine
Solution Approach 1:
By arranging drivers with circumferential offset instead of longitudinal spacing, the invention eliminates the longitudinal intermediate spaces where dry stalk material would break off and enter the downstream harvesting machine, reducing crop loss.
4Ease of operation
If overlapping crop treatment elements are used, then stalks can be gripped, but seed heads detach before being stripped by picking plates increasing crop losses
Solution Approach 1:
The circumferential offset arrangement of drivers eliminates longitudinal intermediate spaces, preventing excessive stalk movement and vibration that would cause premature seed head detachment, thereby reducing crop losses.
5Productivity
If additional shredding devices are added below picking rollers, then stalk chopping is improved, but device complexity and energy consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention combines the stalk chopping function directly into the picking rollers by arranging drivers with circumferential offset. This integration eliminates the need for separate shredding devices, reducing device complexity while maintaining effective stalk chopping.
Solution Approach 2:
The picking rollers are designed to perform multiple functions: gripping plant stalks, chopping them effectively through the circumferential offset driver arrangement, and preventing intermediate space clogging. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for additional dedicated shredding devices.
6Productivity
If additional shredding devices are added, then stalk decomposition is accelerated, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stalk chopping and decomposition preparation function is merged into the picking rollers themselves through the circumferential offset driver arrangement. This eliminates the need for energy-consuming additional shredding devices while achieving effective stalk decomposition.
Solution Approach 2:
The picking rollers perform their own stalk chopping function through the circumferential offset driver arrangement, eliminating the need for separate energy-consuming shredding devices. The system serves itself by integrating multiple functions into the existing picking mechanism.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The present invention relates to a picking roller (6) for a front attachment for harvesting seed heads of stalky crops with a helical inlet section (12) for receiving the crop and a roller body (14) following thereon with crop treatment elements (15) protruding in the radial direction distributed over its circumference, which extend in the longitudinal direction of the roller body (14) in sections, wherein a respective crop treatment element (15) is formed as drivers (19a, 19b) arranged one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the roller body (14), wherein a following driver (19a, 19b) relative to a preceding driver (19a, 19b) of the crop treatment element (15) has an offset in the circumferential direction of the roller body (14), so that a spiral-shaped structure of the arrangement of the drivers (19a, 19b) materialises, and that between drivers (19a, 19b) arranged adjacent in the circumferential direction a spiral-shaped gap (20) that is continuous in the longitudinal direction of the picking roller (6) is formed.