Tool-Free Replaceable Tines for Harvester Guide Assemblies
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing agricultural harvesters face difficulties in easily replacing guide assembly tines due to complex attachment methods, which often result in damage and require tools, leading to inefficiencies and potential rust from improper handling.
Innovation Solution
The design features a guide assembly where tines are secured to a guide member without extending through it, allowing for easy installation and removal without tools, using a mechanism with transition portions and mating features that enable secure engagement without disconnection from the frame.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If tines are wrapped, welded or bolted onto the pipe, then the tines are securely attached, but replacement becomes difficult and requires tools
Solution Approach 1:
The tine attachment system is segmented into modular components: the guide member with integrated attachment features and the tine with corresponding engagement features. This segmentation allows the tine to be independently removed and replaced without affecting the guide member or requiring tools, while maintaining secure attachment during operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment mechanism transitions from a static permanent connection (welding) to a dynamic system that allows both secure attachment during operation and easy release during maintenance. The tine can be firmly held in position during harvesting but quickly removed when needed, providing adaptability between operational and maintenance states.
2Ease of manufacture
If tines are inserted through the guide member, then they can be secured, but the surface may be scratched and exposed to premature rust
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of inserting the tine through the guide member from one end to the other (which requires guiding through small holes and risks surface damage), the attachment features are inverted: the guide member has protruding attachment features that engage with corresponding features on the tine. This reversal allows the tine to be attached without being forced through tight spaces, eliminating surface scratching and rust exposure risks.
3Ease of operation
If the guide member is disconnected from the frame for tine replacement, then complete access is gained, but operational complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tine is extracted as a separate, independently replaceable component from the guide member assembly. The attachment features are designed so the tine can be removed without disconnecting the guide member from the frame, separating the tine replacement operation from the guide member installation operation and simplifying the overall procedure.
4Strength
If traditional attachment methods are used, then secure fixation is achieved, but replacement time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment mechanism is designed to be self-servicing: the tine has integrated engagement features that automatically secure to the guide member without requiring external tools or complex procedures. The design enables quick attachment and detachment through simple manual operations, dramatically reducing replacement time while maintaining secure fixation during harvesting operations.
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
An agricultural harvester is provided that includes a frame (14) carrying a structure (22) movable about an endless path to deliver a crop to a header. The frame (14) includes a guide assembly (32) including a guide member (28) supported by the frame (14). The frame (14) also includes at least one tine (30) secured to the guide member (28) without extending through the guide member (28), and the at least one tine (30/130/230) extending from the guide member (28) above the structure (22) to guide the crop between the at least one tine (30/130/230) and the structure (22) to the header. The at least one tine (30/130/230) is installable and removable from the guide member (28) without disconnecting the guide member (28) from the frame (14). At least one tine (30/130/230) is installable and removable from the guide member (28) substantially without tools.