Rotary Rake Wheel Layout for Compact Swath Turning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing rotary rakes face challenges in efficiently gathering and turning cut crop material into swaths while minimizing installation space and ensuring effective pick-up by collection devices, often leaving residues on the field due to inadequate ground contour following and inefficient swath turning.
Innovation Solution
The rotary rake design incorporates first and second rake wheels with different diameters, where the second wheel has a larger diameter, arranged partially between the first wheel and boom arms, allowing for increased turning capacity with minimal space requirements, and features spring-loaded pivot axes for independent ground contour following and efficient swath turning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a rotary rake uses traditional single-diameter rake wheels, then the structure is simple, but the turning capacity is limited and installation space is wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The rotary rake is divided into multiple functional segments: a rotary rake unit with first rake wheels for gathering crop material, and a rotary tedder unit with second rake wheels for turning swaths. Each unit has its own drive mechanism and can operate independently, allowing the overall system to achieve high turning capacity while maintaining modular simplicity in each segment
Solution Approach 2:
The rotary rake is designed with multi-functional capability by integrating both rake and tedder functions into a single machine. The first rake wheels gather cut crop material into swaths, while the second rake wheels turn the swaths, eliminating the need for separate raking and tedding operations and maximizing the utility of each wheel type
2Area of stationary object
If the rotary rake is designed with compact wheel arrangement, then installation space is minimized, but wheel independence and ground contour following may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The rake wheels are equipped with spring-loaded pivot axes that allow dynamic adjustment of wheel position and orientation. This enables the wheels to independently follow ground contours and adapt to varying terrain conditions while maintaining a compact overall machine footprint, as the wheels can flex and adjust rather than requiring excessive clearance
Solution Approach 2:
The second rake wheels are arranged partially between the first rake wheels and the boom arms, creating a nested configuration where components are efficiently stacked in space. This nesting arrangement minimizes the lateral width and overall installation space of the rotary rake while preserving the functional independence of each wheel type through proper spatial positioning
3Productivity
If crop material is not effectively turned and gathered, then collection efficiency is low, but residues remain on the field
Solution Approach 1:
The rotary rake maintains continuous useful action by ensuring that the first rake wheels continuously gather crop material into swaths while the second rake wheels continuously turn the swaths. This continuous dual-action process prevents crop material from being left behind or improperly positioned, maximizing collection efficiency and minimizing field residues
Solution Approach 2:
The first rake wheels perform preliminary gathering action to form neat swaths before the second rake wheels perform the turning action. This preliminary organization of crop material ensures that subsequent turning is more effective and complete, preventing scattered residues from being left on the field and improving overall pick-up efficiency
Data Source
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AI summary
Rotary rake (20), comprising a base frame (21) with a longitudinal beam (22) and boom arms (23) arranged on both sides of the longitudinal beam (22), wherein the rotary rake (20) can be coupled to a towing vehicle via a drawbar (25) engaging the longitudinal beam (22), with tine arms (27) having tines (28) which are driven around a respective rotor axis and are mounted on the boom arms (23), and with a tedder (29) having tine wheels (30, 31) which engages the longitudinal beam (22) between the drawbar (25) and the boom arms (23), wherein the tedder (29) has a first tine wheel (30) with a first diameter and a second tine wheel (31) on each side of the longitudinal beam (12). with a second diameter that is larger than the first diameter.