Segmented Air Deflector for Combine Harvester Fan Assembly
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional combine harvester cleaning systems suffer from low pressure and turbulent air flow regions, leading to inefficient grain cleaning and frequent particulate debris accumulation, which affects the airflow distribution and requires frequent cleaning of the fan assembly.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of segmented air deflectors with specific tab angles and dimensions in the fan assembly to reduce low pressure areas and enhance airflow smoothness, ensuring a more uniform and laminar air flow, thereby keeping particulates suspended and reducing debris accumulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If traditional air deflectors are used to distribute air flow, then air flow distribution is improved, but low pressure regions and turbulence increase downstream
Solution Approach 1:
The air deflector is divided into multiple segments or sections, each independently adjustable. This segmentation allows optimization of air flow distribution while maintaining overall stability by preventing excessive pressure drops and turbulence that occur with traditional single-piece deflectors.
Solution Approach 2:
The air deflector incorporates movable or adjustable components that can dynamically adapt to different operating conditions. This dynamic capability allows the system to maintain stable air flow while achieving uniform distribution across the cleaning assembly, resolving the contradiction between distribution quality and flow stability.
2Productivity
If larger and wider cleaning systems are used to harvest larger quantities of crop, then productivity increases, but air flow turbulence and low pressure regions worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning system's air deflector is segmented into multiple independent sections that can be individually adjusted. This segmentation allows the large-scale cleaning system to maintain stable, laminar air flow by preventing the development of excessive turbulence and low pressure regions that would otherwise occur in wider, more powerful systems.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the air deflector have locally optimized characteristics tailored to specific regions of the wide output duct. This local quality approach ensures that each section contributes to uniform air flow distribution while maintaining overall flow stability, enabling high productivity without sacrificing air flow laminarity.
3Manufacturing precision
If traditional air deflectors with variable height are used, then air flow distribution improves, but particulate debris accumulates in the fan assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The air deflector is designed to prevent the formation of low pressure regions and turbulence upstream of the fan assembly before particulates can settle. By maintaining positive pressure and laminar flow throughout the system, the design preemptively counteracts the conditions that would lead to debris accumulation, eliminating the need for frequent cleaning.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using variable height deflectors that create low pressure zones, the invention employs a design that maintains uniform or positive pressure distribution. This inverted approach to pressure management prevents particulates from being drawn into low pressure regions where they would accumulate, solving the debris accumulation problem while maintaining air flow uniformity.
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
This configuration results in a more efficient cleaning process with reduced turbulence and particulate settlement, allowing for cleaner grain separation and less frequent maintenance of the fan assembly.
Implementation Method 1
The segmented air deflector is configured to redirect air flow from a output duct of the fan assembly
Implementation Method 2
reduce low pressure areas downstream of a fan assembly of a combine harvester, and reduce regions of turbulence
Implementation Method 3
enhance airflow smoothness, ensuring a more uniform and laminar air flow, thereby keeping particulates suspended
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A combine harvester (200) includes a header assembly (210) configured for collecting a crop, a threshing assembly (230) coupled to the header assembly (210) and configured for separating grains of the crop from material other than grain, and a cleaning assembly (240) positioned in association with the threshing assembly (230) and configured for separating the grains from chaff. The cleaning assembly (240) includes a fan assembly (241) having a fan housing (401) with a fan output duct (404) and a fan (402) mounted to the fan housing (401), and one or more cleaning sieves (242, 243). The fan assembly (241) is configured to blow air across the one or more cleaning sieves (242, 243) via the fan output duct (404). The fan output duct (404) includes at least one segmented air deflector (405).