Variable Cross-Section Feeder Slat for Crop Conveying
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Solution Overview
Problem
Agricultural combine feeder slats face challenges in efficiently and effectively moving crop materials due to entanglement and deformation issues, with existing designs being either weak and prone to bending or heavy and brittle, leading to reduced conveying efficiency and potential damage to conveyor strands.
Innovation Solution
A feeder slat with a variable profile shape, comprising upward-facing concave U, V, or W shapes, formed from wrought metal with serrated lips and angled edges, providing increased stiffness and resistance to bending, and formed using methods like folding, stamping, or hydroforming to enhance toughness and bending resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a typical feeder slat comprises a sheet of metal formed to have a Z-shaped, U-shaped or L-shaped profile, then the slat is economical to produce, but the slat is weak and prone to bending under crop material loads
Solution Approach 1:
The slat employs different profile shapes at different locations along its length. The intermediate portion has a deeper concave profile (U, V, or W shape) providing enhanced stiffness and bending resistance, while the end portions have shallower profiles for ease of manufacture and reduced material usage. This local variation in geometry optimizes both strength and manufacturability.
2Strength
If a cast metal slat is used with a complex profile shape, then the slat has increased stiffness and bending resistance, but the slat becomes heavy and brittle
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the geometric parameters of the slat profile along its length, using deeper concave shapes (U, V, or W) in the intermediate portion to increase stiffness without requiring cast construction. This allows achieving cast-like strength characteristics through formed sheet metal with variable geometry, avoiding the weight and brittleness of cast metal while maintaining sufficient bending resistance.
3Strength
If the slat profile is made deeper to increase stiffness, then the slat resists bending better, but the slat becomes more complex and harder to manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The slat employs different profile shapes at different locations along its length. The intermediate portion has a deeper concave profile (U, V, or W shape) providing enhanced stiffness and bending resistance, while the end portions have shallower profiles for ease of manufacture and reduced material usage. This local variation in geometry optimizes both strength and manufacturability.
Solution Approach 2:
The slat is divided into distinct segments with different profile characteristics: end portions with simpler profiles for easy manufacturing and an intermediate portion with a deeper concave profile for enhanced stiffness. This segmentation allows each portion to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall manufacturability through standard forming processes.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a feeder slat (300) having a first base (306), a second base (308), and a slat body (326) extending longitudinally between the bases. The bases are located at respective ends (302, 304) of the slat, and have respective upper (312, 316) and lower surfaces (310, 314). The slat body has a variable profile along the longitudinal direction transitioning from a first profile at the first base, to an intermediate profile to a second profile at the second base. The intermediate profile shape includes a front lip (328), a rear lip (330), and an upward-facing concave projection (332) that connects the front lip to the rear lip and extends below an attachment plane (400) defined between the first lower surface and the second lower surface. The first base, second base, and slat body are made from a unitary wrought metal part.