Wrap Guide Arrangement for Agricultural Module Wrapping

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Crop harvesting machines face issues with wrap mis-feed during the wrapping cycle, leading to improperly wrapped modules, equipment downtime, and exposure to debris and moisture.

Innovation Solution

A wrap guide system featuring a guide plate with fingers that extend into grooves on the wrap roll, guiding the wrapping material to prevent mis-feed by ensuring proper alignment and reducing mechanical disturbances.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If wrapping material is fed from supply roll to module-forming chamber, then wrapping operation can be performed, but mis-feed events occur causing improper wrapping

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewrapping operation reliabilityVSAvoidwrapping material alignment precision

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

A wrap guide system with guide plate and fingers is introduced as an intermediary component between the supply roll and module-forming chamber. The guide plate with extending fingers actively directs the wrapping material through grooves, ensuring proper alignment and preventing mis-feed events during the wrapping operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The wrap guide system utilizes the natural path of the wrapping material through grooves formed in the guide plate. The material self-aligns within these grooves as it is fed, requiring minimal additional control mechanisms while maintaining precise alignment throughout the feeding process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Manufacturing precision

If wrap guide system with fingers extending into grooves is used, then wrapping material alignment is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewrapping material alignment precisionVSAvoidwrap guide system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The guide plate is segmented into multiple fingers that individually engage with grooves in the wrapping material. This segmentation allows each finger to independently guide a portion of the material, achieving precise alignment through distributed control rather than a single complex mechanism.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of using a complex active control system to push or pull the wrapping material into alignment, the invention inverts the approach by creating grooves that passively receive and guide the material. The material itself follows the predetermined groove paths, eliminating the need for active actuation mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Data Source

PatentUS10609868B2Module wrap guide arrangement

Publication Date: 2020.04.07 DEERE & CO

AI summary

A wrap guide arrangement is provided for an agricultural harvesting machine having a module-forming chamber and wrapping system having a source of a wrapping material and a wrap conveyor arrangement for guiding the wrapping material from the source to the conveyor arrangement. The wrap guide arrangement has a wrap roll extending along an axis of rotation and having an outer circumference receiving the wrapping material. A guide plate has an axially extending body and at least one finger extending from the body toward the wrap roll. At least a part of the at least one finger extends proximate the outer circumference of the wrap roll between the wrap roll and the wrapping material.