FORAGE HARVESTER CROP PROCESSOR APPARATUS

Abstract: A forage harvester crop processor for handling crop material of the type including maize kernels is provided. Feed rolls 11, 12, 13, 14 are mounted for receiving crop material to be processed and for feeding it to a rotating cutting mechanism 17. The cutting mechanism 17 cuts the crop material into small particles and propels it rearwardly to a pair of cooperating upper and lower compressor rolls 35, 36 for cracking the maize kernels in the crop material. The material is then conveyed via the compressor rolls 35, 36 to a blower 18 mounted rearwardly of the compressor rolls 35, 36 and aligned to receive the crop as it is propelled from the rolls 35, 36. Springs 44, 45, 46, 47 are provided for urging the lower compressor roll 36 toward the upper compressor roll 35 to form a bite for operatively engaging the crop material. The lower compressor roll assembly is arranged to be pivotally movable downwardly and away from the upper compressor roll 35 to facilitate easy access to various processor elements.

Description: The present invention relates generally to forage harvester crop processor apparatus and, more particularly, to forage harvester crop processors of the type having a pair of compressor rolls mounted between the cutterhead and the blower. A forage harvester crop processor apparatus is used to receive crop material harvested from the field and chop or cut it into forage which is fed via a blower to a temporary storage bin or wagon to subsequently be fed to livestock. A common form of forage harvester utilized for this purpose employs a cylindrical type cutterhead which cooperates with a shearbar to cut crop material as it is fed over the shearbar. Although a variety of crops are cut by forage harvesters, one of the more common crops is maize, also called "corn" in North-America. It is not uncommon while harvesting maize with a forage harvester of the type having a cylindrical cutterhead for less than half of the maize kernels to be cracked or cut during the processing. It has been learned that, when uncracked maize is subsequently fed to cattle, the cattle may not be able to utilize the full food value of the chopped maize. This is because the digestive system of cattle is such that they will not digest all of the maize kernels if the outer skin of the kernels has not been cracked or cut. In view of the above, it has been necessary in the past to additionally process chopped maize type crop material before it is fed to cattle. One system of additionally processing chopped maize utilizes transverse cracking bars of the type disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,752,411. Other prior art systems include the use of recutter screens and hammermills. Still another system contemplates a pair of cooperating compressor rolls mounted in close proximity to the cutterhead and adapted to receive crop material and crack entrained kernels prior to conveyance to an auger such as shown in U.S. Patent No. 4,345,417. DE. 32.43.955 shows a pair of cooperating compressor rolls provided in the transition area between the cylindrical cutterhead and the forage blower utilized to discharge forage from the forage harvester. While systems in the prior art have produced satisfactory end products, there are known disadvantages, such as the inaccessibility to processor elements for service, cleaning, inspection and the like. It is therefore a prime objective of the instant invention to improve accessibility to the processor elements of a forage harvester having a maize processor between the cutterhead and the forage blower and yet to maintain a simple design which therefore is less costly. According to the invention, a forage harvester is provided having a crop processor for handling crop material of the type including maize kernels; the crop processor comprising: - a cutting mechanism adapted to cut crop material into small particles; - a compressor roll assembly including a pair of closely adjacent, cooperating compressor rolls disposed to receive cut crop material from the cutting mechanism and operable to crack maize kernels in said crop material, the compressor roll assembly further also including compressor roll mounting means having resilient means for urging one compressor roll toward the other compressor roll to form a bite therebetween for operatively engaging cut crop material as it is received from the cutting mechanism; and - means for conveying the cut and cracked crop material to a subsequent handling apparatus. The invention is characterized in that the compressor roll mounting means further also comprise means to enable pivoting of the one compressor roll away from the other compressor roll and from the conveying means to facilitate easy access to various processor elements. The cutting mechanism preferably is in the form of a cylindrical cutterhead having a plurality of peripherally mounted knives which are rotatable about a horizontal axis and closely past a stationary shearbar for, in shearing cooperation therewith, cutting crop material into said small particles. The cutterhead also is operable to convey cut crop material circumferentially downwardly and rearwardly past the shearbar and to propel said cut crop material along a generally tangential path in a rearward direction as seen in the direction of operative travel of the forage harvester. The conveying means are in the form of a blower assembly disposed proximate to and rearwardly of the cylindrical cutterhead and with an access opening thereof generally aligned with said generally tangential path. The cylindrical cutterhead knife path and the blower assembly define a generally wedge-shaped cavity at the transition therebetween. Said cavity is oriented generally downwardly. Disposed in such wedge-shaped space and intermediate the cutterhead and the blower assembly in the direct path of the flow of crop material from the cutterhead to the blower assembly, is the pair of cooperating compressor rolls which are rotatable about parallel horizontal axes and disposed in close adjacency to the peripheral path of the cutterhead knives and an upright wall of the blower assembly comprising said access opening. Unique mounting means permit the lower roll to be pivoted away from the wedge-shaped space for easy access to the processor elements. Accordingly, the present invention provides a forage harvester processor apparatus which has its operative components uniquely arranged in a simple, efficient and economical manner. More specifically, taking into consideration the presence of known mechanisms and other required operating components of a forage harvester apparatus, an improved combination of components is provided which cooperatively operate in a manner not heretofore known while permitting ready and convenient access to the processor elements. The present invention furthermore also contemplates a new and improved forage harvester processor apparatus in which the cutterhead, blower, and a pair of compressor rolls are uniquely mounted in relation to each other so as to provide ready access thereto and improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the harvester under conditions where the processor is handling crop material of the type including maize kernels. A forage harvester crop processor apparatus embodying the present invention will now be described in greater detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which : Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a forage harvester crop processor unit. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary elevational view taken along lines 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view taken along lines 3-3 of Fig. 2. Referring now to the drawings and, more particularly to Fig. 1, a side elevational view of a precision type forage harvester processor unit can be seen. Processor units of this type are commonly embodied in forage harvesters, an example of which is shown in U.S. Patent No. 4,223,846. Forage harvesters are generally known and will not be described in detail for the purposes of this application, however, they commonly include a mobile frame supported by wheels and are driven by a power unit. Crop gathering headers are mounted on the frame at the forward end of forage harvesters for collecting, consolidating and conveying crop material to the infeed of the crop processors. Now turning more particularly to the crop processor unit depicted in Fig. 1, a feed mechanism, generally designated by reference numeral 10, is shown having an upper front feed roll 11 cooperating with a lower front feed roll 12 to convey crop material rearwardly to cooperating upper and lower rear feed rolls 13,14 respectively. The feed rolls consolidate the crop material into a mat having a generally rectangular cross section and present it across a shearbar 15 which in turn cooperates with a plurality of cutterhead knives 16 mounted on the periphery of a rotating cutting mechanism 17 to comminute crop material by commonly known shearing action. Although a self-propelled forage harvester has been referred to above, the type of crop processing apparatus involved can also be used in pull-type forage harvesters wherein the power is derived from a source independent of the harvester, such as a tractor. A rotary crop discharge blower 18 is mounted rearwardly of the rotating cutting mechanism 17 and, in the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, is aligned in a plane tilted at an acute angle to the vertical. It should be realized that even though the tilted angle of the blower is an important relationship for the preferred embodiment of this invention, the invention is not limited to applications where the crop discharge means is not in a vertical plane. The crop discharge blower has a generally circular housing 20 in which a plurality of well known crop engaging paddles (not shown) are rotatably mounted. The crop engaging paddles engage crop material entering into the blower 18 via access opening 22 in the front planar wall 21 defined by upper and lower edges 23,24, respectively. Sufficient energy is imparted to the crop material by the paddles for discharging the crop material upwardly and rearwardly through a discharge spout, not shown, to a trailing temporary storage container, such as a wagon. The cutting mechanism 17, mounted forwardly of and aligned with blower 18, (see Fig. 2), includes a housing 25, in which the transverse rotating cutterhead shaft 26 is journalled for rotation in bearing assemblies 27,28. The plurality of knives 16 (shown in phantom outline in Fig. 1), one of which is shown in Fig. 2, are mounted laterally askew on a series of side-by-side disc members by means of bolts 31. The knives are peripherally disposed on the members 30 such that, upon rotation about shaft 26, the knives 16 generate a cylinder and the cutting edges pass in close proximity to shearbar 15. Thus, crop material being fed in a general mat configuration toward the cutting mechanism 17 by the feed rolls 13,14, passes over the shearbar 15 and is cut into relatively small particles by the peripherally mounted cutterhead knives 16 in shearing engagement with shearbar 15. The shearbar 15 typically is stationarily mounted on the frame through a mounting block 32 and bracket 33. Although not shown for the purposes of this application, shearbars of this nature are commonly mounted for adjustment to permit selective movement of the shearbar toward and away from the cutterhead knives to maintain proper relative positioning for effective shearing action. A cavity having a generally wedge-shaped configuration, is defined by the front planar wall 21 of the blower 20 and the peripheral path of the cuttherhead knives 16 as they travel upwardly and rearwardly in front of the blower 20. Disposed in the cavity so formed is a compressor roll assembly 34 comprising an upper roll 35 and a lower roll 36 mounted along horizontal axes which are in a plane that is generally parallel to the face of blower 18. These rolls 35, 36 have fluted outer surfaces of the type common in roller mill applications for processing maize kernels. The upper roll 35 is rotatably mounted on the sidewalls of the housing 25 in fixed bearing assemblies 37,38, one of which is shown in detail in Fig. 3. The lower compressor roll 36 is mounted with its outer surface adjacent, but not in contact with the upper compressor roll 35 and is journalled for rotation in bearing assemblies 40,41, one of which is also shown in detail in Fig. 3. The bearing assemblies 40,41 for the lower compressor roll 36 are mounted on a pair of pivotally mounted brackets 42,43 held in place by sets of springs 44,45, respectively 46,47 urging the brackets upwardly and rearwardly against adjustable stop mechanisms 48 (only one of which is shown in Figs. 2 and 3). Each adjustable stop mechanism 48 includes a bolt 53 (see Fig. 3) adjustably mounted in a support member 54 by sequentially rotatable nuts 55 and 56 for locking the bolt 53 in any desired position relative to an abutting member 57, integral with each respective bracket 42. The stop mechanisms 48 thus are operable to limit the minimal clearance between the compressor rolls 35, 36. To prevent lateral deflection, the springs 44, 45, 46,47 are provided around rods 61, 62, 63, 64 which fixedly are connected at one end to respective abutment members 49, which themselves firmly are coupled to flanges 66 of the frame element 65 by bolts 39. At their other ends, the rods 61, 62, 63, 64 terminate short of the collar members 67 of the respective brackets 42, 43 when the latter are in a "normal" operative position to act as stops for limiting the downward and forward movement of said brackets 42, 43 under influence of crop material passing between the compressor rolls 35, 36. The rods 61,62, 63, 64 thus not only prevent lateral deflection of the springs 44, 45, 46, 47 but also limit the maximum clearance between the compressor rolls 35,36 during operation. The phantom position 58 of the brackets 42 (Fig. 3) illustrates this maximum clearance position at which the lower roll 36 can be positioned with respect to the fixed upper compressor roll 35. Also shown in Fig. 3 is a further phantom view 60 of said bracket 42 illustrating the position at which the brackets can be pivoted for moving the lower compressor roll 36 to a non-operative position. For pivoting the bracket to this lower phantom position spring 44,45,46,47 must be removed from their engaged position. This is accomplished by unscrewing the bolts 39 enabling removal of the abutment members 49 together with the rods 61, 62, 63, 64 mounted thereon and of the springs 44, 45, 46, 47 extending co­ axially with said rods. Also included in the compressor roll assembly 34 is a conventional scraping means 50 consisting of a scraper blade 51 mounted adjacent the periphery of the lower compressor roll 36 by means of a mounting bracket 52. Drive for the crop processor includes a main drive system derived from the power unit to drive the cutterhead assembly 17. The drive belt 68 trained about the sheave 70 on the driven cutterhead shaft 26 also is trained about the smaller sheave 71 on the shaft of the upper compressor roll 35. Accordingly, the upper compressor roll 35 is driven at an increased RPM and this upper compressor roll, in turn, drives the lower compressor roll via a belt 72. The belt 72 is trained about a sheave 73 on the upper compressor roll 35 to the sheave 74 on the lower compressor roll 36 and thence about idler rolls 75,76. The idler roll 75 is mounted on a bracket 77 which is pivotally adjustable via a spring 78 and take up bolt 80 to maintain tension in the belt 72. Typical speeds for cutterheads of this type are in the range of 850 RPM by which the rollers 35,36 are driven substantially faster, i.e., in the range of 4000 RPM. In operation, crop material is fed to the crop processor feed mechanism 10 which in turn guides a mat of crop material across the shearbar 15 which, as noted above, cooperatively provides the shearing action with the cutterhead knives 16 to chop the crop material into small particles. The chopped crop material is then conveyed downwardly and rearwardly and propelled tangentially toward the blower generally in the direction of the compressor roll assembly 34. A lower guide pan 81 is provided along this general tangential path. As mentioned above, it is not uncommon for the compressor rolls 35, 36 to rotate four or five times the speed of the cutting mechanism 17 which aids in the effective propulsion of the crop material to the blower 18 and thereby prevents bunching at or plugging of the compressor rolls 35, 36 by cut crop material. In the event access to the blower access opening 22 or the compressor roll assembly 34 becomes necessary, the belt 72 is removed from the sheaves 73,74 and the rolls 75,76 by releasing the tension on the spring 78. The holding springs 44,45,46,47 together with the abutment members 49 and the rods 61, 62, 63, 64 thereon then are removed by unscrewing the bolts 39 whereafter the brackets 42,43 pivot downwardly by gravity to the phantom position 60, shown in Fig. 3. This permits ready access to the blower fan blades for inspection or adjustment as required. It also permits inspection and cleaning of compressor rolls 35,36. If it becomes necessary to completely remove the lower compressor roll assembly, pins 82 and 83, about which the brackets 42 and 43 pivot, are slidably removed and the entire assembly can then be removed for inspection, repair, adjustment or the like. Operation of the processor 34 quickly and efficiently can be resumed by merely returning the brackets 42, 43 to the pivotal position via the pins 82,83 and by pivoting said brackets 42, 43 upwardly toward the stop members at which point, the springs 44,45,46,47 together with the abutment members 49 and the rods 61, 62,63,64 are returned to their holding positions, the belt 72 is rethreaded about the sheaves 73,74 and the rolls 75,76 and the spring 78 returns the tension to the system by adjusting the bolt 80. Alternatively, if the compressor assembly 34 is not required in instances where maize cracking is not necessary, then the entire lower compressor roll assembly can be left off the machine and a modified guide plate can be inserted at the lower portion of the wedge-shaped cavity, i.e., between the frame member 65 and the lower portion of the access opening 22 in the blower 18. An example of a crop transfer means of this type which would readily accommodate this purpose is shown and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,263,772. While the preferred structure, in which the principles of the present invention have been incorporated, is shown and described above, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the particular details, as shown and described above, but that, in fact, widely different means may be employed in the practice of the broader aspects of the invention.

Claims: 1. A forage harvester having a crop processor for handling crop material of the type including maize kernels; the crop processor comprising : - a cutting mechanism (17) adapted to cut crop material into small particles; - a compressor roll assembly (34) including a pair of closely adjacent, cooperating compressor rolls (35, 36) disposed to receive cut crop material from the cutting mechanism (17) and operable to crack maize kernels in said crop material; the compressor roll assembly (34) further also including compressor roll mounting means having resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) for urging one compressor roll (36) toward the other compressor roll (35) to form a bite therebetween for operatively engaging cut crop material as it is received from the cutting mechanism (17); and - means (18) for conveying the cut and cracked crop material to a subsequent handling apparatus; characterized in that the compressor roll mounting means further also comprise means (42, 43, 81, 82; 39, 49, 61, 62, 63, 64) to enable pivoting of the one compressor roll (36) away from the other compressor roll (35) and from the conveying means (18) to facilitate easy access to various processor elements. 2. A forage harvester according to claim 1, characterized in that : - the cutting mechanism (17) comprises a cylindrical cutterhead with a plurality of peripherally mounted knives (16) which are rotatable about a generally horizontal axis (26) and closely past to a stationary shearbar (15) for, in shearing cooperation with said shearbar (15), cutting crop material into small particles; the cutterhead also being operable to convey cut crop material circumferentially downwardly and rearwardly past the shearbar (15) and to propel said cut crop material along a generally tangential path in a rearward direction as seen in the direction of operative travel of the forage harvester; and the conveying means (18) are in the form of a blower assembly disposed proximate to and rearwardly of the cylindrical cutterhead and with an access opening (22) thereof generally aligned with said generally tangential path; the cylindrical cutterhead knife path and the blower assembly (18) defining a generally downwardly oriented wedge-shaped cavity at the transition therebetween and the compressor roll assembly (34) being positioned within said cavity generally in said tangential path from the cutterhead to the blower assembly access opening (22). 3. A forage harvester according to claim 2, characterized in that : - the compressor rolls (35, 36) of the compressor roll assembly (34) are positioned the one generally above the other; - the resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) are operable to urge the lower compressor roll (36) in an upward direction toward the upper compressor roll (35); and - the compressor roll mounting means supporting the lower compressor roll (36) are arranged to enable downward pivotal movement of said lower compressor roll (36) away from the upper compressor roll (35) and the conveying means (18) to facilitate said easy access to said various processor elements. 4. A forage harvester according to claim 3 characterized in that : - the blower assembly (18) comprises a housing (20) including a generally upright front face with the blower access opening (22) therein; and - the compressor rolls (35, 36), when in the operative position, are situated adjacent to said front face in a plane extending substantially parallel thereto and such that bottom access to the blower and cutterhead is available under conditions where the lower compressor roll (36) is pivoted downwardly and away from the upper compressor roll (35) and said blower assembly (18). 5. A forage harvester according to claim 4 characterized in that the generally upright front face of the blower assembly (18) comprises a planar wall portion (21) having the access opening (22) through which crop material is conveyed; said planar wall portion (21) being inclined upwardly and rearwardly relative to said rotatable cutterhead and the compressor rolls (35, 36) being mounted in a plane substantially parallel to said planar wall portion (21). 6. A forage harvester according to any of the claims 3 to 5, characterized in that : - the upper compressor roll (35) is rotatably mounted at a fixed position on the frame (25); and - the compressor roll mounting means supporting the lower compressor roll (36) comprise a pair of brackets (42, 43) supporting said lower roll (36) generally at one end thereof and being mounted generally at their other end to pivot around pivots (82, 83) forwardly of said lower roll (36) whereby said lower compressor roll (36) swings away from the blower assembly (18) and the upper compressor roll (35) and thereby permits bottom access to said various processor elements. 7. A forage harvester according to claim 6 characterized in that the resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) extend between a frame member (65, 66) and a collar member (67) on at least one of the brackets (42, 43) in a manner to urge said brackets (42, 43) with the lower compressor roll (36) thereon upwardly around the pivots (82, 83) toward the upper compressor roll (35) and toward engagement with stop means (48) on the frame (25); the stop means (48) being operable to limit the minimal clearance between the upper and lower compressor rolls (35, 36). 8. A forage harvester according to claim 7 characterized in that the compressor roll mounting means supporting the lower compressor roll (36) also comprise abutment means (49) connected to the frame member (65, 66) for supporting one end of the resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) in a manner to urge the lower compressor roll (36) towards the upper compressor roll (35); the abutment means (49) being readily detachable from the frame member (65, 66) to facilitate removal of the resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) and to thereby permit the lower compressor roll (36) to pivot downwardly and away from the upper compressor roll (35) and the conveying means (18). 9. A forage harvester according to claim 8, characterized in that : - the resilient means (44, 45, 46, 47) are in the form of compression coil springs extending between the abutment means (49) and the brackets (42, 43) supporting the lower compressor roll (36); and - the compressor roll mounting means supporting the lower compressor roll (36) further also comprise rods (61, 62, 63, 64) fixedly coupled at one end to the abutment means (49) and extending co-axially with the coil springs (44, 45, 46, 47) to prevent lateral deflection of said coil springs (44, 45, 46, 47) during operation. 10. A forage harvester according to claim 9, characterized in that the abutment means (49) with the rods (61, 62, resp. 63, 64) connected thereto are readily detachable as unitary structure from the frame members (65, 66) to facilitate said removal of the coil springs (44, 45, 46, 47) for thereby permitting said downward pivoting movement of the lower compressor roll (36) away from the upper compressor roll (35) and the conveying means (18). 11. A forage harvester according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that at least one rod (61, 62, 63, 64) extending co-axially with a respective coil spring (44, 45, 46, 47) has a free end positioned in the proximity of a respective bracket (42, 43) and acting as a stop for limiting the maximum clearance between the upper and lower compressor rolls (35, 36) and thereby also limiting the maximum compression of the coil springs (44, 45, 46, 47). 12. A forage harvester according to any of the claims 6 to 11, characterized in that said pivots (82, 83) include a pair of slidably removable pins about which said pair of brackets (42, 43) pivot; said pins being readily removable to detach said brackets (42, 43) and the lower compressor roll (36) rotatably mounted thereon as a unit from the crop processor. 13. A forage harvester according to claim 12, characterized in that a guide plate is inserted beneath the upper compressor roll (35) at the lower portion of the wedge-shaped cavity at the transition between the cylindrical cutterhead knife path and the access opening (22) in the blower assembly (18) in the condition where the lower compressor roll (36) has been removed.

Inventors: MARTENAS, WAYNE B.
Applicants: FORD NEW HOLLAND, INC. (A DELAWARE CORP.)
Application year: 1985
Main classification: A01F29
IPC codes: A01F29