HARVESTING MACHINE

Abstract: A machine for harvesting grains or seeds comprises a cutting head mounted on a self-powered vehicle, the cutting head containing cutting means for cutting crop material including the seeds or grain, and threshing means for separating seeds or grains from the cut crop material, the head being mounted on the vehicle so as to be movable vertically to control the height from the ground at which the crop is cut.

Description: HARVESTING MACHINE Field of the Invention This invention relates to a harvesting machine for harvesting seed and grain crops. Background to the Invention Conventional harvesting machines for grain and seeds separate the cutting of the crop and the threshing to extract the grain or seeds from the rest of the cut crop material into two distinct stages. In order to maximise the rate of harvesting, it may seem desirable to widen the cutting stage as much as possible so as to cut a wide swathe through the crop. However, because the cut material is then funnelled into the threshing stage of the machine, the wider the cutting stage is made, the greater is the capacity of the threshing stage required to handle the volume of cut material passed thereto. It is not practical simply to make the threshing stage larger in size, since the resultant machine would be too large to transport, and too large to use in smaller spaces, it is nec- essary, therefore, to attempt to increase the speed and power of the threshing stage, and in practice the advantages of higher harvesting rate are offset by the greater cost and power consumption of the machine. One problem is that the threshing stage has to handle a very high volume of cut crop material, most of which is then discharged back on to the field to be collected or processed in a separate operation subsequently. Another problem is that the cut crop material is funnelled into a relatively narrow width in the machine for threshing. The present invention seeks to overcome these problems. Summary of the Invention According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a machine for har- vesting grains or seeds, comprising a cutting head mounted on a self-powered vehicle, the cutting head containing cutting means for cutting crop material including the seeds or grain, and threshing means for separating seeds or grains from the cut crop material, the head being mounted on the vehicle so as to be movable vertically to control the height from the ground at which the crop is cut. According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a harvesting machine comprising cutting means for cutting crop material including seeds or grains, and threshing means for separating seeds or grains from the cut crop material, wherein the threshing means threshes over a width substantially equal to the width of the cutting means. The cutting means may comprise fixed blades with means for urging the crop into the blades. It might also be possible to use shear blades reciprocating relative to fixed blades. The threshing means may comprise a rotary beater and a fixed grid, the cut crop moving between the beater and the grid. Seeds or grains falling through the grid may be collected and transported by transverse conveyor means, which may move the seeds/grains to one end of the cutting head, or to a central collecting point therein.. The waste crop material may be discharged to the ground, or passed to one or more further threshing stages external of the cutting head. By threshing over the full width of the cutting means, the volume of material being handled over a given width of the threshing means is substantially reduced, permitting a higher extraction efficiency in length terms, and thus making it practical to incorporate the threshing stage into the cutting head,- if desired. A further aspect of the invention provides a harvesting machine comprising a cutting head mounted on a self-powered vehicle so as to be movable vertically relative thereto, means for detecting the height of the crop to be harvested ahead of the vehicle, and means responsive to the crop height detected for moving the cutting head, whereby the proportion of the height of the crop cut remains substantially constant. The detecting means may be mechanical, but other means may be employed, for example an optical detector. The mechanical means may comprise a pivoted paddle projecting forward of the vehicle and resting on the crop, and signalling means for generating a signal in response to rotation of the paddle as the crop height varies. The paddle preferably carries a lightweight roller which runs on the upper surface of the crop. The roller may comprise a plurality of tubes which engage the crop in succession as the roller rotates. The tubes may be inflated plastics members or they may be formed from an expanded plastics material. Means may be provided to balance the weight of the roller so that it exerts a downward force on the crop just sufficient to maintain contact therewith without causing significant bending of the crop stalks. Preferably, the cutting head comprises cutting means and threshing means. An advantage of this aspect of the invention is that by precisely controlling the amount of material cut from the standing crop, the quantity of waste to be handled can be minimised, reducing the power and size requirement for the threshing stage, which may be separate, as in a conventional combine harvester, or integrated into the cutting head in accordance with other aspects of the invention. The cutting head may carry a separate cutter, if desired, to cut down the remaining portion of the crop plants after removal of the seed- or grain-carrying portions. The cut waste then passes beneath the machine without the need for it to be processed in the machine. The separate cutter may alternatively be mounted separately on the machine, or may follow the machine, for example being trailed behind the self-powered vehicle. The result may then be, after removal of the cut waste, a stubble which can be ploughed in to the soil in conventional manner. The cutting head of the invention may be installed as a replacement for the conventional cutting head of a combine harvester, or it may be mounted on a suitable vehicle having the ability to supply power to the head. Drive of the cutter and thresher in the head may be provided by hydraulic motors supplied with hydraulic power from the supporting vehicle, although mechanical drive may also be possible using a power takeoff from the supporting vehicle. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the cutter and thresher are driven by a separate engine mounted thereon. Brief Description of the Drawings In the drawings, which illustrate an exemplary embodiment of the invention: Figure 1 is a perspective view of the cutting head with the drive and supporting means omitted for the sake of clarity; Figure 2 is a side elevation of the cutting head shown in Figure 1 ; Figure 3 is a diagram showing a side view of a cutting height detecting means; Figure 4 is a diagram showing a side view of the cutting head with supporting means for controlling the height of the cutting head according to the height measured by the device shown in Figure 3; Figure 5 is a diagrammatic side elevation of an alternative design of spool or ro- tor in conjunction with the cutting bar; Figure 6 is a side elevation of an alternative beating rotor, Figure 7 is a top plan view of the cutting head, omitting the rotor; and Figure 8 is an enlarged view of a section of the rotor shown in Figure 5. Detailed Description of the Illustrated Embodiments Referring first to Figures 1 to 4, the cutting head comprises a forwardly- projecting cutting blade 1 divided into a plurality of teeth 2, the blade leading into a threshing section having a mesh grid 3 with transversely-extending- bars 4 set into i ■, An ejection chute 5 is located rearwardly of the threshing section to discharge waste material on to the ground. A flail rotor 6 is mounted for rotation above the blade 1 so as to urge the crop on to the teeth 2, where the uppermost parts of the crop stalks are cut. The flail 6 also serves to urge or project the cut material towards the threshing section, where a beater rotor 7 draws the material in and beats the material as it passes over the grid 3 and bars 4. This action? liberates the grain or seeds in the * crop, allowing them - to fall through the grid on to a transverse conveyor 8 which transports the grain/ seeds . to a collection point at one end of the cutting head. A curved guide 9 directs the grain from other parts of the grid 3 on to the conveyor 8. A lifting rotor 10 lifts the waste crop material emerging from the threshing section and delivers it into the chute 5. An upper cover 11 encloses the threshing section and forms the other half of the ejection chute 5. It will be seen from Figure 1 that the beater rotor 7 and the lifting rotor 10 are each formed from a series of shorter sections, permitting the threshing section of the cutting head to be assembled into any of a range of different modular widths. Figure 2 in particular shows how the cutting head may be positioned so as to cut the crop at a height which captures all the seed/ grain-bearing parts while minimising the additional material collected, thus also minimising the work needing to be done by the threshing section. Control of the height of the cutting head is suitably achieved by detecting the uppermost height of the crop as a whole and then positioning the blade 1 at a predetermined distance below the uppermost height detected. This is preferably carried out dynamically, so that variations in the crop height across a field are accommo- dated. Figure 3 illustrates diagrammatically one way of detecting the crop height to control the operating height of the cutting head. An arm 30 is mounted on the cutting head (not shown for clarity) and projects forward in the direction of travel. The free end of the arm 30 carries a roller 31 made up of a frame 32 supporting eight trans- versely mounted inflated plastics sleeves 33 whose function is to achieve the greatest possible contact area on the crop surface with minimum weight. (It will be understood that the number of sleeves on the roller is not critical to the invention," and there may ■ be fewer or more than eight). The roller is rotatably mounted so that the sleeves 33 come into contact with the crop successively as the cutting head, and with it the roller, advances through the crop. The arm 30 is mounted on a pivot 34 and is provided with a spring 35 or the like to counterbalance the weight of the arm and roller projecting forward so that the downwards force of the roller. ,on ; the crop, is set to a minimum, necessary to maintain the roller, in contact with the- crop without distorting or compressing the crop. A rheo-, stat mounted on the end of the pivot shaft 34 provides a variable current output proportional to the degree of rotation of the arm 30 relative to the cutting head. This current is then used to provide a control signal to the hydraulic valve or valves controlling the level of the cutting head, as will be described hereinafter with reference to Figure 4. It will be appreciated that the rheostat could be incorporated into a simple bridge circuit whose output could then be used in a simple feedback control loop, since the relative angle between the arm and the cutting head needs to be kept substantially constant to achieve a constant cutting height in the crop (i.e. so that the length of crop cut is substantially constant relative to the uppermost level of the crop, taken as a whole). The cut length can be adjusted by adjusting the selected angle between the arm 30 and the cutting head. Figure 4 illustrates one way in which the height of the cutting head may be controlled. The cutting head is carried by a pair of caster wheels 40, each carried on a leg 41 which incorporates a hydraulic ram. A fast-acting solenoid valve supplies fluid to the ram or allows it to flow from the ram according to the control instructions generated in response to the height measurement produced by the arrangement described with reference to Figure 3, for example. The caster wheels support the weight of the cutting head, while permitting it to steer in response to the movement of the vehicle to which it is attached. Referring now to Figure 5, the spool or rotor 50 comprises a hub 51 mounting a plurality of laterally-spaced sets of six arms 52, corresponding pairs of arms in adjacent sets carrying between them a vane 53 which is curved rearwards relative to the direction of rotation so as to present a generally vertical face to the crop as it is engaged by the cutting blades 54 and 55. The spool 50 is rotated in the direction shown by arrow A at a speed which is proportional to the ground speed of the supporting vehicle, the vanes serving not only to guide the crop into contact with the cutting blades 54 and 55, but also to propel the cut crop rearwardly towards the threshing section. The cutting blades comprise fixed, generally triangular blades 54 secured to the leading edge of the cutting head, and laterally reciprocable blades. 55 which partially overlap the fixed blades 54 in a vertical direction. Figure 6 shows a modified beater rotor 60 in the threshing section of the cutting head. The rotor is of generally hexagonal configuration and mounts a beater bar 61 along each corner of the hexagon. The beater bars 61 are curved and have a plurality of angled grooves cut in the external face thereof, the grooves in one bar being angled in the opposite sense to those in the adjacent bars. The bars act against a curved mesh surface 62 such that grain falls through while the remainder of the crop material is carried upwardly for disposal. The grain (and a certain amount of chaff and the like) falls on to a laterally-extending conveyor. It may then be either be carried into a conventional combine harvester for final separation, or conveyed to a further separation stage mounted above the threshing section, in which it is again transported laterally while be- ing tumbled in an air stream to carry away the chaff for disposal, leaving the clean grain to be delivered at the end of the separation stage, i.e. at the side of the cutting head. Figure 7 shows an alternative configuration of the cutting head, in which the threshing section is divided into three lateral sections to improve the support of the beater rotor and to simplify its construction. The arrangement also permits individual sections to be removed for repair or replacement. The outer two of the three individual beater rotor sections 70 are mounted between the sides of the cutting head and intermediate bearing supports 71 , while the inner rotor section 70 is carried solely between the supports 71. To guide the cut crop away from the bearing supports 71 , two tapered guides 72 are mounted in front of the supports 71 on the lower surface 73 of the cutting head. To permit the spool 50 to pass over the guides 72, the vanes 53 are mounted so as to leave lateral gaps 74 between them, as may be- seen. from Figure 8. - However, since the gaps 74 would leave parts of the crop unguided before and during cutting, reducing efficiency of harvesting, the gaps are filled by mounting a series of rub- ber blades 75 in the ends of the vanes 53, the blades in each series being stepped so that one pair meet, while the other blades serve as support without meeting. As the spool rotates, the blades 75 separate as they pass over the guides 72 and then close again as they clear the guides, ensuring.. that a continuous vane surface is presented to the crop on the next rotation. .

Claims: CLAIMS 1 . A machine for harvesting grains or seeds, comprising a cutting head mounted on a self-powered vehicle, the cutting head containing cutting means for cutting crop material including the seeds or grain, and threshing means for separating seeds or grains from the cut crop material, the head being mounted on the vehicle so as to be movable vertically to control the height from the ground at which the crop is cut. 2. A harvesting machine comprising cutting means for cutting crop material including seeds or grains, and threshing means for separating seeds or grains from the cut crop material, wherein the threshing means threshes over a width substantially equal to the width of the cutting means. 3. A harvesting machine according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the cutting means comprise fixed blades with means for urging the crop into the blades. 4. A harvesting machine according to Claim 3, comprising shear blades reciprocating relative to the fixed blades. 5. A harvesting machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the threshing means comprise a rotary beater and a fixed grid, the cut crop moving between the beater and the grid. 6. A harvesting machine according to Claim 5, comprising transverse conveyor means to collect and transport seeds or grains falling through the grid. 7. A harvesting machine according to Claim 6, wherein the conveyor means moves the seeds/ grains to one end of the cutting head. 8. A harvesting machine according to Claim 6, wherein the conveyor means moves the seeds/grains to a central collecting point in the cutting head. 9. A harvesting machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the cut- ting head is arranged to discharge waste crop material to the ground. 10. A harvesting machine according to any of Claims 1 to 8, wherein the cutting head is arranged to pass waste crop material to one or more further threshing stages external of the cutting head. 1 1. A harvesting machine comprising a cutting head mounted on a self- powered vehicle so as to be movable vertically relative thereto, means for detecting the height of the crop to be harvested ahead of the vehicle, and means responsive to the crop height detected for moving the cutting head, whereby the proportion of the height of the crop cut remains substantially constant. 12. A harvesting machine according to Claim 1 1 , wherein the detecting means is mechanical. 13. A harvesting machine according to Claim 12, wherein the mechanical means comprise a pivoted paddle projecting forward of the vehicle and resting on the crop, and signalling means for generating a signal in response to rotation of the paddle as the crop height varies. 14. A harvesting machine according to Claim 1 3, wherein the paddle carries a lightweight roller which runs on the upper surface of the crop. 1 5. A harvesting machine according to - Claim 14, wherein the roller' comprises a plurality of tubes which engage the crop in succession as the roller rotates. 16. A harvesting machine according to Claim 15, wherein the tubes are in- flated plastics members. 17. A harvesting machine according to Claim 15, wherein the tubes are formed from an expanded plastics material. 18. A harvesting machine according.to, any of Claims 3 .to. 17, comprising balance, means to. balance the weight of the roller so that it exerts a downward force on the crop just sufficient to maintain contact therewith without causing significant bending of the crop stalks. 1 . A harvesting machine according to Claim 1 1 , wherein the detecting means comprise an optical detector. 20. A harvesting machine according to any of Claims 11 to 1 9, wherein the cutting head comprises cutting means and threshing means. 21. A harvesting machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the cutting head carries a separate cutter to cut down the remaining portion of the crop plants after removal of the seed- or grain-carrying portions.

Inventors: EYRE ROBERT JOHN, EYRE, ROBERT, JOHN
Applicants: EYRE ROBERT JOHN, EYRE, ROBERT, JOHN
Application year: 2000
Main classification: A01D41
IPC codes: A01D41