Patent Publication Number: US-2023142213-A1

Title: Harvester high efficiency heat utilization device

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     JP2020-202761A discloses a harvester including a traveling device, a boarding unit, a threshing device, a grain tank, a harvesting unit, a transporting device, and a grain discharging device. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     The harvester according to JP2020-202761A is not equipped with a drying device and cannot dry grains. Therefore, it is necessary to transport the grains to a drying facility in order to dry them. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device capable of drying grains by utilizing waste heat. 
     According to one aspect of the present invention, a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device used for a harvester is provided, the harvester high efficiency heat utilization device including: a drying chamber that dries crop grains; a pipe that communicates with the drying chamber; a first heat exchanger provided in the pipe so as to communicate with an exhaust gas discharge port of an engine of the harvester; a combustion chamber that burns foliage of the crop; a second heat exchanger provided in the pipe so as to communicate with a high temperature gas discharge port of the combustion chamber; and a first blower that guides the gas heat exchanged by the first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger to the drying chamber through the pipe. 
     According to this aspect, the grain can be dried by utilizing the waste heat. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a schematic configuration diagram showing a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device according to the present embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as the present embodiment) will be described with reference to the accompanying drawing. 
     First, a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to  FIG.  1   . 
       FIG.  1    is a schematic configuration diagram showing the harvester high efficiency heat utilization device according to the present embodiment. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , the harvester high efficiency heat utilization device is provided in a harvester to be used in the harvester. The harvester is driven by an engine  5  to run. The harvester high efficiency heat utilization device includes a drying chamber  1 , a pipe  2 , a first heat exchanger  3 , a combustion chamber  6 , a second heat exchanger  4 , a first blower  7 , a spiral conveying cylinder  8 , and a storage tank  9 . 
     The drying chamber  1  primarily dries grains of crops. Specifically, the drying chamber  1  includes a cavity of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  provided with spiral conveying blades (not shown) on an inner peripheral surface thereof and rotatably provided on a fixed cylinder (not shown). The spiral conveying cylinder  8  is rotationally driven by a drive source such as a motor. In the spiral conveying cylinder  8 , an input port is connected to a hopper  18  and an output port is connected to an input port of the storage tank  9 . 
     The pipe  2  communicates with the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ). The first heat exchanger  3  is provided in the pipe  2  so as to communicate with an exhaust gas discharge port (not shown) of the engine  5  via, for example, a communication passage. The combustion chamber  6  burns foliage of the crops (hereinafter, also simply referred to as foliage). The second heat exchanger  4  is provided in the pipe  2  so as to communicate with a high temperature gas discharge port (not shown) of the combustion chamber  6  via, for example, a communication passage. The first blower  7  guides gas heat-exchanged by the first heat exchanger  3  and the second heat exchanger  4  to the drying chamber  1  through the pipe  2 . The first heat exchanger  3  and the second heat exchanger  4  are provided along a direction in which the gas flows in order. That is, the first heat exchanger  3  is provided between the first blower  7  and the second heat exchanger  4 . 
     According to this configuration, it is possible to implement drying of the grains in the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ). Specifically, residual heat of the engine  5  (residual heat due to high temperature exhaust gas of the engine  5 ) and combustion heat due to combustion of the foliage are exchanged with air in the pipe  2  by the first heat exchanger  3  and the second heat exchanger  4 , respectively, and then guided to the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ) by the first blower  7 , so that the grains are dried in the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ). As a result, since a high water content of the grains due to weather such as rain can be reduced by effectively utilizing the residual heat of the engine  5  and the combustion heat generated by the combustion of the foliage, loss of the grains and safety of the grains can be ensured, and energy saving can be achieved. By incinerating foliage with a high heavy metal content, cost of recovering the foliage can be significantly reduced, environmental pollution caused by heavy metals can be reduced, and incinerated foliage can be used as fertilizers. 
     One end, as a downstream end, of the pipe  2  is communicated with the output port of the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ), and the other end, as an upstream end, of the pipe  2 , is provided with the first blower  7 . As a result, in the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ), a blowing direction by the first blower  7  and a grain conveying direction by rotation of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  are opposite to each other. Therefore, the grains being transported can be effectively dried, and a water content of the grains can be reliably reduced particularly in the vicinity of the output port of the spiral conveying cylinder  8 . 
     An inner peripheral surface of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  is provided with stirring plates (not shown) having a height lower than that of the spiral conveying blades. The stirring plates are provided offset from the spiral conveying blades so as to form a predetermined angle (for example, an acute angle) with the spiral transport blades. Thereby, by floating the grains in a conveying process, a contact time and a contact area between the grains and hot air in the spiral conveying cylinder  8  can be increased. Therefore, the water content of the grains can be efficiently removed. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1   , the storage tank  9  is a container that stores the grains conveyed by the rotation of the spiral conveying cylinder  8 . The storage tank  9  includes a partition plate  10 , a storage chamber  901  located above the partition plate  10 , and an air heating chamber  902  located below the partition plate  10 . The partition plate  10  is uniformly formed with a plurality of through holes  11 . The through holes  11  are formed such that the grains cannot pass through. Therefore, it possible to prevent the grains from passing through the through holes  11  and entering the air heating chamber  902 . 
     The harvester high efficiency heat utilization device further includes a third heat exchanger  12  and a second blower  13 . The third heat exchanger  12  is provided in the air heating chamber  902  so that a part thereof surrounds an outer periphery of the combustion chamber  6 . The second blower  13  guides gas heat-exchanged by the third heat exchanger  12  to the storage chamber  901 . The second blower  13  is provided at an introduction port of the air heating chamber  902 . 
     A part of the third heat exchanger  12  surrounding the outer periphery of the combustion chamber  6  is heated by the combustion chamber  6  and then heat thereof is exchanged in the air heating chamber  902  to heat air in the air heating chamber  902 . Then, the heated air is guided to the grains deposited in the storage chamber  901  through the through holes  11  by the second blower  13 , and the grains can be secondarily dried to further remove the water content of the grains. 
     An outer periphery of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  is provided with a fourth heat exchanger  14 . That is, the spiral conveying cylinder  8  is rotatably supported on an inner periphery of the fourth heat exchanger  14 . In the fourth heat exchanger  14 , an input port is connected to a cooling water output port of the engine  5 , and an output port is connected to an input port of a cooler  15  that cools the engine  5 . An output port of the cooler  15  is connected to a cooling water input port of the engine  5  so that the engine  5  is cooled. 
     Water heated by the engine  5  is output from the cooling water output port of the engine  5  (the input port of the fourth heat exchanger  14 ) to the fourth heat exchanger  14 . The fourth heat exchanger  14  exchanges heat with the heated water, and outputs the heat-exchanged water to the cooler  15  via the input port of the cooler  15  (the output port of the fourth heat exchanger  14 ). At the same time, the fourth heat exchanger  14  heats the outer periphery of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  as a whole by using heat generated by heat exchange (that is, the residual heat of the engine  5 ). Then, the cooler  15  cools output water, and outputs the cooled water to the engine  5  via the cooling water input port of the engine  5  (the output port of the cooler  15 ). As a result, the grains in the spiral conveying cylinder  8  can be evenly dried by the residual heat of the engine  5 , so that the water content of the grains can be quickly removed. 
     An inlet  16  is formed in an upper part of the combustion chamber  6 , and a crusher  17  that crushes the foliage is provided at the inlet  16 . As a result, the crusher  17  crushes the foliage, so that flammability of the foliage can be improved. The second heat exchanger  4  communicates with a gas processor  19 . Exhaust gas generated by burning the foliage in the combustion chamber  6  is output to the gas processor  19  via the second heat exchanger  4 . As a result, the exhaust gas is filtered by the gas processor  19  and discharged to outside. 
     A blower  20  for supplying air to the combustion chamber  6  and a fuel inlet  21  for replenishing fuel are provided on a lower side surface of the combustion chamber  6 . At a lower end of the combustion chamber  6 , a slag discharge port  22  with a filter for discharging slag as an incinerator of the foliage is formed. Then, while the harvester is running, the harvester high efficiency heat utilization device can discharge the slag as it is as fertilizer through the slag discharge port  22 . A heat insulating layer is provided on an outer wall of the combustion chamber  6  to prevent loss of the combustion heat. 
     (Functions and Effects) 
     Next, main functions and effects of the present embodiment will be described. 
     The harvester high efficiency heat utilization device according to the present embodiment is a harvester high efficiency heat utilization device used in a harvester, including: the drying chamber  1  that dries the crop grains; the pipe  2  that communicates with the drying chamber  1 ; the first heat exchanger  3  provided in the pipe  2  so as to communicate with the exhaust gas discharge port of the engine  5  of the harvester; the combustion chamber  6  that burns the foliage of the crop; the second heat exchanger  4  provided in the pipe  2  so as to communicate with the high temperature gas discharge port of the combustion chamber  6 ; and the first blower  7  that guides the gas heat exchanged by the first heat exchanger  3  and the second heat exchanger  4  to the drying chamber through the pipe  2 . 
     According to this configuration, the residual heat of the engine  5  (the residual heat due to the high temperature exhaust gas of the engine  5 ) and the combustion heat due to the combustion of the foliage are exchanged with air in the pipe  2  by the first heat exchanger  3  and the second heat exchanger  4 , respectively, and then guided to the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ) by the first blower  7 , so that the grains are dried in the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ). As a result, since the high water content of the grains due to weather such as rain can be reduced by effectively utilizing the residual heat of the engine  5  and the combustion heat generated by the combustion of the foliage, the loss of the grains and the safety of the grains can be ensured, and energy saving can be achieved. By incinerating the foliage with a high heavy metal content, the cost of recovering the foliage can be significantly reduced, environmental pollution caused by heavy metals can be reduced, and the incinerated foliage can be used as fertilizers. 
     In the present embodiment, the drying chamber  1  includes the cavity of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  provided with the spiral conveying blades on the inner peripheral surface thereof and rotatably provided, and the storage tank  9  that stores the grains conveyed by the rotation of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  is also provided. In the spiral conveying cylinder  8 , the output port thereof communicates with one end of the pipe  2  and the input port of the storage tank  9 . 
     According to this configuration, in the drying chamber  1  (spiral conveying cylinder  8 ), the blowing direction by the first blower  7  and the grain conveying direction by the rotation of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  are opposite to each other. Therefore, the grains being transported can be effectively dried, and the water content of the grains can be reliably reduced particularly in the vicinity of the output port of the spiral conveying cylinder  8 . 
     In the present embodiment, the storage tank  9  includes the partition plate  10  formed with the plurality of through holes  11 , the storage chamber  901  located above the partition plate  10 , and the air heating chamber  902  located below the partition plate  10 , and further includes the third heat exchanger  12  provided in the air heating chamber  902  so that a part thereof surrounds the outer periphery of the combustion chamber  6 , and the second blower  13  that guides the gas heat-exchanged by the third heat exchanger  12  to the storage chamber  901 . 
     According to this configuration, a part of the third heat exchanger  12  surrounding the outer periphery of the combustion chamber  6  is heated by the combustion chamber  6  and then the heat thereof is exchanged in the air heating chamber  902  to heat the air in the air heating chamber  902 . Then, the heated air is guided to the grains deposited in the storage chamber  901  through the through holes  11  by the second blower  13 , and the grains can be secondarily dried to further remove the water content of the grains. 
     In the present embodiment, the fourth heat exchanger  14  is further provided on the outer periphery of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  such that the input port thereof is connected to the cooling water output port of the engine  5 , and the output port thereof is connected to the input port of the cooler  15  that cools the engine  5 . The output port of the cooler  15  is connected to the cooling water input port of the engine  5  so that the engine  5  is cooled. 
     According to this configuration, the fourth heat exchanger  14  heats the outer periphery of the spiral conveying cylinder  8  as a whole by using the heat generated by the heat exchange (that is, the residual heat of the engine  5 ), so that the grains in the spiral conveying cylinder  8  can be evenly dried by the residual heat of the engine  5 , and therefore the water content of the grains can be quickly removed. 
     In the present embodiment, the gas processor  19  communicated with the second heat exchanger  4  is also provided. 
     According to this configuration, the exhaust gas is filtered by the gas processor  19  and discharged to the outside. 
     In the present embodiment, the combustion chamber  6  includes the inlet  16  and the crusher  17  that is provided at the inlet  16  and for crushing the foliage of crops. 
     According to this configuration, the crusher  17  crushes the foliage, so that the flammability of the foliage can be improved. 
     Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the above-mentioned embodiment is merely a part of application examples of the present invention, and does not mean that the technical scope of the present invention is limited to the specific configurations of the above-mentioned embodiment. 
     The present application claims priorities of Chinese Patent Application No. 202111317381.2 filed with the China Patent Office on Nov. 9, 2021, and Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-4367 filed to the Japan Patent Office on Jan. 14, 2022, and all the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.