Patent Publication Number: US-2005132688-A1

Title: Header having an angled transverse feeding channel

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The invention relates to a header for mowing stalk crops with several mowing and feed devices which are disposed on both sides of the longitudinal mid-plane and at the backs of which there is a transverse conveyor channel, through which the plants, harvested by the mowing and feed devices, are conveyed to the center of the header, in which they are deflected rearward by means of deflecting conveying elements, disposed on both sides ahead of a feed channel of a forage harvester, and transferred to the feed channel.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      Headers of the aforesaid type are used in agriculture to cut stalk crops, for example, corn plants, from the soil of a field and to convey them to a harvester carrying the header. The harvester includes a chopper drum for chopping the plants into pieces which are discharged into a loading container on a trailer. Headers of this type usually have several mowing and feed devices, arranged laterally adjacent to one another and operating independently of rows, in the form of drums rotating around respective vertical axes. Each of the drums is provided with notches distributed around its periphery, in which the plant stalks are taken up, as well as with mowing disks arranged below the drums, which are used to cut the plant stalks from the soil.  
      In a customary design of headers of this type, a cross-feed screw of the header is mounted upstream of the feed channel of the forage harvester. The mowing and feed devices take the crop at their backs to the cross-feed screw, which conveys it to the center of the header and there transfers it to the feed channel. Headers of this type are disclosed, for example, in DE 38 28 293 C, DE 195 23 255 A, DE 199 53 521 A, DE 101 03 595 C, DE 101 51 849 C, and EP 1 305 995 A. It is disadvantageous that the cross-feed screw increases the overall length, weight, and torque of the header on the forage harvester.  
      In other headers for mowing stalk crops, the cross feed of the crop occurs by means of other inwardly disposed mowing and feed devices. It can occur on the front side thereof (EP 0 099 527 A) or the back (DE 40 02 344 A, DE 195 27 607 A, EP 1 334 651 A, DE 102 49 457 A), whereby the transverse conveyor drums, supporting the conveying, or driven clearers or strippers are used. The conveying on the front of the mowing and feed devices has not become accepted in practice. In headers with conveying at the backs of the mowing and feed devices, usually in the center of the header on both sides of the feed channel, so-called slope conveyor drums are disposed, which rotate around approximately vertical but slightly forward inclined axes. They deflect the plant stream rearward from the transverse conveying channel and overcome the height difference between the plane of the header and the plane of the feed channel.  
      In headers of this type, sometimes the deflection of the plants in the feed channel of the forage harvester proves to be problematic, particularly at rather high working widths, at which the plant stalks entering the outer area of the header are transported over relatively long distances. In uneven stands, they can come into an inclined position, which is caused in part by the heavy, high-hanging corn cobs, because they cannot then be supported by the other plants. The plant stalks bounce out of the transport path and without guidance pass by the central feed channel to the forage harvester and block the entire feed area.  
      The problem underlying the invention was to provide a header for mowing stalk crops in which the above-stated problems do not occur or occur to a reduced extent.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      According to the present invention, there is provided an improved header for harvesting stalk crops.  
      An object of the invention is to provide a header including a plurality of mowing and feed devices located on each side of a mid-plane of the header so as to convey harvested plants to a transverse conveyor channel at the opposite sides of a longitudinal mid-plane of the header so as to form a V which opens in a forward direction of travel of the header.  
      The plants are transported through the transverse conveyor channels, which are located behind the mowing and feed devices, to the center of the header. There they are deflected rearward by means of the deflecting conveying elements and transferred to the feed channel of a forage harvester carrying the header. One of the deflecting conveying elements is located in front of the feed channel on each side of the feed channel. It is proposed to dispose the transverse conveying channels in the form of a “V” open in front in the forward direction, so that the plants in the transverse conveying channel also achieve a rearward directed velocity component opposite to the forward direction; the result is that they can be deflected more easily rearward by the deflecting conveying elements into the feed channel.  
      Preferably an imaginary extension of the transverse conveying channel intersects the deflecting conveying elements at a place where the deflecting conveying elements move more rearward than to the center of the header, in the case of a rotating deflecting conveying element therefore at an angle of at most 45° relative to the transverse direction, or behind said place. It is also conceivable that the imaginary extension of the transverse conveying channel runs behind the axis of rotation of the deflecting conveying elements. This condition means that the plants enter at an angle of less than 90° to the normal of the deflecting conveying elements; i.e., they are conveyed by the deflecting conveying elements not opposite their original direction of motion, but rearward only still orthogonal thereto.  
      It is achieved in this manner that plant stalks perhaps escaping from the transverse conveying channel encounter a place on the deflecting conveying elements on the opposite side, where they can be conveyed non-problematically rearward into the feed channel. Thereby, blockage of the crops can be prevented in a simple and effective manner.  
      It is not absolutely necessary, but possible, that the transverse conveying channel extend over its entire length at an angle to the transverse direction. It is sufficient if only the area of the transverse conveying channel next to the longitudinal mid-plane forms an angle with the transverse direction. This area should be at least as long as the plants to be harvested, however.  
      The conveying of the plants can occur by means of the backs of the mowing and feed devices and/or by separate conveyors.  
      It is furthermore conceivable to provide the header with a movable frame, so that it becomes possible to move the mowing and feed devices in such a way that the transverse conveying channel can be moved between a first position, in which it runs transverse to the forward direction, and a second position, in which it is oriented at an angle to the transverse position. The first position can be chosen with non-problematic stands, whereas the second position is used in non-uniform stands. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      Four exemplary embodiments of the invention, described in greater detail below, are shown in the drawings.  
       FIG. 1  is a schematic top view of a first embodiment of a header of the invention for mowing stalk crops.  
       FIG. 2  is a schematic top view of a second embodiment of a header of the invention,.  
       FIG. 3  is a schematic top view of a third embodiment of a header of the invention.  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic top view of a fourth embodiment of a header of the invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       FIG. 1  shows a schematic top view of half of a first embodiment of a header  10  of the invention for mowing stalk crops, for example, corn. It comprises several mowing and feed devices  12 ,  14 ,  16 ,  18 , which are equipped in a manner known per se with cutting disks rotating around a vertical axis and conveyor disks disposed above these, with notches distributed around their periphery to take up the stems of the cut plants. Mowing and feed devices  12 - 18  of this type are disclosed in detail in EP 0 099 527 A, the content of which is incorporated into the present documents by reference.  
      In  FIG. 1 , to simplify the description, only the half of the header  10  on the left side of the longitudinal mid-plane  20  of the header  10 , relative to the forward direction V in which the header  10  moves over a field for harvesting, and the inner part of the right half are shown completely. The right half, however, in reality is a mirror image to the left half. The header  10  accordingly has eight mowing and feed devices  12 - 18 , with which eight rows of plants sown at a distance of 75 cm can also be harvested simultaneously.  
      The mowing and feed devices  18  disposed furthest outward rotate such that the cut plants are conveyed inwardly, at the front of the mowing and feed devices  18 , in the direction of the longitudinal mid-plane  20  of the header  10 . At the point next to the longitudinal mid-plane  20  or shortly upstream therefrom, the plants are lifted out of the conveying disks of the mowing and feed device  18  by means of clearers or strippers (not shown) and transferred to the back of the next inner mowing and feed device  16 , which turns in a direction opposite to the outer mowing and feed device  18 .  
      Next, the plants at the back of the mowing and feed device  16  are lifted out of the conveyer disks thereof by means of a clearer and conveyed further by means of a transverse conveying drum (not drawn) rotating about a vertical axis, the lifters of which penetrate a back wall  30  at the back of the transverse conveying channel  22 , and transfer to the back of the next inner mowing and feed device  14 .  
      Then, the plants are removed by means of another clearer from the conveying disks of the mowing and feed device  14  and, supported by means of another transverse conveying drum, are transferred to the back of the inner mowing and feed device  12 .  
      The inner mowing and feed device  12  then transfers the plants, supported by means of clearers  38  (see  FIG. 2 ), to the deflecting conveying elements  24  in the form of a sloping conveying drum. The deflecting conveying elements  24  rotate around an approximately vertical, but slightly forward inclined axis, to overcome the height difference between the plane of the header  10  and a feed channel  26  of a subsequent forage harvester. The deflecting conveying elements  24  are disposed in each case on a side of feed channel  26  at opposite sides of an intersection of imaginary lines  32  that diverge in a forward direction so as to define a V. Stalk dividers  28  are disposed in each case between adjacent mowing and feed devices  12 - 18 .  
      The described construction of the header corresponds approximately to that known from EP 0 760 200 A. On the back of the mowing and feed devices  12 - 18 , the defined transverse conveying channel  22  is located between the mowing and feed devices  12 - 18  and the back wall  30 . Plants cut by the by the mowing and feed devices  12 - 18  enter into the conveying channel  22  and are transported to the center of the header  10 . The plants are deflected rearward at the center of the header  10  by the deflecting conveying elements  24  located at the back or outside of the transverse conveying channel  22  and fed into the feed channel  26 .  
      As taught by the invention, the transverse conveying channel  22 , however, is disposed at a preceding angle relative to the transverse direction, i.e., the horizontal direction running perpendicular to the longitudinal mid-plane  20 . The transverse conveying channels  22  on both sides of the longitudinal mid-plane  20  form a wide open “V.” The mowing and feed devices  12 - 16  are disposed successively far in front in the forwardly opening V to achieve the depicted course of the transverse conveying channel  22 . Only the outer mowing and feed devices  18  are disposed far behind relative to the next inner mowing and feed device  16 , which is made possible by their rotation direction.  
      As stated above, the imaginary line  32  is located centrally along the transverse conveying channel  22 . This imaginary line  32  intersects the deflecting conveying elements  24  of the other half of the header  10  at a point  34 , where the deflecting conveying elements  24  move more rearward than toward the longitudinal mid-plane  20 . Specifically, the point  34  is displaced forward by an angle α of approximately 15° relative to the point, next to the longitudinal mid-plane  20 , of the deflecting conveying elements  24 . The extension  32  also runs behind the axis of rotation  36  of the deflecting conveying elements  24 . The advantage of the angle α and the spatial arrangement of the extension  32  and the point  34  is that plants, which for any reason have escaped from the transverse conveying channel  22 , reach the deflecting conveying elements  24  on the other side of the header  10  at a point  34 , where they can be easily conveyed rearward into the feed channel  26 . As a result, blockage of the crops can be easily avoided.  
       FIG. 2  shows a second embodiment of a header  10  of the invention. Elements coinciding with the first embodiment are labeled with the same reference numbers. In this header  10 , the inner mowing and feed devices  12  have a greater diameter (about 1.5 m for taking in two plant rows sown at a distance of 75 cm) than the outer mowing and feed devices (about 75 cm)  14 ,  18 . The transverse conveying channel also extends at an angle α to the transverse direction, and its extension  32  intersects the opposite deflecting conveying elements  24  an their inner side. Through the use of the relatively large inner mowing and feed devices  12  the angle α can be achieved without major lengthening of the header  10  in forward direction V.  
      In the third embodiment shown in  FIG. 3 , the sole difference relative to the second embodiment is that the outer mowing and feed device  18  is not displaced forward relative to the next inner mowing and feed device  14 . The overall length of the header  10  in the forward direction V can be reduced somewhat as a result, without the form and direction of the transverse conveying channel  22  being disadvantageously affected. It is also evident from  FIG. 3  that it is sufficient, if only one part, adjacent to the longitudinal mid-plane  20 , of the transverse conveying channel  22  runs in a direction oriented at the angle α to the transverse direction, as long as its length corresponds to the length of a plant stalk. In  FIG. 3 , the outer areas of the transverse conveying channel  22  are arranged in the area between the mowing and feed devices  14  and  18 , namely, transverse to forward direction V.  
      The embodiment shown in  FIG. 4  corresponds approximately to the one shown in  FIG. 1  with the difference that the plants in the transverse conveying channel  22  are conveyed at the back of the mowing and feed devices  12 - 18  through separate conveyors  40 ,  42  and independent of the mowing and feed devices  12 - 18 . The conveyors  40 ,  42  are belt conveyors, which run around driven rolls mounted for rotation about respective approximately vertical axes. The inner conveyors  42  form simultaneously the deflecting conveying elements  24  at their ends adjacent to the longitudinal mid-plane  20 . A header with conveyors of this type, or, alternatively, with other embodiments of the conveyors, for example, with rotating drums, is disclosed in DE 19856444 A, the content of which is incorporated into the present documents by reference. Here as well, the transverse conveyor channels  22  are disposed at a preceding angle α to the transverse direction, and the imaginary line  32  intersects the deflecting conveying elements  24  of the opposite half of the header  10  at the inner side of the deflecting conveying elements  24 , at which these move more rearward than to the center of the header  10  and an extension of the imaginary line  32  is behind the axes of rotation of the deflecting conveying elements  24 . Because of the rearward directed velocity component, the plants can be deflected more easily by means of the deflecting conveying elements rearward into the feed channel  26 . Plants perhaps escaping from the transverse conveying channel  22  are caught by the deflecting conveying elements  24  and conveyed rearward into the feed channel  26 .  
      Having described the preferred embodiment, it will become apparent that various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the accompanying claims.