Patent ID: 7390252

Claim:
A rotor for a threshing system of an agricultural combine, comprising: a body supported for rotation about a rotational axis therethrough, the body having an outer circumferential surface including an inlet section adjacent to one axial end and a threshing section adjacent to the inlet section; four inlet impellers disposed on the inlet section at predetermined angularly spaced positions around the rotational axis, respectively, including a first inlet impeller and a second inlet impeller adjacent to the first inlet impeller, a third inlet impeller adjacent to the second inlet impeller, and a fourth inlet impeller between the third inlet impeller and the first inlet impeller, the inlet impellers being oriented and configured for conveying crop material along generally helical flow paths, respectively, about the inlet section to the threshing section during rotation of the rotor, wherein the first inlet impeller and the third inlet impeller have a first length extending along the inlet section to the threshing section, and the second inlet impeller and the fourth inlet impeller have a second length extending along the inlet section to the threshing section, the first length being greater than the second length; and three rasp bars disposed on the threshing section at predetermined angularly spaced locations about the rotational axis, respectively, including a first rasp bar at a first angular location adjacent to an end of the second inlet impeller for threshing crop material conveyed thereby, a second rasp bar at a second angular location adjacent to an end of the third impeller for threshing crop material conveyed thereby, and a third rasp bar at a third angular location spaced axially from the first inlet impeller so as to define a crop material flow path therebetween.