Patent ID: 7462101

Claim:
A crop processing unit for an agricultural harvester having at least an infeed section and a threshing section, the crop processing unit comprising: (A) a rotor further comprising a drum having (i) a frusto-conical shaped portion comprising (a) a frusto-conical fore-region and (b) a frusto-conical aft-region, and (ii) a downstream cylindrical shaped portion, wherein the frusto-conical portion is adjacent to and upstream of the cylindrical portion; and (B) a rotor housing further comprising (i) an infeed portion, and (ii) a threshing portion adjacent to and downstream of the infeed portion, said threshing portion comprising non-rotating grates; wherein the fore-region of the frusto-conical portion is disposed in the infeed portion of the rotor housing; wherein the aft-region of the frusto-conical portion is disposed in the threshing portion of the rotor housing and radially inward from said grates and overlaps said grates, said grates lying in a cylindrical plane inside of said rotor housing; and wherein the cylindrical portion of the rotor is at least partly disposed in the threshing portion of the rotor housing.