AU2011100910A4 - Clamshell Bin - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract There is a requirement in agricultural cropping systems for an efficient method of collecting residue from cereal and other crops exiting the rear of a combine harvester during the harvest process. This operation allows control of weed seeds and other material, confining such material in specified locations within the field being harvested, allowing later removal for fodder etc. While there are existing designs in production which perform the stated function of collecting and releasing crop residue, they all gather and release material in a different manner to our design. We believe the design described herein offers a substantially more efficient method. This is due to the innovative capability of our design to carry a large load in a relatively compact shaped bin and then quickly release the contents using the principle described herein. The invention entails a "clamshell" shaped bin consisting of two distinct and matching halves. The bin has a fixed, sloping floor front section containing half the load and the balance of material contained within the opening rear section. Such a design allows high bin capacity and efficient emptying of the bins' contents because the initial release point of the bin is central to its' overall length and mass of contained material. This is difficult to achieve in ways other than by this centrally located release point, made possible by our clamshell design. The "clamshell" shape with fixed, sloping front floor section at 32 degrees from horizontal and approximately half the bin contents shared between fixed front section and the opening rear section ensures equal time for each section to empty. An Innovation Patent is sought for our design of a "clamshell "type bin, as further described in this application FigI

Description

1 Description 1. The design is a clamshell shaped bin in two opposing sections, front and rear. The combined halves form an unequal sided pentagon shape. The rear section is mounted to the front section by means of a fixed fulcrum. The bin opens in an arc around that fulcrum point to a predetermined position to discharge contents. The said fulcrum point is located approximately one third of the distance below the overall height of the bin (including a separately fitted top section) and approximately one third of overall bin length measured forward from the rear of the bin when viewed from the side. (See drawings SCI) When opening to release material, the rear section rotates rearward and upward around itsaETM axis to a point not higher than the highest point of the fixed top section of the machine. 2. An essential aspect of the design is that the fulcrum point (as described in 1 above) is located rearward of the lower separation point of the front and rear bin sections, by approximately 20 degrees from vertical. The exact proportions of the bin are not critical but are effectively governed by the physical property of the material transported. i.e. the angle required for gravitational flow of crop residue. Overall dimensions are governed by practical size for transport Activation of the bin opening is powered by the harvesters' hydraulic and electrical systems with no additional power source needed. The main component of the machine is the said bin, located integrally on a towable chassis fitted with two wheels. Note: The provided drawings (SC 1) are required to fully understand the design.