CA1045389A - Device for the upright maintenance of the body of the harvester-thresher - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE:
The device for the upright maintenance of the body of the harvester-thresher has a pendulum that achieves the continuous variation of the speed of the bringing back movement of the body of the harvester-thresher., The pendulum conveys the angular va-riations of the body of the machine to a flow controller of rotary or linear type: the flow controller commands an adjustable valve and the latter takes a part of the flow of a pump proportional to the tilting angle of the machine. The absorbed flow passes through the adjustable valve and then through the flow controller. The other part of the flow of the pump passes through an electrically activated distributor to hydrostatic cylinders. The hydrostatic cylinders convey to the body of the machine a movement of bringing back to the upright position. The flow controller is made up of a rotary slide-valve, directly activated by the pendulum; the initial flow adjustment is achieved by means of a screw which adjusts the axial position of the rotary slide valve. The varia-tion of the flow proportional to the tilting angle of the body of the machine is achieved by varying the superposition area of some openings in a frame and in the slide valve.

Description

The present invention refers to a device for the auto-: i ;
matic continuous maintenance of the upright position of the body of the harvester-thresher for work on slopes, in order to provide optimum operation and stability~
A device for harvester-threshers has been known which maintains the upright position irrespective of the unevenness of .....
the soil. This device senses the tilt of the body by means of two communicant recipients with liquid supplied with magnetic switches which, by means of some relays, command the winding coils of a first electromagnetic valve which in turn direct the liquid dis-t':' . ,.~ .
i~ charged by a pump towards two double action hydrostatic cylinders which bring the machine back in upright position. The command of bringing to the upright position is achieved by the device in a i ; selective way, in two steps, namely for small tilts, a part of the `~ 1 flow of the pump, by means of a second electromagnetic valve is " ;1 short-circuited through a shutter at the tank. The known device presents the disadvantage of only two step~ operation, i.e. with ;`; jerks, reduced reliability due to a large number of electric con-~' tacts in permanent action, complexity and high factory cost of the components.
The device for the upright maintenance of the body of `;`~ the harvester-thresher, according to the invention avoids these ~,,,,,!~ ~ disadvantages so that, in ordex to obtain a continuous variety ~;~ of the speed of bringing to the upright position of the body of the harvester-thresher, it uses a pendulum which transmits the ;~
angular variations of the body to a rotary or linear type flow controller which commands an adjustable valve, this taking a part !~
of the flow of the pump, proportional to the tilting angle of the machine, the flow absorbed passing through the adjustable shutter , ", ~ .
and then through the flow controller, the other part of the flow ~ -i of the pump passing through a distributor electrically activated, to hydrostatic cylinders which convey to the body of the machine ~6~ 3~
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.. : a movement of bringing to the upright position~
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''!`.'' ' Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be :~ hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings, .
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.i. wherein:

.: Figure 1 is a general diagram of the hydrostatic equip-.:: ment;
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- Figure 2 shows a section through a continuous adjustable : valve;
~s . Figure 3 represents a lateral section through the flow controller;
Figure 4 shows a longitudinal section through the flow ; controller;
. Figure 5 illustrates a fundamental circuit of the signal- -i ling and commanding block; and ' Figure 6, represents a fundamental circuit of the signal-ling and commanding block.
~. The device according to the invention comprises a hydro-t.;~`',,'l,',.~ sta~ic equipment made up of a pump 1 whose flow is divided, on one hand through a distributor 2 activated by the electromagnets 3 , 20 placed on one side and on the other of the ends of the distributor ~; i 2, towards two double action hydrostatic cylinders 4, which acti- :
vate the body of the machine 5 and, on the other hand, through an ~:
adjustable valve A and a flow controller B, directly motivated by a candanic suspended pendulum 6, so that it is responsive only to ~:
.. .. ..
the movements around a longitudinal axis of the harvester, towards -.

a liquid tank 7. When activating the distributor 2 inone of the ~` extreme positions a part of the flow of the pump 1 enters the '` hydrostatic cylinders 4, causing their corresponding activation, , `. and thus the bringing of the machine 5, back to the upright posi- ~:
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tion, this moment the distributor 2 comes back in idling position, ~- locking the hydrostatic cylinders 4. In the extreme positions of . ~ the distributor 2 in which the hydrostatic cylinders 4 are activa-,, , ; , -;

- 2 -;" ~, ~l 531~g ~ ted within chosen and adjustable limits, the flow controller B
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makes the other part of the flow of the pump 1 pass into the tank . 7, through the commanded shutter A causing the activating speed of the body of the machine 5 to be proportional to the deviation angle of the body of the machine 5. During the operation of the . ~ commanded shutter A supplied with the casing 9, through the ope-nings a, the channels b, the slopes c, through a release d and the ~` channels e in a slide valve 10, the oil discharged by the pump 1 ` : reaches a space f with a reduced pressure and goes out through an ;,- ~
s 10 opening g. The lamination of the liquid is produced by the collar ; of the slide valve 10 and the slopes c, so that through the ope-~;. ning g, the oil goes out with reduced pressure; after going out -~
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through opening g, if the liquid flow is obturated by the flow controller B, the pressure is augmented~in the space f, so that ~,~ the slide valve 10 is pushed to compress the spring 11 until the ~; equilibrium is re-established. While moving, the slide valve 10 ,"~,........................................................................ .
.~; obturates the slots c, so that the laminated liquid flow in them ~

should correspond to the flow permitted by the flow controller B, ~
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driven in its turn by the pendulum 6.
~hen the flow in the flow controller B increases, the pressure in the space f decreases, the spring 11 is slackened, by its movement the slide valve 10 obturates less the slots c and the !,;~, , .:
i~ flaw increases according to the new situation. The flow controller ~.
B, according to figures 3 and 4, is of rotary type and so it can be directly driven by the pendulum 6. The oil comes through the ~:
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openings h in the frame 12 of the flow controller B, goes into the openings h and i in a rotary slide valve 13, and following this ~:; track the oil goes into the tank 7. When the rotary slide valve 13 is turned to the right ~ to the'left by the pendulum 6, due to ~:
~;.' 30 the tilt of the machine, the liquid flow is obturated proportionally ~;~.: to the revolving angle by means of the variation of the common area ~`~ of the openings h and i. The initial adjustment of the flow pas-, ~ ...................................................................... .. .
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sing through the flow control B is done by means of the bolt 14 , which by means of the axial movement of the slide valve 13 alters the superposition area of the openings h and i, and in this way, one can adjust the flow controller B, for example, according to r the viscosity or the temperature of the oil used.
~' The automatic equipment of the harvester-thresher whose fundamental circuit is presented in figure 5 achieves the automatic ~;~ command and control of the sig~alling hydrostatic equipment. In idle position the supply of the installation is cut down by means , ~ 10 of the general switch 15, of the relay C which causes the closing , . . . .
; / of the circuit made up of the contact 16 and the contact 17, the operation being done by the spring 18. When operating automati-' cally the general switch 15 is turned on, the lamp 19 is lighted ~,~": i:
signalling the presence of tension in the electrical network. If one of the two contacts 20 or 21 limitting the stroke~which are normally cut down, is not interrupted, the relay C is not activa-ted and by means of the contacts 16 and 17, an a~xm horn 22 and a lamp 23 are activated. If the contacts 20, 21 limitting the stroke are interrupted, the winding coil 24 of the relay is put under ten-sion, the relay C is activa~ed and its shielding 25 overcoming the force of the spring 18, establishes the circuit by means of the contacts 16-26. By means of a manual-automatic switch, one gets to the automatic position. If the contact 28, normally interrup- -ted, is interrupted too, when operating automatically, two identi- `
cal signalli~ and commanding circuits are put under tension and they activate respectively the electromagnets 3 and the distributor 2, according to the signals of two transducers 29 and 30. When exceeding the maximum admitted rate, one of the contacts 20 or 21 ,~.,.,- . . . .. .

is opened, the coil 24 of the relay C is put out of tension and the circuit of an alarm horn 22 and of a lamp 23 is cut down by . .
means of contacts 16 and 17. In this case, by opening the contacts 16 and 17, the automa~ic command is decoupled by putting the res-~.''"-"' ~
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pective circuits out of tension and further one can directly and ~.~ manually activate the slide valve o distributor 2 by means of a ."',: ", ' ~ lever 31. IE during automatic operation something goes wrong, `.;i':', "
~;~; namely there is a short circuit of the coils of electromagnets 3 of the short circuit ofi both power transistors Tl in the signal-.''.' ! ling and commanding blocks D and E, which activate the electro-~ magnets 3 of distributor 2, the magnetic field-produced in this ; . .
case by the winding coil 32 of the relay C which is opposite to ..
. ~ the field produced by the winding coil 24 of the relay C releases . ~ . .
the shielding 25 of the relay C, the contact 16-26 is cut down and the electric current in the winding coil 32 is annulled. The winding coil 24 being under tension, the contact 16~26 should be shut immediately, causing a vibrating movement of the shielding . .
! 25 of the relay C. When switching on the contact 16-26 a winding coil 33 of the relay C, comes into operation, which supplies the ~ ;
charging current of the heavy-duty condenser 34, provides for a i~- while a magnetic field opposite to the field produced by the wind- ;
ing coil 24, thus the spring 18 keeps the contact 16-17 turned on for a while and the alarm horn 22 and the lamp 23 are activated.
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i;~ ' 20 After charging the condenser 34, the current in the coil 33 lS ~
,;;`~ annuled, the field of the winding coil 24 draws again the shield 25 of the relay C, re-establishing the contact 16-26 and the pro-cess beings again. Intermittent luminous and sonorous signals are ;i produced, these constituting the signals for damage, and in that case, the operator, using the lever 31, manually and directly acti-vates the slide valve of the distributor 2, putting the manual-~ ; automatic switch 27 in manual position.
':~ The manual operation is possible in two variants: if the , ., i .
.;r~ enerator switch 15 is in the switch on position, the winding coil ;~
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~; 30 24 of the relay C is supplied by means of the contacts 20, 21 li-~; mitting the stroke, and thus the ends of the stroke are marked ~: by means of sonorous and luminous signals.
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The command of the distributor 2 is achieved by means of the identical signalling and commanding blocks. The tilt of ~i; the machine is signalled by the transducer 29 which finally com-mands by means of the power transistor Tl the electromagnet 3 of distributor 2 which directs the oil flow to the hydrostatic cy-linders which in their turn bring the bod~ 5 of the machine in "y upright position.
According to figure 6, a transistor T2 iS mounted in a ; diagram of low-frequency oscillator having in the collector a winding-coil Ll, in the basis, a winding coil 12 which make up to-~i~ gether the transducer 29. Two transistors T3 and T4 with their respective components make up together a monostable turn over circuit. The transistor Tl is a power transistor which has in the , collector the winding coil of the electromagnet 3. In idle posi-tion, the transistor T2 does not oscillate because the sh~ding of the transducer 29, the shielding forcin~ one piece with the pendu~
lum 6 is removed and the coupling between Ll and L2 is insufficient.
In this case, the turnover circuit T3 mentioned above is opened, T4 and Tl are locked and the current does not pass through the winding coil of the electromagnet 3. When the machine is properly ` tilted, the shielding of the transducer 29 establisshes the coup-ling between Ll and L2 and the transistor T2 starts oscillatingO
Through a condenser Cl, the alternative tension in the collector of the transistor T2 passes to a diode Dl which rectifies it and polarizes the basis of the transistor T3 in order to lock it, the ! ;-transistor T3 is tipped-up, namely it is blocked, T4 comes into onduction and through the winding coil of the electromagnet 3, ~ the current passe3 and activates the distributor 2. When the j~ body S of the machine is moved back to the vertical position, the~ 30 shielding of the transducer 29 which forms one piece with the ;
P,: ,..i, .
~; penduIum 6 i5 removed, the coupling between l,l and L2 is reduced ;
and the transistor T2 stops oscillating the inverse-grid potential "' .3~
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38~ ~
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of T3 dissappears, it comes into conduction and T4, and Tl are locked, cutting out the current in the electromagnet 3. In order , ,,; :, - to bring the machine exactly to the desired vertical position, a -circuit Rl, R2, D2 was provided which after T2 starts oscillating;
;~ .
polarizes this additionally because of the locking of T3, so that ~ when T2 stops oscillating, this i5 done to a looser coupliny than s the starting of the oscillation. Thus, by means of the adjustable resistance R2, the stopping of the oscillation of T2, namely the ` locking of the hydraulic cylinders 4 of the harvester-threshor is done when the body 5 of the machine is brought back to upright ,1 ,, ~
~` position. For sensing the tilt of the machine, the inductive tra .~ .. . .
i'`!'! ~ transducers 29 and 30 are used made up each of a ferromagnetic core ~
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; on which the coils Ll and L2 are pu~, and another mobile, ferro- :
magnetic shield which makes one piece with the pendulum 6, can vary the coupling Ll an~ L2, so that the transistor T2 may start , or stop oscillating. For the ~ransducers 29, 30 various construc-! ' ;;
i, l tive solutions can be achieved on the basis of the above-mentioned ,~ princ`iple.
~ By using the above-described device, the following ad-.j . i ~ i 20 vantages are obtained: safe operation, reduced factory cost and ~ ~
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i high reliability.
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Claims (10)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed, are defined as follows:

1. A device for maintaining an upright stance of the body of a harvester-thresher comprising:
a pendulum swingably mounted on said body for assuming different angular positions corresponding to two variations in the angular positions of the body as the harvester-thresher travels over said terrain;
a flow controller connected with said pendulum and controlled thereby;
an adjustable valve commanded by said flow controller;
an hydraulic fluid pump connected hydraulically in cir-cuit with said valve and said flow controller, said flow controller and said valve bypassing a portion of the fluid delivered by said pump in dependence upon the tilting angle of said body of the harvester-thresher;
an electrically activated distributor connected to said pump;
hydrostatic cylinders connected to said body of the harvester-thresher and hydraulically supplied through said distri-butor with the remainder of the fluid delivered by said pump to displace said body back into an upright position from a tilting position.

2. A device defined in claim 1 wherein said flow con-troller comprises a rotary slide valve directly operated by said pendulum and having a screw for adjusting the axial position of the rotary slide valve, said flow controller further comprises a housing receiving said slide valve and formed with openings aligned with passages formed in said slide valve to a degree determined by the tilting angle of said body of the harvester-thresher.

3. A device defined in claim 1, further comprising cir-cult means for energizing said electrically activatable distributor, said circuit means comprising a relay having a winding coil, a pair of stroke-limiting switches in series with said winding coil and with a current-supply battery, said relay further comprising an ar-mature;
a pair of contacts operated by said armature and connected in a warning circuit including an alarm horn and a lamp;
another pair of contacts operated by said armature and connected in circuit with a commutator and a switch for energizing a pair of signaling and commanding units; and means associated with said blocks for energizing control coils of said electrically activated distributor.

4. A device defined in claim 3 wherein each of said blocks includes selectively coupleable coils forming an oscillator circuit with a transistor;
means on said pendulum for controlling the coupling of said coil in response to the tilt of said body;
output means for said oscillator including a diode and a condenser;
another transistor connected to said output means and forming part of an inversion circuit; and a power transistor connected to said inversion circuit and connected, in turn, with one of the operating coils of said electrically activated distributor.

5. A device defined in claim 1 wherein said pendulum has a core received in the air gap of a pair of inductive transmit-ters mounted on the body of the harvester-thresher which are acti-vated at predetermined angles of the body simultaneously with the operation of the flow controller by said pendulum.

6. A device for maintaining an upright position of the body of a harvester-thresher machine comprising:
a pair of hydraulic cylinders flanking said body for the tilting thereof along a longitudinal axis of said machine;
a source of pressurized liquid including a continuously operating pump having a constant output;
means for selectively connecting said source of pressuri-zed liquid to each of said hydraulic cylinders; and means automatically responsive to the tilt of said body for adjusting the rate of flow of said pressurized liquid to said cylinders, said means for adjusting the rate of flow comprising:
a flow controller responsive to the tilt of said body tapping the connection between said pump and said cylinders; and an adjustable valve responsive to said flow controller and connected between said controller and said tap, said flow con-troller comprising:
a cylindrical housing mounted in said body and having a longitudinal axis;
a rotary body journaled in said housing and shiftable along said axis;
a plurality of passageways formed in said rotary body and communicating between the periphery thereof and one end there-of;
a plurality of inlets formed in the periphery of said cylindrical housing in alignment with said passageways;
means on said cylindrical housing for axially shifting said rotary body to misalign said passageways with said inlets for adjusting the rate of flow of said pressurized liquid according to the viscosity thereof; and a pendulum connected to said rotary body for stabilizing said rotary body during the tilting of said machine and further misaligning said passageways with said inlets for adjusting the flow of said pressurized liquid in response to the tilting of said machine.

7. A device as defined in claim 6 wherein said adjustable valve comprises:
a housing having a hollow central portion;
an inlet formed at one end of said housing;
a pair of channels formed in said housing flanking said hollow central portion and communicating with said inlet;
a pair of ports formed in said channels and communicating with said hollow central portion;
a slide provided in said hollow portion forming a chamber between one end of said slide and one end of said hollow portion;
a pair of passageways formed in said slide for communica-tion between said ports and said chamber;
an outlet formed at the other end of said housing for com-municating between said chamber and said flow controller; and a spring between the other end of said slide and the other end of said hollow portion for biasing said slide against a pressure head formed in said chamber in response to said flow con-troller, said spring and said pressure head moving said passageways in and out of alignment with said ports, providing an adjustment to the rate of flow of said pressurized liquid.

8. A device as defined in claim 6, wherein said means for selectively connecting said source of pressurized liquid to each of said hydraulic cylinders comprises:
a distributor valve connected between said pump and said cylinders and operable by a pair of electromagnets;
means responsive to the tilt of said body and connected to said electromagnets for the automatic activation thereof; and means for overriding said automatic activation of said electromagnets for the manual operation thereof.

9. The device defined in claim 6 further comprising a relay having a coil and contacts controlled by said coil;
a warning circuit controlled by said contacts upon ope-ration of said means automatically responsive to the tilt of said body in the absence of correction thereof;
respective electromagnets energizable for controlling said selective connecting means;
a transistor connected in circuit with at least one of said electromagnets and with a coil of said relays; and circuit means for selectively rendering said transistor conductive and nonconductive.

10. The device defined in claim 9 wherein each of said electromagnets is provided with a respective such transistor and circuit means, each of said circuit means including an inductive transducer and an inverting circuit comprising a pair of transis-tors between said further transistor and the transistor and cir-cuit with said electromagnet, said transducer forming said means responsive to the tilt of said body.