EA040056B1 - CUTTER FOR AGRICULTURAL HARVEST MACHINE - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a cutting device for an agricultural harvester with a reciprocating knife.

Well-known mower blade drives are made by various types of construction. Here, transmission devices are used that convert rotational motion into reciprocating motion and are connected to the knife head to bring it into oscillatory motion.

Document DE 37 11 265 A1 describes a double knife drive for a cutterbar with a single oscillating arm which drives the upper and lower knives and is mounted so as to rotate around a vertically positioned oscillating shaft. The rocker arms are driven in opposite directions by a crank drive, a drive arm that converts the reciprocating motion of the crank drive into an oscillatory motion, and drive means connecting the two rocker arms. Each oscillating shaft has a toothed segment as driving means, whereby the toothed segments engage with each other.

US 6273214 B1 shows an angle transmission device for driving a mowing blade. A first transmission assembly is provided which converts the rotational motion into translational motion to drive the mowing blade. A second transmission unit in the form of an angular transmission is also provided. The second transmission assembly is used to change the direction of rotation as the drive assembly is driven by a remote motor via a belt drive and belt pulley. The rotation of a belt pulley rotating around a horizontal axis must be translated into a rotational movement around a vertical axis.

There are also drive concepts in which the rotary drive is connected to the mowing blade by a connecting rod, the connecting rod being connected to the mowing blade by a swivel bearing or an oscillating bearing, whereby the rotational movement of the drive is converted into a reciprocating movement of the mowing blade.

With all drive concepts known so far, the maximum stroke of the mowing blade is limited by the mounting space for the drive. Increasingly shorter harvesting cycles and more powerful harvesters require higher productivity, which can be achieved, for example, by increasing the forward speed to provide increased efficiency of the threshing units and the entire harvester, also in areas with low planting density.

This leads to the need for a higher throughput cutting system. Cutting devices usually provide for one cut with the knife blade during outward or backward movement. Thus, increasing the throughput of the cutting device would be possible by increasing the speed of the drive to thereby increase the cutting speed. However, this leads to an increase in load, especially when passing the turning points of the reciprocating movement, which requires reinforcement and, therefore, an increase in the weight of the drive elements.

Therefore, the aim of the present invention is to provide a cutting device that provides a higher throughput without a significant increase in the weight of the drive elements.

This object is achieved by means of a cutting device for an agricultural harvester having a drive, a transmission device and a blade. The transmission device has an input element connected to the drive with the possibility of transferring the drive force and driven by the said drive into reciprocating motion along the input element stroke. The knife has many cutting edges. The knife is connected to the output element of the transmission device with the possibility of transmitting a drive force and is driven by the latter in reciprocating motion along the stroke of the output element, which is greater than the stroke of the input element, so that the cutting edges of the knife, when moving in one direction along the entire stroke of the output element, pass through at least two counter-cutting edges of the cutting device in each case.

This means that the number of cuts per stroke can be increased at the same speed. Where currently one cut per turn is usually made, two or more cuts can be made. For example, with a knife stroke of 80 mm, which is currently widely used, it can be increased to 160 mm, that is, doubled. It also allows you to double the number of cuts per turn.

In this case, the transmission device may be a traction drive device, the input element of which is a traction means, for example, the traction drive input of the traction drive device.

The transmission device may have a drive pulley driven by an input traction means. In addition, the transmission device may include an output pulley coaxially connected to the drive pulley and driving the output traction means, the drive pulley having a smaller diameter than the output pulley. This provides a simple design for increased travel.

Alternatively, the transmission device may have a transmission element that can swing or rotate from one direction to the other, to a limited extent, about the axis of rotation. Here, the transfer element may be connected to the input element. In addition, the transmission element may be connected to an output element that is connected to the knife with the possibility of transmitting a driving force, and the input element is connected to the transmission element at a smaller distance from the axis of rotation than the output element.

In one of the embodiments of the invention, the transmission element may be a lever.

The output element may be a connecting element, through which the lever is connected to the knife with the possibility of transmitting a driving force.

The transmission element may alternatively be a belt pulley, and in one embodiment the output element may be a belt.

In addition, according to another embodiment, it can be provided that the transmission element is a gear and the output element is a gear that engages with a gear, such as a pinion.

The guard edges may be formed by cutter fingers, with the cutter fingers spaced at the same distance, eg 3 inches, from each other as the cutting edges of the knife. Other cutting systems are also possible, such as 4-inch cutting systems or other distances.

The invention is described in more detail in the following figures.

In FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a traction drive as a transmission device;

in fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with an alternative traction drive;

in fig. 3 shows a third embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a lever transmission element;

in fig. 4 shows a fourth embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a transmission element in the form of a gear, and FIG. 5 is a plan view of a cutting device according to any of the embodiments shown in FIG. 1-4.

The first embodiment according to FIG. 1 shows a drive 1, a transmission device 2 in the form of a traction drive and a knife 3 in the form of a mowing knife. The knife 3 is shown only schematically, with no visible knife blades.

In this embodiment, the drive 1 is connected with the possibility of transmitting a drive force to the input element in the form of an input traction means 4, and the drive 1 causes the input traction means 4 to oscillate back and forth, as indicated by the double arrow on the drive 1.

The input traction means 4 wraps around the drive pulley 5 and sets it in motion. The drive pulley 5 is rotatably mounted about the rotation axis D. The drive pulley 5 is additionally connected to the output pulley 7, the output pulley 7 being coaxial with the rotation axis D and firmly connected to the drive pulley 5 so that the output pulley rotates together with the drive pulley 5 or is brought into oscillatory rotation by the input traction means 4.

The cutting device shown in Fig. 1 further comprises a driving traction means 6 which wraps around the output pulley 7 and is connected to the intermediate pulley 9. The connecting traction means 8 is connected to transmit the driving force through the intermediate pulley 9 as an output element of the transmission device 2, and the connecting traction means 8 is attached to the knife 3 at the two ends of the knife 3 facing away from each other through the diverting pulleys 10, 11. Thus, the knife 3 reciprocates in accordance with the double arrow shown on the knife 3.

The diameter of the output pulley 7 is larger than the diameter of the driving pulley 5. Thus, the stroke (input stroke) in which the input traction means 4 is moved back and forth by the drive 1 translates into a larger output stroke made by the output traction means 6 and thus the knife 3 moves back and forth linearly. The output stroke of the output traction means 6 is here as large as the reciprocating stroke of the connecting traction means 8, so that the knife 3 also moves back and forth by a distance corresponding to the length of the output stroke.

In FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a transmission device 22 in the form of a traction drive device. The second embodiment has a drive 21, a transmission device 22 and a blade 23, the blade 23 being provided with a plurality of blades 24.

The drive 21 is connected with the possibility of transmitting the drive force through the connecting rod 26 with a transmission element in the form of a toothed belt pulley 25. The connecting rod 26 is connected to the drive 21 through the pivot point 27, and the pivot point 27 is rotated around the first axis of rotation D1.

The connecting rod 26 is connected to the toothed belt pulley 25 through the input member 28 of the toothed belt pulley 25, while the toothed belt pulley 25 moves back and forth about the second axis of rotation D2, as indicated by the arcuate double arrow. The input element 28 may be a pivot bearing.

The toothed belt pulley 25 is wrapped by a toothed belt 29, which is also wrapped around the intermediate pulley 30. In this case, the outer diameter of the toothed belt pulley 25 around which the toothed belt 29 wraps is larger than the diameter on which the input element 28 is located. This

- 2 040056 guarantees that the length of the input stroke made by the input element 28 during its reciprocating movement is less than the length of the stroke made by the toothed belt 29.

The reciprocating motion of the toothed belt 29 is transmitted through the intermediate pulley 30 to the connecting belt 31, which reciprocates approximately the same as the toothed belt 29, so that the reciprocating motion of the connecting belt 31 is also greater than the reciprocating motion (input stroke) of the input element 28.

The connecting belt 31 is attached to opposite ends of the knife 30 by means of diverting pulleys 32, 33, similarly to the first variant, so that the knife 30 is also driven in a linear reciprocating motion, and the length of the output stroke of the knife 23, in which the knife moves back and forth, corresponds to the length of the stroke of the connecting belt 31. Accordingly, the reciprocating motion of the input member 28 is also translated so that the length of the output stroke of the knife 23 is longer.

In FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a transmission device 42 in the form of a lever transmission device. The third embodiment has a drive 41, a transmission device 42 and a blade 43, the blade 43 being provided with a plurality of blades 44.

The drive 41 is connected via a connecting rod 46 to a transmission element in the form of a lever 45. The connecting rod 46 is connected to the drive 41 through a pivot point 47, the pivot point 47 being rotated around the first rotation axis D1.

The connecting rod 46 is connected to the lever 45 through the input element 48 of the lever, and the lever 25 moves back and forth about the second axis of rotation D2, as indicated by the arcuate double arrow. The input element 48 may be a pivot bearing.

The lever 45 is pivotally connected to the knife 43 at the end facing away from the input element 48 by means of the output element 49. The output element 49 may be a pivot bearing, which also compensates for the small relative movement between the lever 45 and the knife 43 transverse to the direction of movement of the knife 43. This necessary because the end of the lever 45, which is connected to the knife 43, has the shape of an arc.

Thus, the knife 3 is also driven back and forth by the back and forth oscillatory movement of the lever 45. Here, the distance between the input element 48 and the second rotation axis D2 is smaller than the distance between the output element 49 and the second rotation axis D2. This ensures that the length of the input stroke made by the input element 48 during its reciprocating movement is less than the length of the output stroke made by the reciprocating output element 49 and thus the knife 43.

In FIG. 4 shows a fourth embodiment of a cutting device according to the invention with a transmission device 62 in the form of a gear transmission device. The fourth embodiment has a drive 61, a transmission device 62 and a blade 63, the blade 63 being provided with a plurality of blades 64.

The drive 61 is connected with the possibility of transmitting the drive force through the connecting rod 66 with a transmission element in the form of a gear 65. The connecting rod 66 is connected to the drive 61 through the pivot point 67, and the pivot point 67 is rotated around the first axis of rotation D1.

The connecting rod 66 is connected to the gear wheel 65 through the gear input 68, with the gear wheel 65 moving back and forth about the second axis of rotation D2 as indicated by the arcuate double arrow. The input element 68 may be a pivot bearing.

The gear wheel 65 is connected with the possibility of transmitting a driving force through the output element in the form of a gear 69 with a knife 3. The gear 69, in turn, is connected to the rack 70 of the knife 3, so that the movement of the gear 69 back and forth drives the rack 70 and , thus, the knife 63 in a linear forward and backward movement.

The distance between the input element 68 and the second axis of rotation D2 is less than the distance between the point at which the gear 69 is engaged with the input element 68 and the second axis of rotation. This ensures that the length of the input stroke made by the input element 68 as it reciprocates is less than the length of the output stroke made by the knife 63.

In FIG. 5 shows the cutter bar of a cutter with a finger bar 101 that can be attached to an agricultural harvester. On it are mowing fingers 102, 102' with free ends 103, 103', pointed towards the working direction A of the agricultural machine and located parallel to the longitudinal axis 104. The knife 105 is directed in an oscillatory motion towards the finger bar 101 along the transverse axis 106, which passes under at right angles to the longitudinal axis 104. The knife 105 includes a knife rail 107 and several blades 108 attached thereto.

Each of the blades 108 defines a first cutting edge 109 and a second cutting edge 110. Each of the first cutting edges 109 engages at least the first counter edge 111 of the cutter tine 102 when the blade 105 moves in the first cutting direction S1 parallel to the transverse axis 106 relative to first guard edges 111 or mower fingers

- 3 040056

102, 102'. Similarly, each second cutting edge 110 works in conjunction with at least one second guard edge 112 of the cutter fingers 102 when the knife 105 moves in the second cutting direction S2 parallel to the transverse axis 106 relative to the second guard edge 112 or the cutter fingers 102, 102', respectively. . The first cutting edges 109 and the first anvil edges 111 and the second cutting edges 110 and the second anvil edges 112 are arranged at an angle to each other and form an angle open from the front when viewed in the working direction A. Thus, the oscillating motion of the knife 105 results in a cutting motion comparable to that of a scissors so that the cutting forces are generated in the direction of the longitudinal axis 104 against the working direction A. To maintain the cutting forces, the knife 105 in the illustrated illustrative embodiment is supported by rollers 113 on the knife rail 107. Each of the rollers 113 is attached to a pin shaft 101 using roller holders 114. The knife 105 can in principle also be attached to the knife rail 107 without rollers.

In order to ensure stability, the two mower fingers 102 are each made of a single component and thus form a double finger which has a U-shape in plan view.

Blades 108 are attached to knife rail 107 with screws 115.

The distance F between two adjacent mower pins 102, 102' is the same for all mower pins 102, 102'. This distance F also corresponds to the distance between the first shearing edges 111 or the distance between the second shearing edges 111 of two adjacent mower fingers 102, 102' to each other. The distance K between two adjacent blades 108 is also the same for all blades 108 and is identical to the distance F between two adjacent cutter fingers 102, 102'. This distance K also corresponds to the distance between the first cutting edges 109 or the distance between the second cutting edges 110 of two adjacent blades 108 to each other.

The drive for the blade 105 is configured such that the blade 105 makes a stroke in both cutting directions S1, S2 that is at least twice the distance F between two adjacent mowing fingers 102, 102' or twice the distance K between two adjacent blades 108. Thus thus, the first cutting edges 109 of the knife 105 pass through every at least two first counter edges 111 while moving in the first cutting direction S1 along the entire stroke. When moving in the second cutting direction S2 along the entire stroke, the second cutting edges 110 of the knife 105 pass through every at least two second counter edges 112. Thus, the knife 105 makes at least two full cuts in the first cutting direction S1, as well as in second cutting direction S2.

List of reference designations

Drive unit

transfer device

Knife

Input traction means (input element)

drive pulley

Output traction means

output pulley

Connecting traction means (output element)

intermediate pulley

Take-off pulley

Take-off pulley

Drive unit

transfer device

Knife

Blade

toothed belt pulley

Connecting rod

turning point

Input element

Toothed belt

intermediate pulley

Connecting strap (output element)

Take-off pulley

Take-off pulley

Drive unit

transfer device

Knife

Blade

Lever arm

Connecting rod

turning point

Input element

- 4 040056

49 output element 61 Drive unit 62 transfer device 63 Knife 64 Blade 65 Gear 66 Connecting rod 67 turning point 68 Input element 69 Gear (output element) 70 Rack 101 finger bar 102, 102' Mower finger 103.103‘ free end 104 Longitudinal axis 105 Knife 106 Transverse axis 107 knife rail 108 Blade 109 First cutting edge 110 Second cutting edge 111 First counter edge 112 Second counter edge FROM Video clip 114 Roll holder 115 Screw A Working direction D Axis of rotation D1 First axis of rotation D2 Second axis of rotation S1 First cutting direction S2 Second cutting direction

CLAIM

Claims (6)

1. A cutting device for an agricultural harvester, containing a drive (1, 21), a transmission device (2, 22) having an input element (4, 28) connected with the possibility of transmitting a drive force to the specified drive (1, 21) and driven by the specified drive (1, 21) in reciprocating motion along the input stroke, and the knife (3, 23, 105) having a plurality of cutting edges (109, 110), the specified knife (3, 23, 105) connected with the possibility of transmission driving force with the output element (8, 31) of the specified transmission device (2, 22) and driven by the output element along the output stroke, longer than the specified input stroke, reciprocating in such a way that the cutting edges (109 , 110) of the knife (3, 23, 105) in each case, at least two counter-cutting edges (111, 112) of the cutting device are passed when moving in one direction (S1, S2) along the entire output stroke, and the transmission device (2, 22) is a traction device property, and the input element (4, 28) is a traction means. 2. The cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that the transmission device (2) comprises a drive pulley (5) driven by an input traction means (4) and an output pulley (7) which is coaxially connected to the drive pulley (5 ) and drives the output traction means (6), wherein the drive pulley (5) has a smaller diameter than the output pulley (7). 3. The cutting device according to claim 1, characterized in that the transmission device (22) has a transmission element (25) that can rotate around a pivot axis (D2), that the transmission element (25) is connected to the input element (28) and that the transmission element (25) is connected with the possibility of transmitting the driving force to the output element (31), which is connected with the possibility of transmitting the driving force with the knife (23), and the input element (28) is connected to the transmission element (25) at a smaller distance from the axis of rotation (D2) than the output element (31). 4. Cutting device according to claim 3, characterized in that the transmission element is a belt pulley (25). 5. A cutting device according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the counter-cutting edges (111, 112) are formed by mowing fingers (102, 102'), which are located at the same distance (F, K) from each other, which and cutting edges (109, 110) of the knife (3, 23). 6. A cutting device according to claim 5, characterized in that the cutter fingers (102, 102') are each 3 inches apart from an adjacent cutter finger (102, 102').