Solid material comminution or disintegration – Apparatus – Helical pusher inside tube moves material toward perforated...
Patent
1981-08-31
1983-02-15
Mancene, Gene
Solid material comminution or disintegration
Apparatus
Helical pusher inside tube moves material toward perforated...
130 27F, 130DIG6, 241190, 56 164, 56466, A01F 700, A01F 1200, B02C 2100
Patent
active
043735371
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to apparatus for recovering grain from a mixture of grain and straw in a combine harvester.
In our U.K. Pat. No. 1 101 431 we proposed apparatus comprising a conveyor capable of conveying a mixture of grain and straw in a generally horizontal direction to a discharge end, and a chute arranged so that said mixture discharged from the conveyor falls onto the chute. The chute has a floor that is imperforate to the passage of grain through it and is downwardly inclined and projects beyond said discharge end in the feeding direction of the conveyor. A trough covered by a grille is provided at or adjacent to the lower end of the chute, and is adapted so that when the mixture of grain and straw passes down the chute, grain is collected by the trough and straw passes over it. A rotor is provided above and adjacent the rear end of the chute and is driven so as to assist the discharge of material from the apparatus.
It has been found that this known apparatus increases the efficiency of a combine harvester by increasing the amount of grain separated from the straw. However, it has also been found that the efficiency of this apparatus is reduced when harvesting bulky crops, such as rape and beans, that tend to form an entangled mass which accumulates above the rotor and can block the combine separating mechanism. The object of the present invention is to modify this known apparatus so that it can handle these bulky crops, thereby increasing grain separation efficiency and the crop flexibility of the combine to which it is fitted.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, the aforesaid known apparatus is modified by mounting the rotor adjacent the lower end of the chute so that it is adjustable towards and away from the chute to vary the space therebetween for different types of crop and crop conditions.
In a preferred embodiment, the rotor is carried between the lower ends of a pair of downwardly extending arms that are pivotally supported at their upper ends so as to allow the rotor to be swung backwards and forwards between a number of different settings.
Preferably, the rotor drive mechanism comprises an adjustment arm which is mounted alongside one of the rotor support arms so as to pivot with said arm about the same upper pivot axis and which carries an upper drive pulley or wheel that is rotatable about said upper pivot axis and a lower drive pulley or wheel that is rotatable about the axis of the rotor, the two drive pulleys or wheels being coupled so that an input drive to the upper pulley serves to drive the lower pulley, and a releasable drive coupling being provided between the lower pulley and the rotor.
It will be appreciated that the releasable drive coupling is the only drive component that needs to be disengaged to allow adjustment of the rotor. The input drive to the upper pulley can remain permanently engaged because its position is fixed at the upper pivot axis of the rotor support arms. Further, the coupling of the adjustment arm with the rotor support arms ensures that the lower pulley remains in axial alignment with the rotor for reengagement of the releasable drive coupling in any rotor setting.
Preferably, the releasable drive coupling takes the form of an axially insertable spindle that keys the lower pulley and rotor together.
The adjustment arm itself forms a convenient means for adjusting the setting of the rotor and is preferably formed with a grip or handle at its lower end.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is now described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a combine harvester fitted with grain recovering apparatus according to the invention,
FIG. 2 is a rear view of the apparatus of FIG. 1, and
FIG. 3 is an elevation of the opposite side of the combine harvester to that shown in FIG. 1.
BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT INVENTION
The drawings show the rear housing 1 of a combine harvester containing a straw walker mechanism 2 that receives crop from
REFERENCES:
patent: 1181360 (1916-05-01), Walsh
patent: 2213906 (1940-09-01), Eberson
patent: 3186460 (1965-06-01), Frederick
patent: 3324860 (1967-06-01), Kepkay
patent: 3815823 (1974-06-01), Johnson
Farris Robert L.
Mancene Gene
Massey-Ferguson Services N.V.
Weiss John
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