Harvesters – Motorized harvester – Having driven means for handling or treating crop
Patent
1995-04-20
1997-05-20
Melius, Terry Lee
Harvesters
Motorized harvester
Having driven means for handling or treating crop
A01D 8200
Patent
active
056303130
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a grass conditioning device, in particular built into a grass mowing machine.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
From German patent document DE 41 32 759, there is known a grass conditioning device in which a plurality of planetary cylinders are arranged about a central cylinder, the planetary cylinders having a substantially smaller diameter than the central cylinder. In a harvester (grass mowing machine), this arrangement disadvantageously requires space on account of its height, whereby, for example, an installation space provided for a drive motor of the harvester is restricted. Moreover, this design requires unequal cylinder sizes, whereby the production, and in particular the spare parts storage, of the various cylinders is complicated and cost-intensive.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a grass conditioning device that is flat and compact and is economical, particularly in a mass production of harvesters.
The use of cylinders having substantially the same diameter has the advantage that the fabrication (in particular in a mass production) of the grass conditioning device is economical because many identical parts can be employed. It is likewise advantageous that these cylinders form a first and at least one further row of cylinders, the rows of cylinders being associated with each other so that the grass conditioning device according to the invention is flat and compact. The possibility therefore exists that further devices (such as for example a drive motor) of the grass mowing machine can be arranged above the grass conditioning device of compact construction. A separate driving of the cylinders of each row of cylinders has the advantage that arbitrary drive capabilities adaptable to the design circumstances can find use. Conceivable here are drives via belts, toothed belts, chains, hydraulic, hydrostatic or electrical drives, as well as the driving of individual cylinders. The selection of peripheral cylinder speeds unequal to one another for the at least two rows of cylinders has the advantage that the mown grass delivered is reliably conditioned (spliced, separated into fibers), so that the discharged grass mat, which arises from the conditioned grass, dries quickly. It is conceivable to arrange all the cylinders together or all the cylinders of each several row of cylinders axially parallel and to support them in side walls (frames) located at either end of the cylinders.
In development of the invention, the axes of the cylinders of one row of cylinders are fixedly supported and the axes of the cylinders of the other row of cylinders are at least partially variably (support point of the axes displaceably or, respectively, pivotably) supported. Variable supporting in relation to fixed supporting has the advantage that the clearance between the cylinders of the two rows of cylinders is variable and thus adjustable. An optimal degree of conditioning to the mown grass is realizable on the basis of this adjustability. A variation in the supporting is performable in terms of design by virtue of the fact that the axes of the cylinders of one row of cylinders are springingly supported or, respectively, are hydraulically displaceable.
In development of the invention, a variable supporting of all axes of the cylinders of one row of cylinders is provided in such fashion that the axes are arranged fixedly in a variably supported frame. This alternative design has the advantage that the axes of the cylinders of one row of cylinders are arranged in fixed positions in a frame, said frame being variably supported (e.g., by spring force or hydraulic force).
In a further development of the invention, the axes of the cylinders of at least one row of cylinders are individually variably supported. This design has the advantage that the variable supporting is individually adjustable and thus is adaptable to the conditioning process.
In a further development of the invention, the rows of cylinders are arranged relative to one a
REFERENCES:
patent: 4035992 (1977-07-01), Moosbrucker et al.
patent: 4445313 (1984-05-01), Elliott et al.
patent: 5269124 (1993-12-01), Barthel et al.
Hafele Martin
VON Allworden Wilhelm
Melius Terry Lee
SAME S.p.A.
Schwab Charles L.
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