Gas separation – With nonliquid cleaning means for separating media – With automatic control of cleaning means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-15
2001-02-27
Simmons, David A. (Department: 1724)
Gas separation
With nonliquid cleaning means for separating media
With automatic control of cleaning means
C055S301000, C055S294000, C055S385300, C055S467000, C096S421000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06193772
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to agricultural equipment and more particularly to improvements in self-propelled harvesting machines which include a prime mover, a cooler and a cooling fan.
The operation of a harvesting machine often results in the formation of considerable dust and particles in the surrounding air. At the same time, such a harvesting machine must suck in a large amount of air in order to adequately cool the engine, which these days may have a power of 400 kW or more. In the harvesting machines being considered here, one has to ensure that any rotating suction device and any additional baffle plate sweep the outer surface of the filter to release and remove all the dirt particles adhering to the surface of the filter. This will then prevent the pores of the filter from becoming so clogged with dirt particles over the time period for which the machine is used that insufficient cool air can flow through the openings in the filter. As used herein, the terms “dirt”, “particles” or “dirt particles” are intended to be generic and cover, for example, dust, chaff, particles of dirt, and particles of crop. The surfaces of the filter may additionally be swept from the inside by a baffle plate or be covered thereby. Such a device is known from EP 0 079 399.
That said, there is not much point in causing the cleaning device for the filter to be operated if the cooling-air does not really need to be cleaned. This is the case for example when travelling along the highway. Under certain circumstances, it is also possible for the number of dirt particles formed during harvesting to be so greatly reduced that it is no longer necessary to continuously apply suction to the surface of the filter. Operation of the suction device would then expend unnecessary energy and the rotating elements would be subjected to unnecessary wear and tear.
It is also known for cleaning devices to be switched on for cleaning the air filters in dependence on the operation of a member in the harvesting machine. Such a switching operation may be unsatisfactory from two points of view: the cleaning device may be operated during harvesting even though this may be unnecessary due to the small amount of dust being created; when travelling along the highway, the cleaning device may be switched off even though the harvesting machine may, for example, while driving along or having just left the fields, have sucked in some of the dirt deposited thereon so that the air filter really should be cleaned. In the case of forage harvesters in particular, the air cleaning device is located just above the base of a so-called maintenance chamber. Dirt particles inevitably collect on this base when the harvester is working in the fields. These particles are then sucked into the cooling fan when travelling along the highway and embed themselves in the filter device thereby substantially reducing the through flow of air.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome one or more of the problems discussed above.
Starting from a self-propelled agricultural machine including an air cleaning device of the type described above, the object of the invention is to reduce the time for which the cleaning device is operated.
These, and other objects and advantages of the present invention, will become apparent as the same becomes better understood from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a self-propelled machine including a drive engine, a heat exchanger associated with the engine, a cooling fan for passing cooling air through the heat exchanger, a filter device incorporating a filter for retaining particles carried by the drawn-in cooling air, a cleaning device for removing said particles from the filter, means for driving one of said devices, and means for selectively engaging the means for driving.
One object is achieved either in that the drive means for the air cleaning device is engaged in dependence on a value measured by a sensor, or that the suction housing and/or a baffle plate is rotatable under gravity, or by being motor driven, when the suction function is switched off, into a position covering a region associated with the lower part of the filter device.
In a first alternative, a value is obtained by a sensor, e.g. a pressure sensor for measuring the air pressure in the suction region of the cooling fan or a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the cooling water, whereby this value indicates whether sufficient cooling-air is being drawn through the air cleaning device. If the measured value falls below, or rises above, a critical limiting value then the drive means for the air cooling device is switched on. The sensor then monitors the variation in this measured value and switches off this drive means once it lies in a non-critical range. This procedure thus allows the air cooling device to be operated only when it is really necessary. Energy and drive power are thereby saved whilst the relevant parts of the machinery are not subjected to unnecessary wear-and-tear. In the case of the second alternative, the lower part of the filter device is covered when the air cleaning device is switched off, or at least, when its suction power is switched off. Cooling-air is thereby sucked in preferentially from the upper layers of air that are not so enriched with dirt particles as the air close to the ground around the harvesting machine. The filter device thus does not clog up so quickly whilst, depending on the amount of dirt, the air cleaning device does not have to be turned on so frequently or may not need switching on at all, such as when travelling along the highway, even if dirt particles have collected on the harvesting machine in front of the air intake openings.
Although a common drive means is preferably used for the air cleaning device, especially the rotating or fixed filter element, the rotating or fixed suction housing and the rotating or fixed baffle plate, several separate drive means may be used. The suction housing and/or the baffle plate can be rotated into a position covering a part of the filter device associated with the lower part thereof in a particularly simple manner by using gravity. By appropriate design of the suction housing and the baffle plate, the spacing of their centers of gravity from the rotational axis can be made such that the centers of gravity level out in a vertical projection of the rotational axis when the drive means is switched off. This thus prevents dirt on the base of the maintenance chamber from being sucked through the filter device due to the suction effect of the cooling fan thereby blocking the openings in the filter device. The driver is not burdened with extra work due to such a design of the suction housing and the baffle plate. The mounting of the suction housing and the baffle plate could also be referred to as being off-center.
One particularly simple construction is obtained if the suction housing has an angular section in a direction extending along its rotational axis and is rectangular when viewed along this rotational axis. A part of the end face and of the peripheral surface of the sieve device corresponding thereto is covered as a result of this design. In order to ensure the proper functioning of the baffle plate, it is expedient if this has an angular section in a direction extending along its rotational axis and is in the form of a segment when viewed along this rotational axis. An adequate area of the sieve or filter device can then be screened from the suction effect of the cooling fan by appropriate choice of angle for the segment. It is expedient if said area covers an angle of approximately 60 degrees. Correct functioning is ensured in advantageous manner if provision is made for the suction housing and the baffle plate to extend substantially from the central mid-axis up to the outer edge region of the filter device.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4542785 (1985-09-01), Bagnall
Claas Selbstfahrende Erntemaschinen GmbH
Hopkins Robert A.
Husch & Eppenberger LLC
Muir Robert E.
Simmons David A.
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