Crop threshing or separating – Straw chaff spreader or handling – With chopper
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-06
2001-06-26
Pezzuto, Robert E. (Department: 3671)
Crop threshing or separating
Straw chaff spreader or handling
With chopper
C056S504000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06251009
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a straw chopper for a combine and in particular to a straw chopper housing mounted to the combine for rotation about a transverse axis to move the straw chopper housing from a chopping position to a windrowing position.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a typical combine harvester, crop residue from the separator, also referred to as straw, is discharged from the hood structure at the rear of the combine. The straw is already somewhat reduced in size from the threshing and separating operations. If it is desired to reduce the size of the straw further, it is passed through a straw chopper. With current agricultural practices that eliminate or reduce tillage of the soil prior to planting, it is necessary to chop the straw into many small particles and then disperse the chopped straw over a wide area, generally equal to the width of the harvesting platform. As platforms have increased in width, it has been necessary to provide increasing width in the dispersion of straw at the rear of the combine.
Straw choppers have been used at the rear of the combine to chop the straw into small particles and to disperse the chopped straw over a wide area. The most common type of straw chopper consists of a transversely mounted flail rotor associated with a transverse array of fixed shear blades carried in a housing. The housing has an inlet opening and is supported beneath the combine hood to intercept the flow of straw from the separator. In some harvesting conditions, or to preserve longer straw for later collection, it is desired to return the straw to the ground in a narrow width windrow immediately beneath the combine hood without passing the straw through the chopper or widely dispersing the straw.
A straw chopper mounting for a combine is shown in patent 4,669,489 where a rear mounted straw chopper receives the straw from the straw walkers of the combine and discharges chopped straw rearwardly. The chopper is slidably supported on a pair of spaced apart, longitudinally oriented guide rails so that the chopper can be adjusted from a rearward chopping position to a forward windrowing position in which straw bypasses the chopper by dropping from the combine behind the chopper. Movement of the chopper on the guide rails is facilitated by attachment of a transverse shaft and sprocket assembly to the straw chopper housing. Teeth of the sprockets engage longitudinally spaced openings in the guide rails. Upon rotation of the shaft, the sprockets and guide rails cooperate in rack and pinion fashion to propel the chopper assembly along the rails while maintaining the chopper assembly in square alignment. The shaft is rotated by means of a wrench engaging flats on one end of the shaft.
Other straw choppers are mounted in a fixed position to the combine side sheets and use moving baffles or doors to direct the straw either into the chopper or directly to the ground for windrowing. With a fixed position chopper, the chopper restricts access to the rear of the combine for servicing or cleaning.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a straw chopper that is conveniently moved from a chopping position to a windrowing position to provide access to the rear of the combine for servicing operations.
It is a feature of the straw chopper of the present invention that the chopper housing is pivotally mounted to the combine side sheets for rotation about a transverse axis. The chopper housing is rotated upward and rearward from a chopping position to a windrowing position, allowing straw to drop to the ground forward of the chopper in the windrowing position. The chopper includes an inlet door that is mounted to the combine side sheets and is inclined downwardly and rearwardly from the rear end of the cleaning shoe. The inlet door directs both straw and chaff into the chopper. The inlet door is pivotally mounted to the combine such that when the chopper housing is in the windrowing position, the inlet door can be rotated downward from the inclined position to a vertical position to further improve access to the rear of the combine. In addition, the inlet door can be rotated upward to a generally horizontal, rearwardly extending position to provide convenient access to a tow hook mounted on the rear axle of the combine.
Another feature of the invention is a powered lift actuator to move the chopper housing between the chopping and windrowing positions. The powered lift actuator is preferably an electric motor driven screw actuator. A switch is provided on the side of the combine to enable the operator to raise or lower the chopper housing using electric power. The combine engine need not be operating to move the chopper housing. When the chopper housing is raised into the windrowing position, a latch automatically engages to attach the chopper housing to the combine structure, thereby relieving the load from the lift actuator.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3712309 (1973-01-01), Schmitz
patent: 3717062 (1973-02-01), Gaeddert
patent: 3815823 (1974-06-01), Johnson
patent: 4628946 (1986-12-01), De Busscher et al.
patent: 4669489 (1987-06-01), Schraeder et al.
patent: 5232405 (1993-08-01), Redekop et al.
patent: 5482508 (1996-01-01), Redekop et al.
patent: 5501635 (1996-03-01), Niermann
patent: 5944604 (1999-08-01), Niermann et al.
patent: 1 057 375 (1959-05-01), None
patent: 3 1 19 954 (1982-12-01), None
patent: 2 075 422 (1971-10-01), None
patent: 2108333 (1972-05-01), None
patent: 88/00801 (1990-03-01), None
Benhart Michael Dwain
Grywacheski Sheldon Joseph
Deere & Company
Pezzuto Robert E.
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