EP-4552466-B1 - CHAFF PAN ARRANGEMENT FOR A COMBINE HARVESTER

Inventors

• Deprauw, Jonas
• MOMMERENCY, Gilles
• Vanderstichele, Michiel
• Bailliu, Stijn
• Desmet, Stefaan

Dates

Publication Date

20260513

Application Date

20231110

Claims (9)

1. A combine harvester (10) comprising: a cleaning system (26) comprising an upper sieve (48) and a lower sieve (50) for separating chaff from clean grain, the upper sieve (48) and the lower sieve (50) being arranged for oscillating in a fore-to-aft manner; a residue spreader (74), arranged for receiving separated chaff from the cleaning system (26) and for spreading the separated chaff over a field; characterised by a chaff pan (120), mechanically mounted to the upper sieve (48) for oscillating in a fore-to-aft manner therewith, in a position downstream of the upper sieve (48) and upstream of the residue spreader (74) for conveying the separated chaff from the upper sieve (48) to the residue spreader (74); and a chaff pan side shake system, arranged to oscillate the chaff pan in a side-to-side manner.
2. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the chaff pan side shake system is arranged to jointly oscillate the upper sieve (48) and the chaff pan (120) in a side-to-side manner.
3. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the chaff pan side shake system is arranged to oscillate the chaff pan (120) independently of the upper sieve (48).
4. A combine harvester as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the chaff pan side shake system comprises a chaff pan side shake actuator (310) and a mechanical link (320), linking the chaff pan side shake actuator (310) to the chaff pan (120), and wherein the mechanical link (320) is mounted to a central portion of the chaff pan (120).
5. A combine harvester as claimed in claim 4, wherein the chaff pan side shake actuator (310) and/or the mechanical link (320) is at least partly mounted underneath the chaff pan (120).
6. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising: a distribution sensor (340) for determining an input signal representative of a lateral distribution of the separated chaff on the chaff pan (120); and a control unit (350), operatively connected to the distribution sensor (340) to receive the input signal therefrom and configured to control an operation of the chaff pan side shake system in dependence of the input signal.
7. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the control unit (350) is configured to adjust a frequency, a phase and/or an amplitude of a side-to-side oscillation of the chaff pan (120).
8. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in claim 6 or 7, wherein the distribution sensor (340) comprises at least one of: an image sensor for capturing images of an upper surface of the chaff pan (120); multiple pressure sensors, provided at different lateral locations of the upper sieve (48); multiple layer thickness sensors, provided at different lateral locations on the chaff pan (120); and a radar sensor, ultrasound sensor, or image sensor for monitoring a chaff distribution downstream of the residue spreader (74).
9. A combine harvester (10) as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising: an inclination sensor for determining a lateral inclination of the combine harvester (10) relative to a horizontal reference plane; and a control unit (350), operatively connected to the inclination sensor and configured to control an operation of the chaff pan side shake system in dependence of the lateral inclination.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a combine harvester comprising a cleaning system and a residue spreader. The cleaning system comprises at least one cleaning sieve for separating chaff from clean grain, and is arranged for oscillating in a fore-to-aft manner. The residue spreader is arranged for receiving separated chaff from the at least one cleaning sieve and for spreading the separated chaff over a field. BACKGROUND Modern agricultural harvesters are complex machines with many structural and functional parts, arranged to perform a plurality of different functions related to the harvesting of specific crops or types of crops. A combine harvester, for example, is equipped with a plurality of functional units for the harvesting and processing of grain and grain-like crops. The main functions of a combine harvester include the cutting and taking in of the crop, threshing the grains from the stalks in a threshing section, separating the chaff from the grain kernels in a cleaning section, and releasing the straw and chaff residue from the harvester. The cleaning section typically comprises a grain pan for receiving a mixture of threshed grain, chaff, and other small material other than grain (MOG) from the threshing section. From the grain pan, this mixture is transported to a set of sieves comprising an upper sieve and a lower sieve that lets the grain kernels fall through, while the chaff and other MOG is transported rearwards. The chaff residue may then be spread behind the combine harvester by two dedicated chaff spreaders, or mixed with the straw residue to be spread over the field together with the straw residue. To ensure that the chaff is delivered to the residue spreader and does not fall on the field directly behind the cleaning sieves, a chaff pan may be arranged between the cleaning sieve and the residue spreader for conveying the separated chaff from the cleaning system to the residue spreader. Ideally, the chaff is spread continuously and evenly along the full width of the header of the combine harvester. However, inconsistent progress of the chaff over the chaff pan may lead to undesirable variation in the amount of chaff that enters the residue spreader and is spread over the field. Furthermore, during harvesting, the left and right residue spreader may not always receive equal amounts of chaff residue. For example, a lateral incline of the field, an asymmetric delivery of grain and chaff from the threshing section onto the cleaning section, or an asymmetric intake of crop at the header of the combine harvester may result in an uneven lateral distribution of the chaff residue over the field. A combine harvester according to the preamble of claim 1 is known from document EP 3 275 304 A1. It is an aim of the present invention to improve the lateral distribution of chaff residue behind the combine harvester. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to an aspect of the invention there is provided a combine harvester comprising a cleaning system, a residue spreader, a chaff pan, and a chaff pan side shake system. The cleaning system comprises an upper sieve and a lower sieve for separating chaff from clean grain and is arranged for oscillating in a fore-to-aft manner. The residue spreader is arranged for receiving separated chaff from the cleaning system and for spreading the separated chaff over a field. The chaff pan is mechanically mounted to the upper sieve for oscillating in a fore-to-aft manner therewith, in a position downstream of the upper sieve and upstream of the residue spreader for conveying the separated chaff from the upper sieve to the residue spreader. The chaff pan side shake system is arranged to oscillate the chaff pan in a side-to-side manner. The combination of mounting the chaff pan to the upper sieve and the multi-directional oscillation of the chaff pan results in a reliable and consistent transport of the chaff residue into the residue spreaders. In current combine harvesters, the chaff pan is often mounted to the lower sieve, such that it can receive chaff falling from both sieves. However, the inventors have found that mounting the chaff pan to the upper sieve promotes the transport of chaff towards the residue spreaders by increasing the inclination of the chaff pan. When combined with the fore-aft oscillation of the chaff pan, a consistent flow of chaff towards the spreaders is thus ensured. On top of that, the lateral oscillation of the chaff pan causes a redistribution of the chaff while it slides from the cleaning system to the residue spreader. As a result asymmetric chaff distributions on the chaff pan are corrected before the chaff reaches the residue spreader, thereby ensuring that the chaff is evenly distributed over the field behind the combine harvester. It is noted that side shake systems have been used before for enabling side-to-side movement of the upper sieve in order to promote an efficient operation of the cleaning system and thereby increase