US-20260126030-A1 - DRIVE TRAIN ASSEMBLY FOR DRIVING A WORKING UNIT WITH FLUCTUATING LOAD

US20260126030A1US 20260126030 A1US20260126030 A1US 20260126030A1US-20260126030-A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a drive train assembly for driving a working unit with fluctuating power consumption from a drive source, with a unit transmission which converts a driving movement of the drive source into a working movement of the work unit and is connected by a transmission output element to the working unit and is connected by a transmission input element to the drive source, and with a flywheel accumulator for mitigating load impacts and/or power consumption fluctuations, wherein the flywheel accumulator is connected on the output side of the unit transmission to the drive train which runs from the unit transmission to the working unit.

Inventors

David Führle
Viktor Schindler
Stefan Binder
Norbert Hausladen

Assignees

LIEBHERR-COMPONENTS BIBERACH GMBH

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251202
Priority Date: 20230602

Claims (19)

1 . A drive train assembly for driving a working unit with fluctuating power consumption from a drive source, the assembly comprising: a unit transmission configured to convert a driving movement of the drive source into a working movement of the working unit and is connected by a transmission output element to the working unit and is connected by a transmission input element to the drive source, and a flywheel accumulator for mitigating load impacts and/or power consumption fluctuations, wherein the flywheel accumulator is connected on the output side of the unit transmission to the drive train which extends from the unit transmission to the working unit.
2 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the flywheel accumulator is connected to the transmission output element and which is simultaneously connected the working unit.
3 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the transmission output element comprises a gear wheel configured to drive a crank leading to the working unit and, wherein the gear wheel is configured to engage with a connecting element for connecting the flywheel accumulator.
4 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein two separate drive trains are together at the transmission output element, wherein a first drive train extends from the transmission output element through the unit transmission and via the gear stages thereof to the drive source and a second drive train extends from the transmission output element via the gear stages of the unit transmission to the flywheel accumulator.
5 . The assembly of claim 4 , wherein the first and second drive trains are each in face-to-face engagement with the transmission output element configured as a gear wheel and extend from the transmission output element on opposite sides.
6 . The assembly of claim 5 , wherein the first and second drive trains each comprise at least one or more transmission gear stages.
7 . The assembly of claim 6 , wherein the flywheel accumulator is connected to the transmission output element via at least one transmission gear stage so that the flywheel accumulator is configured to run at a higher speed than the transmission output element.
8 . The assembly of claim 7 , wherein the transmission gear stage comprises a planetary gear.
9 . The assembly of claim 1 , further comprising a starting aid for starting up the flywheel accumulator.
10 . The assembly of claim 9 , wherein the starting aid comprises a motor for supporting the starting up of the flywheel accumulator, and wherein the motor comprises a hydraulic motor or an electric motor.
11 . The assembly of claim 10 , further comprising an overrunning freewheel between the motor and the flywheel accumulator, wherein the overrunning freewheel is configured to permit relative rotation between the flywheel accumulator and the motor in a first direction of rotation and block a second direction of rotation, wherein the first direction is opposite to the second direction, and wherein the motor is configured to be switched off when the flywheel accumulator is rotating in the first direction.
12 . The assembly to claim 1 , wherein a shiftable gear comprises a shiftable planetary gear, and wherein the shifting gear is configured to act as a starting aid to support the starting of the flywheel accumulator.
13 . The assembly of claim 1 , wherein the unit transmission comprises a spur gear stage and an intermediate gear stage between the transmission input element and the transmission output element.
14 . A working machine comprising the drive train assembly of claim 1 .
15 . The machine of claim 14 further comprising a working tool drivable in a reciprocating manner by a crankshaft.
16 . The machine of claim 14 , which is configured as an agricultural harvesting or soil tillage machine, in particular as a rectangular baler.
17 . The machine of claim 14 , wherein the machine is configured as an attachment device for attaching to a towing vehicle and wherein the working unit is coupleable to the drive source located on the towing vehicle via the drive train assembly.
18 . The machine of claim 15 , wherein the machine is configured as an attachment device for attaching to a towing vehicle and wherein the working unit is coupleable to the drive source located on the towing vehicle via the drive train assembly.
19 . The machine of claim 16 , wherein the machine is configured as an attachment device for attaching to a towing vehicle and wherein the working unit is coupleable to the drive source located on the towing vehicle via the drive train assembly.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of International Patent Application Number PCT/EP2024/064650 filed May 28, 2024, which claims priority to German Patent Application Number DE 10 2023 114 540.1 filed Jun. 2, 2023, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. BACKGROUND The present invention relates generally to working machines with working units which are subject to fluctuating loads or have a fluctuating power consumption. The invention relates on the one hand to a drive train assembly for driving such a working unit with fluctuating power consumption from a drive source, with a unit transmission which converts a driving movement of the drive source into a working movement of the working unit and is connected with a transmission output element to the working unit on the one hand and is connected with a transmission input element to the drive source on the other hand, and with a flywheel accumulator for mitigating load impacts or fluctuations. On the other hand, the invention relates to a working machine comprising a drive unit with fluctuating power consumption and the drive train assembly with the unit transmission and the flywheel accumulator. Various working units sometimes experience such strong fluctuations in the load or power consumption that the drive source experiences a significant change in speed and results in overall jerky operation of the working machine, as the drive source itself cannot easily absorb or compensate for corresponding torque surges. For example, various agricultural working units exhibit such major load or power consumption fluctuations, which can be caused by the mechanical design or operation of the working unit itself or by fluctuating external loads. For example, rectangular balers, in which a tamper is periodically pressed into a bale chamber in order to press the crop into rectangular bales, show such fluctuations in power consumption caused by the mode of operation. Similar fluctuations in power consumption caused by fluctuating external loads are also seen in the chopping drums of forage harvesters or threshing devices of a combine harvester, or in the cutting unit of a round baler when the crop being fed fluctuates more strongly. Similar fluctuations in power consumption are also known in production technology for path-bound presses whose press plunger is driven by a crank gear. If such working units of agricultural machinery are driven from a tractor via a power take-off shaft, fluctuations in the speed of the tractor's drive motor induced by the power input fluctuations of the working unit not only lead to uneven operation of the working unit itself, but also to jerky driving operation of the tractor, as the tractor's drive motor serves not only as a power take-off shaft drive, but also as a traction drive. In the case of the rectangular balers in question, this can cause the tractor to buckle with every ram stroke of the baler, which is not only unpleasant for the driver, but can also lead to increased wear on the components and affect the service life of the engine. Various measures have already been considered to mitigate the effects of load or power consumption fluctuations of the working unit on the drive motor. For example, EP 3 298 872 B1 proposes a control system that detects or anticipates fluctuations in the power consumption of the working unit. The speed changes of the drive motor are compensated for in order to ultimately achieve a constant driving speed of the tractor. This solution does not even attempt to prevent or mitigate the speed fluctuations of the drive engine due to the fluctuating power consumption of the working unit, but rather to compensate for the effect of the speed fluctuations of the drive engine by intelligently controlling the diesel engine. Another approach is to provide a flywheel accumulator in the drive train that drives the working unit, the kinetic energy of which mitigates the load or power consumption fluctuations of the working unit or their consequences. For example, such a flywheel accumulator in the drive train of a rectangular baler can smooth out the high energy required at certain points or cyclically when pushing the tamper into the bale chamber in order to reduce the impact on the tractor and avoid pitching movements or a jerky driving speed. However, in order to achieve the best possible smoothing of the punctual or cyclical energy fluctuations, it is necessary for the flywheel accumulator to be able to provide a sufficiently high kinetic energy. To achieve this, it would be simple to increase the flywheel accumulator's flywheel mass, although this measure is subject to various limitations. On the one hand, the flywheel mass itself cannot be increased arbitrarily, as the available installation space is usually limited and the construction weight must also be taken into account. In this respect, on the other hand, it has already been considered to increase