Abstract: A compression roll housing (1) for an agricultural machine having opposing front and rear ends (11b, 12) for connection to parts of the machine, an upper and a lower panel (16) and two opposing side panels (15). Each of said side panels is provided with at least one substantially vertical elongated aperture (7) for receiving a shaft (3) of a compression roll (2a). Each of the side panels is also provided with a horizontal aperture (8) which extends across the at least one elongated aperture to the front or rear end of the housing.

Abstract: A forage crop processing apparatus having a cutting assembly for reaping the forage crop, a tubular drying channel having an inlet end for receiving the reaped forage crop, an air mover in fluid communication with the tubular drying channel to move air through the tubular drying channel in such a way that the forage crop is carried by the air through the tubular drying channel from the inlet end, past the interior heating surface, to the outlet end to produce a dried forage crop, and a baler connected to the outlet end of the tubular drying channel for baling the dried forage crops.

Abstract: A system to control the position of one or more feed rolls in a forage harvester. The system includes at least one fixed feed roll arranged to rotate around a rotation axis which is fixed with respect to a chassis of the harvester, and in cooperation with the at least one fixed feed roll, a movable feed roll arranged to rotate around a rotation axis which is movable towards or away from the corresponding fixed roll. The system determines various parameters, including input data for the driving force exerted on the rolls, position of the movable feed roll, and rotational speed of the drive shaft, and inputs the data to a control unit, which provides commands to one or more valves and to one or more throttles to control the movable feed roll via the hydraulic piston/cylinder arrangements.

Abstract: As crop materials are severed from the field, they pass through two successive pairs of counter-rotating conditioning rolls before being returned to the ground. The front rolls are preferably ribbed, metal rolls wherein the ribs of one roll are intermeshed with those of the other roll so as to crimp the stems of the crop materials as they pass between the rolls. The hard metal ribs also aggressively feed the materials rearwardly into the second set of rolls, which are preferably compressive surface rolls made of rubber or the like and provided with wide, intermeshed bars about their periphery. The tension mechanism for the rolls includes single-acting hydraulic cylinders that squeeze the rolls together to the extent permitted by adjustable stop structure used to set gaps between the rolls. In typical operations, the gap between the rear rolls is set to be considerably smaller than the gap between the front rolls.

Abstract: In a device for adjusting the crop material passage at the post-accelerator in an agricultural harvesting machine, in particular in a self-propelled forage harvester that includes at least one front attachment for picking up the crop material, and that is assigned to at least one processing device, the crop material handed off by the processing device passes through at least one post-accelerator, which is at least partially enclosed by a machine housing and is movable relative to the machine housing via a displacing mechanism, while the post-accelerator is fixed on the machine housing is position such that it is decoupled from the displacing mechanism.

Abstract: A system or method for controlling the position of one or more feed rolls in a forage harvester includes at least one fixed feed roll arranged to rotate around a rotation axis which is fixed with respect to a chassis of the harvester, and in cooperation with the at least one fixed feed roll, a movable feed roll arranged to rotate around a rotation axis which is movable towards or away from the corresponding fixed roll. The system includes means for measuring parameters related to the feed rolls, such as the driving force exerted on the rolls, and means for actuating movement of the movable rolls by hydraulic piston/cylinder arrangements, installed in connection with the movable rolls.

Abstract: A kernel processing assembly for an agricultural harvesting machine is provide. The kernel processing assembly includes a first roll supported in bearings on a first frame element and a second roll supported in bearings on a second frame element, that forms a slot with the first roll through which harvested crop can be conducted. A rotary bearing is arranged on the first side of the slot that retains the first frame element and the second frame element free to pivot against each other. A pre-load arrangement is arranged on the second side of the slot that pre-loads the first frame element and the second frame element against each other. The rotary bearing includes a shaft to which an eccentric is fastened that retains the first frame element free to pivot, and that the shaft is supported in bearings, free to rotate, relative to the second frame element, so that the width of the slot can be varied by rotating the shaft about its longitudinal axis.

Abstract: A system for drying freshly grown forage involving the steps of placing loose mass forage on a receiving system; transporting the loose mass forage from the receiving system to a detangling mechanism; passing the loose mass forage through the detangling mechanism to break up any large clumps of forage and to create a forage carpet of a substantially uniform thickness; passing the forage carpet through a drying oven containing multiple chambers; drying the forage carpet to moisture content below the desired moisture content for the forage; and adding moisture to the forage carpet to bring the moisture content of the forage up to the desired moisture content.

Abstract: A forage conditioner for conditioning cut crop material from a forage harvester includes a fixed bottom fluted roller carried in end housings and a top fluted roller which is pivotally mounted on the housings by a linkage pivotal relative to the housing about an axis lying in a plane at right angles to the roller axes so that the top roller is liftable from crushing position against the bias of a spring extending along the top roller. Flutes on the rollers are arranged with a first surface on one side which extends substantially radially outwardly to an apex and a second surface which has a first portion parallel to a tangent of the roller and a second portion inclined inwardly to the roller surface at an angle significantly less than 90 degrees. The bottom roller is arranged with the first surfaces leading to carry the crop into the area between the rollers and the top roller is arranged with the first surface trailing.

Abstract: A spring system is described for a feeder device of an agricultural harvester having a first roller movably mounted in a casing and biased by the spring system towards a second roller in order the compress crop passing between the two rollers. The spring system comprises at least one spring surrounding a guide rod 200 that extends in use between a movable support of the first roller and the casing of the feeder device. The guide rod 200 is formed of two telescopically collapsible parts 210, 212, one connected to the roller support and the other to the casing.

Abstract: The apparatus is a spring system on forage harvester feedrolls. The upper forward feedroll has two concentric springs on each side. The outer spring is operative over the whole range of displacement. The inner spring exerts tensioning force on the feedroll only as of a certain minimal lifting of the feedroll. The rear upper feedroll has one spring on each side. This one spring has a substantially smaller spring force than the forward spring package. The feedroll supporting linkages are arranged with complementary and cooperating cam surfaces which are disposed so that, when the forward feedroll is lifted above a predetermined minimum value, the rearward feedroll is also lifted thereby (to a lesser degree) without even any lifting force from the crop material passing therebelow.

Abstract: A mower conditioner includes upper and lower conditioner rolls with the upper roll extending between, and being rotatably mounted to, a pair of vertically swingable arms. A linkage arrangement is coupled between the frame supporting the arms and the arms, with one part of the linkage being associated with a stop for limiting the range of movement of the upper roll toward the lower roll, and with another part of the linkage being coupled to a spring arrangement for biasing the upper roll toward the lower roll. The stop is configured as a pair of wedge-shaped members having respective inclined surfaces engaged with each other and held in an adjusted position by a nut and bolt arrangement, the range of movement of the upper roll toward the lower roll changing in response to tightening or loosening the nut on the bolt.

Abstract: A forage harvester having a crop processor unit, a cutter unit operable to comminute crop material and a processor unit movably disposed between first and second positions. In the first position, the processing unit receives comminuted crop material from the cutter unit. In the second position, comminuted crop material from the cutter unit bypasses the crop processor unit. A blower unit is disposed to move with the crop processor between the first and second positions, the blower unit receiving the processed crop material directly form the crop processor unit when in the first position and directly from the cutter unit when in the second position, in both cases accelerating the processed crop material towards a handling apparatus.

Abstract: A roller for a crop conditioning system having a roller body with a compressible base mat, with a side of the base mat including a plurality of generally arcuate recessed areas and an plurality of raised areas adjacent the recessed areas, with each raised area including one or more longitudinally oriented slits therein.

Abstract: A forage harvester and a method of operating the same which comprises a crop processor unit located in a crop flow between a cutterhead and a blower rotor, the crop processor unit being for handling crop material including kernels, the crop processor comprising a pair of counter-rotating processor rolls arranged to crack kernels between the rolls when the rolls are in a first position, both processor rolls being movable away from each other to move each roll substantially out of the crop flow into a second position. A cover plate is preferably arranged to move and cover the lower roll when the rolls are in a second position and to isolate the lower roll from the crop flow. The processor rolls are preferably driven by independent drives. One of the drives can be a hydraulic motor supplied with pressure from a hydraulic pump which can also work as a motor. When used as a motor the cutterhead may be driven in the reverse direction for maintenance purposes.

Abstract: Cotton accumulator structure includes an upright storage area supported behind the cab of a cotton harvester. A screened upper cover area is supported above the storage area by hydraulic cylinders which move the cover between a raised harvest position and a lowered storage position for reduced transport height. As harvested material is directed through ducts towards the storage area, debris can exit through the screened cover. The lower end of the storage area includes an opening for egress of the cotton. Several shafts having timed projections are journalled for rotation adjacent the opening about parallel axes. The shafts, when not rotating, generally close the lower end and prevent cotton from falling through the opening. To meter the cotton from the storage area to an operating on-board processor, a drive is activated to rotate the shafts.