An agricultural harvester has a chassis carrying a header for gathering a crop. The header is removably attached to a feeder housing for feeding the crop into the agricultural harvester to be processed. A threshing and separating system is connected to the feeder housing for separating grain from Material Other than Grain (MOG). A grain cleaning system is connected to the threshing and separating system for further cleaning the separated grain. The grain cleaning system has at least one sieve operable to oscillate fore and aft and a side shaker mechanism operable to produce a side to side shaking motion in the at least one sieve. A control system is connected to the side shaker mechanism and operable to automatically proportionately increase an amount of the side to side shaking motion as a function of an amount and type of crop being processed.

A combine harvester (10) comprises sensing means to detect or estimate a volume of material other than grain (MOG) flowing through crop processing apparatus. A photoelectric sensing device (60) in communication with a controller (101) is arranged forward of, and below, a front edge (32′) of a return pan (32) which serves to catch crop material falling from overhead separating apparatus (20). The photoelectric sensing device (60) generates one or more light beams (68) which are directed across a path of a crop mat (80) as the mat falls under gravity from the front edge (32′). The controller (101) is configured to generate one of a fan speed setting and a sieve opening setting in dependence upon detection signals that are generated by the photoelectric sensing device (60).

A combine harvester includes a feederhouse configured to convey a crop material from a harvesting header, a threshing system configured to receive the crop material from the feederhouse and separate straw therefrom, and a cleaning system below the threshing system and configured to separate grain from chaff of the crop material. The cleaning system includes a stratification pan, a chaffer, and a blower to direct air rearward and upward through the chaffer. The stratification pan has a frame, a series of adjustable ripple members coupled to the frame, a series of support members pivotally coupled to the frame, and an adjusting rod configured to move the support members to change an incline angle of the ripple members relative to the frame. Each support member also supports one of the ripple members. Related methods are also disclosed.

A louver position sensing system for a sieve and chaffer of a combine harvester. One system provides that at least one sensor is in actual, physical contact with one or more louvers of the sieve and chaffer. Another system provides that a one or more magnet holders are mounted on louvers and, spaced away, sensors sense magnets in the magnet holders to determine the rotational position of the louvers. Either system allows for accurate, on-the-fly adjustment of the louvers in order to maximize the efficiency of operation of the sieve and chaffer. Preferably, the sensing systems are configured such that sensed position of the louvers is broadcast on the CAN bus of the combine harvester. As a result, the position information can be used to dynamically adjust the openings between the louvers of the sieve and chaffer to achieve more efficient grain cleaning as the machine and field variables change.

A driver assistance system for a combine harvester that has a processing stage with an input for a crop flow, a first output for a useful flow and has abundant threshed grains, and a second output for a residual flow with scarce grains. At least one operating parameter of the processing stage is adjustable. The driver assistance system has an actuatable rethreshing device arranged at the second output of the processing stage, a residual grain sensor for detecting a proportion of threshed out grain in the residual flow downstream of the rethreshing device, and an evaluating device that turns the rethreshing device on and off, compares the proportions of threshed out grains in the residual flow when the rethreshing device is turned on and when the rethreshing device is turned off, and to adapt the at least one operating parameter of the processing stage based on the comparison.

A concave section for a harvester includes a concave body having an upstream side, a downstream side, a leading end and a trailing end. The concave body defines an arcuate crop engagement face facing radially inwardly. A plurality of crop passage openings are defined through the arcuate crop engagement face. A cover is configured to at least partially cover at least some of the crop passage openings. The cover is carried by the concave body and is movable thereon between at least two different positions to adjust a degree of openness of at least some of the crop passage openings.

A combine including: a grain tank that stores grains sorted by a sort unit that swings to sort grains fallen from a threshing cylinder unit; a yield measuring device that measures the amount of grain put in the grain tank; a unit yield calculation unit that calculates a unit yield per unit plot in a cultivated field; an opening degree adjustment unit that adjusts the opening degree of a chaff sheave of the sort unit in accordance with a threshing state of the threshing apparatus; a mode setting unit that sets a yield accuracy priority mode in which priority is given to accuracy of the unit yield calculation performed by the unit yield calculation unit; and a yield accuracy maintenance unit that in response to the mode setting unit setting the yield accuracy priority mode, forcibly fixes the opening degree of the chaff sheave at a specific opening degree.

A threshing system for use in an agricultural harvester. The threshing system includes a rotor and a perforated concave system. The rotor has a rotational axis. The perforated concave system is spaced radially outwardly from the rotor for passage of grain through perforations as the rotor moves crop material across the concave system. The concave system has at least one concave section having a rigid frame, pivotal members, and an arcuate movable member. The rigid frame has a plurality of sides rigidly coupled together. The pivotal members are pivotally coupled and extend to two of the sides of the rigid frame. The arcuate movable member interacts with the plurality of pivotal members to pivot each of the pivotal members as the arcuate movable member is moved along a segment of an arc generally about the rotational axis.

The present invention provides a three-degree-of-freedom hybrid vibratory screening mechanism, a control method thereof, and a harvester. The three-degree-of-freedom hybrid vibratory screening mechanism comprises a frame, a vibrating screen, a first driving mechanism, a second driving mechanism, sensors and a controller; parallel drive of hydraulic motors are used for achieving two-degree-of-freedom rotational adjustment of the horizontal attitude angle and inclination angle of the screen surface of the vibrating screen, and the first driving mechanism drives the vibrating screen to reciprocate in one degree of freedom, so as to realize three-degree-of-freedom vibration adjustment of the screen surface; a vibration parameter control model is established by means of theoretical analysis in combination with experiment. In the operating process, the sensors installed at the tail part of the vibrating screen monitor the loss rate and distribution of the grains in real time, and the horizontal attitude angle of the screen surface, inclination angle of the screen surface and vibration frequency are self-adaptively optimized and adjusted to promote uniform and discrete distribution of the material on the screen surface, so that the screening efficiency of the material under a condition of non-uniform material feeding is effectively improved and the loss rate of the grains is decreased.

A grain cleaning system for a combine harvester having a transmitter adapted to transmit a base signal at a known frequency and one or more spaced receivers for detecting signals of a different frequency as reflected from airborne grain and other materials within the duct of the grain cleaning system An Electronic Control Unit modulates the base signal and the reflected signals to obtain Doppler signals or frequencies from which an average particle velocity is determined. The particle velocity is used as an input parameter for the generation of control signals for the adjustment of various working units of the combine harvester including, by way of example, the fan and sieves.