An agricultural baler including a main bale chamber, a plunger configured to compress crop material in the bale chamber, a plunger drive, and a plurality of needles. The plunger drive is drivingly coupled to the plunger. The plurality of needles are configured to deliver twine through the bale chamber. The agricultural baler further includes a pivoting latch system drivingly coupled to both the plunger drive and the needles. A knotter is activated by the needles moving to a predetermined position.

A clutch for selectively driving a mechanism. The clutch includes an engagement member movable between an engaged position for driving the mechanism and a disengaged position. The clutch also includes an actuation assembly having a first member pivotable about a pivot and cooperative with a control element for movement between a retaining position and a release position, and a second member pivotable about the pivot between the retaining position and the release position. The second member extends towards the engagement member in the retaining position for maintaining the engagement member in the disengaged position. The second member is pivotable about the pivot independently of the first member such that the second member is rotatable relative to the first member.

A baler for forming crop material into bales. The baler includes a plunger moved by a plunger subassembly to form the bale, a knotter mechanism for knotting twine that is pulled onto the bale, and a knotter control assembly for controlling the knotter mechanism. The knotter control assembly includes a drive sprocket rotatable about its axis in timed relationship with movement of the plunger, a clutch plate mounted to the drive sprocket, and a knotter shaft positioned coaxially with the clutch plate. The knotter control assembly includes an actuation subassembly for engaging and disengaging the clutch plate with the knotter shaft. Upon activation, the actuation subassembly engages the clutch plate with the knotter shaft to activate the knotter mechanism, for knotting the twine on the bale. The actuation subassembly subsequently disengages the knotter shaft and the clutch plate.

An agricultural baler includes a main bale chamber, needles, knotters, a triggering system, a knotter lock, a blow-off mechanism, and a monitoring system. The needles are coupled to the main bale chamber and thread twine around a formed bale. The knotters receive the twine from the needles and tie the twine. The triggering system is for activating the needles and the knotters. The knotter lock is a manual lock of the triggering system thereby preventing the needles and the knotters from being triggered. The blow-off mechanism directs a flow of air at the knotters and the needles. The monitoring system has a single sensor that provides signals indicating a normal operation of the knotters, and whether the knotter lock is engaged.

A binding device for a square baler for knotting a strip-shaped binder which is provided for binding a pressed bale. The binding device comprises at least one knotting device driven by a knotter shaft, a needle rocker pivotable about a pivot axis extending parallel to the knotter shaft on which binding needles are positioned, and a drive unit that has a shiftable gearbox which is driven by a drive shaft and is configured to drive the at least one knotting device and the needle rocker when a binding operation is triggered. The shiftable gearbox comprises a gearbox housing in which components of the gearbox and a triggering device for triggering the binding operation are positioned.

An agricultural baler includes first and second bale chambers, wherein each bale chamber is capable of holding an individual bale of crop material. A first tying apparatus is assigned to the first chamber for tying and knotting a bale formed within the first chamber. A second tying apparatus is assigned to the second chamber for tying and knotting a bale formed within the second chamber. The first and second tying apparatuses are configured to be operated independently so as to accomplish tying and knotting of the bales in the first and second bales chambers at different times.

A baler includes a pressing channel where crop bales are conveyable along a pressing axis, and a binding arrangement. The binding arrangement has a needle swing, a holding unit, a deflection drive, and a deflection device which has a detection element. The needle swing has binding needles arranged offset to each other. Each binding needle guides a respective binding element strand upwards through the pressing channel. The holding unit holds a holding section of the binding element strand which is guided upwards. The deflection drive adjusts the deflection device. The detection element moves relative to the holding unit and partially moves along the pressing axis. At least one binding element strand is detectable by the detecting element, and is deflected through the pressing channel to produce a binding element loop. The binding element loop changes direction relative to the pressing axis at the at least one detection element.