A cutting system includes knives attached to a continuously moving belt-type carrier. The carrier motion moves the knives past stationary counterknife fingers which are attached to or uniform with a cutterbar, as the cutting system is driven through a field of crop stalks, which are cut by the interaction between the knives and counterknives. One or more sensing devices produce signals or images related to the condition of the knives when the knives are moving past the sensing devices. A processing unit processes the signals or images and derives therefrom one or more parameters representative of the condition of the knives, and compares the parameters to a reference, to thereby monitor the condition. An agricultural implement such as a combine harvester, can be equipped with the cutting system.

An agricultural header comprises a first side draper belt, a second side draper belt, a first center draper belt, a second center draper belt, and a crop divider. The first and second center draper belts are positioned laterally between the first and second side draper belts which extend laterally outwardly in opposite directions away from the first and second center draper belts. Each of the first and second side draper belts are arranged to feed crop material laterally inwardly, and each of the first and second center draper belts are arranged to feed crop material rearwardly for processing by the agricultural harvester. The crop divider is positioned laterally between the first and second center draper belts to separate crop material fed laterally inwardly from the first and second side draper belts respectively to the first and second center draper belts.

A harvest header apparatus for harvesting a first crop in a field while preventing damage to a second later crop planted in the same field. A header table with a knife mounted along a lower front edge thereof has a plurality of crop shields attached to and spaced along the header table at a selected shield spacing, each crop shield extending forward from a rear portion thereof located under the knife to a forward end thereof located forward of the knife. A forward portion of each crop shield slopes upward such that crop plants contacted by the forward portion of each crop shield are pushed downward and pass under the knife without contacting the knife. The shield spacing is selected so the crop shields move along rows of second crop and push the second crop plants down and under the table such that same are not contacted by the knife.

A harvest header apparatus for harvesting a first crop in a field while preventing damage to a second later crop planted in the same field. A header table with a knife mounted along a lower front edge thereof has a plurality of crop shields attached to and spaced along the header table at a selected shield spacing, each crop shield extending forward from a rear portion thereof located under the knife to a forward end thereof located forward of the knife. A forward portion of each crop shield slopes upward such that crop plants contacted by the forward portion of each crop shield are pushed downward and pass under the knife without contacting the knife. The shield spacing is selected so the crop shields move along rows of second crop and push the second crop plants down and under the table such that same are not contacted by the knife.

A header for a crop harvesting machine includes front and rear wheel arrangements that pivot about respective upright axis between a field orientation and a perpendicular transport orientation, while having respective suspensions arrangements movable between different suspended heights. A biasing spring provides lift assist to carry weight of the wheel arrangement during adjustment of the suspension elevation while being isolated from the suspension once set at any one elevation. The front wheel arrangement includes an anti-rotation latch that locks the front wheel in the field orientation automatically upon disconnection of a hitch arm. A second wheel of the rear wheel arrangement can be held in a raised position relative to a first wheel in a field orientation. Load bearing surfaces between the suspended rear wheels and the header frame abut one another when latching to the header frame to isolate the suspension from the header frame in the transport orientation.

A header for a crop harvesting machine includes front and rear wheel arrangements that pivot about respective upright axis between a field orientation and a perpendicular transport orientation, while having respective suspensions arrangements movable between different suspended heights. A biasing spring provides lift assist to carry weight of the wheel arrangement during adjustment of the suspension elevation while being isolated from the suspension once set at any one elevation. The front wheel arrangement includes an anti-rotation latch that locks the front wheel in the field orientation automatically upon disconnection of a hitch arm. A second wheel of the rear wheel arrangement can be held in a raised position relative to a first wheel in a field orientation. Load bearing surfaces between the suspended rear wheels and the header frame abut one another when latching to the header frame to isolate the suspension from the header frame in the transport orientation.

A harvesting machine includes a cutter head having a cutter bar for cutting crop from a ground surface and a rotatable reel located above the cutter bar. Reel arms of the reel each include a plurality of fingers thereon to engage the crop. The cutter head also has an actuator configured to adjust a pitch of the fingers with respect to the reel arms. A controller is operably connected with the cutter head and is configured to receive an input on a cutter head posture relative to the ground surface, with the input on the posture of the cutter head including one or more of a height of the cutter head or an angle of the cutter head relative to the ground surface. The controller operates the actuator to automatically control the pitch of the plurality of fingers based on the received input on the posture of the cutter head.

A crop harvesting header having a frame mounted on a propulsion vehicle has a cutter bar carrying a sickle knife and a draper transport. The draper is guided at its front edge by a longitudinally extending rail mounted on the frame for movement therewith. The cutter bar is mounted on the frame at spaced positions by spring blades attached to a fixed beam at the rear which allow up and down flexing movement of the cutter bar relative to the draper engagement member. At the center discharge the cutter bar is carried on shorter blades which are carried on a beam in front of the front draper roller. The small amount of flexing of the cutter bar combines with a balanced three piece header frame to provide effective ground following.

A crop harvesting header having a frame mounted on a propulsion vehicle has a cutter bar carrying a sickle knife and a draper transport. The draper is guided at its front edge by a longitudinally extending rail mounted on the frame for movement therewith. The cutter bar is mounted on the frame at spaced positions by spring blades attached to a fixed beam at the rear which allow up and down flexing movement of the cutter bar relative to the draper engagement member. At the center discharge the cutter bar is carried on shorter blades which are carried on a beam in front of the front draper roller. The small amount of flexing of the cutter bar combines with a balanced three piece header frame to provide effective ground following.

A sickle cutting system is mounted on a header for forward travel over ground having a standing crop thereon and includes a cutter bar with a plurality of knife guards and two sickle bars driven at a phase angle difference where the drive system has a phase difference control component operable to drive the first and second sickle bars at a first phase angle difference typically at or around 180 degrees difference to minimize vibration when no cutting action is occurring and at a second phase angle difference which can be at or around 90 degrees to minimize variations in loading applied to the drive system when the cutting action is taking place.