ROUND BALER, COMBINATION OF AN AGRICULTURAL VEHICLE WITH SUCH A BALER AND METHOD FOR FORMING ROUND BALES

Abstract

A round baler includes a variable bale chamber delimited by side walls arranged on a right and a left in a forward direction of travel, at least one forming belt circulating between the side walls, and at least one sensor for detecting a change of position of the forming belt in the direction of one of the side walls, the at least one sensor being directly or indirectly in operative connection with the forming belt.

Claims

1. A round baler, comprising: a variable bale chamber delimited by side walls arranged on a right and a left in a forward direction of travel, at least one forming belt circulating between the side walls, and at least one sensor for detecting a change of position of the forming belt in the direction of one of the side walls, the at least one sensor being directly or indirectly in operative connection with the forming belt.

2. The round baler of claim 1, further comprising at least one actuation element via which the sensor is in operative connection with the forming belt and interacts with the sensor.

3. The round baler of claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises an angle sensor or a travel sensor.

4. The round baler of claim 2, wherein the actuator element is directly or indirectly engaged with a circulating edge of the forming belt, where a misalignment of the actuator element is configured to be detected by the sensor such that a change of position of the forming belt is generated.

5. The round baler of claim 4, wherein the actuator element is mounted on a frame part of the round baler.

6. The round baler of claim 4, wherein the actuator element comprises a guide roller which is configured to roll on the circulating edge.

7. The round baler of claim 6, wherein the actuator element comprises a pivot arm and the guide roller is disposed on a pivotable free end of the pivot arm.

8. The round baler of claim 6, wherein: the actuator element comprises a slide that is linearly slidable in the direction of the side wall; and the guide roller is disposed at a free end of the slide.

9. The round baler of claim 2, wherein the actuator element comprises a tensioning device that acts in the direction of the forming belt, where the actuator element is tensioned in the direction of the forming belt.

10. The round baler of claim 2, wherein the actuator element is movable against a stop.

11. A combination of an agricultural vehicle and a round baler, comprising: a variable bale chamber of the round baler delimited by side walls arranged on a right and a left in a forward direction of travel, at least one forming belt circulating between the side walls, and at least one sensor for detecting a change of position of the forming belt in the direction of one of the side walls, the at least one sensor being directly or indirectly in operative connection with the forming belt.

12. The combination of claim 11, further comprising a display device in the vehicle configured to visibly or audibly display a signal provided by the sensor.

13. The combination of claim 11, wherein a signal provided by the sensor represents a correction value for a steering device of the vehicle, the steering device being automatically operable in dependence on the signal.

14. A method for making round bales with a combination of an agricultural vehicle and a round baler, comprising: providing the round baler with a variable bale chamber delimited by side walls disposed on a right and left in a forward direction of travel, at least one forming belt circulating between the side walls, operatively connecting at least one sensor directly or indirectly with the forming belt; and detecting a change of position of the forming belt in the direction of one of the side walls of the baler.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising sending the signal registered by the sensor to a display device or automatically operating a steering device of the vehicle.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] The above-mentioned aspects of the present disclosure and the manner of obtaining them will become more apparent and the disclosure itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of the embodiments of the disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0020] FIG. 1 shows a schematic side view of a combination of an agricultural vehicle and a round baler,

[0021] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a round baler with the routing of a circulating forming belt and sensor device,

[0022] FIG. 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the forming belt arrangement with the sensor device of the round baler of FIG. 2,

[0023] FIG. 4 shows a schematic side view of the forming belt arrangement with the sensor device of the round baler of FIGS. 2 and 3,

[0024] FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of a side of the forming belt arrangement with the sensor device that is in front in a forward direction of travel of the round baler of FIGS. 2 to 4,

[0025] FIG. 6 shows a schematic view of a side of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 5 that is in front in the forward direction of travel and in a normal position of the forming belt,

[0026] FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of a side of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 6 that is in front in the forward direction of travel and in a lateral position of the forming belt,

[0027] FIG. 8 shows a schematic view of a side of a left part of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 7 that is in front in the forward direction of travel and in a normal position of the forming belt,

[0028] FIG. 9 shows a schematic view of a side of the left part of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 8 that is in front in the forward direction of travel,

[0029] FIG. 10 shows a schematic perspective view of a side of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 9 that is in the rear in the forward direction of travel,

[0030] FIG. 11 shows a schematic perspective view of a side of the sensor device of FIGS. 2 to 10 that is in front in the forward direction of travel, and

[0031] FIG. 12 shows a schematic view of a side of an alternative embodiment of a sensor device that is in the rear in the forward direction of travel and in a normal position of the forming belt.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a combination 6 of an agricultural vehicle 8, in the form of a tractor, and a round baler 10, where the round baler 10 picks up crop deposited on the ground 16 in a swath 9 by means of a pickup unit 22.

[0033] As is pictured in more detail in FIG. 2, the round baler 10 includes a frame 12, which is supported on the ground 16 via a chassis 14. The round baler 10 that is shown is designed as a kind of round baler that can be used in agriculture as well as industry to produce what is usually called a round bale, in particular, a round cylindrical bale, from crop, but also from trash, paper, pulp or fabric, cotton, tobacco, etc. Such a round baler 10 can be towed by the vehicle 8 or can also be self-propelled.

[0034] According to this embodiment, a shaft 20 is provided on the side of the frame 12 that is in front in the forward direction of travel (V) in order to hitch the round baler 10 to the vehicle 8 and to tow it over a field. A pickup unit 22 in the form of a pick-up serves to pick up crop lying on the ground 16 such as, for example, hay or straw deposited in a swath 9. The crop picked up by the pickup unit 22 is delivered to an inlet 24 of a bale chamber 26 and is rolled up in a spiral into a round cylindrical bale, tied, and then dropped onto the ground 16.

[0035] A lower stationary roller 28 and two upper rollers 30, 32 are positioned at the inlet 24 of the bale chamber 26. The bale chamber 26 is additionally formed by an endless compaction means, which according to the present embodiment is made as two adjacent forming belts 34 and is guided around a number of fixed rollers 36, 38, 40, 42, and movable rollers 44, 42, 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56. The forming belt 34 has an outer side 34a turned toward the frame 12 and an inner side 34b.

[0036] While the bale chamber 26 is essentially surrounded on all sides by the forming belt 34 and the rollers 28, 30, and 32, it is laterally delimited by side walls 57. In FIG. 1, only the side wall 57 that is on the left in the forward direction of travel V is represented.

[0037] Four rollers (50, 52, 54, 56) of the movable rollers 44-56 are mounted freely rotatable in a lower region 58 of a delta-shaped carrier 60, which is hinged at its upper vertex 62 about an axis 64 that runs horizontally and transverse to the forward direction of travel V and can be brought by means of an actuator (not shown) from the bale-forming position shown in FIG. 1 to a bale-ejection position that is swiveled to the rear and upward.

[0038] A tensioning mechanism 66 for tightening the forming belt 34 has a tensioning lever 68, which interacts with a first tensioning element (not shown) and a tensioning arm 72, which interacts with a second tensioning element 70. Both tensioning elements can be designed as a mechanical spring or a hydraulic motor or can have such a spring or motor.

[0039] The tensioning lever 68 is mounted in the region of the side wall 57 on an axle 74 that runs horizontally and transverse to the forward direction and it carries, in an end region 76 turned away from the axle 74, two of the movable rollers 46, 48, and the cleaning rollers 46a, 48a that are associated with said rollers 46, 48. The tensioning arm 72 is correspondingly mounted on an axle 78 and carries in an end region 80 one of the movable rollers 44. Moreover, the tensioning arm 68 is effectively connected at one end with the tensioning element 70, which is connected at the other end with the round baler 10 or its frame 12 in a manner not shown.

[0040] The forming belt 34 is always laid out on the driven, fixed roller 38 so firmly by means of the tensioning arm 70 that its carry-along is guaranteed. The roller 36 is also rotatably driven. The forming belt 34 assumes an initial state in which it is stretched directly across the inlet 24, and an end state in which it encircles a bale like a large sling. The bale chamber 26 is thus variable in size, i.e., its diameter increases with the size of the bale 18. During its formation, the bale is situated in the bale chamber 26 and for the most part is encircled by the forming belt 34, but it falls out of the bale chamber 26 to the rear onto the ground 16 as soon as the carrier 60 with the movable rollers 50-56 pivots counterclockwise upward (as shown). Alternatively, the bale can also be deposited on an apparatus connected to the baler 10, for example, in the form of an apparatus for wrapping the bale with a net or film material.

[0041] The embodiment of the baler that is shown is disclosed in detail in EP 1 308 078 A1. Other possible embodiments are described in DE 198 51 470 A1, DE 102 41 215 A1 and EP 1 264 531 A1. The disclosures of these documents are incorporated by reference herein.

[0042] In a region 82 of the baler 10 that is turned toward the shaft 20, a sensor device 84 is provided in order to detect a change of position directly at the forming belt 34. The sensor device 84 has a frame part forming a transverse carrier 86, which extends over the entire width on the side that is in front in the forward direction of travel V of the baler 10 between the side walls 57 and is attached to frame 12, e.g., it is bolted or welded to it.

[0043] Referring to FIGS. 3 to 11, the sensor device 84 is represented more precisely. As can be seen in FIGS. 3-5, the transverse carrier 86 extends in an upper part of the region 82 of the baler that is turned toward the shaft 20, where the transverse carrier 86 is arranged so that the forming belt 34 runs between the transverse carrier 86 and the roller 38, thus on the side of the transverse carrier 86 that is to the rear in the forward direction of travel V. The transverse carrier 86 is made as a profiled sheet in order to provide a certain stiffness. A mounting bracket 88 is provided on each of the right and left sides of the transverse carrier 86 in the lateral position to the edge regions of the forming belt 34 that are turned toward the side walls 57 and on the front side in the forward direction of travel V (see FIG. 9). A sensor mount 90 bent into a U-shape with two downward extending legs 92, 94 is screwed to each of the mounting brackets 88. Between the legs 92, 94 of the sensor mount 90, there extends essentially perpendicular to the surface of the forming belt 34 a pivot bolt 96, which is rotatably mounted on the relevant legs 92, 94. In each case an angle sensor 98 is disposed on the side of the pivot bolt 96 that is turned away from the forming belt 34.

[0044] The pivot bolt 96 is non-rotatably connected to an actuation element 100, where the actuation element 100 comprises a pivot arm 102 which is connected non-rotatably at one end to the pivot bolt 96. The actuation element 100 further comprises a guide axle 104 and a guide roller 106, where the guide axle 104 is attached to the side of the transverse carrier 86 that is in front in the forward direction of travel at the other end of the pivot arm 102 and holds the guide roller 106 so that it can rotate. As can be seen in FIG. 9, the guide axle 104 extends from pivot arm 102 through the transverse carrier 86 and is guided in an arc-shaped guide slot 107 in a transverse carrier 86 transverse to its lengthwise axis, as shown in FIG. 8.

[0045] The guide roller 106 is rotatably mounted at the free end of the guide axle 104 on the side of the transverse carrier 86 that is at the rear in the forward direction of travel. The lateral arrangement and the relevant dimensions of the mounting bracket 88 on transverse carrier 86, the sensor mount 90, and the actuation element 100 are envisioned such that the relevant guide rollers 106 are each in engagement with one of the circulating edges 108 of the forming belt 34 that is turned toward the side walls 57. On the guide rollers 106, an annular guide slot 110 is formed in which the forming belt 34 is guided and with which the guide roller 106 rolls on the edge 108 of the relevant forming belt 34.

[0046] In order to exert a certain pressure from the guide roller 106 on the edge of the forming belt 34, a tensioning device 112 is provided where the tensioning device 112 comprises a tensioning spring 114, which is attached at one end to pivot arm 102 between pivot bolt 96 and guide axle 104, and at the other end to the transverse carrier 86 so that tensioning of the pivot arm 102 in the direction of the forming belt 34 takes place.

[0047] The sensor device 84 further has, for the pivot arm 102, a first stop 116 which is formed by an end of the arc-shaped guide slot 107 that is turned toward the relevant side wall 57, and a second stop 118 which is formed by an end of the arc-shaped guide slot 107 that is turned away from the relevant side wall 57. A change of position of the forming belt 34 in the direction of the side wall 57 is limited by the stops 116, 118, where each pivot arm 102, upon reaching the stops 116, 118, takes an extreme position and a further change of position of the forming belt 34 in the direction of the side wall 57 is prevented or blocked. Through this, the forming belt 34, with its circulating edge 108, can be effectively prevented from coming into contact with the side walls 57 and unnoticeably wearing or even being damaged.

[0048] If there is a change of position of the forming belt in the direction of the side wall 57, a pivoting movement of the pivot lever takes place due to the circulating edges 108 coming into engagement with the guide rollers 106, as a comparison of FIGS. 6 and 7 shows. FIG. 6 shows a normal position of the forming belt, in which the forming belt or belts 34 are centered between the side walls 57 and the pivot arm 102 on both sides of the transverse carrier 86 and is guided to a central position in the relevant arc-shaped guide slot 107. In contrast, FIG. 7 shows a lateral position of the forming belt 34, in which the forming belt or belts 34 have wandered or drifted laterally and have left the normal position in the direction of the side wall that is on the right in the forward direction of travel. Here, the pivot arm 102 on the right side of the transverse carrier 86 in the forward direction of travel runs against a stop 116 and the pivot arm 102 on the left side of the transverse carrier 86 in the forward direction of travel runs against the stop 118.

[0049] For a change of position in the opposite direction, a corresponding situation with reversed combination of stops arises. The pivoting movement produced by the pivot arms 102 upon a change of position of the forming belt 34 is detected by the angle sensor 98 and sent to a signal processing unit (not shown) on the vehicle or the baler. From there the sensor signal goes to a display unit (not shown) in the vehicle 8 in a manner known to one skilled in the art and can be displayed there visually or audibly. Furthermore, an appropriate signal processing also enables the use in automatic steering systems, so that depending on the sensor signal or signals, a vehicle steering that counteracts the change of position of the forming belt 34 is initiated. Such steering systems or (vehicle) steering systems are already widely known and are already in use in connection with global positioning systems (GPS) or mapping systems for automatic steering of agricultural vehicles. The implementation and development of the present disclosure for use of the sensor signal provided here for an autonomous steering or control of the vehicle 8 lies in the area of the general knowledge of one skilled in the art and does not need further detailed explanation.

[0050] FIG. 12 shows an alternative embodiment, which is characterized in that instead of the pivot arms 106, linearly moving slides 120 (or sliders) that are guided via a guide bolt 122 are guided in a linear guide slot 123. The slide 120 is further guided over two parallel guide rails 124 formed on transverse carrier 86 and over a guide disk 125 connected to the guide bolt. The guide rollers 106 are attached to the slide roller 120 and are in engagement with the relevant circulating edge 108, as described above. A tensioning spring 126 extends between a mount 128 on the transverse carrier 86 and a mount 130 on slide 120 and serves as a tensioning device. A travel sensor 132 is connected to the guide bolt 122 and, if the slide 120 shifts due to a change of position of the forming belt 34, provides a signal which is proportional to the change of position of the forming belt 34. The linear guide slots 124 made here form, with their ends, stops that are comparable to the stops 116 and 118 described above, where here the relevant guide bolt 122 runs against an end of the guide slot 124 and a further change of position of the forming belt 34 is prevented or blocked.

[0051] While embodiments incorporating the principles of the present disclosure have been described hereinabove, the present disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments. Instead, this application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the disclosure using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this disclosure pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims.