Method, apparatus and system for the electrification of a field chopper

A method for electrification of a field chopper, the method comprising:

• providing a cable drum and a winding drive on the field chopper, the cable drum and the winding drive allowing at least one of winding or unwinding of an energy supply line about the cable drum;
• providing a cable arm on the field chopper, the cable arm adjustable in at least one of orientation or extension length to guide the at least one of the winding or the unwinding of the energy supply line along a field surface;
• providing a pivotable ejection chute on the field chopper, the pivotable ejection chute extending beyond the cable arm and configured to transfer a chopped harvested material onto a transport vehicle driving alongside the field chopper, wherein a clearance signal is transmitted via the energy supply line to provide for a contact-free derivation of a safety clearance to be maintained with respect to the energy supply line;
• unwinding the energy supply line from the cable drum using the winding drive and the cable arm while along a first processing section;
• winding the energy supply line about the cable drum using the winding drive and the cable arm while along a second processing section;
• controlling, with a control unit, at least one of the winding or the unwinding of the energy supply line;
• and
• estimating, with the control unit, a current tensile force on the energy supply line using at least an exit angle of the energy supply line at the cable arm.

An electrified field chopper, comprising:

• a cable drum and a winding drive, the cable drum and the winding drive allowing at least one of winding or unwinding of an energy supply line about the cable drum;
• a cable arm, the cable arm adjustable in at least one of orientation or extension length to guide the at least one of the winding or the unwinding of the energy supply line along a field surface;
• a pivotable ejection chute on the electrified field chopper, the pivotable ejection chute extending beyond the cable arm and configured to transfer a chopped harvested material onto a transport vehicle driving alongside the electrified field chopper;
• and
• a control unit, the control unit configured to receive at least one of GPS data or topography data to control the unwinding of the energy supply line along a first processing strip and the winding of the energy supply line along a second processing strip, wherein a clearance signal is transmitted via the energy supply line to provide a contact-free derivation of a safety clearance to be maintained with respect to the energy supply line.

A field chopper electrification system, comprising:

• a field chopper;
• an energy supply line laying system including (a) an energy supply line, (b) a cable drum, (c) a winding drive, and (d) a cable arm allowing at least one of winding of the energy supply line about the cable drum or unwinding of the energy supply line from the field chopper along a field surface of a field;
• a control unit, the control unit configured to receive at least one of GPS data or topography data to control operation of at least one of the field chopper or the energy supply line laying system, wherein a clearance signal is transmitted via the energy supply line to provide a contact-free derivation of a safety clearance to be maintained with respect to the energy supply line;
• and
• a power supply, the power supply releasably connected to an end of the energy supply line and located in an edge region of the field to be processed, the power supply to provide electrical energy to the field chopper using the energy supply line.