Grain cleaning system and method of controlling such
AssigneeAGCO International GmbH
InventorsDan Hermann, Morten Leth Bilde
Life of this patent
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Abstract
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.
Claims22
A grain cleaning system comprising:
- a screening apparatus having a duct and a sieve disposed in the duct;
- a fan arranged to generate a cleaning airstream through the duct;
- a sensing device comprising a transmitter configured to transmit a base signal through the cleaning airstream, and a receiver configured to transduce a signal reflected off of airborne particles in the cleaning airstream;
- and
- an electronic control unit (ECU) that is in communication with the sensing device,
- wherein the ECU is configured to generate control signals based upon a particle velocity value for the particles, wherein the particle velocity value is determined from a frequency of the base signal and a frequency of the reflected signal, and
- wherein the ECU is configured to differentiate between two different types of the particles present in the cleaning airstream and generate a respective particle velocity value for each of the two different types of the particles, wherein the control signals are based upon the two respective particle velocity values.
A grain cleaning system comprising:
- a screening apparatus having a duct and a sieve disposed in the duct;
- a fan arranged to generate a cleaning airstream through the duct;
- a sensing device comprising a transmitter configured to transmit a base signal through the cleaning airstream, and a receiver configured to transduce a signal reflected off of airborne particles in the cleaning airstream;
- and
- an electronic control unit (ECU) that is in communication with the sensing device,
- wherein the ECU is configured to generate control signals based upon a particle velocity value for the particles, wherein the particle velocity value is determined from a frequency of the base signal and a frequency of the reflected signal,
- wherein the sensing device further comprises:
- an other receiver spaced from the receiver,
- wherein each of the receiver and other receiver is configured to transduce a respective signal reflected off of the airborne particles in the cleaning airstream,
- wherein the ECU is configured to determine the velocity value for a first and a second type of the particles,
- wherein each of the particle velocity values is based upon the base frequency and a frequency of the respective reflected signal, and
- wherein the ECU is further configured to determine a particle velocity tangent from the first and the second particle velocity values.
A method of controlling a combine harvester having a plurality of working units, including a grain cleaning system, the method comprising:
- transmitting a base signal through a cleaning airstream which passes through the grain cleaning system;
- receiving and transducing a signal reflected off of airborne particles in the cleaning airstream;
- determining velocity values for the airborne particles from a frequency of the base signal and a frequency of the reflected particle signal;
- differentiating between two different types of the particles present in the cleaning airstream and generating a respective particle velocity value for each of the two different types of particles;
- generating a control signal based upon the two respective particle velocity values;
- and
- controlling a work setting of at least one of the working units based upon the control signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.