Rotor for an axial flow rotary separator
AssigneeDeere & Company
InventorsNeil L. West, Bernard F. Vogelaar
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In an axial flow rotary separator, each radially extending finger-like crop-engaging element of the rotor is individually and obliquely journaled on a fixed eccentric shaft. Push bars spaced 90 degrees apart rotate about the axis of the separator to drive the fingers so that the finger tips describe a circular path eccentric to the separator casing and inclined to its axis. The plane of rotation of the fingers and the speed of rotation of the rotor are chosen so that the fingers maintain the crop material in an annular mat in contact with the inside wall of the casing and propel it spirally downstream. Finger element bearing housings are split for convenient assembly and repair.
Claims19
An axial flow rotary separator for receiving, processing and forwarding crop material comprising:
- a tubular, generally cylindrical casing having an inside surface and a central longitudinal axis;
- an elongated support extending within the casing and offset from the longitudinal axis of the casing;
- a plurality of crop material engaging elements, each element including a single elongated finger;
- means for axially spacing the crop-engaging elements on the support and means for journalling the elements individually on the support so that each element is rotatable about the support in a selected plane of rotation oblique to the longitudinal axis of the casing, the planes of all adjacent elements of the plurality being parallel one to another;
- first drive means extending within the casing for engaging some of the crop-engaging elements and drivably rotating them in a first array about the support, said drive means engaging each element at a first point of contact;
- and
- second drive means for engaging others of the crop-engaging elements and drivably rotating them in a second array about the support, said second drive means engaging each element of said second array at a second point of contact, said first and second points of contact normally being spaced apart circumferentially.
An axial flow rotary separator in which a rotor propels crop material in a generally spiral path through a generally cylindrical casing, the casing having a longitudinal axis and the rotor including at least one array of finger-like elements each of which has a crop engaging portion with a radial extremity, each radial extremity being propelled in a circular path inclined to the axis of the casing, the circular paths of adjacent elements being parallel one to another, and the rotor being driven at such a speed that crop material engaged by it is maintained by centrifugal force in an annular mat generally in contact with the inner surface of the casing and the rotor being disposed so that the finger-like elements engage the crop material only intermittently but, while in engagement, themselves produce a downstream movement of the crop material while propelling it circumferentially, characterized in that the rotor includes:
- an elongated shaft supported approximately parallel to but eccentric from the axis of the casing;
- a plurality of individual crop engaging element assemblies threaded onto and stacked axially on the shaft, each crop engaging element assembly including:
- a canted bearing block having a central canted bore receivable nonrotatably by the shaft, an inclined bearing surface extending circumferentially with respect to the bore, and opposite parallel, spaced-apart upstream and downstream walls;
- a finger hub journaled on the circumferential bearing surface of the bearing block;
- one of the finger-like crop engaging elements carried by the hub and extending generally radially;
- and
- a rotor driving frame supported for rotation about an axis approximately parallel to the casing axis and including an elongated generally axially extending push bar radially spaced from the axis of rotation and engageable with some of the elements for drivably rotating them;
- so that in operation, when the driving frame is rotated, the push bar engages at least one crop engaging element assembly, propelling it rotatably about its canted bearing block.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.