Agricultural Baler

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018317395-A1
Application number	US-201615770028-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 20, 2016
Priority date	Oct 20, 2015
Publication date	Nov 8, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

An agricultural baler including a bale chamber, a feeder duct communicating with the bale chamber for charges of crop material to be transferred from the feeder duct into the bale chamber; and a feeder operable within the feeder duct to accumulate a charge of crop material therein and then stuff that accumulated charge into the bale chamber. There is an opening in the bottom wall of the feeder duct and at least one door hingedly attached to an edge of the opening, the edge being the edge of an end part of the bottom wall of the feeder duct, and the end part of the bottom wall to which the door is hingedly attached, is movably arranged relative to the top wall of the feeder duct.

First claim

1 .- 14 . (canceled)

15 . An agricultural baler, comprising:
a bale chamber having an inlet opening formed therein; a feeder duct communicating with the bale chamber through the inlet opening for a charge of crop material to be transferred from the feeder duct into the bale chamber; a plunger reciprocable within the bale chamber to compress the charge of crop material received from the feeder duct to form a bale; and a feeder operable within the feeder duct to accumulate the charge of crop material therein and then stuff that the charge into the bale chamber, wherein the feeder duct has an upper end facing generally upwardly and communicating with the inlet opening in the bale chamber and a lower end facing generally in a forward direction, wherein the feeder duct further has a top wall and a bottom wall extending between the lower end and the upper end of the feeder duct, the top wall providing an upper boundary of the feeder duct and the bottom wall providing a lower boundary of the feeder duct, wherein there is an opening in the bottom wall of the feeder duct and at least one door hingedly attached to an edge of the opening, the edge being an edge of an end part of the bottom wall of the feeder duct, and wherein the end part of the bottom wall to which the door is hingedly attached is movably arranged relative to the top wall of the feeder duct.

16 . The baler according to claim 1 , wherein the end part of the bottom wall to which the door is hingedly attached is movable by being pivotable at an edge opposite to the edge to which the door is hingedly attached.

17 . The baler according to claim 1 , wherein the door and the end part of the bottom wall to which the door is attached are movable between a closed position and an opened position, wherein in the closed position the door and the end part of the bottom wall provide a lower boundary of the feeder duct, and in the open position the door and the end part of the bottom wall are positioned away from the top wall of the feeder duct, thereby no longer providing a lower boundary of the feeder duct.

18 . The baler according to any of claim 1 , further comprising means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between a closed position and a partly opened position, wherein in the closed position the door and the end part of the bottom wall provide a lower boundary of the feeder duct, and in the partly opened position the door and the end part of the bottom wall to which the door is attached are positioned away from the top wall of the feeder duct, thereby leaving the lower boundary intact.

19 . The baler according to claim 18 , wherein the means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between the closed position and the partly opened position are releasable to allow the door and the end of the bottom wall to be positioned in an opened position.

20 . The baler according to claim 19 , wherein the means are configured to selectively move the door and the end part of the bottom wall between the closed position, the partly opened position, and the opened position.

21 . The baler according to claim 18 , wherein the means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between the closed position and the partly opened position are manually operable.

22 . The baler according to any of claim 18 , wherein the means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between the closed position and the partly opened position comprise an actuator.

23 . The baler according to claim 22 , wherein the means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between the closed position and the partly opened position comprise a controller connected to the actuator for controlling the actuator, wherein the baler further comprises a sensor connected to the controller and configured for detecting plugging of the feeder duct, and wherein the controller is configured for controlling the actuator such that the door and the end part of the bottom wall are moved into the partly opened position when a plugging of the feeder duct is detected by the sensor.

24 . The baler according to any of claims 18 , wherein the means configured for selectively moving the door and the end part of the bottom wall between a closed position and a partly opened position act on at least one of the door and the end part of the bottom wall.

25 . The baler according to claim 1 , wherein adjacent the edge of the door opposite to the edge that is hingedly attached to the end part of the bottom wall, there is an edge of an adjacent part of the bottom wall, wherein at least the adjacent edge of the adjacent part of the bottom wall is movable relative to the top wall of the feeder duct so as to form an adjacent door that is movable between an opened position and a closed position and that when opened provides an opening in the bottom wall.

26 . The baler according to claim 25 , further comprising means configured for selectively moving the adjacent door between the closed position and a partly opened position, wherein in the closed position the adjacent door provides a lower boundary of the feeder duct, and in the partly opened position the adjacent door is positioned away from the top wall of the feeder duct, thereby leaving the lower boundary provided by the adjacent door intact, and wherein, with the door and the adjacent door in their respective partly opened position, the adjacent edges of the door and the adjacent door are at substantially the same distance from the top wall of the feeder duct.

27 . The baler according to claim 25 , wherein the adjacent door is formed by an end part of the bottom wall.

28 . The baler according to claim 1 , wherein at least a door is hingedly attached to an upper end part of the bottom wall at the upper end of the feeder duct, the upper end part being movably arranged relative to the top wall.

Assignees

• Cnh Ind America Llc

Inventors

• Devroe Jeroen
• Kindt Dieter
• Liefooghe Dries
• Rosseel Bram
• Verhaeghe Didier

Classifications

• A01F2015/107

  Means for withdrawing knives, rotor or walls of the feeding chamber in case of plugging or congestion · CPC title

• A01F2015/102

  the pressing chamber is fed from the bottom side · CPC title

• A01F15/101 Primary

  Feeding at right angles to the compression stroke (A01F15/106 takes precedence) · CPC title