CA2133544A1 - Forage conditioning machine - Google Patents

Abstract

The disclosure herein describes an intense forage conditioning machine that includes: a mower, either a cutter bar or disks, perpendicular to the direction of travel for cutting fresh forage off the ground to leave a stubble; a conveying unit to move the cut forage; a macerating unit composed of a series of grooved rolls rotating at different speeds to severely condition the conveyed cut forage; and a double track pressing unit to compress the macerated forage and to deposit the resulting thin mat on the stubble.

Description

213354l TITLE OF THE lNv~ ON
Forage conditioning machine.

FIELD OF THE lNv~.,ION
The present invention relates to an intense forage conditioning machine that simultaneously mows the crop and conditions it through macerating rolls.

BACRGROUND OF THE lNV~. ~ ION
U.S. Patent No. 4,265,076 to Krutz describes a machine that macerates forage with two serrated rolls and forms a continuous mat with two compression rolls. The residence time of forage between two rolls during maceration and two other rolls during compression is relatively short, and makes it difficult to obtain very severe conditioning and a uniform mat. Moreover, there is no provision to recuperate juice when it flows out from very wet forage at the compression stage.

U.S. Patent No. 4,332,125 to Holdren describes a machine that makes discontinuous mats of macerated forage. The main problem with this design is that it accumulates forage on a compression belt until enough material is prepared in a rectangular mat. Under modern operating conditions of high yield and high feed rate, it appears preferable to deposit the macerated forage rapidly and continuously to avoid any plugging.

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_ -- 2 U.S. Patent No. 5,036,652 to Schmittbetz and Liebers describes a machine that macerates forage between multiple planetary grooved rolls and compresses the mat between two rolls. The main difference between this machine and the above mentioned Krutz patent is the macerating roll configuration.

Savoie and co-workers (1991, ASAE paper 91-1578, St. Joseph, MI; 1993, Transactions of the ASAE
36(2):285-291) describe an experimental unit with a 2.1 m wide cutterbar, eight 1.5 m wide macerating rolls and a 1.2 m wide double-belt press. Maceration was adequate but the machine was bulky and complex. The two rubber belts were subject to high lateral forces under variable yield and moisture and sometimes deposited thick clumps of forage instead of a uniformly thin mat.

Technical report no 13.93 dated June 1993 from Deutz Fahr Company (Kodelstrasse 1, Lauingen, Germany, D-89415) describes a 2.8 m wide disk mower, 8-roll maceration system and 8-roll compression unit with additional intermediate components (eight rolls and two belts) to even out material flow. Such a machine is not likely to handle large feed rates which would cause plugging in the intermediate components.

U.S. Patent No. 5,152,127 to Koegel and co-workers describes a machine that mows and macerates 213354~

forage by impact. The machine requires upwardacceleration of the mowed forage to reach the impact roll. This may limit the use of impact roll maceration to flail mowers.

Commercial literature dated January 1994 from Krone Company (P.O. Box 1163, Spelle, Germany, D-48478) describes a machine with a hammer roll for intensive forage conditioning. However, the hammer roll conditioning machine is a separate unit that picks up an already mowed swath and is therefore not integrated with a mower. The machine does not have any provision for forming compressed mats.

While there have been several attempts to improve forage drying with intensive conditioning, none has successfully handled large feed rates and produced well-formed macerated continuous swaths or mats. It is also important that the intensive conditioning system be integrated in a single machine that includes a mowing mechanism.

STA~ Nl OF THE lNV~ lON
The present invention pertains to a machine, called an intensive conditioner or superconditioner, that simultaneously mows fresh forage and macerates the crop.
The macerated forage may alternately be compressed and deposited as a thin mat on the stubble, or ejected 2133~4~

immediately after maceration as a fluffy swath on the stubble. The machine with the compression unit can recuperate any expressed juice by pouring it back on top of the mat. Superconditioned forage dries faster than conventionally conditioned forage. It also has a greater feeding value for lactating dairy cows. The machine will facilitate hay making, silage making and forage harvest for dehydration under a variable climate.

Compared to the above described prior machines, the present invention has the advantage of very thorough maceration while maintaining a high feed rate. The machine may also compress the macerated forage and recuperate on top of the mat any expressed juice. When left to dry under sunny conditions, macerated forage dries more quickly than conventional forage windrows. It also has a greater feed value than forage conditioned with conventional rolls.

The present invention therefore relates to a machine for intense conditioning of forage into a thin 20 mat and depositing the mat on a stubble, comprising:
a) means for cutting fresh forage off the ground to leave a stubble;
b) conveying means to move the cut forage;

c) a macerating unit composed of a series of grooved rolls rotating at different speeds to severely condition the cut forage;

21335~q d) a double track pressing unit to compress the macerated forage and deposit the resulting thin mat on the stubble.

Other features of this invention reside in the particular arrangement of parts, the more thorough maceration through multiple parallel grooved rolls, the staggered position of the macerating rolls that convey forage to the compression unit, a dual track system to compress the macerated forage into a thin mat and slats that recuperate and release expressed juice.

Other objects and further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter.
It should be understood, however, that this detailed description, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, is given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a schematic side view of an intensive forage conditioning machine made in accordance with the present invention, using a pull-type disk mower;

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Fig. 2 is a schematic side view of the intensive forage conditioning machine of the present invention, using a pull-type cutterbar mower;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the machine shown in figure 2, adapted to and mounted on a self-propelled tractor-mower unit;

Fig. 4 is a top view of the machine shown in figure 1 with parts removed for clarity;

Fig. 5 is a schematic side view showing details of the macerating unit;

Fig. 6 is a schematic side view showing details of the pressing unit;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to figure 6, showing the pressing unit in a compression mode;

Figs. 8a and 8b show top and side views of a plastic slat with furrows;

Fig. 9a is a schematic side view of the pressure plates and the counter pressure plate while Fig.
9b is a top view of the pressure plate and Fig. 9c is a bottom view of the counterpressure plate;

2133S~4 Fig. 10 illustrates a simplified configuration of the pull-type disk mower-superconditioner; and Fig. 11 illustrates a simplified configuration of the self-propelled mower-superconditioner.

DESCRIPTION OF THE lNv~ ION
A first component of the forage conditioning machine of the present invention is the mowing mechanism.
Referring to figure 1, it consists of a disk mower 1.
The freshly cut forage is pulled away by two feeding rolls 2 and 3 that mix the crop and provide an even flow of forage to the macerating rolls. The upper feeding roll 2 turns counterclockwise while the bottom feeding roll 3 turns clockwise. On some mowers, additional feeding components, like a reel 16 and an auger 17 (see fig. 2) may be necessary to convey material from the mower to the feeding rolls 2' and 3'.

A second component of the conditioning machine is the macerating unit composed of a series of grooved rolls 4, 5, 6 and 7 of equal diameter placed in a staggered sequence. Each macerating roll is made out of hollow steel and is grooved on its outer surface with longitudinal grooves along the axis of the roll.
Preferably, there are approximately 3 grooves per cm (pitch equal to 3.2 mm or 0.125 inch); the depth of each groove is 1.5 mm (0.059 inch).

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The two upper macerating rolls 4 and 6 turn counterclockwise (at about 2000 rpm) while the two lower rolls 5 and 7 turn clockwise (at about 1000 rpm). The speed ratio between the upper and lower macerating rolls is preferably in the range of 1.5 to 2.5. A higher ratio close to 2.5 is recommended when less than four rolls are used. The freshly cut crop is pulled aggressively and macerated at the three interfaces between the upper and lower macerating rolls. The macerated forage is projected slightly upward out of the last two rolls 6 and 7 and into a press unit. At the exit of the macerating rolls, a deflector 8 made of curved metal sheet extends over the width of the macerating rolls and two vertical metallic plates 18 and 19 (see fig. 4) are disposed at each end of the macerating unit. The plates may pivot inwards to reduce the feeding width of the crop to the pressing unit. This is useful when the crop yield is light so that enough material will be compressed into a cohesive mat.

A third component of the conditioning machine is the press unit. It is composed of an endless lower track 9 and an endless upper track 10 that can squeeze the macerated forage into a thin mat. Adjustable pressure plates 11, 12 and 13 are located within the upper track to apply the desired pressure against the tracks. A fixed counterpressure plate 14 is located within the lower track to prevent sag when pressure is 21335~4 g applied vertically downward against the two tracks to squeeze the forage into a thin mat. The macerated forage is first ejected on the upper side of the bottom track 9 that moves clockwise. The upper track 10 moves counterclockwise against the bottom track. The compression time depends on the length of contact between the two tracks and the forward speed. Both tracks move at equal speed; the track speed is approximately equal to the tractor ground speed. Thus, the compressed mat falls on the stubble at a relative speed of zero which minimizes losses.

Fig. 2 illustrates an intensive forage conditioning device wherein the mowing component is a pull-type cutterbar mower 15. All of the other components are similar to those of figure 1, except that the feeding rolls 2' and 3' may be located in a position slightly different than the rolls 2 and 3 for the disk mower 1 or might even be removed if the mower feeds material evenly directly to the macerating rolls. As a consequence, the macerating rolls 4', 5', 6' and 7' might be positioned slightly differently to ensure proper flow and maceration of the freshly mowed forage.

Fig. 3 illustrates the intensive forage conditioning device adapted to a self-propelled cutterbar mower and mounted to a tractor unit 50. The width of the macerating roll components and the width of the 21335~4 -compression unit must be adapted to space limitations under the tractor unit.

Fig. 4 shows a top view of the pull-type disk mower of the machine of figure 1. The upper safety shields are not shown to illustrate the rotating components and the deflecting vertical plates 18 and 19.
Similar plates are also used in a pull-type cutterbar mower to control the width of the swath or the mat. On a self-propelled cutterbar mower, diffusion horizontal plates can be used to spread the macerated forage if the macerated roll width is relatively narrow.

Fig. 5 shows in greater detail the macerating rolls and the spring loading mechanism to adjust roll tension and maceration intensity. The lower macerating rolls 5 and 7 are fixed within the frame of the machine.
The upper rolls 4 and 6 are spring-loaded with a stop plate to prevent them from touching the lower rolls.
Four individual springs, two of which are illustrated as 20 and 21, are linked by wires at each end of each upper roll. They allow each upper roll to move upwards if excessive yield or a foreign object, such as a stone, enters the macerating unit. These springs reduce the wear of the macerating rolls. They can also be adjusted to influence the maceration intensity according to the thickness of forage going through the machine. Two pivoting shaft supports 22 and 23 allow to move the 21335~14 static position of the upper rolls and adjust the clearance between the macerating rolls (which is usually set at 1 mm).

Fig. 6 shows the compression system with the upper track 10 in a raised position above the lower track 9. Each track is made of plastic slats that are riveted to three roller chains, one at each end and one in the center of the slats. The roller chains are activated by sprockets 24 and 25 that are powered either by the tractive wheels on the ground or by other sources of power. The tracks move backward at a speed equal to the forward travel speed so that the relative speed is zero.
The macerated forage is therefore deposited evenly and delicately on the stubble. When a source of power other than tractive wheels is used to drive the tracks, an actuator must be used to adjust track speed automatically to forward travel speed.

Four pivoting arms, two of which are shown as 26 and 27, raise or lower the upper track 10 by the action of two hydraulic cylinders. When not in use, the upper track can be raised to release pressure. It can also be operated in a raised position if forage is to be macerated only and not compressed. The bottom track will continue to move and deposit the macerated forage delicately on the stubble.

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Fig. 7 shows the compression system with the upper track 10 in a lowered position, ready to compress macerated forage into a thin mat. A double idler spring-loaded sprocket 28 ensures that both tracks continue turning in the same direction at the interface whether the upper track is raised or lowered. In the lowered position, some juice may be expressed as the macerated forage is squeezed between tracks 9 and 10. The slats on the upper track 10 have cavities or furrows that fill up with forage juice when the two tracks squeeze the forage.
When the mat is released and deposited on the ground, the juice in the cavities or furrows reaches a point above the released mats and drips back on top of the mat.
Soluble nutrients contained in the juice are therefore recuperated on the upper surface of the mat as the water evaporates during natural field drying.

Figs. 8a and 8b show an example of a furrowed plastic slat lOa used on the upper track 10. A preferred slat is 2~" (63 mm) wide by 64" (1625 mm) long by ~" (13 mm) thick. Furrows are %" (6 mm) deep spaced 1" (25 mm) apart and at an angle of 68. These furrows cover about 44~ of total area, allowing for excess juice to be stored during compression. After compression, the juice drips back on the upper surface of the mat to retain soluble nutrients in the forage. Alternately, cavities can be machined in the plastic slats for the same purpose of temporarily storing excess juice, although furrows are easier to make.

Figs. 9a, 9b and 9c show the pressure plates 52, 54, 56 and the counterpressure plate 58 used to compress the tracks one against the other. The plates are made of steel protected against corrosion as forage juice is slightly acid. The surface of the plates must be as smooth as possible to minimize friction between the plates and the moving plastic slats. If the compression system is powered by ground driven wheels, the average pressure applicable is about 1 psi (8000 Pa) over a 10 ft2 (0.9 m2) area of plates at typical travel speeds of 4-6 mph (6-10 km/h) because of the limited amount of tractive power available. If the compression system is driven by the tractor engine (either hydraulically or mechanically), power is usually less of a constraint and a higher pressure may be applied to obtain thinner mats.

The number of macerating rolls can be less or greater than four although four rolls have been found satisfactory in providing a thorough maceration.
Similarly the macerated forage does not always need to be compressed in a thin mat. No compression may be useful when forage yield is heavy and compression would actually hamper water evaporation from the bottom layer of the forage. No compression may also be satisfactory when the macerated forage is not sensitive to leaf loss during 213~5~4 deposition on the stubble and during pickup of the dried swath. Under these circumstances, a simplified configuration as in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11 may be considered.

In Fig. 10, intensive conditioning is applied to a pull-type disk mower by using a single feeding roll 31 and three macerating rolls 32, 33 and 34. A
compression system would be optional (and is not included in the drawing). The heavily ribbed feeding roll 31 at the bottom is necessary to pull the freshly mowed forage upwards and to feed it through the macerating rolls.
When the mower-macerator is used without a compression system, the macerated forage is ejected against a curved plate 35 and drops onto the stubble as a fluffy swath.

In Fig. 11, a simplified configuration is adapted to a cutterbar self-propelled mower. The freshly mowed forage is fed by the conveying auger 36 directly to a set of three macerating rolls 37, 38 and 39. The nip point of the first two macerating rolls 37 and 38 is located at a position below the axial center of the auger so the mowed material flows easily downward and backward by gravity. A short flat horizontal plate may be useful between the auger and the first bottom macerating roll 37 to ensure proper feeding. The macerated forage is ejected at the back of the machine against a plate 40 that deflects and deposits a fluffy swath on the stubble.

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-A large scale prototype of the mower-superconditioner was built and field tested. It had a 9'3" (2.8 m) wide disk mower, four macerating rolls 7' (2.1 m) wide and 9" (0.23 m) diameter, and a pressing unit with tracks 5' (1.5 m) wide and a contact length between both tracks of 33" (0.84 m). The macerated forage was left on the stubble by one of three modes:
macerated-ejected as with the machine in Fig. 10, macerated-compressed-deposited as in Fig. 2 or macerated-deposited without compression as in Fig. 2 with thecompression device open and acting simply as a conveyor (Fig. 6).

Table 1 shows average field drying values of second cutting alfalfa with the large scale prototype compared to a commercial disk mower-conditioner with steel finger flail conditioning (called hereafter conventional conditioning). The initial moisture at mowing averaged 83%, the dry matter yield averaged 1.1 ton per acre (2.4 tonne per hectare) and mowing was assumed to occur at 9 a.m.. By the end of the first day of drying (8 p.m.), the macerated forage was ready to harvest as wilted silage (49 to 59% moisture) whereas the conventionally conditioned forage was too wet (66%
moisture) to put in a tower silo. By 4 p.m. on the second day, the macerated-deposited forage was practically ready to harvest as baled hay if barn ventilation or a moist hay preservative was used. Hay 213354~

, harvest would be at least one day sooner with mowing-maceration compared to conventional mowing-conditioning.

Table 1. Observed field drying with an intensive forage conditioning prototype compared to a conventional mower-conditioner. Values are averaged over four mowing dates.

Day Time Moisture Content (% wet basis) Conventional Macerated- Macerated- Macerated-conditioning ejected compressed- deposited deposited 1 9 a.m. 83.0 83.0 83.0 83.0 1 8 p.m. 66.2 58.7 52.1 48.5 2 4 p.m. 57.9 44.8 35.6 29.0 Conventional conditioning would not allow harvesting before the third day of drying with the risk of rain, microbial deterioration of the forage and the need to further manipulate the windrow to reach appropriate moisture.

Macerated forage also has a potentially higher feed value than conventionally conditioned forage. An original feeding trial was completed with macerated 21335~

-alfalfa hay and unmacerated alfalfa hay (conventionally conditioned with rubber rolls). Macerated hay was harvested with an experimental field machine of eight macerating rolls turning at a relatively low speed (670 and 1000 rpm for low-speed and high speed rolls respectively) without a compression unit. Twenty-four Holstein cows of second or greater parity were randomly assigned to receive one of two treatments: (1) a ration based on alfalfa hay harvested and baled traditionally (small rectangular bales) or (2) a ration based on superconditioned alfalfa hay baled traditionally. All cows received 10 kg per day of an 18% crude protein commercially produced concentrate and their respective hay ad libitum (without limitation on quantity) beginning their fourth week postpartum (after calving) until week 14 postpartum (10 weeks of early lactation). Cows fed conventional hay ate 14.03 kg/d and cows fed superconditioned hay ate 16.11 kg/d (a 15% increase).
Cows on the superconditioned hay ration produced 15% more milk (34.32 kg/d vs 29.93 kg/d). Milk fat content was the same for both milks (3.39%) but milk protein was higher from cows eating superconditioned hay (3.27% vs 3.11%)-Although the invention has been described above in relation to some specific forms, it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that it may be modified and refined in various ways. It is therefore wished to have 2133~4 -. - 18 -it understood that the present invention should not be limited in scope, except by the terms of the following claims.

Claims (13)

1. A machine for intense conditioning of forage into a thin mat and depositing the mat on a stubble, comprising:
a) means for cutting fresh forage off the ground to leave a stubble;
b) conveying means to move the cut forage;
c) a macerating unit composed of a series of grooved rolls rotating at different speeds to severely condition the conveyed cut forage;
d) a double track pressing unit to compress the macerated forage and deposit the resulting thin mat on the stubble.

2. The machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said grooved rolls have a width to uniformly macerate the freshly cut forage.

3. The machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said series of grooved rolls include from three to six rolls to ensure a thorough maceration of the cut forage.

4. The machine as defined in claim 3, wherein said series of grooved rolls include top grooved rolls and bottom grooved rolls, said top grooved rolls having a higher rotational speed than that of the bottom rolls in a ratio of 1.5 to 2.5 to ensure adequate maceration of forage fiber.

5. The machine as defined in claim 4, wherein said bottom grooved rolls are fixed and said top grooved rolls are connected to a spring mechanism to allow vertical movement of each top roll when a foreign object moves between the rolls.

6. The machine as defined in claim 3, wherein said grooved rolls are sequentially arranged and wherein the last two macerating rolls are staggered and serve as an upward conveyor of forage.

7. The machine as defined in claim 1, wherein the macerated forage is projected onto a moving horizontal track of said pressing unit where it is uniformly spread by normal movement of macerating rolls and the action of a deflector.

8. The machine as defined in claim 1, comprising a deflector at the exit of said macerating unit to reduce mat width.

9. The machine as defined in claim 1, wherein said pressing unit is composed of two moving tracks and of pressure plates acting on said tracks to spread the forage into a wide and thin mat for fast drying.

10. The machine as defined in claim 9, wherein the macerated forage is compressed between said two tracks and deposited continuously on the stubble to form a continuous thin mat.

11. The machine as defined in claim 9, wherein said moving tracks consist of an upper track and a lower track; said upper track includes slats having cavities or furrows to store forage juice being squeezed out of the forage during compression and to release the juice back on top of the mat as it is deposited on the stubble.

12. The machine as defined in claim 11, wherein said upper track is raisable above said lower track to avoid compression, whereby the macerated forage is deposited on the stubble without compression.

13. The machine as defined in claim 9, wherein said two tracks are removable thereby allowing macerated forage to be ejected directly onto the stubble in a fluffy swath.