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==Combine - Current Work -- Desired Features of the Microcombine==
==Research==
This category is for grain and bean farmers to comment on the features they would find useful in this machine.


I'm new and a little hesitant to make edits without knowing more of how things work, but...  
*'''Microcombine Function''' is to harvest various field crops. Harvesting consists of reaping, threshing, and winnowing.


I'm a very small-scale farmer who has been very frustrated by the lack of an appropriate scale combine.  
*'''Reaping''' is to cut crops (ex. ears of grain) for gathering, which simplifies subsequent harvesting stages.


Observations:
*'''Threshing''' is to separate stalks from the accumulated crop


1. The Allis-All Crop appears to be nearly ideal.  (http://www.yazallcrop.com/) I don't know what the status of the IP is for them, but it seems to me there is an opportunity there in modernizing the design in minor ways and making both new replicas and parts for the older machines which still exist.  <br>
*'''Winnowing''' is to separate inedible chaff from the edible part of the crop.
2. When raising small grains on a small scale, threshing is the chief bottleneck. I'm willing and able to cut enough wheat with a scythe to feed my extended family, but threshing is another question.  It is very laborious and time consuming.
<br>3. Some Amish farmers are said to use combines permanently parked as fixed threshing machines.
<br>4. What I'd like best would be a modular design where I could buy or build the thresher first, then the cleaner, then the cutter bar and pickup wheel in a trailer configuration, then a self-propulsion unit and bolt each one on as it is ready.  In my case I'd probably use it towed and never make that last step.
<br>5. Bear in mind that agriculture is similar in boot-strapping to this whole project and it is important to be able to get some functionality early (the thresher in this case) and then build on it as resources come on line.
<br>6. I'm not as familiar with the all crop as I'd like to be, but I believe it needs a special head to pick corn (maize).  I'd call corn picking a "nice to have" which if it could be integrated easily would be fine but otherwise, since it can be managed in so many other ways, should be a very low priorty.
<br>7. Since old grain and dirt is very damaging to the device, easy cleaning should be an important consideration.
<br>8. A design which leaves the straw windrowed for easy loading or baling is highly desirable.


==Combine - Current Work -- Survey of Existing Commercial Models==
===Theory===


Small Scale Grain Production Today -- this link is to an article at the website of a commercial dealer in imported European machinery. He has some pictures of stationary threshers that run $5K - $26K.  There is a survey of commercial small combines presently being manufactured in Europe and Japan. These small combines retail for $40K - $77k.
*'''Header Width''' - should be around 6-8 feet.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm


Here is a bean thresher retailing for $9500 without an engine, $11000 with an engine --
*'''Microcombine Weight''' - should be able to fit on a 10,000 lb deck-over trailer.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Bean%20Threshers%20with%20pictures%20oct%202003.pdf


Article on lower cost small grain harvesting. 
*'''Pickup Reel Speed''' - should be slightly faster than its speed if it were to be rotating along the surface of the farm plot at the microcombine's drive speed.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Options.pdf


Small scale bean harvesting
*'''Drive Speed''' - should be able to reach 2-3mph.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Bean%20Harvesting.pdf


Small scale threshing equipment.
===Relevant Links===
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Threshing%20Equipment.pdf


Grain harvesting alternative technology
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sbn2F3zhLHo Combine Full Process Internal Animation]
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Alternative%20Technology.pdf


http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm
[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVuBEO-863Q Zurn 150 Real-time Performance Video]


Small grain harvester
===Conceptual Notes===
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJBcwNMWvRE&feature=grec_index
http://www.croplandbiodiesel.com/images/clb-brochure-English-2010.pdf  (GO TO PAGE 5 FOR COMBINE SPECS)


ZURN Rocket:
*'''Bottom''' - contains 4 wheels with hydraulic drive and take-off.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVuBEO-863Q


Massey Ferguson 31:
*'''Front''' - contains the reaping system.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLkh8qoIrHo&feature=related


== Combine - Developments Needed==
*'''Middle''' - contains the threshing system.
=== Combine - General===
Wikipedia article on combines -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combine_harvester


1949 Popular Mechanics magazine with cutaway picture of a self-propelled combine of its era, plus pictures of two small miniature reapers at work on extension experimental farms.
*'''Rear''' - contains the winnowing system.
http://tinyurl.com/3k3func


1937 picture of a self-propelled cutting header, Australia
*'''Front Middle Rear''' - contains the chassis system.
http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displayimage.asp?iid=13350


More early designed, 1885 to 1930s, from Australia
*'''Top Front''' - contains the operator system.
http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displaysubtheme.asp?stid=4&tid=2


Pictures of threshers, northern Great Plains of the US, 1890s through 1940s.
*'''Top Middle''' - contains a part of the hydraulic system, electric system, and air system.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award97/ndfahtml/ngpSubjects21.html


Article about the development of the McCormick reaper.
*'''Top Rear''' - contains the collecting system.
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/pdf/wmh_spring01_grady.pdf


The Rodale thresher (stationary)
*'''Other Sections''' - contain the remainder of the microcombine.
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_OTHER/SMALL/Rodale%20grain%20thresher%20-%201977.pdf


Collection of third world implements, document #37 is a pedal powered thresher
==Development==
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_VE/BIG/06-232.pdf


1979 book on the design and building of a pedal thresher. Includes 21 drawings.
===Overview===
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/CD3WD/APPRTECH/THRESHER/EN/INDEX.HTM


.
*'''Reaping System''' - pulls crops toward microcombine and cuts the crops near the ground as they are moved further in and eventually fed into the threshing system.


=== Combine - Specific===
*'''Threshing System''' - rolls crops through "concaves" during which threshing drums beat the crop so that the non-stalk part (ex. grain) falls through the concave's openings to the bottom. The stalk is moved further by "walkers" to the spreader while the non-stalk crop is moved further by an oscillating screen to the winnowing system.
==== Combine - Background Debriefing====
==== Combine - Information Work====
==== Combine - Hardware Work====
==== Combine - Articles====


===== Micro Combines=====
*'''Winnowing System''' - moves the non-stalk crop part into "sieves" that oscillate and are subjected to an air blower directed upwards and to the rear of the microcombine. Using the proper predetermined blower setting, the lighter inedible chaff is separated from the heavier edible part of the crop. The edible crop is moved by augurs to the storage system while the chaff is blown outside behind the combine.
For small scale agriculture, harvesting can be done with micro combines. Micro combines can be broken down into two categories: towed and self propelled. Towed combines are hard to find due to them being out of production since the ‘60s in the U.S. However, demand for them is growing with small scale farmers. The old Allis Chalmers model 60 combines were widely used in America as one of the main combines used for grain harvesting. They can be pulled behind a tractor, and are PTO driven. Some companies have started buying these combines, refurbishing them, and reselling them to farmers. Self propelled combines are the types currently being developed. Operators of these machines either ride them or must walk behind them as they harvest. These self propelled units are beginning to see more use in rice harvesting in Asian countries. The combines in the following list are all self propelled with the exception of the Shenmao Harvester, which is hand held.


Briggs & Stratton Model
*'''Collecting System''' - stores the edible crop; when required, an augur directs the crop through the unloader tube to an external container outside the microcombine.
Picture taken from: http://www.hcmuaf.edu.vn/ctt/softs/pkh/tailieu/tapchi_khkt/2004/TC%20-%204%20-%2004/PHHien.pdf
Working width: 1.2 m
Working Speed: 1.5 – 2.1 km/hr
Idle travel speed: 2.0 – 5.0 km/hr
Field capacity: 1 ha/day
Cutting height: 0.1 – 0.4 m
Combined losses: <2.0 %
Engine power: 16 Hp
Fuel consumption: 15 L/ha
Labor requirement: 5 workers
Overall dimensions: 3.5m X 1.5m X 1.5m
Net weight: 600 kg


Mitsubishi 502 Rice Harvester
*'''Air System''' - consists of the air pump and tubes that channel high speed air into the winnowing system.
Pictures taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf


Head width: 25”
*'''Hydraulic System''' - provides controllable hydraulic power to various hydraulic actuators and motors used in the microcombine.
Field capacity: 1 acre/9 hrs
Unit cost: $25,000
Wheel type: Crawler tracks


Cicoria Combine
*'''Electronic System''' - includes the electronics used for controlling and monitoring the microcombine.
Picture taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/pictures/ss11.htm


Head width: 78”
*'''Chassis System''' - includes rigid frames and durable covers on which the other systems are mounted and protected, respectively.
Overall dimensions: 192” X 92”
Unit weight: 5,390 lbs
Head type: General crop header with axial threshing drum
Engine power: 38 Hp


Shenmao Harvester
*'''Operator System''' - includes the platform on which the operator sits and controls the microcombine.
Picture taken from: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html


Engine size: 43cc 2-stroke
====Reaping System====
Unit weight: 7.5 kg
No other information could be found, so it is unclear how well it actually works


Agriculture in developing countries is largely done on many small scale plots, and there is a need for small scale harvesters to help increase crop production. There are already several companies producing micro combines and harvesters, but there is still a need for cheaper and more efficient machines. Continued development of micro combines will help make small scale farmers better able to make a living, and make their lives easier.
=====Header=====
- consists of the frame into which field crops are first directed by the microcombine.


Works Cited
[[File: headerexample.jpg|thumb|300px|Header Example]]


Canales, E. 1999. Small Scale Grain Production Today. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm. Accessed 23 January 2010.
*'''Header Side''' - the side plates of the header that provide a passageway for crops to enter the microcombine


Hien, P. H., and L. Van Ban. 2004, The Mini Combine-Harvester: Research Results and a Related Automation Concept. Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology. 4: 95-100.
*'''Header Bottom''' - The bottom plate of the header that provides a surface on which crops on slide into microcombine


Micro Grain Combine. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at:
*'''Header Rear''' - the rear plates of the header that contain the crop.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf . Accessed 25 March 2010.


Zhejiang Shenmao Appliance Co., Ltd. Available at: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html . Accessed 25 March 2010.
*'''Header Angles''' - consist of the metal angles that hold together the other header components. The connections include between the header sides and header bottom, header rear and the header bottom, the header sides and the header rear, and the header rear to the header X


===== THE MINI COMBINE-HARVESTER: RESEARCH RESULTS AND A RELATED AUTOMATION CONCEPT=====  
=====Pickup Reel=====
- rotates to move crops into header while the cutting bar cuts the crops


By Phan Hieu Hien (*), Le Van Ban (**)
*'''Pickup Reel''' - is the actual rotating component that is directly mounted to the pickup reel hydraulic motor on one side and to a ball bearing on the other side
(*) Center for Agricultural Energy and Machinery
Nong Lam University, Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
E-mail: phhien@hcm.vnn.vn
(**) Faculty of Engineering and Technology
Nong Lam University, Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam


*'''Pickup Reel Mount''' - is the frame component that fastens onto the pickup reel arms and allows mounting of the hydraulic motor on one side and a ball bearing on the other.


ABSTRACT
*'''Pickup Reel Arms''' - are the frame components that hold the fulcrum of the pickup reel in place and are mounted to the header and hydraulic cylinders as a rotary joints. This can be a pair of steel square tubes.


In Viet Nam, rice harvesting is a rising problem
=====Cutting Bar=====
due to shortage of manual labor during harvest.
- cuts crops near the ground to allow the ground-separated crops to be easily moved further into microcombine; also known as "mowing fingers", and is mounted on the header. The OSE [[Hay Cutter]] can be used as the microcombine's cutting bar.
Attempts to mechanize this operation using combine
harvesters encountered problems with soft soils,
frequent breakdowns, and lodged crops. Conventional
combine models weighs at least 1.2 tons and such
heavy units could not manage soft soils or “seemingly
dry” soils in the Mekong Delta.  


A Chinese-originated lightweight mini-combine,
*'''Cutting Bar Frame''' - consists of a horizontally mounted frame on which cutting blades are fastened. The cutting bar itself is mounted onto the header bottom plate.
improved in several components by the Philippine Rice
Research Institute, was recently selected by the Nong-
Lam University Research Team on Combine, who
added and compared different wheel designs for wet
soft soils. In 2004, test results in several Provinces in
Viet Nam showed the performance of this model at
one ha per day capacity, cutting width is 1.2m, and
total grain losses is less than 2%. The combine
harvesting cost is 1/2 - 2/3 that of the current practice
of manual cutting and mechanical threshing. The light
weight of the machine (570 kG) proved to be an
absolute advantage in soft soils typical of the Mekong
Delta rice fields. Very soft soils leading to bogging
down could easily be overcome within minutes by
seven people. No other combine so far could allow
such troubleshooting. Thus, the design was
transferred to VINAPPRO, a manufacturer of engine
and machinery, which planned to manufacture 20 units
for the Spring harvest of 2005.  


The resulted advantages pointed to a new
*'''Cutting Bar Blades''' - are the sharp metal cutting components, some of which are stationary and some which are reciprocated by the cutting bar actuator. The cutting blades are fastened to the cutting bar.
automation concept in combine operation: The
lightweight combine could be made even lighter in
operation. If the pooled operating weight of the combine
could be further reduced, then more trafficability and  
mobility on very soft soils could be realized. This can
be simply done by removing about 120 kG of the two
operators (driver and bagger) from the combine, and
incorporating a device to conctrol the steering of the  
machine from a short distane. Likewise, an automatic
bagging device replacing the manual bagger (who
used to sit on the machine) would reduce the total
weight. Together, 17% of weight in combine operation
could be reduced. Such scenario is not too
complicated in terms of automation circuit, and a plan
is underway to verify the concept.  


INTRODUCTION
=====Side Knives=====
- are vertically mounted oscillating cutters that cut at the front sides of the header. These knives are necessary to prevent uprooting crops that get reeled into the microcombine from the sides, as well as facilitating the harvesting of oilseed rape and beans.


Rice harvesting in the Mekong Delta of Viet
*'''Side Knives Frame''' - consist of a vertically positioned frame fastened to the side knives and reciprocated by the side knives actuator. The side knife bar itself is mounted onto the header side plates.
Nam is still mostly done manually and thus is a rising
problem due to shortage of labor during harvest. Over
the past 20 years, among efforts to mechanize rice
harvesting in this region, combines have been
attempted by different government agencies as well
as the private sector, but failed to be accepted by
farmers.  


This paper describes the adaptation work on a mini-
*'''Side Knives Blades''' - are the sharp metal components fastened to the side knife bar.
combine, including the testing of different versions, design
and selection of wheel systems for wet soils, and initial
promotional work in Southern Viet Nam; the information
draws heavily on an earlier publication (Tran Van Khanh
et.al. 2004). The second part of the paper presents a new
automation concept in combine operation by eliminating
the driver’s weight from the combine operation.  


Review of literature: problems with combines
=====Header Augur=====
- moves reaped crops into feeder drum. This is mounted inside the header directly to the header augur hydraulic motor on one side and a ball bearing on the other side.


Thailand maybe the only country in South East
*'''Header Augur''' - is the metal component that rotates, contacts, and moves the crop.
Asia with some success in adapting the combine.
There are about 8000 units of Western-style Thai-made
combine (with cutting width 2- 3m) in current use. In
other countries including Viet Nam, introduction of
such large combines have encountered three major
problems:


Soft soils
*'''Header Augur Mount''' - is the metal component that lies between the header augur and the header augur hydraulic motor


Most combine weights 1.2 – 2 tons (excluding
=====Feeder Drum=====
imported models of 4 – 11 tons). Such heavy machines
- consists of a metal drum that contacts and moves the crop from the rear or the header into the threshing system. The feeder drum is mounted directly to the feeder drum hydraulic motor on one side and to a ball bearing on the other side.
easily bog down in soft soils. Even during the dry-
season harvest, a seemingly dry field with a localized
soft spot can stop a heavy combine and make it
helpless in areas without access road for the rescue
vehicle. This is the main reason that have failed many
researchers and engineers in the area. One researcher
even concluded that there is no “dry soil” in the
Mekong Delta as far as the combine is concerned.
Many people now maitain that, for a large combine-
harvester to work, the field must be well irrigated and  
drained, and should be large enough for the machine
to easily maneuver. This sounds logical, except that
the investment to implement such requirement for
combine operation is too big to be drawn from the


Nong Lam University Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004
*'''Feeder Drum''' - is the actual metal drum that rotates, contacts, and moves the crop.


�
*'''Feeder Drum Mount''' - is the metal component that lies between the feeder drum and the feeder drum hydraulic motor.
SCIENCE RESEARCH


agriculture itself, a condition for a sustainable progress
====Threshing System====
of a developing country. A more feasible option is to
develop a light-weight mini-combine that local
operators can easily pull out of soft sink spots if a
bogged-down situation occurs.


Frequent break-downs
=====Concave=====


Due to the single-unit fabrication with limited
*'''Concave''' - concave-shaped frame on which the reaped crop is threshed; the non-stalk crop part drops to the screen on the lower level while the stalk is moved further to the walkers.
resources, sometimes by village mechanics, combines
often fail under operation. Each break-down cost hours
or days to repair; one week’s time for repair could result
in significant lost income during the harvest season and
unreliability discouraged users to adopt such new
technology. This problem can be addressed through
improved manufacturing and continuous design
improvement with due consideration to added costs. A
workable initial design, a competent local manufacturer,
close monitoring of field operation, and after-sales service
support will help realize successful adoption of this new
technology.  


Lodged crops
[[File: universalconcave.jpg|thumb|300px|Universal Concave Example]]


Rice lodging is often caused by extreme
*'''Concave Mount''' - metal component that fastens to the universal concave and the threshing frame
climatic conditions such as typhoons or floods but
this is also related to the works of plant breeders and
agronomists. To date, attempts to develop a combine
that can harvest severely lodged crops have been
unsuccessful. Plant breeders and agronomists need
to improve lodging resistance of rice varieties.
However, a partially-lodged field area, say a 10%, still
means that 90% of the field is still readily available
for combine harvesting, especially if the combine is
small enough to circumvent around more severely
lodged spots that can be managed through manual
harvesting.


Thus, a suitable combine for local Viet Namese
=====Threshing Drum=====
conditions can be summarized into two basic
requirements: light weight and reliability.


MATERIALS AND METHODS
*'''Threshing Drum''' - rotates and threshes the reaped crop against the universal concave to separate the stalk and the non-stalk parts of the crop.


Design adaptation
*'''Threshing Drum Mount''' - metal component that fastens to the threshing frame and allows direct mounting of the threshing drum to the threshing drum hydraulic motor.


Different surveys by the NLU Center for
=====Walker=====
Agricultural Energy and Machinery (CAEM) resulted
in a considerable database, including hundreds of
pictures. In 2003, the Philippine Rice Research
Institute (PhilRice) shared a design of a light-weight
mini-combine (570 kG), to continue a long tradition of
cooperation between NLU and the Institute in the area
of Agricultural Engineering. The project has been
sponsored by Briggs & Stratton Corporation, a well-
known gasoline manufacturer.


The first design of the mini-combine originated
[[File: walkerexample.jpg|thumb|300px|Walker Example]]
in China. In 2003, PhilRice re-designed and improved
key functions adding significant improvements to the
prototypes, which were then transferred to NLU for
testing in Viet Nam. The new design is a typical
Western-type combine, with a reel wheel at the top of
a reciprocating cutting blades and a feeding crop auger
at the back of the cutter to feed a conveyor that brings
the cut plants towards an axial-flow thresher. The
cleaning of paddy is done beneath the thresher
concave by an oscillating screen and a fan, similar to
the IRRI axial-flow threshers, before the paddy grain
is conveyed upwards for bagging. The combine is
powered by a 16-HP B&S gasoline engine (weighing
40 kG), which is commonly used for axial-flow
threshers in the Philippines.  


In Viet Nam, design adaptation by the NLU
*'''Walker''' - is a near-horizontally mounted oscillating panel that moves the stalk out of the microcombine and has openings for further stalk and non-stalk separation. These are fastened to the walker mounts
included: a) identifying areas for strengthening and  
optimizing design performance and reliability; and b)
comparing different wheel designs for wet soft soils.  
The NLU believes problems of combine harvesting in
Viet Nam are “of the earth, and not of the air”, that is
to say, they are more concerned on soil and wheel
interactions rather than the working principles and
components which are already common knowledge.


*'''Walker Mounts''' - are a pair of metal components that attach and hold the sides of the walker. The walker mounts are then attached via oscillating bar to the walker hydraulic motor.


a) b)
*'''Walker Crankshaft''' - mounts to the walker mounts and allows rotary motion to oscillate the walkers.


Figure 1. a) The -mini-combine prototype from PhilRice.
[[File: walkercrankshaft.jpg|thumb|150px|Walker Crankshaft Example]]
b) Mini-combines in DongThap; both units are made by Vinappro.  


====Winnowing System====


Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004 Nong Lam University
=====Sieve=====


�
*'''Sieve''' - are oscillating rectangular metal trays with holes; the non-stalk part of the crop is blown between sieves; the inedible chaff blows outside behind the microcombine while the edible crop falls through the holes of multiple sieves to be transferred to the collection tank. In general, only two sieves are necessary; a round hole sieve on the lower level, and a demello (spellcheck) sieve on the upper level.
SCIENCE RESEARCH


After evaluation and further “fine-tuning” of the
prototype, the design was transferred to the Viet Nam
Agricultural Power Company (VINAPPRO), a leading
manufacturer of diesel engines and other machinery
who then fabricated two units for local field testing
and evaluation.


Testing
[[File: sieve.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Round Hole Sieve Example]]


The mini-combines (one from PhilRice and two
from Vinappro) have been tested in five locations in
the Mekong Delta and Eastern Provinces from March
to October 2004, including exploratory test,
performance tests in semi-wet and wet conditions,
durability test.


Seven different traction types and variations
*'''Sieve Frame''' - consists of the frame components that hold the sieves in place; the sieve frame also allows easy removal of the sieves during microcombine cleaning and maintenance.
were tested for trafficability, namely: 1) rubber tyres,
2)dual rubber tyres, 3)steel cage wheel, 4)original
pyramid-shaped lug wheel with 10 lugs/wheel,
5)pyramid-shaped lug wheel with12 lugs/wheel, 6)wider
pyramid-shaped lug wheel with 12 lugs/wheel, and  
7)retractable lugs mounted to rubber tyre.  


Standard test instruments, such as stop watch,
*'''Sieve Oscillating Bar''' mounts to the frame holding the sieve and allows rotary motion to oscillate the sieves.
tachometer, scales and a penetrometer (ASAE, 1994)
to measure the hardness of soil, were used in the  
tests.  


Automation concept
====Collecting System====


The positive test results prompted to a new
=====Collecting Tank=====
automation concept in combine operation: The
- stores the edible crop.
lightweigt combine could be made even lighter in
operation. If the pooled operating weight of the combine
could be further reduced, then more trafficability and
mobility on very soft soils could be realized. This can
be simply done by removing about 120 kG of the two


operators (driver and bagger) from the combine, and
*'''Collecting Tank Sides''' - make up the 4 sides of the collecting tank in the upright position. One collecting tank side has two holes for connections to the air system. Another collecting tank side has a hole for connection to the unloader tube.
incorporating a device to conctrol the steering of the  
machine from a short distane. Likewise, an automatic
bagging device replacing the manual bagger (who
used to sit on the machine) would reduce the total
weight. Together, 17% of weight in combine operation
could be reduced. Thus, work efforts on developing
device to realize this automation concept are under
way, with some initial results.  


RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
*'''Collecting Tank Bottom'''


Field performance
*'''Collecting Tank Lid'''


The field tests were conducted under different
*'''Collecting Tank Quick-locks'''
soil and crop conditions. The performance and
specifications of the combine are summarized in Table


1. Average harvest was one hectare per day. The total
*'''Collecting Tank Hinges'''
losses ranged at 1.0 – 1.4 per cent, and never
exceeded 2 per cent. (Table 1)
Trafficability


Our tests indicate that, on dry soils, the rubber
*'''Collecting Tank Handle'''
tyre is most suitable in terms of both traction and
vibration of the machine. However, in soft and wet soils,
the rubber tyres sank and bogged down the combine.
Two types of wheels were found to be suitable:


1) The pyramid-shaped lug wheels could
=====Unloader=====
manage soft soils with penetration resistance of more
than 0.4 MPa.


2) The retractable lugs mounted to rubber
*'''Unloader Tube''' - consists of metal tube through which the edible crop can be transferred from the microcombine to an external container
tyre proved to be most useful in soft soil. The rubber
tyres provide floatation, while the lugs provide both
traction and flotation.


Table 1. Mini- combine performance and specifications (Tran Van Khanh et.al. 2004)
*'''Unloader Tube Cap''' - is a round component with a sizeable slit for crop to be ejected and a fulcrum for one end of the augur to be mounted. The unloader tube cap itself mounts to the unloader tube.


Working width: 1.2 m maxmum
*'''Unloader Augur''' - is the rotating component that moves crop through the unloader tube.
Working speed: 1.5 – 2.1 km/hr
Idle travel speed: 2.0 – 5.0 km/hr
Working time utilization efficiency: 70 – 80 %
Field capacity: 1 ha /day (0.9 – 1.3)
Cutting height: Adjustable 0.1 – 0.4 m
Combined losses (shattering,
unthreshed and separating): < 2.0 %
Power requirement: 16-HP B&S gasoline engine
Fuel consumption: 15 Liter/ ha
Labor requirement: 5: one driver, one bagger, and three haulers of grain
bags to levees.
Traction: Semi-dry soil:
Soft, wet soil:
Rubber tyres 6.00 x 12
Pyramid-shaped lug wheel, or
Retractable lugs + rubber tyre
Overall dimensions (L x W x H): 3.5 m * 1.5 m * 1.5m
Net weight: 570 kg


Nong Lam University Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004
*'''Unloader Plate Attachment''' - is a rectangular metal plate with a hole that mounts onto the collection tank and welds to the unloader tube attachment.


�
*'''Unloader Tube Attachment''' - is a metal tube with an angled cut that welds onto the unloader plate attachment and connects to the unloader tube.
SCIENCE RESEARCH


On soft soils, the light weight of the combine
*'''Unloader Hinge''' - is the hinge between the unloader tube and the unloader tube attachment that allows bending of the unloader into the microcombine when not required.
proved to be an absolute advantage. If the machine
was about to sink, the bag laborer in the rear seat
could dismount temporarily to reduce machine weight,
thus allowing the mini-combine to pass through soft
spots while maintaining operation. This suggests that
any additional weight (i.e. from alternative heavy diesel
engines) would pose major problems on soft soils and
also re-confirms why one-ton-plus combines could not  
work so far.  


During the test on extreme soft soils leading to
*'''Unloader Quick-lock''' - is the connection mechanism between the unloader tube and the unloader tube attachment that allows rapid disconnection so that the unloader bending process takes less time.
occasional bogging down, the problem was overcome
within minutes by eight people, who simply pulled
back the combine out of the troubled spot.  


Reliability
=====Collector=====


The mini-combine have been operated on 12
*'''Collector Plate Attachment''' - is a rectangular metal plate with a hole that mounts onto the collection tank and welds to the collector tube attachment.
hectares to date. Breakdowns and troubles occurred,
such as shear of cotter pin of the steering wheel, failure
of the rear U-fork..., but these were considered minor
and were right away fixed in the field or by small village
mechanics.  


Cost comparison to current harvesting methods
*'''Collector Tube Attachment''' - is a metal tube with an angled cut that welds onto the collector plate attachment and connects to two air tubes. One air tube connects to the end of the winnowing system (where the edible crop accumulates); the other air tube connects to the intake of the air turbine (so as to pull the edible crop into the collection tank by partial vacuum).


Although the actual unit cost from the
====Air System====
production line is not yet available, the estimated sale
price is 41.000.000 VND (H” US$2600). Based on
test data and assumptions usually made for cost
calculations, the harvesting cost for 1 hectare using
this combine is 361 000 VND or about US$23, of which
35% are for depreciation-interest-repair, 34% are for
gasoline, and 31% are for labor. How is this cost
compared to current harvesting methods ?


The most practiced harvesting method in the
*'''Air Pump''' - blows air for separation of the lighter inedible chaff from the heavier edible crop part.
Mekong Delta of Viet Nam is manual havesting +
mechanical threshing. Depending on the province, rice
yield, and cropping season, the total cost in 2003 of
existing methods ranged from 700 000 to 900 000 VND
per hectare, with 60% representing harvesting costs
and 40% for threshing costs.  


Thus a total cost of 361 000 VND/ha with the
*'''Air Tubes''' - channels the flow of high-speed air into the winnowing system
mini-combine represents a cost reduction of 48 to 60
percent, compared to current practices. This is
significant, considering that this saving is equivalent
to about 15% of the profit from a typical hectare of
rice.


Moreover, labor cost decreases appreciably
*'''Air Filter''' - prevents particulates from entering the air pump.
with use of the combine. The current harvesting and
threshing system normally requires dozens of laborers
and 150 man-hours per hectare, which is now reduced
to five people and 40 man-hours per hectare with the  
combine.  


In summary, Test results showed both the
====Hydraulic System====
technical and economic feasibility of the mini-combine
under Vietnamese conditions. The outstanding
advantage of this combine lies in its light weight, which
enables the trafficability in typical soft soils of the
Mekong Delta.


A CONCEPT IN COMBINE AUTOMATION
*'''Pickup Reel Cylinder''' - adjusts the height of the pickup reel


The above resulted advantages pointed to a
*'''Pickup Reel Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates pickup reel
new automation concept in combine operation: The
lightweigt combine could be made even lighter in
operation. If the pooled operating weight of the
combine could be further reduced, then more
trafficability and mobility on very soft soils could
be realized. The idea stemmed from our
observations in the field tests. In some very soft
soils wherein the combine was about to bog down,
the bagger-laboror jumped out of his seat and
walked along, then the trafficability improved, and
the combine surpass the obstacled soft soil. In
worse situation, the driver had to jump down too
and steer the combine walking alongside until better,
harder soil was present.


The implication is that even 120 kG of the
*'''Header Hydraulic Cylinder''' - adjusts the height of the header
two operators, or even about 60 kG of the bagger is
accountable for the trafficability of the combine.
Thus, if we remove these operators’ weight from
the combine, and incorporate a device to conctrol
the steering of the machine from a short distane,
then the combine mobility would be improved.
Likewise, an automatic bagging device replacing
the manual bagger would reduce the total weight.
Together, 17% of weight in combine operation could
be reduced. Such scenario is not too complicated
in terms of automation circuit. The following
schematic diagram and description serve to
illustrate the concept.


Control objectives
*'''Header Augur Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates header augur


The objectives to control the combine operation
*'''Feeder Drum Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates feeder drum
are as follow:


-Control of the reel height
*'''Threshing Drum Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates threshing drum


-Control of the cutter bar height
*'''Walker Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates walker oscillating bar


-Control of the engine speed
*'''Sieve Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates sieve oscillating bar


-Control of the forward speed (high or low)
*'''Unloader Augur Hydraulic Motor''' - rotates unloader augur


-Control of the turning (left or right)
*'''Drive Hydraulic Motors''' - move the wheels of the microcombine with a tank-style steering circuit.


-Control of the stopping (open or close)
====Electronic System====


Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004 Nong Lam University
*'''Cutting Bar Actuator''' - is an electrically powered driver arm that reciprocates the cutting bar.


�
*'''Side Knives Actuator''' is an electrically powered driver arm that reciprocates the side knife bar.
SCIENCE RESEARCH


A plan is underway to verify
====Chassis System====
the concept and operation.


Tieán
=====Chassis Angles=====
(Forward)
Reõ phaûi
(Turn right)
Reõ traùi
(Turn left)
luøi
(Reverse)
Thaáp (Low)
Cao (High)
Toác ñoä
ñoäng cô
(Engine
speed )
Phanh
(Brake)
Ñoùng
(Close)
(Gear box)
Soá
(1)
(2) (4)
(3)
Reel
Air Cylinder
Cutter bar
Air cylinder
Figure 2. Block schematic diagram of remote control for mini combine harvester


Selected method for control system
*'''Front Vertical Angles''' - consist of long metal angles positioned vertically that are fastened to the header near the front of the microcombine


A total of 10 actuators would be needed.
*'''Front Horizontal Angles'''
Three different methods were evaluated: by high
pressure air, by servo-motors, and by hydraulic
system. Considering the cost, ease of installation
and operation, and reliability, the air pressure
system was selected. The control is by the remote
cable, with the operator walking along or at a
distance with the combine; the power source is a
DC 12 volt system. The drawback is a compressor
is needed, and the advantages are ease of control,
component parts are easily available.


The block schematic diagram of remote control
*'''Rear Vertical Angles''' - consist of long metal angles positioned vertically that are connected to the walker mounts and the sieve mounts
for mini-combine is shown in Figure 2.


CONCLUSION
*'''Rear Horizontal Angles'''


A newly designed mini-combine has been
*'''Top Side Horizontal Angles'''
successfully adapted in Viet Nam. Data for its
technical and economic performance seems to be
favorable for local acceptance of this new technology.
The outstanding feature of this combine is its very
light weight, which enables its mobility on soft soils
and difficult access roads, a fact rarely achieved by
other hevier combines. A campaign is underway to
commercialize this mini-combine in Viet Nam for the


winter-spring harvest of 2005. The first batch of 20
*'''Bottom Side Horizontal Angles'''
combines will be launched to farmer-users at this time.


Continuing in the direction of making the
====Operator System====
combine as light as possible to keep the maximum
mobility, a new design concept in combine automation
has been put forward with the aim of removing the
operators’ weight during operation of the combine.
Different scenarios with different alternative setup are
planned to be evaluated to verify the concept.


ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
*'''Operator Platform''' is simply the surface upon which the operator is located while controlling the microcombine. The operator platform can be a simple metal plate with holes cutouts as necessary for special mounting purposes.


The support for the design, testing, and
*'''Seat''' - simply is the seat in which the operator can sit. The seat is mounted to the operator platform.
promotion in various ways from Briggs&Stratton Inc
(Wisconsin), and from VINAPPRO Company (Dong-
Nai) is gratefully acknowledged. PhilRice is  
acknowledged for sharing the initial design of the mini-
combine.  


REFERENCES
===Design===


ASAE. 1995. ASAE Standards 1994. American Society
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Requirements|Requirements]]
of Agricultural Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan, U.S.A.
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Speed|Speed]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Throughput|Throughput]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Weight|Weight]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Size Constraints|Size Constraints]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Feed stock|Feed stock]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Design Description|Design Description]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Calculations - energy, efficiency|Calculations]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Drawings and Diagrams|Drawings and Diagrams]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Concept and Alternatives|Concept and Alternatives]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Full Design Views|Full Design Views]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Cut-away Views|Cut-away Views]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Exploded Parts View|Exploded Parts View]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/3D Renders|3D Renders]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Decisions|Decisions]]
*[[GVCSTool/Research Development/Project Team|Project Team]]


BARDAIE M.Z. 1980. Economic farm size for rice
combine harvester in Malaysia. Agricultural
Mechanization in Asia, Autumn 1980 pp.49- 52.


Nong Lam University Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004


�
===Industry Standards===
SCIENCE RESEARCH


BAUTISTA, E.U. and A. SCHMIDLEY. 2004. PhilRice-
{| cellpadding="6" cellspacing="2" border="1" align="center"
B&S Collaboration: Building partnerships across Asia.
|-align="center"
Paper presented at the Philippine Rice R&D Conference,
! '''Industry Standard'''
PhilRice, Maligaya, Munoz, Nueva Ecija. 114-16 April
! '''GVCSTool'''


BENSON E.R., J.F. REID, Q. ZHANG. 2003. Machine
|}
vision-based guidance system for an agricultural small
grain harvester. Transactions ASAE Vol.46 (4) 12551264.


===Funding===


PHAN HIEU HIEN. 1991. Development of the axial-
{{wanted|List of expenses for prototyping and documenting GVCSTool}}
flow thresher in Southern Vietnam. Agricultural
Mechanization in Asia J. Vol.22 No.4 pp.42-46.


SUZUKI M. 1980. Performance of rice combine
===Peer Reviews===
harvesters as evaluated by the national test in Japan.
Japan Agricultural Research Quarterly Vol.14 No.1
pp.20-23.


TRAN VAN KHANH, PHAN H. HIEN, E. BAUTISTA,
{{wanted|Peer reviews from the scientific community regarding the R&D of GVCSTool}}


A. SCHMIDLEY, K.LEE, MAI D. BAN. 2004. Testing
===Experiments and Prototypes===
and promotion of a rice mini-combine in Viet Nam.
Proceedings of the Mekong Rice Conference,
organized in HoChiMinh City, Viet Nam, 15- 17
October 2004.
Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, No 4/2004 Nong Lam University


===== Development of rice combines in Viet Nam=====
{{wanted|Empirical data on performance}}
Phan Hieu Hien, Tran Van Khanh# # , Graeme R. Quick ***


E-mail: phhien@hcm.vnn.vn
====Experimental Results====


This is not a peer-reviewed article.
Electronic-only Proceedings of the International Conference on Crop Harvesting
and Processing, 11-14 February 2007 (Louisville, Kentucky USA)
Publication Date, 11 February 2007.
ASABE Publication Number 701P0307e


ABSTRACT
====Prototype Notes, Observations, etc.====


Rice combine development in Viet Nam, especially in the Mekong Delta in the South, has been a
slow process. Mechanized farm equipment is accepted only if it matches local agricultural
conditions technically and economically. Earlier attempts at bringing in or developing combines
by Central research institutes, Provincial factories, and farmer-mechanics were unsuccessful at
actual scale operation. Three main problems were encountered over the past 20 years:


(1) Machines working in soft paddy fields bog down, especially heavy Western-style combines.
===Failure Mode Analysis===
(2) Reliability at lowest cost is critical; delays caused by machine breakdowns result in significant
lost income during the harvest, and unreliability discourages users from adopting new technology.
(3) Harvesting severely lodged rice crops is challenging, not so much as an engineering problem
as it is a matter of plant breeding and varietal selection to improve lodging resistance.
Nevertheless there has been intensive development in the past 5 years by as many as 15 small-
scale Vietnamese manufacturers. One mini-combine manufacturers has lately sold 90 units to
private farmers across the country. In 2006 a combine contest was organized by the Vietnamese
National Testing Agency. Three designs were given “accredited recognition awards”, meaning
recognition for future promotion through the governmental Extension system. The recent
development of mini-combines follows.


Keywords: Combine, Rice Harvesting, Mechanization


INTRODUCTION
===Testing Results===


Viet Nam is an agricultural country with 82 millions (M) inhabitants in 2005, of which 61 M are
in rural households. Rice is the most important crop, cultivated on 80 % of the total farm area,
and rice accounts for 85 % of the country’s food grain output. In 2003 , Viet Nam produced 35
M ton of paddy on 4.2 M ha of rice land. This total production was four times more than that of
1976. Viet Nam is the world’s third largest rice exporter. For the past 10 years, the export of rice
has been 3 – 4 M tonnes a year.


The Mekong Delta in Southern Viet Nam , with 2.7 M ha of rice land, is producing about 50 %
===Recommendations for Improvement===
of Viet Nam total rice output. With only 17 % of the total population, this region has accounted
for more than 90 % of Vietnamese rice export in the past decade. Average farm size is about 1


#
=Research=
Paper for presentation at the International Conference on Crop Harvesting and Processing,
February 11-14 2007, Louisville, Kentucky.


# # Lecturers, Nong-Lam University (formerly: University of Agriculture and Forestry), HoChi-
==Combine - Current Work -- Desired Features of the Microcombine==
Minh City, Viet Nam,
This category is for grain and bean farmers to comment on the features they would find useful in this machine.


*** Consulting Engineer (Queensland, Australia) and Former Head, IRRI Agricultural
Observations:
Engineering, Philippines.


�
*Allis-All Crop appears to be nearly ideal (http://www.yazallcrop.com/).  
ha per household, although in some newly-reclaimed districts, 3 - 10 ha per household is not
uncommon.  


Rice harvesting in the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam is still mostly done manually, but threshing  
*When raising small grains on a small scale, threshing is the chief bottleneck. I'm willing and able to cut enough wheat with a scythe to feed my extended family, but threshing is another question.  It is very laborious and time consuming.
was completely mechanized. Over the past 20 years, effort to introduce rice harvest equipment
in this region have been attempted by different government agencies as well as the private sector,
*What I'd like best would be a modular design where I could buy or build the thresher first, then the cleaner, then the cutter bar and pickup wheel in a trailer configuration, then a self-propulsion unit and bolt each one on as it is ready.  In my case I'd probably use it towed and never make that last step.  
from central research institutes to skilled village mechanics. Different alternatives have been
tried, i.e. the reaper or the combine, but these either failed or were only half-way solutions to the
problem.  


This paper describes the slow process of combine development in the Mekong Delta, identifies
*Bear in mind that agriculture is similar in boot-strapping to this whole project and it is important to be able to get some functionality early (the thresher in this case) and then build on it as resources come on line.
affecting factors and related problems. Details of the work on a mini-combine, including wheel
systems for wet soils, and promotion to the industry for manufacturing are presented.  


CURRENT STATUS OF RICE HARVESTING AND PROBLEMS
*I'm not as familiar with the all crop as I'd like to be, but I believe it needs a special head to pick corn (maize).  I'd call corn picking a "nice to have" which if it could be integrated easily would be fine but otherwise, since it can be managed in so many other ways, should be a very low priorty.


In the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam, as in various parts of South-East Asia, rice harvesting is
*Since old grain and dirt is very damaging to the device, easy cleaning should be an important consideration.
mechanized to varying degrees beyond traditional manual methods. Three types of mechanized
harvesting are:


1)
*A design which leaves the straw windrowed for easy loading or baling is highly desirable.
Manual harvesting + mechanical threshing. More than 95% of rice is threshed mechanically
by the axial-flow thresher (Phan H. Hien 1991). However, due to lack of technically suitable
and economically viable methods of mechanically cutting rice plants, local people continue
to harvest rice manually with a sickle.  


==Combine - Current Work -- Survey of Existing Commercial Models==


Figure 1: (a) Rice reaper, made by Long-An Mechanical Factory in 1985…
Small Scale Grain Production Today -- this link is to an article at the website of a commercial dealer in imported European machinery. He has some pictures of stationary threshers that run $5K - $26K.  There is a survey of commercial small combines presently being manufactured in Europe and Japan. These small combines retail for $40K - $77k.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm


(b)
Here is a bean thresher retailing for $9500 without an engine, $11000 with an engine --  
… and one from 3 major reaper manufacturers remaining in 2004;
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Bean%20Threshers%20with%20pictures%20oct%202003.pdf
(c)
A combine made by a farmer-mechanics in Dong-Thap Province;
(d)
An imported combine under test in 1998.  
2


Article on lower cost small grain harvesting. 
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Options.pdf


�
Small scale bean harvesting
2) Mechanical reaper + mechanical threshing. The Chinese windrower reaper was introduced to
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Bean%20Harvesting.pdf
South-East Asia through the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) way back in the
1980’s. The IRRI-designed reaper was introduced to Viet Nam in 1984 by the University of
Agriculture and Forestry (now renamed Nong-Lam University NLU). Commercialization of
the reaper (Figure 1a) peaked in around 1988 with about 15 manufacturers but there remain
only three manufacturers producing 100-200 units per year each in the year 2000. (Figure 1b)
Reaper adoption did not expand rapidly because it was only a partial solution. Manual
gathering of the cut windrows still cost about 2/3 of the traditional hand cutting-gathering.
Besides, the long-length cut of the plants is less suited to mechanical threshing, unlike
manually harvested crops.  


3) Combine. (See Next Section)
Small scale threshing equipment.
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Threshing%20Equipment.pdf


COMBINE DEVELOPMENT
Grain harvesting alternative technology
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Alternative%20Technology.pdf


Unlike Thailand, the only country in South-East Asia with some success in adapting the combine
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm
(with about 8000 units of Western-style Thai-made units in use), the introduction of such large
combines have encountered three major problems in Viet Nam:


(1) Soft soils. Most local combine weights 1.2– 2 tonnes while imported models weigh 4– 11
Small grain harvester
tonnes. Such heavy machines easily bog down in soft soils. Even during the dry-season
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJBcwNMWvRE&feature=grec_index
harvest, a seemingly dry field with a localized soft spot can render a heavy combine helpless
http://www.croplandbiodiesel.com/images/clb-brochure-English-2010.pdf  (GO TO PAGE 5 FOR COMBINE SPECS)
in areas which may not have access roads for a rescue vehicle (Fig.1c and 1d). This is the
main reason that has failed many researchers and engineers; one researcher has even
concluded that there is no “dry soil” in the Mekong Delta as far as the combine is concerned.  
Many people now maintain that, for a large combine-harvester to work, the field must be
well irrigated and drained, and should be large enough for the machine to easily maneuver.  
This sounds logical, except that the investment to implement such requirement for combine
operation is too big to be drawn from the agriculture itself, a condition for a sustainable
progress of a developing country.  
(2) Frequent break-downs. Quality is often lacking in one-off manufacture by village
mechanics, and such combines breakdown. Each break-down cost hours or days to repair; a
week’s repair time means significant lost income during the harvest season. Unreliability
discouraged users from adopting new technologies. Thus, reliability at lowest cost is critical.
The frequent breakdown of combines can be addressed through improved manufacturing and
continuous design improvement with due consideration to added costs. A workable initial
design, competent local manufacturer, close monitoring of field operation, and after-sales
service support are all essential for the realization of a new technology.
(3) Lodged crops. Rice lodging is often caused by extreme climatic conditions such as typhoons
or floods and attempts to develop a combine that can harvest severely lodged crops have
been unsuccessful. Plant breeders and agronomists need to improve lodging resistance of rice
varieties. However, a partially-lodged field area, say 10 % lodged, means that 90 % of the
field is still available for combine harvesting, particularly if the combine is small enough to
circumvent severely lodged spots that can be manually harvested.
These are the three reasons why combine development in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam has
been slow over the past 20 years. Things are changing however in the last 5 years.


3
ZURN Rocket:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVuBEO-863Q


Massey Ferguson 31:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLkh8qoIrHo&feature=related


�
== Combine - Developments Needed==
1980- 1999
=== Combine - General===
Wikipedia article on combines -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combine_harvester


Between 1980 and 1999, several combines were developed by Central research institutes,
1949 Popular Mechanics magazine with cutaway picture of a self-propelled combine of its era, plus pictures of two small miniature reapers at work on extension experimental farms.
Provincial factories, and even farmer-mechanics. Attention was focused in 1997 when the
http://tinyurl.com/3k3func
Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture organized a combine contest in Can-Tho Province, the heart
of the Mekong Delta. Seven models participated, several locally made combine that were
heavier than 2 tonnes, and one 5-tonne European combine. All bogged down in soft soils, except
for a second-hand Japanese head-fed combine that weighed around 1 tonne. All bogged down in
soft soils, except one second-hand Japanese head-fed combine weighing around 1 ton. About ten
of these “light weight” combines were later sold by some trading companies. But these secondhand
units quickly broke down in the first harvest season; spare parts were not available as they
had been no longer fabricated in Japan; so these combines were junked. Among “best” locally
made combines, the manufacturer was able to sell a few units; but again after one harvest season,  
buyers returned the machine to the manufacturer because of frequent breakdowns; each time
requiring a severak critical days for repair. A one-week downtime meant that half of the peak
harvest season was missed in the area. That meant significant lost harvest income as rice quality
deteriorates when not harvested at the optimal time (Quick, 2003).  


2000- Present
1937 picture of a self-propelled cutting header, Australia
http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displayimage.asp?iid=13350


Since 2000, the Vietnamese economy has demonstrated rapid growth, and as a consequence
More early designed, 1885 to 1930s, from Australia
harvest labor has become a serious problem. Rural people prefer higher-paying jobs at
http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displaysubtheme.asp?stid=4&tid=2  
construction sites or other industrial jobs. This has motiovated researchers and manufacturers to  
renew efforts at promoting combines, this time with experience learnt from the earlier efforts.  
From 2000, about 15 small-scale combine manufacturers have tried their products. A combine
contest was organized in 2006 by the Vietnamese National Testing Agency (Fig. 2). Eight local
models and one Chinese imported model presented. Unlike the previous contest, these machines
had been used by the manufacturers for harvesting their own rice or else extensively tested.
Some manufacturers had sold up to a dozen units before entering the contest. From the contest,
three designs were given “accredited recognition awards”, meaning recognition and future
promotion through the governmental Extension system. Two winners were the local Chin-
Nghia 1500-kg combine, and a 2300-kg Chinese imported combine. The third was a 600-kg
“mini-combine” with several distinctive features, which are described in the following Section.


Pictures of threshers, northern Great Plains of the US, 1890s through 1940s.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award97/ndfahtml/ngpSubjects21.html


Figure 2: Combines at the contest in Can-Tho Province, 2006.  
Article about the development of the McCormick reaper.
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/pdf/wmh_spring01_grady.pdf


4
The Rodale thresher (stationary)
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_OTHER/SMALL/Rodale%20grain%20thresher%20-%201977.pdf


Collection of third world implements, document #37 is a pedal powered thresher
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_VE/BIG/06-232.pdf


�
1979 book on the design and building of a pedal thresher. Includes 21 drawings.
THE MINI-COMBINE
http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/CD3WD/APPRTECH/THRESHER/EN/INDEX.HTM


Design
.


The NLU Center for Agricultural Energy and Machinery (CAEM) was established in 2001 and
=== Combine - Specific===
began research to improve rice harvesting methods and conditions in Viet Nam. Different
==== Combine - Background Debriefing====
surveys resulted in a database, including hundreds of pictures. In 2003, the Philippine Rice
==== Combine - Information Work====
Research Institute (PhilRice) shared a design of a light-weight 600 kg mini-combine, to continue
==== Combine - Hardware Work====
a long tradition of cooperation between NLU and the Institute in the area of Agricultural
==== Combine - Articles====
Engineering. The mini-combine project was sponsored by Briggs & Stratton Corporation, a U.S
leading gasoline manufacturer.


The initial design came from China. In 2003, PhilRice re-designed and improved key functions
===== Micro Combines=====
adding significant improvements to the prototypes, which were then transferred to NLU for  
For small scale agriculture, harvesting can be done with micro combines. Micro combines can be broken down into two categories: towed and self propelled. Towed combines are hard to find due to them being out of production since the ‘60s in the U.S. However, demand for them is growing with small scale farmers. The old Allis Chalmers model 60 combines were widely used in America as one of the main combines used for grain harvesting. They can be pulled behind a tractor, and are PTO driven. Some companies have started buying these combines, refurbishing them, and reselling them to farmers. Self propelled combines are the types currently being developed. Operators of these machines either ride them or must walk behind them as they harvest. These self propelled units are beginning to see more use in rice harvesting in Asian countries. The combines in the following list are all self propelled with the exception of the Shenmao Harvester, which is hand held.
testing in Viet Nam. This is based on a tricycle undercarriage, and uses a Western-style
combine open front gathering head (Fig. 2a), to feed a conveyor that brings the cut plants
towards an axial-flow thresher. The cleaning of paddy is done beneath the thresher concave by
an oscillating screen and a fan, similar to the IRRI axial-flow threshers (Quick, 1998), before the
paddy grain is conveyed upwards for bagging (Bautista &Schmidley 2004). The combine is
powered by a 16-HP B&S gasoline engine that weighs 40 kg.  


In Viet Nam, design adaptation by the NLU included: a) identifying areas for strengthening and
Briggs & Stratton Model
optimizing design performance and reliability; and b) comparing different traction wheel designs
Picture taken from: http://www.hcmuaf.edu.vn/ctt/softs/pkh/tailieu/tapchi_khkt/2004/TC%20-%204%20-%2004/PHHien.pdf
for wet soft soils. The NLU believes problems of combine harvesting in Viet Nam are “of the
Working width: 1.2 m
earth, and not of the air”, that is to say, they are more concerned about soil and wheel
Working Speed: 1.5 – 2.1 km/hr
interactions rather than the working principles and components which are already common
Idle travel speed: 2.0 – 5.0 km/hr
knowledge.  
Field capacity: 1 ha/day
Cutting height: 0.1 – 0.4 m
Combined losses: <2.0 %
Engine power: 16 Hp
Fuel consumption: 15 L/ha
Labor requirement: 5 workers
Overall dimensions: 3.5m X 1.5m X 1.5m
Net weight: 600 kg


After evaluation and further “fine-tuning” of the prototype, the design was transferred to the Viet
Mitsubishi 502 Rice Harvester
Nam Agricultural Power Company (VINAPPRO), a leading manufacturer of diesel engines and
Pictures taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf
other machinery, who then fabricated two units for local field testing and evaluation, before
deciding to go on with mass production.  


Testing
Head width: 25”
Field capacity: 1 acre/9 hrs
Unit cost: $25,000
Wheel type: Crawler tracks


In 2004, the mini-combines were tested in different provinces, first for exploring the working
Cicoria Combine
capabilities of the PhilRice unit (Fig.3a), then for measuring the performance of the Vinappro
Picture taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/pictures/ss11.htm
units in wet conditions (Fig.3b), and for durability evaluation


Seven different traction types and variants were tested for trafficability (Figures 4), namely:  
Head width: 78”
1)rubber tyres, 2)dual rubber tyres, 3)steel cage wheels, 4)original pyramid-shaped lug wheels
Overall dimensions: 192” X 92”
with 10 lugs/wheel, 5)pyramid-shaped lug wheels with12 lugs/wheel, 6)wider pyramid-shaped
Unit weight: 5,390 lbs
lug wheels with 12 lugs/wheel, and 7)retractable lugs mounted next to rubber tyre.
Head type: General crop header with axial threshing drum
Engine power: 38 Hp


Standard test instruments and a penetrometer (ASAE 1994) to measure the hardness of soil, were
Shenmao Harvester
used in the tests.  
Picture taken from: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html


Results
Engine size: 43cc 2-stroke
Unit weight: 7.5 kg
No other information could be found, so it is unclear how well it actually works


The performance and specifications of the combine are summarized in Table 1 (Tran V. Khanh
Agriculture in developing countries is largely done on many small scale plots, and there is a need for small scale harvesters to help increase crop production. There are already several companies producing micro combines and harvesters, but there is still a need for cheaper and more efficient machines. Continued development of micro combines will help make small scale farmers better able to make a living, and make their lives easier.
et.al 2004); the field tests were conducted under different soil and crop conditions. Average


5
Works Cited


Canales, E. 1999. Small Scale Grain Production Today. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm. Accessed 23 January 2010.


�
Hien, P. H., and L. Van Ban. 2004, The Mini Combine-Harvester: Research Results and a Related Automation Concept. Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology. 4: 95-100.
harvest was one hectare per day. The total losses ranged at 1.0 – 1.4 per cent, and never
exceeded 2 per cent.  


Micro Grain Combine. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at:
http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf . Accessed 25 March 2010.


(a) (b)
Zhejiang Shenmao Appliance Co., Ltd. Available at: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html . Accessed 25 March 2010.
Figure 3: a) The 600-kg mini-combine prototype from PhilRice (Tran V. Khanh et.al 2004).
b) Mini-combines in DongThap; both units are made in Viet Nam by Vinappro.
Table 1: Mini- combine performance and specifications
 
Working width : 1.2 m maximum
Working speed : 1.5 – 2.1 km/hr
Idle travel speed : 2.0 – 5.0 km/hr
Working time utilization efficiency : 70 – 80 %
Field capacity : 1 ha /day (0.9 – 1.3)
Cutting height : Adjustable 0.1 – 0.4 m
Combined losses (shattering, unthreshed
and separating) : < 2.0 %
Power requirement : 16-HP B&S gasoline engine
Fuel consumption : 15 Liter/ ha
Labor requirement : 5: one driver, one bagger, and three
haulers of grain bags to levees.
Traction: Semi-dry soil :
Soft, wet soil :
Rubber tyres 6.00 x 12
Pyramid-shaped lug wheel, or
Retractable lugs + rubber tyre
Overall dimensions (L x W x H) : 3.5 m * 1.5 m * 1.5m
Net weight: 600 kg
 
Trafficability Tests, among the 7 types of wheels:


The tests indicated that, on dry soils, the rubber tyres were most suitable in terms of both traction
and vibration of the machine. However, in soft and wet soils, the pyramid-shaped lug wheels
(Fig. 3a) could manage soft soils with penetration resistance of more than 0.4 MPa. The
retractable lugs mounted to rubber tyres proved to be the most useful in soft soil. Rubber tyres
provided floatation, while the lugs provided both traction and flotation (Fig.3b).


On soft soils, the light weight of the combine proved to be an critical advantage. If the machine
was about to sink, the bag laborer in the rear seat could jump off temporarily to reduce machine
load, to allow the mini-combine to pass through soft spots while maintaining operation. In
extremely soft conditions where there was occasional bogging down, the problem was overcome
6
�
within minutes by seven people, who simply lifted and pulled the combine out of the trouble spot
(Fig. 3f). No other combines could be managed that way!
As for reliability, the mini-combine was operated on 15 hectares, before transferring the design
to industrial production. During the tests, breakdowns and troubles occurred, such as shear of
cotter pin of the steering wheel, failure of the rear U-fork..., but these were considered minor and
were immediately fixed in the field or by small village mechanics. Nevertheless, this indicates
more attention is needed during local manufacturing.
Figure 4: (a) The pyramid-shaped lug wheel; (b) Retractable lugs mounted adjacent to rubber tyre;
(c) Dual tyre blocked with clay; (d) The cage wheel; (e) The combine is easily lifted for changing wheels;
(f) Bogged-down combine on soft soil was simply pulled out by 7 people. (Tran V. Khanh et.al 2004).
7
�
Mini-combine commercialization
The VINAPPRO Company produced a total of 90 units between 2005-2006. Apart from a few
units that went to state agencies for extension, the majority of these combines were bought by
private farmer-contractors with their own money. Four users placed repeat orders, each for a
second unit after the first unit had harvested some hundreds of hectares. All these are positive
indicators that the mini-combine is following the well-known mechanization pattern in the
Mekong Delta, where the machine is owned by the service provider. A small farmer owning
only 1 ha buys an 80-HP tractor, plows his field for one day or less, and next plows for 100 other
farmers on a contract basis. In the same way, the contractors harvest, thresh and dry paddy.
Cost calculations
In 2006, the sale price of a mini-combine from the production line was US$ 2900 ###. Other
data and assumptions are listed in Table 2 for estimating the cost of machine use.
Table 2: Data and assumptions for estimating the cost of machine use (Tran V. Khanh et.al 2004).
Purchase price : US$ 2900 (˜ 46 000 000 VND)
Life : 3000 hours / 6 years (#1)
Interest rate : 10 % / year
Working capacity : 1.0 ha /day
Fuel consumption (gasoline) : 15 Liter /ha
Fuel price US$ 0.63 / liter
Lubricants and filters… (as % fuel cost): 15 % fuel
Labor: Driver: (Number) * Daily wage: (1) * US$ 2.2
Bagger &Hauling laborer: (Number) * Daily wage: (4) * US$ 1.6
Total Repair & M. cost ( as % Purchase price): 40 %
Note: (#1) 3000-hr life ˜ 6 yrs * 3 crop seasons/ year * 17 days/ season * 10 hrs/ day.
Based on the above data, cost of using the mini-combine is calculated and summarized in
Table 3 and Figure 5.
### For the convenience of overseas readers, all monetary numbers in Vietnamese Dong
are converted to US$, with the conversion rate in 2006: 1 US$ ˜ 16 000 VND
8
�
Table 3: Cost of use for the mini-combine
Cost US$ /ha
Depreciation 5.3
Interest 1.6
Gasoline 11.8
Labor 7.2
Repair 2.1
Total
US$ per hectare
27.6
˜
28
Cost of use, Mini-combine
Deprecia
Repair
tion
19%
Labor Interest
26% 6%
41%
Gasoline
8%
Figure 5: Distribution of utilization cost ( Total = US$ 27.6 )
Comparing Costs with current harvesting methods
The most common harvesting method in the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam is manual harvesting +
mechanical threshing. Depending on the province, rice yield, and cropping season (dry or wet
harvest), the total cost in 2004 of existing methods ranged from US$ 45 to 60 per hectare, with
about 60% representing cutting and gathering costs and 40% for threshing costs.
Thus the total cost of US$ 28 /ha for the mini-combine represents a substantial cost reduction of
38 to 53 percent, compared to current practices. This is significant, considering that this saving
alone is the equivalent of 15% of the profit from a typical hectare of rice.
Moreover, the labor requirement is appreciably reduced by the combine. The current harvesting
and threshing system normally requires dozens of laborers and up to 150 man-hours per hectare,
against five people and 40 man-hours per hectare with the combine.
9
�
CONCLUSIONS
Rice combine development in the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam over the past 20 years has been a
slow process, following the introduction of axial threshers and reapers. Three problems affect
the combine adoption: (a) soft soils; (b) machine reliability, and (c) lodged rice crops. Early
attempts in the 1980’s and 1990’s by different agencies and the private sector were unsuccessful
at actual scale operation. Since 2000’s severe labor shortage for rice harvesting has prompted
intensive development by several small-scale combine manufacturers. Three combine brands
gained the “accredited recognition awards” during a combine contest in 2006; these 3 companies
have commercialized their combines. Particularly, the Vinappro Company has sold 90
mini-combines. This 600-kg combine was adapted from an initial design from China, with
modifications of the cleaning system by PhilRice. Durability testing and improvement of the
wheels for soft soils were made by NLU in Viet Nam before transferring the design to industry.
The combine represents a good step forward in Viet Nam.
Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank Dr. Wesley Buchele for his encouragement to submit this paper for
ASBAE 2007 International Conference on Crop Harvesting and Processing.
REFERENCES
ASAE. 1995. ASAE Standards 1994. American Society of Agricultural Engineers, St. Joseph,
Michigan, U.S.A.
BAUTISTA, E.U., A. SCHMIDLEY. 2004. PhilRice-B&S Collaboration: Building partnerships
across Asia. Paper presented at the Philippine Rice R&D Conference, PhilRice, Nueva Ecija.,
April 2004.
PHAN HIEU HIEN. 1991. Development of the axial-flow thresher in Southern Vietnam.
Agricultural Mechanization in Asia J. Vol.22 No4 pp.42-46.
QUICK, G.R. 1998. Global assessment of power threshers for rice. Agricultural Mechanization
in Asia J. Vol.29 No3 pp.47-54.
QUICK, G.R. 2003. Rice Harvesting. Chapter pp 491-542, in: Rice. The Monograph, by Wiley
& Sons, New York.
TRAN VAN KHANH, P.H. HIEN, E. BAUTISTA, A. SCHMIDLEY, K. LEE, M.D. BAN.
Testing and promotion of a rice mini-combine in Viet Nam. Proceedings of the Mekong Rice
Conference, HoChiMinh City, Viet Nam, 15- 17 October 2004.
10


== Combine - Sign-in==
== Combine - Sign-in==
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*John
*John
*[[User:Mjn]]
*[[User:Mjn]]
=See Also=
*[[Combine Research Paper]]
*[http://www.indiamart.com/north-agro-industries/tractor-combine.html Tractor Combine]
*[http://www.firstbtob.com/products/1143108/Wheat-Combine-Harvester-mounted-on-the-tractor.html Wheat Harvester]
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Latest revision as of 17:16, 11 September 2011


Microcombine
   Home  |  Research & Development  |  Bill of Materials  |  Manufacturing Instructions  |  User's Manual  |  User Reviews    Microcombine.png

Research

  • Microcombine Function is to harvest various field crops. Harvesting consists of reaping, threshing, and winnowing.
  • Reaping is to cut crops (ex. ears of grain) for gathering, which simplifies subsequent harvesting stages.
  • Threshing is to separate stalks from the accumulated crop
  • Winnowing is to separate inedible chaff from the edible part of the crop.

Theory

  • Header Width - should be around 6-8 feet.
  • Microcombine Weight - should be able to fit on a 10,000 lb deck-over trailer.
  • Pickup Reel Speed - should be slightly faster than its speed if it were to be rotating along the surface of the farm plot at the microcombine's drive speed.
  • Drive Speed - should be able to reach 2-3mph.

Relevant Links

Combine Full Process Internal Animation

Zurn 150 Real-time Performance Video

Conceptual Notes

  • Bottom - contains 4 wheels with hydraulic drive and take-off.
  • Front - contains the reaping system.
  • Middle - contains the threshing system.
  • Rear - contains the winnowing system.
  • Front Middle Rear - contains the chassis system.
  • Top Front - contains the operator system.
  • Top Middle - contains a part of the hydraulic system, electric system, and air system.
  • Top Rear - contains the collecting system.
  • Other Sections - contain the remainder of the microcombine.

Development

Overview

  • Reaping System - pulls crops toward microcombine and cuts the crops near the ground as they are moved further in and eventually fed into the threshing system.
  • Threshing System - rolls crops through "concaves" during which threshing drums beat the crop so that the non-stalk part (ex. grain) falls through the concave's openings to the bottom. The stalk is moved further by "walkers" to the spreader while the non-stalk crop is moved further by an oscillating screen to the winnowing system.
  • Winnowing System - moves the non-stalk crop part into "sieves" that oscillate and are subjected to an air blower directed upwards and to the rear of the microcombine. Using the proper predetermined blower setting, the lighter inedible chaff is separated from the heavier edible part of the crop. The edible crop is moved by augurs to the storage system while the chaff is blown outside behind the combine.
  • Collecting System - stores the edible crop; when required, an augur directs the crop through the unloader tube to an external container outside the microcombine.
  • Air System - consists of the air pump and tubes that channel high speed air into the winnowing system.
  • Hydraulic System - provides controllable hydraulic power to various hydraulic actuators and motors used in the microcombine.
  • Electronic System - includes the electronics used for controlling and monitoring the microcombine.
  • Chassis System - includes rigid frames and durable covers on which the other systems are mounted and protected, respectively.
  • Operator System - includes the platform on which the operator sits and controls the microcombine.

Reaping System

Header

- consists of the frame into which field crops are first directed by the microcombine.

Header Example
  • Header Side - the side plates of the header that provide a passageway for crops to enter the microcombine
  • Header Bottom - The bottom plate of the header that provides a surface on which crops on slide into microcombine
  • Header Rear - the rear plates of the header that contain the crop.
  • Header Angles - consist of the metal angles that hold together the other header components. The connections include between the header sides and header bottom, header rear and the header bottom, the header sides and the header rear, and the header rear to the header X
Pickup Reel

- rotates to move crops into header while the cutting bar cuts the crops

  • Pickup Reel - is the actual rotating component that is directly mounted to the pickup reel hydraulic motor on one side and to a ball bearing on the other side
  • Pickup Reel Mount - is the frame component that fastens onto the pickup reel arms and allows mounting of the hydraulic motor on one side and a ball bearing on the other.
  • Pickup Reel Arms - are the frame components that hold the fulcrum of the pickup reel in place and are mounted to the header and hydraulic cylinders as a rotary joints. This can be a pair of steel square tubes.
Cutting Bar

- cuts crops near the ground to allow the ground-separated crops to be easily moved further into microcombine; also known as "mowing fingers", and is mounted on the header. The OSE Hay Cutter can be used as the microcombine's cutting bar.

  • Cutting Bar Frame - consists of a horizontally mounted frame on which cutting blades are fastened. The cutting bar itself is mounted onto the header bottom plate.
  • Cutting Bar Blades - are the sharp metal cutting components, some of which are stationary and some which are reciprocated by the cutting bar actuator. The cutting blades are fastened to the cutting bar.
Side Knives

- are vertically mounted oscillating cutters that cut at the front sides of the header. These knives are necessary to prevent uprooting crops that get reeled into the microcombine from the sides, as well as facilitating the harvesting of oilseed rape and beans.

  • Side Knives Frame - consist of a vertically positioned frame fastened to the side knives and reciprocated by the side knives actuator. The side knife bar itself is mounted onto the header side plates.
  • Side Knives Blades - are the sharp metal components fastened to the side knife bar.
Header Augur

- moves reaped crops into feeder drum. This is mounted inside the header directly to the header augur hydraulic motor on one side and a ball bearing on the other side.

  • Header Augur - is the metal component that rotates, contacts, and moves the crop.
  • Header Augur Mount - is the metal component that lies between the header augur and the header augur hydraulic motor
Feeder Drum

- consists of a metal drum that contacts and moves the crop from the rear or the header into the threshing system. The feeder drum is mounted directly to the feeder drum hydraulic motor on one side and to a ball bearing on the other side.

  • Feeder Drum - is the actual metal drum that rotates, contacts, and moves the crop.
  • Feeder Drum Mount - is the metal component that lies between the feeder drum and the feeder drum hydraulic motor.

Threshing System

Concave
  • Concave - concave-shaped frame on which the reaped crop is threshed; the non-stalk crop part drops to the screen on the lower level while the stalk is moved further to the walkers.
Universal Concave Example
  • Concave Mount - metal component that fastens to the universal concave and the threshing frame
Threshing Drum
  • Threshing Drum - rotates and threshes the reaped crop against the universal concave to separate the stalk and the non-stalk parts of the crop.
  • Threshing Drum Mount - metal component that fastens to the threshing frame and allows direct mounting of the threshing drum to the threshing drum hydraulic motor.
Walker
Walker Example
  • Walker - is a near-horizontally mounted oscillating panel that moves the stalk out of the microcombine and has openings for further stalk and non-stalk separation. These are fastened to the walker mounts
  • Walker Mounts - are a pair of metal components that attach and hold the sides of the walker. The walker mounts are then attached via oscillating bar to the walker hydraulic motor.
  • Walker Crankshaft - mounts to the walker mounts and allows rotary motion to oscillate the walkers.
Walker Crankshaft Example

Winnowing System

Sieve
  • Sieve - are oscillating rectangular metal trays with holes; the non-stalk part of the crop is blown between sieves; the inedible chaff blows outside behind the microcombine while the edible crop falls through the holes of multiple sieves to be transferred to the collection tank. In general, only two sieves are necessary; a round hole sieve on the lower level, and a demello (spellcheck) sieve on the upper level.


Round Hole Sieve Example


  • Sieve Frame - consists of the frame components that hold the sieves in place; the sieve frame also allows easy removal of the sieves during microcombine cleaning and maintenance.
  • Sieve Oscillating Bar mounts to the frame holding the sieve and allows rotary motion to oscillate the sieves.

Collecting System

Collecting Tank

- stores the edible crop.

  • Collecting Tank Sides - make up the 4 sides of the collecting tank in the upright position. One collecting tank side has two holes for connections to the air system. Another collecting tank side has a hole for connection to the unloader tube.
  • Collecting Tank Bottom
  • Collecting Tank Lid
  • Collecting Tank Quick-locks
  • Collecting Tank Hinges
  • Collecting Tank Handle
Unloader
  • Unloader Tube - consists of metal tube through which the edible crop can be transferred from the microcombine to an external container
  • Unloader Tube Cap - is a round component with a sizeable slit for crop to be ejected and a fulcrum for one end of the augur to be mounted. The unloader tube cap itself mounts to the unloader tube.
  • Unloader Augur - is the rotating component that moves crop through the unloader tube.
  • Unloader Plate Attachment - is a rectangular metal plate with a hole that mounts onto the collection tank and welds to the unloader tube attachment.
  • Unloader Tube Attachment - is a metal tube with an angled cut that welds onto the unloader plate attachment and connects to the unloader tube.
  • Unloader Hinge - is the hinge between the unloader tube and the unloader tube attachment that allows bending of the unloader into the microcombine when not required.
  • Unloader Quick-lock - is the connection mechanism between the unloader tube and the unloader tube attachment that allows rapid disconnection so that the unloader bending process takes less time.
Collector
  • Collector Plate Attachment - is a rectangular metal plate with a hole that mounts onto the collection tank and welds to the collector tube attachment.
  • Collector Tube Attachment - is a metal tube with an angled cut that welds onto the collector plate attachment and connects to two air tubes. One air tube connects to the end of the winnowing system (where the edible crop accumulates); the other air tube connects to the intake of the air turbine (so as to pull the edible crop into the collection tank by partial vacuum).

Air System

  • Air Pump - blows air for separation of the lighter inedible chaff from the heavier edible crop part.
  • Air Tubes - channels the flow of high-speed air into the winnowing system
  • Air Filter - prevents particulates from entering the air pump.

Hydraulic System

  • Pickup Reel Cylinder - adjusts the height of the pickup reel
  • Pickup Reel Hydraulic Motor - rotates pickup reel
  • Header Hydraulic Cylinder - adjusts the height of the header
  • Header Augur Hydraulic Motor - rotates header augur
  • Feeder Drum Hydraulic Motor - rotates feeder drum
  • Threshing Drum Hydraulic Motor - rotates threshing drum
  • Walker Hydraulic Motor - rotates walker oscillating bar
  • Sieve Hydraulic Motor - rotates sieve oscillating bar
  • Unloader Augur Hydraulic Motor - rotates unloader augur
  • Drive Hydraulic Motors - move the wheels of the microcombine with a tank-style steering circuit.

Electronic System

  • Cutting Bar Actuator - is an electrically powered driver arm that reciprocates the cutting bar.
  • Side Knives Actuator is an electrically powered driver arm that reciprocates the side knife bar.

Chassis System

Chassis Angles
  • Front Vertical Angles - consist of long metal angles positioned vertically that are fastened to the header near the front of the microcombine
  • Front Horizontal Angles
  • Rear Vertical Angles - consist of long metal angles positioned vertically that are connected to the walker mounts and the sieve mounts
  • Rear Horizontal Angles
  • Top Side Horizontal Angles
  • Bottom Side Horizontal Angles

Operator System

  • Operator Platform is simply the surface upon which the operator is located while controlling the microcombine. The operator platform can be a simple metal plate with holes cutouts as necessary for special mounting purposes.
  • Seat - simply is the seat in which the operator can sit. The seat is mounted to the operator platform.

Design


Industry Standards

Industry Standard GVCSTool

Funding

Wanted: List of expenses for prototyping and documenting GVCSTool

Peer Reviews

Wanted: Peer reviews from the scientific community regarding the R&D of GVCSTool

Experiments and Prototypes

Wanted: Empirical data on performance

Experimental Results

Prototype Notes, Observations, etc.

Failure Mode Analysis

Testing Results

Recommendations for Improvement

Research

Combine - Current Work -- Desired Features of the Microcombine

This category is for grain and bean farmers to comment on the features they would find useful in this machine.

Observations:

  • When raising small grains on a small scale, threshing is the chief bottleneck. I'm willing and able to cut enough wheat with a scythe to feed my extended family, but threshing is another question. It is very laborious and time consuming.
  • What I'd like best would be a modular design where I could buy or build the thresher first, then the cleaner, then the cutter bar and pickup wheel in a trailer configuration, then a self-propulsion unit and bolt each one on as it is ready. In my case I'd probably use it towed and never make that last step.
  • Bear in mind that agriculture is similar in boot-strapping to this whole project and it is important to be able to get some functionality early (the thresher in this case) and then build on it as resources come on line.
  • I'm not as familiar with the all crop as I'd like to be, but I believe it needs a special head to pick corn (maize). I'd call corn picking a "nice to have" which if it could be integrated easily would be fine but otherwise, since it can be managed in so many other ways, should be a very low priorty.
  • Since old grain and dirt is very damaging to the device, easy cleaning should be an important consideration.
  • A design which leaves the straw windrowed for easy loading or baling is highly desirable.

Combine - Current Work -- Survey of Existing Commercial Models

Small Scale Grain Production Today -- this link is to an article at the website of a commercial dealer in imported European machinery. He has some pictures of stationary threshers that run $5K - $26K. There is a survey of commercial small combines presently being manufactured in Europe and Japan. These small combines retail for $40K - $77k. http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm

Here is a bean thresher retailing for $9500 without an engine, $11000 with an engine -- http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Bean%20Threshers%20with%20pictures%20oct%202003.pdf

Article on lower cost small grain harvesting. http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Options.pdf

Small scale bean harvesting http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Bean%20Harvesting.pdf

Small scale threshing equipment. http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Small%20Scale%20Threshing%20Equipment.pdf

Grain harvesting alternative technology http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Grain%20Harvesting%20Alternative%20Technology.pdf

http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm

Small grain harvester http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJBcwNMWvRE&feature=grec_index http://www.croplandbiodiesel.com/images/clb-brochure-English-2010.pdf (GO TO PAGE 5 FOR COMBINE SPECS)

ZURN Rocket: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVuBEO-863Q

Massey Ferguson 31: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLkh8qoIrHo&feature=related

Combine - Developments Needed

Combine - General

Wikipedia article on combines -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combine_harvester

1949 Popular Mechanics magazine with cutaway picture of a self-propelled combine of its era, plus pictures of two small miniature reapers at work on extension experimental farms. http://tinyurl.com/3k3func

1937 picture of a self-propelled cutting header, Australia http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displayimage.asp?iid=13350

More early designed, 1885 to 1930s, from Australia http://museumvictoria.com.au/sunshine/displaysubtheme.asp?stid=4&tid=2

Pictures of threshers, northern Great Plains of the US, 1890s through 1940s. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award97/ndfahtml/ngpSubjects21.html

Article about the development of the McCormick reaper. http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/pdf/wmh_spring01_grady.pdf

The Rodale thresher (stationary) http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_OTHER/SMALL/Rodale%20grain%20thresher%20-%201977.pdf

Collection of third world implements, document #37 is a pedal powered thresher http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/JF/JF_VE/BIG/06-232.pdf

1979 book on the design and building of a pedal thresher. Includes 21 drawings. http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/CD3WD/APPRTECH/THRESHER/EN/INDEX.HTM 

.

Combine - Specific

Combine - Background Debriefing

Combine - Information Work

Combine - Hardware Work

Combine - Articles

Micro Combines

For small scale agriculture, harvesting can be done with micro combines. Micro combines can be broken down into two categories: towed and self propelled. Towed combines are hard to find due to them being out of production since the ‘60s in the U.S. However, demand for them is growing with small scale farmers. The old Allis Chalmers model 60 combines were widely used in America as one of the main combines used for grain harvesting. They can be pulled behind a tractor, and are PTO driven. Some companies have started buying these combines, refurbishing them, and reselling them to farmers. Self propelled combines are the types currently being developed. Operators of these machines either ride them or must walk behind them as they harvest. These self propelled units are beginning to see more use in rice harvesting in Asian countries. The combines in the following list are all self propelled with the exception of the Shenmao Harvester, which is hand held.

Briggs & Stratton Model Picture taken from: http://www.hcmuaf.edu.vn/ctt/softs/pkh/tailieu/tapchi_khkt/2004/TC%20-%204%20-%2004/PHHien.pdf Working width: 1.2 m Working Speed: 1.5 – 2.1 km/hr Idle travel speed: 2.0 – 5.0 km/hr Field capacity: 1 ha/day Cutting height: 0.1 – 0.4 m Combined losses: <2.0 % Engine power: 16 Hp Fuel consumption: 15 L/ha Labor requirement: 5 workers Overall dimensions: 3.5m X 1.5m X 1.5m Net weight: 600 kg

Mitsubishi 502 Rice Harvester Pictures taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf

Head width: 25” Field capacity: 1 acre/9 hrs Unit cost: $25,000 Wheel type: Crawler tracks

Cicoria Combine Picture taken from: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/pictures/ss11.htm

Head width: 78” Overall dimensions: 192” X 92” Unit weight: 5,390 lbs Head type: General crop header with axial threshing drum Engine power: 38 Hp

Shenmao Harvester Picture taken from: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html

Engine size: 43cc 2-stroke Unit weight: 7.5 kg No other information could be found, so it is unclear how well it actually works

Agriculture in developing countries is largely done on many small scale plots, and there is a need for small scale harvesters to help increase crop production. There are already several companies producing micro combines and harvesters, but there is still a need for cheaper and more efficient machines. Continued development of micro combines will help make small scale farmers better able to make a living, and make their lives easier.

Works Cited

Canales, E. 1999. Small Scale Grain Production Today. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/smallscale.htm. Accessed 23 January 2010.

Hien, P. H., and L. Van Ban. 2004, The Mini Combine-Harvester: Research Results and a Related Automation Concept. Journal of Agricultural Sciences and Technology. 4: 95-100.

Micro Grain Combine. Gridley, CA.: Ferrari Tractors. Available at: http://www.ferrari-tractors.com/PDF%20Articles/Micro%20Grain%20Combine%20August%202009.pdf . Accessed 25 March 2010.

Zhejiang Shenmao Appliance Co., Ltd. Available at: http://shenmao.en.alibaba.com/product/250305412-209425313/43cc_small_Grain_Harvester.html . Accessed 25 March 2010.


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