Weed seed destruction
Weed seeds are destroyed in the chaff from a combine harvester by repeated high speed impacts caused by a rotor mounted in one of a pair of side by side housings which accelerate the discarded seeds in a direction centrifugally away from the rotor onto a stator including angularly adjustable stator surfaces around the axis. Thus the discarded seeds rebound back and forth between the rotor and the stator to provide a plurality of impacts. The seeds are carried axially of the rotor by a controlled airstream so that they move to an axial discharge location where a discharge fan is mounted. The angle of the discharge around the rotor axis can be changed to direct the seeds to the side of the combine away from a straw chopper, towards the guide fins of the tailboard of the chopper, or into the housing of the straw chopper.
1 . A combine harvester comprising:
a separation system for separating from harvested crop a first material comprising straw and a second material comprising chaff and weed seeds;
a weed seed devitalizer comprising:
a housing mounted at a location on the combine harvester for receiving the second material containing separated chaff and weed seeds;
at least one rotor mounted in the housing for rotation about a rotor axis and including rotor surfaces thereon for engaging the second material;
at least one stator including a plurality of stator surfaces for engaging the weed seeds in the second material;
and a controller configured during harvesting to:
receive data relating to a weed problem defined by a prevalence of weeds in an area to be harvested; and
output control signals controlling operation of the weed seed devitalizer based on the data.
2 . The combine harvester according to claim 1 , wherein the data includes a GPS map of the weed problem defined by a prevalence of weeds previously created.
3 . The combine harvester according to claim 1 , wherein the data is previously created by aerial surveillance or during mid-season spraying.
4 . The combine harvester according to claim 1 , wherein the control signals actuate the weed seed devitalizer between an off state and an on-state and from a first on-state to a second on-state different than the first on-state.
5 . The combine harvester according to claim 4 , wherein the rotor is controlled by said controller to rotate at a first non-zero speed in the first on-state and a second non-zero speed in the second on-state.
6 . The combine harvester according to claim 1 , wherein the controller is arranged to control the operation of the devitalizer by adjusting an angular position of at least some of the stator surfaces around the rotor axis.
7 . The combine harvester according to claim 6 , wherein said at least one stator is annular and said adjusting of said at least some of the stator surfaces around the rotor axis is caused by rotation of the annular stator around the rotor axis.
8 . The combine harvester according to claim 6 , wherein said at least one stator includes an opening therein at an angular location thereon for passage therethrough of the weed seeds.
9 . The combine harvester according to claim 6 , wherein said at least one stator includes an opening therein at an angular location thereon for passage therethrough of the weed seeds and wherein said rotation causes a change in the angular location of the opening around the rotor axis.
10 . The combine harvester according to claim 6 , wherein said at least one stators comprises inner and outer coaxial cylindrical stators with an annular rotor component between the inner and outer stators.
11 . The combine harvester according to claim 6 , wherein said at least one stator comprises a plurality of upstanding impact bars at angularly spaced positions around the rotor axis.
12 . A combine harvester comprising:
a separation system for separating from harvested crop a first material comprising straw and a second material comprising chaff and weed seeds;
a weed seed devitalizer comprising:
a housing mounted at a location on the combine harvester for receiving the second material containing separated chaff and weed seeds;
at least one rotor mounted in the housing for rotation about a rotor axis and including rotor surfaces thereon for engaging the second material;
at least one stator including a plurality of stator surfaces for engaging the weed seeds in the second material;
and a controller configured to output control signals controlling operation of the weed seed devitalizer;
wherein the controller is arranged to control the operation of the devitalizer by adjusting an angular position of at least some of the stator surfaces around the rotor axis.
13 . The combine harvester according to claim 12 , wherein the rotor is controlled by said controller to rotate at a first non-zero speed in a first on-state and a second non-zero speed in a second on-state.
14 . The combine harvester according to claim 12 , wherein said at least one stator is annular and said adjusting of said at least some of the stator surfaces around the rotor axis is caused by rotation of the annular stator around the rotor axis.
15 . The combine harvester according to claim 14 , wherein said at least one stator includes an opening therein at an angular location thereon for passage therethrough of the weed seeds.
16 . The combine harvester according to claim 14 , wherein said at least one stator includes an opening therein at an angular location thereon for passage therethrough of the weed seeds and wherein said rotation causes a change in the angular location of the opening around the rotor axis.
17 . The combine harvester according to claim 14 , wherein said at least one stator comprises inner and outer coaxial cylindrical stators with an annular rotor component between the inner and outer stators.
18 . The combine harvester according to claim 14 , wherein said at least one stator comprises a plurality of upstanding impact bars at angularly spaced positions around the axis.
19 . A combine harvester comprising:
a separation system for separating from harvested crop a first material comprising straw and a second material comprising chaff and weed seeds;
a weed seed devitalizer comprising:
a housing mounted at a location on the combine harvester for receiving the second material containing separated chaff and weed seeds;
and at least one weed seed destructor for receiving both the chaff and weed seeds comprising destructor components in said housing for causing devitalization of the weed seeds so as to reduce a number of the weed seeds that can germinate;
receive data relating to a weed problem defined by a prevalence of weeds in an area to be harvested; and
output control signals controlling operation of the weed seed devitalizer based on the data.
20 . The combine harvester according to claim 19 , wherein the data includes a GPS map of the weed problem defined by a prevalence of weeds previously created.
21 . The combine harvester according to claim 19 , wherein the data is previously created by aerial surveillance or during mid-season spraying.
22 . The combine harvester according to claim 19 , wherein the control signals actuate the weed seed devitalizer between an off state and an on-state and from a first on-state to a second on-state different than the first on-state.