Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MULTI-STEM PROCESSING HARVESTER
Field of the Invention
This application relates in general to a log (otherwise referred to as a -
stem") processing or
harvesting head for removing the limbs and branches from a stem and cutting
the stem into logs of
a particular length, and in particular, to a stem processing or harvesting
head adapted for de-
limbing and cutting multiple stems simultaneously.
Background of the Invention
In the logging industry, trees are typically harvested using motorized
equipment attached to the
boom of a wheeled or tracked vehicle, whereby the motorized equipment is
adapted to grab a
felled tree, otherwise referred to as a "stem", and drive the stem through the
motorized equipment
referred to as a processing head, which thereby processes the stern by
stripping the branches and
limbs from the stern. The removal of branches and limbs results in a more
uniformly-shaped stern,
making it easier to load the stems on a truck for transportation to a plant
for further processing. At
the same time, the processing head is also used to cut the stem into logs of a
pre-determined
length, such procedure referred to as "bucking-.
It is preferable if the processing procedure described above can be performed
on multiple stems at
the same time in order to increase the overall speed and efficiency of logging
operations.
However, conventional harvesting and processing equipment is only capable of
efficiently
processing one stem at a time. Typically, such harvesting and processing
equipment utilizes
wheels, tracks, belts or other means to drive a stem past one or more blades,
which cut the
branches or limbs off of the stem as the stem passes by the blades. Often, the
stem will need to be
driven back and forth past the blades for at least more than one cycle in
order to satisfactorily
remove all of the branches and limbs from the stem and create a substantially
smooth and uniform
cylinder.
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It is well known in the prior art for harvesting and processing equipment to
utilize two or three
wheels, or rollers, to drive the stem through a harvesting and processing
head. More specifically, a
two wheel configuration will typically provide two drive wheels driven by two
drive motors. A
three wheel configuration will add a center feeding wheel, which assists with
positioning and
traction of the stem near the blades as the stem passes through the harvesting
head. The prior art
also includes the use of a four wheel or roller design, whereby there are two
outer drive wheels and
two center feed wheels. Each of the two, three and four wheel systems known in
the prior art can
only process stems in either the forward or reverse direction, by controlling
both outer drive
wheels simultaneously in the same direction. Such harvesting and processing
heads known in the
prior art may be capable of processing more than one stem at a time; however,
the harvesting and
processing heads known in the prior art do not provide the ability to process
one or more stems
independently of the other stems within a particular bundle.
While each of the two, three and four wheeled systems known in the prior art
and described above
may be capable of driving more than one stem through the processing head at
the same time, there
are several problems which prevent the efficient processing of multiple stems
through the prior art
processing heads. One problem with processing multiple stems in the processing
heads known in
the prior art is that all of the wheels or rollers are designed to rotate in
the same direction at the
same time, whereby all two, three or four wheels are only capable of being
driven in either the
forward or the reverse direction simultaneously. Such configurations mean that
it is only possible
to drive each of the stems within a bundle of stems through the harvesting and
processing
equipment at the same speed and in the same direction, making it difficult or
nearly impossible for
the provided blades to strip the entire circumference of each stern within the
bundle.
2 5 Stems may have defects, for example areas of rot, odd growths, cat
faces, spiral checks, broken
trunks and/or bends, which if they are included in the length of a particular
log will devalue the
log. Therefore, during processing, it is desirable to provide the operator of
the harvester head with
the ability to cut an observed defect out of a stem before continuing with the
bucking procedure, in
order to ensure the processed logs do not contain such defects. Upon detecting
such a defect in
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one or more stems within a bundle that is being processed in a processing
head, the processing
heads known in the prior art do not provide the operator with the ability to
move the stem
containing the defect independently of the other stems in order to cut out the
portion of the stem
containing the defect, before continuing with the bucking procedure on the
bundle of stems.
Therefore, when a defect is encountered in one or more stems within a bundle
of sterns being
processed in a processing head, the operator must drop the bundle and then
process each of the
stems containing a defect individually in order to remove the defect from the
stem before
proceeding with the bucking procedure.
Another characteristic of sterns is that the sterns may be of different
lengths and diameters upon
entering the harvesting and processing head. A cut list for a given harvesting
contract may require
logs of various lengths, depending on the diameter and species of the stem.
Therefore, when a
given bundle of sterns contains stems of varying diameters or tree species,
the operator may need
to cut each stern into different lengths in accordance with the cutting list,
which would require the
ability of moving one of the sterns in the bundle independently of the other
sterns. While some of
the harvesting processing heads described above include a blade that is
capable of shortening the
length of a single stem or a bundle of stems as they are driven through the
processing harvesting
head, the harvesting processing heads known in the prior art do not provide
the ability to
accurately re-position one stern relative to the other stems within the bundle
in order to cut all of
2 0 the sterns within the bundle at a uniform length or to otherwise cut a
particular stem to different
lengths apart from the other sterns, because the sterns within a bundle of
sterns are only capable of
being driven in either the forward or reverse directions at the same speed and
at the same time.
Accordingly, the need has arisen for a processing head that provides a greater
degree of control
over the manipulation and movement of each individual stern within a bundle
through the
processing head, in order to increase the efficiency of the processing and
bucking of the sterns.
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Summary of the Invention
A multi-stem processing harvester is provided for processing one or more stems
simultaneously. The harvester comprises a frame, a first feed system coupled
to said frame
and adapted to drive one or more first stems comprising: a first drive wheel,
a first drive motor
coupled to said first drive wheel, wherein said first drive motor drives said
first drive wheel in
at least a first direction and a first speed relative to said frame and a
second feed system
coupled to said frame and adapted to drive one or more second stems
comprising: a second
drive wheel, a second drive motor coupled to said second drive wheel, wherein
said second
drive motor drives said second drive wheel in at least a second direction and
a second speed
relative to said frame, wherein said first feed system is adapted to operate
independently of
said second feed system.
A method is further provided of harvesting one or more stems comprising
gripping one
or more stems into a harvesting head of a harvester; and driving one or more
first stems of said
one or more stems through the harvester at an independent speed and in an
independent
direction from said remaining one or more stems.
Brief Description of the Drawings
FIG. IA is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a multi-stem
processing harvester configured to process one or more stems in accordance
with the present
invention;
FIG. I B is the perspective view of the multi-stem processing harvester shown
in
FIG. IA, with a bundle of stems being driven through a processing head;
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional front elevation view of the multi-stem processing
harvester shown in FIG. I B, with a bundle of stems being driven through a
processing head;
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of the hydraulic
motors
and control valves of a preferred embodiment of a multi-stern processing
harvester wherein each
control valve controls a center feed motor and a drive motor in accordance
with the present
invention;
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FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of the hydraulic
motors
and control valves of a preferred embodiment of a multi-stem processing
harvester wherein each
of two drive motors and two center feed motors are individually controlled by
a control valve in
accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of two hydraulic
motors
and two control valves of a preferred embodiment of a multi-stem processing
harvester wherein
each of the two drive motors are individually controlled by the two separate
control valves in
accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of two drive motors
and
1 0 two
control valves of a preferred embodiment of a multi-stem processing harvester
wherein each
of the two drive motors are individually controlled by separate control valves
in accordance with
the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a front elevation view of the multi-stem processing harvester shown
in
FIG. IA;
FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective view of the multi-stem processing harvester
shown
in FIG. IA;
FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of one embodiment
of the
controllers and the computer utilized to control the multi-stem processing
harvester; and
FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the steps in a method for
processing
more than one stem through a processing head in accordance with the present
invention.
Detailed Description of Embodiments of the Invention
Referring to FIG. IA and FIG. 2, the multi-stem processing harvester 10
discussed herein is
adapted to provide a tree logging harvester that is capable of processing
multiple trees or stems at
the same time. The multi-stem processing harvester 10 is comprised of a
harvesting head 20
supported on a mechanical frame assembly 30 and provided with a harvesting
head adaptor 35
adapted to connect the harvesting head to the boom of a front loader, bobcat,
or some other type of
motorized vehicle driven wheels or tracks (not shown). The harvesting head 20
is further
comprised of a right feed system 40 and a left feed system 60, and preferably
comprises a main
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saw box 33 containing a main saw on an actuator (not shown), and further
preferably comprising a
top saw box 34 containing a top saw on an actuator (not shown).
The right feed system 40 preferably comprises a right center feed wheel 41, a
right drive wheel 43
and a right drive motor 44, which drives the right drive wheel 43. Similarly,
in a preferred
embodiment of the harvesting head 20, the left feed system 60 comprises a left
center feed wheel
61 and, a left drive wheel 63 which is driven by a left drive motor 64. A
center area 15, where the
stems pass through the harvesting head 20, is defined as the space between the
right and left drive
wheels 43, 63 and the right and left center feed wheels 41, 61. In a preferred
embodiment of the
present invention, as illustrated in FIG. 2, a right center feed motor 42 may
be used to drive the
right center feed wheel 41 and a left center feed motor 62 may also be
provided to drive the left
center feed wheel 61. Preferably, the drive motors 44, 64 and the center feed
motors 42, 62 are
hydraulic motors, but it will be well understood by a person ordinarily
skilled in the art that other
types of motors may be used, such as electric motors. Additionally, it will be
well understood by a
person ordinarily skilled in the art that other configurations of wheels and
motors may be used that
are included within the scope of this invention. For example, not intending to
be limiting in any
way, a two motor, four wheel configuration may be utilized wherein the right
drive motor 44
drives both the right drive wheel 43 and the right center feed wheel 41 and
the left drive motor 64
drives both the left drive wheel 63 and the left center feed wheel 61.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention (as illustrated in FIG. 8),
each of the center
feed wheels 41 and 61, and each of the drive wheels 63 and 43 may be provided
with gripping
means, for example sharp protrusions 51 preferably arranged into rows 50,
thereby providing a
surface 53 for the wheels 41, 61, 43 and 63 that is capable of gripping a
bundle of stems in order to
drive those stems through the multi-stem processing harvester 10. This
invention is not limited to
utilizing wheels provided with sharp protrusions 51 to grip and drive the
stems through the
harvester 10, as other means to grip and drive the stems through the harvester
10 may include
wheels provided with chains, protrusions, rubber or other gripping means.
Furthermore, other
types of driving means may be provided in place of the drive wheels 43, 63 and
the center feed
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wheels 41, 61 such as for example tracks or belts used to drive one or more
stems through the
harvester 10.
The operation of the multi-stern processing harvester 10 is preferably
controlled by the operator
utilizing an electronic control system. In a preferred embodiment, the
electronic control system
200 as illustrated in FIG. 9 consists of a computer 210 and computer
peripherals 212 that enable an
operator to input data into the computer 210 to control the harvester 10 and
also to view
information and data received by the computer 210 from various sensors
employed by the
harvester 10, further described below. The computer peripherals 212 may
include any type of
computer peripherals that enable the operator to control the computer 210 and
view data, including
but not limited to CRT screens, LED screens, visual displays, keyboards, key
pads, mouse, touch
pads. The computer peripherals 212 may preferably include a touch screen that
provides means
for viewing information about, and inputting commands to control, the
operations of the multi-
stem processing harvester 10; the computer peripherals 212 may also preferably
include one or
more joysticks. The computer 210, which may be located in the cab 205 of the
multi-stern
processing harvester 10, is in communication with a main controller 220 by
means of a network
cable, such as, for an example only, an Ethernet cable 215. The main
controller 220 controls
traffic over a first controller area network (CAN) bus 222 and a second CAN
bus 224, which first
and second CAN buses 222, 224 are in communication with various different
input/output
2 0 controller units that control various functions of the multi-stem
processing harvester 10, as further
described below.
In a preferred embodiment, the second CAN bus 224 may be in communication with
a machine
controller unit 230, which machine controller unit 230 is utilized to receive
and process input
signals provided to the computer 220 by the operator using the one or more
computer peripheral
devices 212 in the cab 205 to control the physical movement of the multi-stem
processing
harvester 10. The machine controller unit 230 may also be in communication
with a first
input/output device 235, which input/output device 235 may control other
aspects of the harvester
10 such as automated oiling pumps.
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The first CAN bus 222 may be routed from the cab 205 to the harvesting head 20
through the
crane cable 240 and is in communication with a bucking controller input unit
242, which bucking
controller input unit 242 is utilized to read the input signals received from
one or more right
diameter sensors 46 and one or more left diameter sensors 66, one or more
length measuring
encoders 22, one or more find end sensors 25, all of which are illustrated in
FIGS. IA, 7 and 8, as
well as other sensors including the main saw home sensors and top saw home
sensors. The first
CAN bus 222 is also in communication with a second input/output device 244,
which device
controls the clamping motion of a right delimb arm assembly 45, a left delimb
arm assembly 65, as
well as the clamping motion of the right feed system 40 and left feed system
60.
As well, the first CAN bus 222 is in communication with a third input/output
device 246, which
device controls optional hydraulic control valves 70, 80 illustrated in FIGS.
3, 5 and 6, that control
the left drive wheel 63 and right drive wheel 43. Additionally, the first CAN
bus 222 may be in
further communication with additional input/output relay devices, such as for
example the
input/output device 248, which may control additional functions on the
harvesting head 20. It will
be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that a number of different
configurations of electronic
controllers may be used to control the various functions of the multi-stem
processing harvester 10
and that the invention described herein is not limited to the specific
configuration of electronic
controllers and input/output devices described above.
In a preferred embodiment, the drive motors 44 and 64 may be hydraulic motors,
whereby the right
feed system 40 and the left feed system 60 respectively either share a common
hydraulic supply
line, or otherwise have separate hydraulic supply lines to each of the right
and left feed systems 40,
60. In a preferred embodiment of this invention, as illustrated in FIG. 3,
hydraulic pressure is
supplied through a common supply line 90, which supplies hydraulic pressure to
each of the right
and left feed systems 40, 60 on the harvester head 20. The supply line 90 is
coupled to the supply
port 71 of control valve 70. Hydraulic pressure exits a left A port 72 and is
supplied by a hydraulic
line 73 coupled to an inlet port 74 of the left drive motor 64. Hydraulic
fluid then exits from the
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left drive motor 64 through a second hydraulic line 76 that is coupled to the
outlet port 75 of the
left drive motor 64 and the other end of the hydraulic line 76 being coupled
to the inlet port 77 of
the left center feed motor 62. A third hydraulic line 79 is coupled to the
outlet port 78 of the left
center feed motor 62 at one end and the other end of the hydraulic line 79 is
coupled to the left B
port 69 of the directional left control valve 70. The left return port 96 of
the directional left
control valve 70 is coupled to the common return line 95.
The directional left control valve 70 may also be used to reverse the
direction of the flow of the
hydraulic fluid through the left feed system 60, resulting in a reversal of
the direction of the left
drive motor 64 and left center feed motor 62, wherein hydraulic pressure exits
the left B port 69
and is supplied by a hydraulic line 73 to the outlet port 78 of the left
center feed motor 62.
Hydraulic pressure is then supplied from the inlet port 77 of the left center
feed motor 62 to the
outlet port 75 of the left drive motor 64 through the second hydraulic line
76. Hydraulic fluid
flows through the inlet port 74 of the left drive motor 64 and enters the
directional left control
valve 70 through the left A port 72, and proceeds through the left return port
96 to the tank 100
through the return line 95.
The same pressure line 90 coupled to the directional left control valve 70 is
also coupled to the
directional right control valve 80 through the supply port 81 of the
directional right control valve
80. The right A port 82 of the directional right control valve 80 is connected
by a fourth hydraulic
line 83 to the inlet port 84 of the right drive motor 44 of the right feed
system 40. The right drive
motor 44 is connected to the right center feed motor 42 by a fifth hydraulic
line 86 which is
coupled at one end to the outlet port 85 of the right drive motor 44, and the
other end of the
hydraulic line 86 is coupled to the inlet port 87 of the right center feed
motor 42. The right center
feed motor 42 is then connected to the directional right control valve 80 by a
sixth hydraulic line
89 which is connected at a first end to the outlet port 88 of the right center
feed motor 42 and at a
second end of the sixth hydraulic line 89 to the B port 68 of the directional
right control valve 80.
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The directional right control valve 80 may also be used to reverse the
direction of the flow of the
hydraulic fluid through the right feed system 40, resulting in a reversal of
the direction of the right
drive motor 44 and the right center feed motor 42, wherein the hydraulic fluid
flows out of the
directional right control valve 80 through the B port 68 and travels through
the sixth hydraulic line
89 to the outlet port 88 of the right center feed motor 42. The hydraulic
pressure exits the right
center feed motor 42 through the inlet port 87 and travels through the fifth
hydraulic line 86 to the
outlet port 85 of the right drive motor 44, and flows through the inlet port
84 to the fourth
hydraulic line 83, entering the directional right control valve 80 through the
A port 82. The
hydraulic fluid returns to the tank 100 by exiting the right return port 97
and flowing through the
return line 95.
The foregoing is a description of the general arrangement of a set of motors
consisting of the right
feed system 40 and left feed system 60. It will be appreciated by a person
ordinarily skilled in art
that the A and B ports of each of the directional left and right control
valves 70, 80, may be
swapped around for the sake of making the hydraulic hosing arrangement easier
and neater during
installation. Furthermore, it will be appreciated by a person ordinarily
skilled in the art that it is
possible to utilize multiple hydraulic supply lines to supply hydraulic fluid
to each ofthe hydraulic
motors utilized in a harvesting head 20 and multiple hydraulic return lines to
return the hydraulic
fluid to the tank 100, and the scope of the invention described herein is
therefore not limited to a
configuration utilizing one hydraulic supply line 90 and one hydraulic return
line 95. It will also
be appreciated by a person ordinarily skilled in the art that other
configurations for the control of
the hydraulic motors utilized in a harvesting head 20 may be possible and are
included within the
scope of the present invention.
As illustrated in FIG. 3, an embodiment of the present invention includes four
motors. A right
feed system 40 may be controlled using the right center feed motor 42 and the
right drive motor
44 by means of a directional control valve, such as for example the
directional right control valve
80. Furthermore, a left feed system 60 may be controlled using the left center
feed motor 62 and
the left drive motor 64 by means of another directional control valve, such as
a directional left
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control valve 70. The system may also contain other valves, such as flow
control valves, relief
valves to protect the system, and other components such as pressure
compensators, so that the
above described control valves 70 and 80 should not be seen as the only
components that drive or
control the drive system of the present invention.
The directional right control valve 80 may be actuated to either allow
hydraulic fluid to flow
through the right drive motor 44 first, with the flow of the hydraulic
pressure proceeding to the
center feed motor 42 and then returning through the directional right control
valve 80 to a tank
100; or the directional right control valve 80 may allow the hydraulic fluid
to flow through the
right center feed motor 42 first, with the flow of the hydraulic pressure
proceeding to the right
drive motor 44 and then returning through the directional right control valve
80 to the tank 100.
This arrangement provides for control of both motors 42, 44 in either the
forward or reverse
directions. Each of the left and right feed systems 40, 60 are controlled in a
similar manner with
each respective system using its own specific control valve 70, 80 and set of
motors, as described
above.
Furthermore, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the left drive wheel 63 and left drive
motor 64 may
preferably be coupled to the right drive wheel 43 and the left drive motor 44
by means of a drive
wheel link 32, enabling the drive wheels 63, 43 to be associated with each
other for timing
purposes. A drive wheel link 32 may be a rigid link, or it may preferably be a
spring link. The
embodiment described above allows for each control valve 70, 80 to be actuated
independently in
either direction, allowing the right motors 42, 44 to rotate in directions and
at speeds independent
of the directions and speeds of the left motors 62, 64, or to stay in a
stationary state, or in the
alternative allowing each of the center feed motors and the drive motors to
rotate in the same
direction, or in opposing directions, thereby giving the operator of the multi-
stem harvesting
processor 10 substantially unlimited degrees of control over each of the stems
being processed at
the same time. Furthermore, in this preferred embodiment there is also
provided the ability to
have either the right feed system 40 or the left feed system 60 to remain
completely stationary or to
be controlled at varying speeds while the opposite feed system may be driven
in either the forward
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or the reverse directions at varying speeds, providing the ability to hold a
stem that is adjacent to
one of the feed systems 40, 60 to be held in a substantially stationary
position while one or more
stems that are adjacent to and in contact with the opposite feed system 40, 60
are driven in either
the forward or reverse directions.
In a further embodiment as illustrated in FIG. 4, a harvesting head 20 is
provided with a left and
right drive motor 64, 44, which drive motors are controlled by a left drive
control valve 101 and a
right drive control valve 122 respectively. The left center feed motor 62 and
right center feed
motor 42 are separately controlled by a left center feed control valve 112 and
a right center feed
control valve 117 respectively. A common pressure line 90 is coupled to the
supply port 102 ofthe
left drive control valve 101. Hydraulic pressure is supplied to the left drive
motor 64 by a first
hydraulic line 130 with one end of the hydraulic line 130 coupled to the left
drive control valve A
port 104 and the other end of the second hydraulic line 130 is coupled to the
inlet port 107 of the
left drive motor 64. Hydraulic fluid is then returned to the left drive
control valve 101 by means of
a second hydraulic line 131 that is coupled to the outlet port 108 of the left
drive motor 64 and the
other end of the hydraulic line 131 is coupled to the B port 110 of the left
drive control valve 101.
Hydraulic fluid is then returned to the tank 100 by exiting through the left
drive control return port
111 and flowing through the return line 95.
The left center feed motor 62 is controlled by the left center feed control
valve 112, which is
coupled to the pressure line 90 through the supply port 113 of the left center
feed control valve
112. Hydraulic pressure is supplied to the left center feed motor 62 by means
of a third hydraulic
line 132 that is coupled at a first end to the A port 114 of the left center
feed control valve 112 and
a second end of the hydraulic line 132 is coupled to the inlet port 107 of the
left center feed motor
62. Hydraulic fluid passes through the left center feed motor 62 to the outlet
port 108 and flows
through a fourth hydraulic line 133 that is coupled at a first end to the
outlet port 108 of center
feed motor 62 and at a second end to the B port 115 of the left center feed
control valve 112.
Hydraulic fluid exits the left center feed control valve 112 through the
return port 116 and flows
through the return line 95 to the tank 100.
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Similarly, the right center feed motor 42 is controlled by means of the right
center feed control
valve 117 by the supply of the hydraulic fluid through the common supply line
90. Hydraulic fluid
enters the right center feed control valve 117 through a connection between
the supply line 90 and
the supply port 118 of the right center feed control valve 117. Hydraulic
pressure is supplied to
the right center feed motor 42 by means of a fifth hydraulic line 134 which is
coupled at a first end
to the A port 119 of the right center feed control valve 117 and at a second
end to the inlet port 107
of the right center feed motor 42. Hydraulic fluid may exit the right center
feed motor 42 through
the outlet port 108 of the right center feed motor 42. Hydraulic fluid is then
carried back through
the right center feed control valve 117 by means of a sixth hydraulic line 135
wherein hydraulic
line 135 is coupled at a first end to the outlet port 108 at the right center
feed motor 42 and at a
second end to the B port 120 of the right center feed control valve 117.
Hydraulic fluid is carried
back to the tank 100 through the return line 95 by exiting the right center
feed control valve 117
through a return port 121.
The right drive control valve 122 controls the right drive motor 44 by means
of hydraulic fluid
supplied to the right drive control valve 122 through the supply port 123 of
the right drive control
valve 122. Hydraulic pressure is then supplied through the right drive control
valve 122 to the
right drive motor 44 by a seventh hydraulic line 136 that is coupled at a
first end to an A port 124
of the right drive control valve 122 and a second end of the hydraulic line
136 is coupled to the
inlet port 107 of the right drive motor 44. Hydraulic fluid then exits from
the right drive motor 44
by means of an eighth hydraulic line 137 that is coupled at a first end to an
outlet port 108 of the
right drive motor 44 and at a second end to a B port 125 of right drive
control valve 122. Hydraulic
fluid exits the right drive control valve 122 and returns to the tank 100
through the return line 95
that is coupled to the return port 126 of the right drive control valve 122.
In the embodiment described herein and illustrated in FIG. 4, the flow of the
hydraulic fluid may
be reversed by any of the drive control valves 101, 122 and the center feed
control valves 112,
117, resulting in the reversal of the direction of the drive motors 64, 44 and
the center feed motors
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42, 42 respectively. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 provides the ability
to control each of
the four motors 42, 44, 62 and 64 independently through its own control valves
101, 112, 117 and
122, respectively, in order to maintain control over the direction and speed
of one or more selected
stems within a bundle of stems in either the forward or reverse directions,
and also provides the
ability to maintain one or more of the selected stems in a stationary position
relative to the other
stems.
In a further embodiment of this invention illustrated in FIG. 5, two drive
wheels 43, 63 are driven
by two hydraulic motors while the center feed wheels 41, 61 are not coupled to
any motors and are
thus free to rotate on their respective axes when the surfaces of the center
feed wheels 41, 61 come
into contact with the surfaces of stems being driven by the drive wheels 43,
63. In this
embodiment of the invention, the speed and direction of the left drive motor
64 is controlled by the
directional left control valve 70 and the speed and direction of the right
drive motor 44 is
controlled by the directional right control valve 80. The left drive motor 64
drives the left drive
wheel 63 and the right drive motor 44 drives the right drive wheel 43. When
the harvesting head
is in motion the left drive wheel 63 and the right drive wheel 43 are used to
drive either a single
stem or a plurality of stems through the processing head 20 (not shown in FIG.
5). In this
embodiment the left center feed wheel 61 and the right center feed wheel 41
are not coupled to any
motors. The left center feed wheel 61 and the right center feed wheel 41 are
left to rotate freely
20 about their respective axes and are positioned to guide the stems
through the harvesting head 20.
Similar to other embodiments of this invention described above, in this
embodiment illustrated in
FIG. 5 the left drive motor 64 is driven by means of hydraulic pressure
supplied through a supply
line 90 to the directional left control valve 70 by connection of the supply
line 90 to the supply
port 71 of the directional left control valve 70. Hydraulic pressure is then
supplied to the left drive
motor 64 by means of a hydraulic line 73 that is coupled at a first end to the
A port 72 of the
directional left control valve 70 and a second end of the hydraulic line 73 is
coupled to the supply
port 74 of the left drive motor 64. Hydraulic pressure exits the left drive
motor 64 through the
outlet port 75 to a second hydraulic line 76 that is coupled to the B port 69
of the directional left
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control valve 70. Hydraulic fluid then flows back to a return line 95 to the
tank 100 through the
left return port 96 of the directional left control valve 70.
Similarly, the speed and direction of the right drive motor 44 is controlled
by the directional right
control valve 80 whereby hydraulic fluid is supplied through the supply line
90 to the directional
right control valve 80 through the supply port 81 of the directional right
control valve 80.
Hydraulic pressure is then supplied to the right drive motor 44 by means of a
hydraulic line 79 that
is connected at a first end to the A port 82 of the directional right control
valve 80 and at a second
end of the hydraulic line 79 coupled to the inlet port 84 of the right drive
motor 44. Hydraulic
fluid flows back to the directional right control valve 80 by means of another
hydraulic line 83
coupled at a first end of the hydraulic line 76 to the outlet port 75 of the
right drive motor 44 and at
a second end of the hydraulic line 76 coupled to the B port 68 of the
directional right control valve
80. Hydraulic fluid is returned to the tank 100 through the return line 95 by
flowing to the return
line 95 through the return port 97 of the directional right control valve 80.
In this embodiment, in
addition to allowing the left center feed wheel 61 and the right center feed
wheel 41 to rotate freely
about their axes, it is also possible to include other hydraulic or non-
hydraulic means to either hold
stationary the left center feed wheel 61 and/or the right center feed wheel
41, when needed. The
direction of the left drive motor 64 or the right drive motor 44 may be
reversed by using the
directional left control valve 70 or the directional right control valve 80 to
reverse the flow of
hydraulic pressure through the left drive motor 64 or the right drive motor
44, respectively.
In another embodiment of this invention, as illustrated in FIG. 6, there is a
left drive motor 64
which drives a left drive wheel 63 and a right drive motor 44 which drives a
right drive wheel 43.
In this embodiment of the invention each drive motor can be driven
individually and
independently of the other drive motor, in the same or opposing directions -
either forward or
backward, relative to the frame 30 of the harvesting head 20 - and at the same
or differing speeds;
and additionally, one drive motor may be held stationary while the other drive
motor is being
driven in either the forward or reverse directions relative to the frame, to
align multiple stems
when processing multiple stems at the same time in the harvesting head 20.
This feature, referred
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to as stepping, aligning, shuffle and indexing, enables the operator to
achieve an equal length
amongst all of the stems being simultaneously processed at the same time.
The ability to drive each motor independently of the other motors provides the
benefit of being
able to process more than one stem at a time wherein the more than one stems
may have varying
diameters and lengths. In this embodiment and in other embodiments described
herein that
provide for various motors to be controlled independently of the other motors
by their own
individual control valves, there is an added benefit of drive power as, for
example, a left center
feed motor 62 may be synchronized with respect to the speed and power provided
by the left drive
motor 64, enabling the combined drive power of both motors 62, 64 to be used
effectively when
driving a single stem or a plurality of stems through the harvesting head 20,
with minimal loss in
power caused by slippage of one or more stems which may result in damage to
the surface of the
stem engaged by the wheels. This feature additionally allows for trees of
varying lengths and
diameters to be processed through the harvesting head 20 at the same speed,
which results in logs
being cut to the same length.
In a preferred embodiment, each of the functions of the multi-stem processing
harvester 10 may be
automatically controlled by the computer 210 of the electronic control system
200, whereby
various sensors employed throughout the harvesting head 20 and further
described in detail below
are utilized to provide inputs to the electronic control system 200 which are
processed by the
computer 210 to implement various output signals to control the operation of
the various motors
and actuators employed throughout the harvesting head 20. Furthermore, the
electronic control
system 200 may also provide the operator with a means to both visually monitor
the stems for
defects and monitor the sensor data on the stems as they are being processed,
and the ability to
partially override the electronic control system 200 and manually control
sonic functions of the
multi-stem processing harvester 10, when manual intervention by the operator
is required.
With reference to FIG. 8, a cylindrical length measuring encoder 22 may be
positioned above the
center area 15 located laterally between the right drive wheel 43 and the left
drive wheel 63. As a
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particular stem (not shown) is driven through the harvesting head 20 by means
of the right and left
hand drive wheels 43, 63, the surface 26 of the cylindrical length measuring
encoder 22 comes into
contact with the surface of the stem, and the frictional force between the
surface of the stem and
the surface 26 of the cylindrical length measuring encoder 22 causes the
cylindrical length
measuring encoder 22 to rotate as the stem is driven through the harvesting
head 20. The
cylindrical length measuring encoder 22 records the number of revolutions, or
"pulses", that it
undergoes as it is in contact with the stem, and the number of pulses is
communicated to the
computer 210 of the electronic control system 200, which data is interpreted
by the computer 210
to measure the length of the stem that is in contact with the length measuring
encoder 22.
While only one length measuring encoder 22 is depicted in FIG. 8, it will be
appreciated by a
person skilled in the art that more than one length measuring encoder 22 may
be employed within
the harvesting head to measure different stems that are passing through the
harvesting head 20 at
the same time. Furthermore, it will be appreciated by a person ordinarily
skilled in the art that a
length measuring encoder 22 does not necessarily have to be a separate
cylindrical device
employed within the harvesting head 20; for example, the length measuring
encoder 22 may be
integrated into other cylindrically-shaped components within the harvesting
head. As illustrated in
FIG. 7, for example, possible locations 23 on the left feed system 60 of the
harvesting head 20 for
integrating a length measuring encoder 22 include: within the hub of the left
center feed wheel 6 I ;
the hub of the left center feed motor 62; the hub of the left drive wheel 63;
and the hub of the left
drive motor 64. Possible locations 21 on the right feed system 40 of the
harvesting head 20 for
integrating a length measuring encoder 22 include: within the hub of the right
center feed wheel
41; the hub of the right center feed motor 42; the hub of the right drive
wheel 43; and the hub of
the right drive motor 44. Length measuring encoder 22 may also take the form
of any known
2 5 sensor in the art used to detect length, distance or speed of a moving
object relative to a fixed
object.
As illustrated in FIG. IA, one or more find end sensors 25 may be located on a
rear underside
portion 31 of a main saw box 33. The one or more find end sensors 25 are
utilized to detect that
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the end of a stem has passed through the harvesting head 20. In a preferred
embodiment, the one
or more find end sensors 25 may be used to align the butt ends of each stem of
a bundle of stems
being fed through the harvesting head 20, such that the stems may be cut to a
desired length at the
same time. A find end sensor 25 may comprise of various different types of
sensors, which
include but are not limited to a photo cell, a laser, a sonic sensor and a
camera.
As illustrated in FIG. 7, a right diameter sensor 46 and a left diameter
sensor 66 are employed to
measure the diameter of one or more stems X, Y as they are being fed through
the harvesting head
20. The right diameter sensor 46 operates by measuring the lateral distance
inward that the right
feed system 40 has travelled from its starting position before coming into
contact with the surface
of the stem Y. Similarly, the left diameter sensor 66 operates by measuring
the lateral distance
inward that the left feed system 60 has travelled from its starting position
before coming into
contact with the surface of the stem X. The measurement data from the diameter
sensors 46, 66 is
communicated to the computer 210 of the electronic control system 200, which
uses that data to
calculate the diameter of each of the stems X and Y respectively.
The multi-stem processing harvester 10, described above, may be utilized to
process one or more
stems at the same time. The following method may be used to process two or
more stems at the
same time during a bucking procedure, whereby each stem is cut to desired
lengths in accordance
2 0 with a pre-determined cut list, where the desired lengths may depend on
the species and on the
diameter of a given stem, and whereby any defects within a given stem are
avoided such that
defects are largely excluded from the logs that have been cut.
The method is as follows: first, the operator uses the touch screen 212 to
enter the cut list for a
particular processing job, which cut list provides the desired lengths for the
logs depending on the
diameter and/or the tree species of a given stem. The operator then controls
the multi-stem
processing harvester 10 to pick up for example two stems X, Y in the
harvesting head 20 of a
multi-stern processing harvester 10, such that the cross sections of the two
stems X, Y are located
within the center area 15 and the surfaces of the stems X, Y are in contact
with the center feed
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wheels 41, 61 and drive wheels 43, 63. It would be well understood by a person
ordinarily skilled
in the art that the processing of one stem or more than two stems are also
possible.
The diameter sensors 46, 66 measure the lateral distances by which each of the
drive wheels 43, 63
had to travel to come into contact with the surfaces of the stems X, Y and
transmit said distances
to the bucking controller input unit 242. Furthermore, the lengths of the
stems X, Y are
continuously monitored by one or more length measuring encoders 22, which said
one or more
length encoders 22 transmit a pulse for each revolution of said length
measuring encoder 22 to the
bucking controller input unit 242. The said pulse and the said distance data
are received by the
bucking controller input unit 242, which input unit 242 transmits the said
pulse and said distance
data through the first CAN bus 222 to the main controller 220, which said main
controller 220
transmits the said pulse and said distance data to the computer 210. The
computer 210 translates
the said pulse data to the measured length of the stems X, Y, translates the
said distance data to the
measured diameter of the stems X, Y, and displays both the measured length and
measured
diameter for stems X, Y, alongside the cut list information, for viewing by
the operator on a
computer peripheral device 212, for example, preferably a touch screen or an
LCD monitor. The
diameter sensors 46, 66 and the length measuring encoders 22 preferably
continuously measure
and transmit the said distance and pulse data, such that the lengths and
diameters of sterns X, Y are
preferably continuously monitored by the electronic control system 200 as each
of stem X, Y are
fed through the harvesting head 20. Optionally, the operator may manually
enter data to identify
the species of each stem X, Y being presently processed in the harvesting head
20.
At this step in the bucking method, preferably if one or more find end sensors
25 detects that the
end of stem X or stem Y or both stem X and stem Y are not aligned with the
location on the rear
2 5 underside portion 31 of the main saw box 33 where the one or more find
end sensors 25 are
affixed, then the operator may use the controls to drive either the right
drive motor 44 or the left
drive motor 64 to move either stem X or stem Y relative to the other stem
until the ends of both
stems X and Y are aligned with the location of the find end sensor 25.
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Once the ends of stems X and Y are aligned to the satisfaction of the
operator, the operator may
enable the automated bucking mode of the electronic control system 200,
whereby each of the
stems X, Y are cut to the desired lengths in accordance with the previously
entered cut list,
whereby the lengths of each log depend on the diameter and species of the stem
being processed.
When set to the manual control mode, the machine controller 230 controls the
speed of the left and
right center feed motors 62, 42 and the left and right drive motors 64, 44 in
accordance with pre-
determined parameters, which parameters include the maximum manual forward and
reverse
speeds for the right and left drive motors 44, 64; the amount of acceleration
time for the right and
left drive motors 44, 64 to reach the maximum manual forward or reverse
speeds; and the amount
1 0 of deceleration time for the right and left drive motors 44, 64 to go
from the maximum manual
forward and reverse speeds to a speed of zero.
Optionally, the operator may select the manual mode of operation for the
bucking procedure,
whereby the operator may use the controls provided within the cab 205 to
manipulate the right
feed system 40 and control the speed and direction of stem X as it is fed
through the harvesting
head 20, independently of the speed and direction of stem Y, which speed and
direction of stem Y
may also be optionally manually controlled by the operator utilizing the left
feed system 60. When
set to the automated control mode, the machine controller 230 controls the
speed of the left and
right center feed motors 62, 42 and the left and right drive motors 64, 44 in
accordance with pre-
determined parameters, which parameters, in addition to setting automatic
maximum speeds for
the forward and reverse directions, as well as acceleration times, also
include brake distances
which define the deceleration time, which said deceleration time may
optionally be dependent on
the diameter or the species of a particular stem.
As the stems X, Y are being fed through and processed by the harvesting head
20, if the operator
visually detects a defect such as an area of rot in one of the stems, for
example stem X, the
operator may initiate a feed cancel function whereby the automated operation
of the left center
feed motor 62 and the left drive motor 64 is halted while the right feed
system 40 continues to
operate in automated mode to feed stem Y through the right feed system 40,
enabling the operator
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to Utilize the controls provided in the cab 205 to manually control the left
center feed motor 62 and
left center drive motor 64 to manually feed stem X through the harvester head
20 until the area of
rot on stem X has passed through the harvester head 20. At that point, the
operator may optionally
choose to operate either the main saw located in the main saw box 33 or the
top saw located in the
top saw box 34 and cut off the portion of stem X containing the rot. The
operator may then choose
to either continue manually bucking stem X through the harvesting head, or
optionally, the
operator may choose to re-enable the automated bucking function to complete
the bucking of stem
X.
As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing
disclosure, many
alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of this invention
without departing from
the spirit or scope thereof. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be
construed in
accordance with the substance defined by the following claims.
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