Patent Application
20200123941
The present disclosure generally relates to an agricultural system.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it may be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Agricultural equipment enables the planting and harvesting of various crops. Some of this equipment may be self-propelled such as a harvester while others may be coupled to a tractor and towed across a field. These pieces of equipment may have a variety of actuators that use hydraulic pressure to operate. For example, a planter may use hydraulic pressure to facilitate forming trenches in the soil, controlling the amount of down pressure on a row unit, and for operating a press wheel to cover the trench. Other uses of hydraulic pressure may include operating brakes, raising/lowering lifts, etc. The hydraulic fluid that powers these various actuators is typically stored in a hydraulic tank. When hydraulic fluid is needed by actuators, it is pressurized and driven by a pump through hydraulic lines to the actuators. Overtime the hydraulic fluid in the tank may be replenished or replaced. Unfortunately, accessing and depositing hydraulic fluid in the hydraulic tank may be cumbersome.
In one embodiment, an agricultural system that includes a hydraulic fluid tank with a conduit. The hydraulic fluid tank receives and stores hydraulic fluid. A hydraulic fill system couples to and facilitates filling of the hydraulic fluid tank. The hydraulic fill system includes an arm that rotates with respect to the hydraulic fluid tank between an extended position and a retracted position. The arm defines a channel. A connector couples to the arm. The connector defines an opening that receives the hydraulic fluid. A flexible conduit rests within the channel. The flexible conduit includes a first end and a second end. The first end couples to the conduit and the second end couples to the connector
In another embodiment, an agricultural system that includes a hydraulic fill system that couples to and facilitates filling of a hydraulic fluid tank. The hydraulic fill system includes an arm that rotates with respect to the hydraulic fluid tank between an extended position and a retracted position. The arm defines a channel. A connector couples to the arm. The connector defines an opening that receives hydraulic fluid. A flexible conduit rests within the channel. The flexible conduit defines a first end and a second end. The first end couples to a conduit and the second end to the connector.
In another embodiment, a work vehicle including a hydraulic fluid tank with a conduit. The hydraulic fluid tank receives and stores hydraulic fluid. A hydraulic fill system couples to and facilitates filling of the hydraulic fluid tank. The hydraulic fill system includes an arm that rotates with respect to the hydraulic fluid tank between an extended position and a retracted position. The arm defines a channel. A connector couples to the arm. The connector defines an opening that receives hydraulic fluid. A flexible conduit rests within the channel. The flexible conduit defines a first end and a second end. The first end couples to the conduit and the second end couples to the connector.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:
One or more specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below. These described embodiments are only exemplary of the present disclosure. Additionally, in an effort to provide a concise description of these exemplary embodiments, all features of an actual implementation may not be described in the specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.
When introducing elements of various embodiments of the present disclosure, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements. Moreover, the use of “top,” “bottom,” “above,” “below,” and variations of these terms is made for convenience, but does not require any particular orientation of the components.
During operation, the motor 18 provides power that drives wheels 26. The motor 18 may also provide power to the hydraulic system 24. For example, the hydraulic system 24 may include pump(s), valves, a reservoir, etc. In operation, the motor 18 provides power to a pump(s), which generates hydraulic pressure with the hydraulic fluid stored in the reservoir. The hydraulic fluid may then be directed using a series of valves to drive various systems on the work vehicle 10. These systems may include the brake system 20, the steering system 22, a lift, among others. The hydraulic pressure may also be used to operate equipment coupled to the work vehicle 10. In order to transfer pressurized hydraulic fluid from the work vehicle 10, the work vehicle 10 may include one or more hydraulic fluid connectors 28 that couple the hydraulic system 24 to other equipment. For example, the connectors 28 may enable pressurized hydraulic fluid to flow from the hydraulic system 24 to an agricultural implement coupled to the work vehicle 10, such as a planter. In operation, the planter uses the pressurized hydraulic fluid to drive various actuators to control down pressure on row units, depth of trenchs, the degree of soil packing, etc. Other agricultural implements may use the pressurized hydraulic fluid to perform different operations, such as harvesting.
The hydraulic system 24 includes a hydraulic tank 30 that stores hydraulic fluid used by the hydraulic system 24 to control or operate various systems on the work vehicle 10. Periodically, the tank 30 may be refilled, such as when the hydraulic fluid is drained and then refilled. To facilitate filling the tank 30, the work vehicle 10 includes the hydraulic fill system 12. The hydraulic fill system 12 facilitates access to the tank 30, which may enable controlled filling of the tank 30. After using the hydraulic fill system 12, the hydraulic fill system 12 is stored on the work vehicle 10 and out of the way of other equipment.
The channel 56 formed by the first, second, third walls 52, 54, and 55 receives a flexible conduit 74. The flexible conduit 74 may be made out of a variety of materials including a rubber, a polymer(s), or a combination thereof. The flexible conduit 74 couples to the conduit 68 (e.g., rigid conduit) enabling the hydraulic fluid to be poured through the flexible conduit 74, the conduit 68, and into the tank 30. Coupling the flexible conduit 74 to the rigid conduit 68 enables the arm 50 to rotate between the extended and retracted positions. In some embodiments, the arm 50 may rotate between 10-50 degrees with respect to the surface 70 in order to block the flexible conduit 74 from kinking.
As illustrated, the flexible conduit 74 extends between the conduit 68 and a connector 76 with a first end 78 coupling to the conduit 68 and the second end 80 coupling to the connector 76. For example, the first end 78 may extend over a portion of the conduit 68 and the second end 80 may extend over a portion of the connector 76. To secure the conduit 68 in place, ring bands 82 and 84 may be used. As illustrated, the ring band 84 wraps around the flexible conduit 74 and the conduit 68 securing the flexible conduit 74 to the conduit 68. The ring band 82 may also facilitate formation and maintenance of a fluid tight seal between the flexible conduit 74 and the conduit 68 as the arm 50 moves between extended and retracted positions.
As will be explained below, the hydraulic fill system 12 includes a retention bracket or flange 86 that couples to the arm 50. The bracket 86 defines a notch 88 that enables the arm 50 to couple to the work vehicle 10 in a retracted position.
In order to secure the hydraulic fill system 12 in a retracted position, the hydraulic fill system 12 includes a retention system 124. The retention system 124 includes the bracket 86 and a fastener 126. The bracket 86 couples to the arm 50. In some embodiments, the bracket 86 may be coupled (e.g., welded, made out one-piece) to the second and third walls 54, 55. By coupling to both the second and third walls 54, 55; the bracket 86 may be securely coupled to the arm 50 during operation of the work vehicle 10.
As explained above, the bracket 86 includes the notch 88. The notch 88 is configured to receive the fastener 126. The fastener 126 couples to the work vehicle 10 and includes an enlarged portion 128 (e.g., ball) coupled to a shaft 130. The fastener 126 includes a flexible material that enables the shaft 130 to be stretched and to contract. When coupled to the bracket 86, the shaft 130 is stretched as the operator pulls. The enlarged portion 128 is then placed into contact with the notch 88 on a side 132 of the bracket 86 facing away from the fastener 126, as illustrated in
While the embodiments disclosed herein may be susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and have been described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the following appended claims.
