2002 Volume 64 Issue 5 Pages 95-100
Harvesting rice using a head-feeding combine, the amount of grain that passes through the threshing unit varies in accordance with the cutting width of the combine, the field speed of the combine, and the field's yield. In this study, a counting sensor with a piezoelectric element was attached inside the grain tank of a head-feeding combine in order to monitor the grain feed rate in harvesting operations. The objectives of this study are to reduce grain loss and improve the separation of grain from chaff by controlling the threshing operation. As a result, it was found that there was a significant correlation between the sensor's output and the yield rate (R=0.92 and 0.97). It was also found that the sensor was a very precise and reliable device for controlling threshing operations.
