Dynamic Characteristics of a Simulated Sugarcane Field Exciter for Small Sugarcane Harvesters

The sugarcane harvester vibration has a bad effect on the sugarcane cutting quality. The effect of sugarcane field roughness on the sugarcane harvester vibration is much more significant than those of cutting forces and the engine. In order to simulate sugarcane field roughness, a simulated sugarcane field exciter (SSFE) was developed to actuate a self-developed sugarcane harvester experiment platform (SHEP). The dynamics and the mathematical models of the SHEP were established. Simulations of the mathematical model show these two models are reasonable. The dynamic characteristic experiment of the SSFE shows it matches characteristics of sugarcane field roughness, but great lateral oscillations existed when it worked. Then the SSFE II was developed. The dynamic characteristic experiment of the SSFE II shows it matches characteristics of sugarcane field roughness and improves the SSFE. The modal test of the SHEP was done to further study dynamic characteristics of the SSFE II. With the SSFE II, simulated experiments of sugarcane harvesters under complete vibration causing conditions can be done in labs instead of sugarcane fields to avoid the low efficiency, poor security, and bad reliability during experiments in sugarcane fields.