News

More automation and new convenience features for CLAAS cutterbars

15 Aug , 2022  

CLAAS is further developing its VARIO cutterbar series with new technology and comfort features. The CEMOS AUTO HEADER innovation has been awarded a silver medal this year by the Agritechnica Innovations Commission.

Automated cutterbar adjustment CEMOS AUTO HEADER

When combine harvesting with VARIO cutterbars, the table length and vertical and horizontal reel position previously had to be manually adjusted by the driver in order to achieve optimal, even intake and crop flow. To make this easier for the driver, CLAAS has developed CEMOS AUTO HEADER, which is an assistance system with that automatically adapts the cutterbar settings to the respective harvesting conditions. The reel height is controlled on the basis of measurement data from a laser sensor within the FIELD SCANNER integrated in the cab roof. Vibration data recorded by a layer height sensor in the feed channel is also used to control the table length and the horizontal reel position.

As a result of the optimized cutterbar settings, crop flow into the threshing system is more even, which reduces the load on all units from the cutterbar to the feeder housing and the primary and secondary separation, further optimizing smooth running and at the same time improving the grain quality and ensuring constant outputs at maximum performance. The driver can fully concentrate on checking all machine data and quality parameters in CEBIS, as well as on the transfer process when unloading on the move. The FIELD SCANNER has an additional cleaning function for extreme operating conditions, so that reliable optical detection of the crop is always guaranteed both for automated steering by detecting the crop edges and for CEMOS AUTO HEADER.

New rapeseed knives and reel traction control for VARIO cutterbars

After the introduction of new rapeseed knives and a new reel drive for the three widest VARIO  cutterbars, these features are now also available for the smaller working widths. The new rapeseed cutting knives feature powerful mechanical drives with an integrated overload clutch and a cutting force that has been increased by 50 percent. This means that even the most difficult areas on field edges and bends or with heavy weeds can be driven through reliably and without problems. Thanks to an ingenious plug-in system with quick couplers, fitting is possible without tools within a few seconds on each side. Installation is also made easier by the 33 percent reduction in weight. Thanks to a new clamping device, the assembly and disassembly of the stalk dividers for grain harvesting is also simplified.

The new reel drive works with a gearbox instead of the previous chain drive. As a result, the automatic traction control for the traction-dependent reel height adjustment is also finding its way into the smaller VARIO cutterbars. When using the automatic reel system, which automatically adjusts the reel speed relative to the driving speed, a sensor continuously measures the hydraulic pressure in the reel drive. If this increases due to high harvest quantities so that the drive can no longer maintain the required reel speed, the reel height is automatically increased slightly until the required speed is reached again. If the pressure decreases, the automatic system lowers the reel again. Both the level of drive torque for triggering the control and the response behavior can be set separately in CEBIS.