German company Zurn is showing an electrically operated combine harvester header. The result of development work between six partners, the prototype sees all mechanical drives swapped for 12 electric motors. There is one for the reel, one for the cutterbar and one at each end of the auger. Eight smaller electric motors power each belt on the table. The electricity comes from a generator, which is powered mechanically by the combine.
Apparently, the system can be set up to automatically change the reel, knife, table and auger speeds to suit changing conditions.
The John Deere harvester worked successfully with the system this year, and the company is looking to do more work with it next season. There are no price details, but Zurn says the header will fit any make of combine with no modifications.
By Steven Vale
