Text 10. Sugar beet harvesters

The problem of harvesting sugar beet is simpler than that of harvesting potatoes. The beet is more tolerant of mechanical damage. Also, beet grows in very straight lines, with similar root and crown shape. It is harvested in two operations: topping and then lifting.

Topping mechanisms. A series of discs known as the feeler wheel, driven by the axle of the harvester at a speed slightly greater than if it were rolling over the ground, pierces through the tops into the crown of the beet. The tops can be collected by a top saver and placed in a windrow or left scattered on the ground.

Lifting mechanism. The commonest type of lifting mechanism is a pair оf V-shaped shares, inclined slightly into the ground and depth — controlled by a screw — adjusted wheel.

The next mechanisms are designed to remove soil from the beet and carry the beet to a tan on the machine or a trailer being drawn alongside. The cleaning devices may consist of elevators with oval agitators or an elevator rolling the beet against a fixed web.

Another lifting mechanism consists of two large wheels, inclined towards each other. They rotate due to contact with the ground and lift the beet out of the ground.

Tractor wheel settings must suit the row width. The centre of the topping unit should be exactly one row width from the centre of the lifting unit. The lifting share⁴⁾ should run as shallow as possible, yet still harvest all the beet. If the soil is hard or stony, the pitch of the shares can be increased a little, to help penetration. The degree of agitation on the elevators depends upon the type and condition of the soil also on. Whether the beet is going to be cleaned again before being transported to the factory.

topping mechanism - обрезающий механизм

feeler wheel - копирующее колесо

top saver - ботвоуловитель

lifting share - подкапывающая лапа