Tractor Axle Adjustment Device
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Date
2014-12-01
Authors
Shewchuk, Dan
McMillan, Ian
Hong, Xiaoyan
Maynard, René
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Abstract
A tractor axle adjustment device was commissioned by our client MacDon to eliminate the current manual process. This was required so that they could adjust the axles of their windrowers from a wide stance (field mode) to a narrower stance (transport mode) with the push of a button. This system is to be marketed in European markets where road vehicle width restrictions are stricter than in North America. The adjustment process will be completed by first activating the reel fore-aft controls by mating the tractor header electrical harness to the header identification connector. Once the harness is connected, the reel fore-aft controls will be activated on the ground speed lever. When activated the rocker switch, located on the operator’s station, will activate the four line locks and allow the selector block to direct the flow to either the front or rear axles. In the front, hydraulic cylinders mounted from within the frame will adjust the front axles in and out. In the rear, hydraulic cylinders, mounted to new anti-shimmy plates, will move with the walking beam as it is adjusted in and out. The total cost for this design has been determined to be $3061.92, which includes the cost of all the parts and the labor costs associated with installation at a MacDon dealership. Although cost is higher than the allotted budget of $2500, the cost of all retail parts would decrease if these parts were purchased at wholesale. We determined that with a 30% decrease in the cost of all parts purchased from local part stores, the total cost of the design would decrease to $2490.43. The total cost of all frame modifications was determined to be $40. This is higher than our allotted frame modification budget of $25 due to of the complexity of the brackets mounting the hydraulic piston inside the frame. The total time required to adjust the axles once the reel fore-aft controls are activated is4.7seconds, which is a 3000% decrease in time when compared to the time required to complete the same process manually; which takes anywhere from 1.5 to 4 hours. In addition, three tests have been developed to validate: that the device achieves the desired widths, the width will not change over long periods of operation and the time required to adjust the axles is indeed 4.7 seconds.