Agritechnica: Air powers Grimme separation system
Spud equipment giant Grimme has come up with a nifty new air-powered trash separation system for its harvesters.
Unlike the typical mechanical systems for separating potatoes from soil and stone, Airsep relies on powerful jets of air. These make the crop float above the heavier unwanted material, which is then jettisoned through a stone flap.
Grimme says using air instead of water means the crop always goes into the store dry. It’s also much quicker – a two-row potato harvester with brush separation would typically achieve 30t/hr, but Grimme claims the same machine fitted with Airsep will manage up to 60t/hr.
The German maker has also built a new mechanical axle cleaning system for its harvesters. This removes soil and haulm to help minimise the spread of diseases such as potato cyst nematode.
