Analysis of the energy consumption of a rotary harrow

This paper shows the development and study of a FEM model of a rotary harrow. A proper use of a rotary harrow depends on its geometry and on the working parameters, such as: drag speed and angular speed. The aim of this work is to develop a rotary harrow model in the ANSYS environment in order to analyze and to optimize its geometric parameters. The model, validated through comparison with some experimental data, was then used to analyze the forces exchanged between the tines and the soil as a function of the drag speed, the angular speed and the working depth. Different tine orientations and three different types of terrain were considered