From watch makers to the auto industry, almost all modern industries use springs in their machinery and the agricultural industry is no acceptation. Springs are regularly used for the OEM and MRO of agricultural machines. Which makes them incredibly important, because without theses machines running properly one of our countries most valuable and necessary industries would be handicapped.
So, lets take a look at some of the agricultural machines that use springs and how they use them.
Agricultural Machines That Use Compression Springs
- Tractors: One of the most common machines throughout all forms of agriculture, tractors can be used for any thing from tilling fields to hauling product. Tractors are heavy machinery that require substantial shock absorptions systems, the main component of which is heavy compression springs. Also, compression springs are used in virtually every other part of the tractor, from the engine to the transmission to the locks on the doors.
- Tillage Equipment: This equipment is used to turn up soil by pulling large metal rungs deep in the soil. The deeper the till the better, and the deeper you till the more shock your equipment will experience. This is why large diameter compression springs are used at the base of the till, helping the till avoid damage. In this case a quality springs really make a difference in how well the tillage equipment performs and can dramatically reduce the amount of time it takes to till a field. Some more complicated tills also use expansion springs on the hitch to stop it from catching and causing a sudden stop.
- Combine Harvester: Similar to tractors, combine harvesters, or simply combines, are incredibly versatile machines that our agricultural industry heavily relies on. They also have many of the heavy machinery requirements that tractors have including shock absorption. Combines are mainly used for harvesting crops and have made they work of harvesting much more efficient then ever before. They can be incredibly complicated and have many moving parts that utilize compression springs and occasionally torsion springs.
- Irrigation Systems: One of the most important pieces of agriculture is proper irrigation and on most modern farms they use simple but important systems called pivot irrigation systems. You’ve probably seen them – they’re often made of one long irrigation pipe that sits atop many sets of wheels. The wheels are almost always equipped with compression springs to be used as shock absorbers and to help maintain balance between every pair of wheels.
As you can see, springs are incredibly important in agriculture and even more abundant than could be explained in this post. They help maintain yet another industry that we could not live without.
