02020naa a2200181 a 450000100080000000500110000800800410001910000200006024500480008026000090012852015510013765000130168865000190170165000090172070000170172970000170174677300750176314686042007-10-05       2005    bl ---       0--  u    #d1 aMESQUITA, C. M.  aSelf-propelled prototype soybean harvester.  c2005  aA four-row self-propelled prototype of a new and simplified concept soybean harvester was built and fied tested as part of a major project acrried out for several years. The prototype threshes soybeans from standing, uncut plants using impact energy provided by plastic fingers mounted on opposite rotating shafts, and uses a pneumatic system for capturing, separating, cleaning, and transporting the beans. Compared to ten different combines from each of three brands with conventional tangentially fed threshing systems, and ten different combines from a brand with an axial-flow threshing system, the prototype-harvested seeds were significantly better with respect to broken/split beans and seed coat damage than all the combines with tangentially fed threshing systems. The amounts of material-other-than-grain (MOG) in the sample harvested with the prototype were significantly less than for all conventional brands. The seed vigor of the sample from the prototype was significantly better than those from one of the combine brands with a tangentially fed threshing system. Invisible mechanical damage, germination, and grain field losses were not statistically different between the prototype and all combine brands evaluated. The overall results confirmed the better quality of the collected beans, including that obtained with previous versions of the prototype. It also showed that the harvesting module, initially designed for small and medium-size farms, was adaptable to a sel-propelled unit and therefore to larger-scale operations.  aColheita  aDano Mecânico  aSoja1 aHANNA, M. A.1 aCOSTA, N. P.  tTransactions of the Asae, St. Josephgv. 48, n. 4, p. 1301-1310, 2005.