Research on the orthogonal experiment of numeric simulation of macromolecule-cleaning element for sugarcane harvester

Leaf-cleaning element is the key part of small scale sugarcane harvester used in hill fields. The paper elaborated a kind of quickly and highly efficient optimal design method for macromolecule-cleaning element. The optimized design was based on the method of numerical simulation of orthogonal experiment. According to the principle of orthogonal experiment and the special material as well as the working characteristics of cleaning element, a finite element model was built with ANSYS software based on different factors and levels. The analysis model was amended repeatedly to match the results from experiment. Given the boundary restraint conditions and load, the finite element analysis and calculation were carried out. FEA (finite element analysis) calculating results were analyzed based on variance analysis and regression analysis, so that optimum parameters of cleaning element could be found quickly. The results were used to improve the design of the leaf-cleaning element. The experimental results showed that the stress of the leaf-cleaning element was greatly reduced and its lifetime was prolonged. The experimental results proved that this method is very effective and feasible.