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This study uses a hybrid concept to propose an optimal textured surface morphology for enhancing water condensation. The natural phenomenon-inspired morphology, which combined different degrees of wettability presented on the surface, documented their advantage in water harvesting compared to untreated surfaces. These superiorities might be explained by the appropriate combination of nucleation and water-driven ability facilitated by the superhydrophobic surrounding area. The uniform condensed droplets are effectively agglomerated to achieve the critical size. The best combination was found on a superhydrophobic-hydrophilic hybrid sample that improved water collection efficiency by up to 50% compared to bare Al. Condensation performance also illustrated an interesting tendency that revealed the great contribution of wettability on hydrophilic dots and the water-driven ability of the high-hydrophobicity area. The results were supported by a theoretical model which predicts the critical volume of a single droplet before it has departed from the surface. The findings reveal a good level of agreement between theory and real-time measurement, demonstrating the potential of combinations of hybrid samples to induce water collection efficiency.

Abstract Background Earthquakes and landslides pose significant threats to human safety and property, necessitating early warning systems. However, the high construction costs of earthquake early warning systems present a challenge. Purpose Landslide warnings are more prevalent, so linking them to earthquake warnings could address cost concerns. Hence, it is crucial to validate the feasibility of utilizing GNSS landslide monitoring as assistance for earthquake early warning systems. Methods This paper analyzes acceleration anomaly data from 31 GNSS landslide monitoring points near the epicenter of the May 2, 2023, MW = 5.2 Baoshan earthquake in Yunnan. The response time was determined as the time difference between an earthquake's occurrence and GNSS's acceleration anomalies. This calculation helps measure the time delay and sensitivity between these two events. Data were obtained from the geological disaster monitoring and early warning management system. Results GNSS landslide monitoring showed high sensitivity to nearby earthquakes. The fastest response time among the 31 data points was 8 seconds, while the slowest was 56 seconds, all falling within the one-minute mark. A linear correlation was found between acceleration anomaly response time and distance from the epicenter, indicating the feasibility of GNSS landslide monitoring-assisted earthquake monitoring. Conclusion A proposal is made for a GNSS landslide monitoring cluster to establish a multi-dimensional landslideearthquake disaster warning system. This approach offers new methods for combining earthquake and landslide early warning systems, leveraging existing infrastructure for cost-effectiveness and enhancing disaster preparedness.

Wheat is the most important crop and food in the feed consumption pattern. By reducing wheat loss in the harvesting stage, it is possible to significantly increase the production of this crop. Due to the acceptance of farmers in the use of straw collecting combines, the number of this type of combines is increasing, especially for harvesting wheat. This research was conducted in order to investigate the effect of spike density per unit area (340, 350 and 440) and the combine forward speed (1, 2 and 3 km/h) on the percentage of quality loss of wheat in harvesting with a straw collecting combine in Khorramabad city. In this research, Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was used to model and minimize the wheat quality loss. The results showed that process variable was statistically significant as quadratic regression model for response (p

The current paper has presented the study results for the period of 2020–2022 to determine the effect of injury on the quality indicators of seed material in primary seed production of winter wheat varieties (‘Stanichnaya’, ‘Etyud’, Asket, ‘Lidiya’ and ‘Ambar’) during harvesting and post-harvest processing of seeds. There has been established that at different stages of technology in agricultural machines and grain cleaning equipment, during grain production, there was damage to the seed material. There have been identified certain types of injuries that most significantly worsen the sowing quality of seeds and reduce winter wheat productivity. The purpose of the study was to estimate the sowing seed qualities of winter bread wheat varieties of different maturity groups developed by the FSBSI «ARC «Donskoy» depending on their injury by the combine harvester and grain cleaning machines in the primary stages of seed production. The estimation of the quality of winter wheat seed material was carried out on the material obtained during winter wheat harvesting, such as manual threshing (control), threshing with the combine ‘Wintersteiger Classic’, after seed cleaning and sorting equipment VIM-1 «Selection» and Petkus K-531 «Gigant». When harvesting with the combine ‘Wintersteiger Classic’, two threshing modes were used: 1) recommended – 1500 rpm-1; 2) with a reduced speed of the threshing drum – 1000 rpm-1. There has been found that the highest level of seed injury was observed when threshing with a grain harvester (33–54 %). There has been determined that, depending on the type of the trial, the germination energy indicators varied from 89 to 98 %, and laboratory germination from 94 to 99 %. Caryopsis with damage in the embryo area had a high germination rate in laboratory conditions. With an increase in microtraumas, field germination has decreased by 4–17 % compared to the control. The maximum injury and reduction in field germination of seeds was observed in the varieties of the early maturing group. Post-harvest processing of seeds has led to an increase in the percentage of their injury by 1–6 %, regardless of the type of equipment used.

IntroductionThe harvesting stage is the most crucial phase in peanut production. In other words, one of the critical stages in producing this product is the harvest stage. Although it has its difficulties, this stage is associated with significant losses, which experts attribute to the high economic value of peanuts. In recent years, farmers in the Moghan Plain have also started considering this product due to the special conditions of the Iranian economy. In 2020, this study investigated three methods of peanut harvesting in two stages: manual, tractor-mounted thresher (semi-mechanized), and harvesting with a pull-type combine. The first stage involves the complete removal of the plants from the soil, while the second stage involves drying and separating the peanut pod from the plant in Moghan.Methods and MaterialsThe experiment followed a split-plot design in the form of randomized complete blocks with four replications. The main plot consisted of soil moisture levels at harvest time, which were tested at three different levels: a1- 21%, a2- 18%, and a3- 15%. The sub-plot involved testing the separation of peanut pods from the plant using three different methods: b1- combine harvesting, b2- harvesting with a tractor-mounted thresher, and b3- manual harvesting. The study evaluated important harvest indicators such as quantitative loss (first and second-stage losses), actual field capacity, harvest time, and the number of required laborers. The results led to the identification of the best harvesting system.Results and DiscussionThe study revealed that the optimal soil moisture content for the initial stage of harvest was 18%. For most parameters, there was a significant difference observed among treatments at the 1% level. The pull-type combine method had the highest farm capacity with a maximum of 0.46 ha per hour, while the manual harvesting method had the lowest capacity with a minimum of 0.006 ha per hour. The total losses ranged between 5.95% and 10.58%, with the manual harvesting method exhibiting the lowest loss and the pull-type combine method showing the highest loss. Furthermore, the manual harvesting method required more labor compared to the other methods.ConclusionBased on the obtained results, it is recommended to use a pull-type combine for the early harvesting of peanuts and a manual method for obtaining high-quality peanuts in the Moghan region.

PURPOSETo evaluate the local efficacy, safety, and long-term outcomes of combined radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and multipronged ethanol ablation (EA) in the treatment of unfavorable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to determine the prognostic factors for survival.METHODSBetween August 2009 and December 2017, 98 patients with 110 unfavorable HCC nodules who underwent combined RFA and multipronged EA were retrospectively enrolled in the study. Unfavorable HCC was defined as a medium (3.1–5.0 cm) or large (5.1–7.0 cm) HCC nodule, a tumor located at a high-risk site, or a perivascular tumor. The treatment response, overall survival (OS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS) were analyzed. The Kaplan–Meier method and Cox proportional hazards regression model were used to evaluate the prognostic factors.RESULTSComplete ablation was obtained in 80.9% (89/110) of the tumors after initial treatment. Major complications were observed in 3 (3.1%) patients. The cumulative incidence of local tumor progression (LTP) was 23.5% at five years, and no variable was found to be an independent predictive factor for LTP. The five-year OS and RFS rates were 41.9% and 34.0%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that the serum alpha-fetoprotein level, tumor size, presence of residual tumor after ablation, and extrahepatic metastases were significant prognostic factors for OS (P = 0.023, P = 0.030, P = 0.001, and P = 0.010, respectively). Tumor type and the number of tumors were predictive factors for RFS (P = 0.029 and P = 0.001, respectively). A perivascular tumor was not an independent predictive factor for OS or RFS.CONCLUSIONCombined RFA and multipronged EA is a safe and effective treatment for unfavorable HCC, especially for perivascular tumors.

In this article, based on the Lagrange principle, the fundamental elements of the mechanics of continuous media with moving boundaries in relation to hydraulic drive systems of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters are developed, which allows to expand the field of research and modeling diagnostics of these systems. The elements of the theory, the method of calculation of nonstationary processes of one - dimensional motions of uncompressed liquid media with moving media boundaries in hydraulic channels of complex geometric shapes of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters are developed in the article. The analysis of methods of numerical solution of systems of ordinary differential equations with discontinuous coefficients is performed. It is shown that the Bless method is a more effective method of numerical solution of such systems of equations in the studied area. It is shown that for one-dimensional motions of uncompressed liquid media moving in the channel and bounded by moving boundaries, the calculation is reduced to solving the equation a a(x,t)ẍ= b(x, t)ẋ 2 + c(x, t). Here x = x (t) is the coordinate of the front or rear boundary of the liquid medium moving in the channel. It is shown that this equation is a generalized Bernoulli equation in the case of the motion of incompressible liquid media with moving boundaries. This equation is similar to the equation of motion of bodies with variable mass, and is convenient for use in CAD. The theory and method of calculation of processes of incomplete hydraulic shock arising at filling of liquid or gas-liquid environments of channels with local hydraulic support of difficult geometrical forms, for example, the centrifugal pump of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters are created.The method of engineering calculation is obtained, which allows to determine the coefficient ε of compression of the liquid jet and the value of ∆p̅ = (p1 - p0 )/p0 relative shock pressure increase with incomplete hydraulic impact on local hydraulic resistance of complex geometric shape of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters. Thus, the elements of the theory are created, as well as the method of calculating non-stationary processes of movement of uncompressed liquid media in the channels of complex geometric shapes of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters. The method is used in the calculation of the dynamics of the start of the ampouled hydraulic system of the drive of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters with minimum volumes of 1...10% of gas cavities for storage of the working fluid of the drive. The elements of the theory described above and the created calculation methods allow to expand the field of research of dynamic modes of operation of hydraulic systems of power drive of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters in the process of filling working fluid channels of hydraulic systems with branches and hydraulic supports. Their application has allowed to increase the accuracy and reliability of diagnosing real processes characteristic of hydraulic drive systems of hydrostatic transmissions of combine harvesters, especially in difficult conditions of their amputation

Engineering management of the technical condition of combine harvesters is mainly entrusted to the combine operator or service team, for which the greatest difficulty is related to information and intellectual aspects, which determine the high requirements for operator qualification, to the level of technical diagnostic tools. The solution of manually littlestudied and complex problems of technical diagnostics of combine harvesters encounters natural difficulties associated with the need for heuristic processing of large amounts of information and logical analysis of complex interconnected processes. The value of these factors is exacerbated by the rapidity of the harvesting process, the high risk of erroneous or delayed assessment of the technical condition of the combine, which leads to significant crop losses and does not allow to obtain a possible effect. Thus, ensuring high quality maintenance of the combine harvester largely depends on the professional competence of staff, which is a deep knowledge of the design of the machine and its subsystems: mechanical systems, hydraulics, electrical equipment

This paper presents a report on outcomes of the 10th Computational Modeling in Biology Network (COMBINE) meeting that was held in Heidelberg, Germany, in July of 2019. The annual event brings together researchers, biocurators and software engineers to present recent results and discuss future work in the area of standards for systems and synthetic biology. The COMBINE initiative coordinates the development of various community standards and formats for computational models in the life sciences. Over the past 10 years, COMBINE has brought together standard communities that have further developed and harmonized their standards for better interoperability of models and data. COMBINE 2019 was co-located with a stakeholder workshop of the European EU-STANDS4PM initiative that aims at harmonized data and model standardization for in silico models in the field of personalized medicine, as well as with the FAIRDOM PALs meeting to discuss findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable (FAIR) data sharing. This report briefly describes the work discussed in invited and contributed talks as well as during breakout sessions. It also highlights recent advancements in data, model, and annotation standardization efforts. Finally, this report concludes with some challenges and opportunities that this community will face during the next 10 years.

Abstract Community Readiness Model (CRM) through pragmatic mixed methods design, combining quantitative CRM survey with qualitative data, was used to assess the level of preparedness and readiness among local leaders, employers and community members in supporting working mothers to combine breastfeeding with work. The study was conducted in one of the tea state farms in Kericho County of Kenya. A total of 17 purposively selected men (fathers), lactating mothers, peer educators, health professionals (doctors, nurses and nutritionists), tea plantation managers and grandmothers were interviewed. The CRM that has six different dimensions was applied to determine the stage of readiness to support working mothers to combine breastfeeding with work. Community Readiness Score (CRS) was calculated descriptively as mean ± standard deviation (SD). Thematic analysis using NVIVO software was used to analyse qualitative data. We found that the mean (±SD) CRS was 7.3 (1.9), which corresponded to the third highest level of the nine stages or the ‘stabilization’ stage of community readiness. Dimensionally, the mean CRS was the highest (8.3 ± 1.9) for leadership followed by community efforts (7.5 ± 2.1), whereas the lowest CRS was observed for knowledge of efforts (6.6 ± 2.3) and availability of resources (6.6 ± 1.9). In conclusion, high level of readiness to support working women to combine work with breastfeeding with suboptimal knowledge of efforts and availability of resources was observed in the area. Future interventions should focus on enabling the community to feel more comfortable and creating detailed and refined knowledge on combining breastfeeding with work.

The purpose of this study: the identification of the relationship between certain types of sport climbing in the Olympic discipline rock climbing "all-round" at boys 16-17 years old. Material and methods. The study was attended by 16 -17-year-old athletes, youth championships in 2017 in Innsbruck (Austria). Results of the analysis of 79 youngsters of climbers aged 16-17 years, representing 36 countries of the world. It was analyzed the results of the all-round, shown by the participants of the competition, and time passing the reference tracks on the speed. In the framework of the conducted research, protocols of competitions from all-rounders were analyzed, and to the points scored by each participant of the competition was added his time passing the route to speed. Results 1. Between results in certain types of rock climbing and all-round, reliable interrelationships were found between the results in the "Multiplayer" and "Difficulty" types (r = 0.69, p 0,05). Conclusion. For a high result in all-round competition, athletes who specialize in the disciplines "Difficulty" and "Bouldering" are more likely to have more chances, as the results in these disciplines are interrelated. For athletes who specialize in the "Speed" discipline, achieving a high score is a difficult task, since the results in the discipline "speed" are not related to the results in the disciplines "Difficulty" and "Bouldering" and do not significantly affect the outcome in all-round.

Combine has been well adopted by smallholders in lowlands of Cambodia and is contributing to the development of mechanized rice production for commercial purposes. Broken rice is a major issue for the commercial rice product, and fissured grain at harvest leads to broken rice and lowers head rice yield (HRY) during milling. Factors that determine grain fissures and broken rice were obtained from three studies: an on-farm study of fissured grain, a research station experiment of fissured grain and broken rice harvested at different ripening stages and a mill study of fissured and broken rice during drying and milling processes in Cambodia. There was significant variation in fissured rice percentage among 20 farms sampled, and the fissured grain was negatively correlated with grain moisture content at harvest. Time of harvesting was crucial, as delay in harvesting after 25 days after flowering (DAF) often resulted in lower grain moisture content and higher fissured grain, which subsequently reduced HRY. However, the optimum time of harvesting varied across four seasons for crops harvested manually or by combine. In some years, crops harvested at 35 DAF had rather low per cent fissured grain with subsequently high HRY, this may have been associated with slightly lower temperatures. The mill study showed that fissured grain developed during the drying, storage and milling processes. It is concluded that while grain moisture content at the time of harvest may be used as an indication of subsequent HRY, the latter was more strongly related to fissured grain at harvest.

Introduction One of the problems which considered in recent years for grain harvesting is loss of wheat during production until consumption and tenders the offers for prevention of its especially in harvesting times by combine harvesting machine. Grain harvesting combines are good examples of an operation where a compromise must be made. One would expect increased costs because of natural loss before harvesting, because of cutter bar loss, because of threshing loss, because of greater losses over the sieve and because of the reduced forward speed necessary to permit the through put material to feed passed the cylinder. The ability to recognize and evaluate compromise solutions and be able to predict the loosed grain is a valuable trait of the harvesting machine manager. By understanding the detailed operation of machines, be able to check their performance, and then arrive at adjustments or operating producers which produce the greatest economic return. Voicu et al. (2007) predicted the grain loss in cleaning part of the combine harvester by using the laboratory simulator based on dimensional analysis method. The obtained model was capable to predict the grain loss perfectly. Soleimani and Kasraei (2012) designed and developed a header simulator to optimize the combine header in rapeseed harvesting. Parameters of interest were: forward speed, cutter bar speed and reel index. The results showed that all the factors were significant in 5% probability. Also in the case of forward speed was 2 km h-1, cutter bar speed was 1400 rpm and reel index was 1.5, the grain loss had minimum quantity. The main purpose of this research was to develop an equation for predicting grain loss in combine header simulator. Modeling of the header grain loss was conducted using dimensional analysis approach. Effective factors on grain loss in combine header unit were: forward speed, reel speed and cutter bar height. Materials and Methods For studying the effective parameters on head loss in grain combine harvester, a header simulator with the following components was built in Biosystems Engineering Department of Shiraz University. Reel unit The reel size was 120 cm length and 100 cm diameter. This reel was removed from an old combine header and installed on a fixed bed. For changing the rotational speed of the reel, an electrical inverter (N50-007SF, Korea) was used. Cutter bar unit The cutter bar length was 120 cm. Knifes were installed on this section. Reciprocating motion was transmitted to the cutter bar through a slider crank attached to a variable speed electric motor (1.5kw, 1400 rpm, Poland). The motor was fixed on the bed. Feeder unit This section was consisted of a rail and a virtual ground. This ground was a tray that the wheat stems were staying on it manually. The rail was the path of virtual ground. Treatments consisted of three levels of rotational speed of reel (21, 25 and 30 rpm), three levels of forward speed of virtual ground (2, 3 and 4 km h-1), three levels of cutter bar height (15, 25 and 35 cm) and three replications. In other words, 81 tests were done. The basis of choosing levels of treatments was combine harvester manuals and driver’s experiences. The dependent variable (H.L) was calculated as below: (1) Where L.G is the mass of loss grains and H.G is the mass of harvested grains. Results and Discussion Generally results of ANOVA test showed that the cutter bar height, rotational speed of reel and forward speed had significant effect on head loss. Also interaction of rotational speed and forward speed, cutter bar height and forward speed had significant effect on head loss. These findings were based on Soleimani and Kasraei (2012) research. Therefore, the cutter bar height, rotational speed of reel and forward speed were three independent parameters on head loss as a dependent parameter. By results of laboratory data, the equation for predicting grain loss by header simulator was obtained. Conclusions The statistical results of F- test in 5% probability showed that there were no significant difference between measured and predicted amounts for laboratory data.

Introduction Nowadays, many studies were performed about noise source and its type and effects related to duration of sound emission. Most of these researches just report sound pressure level in frequency or time domain. These researches should be continued in order to find better absorber material in noise pollution. Use of fractal geometry is a new method in this filed. Wave fractal dimension value is a strong tool for diagnosis of signal instability and fractal analysis is a good method to finding sound signal characteristics. Therefore the aim of this study is on the fractal geometry of SAMPO 3065 combine harvester signals and determine the fractal dimension value of these signals in different operational conditions by Katz, Sevcik, Higuchi and MRBC methods. Materials and Methods In this research, sound signals of SAMPO 3065 harvester combine that were recorded by Maleki and Lashgari (2014), were analyzed. Engine speed (high and low), gear ratio (neutral, 1st, 2nd, 3rd gear), type of operation (traveling and harvesting) and microphone position (in and out of the cabin) were the main factors of this research. For determining signal fractal dimension value in time domain, wave shape supposed as a geometrical shape and for calculation of fractal dimension value of these signals, total area of wave shape was divided into boxes in 50, 100, 200 milliseconds with an interval 25 millisecond box. Then Fractal dimension value of these boxes was calculated by Katz, Sevcik, Higuchi and MRBC methods using MATLAB (2010a) software. SPSS (Ver.20) software was used for further analysis. Results and Discussion Results showed mean effects of engine speed, microphone position, gear ratio, type of operation, box length, calculation method and all of two way interaction effects were significant. Means of Fractal Dimension in the road and field position were 1.4 and 1.28 respectively. The Maximum growth ratio of fractal dimension value during engine speed levels was related to road position. By increasing of box length and number of data points in each box, the fractal dimension value was increased. Investigation of fractal dimension methods showed changes of box length did not affect fractal dimension value in Higuchi method and range of this factor while box length varied were 0.001, 0.171, 0.005 and 0.024 in Higuchi, Katz, MRBC and Sevcik method respectively. These results showed that Katz method has maximum sensitivity and MRBC method like Higuchi method had the minimum sensitivity by changing of box length. In this research fractal dimension value of SAMPO Combine signals in the time domain in different operation conditions were investigated by Katz, Sevcik, Higuchi and MRBC methods. These values varied from 1 to 1.5 in different conditions. Maximum fractal dimension value was 1.63 in case of no cabin by MRBC method. Increasing of box length or further the data point cause of increasing fractal dimension value with increasing of sound pressure level of combine due to increasing of engine speed and working of different parts of harvesting combine. Due to define of sound pressure level, and increasing of this item in each gear ratio ,this can be justify that in high engine speed, wave turbulent is higher than low speed and this turbulent appeared in fractal dimension value. Conclusions One of the important factors in the evaluation of the time series disturbance is fractal dimension. Therefore, the study of sound signals can be an effective role in this regard. Factors such as the cabin existence, gear type, engine speed and operational state of combining parts had a considerable role in distribution of combinimg sound signals and fractal dimention of these signals. For example cabin acts as a barrier in the sound wave and decrease the sound pressure level near driver ear and cause decrease fractal dimention of signals. The study of time series with different lengths have shown that the duration time of the calculation in various methods had a significant effect. Increasing the length of signals due to a higher number of signal data cause to increase calculation time of fractal dimension calculation, while the changes of fractal dimension in increasing of the number of data is minimum and negligible. Therefore, the choice of the appropriate length of the signal is important.

Standards are essential to the advancement of Systems and Synthetic Biology. COMBINE provides a formal body and a centralised platform to help develop and disseminate relevant standards and related resources. The regular special issue of the Journal of Integrative Bioinformatics aims to support the exchange, distribution and archiving of these standards by providing unified, easily citable access. This paper provides an overview of existing COMBINE standards and presents developments of the last year.

A head feed combine was evaluated for optimization of combine parameters, viz. cylinder speed (14.42, 15.53 and 16.64 m/s), forward speed (3.5, 4.0 and 4.5 km/h), and crop parameter, viz. grain moisture content (18.1 to 22.4%) in relation to threshing efficiency, cleaning efficiency and total grain losses for scented and non-scented paddy (Oryza sativa L.) varieties. Moisture content of 18.1%, cylinder speed of 15.53 m/s and forward speed of 4.0 km/h was found optimum for harvesting of scented paddy variety Pusa 1121, whereas moisture content of 18.1%, cylinder speed of 16.64 m/s and forward speed of 4.5 km/h was found optimum for harvesting of non-scented paddy variety HKR 127.

In sunflower harvesting for decreasing the grain loss and increasing using efficiency of the combines GIS technologies, namely combines equipped with GPS devices and control sensors provides good results. This is explained that by the fact that with a length of 400-500 mm, the cut baskets did not partially fall on the divider-guide, and with a length of 700-800 mm, seed losses increased due to uncut baskets, since with an increase in length the divider-guide bent some stems forward and did not cut them. Analyzing the studies of working process of the adapted grain harvester combine Dominator-130 that equipped with GPS receiver and grain level indicator sensor in sunflower harvesting defined optimal parameters its header, as the following values: the length of the divider-guide (lТ) - 0.6 m, the gap between the divider-guides (ST) - 0.1 m, the installation angle of the divider-guide relative to the bottom of the header (βТ) - 5 degrees. With these parameters, the combine that has adapted header for harvesting sunflower meets the agro technical requirements for harvesting sunflower.

GIS technology based on real-time smart devices, including GPS devices and sensors will be widely used in agricultural technology. Therefore, this technology is being expected in crop harvesting process. One of the most important processes in soybean cultivation is the efficient use of combines and harvesting without loss of harvest. The grain harvester combine Dominator-130 equipped with GPS receiver and grain level sensor was researched in harvesting the soybean. According to results of experiments, during the harvesting of soybean the grain cleanness in a tank of the combine harvester Dominator-130 made up 95.9 per cent, grain loss in a thresher of combine made up 0.7 per cent, these indexes answer to the demands, however in a reaper of combine harvester the grain loss and damaging of grain were higher than demand. Therefore, it is important to define the optimal technological parameters and working regimes that give opportunity to decrease the loss of grain in the reaper of combine and damaging of grain in the thresher of combine for harvesting the soybean.

Dolj County is an administrative territorial unit representative for the South-West, at least in terms of agricultural production, given its potential (agricultural land and arable land - 585,363 and 488, 715 ha). In this context, it is interesting to realize an overview of what it means agricultural equipment of Dolj with major mechanical components of the park (tractors, tractor plows, seeders and combine aerial) over the period 2011-2013. Unfortunately the work could not also capture the qualitative aspects of the mechanical park side, given that many of the machines are outdated. In this situation there is a need to modernize the mechanical park, operation down menus difficult to de-capitalization conditions of the greater part of farmers. Attracting European funds constitutes a viable alternative for only a part of manufacturers, unfortunately, those with favorable financial conditions. This paper seeks to anchor Dolj County, in terms of endowment with mechanical, in regional and national context.

The mechanical harvesting is an important stage in the production process of soybeans and, in this process; the loss of a significant number of grains is common. Despite the existence of mechanisms to monitor these losses, it is still essential to use sampling methods to quantify them. Assuming that the size of the sample area affects the reliability and variability between samples in quantifying losses, this paper aimed to analyze the variability and feasibility of using different sizes of sample area (1, 2 and 3 m²) in quantifying losses in the mechanical harvesting of soybeans. Were sampled 36 sites and the cutting losses, losses by other mechanisms of the combine and total losses were evaluated, as well as the water content in seeds, straw distribution and crop productivity. Data were subjected to statistical analysis (descriptive statistics and analysis of variance) and Statistical Control Process (SCP). The coefficients of variation were similar for the three frames available. Combine losses showed stable behavior, whereas cutting losses and total losses showed unstable behavior. The frame size did not affect the quantification and variability of losses in the mechanical harvesting of soybeans, thus a frame of 1 m² can be used for determining losses.

Mining method applied in the RMU 'Soko', is repeatedly technologically modified and reached the maximum limit in terms of productivity, level of job performance and safety at work. And all the other methods, which are in the technological process of obtaining coal rely on the technology of drilling-blasting works, in terms of the mine 'Soko', can not allow mass production of coal, regarding natural and technical-technological conditions prevailing in Sokobanja coal basin. Therefore, this paper proposes a possible solution which would enable a significant increase in annual production by appling mechanized coal mining system.

Rapeseed cultivation in Iran is growing rapidly while this product has been facing specific problems. Every year a significant portion of edible oil is imported to the country from other countries. Despite this deficit, a great amount of canola is being lost every year. Therefore, in compliance with technical points, adding a suitable platform to the exisiting machineries may reduce the losses. A field study was conducted in Moghan Agricultural Research Centre to study the technical and economical characteristics of harvesting machineries and evaluate Canola harvesting losses in different maturity stages, using three different combine harvester heads. The experiments were conducted in a completely randomized split split plot design with four replications. The main plot included seed maturity stage at three levels: A) 60%, B) 70% and C) 80%, and the subplot was the harvester’s ground speed at three levels: A) 1.5, B) 2.5 and C) 3.5 km h-1. The sub-subplot was combine head type with three forms: A) Mechanical, B) Hydraulically Joybar and C) Hydraulically Biso's Head. The results of ANOVA showed that maximum cutter bar losses occurred with Mechanical Head (5.36%) while the loss of Hydraulically Joybar's and Biso's head were 4.28 and 4.13 %, respectively. The results also showed that the maximum cutter bar losses occurred when 80% of seeds were matured and adequate time for canola harvesting was 70% of seeds maturity. The results of analysing the effects of harvesting ground speeds showed that the maximum cutter bar losses occurred with the speed of 3.5 km h-1. Finally, the results showed that the minimum cutter bar loss was obtained with Hydraulically Joybar's head considering the benefit per cost ratio. The cost for Mechanical head and Hydraulically Biso's head were 13500 and 262500 Rial ha-1, respectively.

Although the mean of combine losses is about 4-5% in advanced countries, unfortunately in Iran is about 20% and higher. In order to obtain little loss it is necessary that product processes such as cutting, transporting, threshing, separation, etc. would be optimized. Expressing the equation of different parts of harvesting is the first step. Threshing is one of these processes which has more effect on combine performance. Reduction of MOG passing from concave could reduce the load on shoes that would increase cleaning system efficiency and decrease foreign materials in bin. Cutting height, feed rate, threshing clearance rate and cylinder speed are parameters which were used in combine design and its performance evaluating too. In order to evaluating of these parameters effect on threshing performance, experiment was conducted in 4×3×3 factorial pattern with Randomized Blocks design. Independent variables in this experiment were cutting height, feed rate, threshing clearance ratio and rotational velocity of threshing cylinder. MOG passing from concave was considered as dependent variable. Results showed that the effects of treatments on dependent variable were significant but interaction effects of them were not significant (P

Operation quality of an ear-picking device for mercantile maize is defined by the grain losses, quality of harvested mass and by straw chopper cutting height. Contemporary solutions for such machines should enable quality maize harvesting in various conditions, where losses and damage of grains would not exceed tolerable values. This paper gives the results of an exploitation study on operation quality of two ear-picking device types of self-propelled combine harvesters for mercantile maize in agroecological conditions of the Toplica County. The investigation aimed to establish operation quality, operation productivity and fuel consumption. During the first phase, operating conditions were established, whilst in the second phase operating effects were established, as affected by the defined parameters. The first type of ear-picking device for mercantile maize showed better operation quality, comparing than the second one, under similarly defined parameters. Mass harvested by the first device contained over 95.24% undamaged and 8.25 % unshucked ears, with shelling degree of 1.52%. Grain losses varied from 0.52-1.10%. In the second type, there were around 93.17% of whole ears and 9.10% of unshucked ones, with grain losses of 0.73-1.65%. Shelling degree was 2.93%. Driving velocity significantly affected the increase in straw chopper cutting height, so it was 19.2-23.6 cm for the first device type, and 19.7-32.3 cm for the second one. Operation productivity was between 0.96 and 1.23 ha h-1.

There are two methods to be used to harvest canola crop, namely direct and indirect methods; each method having it’s own procedure. The most common procedure prefered by Iranian farmers in direct harvesting is using combine with either conventional or canola head, while in indirect harvesting windrower is used prior to pick the rows up with grain harvester which is equipped with pickup head. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate grain losses in above mentioned methods and proposing an appropriate method for Khorasan region. Experiments in direct harvesting included three levels of grain moisture content, namely %15, %12 and %9. In indirect harvesting, crop was cut by windrower at three levels of grain moisture content of %40, %35 and %30. Then a grain combine with pick-up head was used for picking the rows when the moisture level reduced to 11%. Results showed that using a grain combine equipped with the canola header, was relatively more efficient than other harvesting methods, while the total losses in this method was much higher. The lowest loss in direct and indirect methods occurred at grain moisture contents of 12 and 40% for direct and indirect harvesting, respectively.