The Most Likely Vehicle for Our Country To Catch Up with Is This New Energy Tractor

There is a significant gap in tractor technology between China and developed countries abroad. Can China still catch up? Is there a possibility of overtaking on curves? What technology or type of new energy tractor can be used to catch up? This time, let's talk about this issue based on personal cognition.

1. What technologies have tractor gear shifting gone through? Tractors have undergone a long period of development over the past 100 years, and their manufacturing technology and performance have undergone earth shaking changes. The development and progress of tractor technology are reflected in multiple aspects, such as the adequacy of power, smoothness of movement, smoothness of shifting, economy of use, and comfort of driving, etc. Taking gear shifting as an example, it has been a persistent issue throughout the development of tractor technology. For many years, tractors have used gear shifting. At the beginning, when using gears to shift gears directly, there is often a phenomenon of tooth biting when shifting gears or shifting gears. Later on, people invented synchronizers, also known as gear shifting sleeves, which basically solved the problem of gear shifting, making the shifting operation effortless and fast, and preventing misoperation, ensuring the safety of shifting. Due to the need to step on the clutch to cut off power when shifting gears, it is quite troublesome and can also cause the tractor to experience lag during the shifting process. For this reason, people invented power shift technology. The power shift gearbox consists of multiple clutches and friction plates. The driver controls the disengagement and engagement of each clutch in the gearbox through an electro-hydraulic control unit, thereby achieving gear switching without cutting off power. This makes it more convenient for the tractor to shift gears, and the number of gears has significantly increased, greatly facilitating the tractor to be paired with various agricultural machinery for field operations. Automatic transmission tractors are achieved through a continuously variable transmission system, which can continuously change the transmission ratio within a certain range. The continuously variable transmission allows the tractor to automatically adjust the transmission ratio under different operating conditions to maintain the engine running within the optimal fuel efficiency speed range. This continuous variable speed capability enables the tractor to maintain efficient operation under different loads and speeds, greatly improving the automation level and operational efficiency of the tractor. In fact, it has only been a few years since China fully popularized synchronous gear shifting, while foreign tractor technology has already achieved power shifting and automatic transmission. However, the power shift and automatic transmission tractors in our country have only appeared in the market for a few years and are not yet mature, which is the gap in tractor technology in our country.

2. The new energy tractor may be our opportunity to catch up comprehensively and stay behind the advanced level of foreign countries, even if we closely catch up, we cannot keep up. Because you have learned a little and made some progress, and they have moved forward a lot, the gap not only cannot be narrowed, but may even widen. In terms of power shift technology, we proposed the concept of heavy-duty tractors in 2009 and held a national conference to promote and popularize power shift tractor technology. It has been 15 years since then, and the tractor with power shift technology in China is still not very mature. In the current tractor subsidy sales data, the subsidy sales of power shift tractors can illustrate the problem.

However, China's rebound in the field of electric vehicles provides a very important inspiration for the agricultural machinery industry: new energy tractors are the direction and opportunity for China to catch up with advanced foreign levels. When it comes to new energy tractors, the first thing that comes to mind may be electric tractors. In fact, there are various types of new energy tractors that China has already or is currently trying, including pure electric tractors, hybrid tractors, and fuel cell tractors. I personally believe that hybrid tractors may be the direction and opportunity for new energy tractors to surpass. In my personal understanding, from a long-term development perspective, series plug-in or extended range hybrid tractors may have more advantages in the future and are more likely to become a type of leapfrog development in tractor technology in China. This new energy tractor can be powered by both diesel and electricity, and its automation level can be greatly improved. It may even be made into a "foolproof tractor" that is convenient for farmers to use. Some people may be concerned about the high investment and cost of this type of tractor, fearing that farmers may not be able to accept it. In fact, there is no need to worry, because as long as the Chinese can do something, they can lower the price, especially when the quantity is large, it will soon become "cabbage price". With so many smart and capable agricultural machinery workers like us, as long as we can produce it, have market demand, and reduce costs, it's not a big deal!

3. The most promising model of new energy tractor is the new energy tractor, which has multiple types. We need to choose a model that is suitable for China's national conditions, especially for the tractor industry. In my opinion, new energy tractors can also be classified according to new energy vehicles, which can be divided into pure electric tractors, hybrid tractors, and fuel cell tractors. Hybrid tractors can be divided into series, parallel, and hybrid types based on the connection between the engine and power battery. New energy tractors come in two types: plug-in and extended range. In my personal opinion, considering the performance, structural complexity, manufacturing cost, and ease of use of tractors, series plug-in hybrid tractors and extended range hybrid tractors may be the future development direction and are more suitable as key models for research and development.

The working principle of a series hybrid tractor is shown in the figure. The engine drives the generator to form a generator set, which can directly supply the electric motor to drive the tractor through the gearbox, or charge the power battery pack; The power battery pack and electric motor can also drive the tractor to move through the gearbox. That is to say, the power of this type of tractor can be diesel or electric, which means that the power battery pack can be charged by an external power source. As an electric tractor, it can also use a diesel engine for power, which is more flexible and has a longer range, and is not affected by the construction of charging stations. In my personal opinion, if the gearbox of a series hybrid tractor is removed and replaced with a wheel side motor, it becomes an extended range hybrid tractor. This type of tractor eliminates mechanical transmission mechanisms such as gearbox and differential. If the performance of the tractor can be guaranteed, it has strong development potential and may become a comprehensive model for future development.

4. The joint research and development of control systems is the most crucial aspect. In my personal opinion, developing new energy tractors is not just a matter of the tractor industry, as new energy tractors involve many industries, not only hardware equipment such as engines, generators, and motors, but also transmission technologies such as mechanical transmission, hydraulic transmission, and electric transmission and their coupling, as well as software equipment such as control systems. Especially in the coordination of engines, power battery packs, and transmission control technologies, which involve high-tech industries such as automatic control, artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, and even chips, in order to achieve the success of new energy tractors, it is necessary to combine the tractor industry with mature new energy vehicle industries, as well as high-tech industries such as artificial intelligence and chips. Joint research and development are even needed to improve the chances of success and enhance the efficiency of research and development. Therefore, relevant departments and enterprises should plan early, as this may be the only way and opportunity for the tractor industry to catch up.