Deere & Company
Cooling and debris mitigation systems for work vehicle powertrains

Abstract:

Cooling and debris mitigation systems for use with work vehicle powertrains include a pressurized air source, a plurality of impingement outlets positioned proximate the work vehicle powertrain, and a flow network fluidly coupling the pressurized air source to the impingement outlets. A first vortex tube is positioned in the flow network and configured to separate pressurized airflow received from the pressurized air source into a hot stream and a reduced temperature stream. The first vortex tube includes a vortex tube inlet fluidly coupled to the pressurized air source, an exhaust port through which the hot stream is discharged, and a nozzle through which the reduced temperature stream is discharged. The reduced temperature stream impinges upon at least one of the targeted exterior regions of the work vehicle powertrain to provide cooling thereto and reduce debris accumulation thereon.