SPOKANE — The rolling wheat fields of the Palouse are often compared to ocean waves.
That makes for nice scenery, but it was lousy for farmers who tried to use conventional combines to harvest some of the nation’s most productive fields until 1946, when Raymond Hanson invented a machine that could ride up and across the steep swales without tipping over.
Last weekend, Hanson was honored by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers for his innovation.
“He made more farm land accessible and also made farming safer,” said Mike Milano, a member of the Palouse City Council.
“He was a lifesaver, literally,” added Tom Mick of the Washington Grain Commission in Spokane.
Hanson, 84, of Spokane was recognized Sunday at a public ceremony in Palouse, where the site of his invention will be designated a Historical Agricultural Engineering Landmark.
The University of Idaho engineering graduate holds more than 100 patents for devices that include a giant crane used at Grand Coulee Dam, canal machinery used for the California aqueduct system and a backfilling machine used on the trans-Alaska pipeline.
Hanson was 19 when he came up with the idea for his first invention, combining his understanding of engineering with his farming background.
Combines — giant machines that harvest, thresh and winnow grain crops — work best on mostly flat land.
But the incredibly rich soil of the Palouse region of Eastern Washington and northern Idaho was largely formed by repeated volcanic eruptions in the nearby Cascade Range, falling as waves and forming hills that sometimes have a 50 percent slope.
While leveling technology began appearing in the 1890s, the modern era began with the patent of the level-sensitive mercury switch system invented by Hanson in 1946. The equipment continues to be manufactured by The Factory Co. International Inc.
Without leveling, grain and chaff slide to one side of the combine and pass through the machine in a large ball rather than being separated, dumping large amounts of grain on the ground.
Leveling also changes a combine’s center of gravity, allowing it to harvest along the contour of a hill without tipping.
Hanson’s self-leveling control was an attachment for combines that increased the yield on hilly acreage by 3 percent, creating many millions of dollars in additional revenue for farmers.
He marketed his invention by going to farmers and offering to install it on their combines for a trial period, adding that he would remove it if the farmer was not satisfied. The invention was a hit, and Hanson never had to take one back.
Aicha Elshabini, dean of the University of Idaho’s College of Engineering, will present the award.
“Dr. Hanson’s ability to look at the majestic Palouse hills and not only see their beauty, but to also recognize that the sloping hills presented a challenge for farmers and to visualize a solution, that is something we try to instill in our engineering students,” Elshabini said.
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