Multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device and method

Abstract

The present invention relates to a multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device and method thereof, which belongs to the technical field of seedling picking and delivering devices for transplanting machines, and includes at least one seedling picking mechanism and two horizontal seedling-keeping delivery mechanisms, wherein the seedling picking mechanism includes a distance adjuster and a seedling picker, the distance adjuster includes a multi-stage scissor-fork structure, the scissor-fork structure includes two mutually hinged long connecting rods, the horizontal seedling-keeping delivery mechanism includes a connecting rod, a horizontal holding track and a seedling-delivering drive structure, the connecting rod is fixedly connected to a cross fixing member, and the horizontal holding track includes a limiting side plate and a left slide, a right slide, an upper slide and a lower slide arranged on the limiting side plate. The present invention is equipped with multiple seedling picking mechanisms at the same time, which can realize efficient seedling picking and delivering under low-speed operation of the seedling delivery mechanism, and by keeping the seedling picking mechanism always moving in a horizontal posture, it solves the problems of reduced seedling picking success rate and large damage to pot seedlings caused by the high-speed movement of the seedling picking and delivering device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of seedling picking and delivering devices for transplanting machines, and in particular to a multi-body constant-posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device and a method thereof. Background Art

[0002] As one of the core components of a fully automatic transplanter, the performance of the seedling transfer device determines the transplanting efficiency and the survival rate of the seedlings in the pots. Various types of seedling transfer devices have been developed in China, including stem-clamping, pot-clamping, ejection, and air-blowing types. Current seedling transfer devices have the following main drawbacks:

[0003] First, the existing whole-row seedling picking and delivery devices mostly use a single seedling picking mechanism, and most of them complete the seedling delivery through three-axis motion or swinging. As the frequency of seedling picking and delivery increases, it is easy to cause the following problems: First, the movement speed of each component of the seedling picking and delivery device increases, causing instability of the overall mechanical structure, and the success rate of seedling picking and delivery decreases accordingly, and the success rate of seedling picking is a key indicator for evaluating the quality of seedling picking and delivery devices; Second, when the seedling picking and delivery speed is too fast, it is easy to cause serious damage to the seedlings in the pot during the seedling picking and delivery process. For example, the rapid clamping of the seedling stem by the seedling clamp can easily cause serious damage to the seedlings, and the large acceleration and deceleration of each component during the seedling delivery process can cause damage to the seedlings in the pot due to inertia; Third, the existing swing-type whole-row seedling picking and delivery device is prone to bending of the stems of the seedlings in the seedling delivery process, causing serious damage to the seedlings;

[0004] Second, most of the existing seedling delivery devices are only suitable for seedling trays of a single specification (number of holes), such as 128 holes, 105 holes, 72 holes, etc., and have poor versatility;

[0005] Third, existing whole-row seedling removal devices mostly use mechanical or pneumatic end effectors, which are difficult to adapt to seedlings of different sizes, easily causing serious damage to the seedlings or a low success rate of seedling removal;

[0006] Fourth, most of the existing seedling-taking mechanisms use cylinder telescopic movement to complete seedling separation, which results in rapid seedling separation during the seedling delivery process. During the seedling separation process, the seedlings in the pot swing greatly and are easily damaged. Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of this, the object of the present invention is to provide a multi-body constant-posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device and method thereof, in order to fully or at least partially solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0008] One of the present inventions is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0009] The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device includes at least one set of seedling picking mechanism and two sets of horizontal seedling holding and sending mechanisms symmetrically arranged on the left and right sides of the seedling picking mechanism and arranged at an angle.

[0010] The seedling removing mechanism includes a distance adjuster and a seedling removing device, the distance adjuster includes a multi-stage scissor-fork structure, the scissor-fork structure includes two long connecting rods hinged to each other, and the long connecting rods between two adjacent scissor-fork structures are hinged end to end, and the ends of the long connecting rods of the scissor-fork structures at the front end and the rear end are hinged to a short connecting rod; the seedling removing device and the scissor-fork structure are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence, and include a servo mounting seat, a servo fixed on the servo mounting seat, a fixed seat fixed on the servo and a clamping body rotatably fixed on the fixed seat, the clamping body includes an incomplete gear I and an incomplete gear II connected to the servo rotation drive, the incomplete gear I and the incomplete gear II are symmetrically connected and each is provided with a clamping arm, the clamping arm is rotatably connected to the incomplete gear I or the incomplete gear II through the rotating shaft I, and a connecting rod is further provided on the fixed seat, and the connecting rod is rotatably connected to the clamping arm through the rotating shaft II, thereby realizing the opening and closing restriction of the clamping arm,

[0011] The two wheels are connected at the same time, and the two ends of the upper and lower wheels are connected to the upper and lower wheels respectively.

[0012] Furthermore, the seedling delivery drive structure also includes a driving sprocket and a driven sprocket respectively connected to the bent plate chain transmission, and the stepping motor drives the driving sprocket in a steering manner through a right-angle commutator.

[0013] Furthermore, the horizontal retaining track also includes a horizontal limit block arranged between the two horizontal slides, and a vertical limit block arranged on the left and right sides of the vertical slide.

[0014] Furthermore, the horizontal retaining track also includes transition blocks on the four corners of the special-shaped track.

[0015] Furthermore, a support block is provided on the scissor-fork structure, one end of the support block is hinged to the scissor-fork structure, and the other end is slidably connected to the scissor-fork structure, and the clamping body is fixed on the support block.

[0016] Furthermore, at least four sets of the seedling-picking mechanism are provided.

[0017] Furthermore, it also includes a control system, which includes a processor and a pressure sensor. The processor is electrically connected to the pressure sensor and the servo. The pressure sensor is arranged on the clamping surface of the two clamping arms, and is used to measure the clamping force of the clamping arms and transmit the clamping force signal to the processor. After receiving the signal, the processor compares it with the set standard value. When it is higher than the standard value, a pressure reduction command is issued to move the two clamping arms away from each other. When it is lower than the standard value, a pressure increase command is issued to move the two clamping arms closer together, thereby reaching the range specified by the standard value.

[0018] The second aspect of the present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0019] A method for seedling picking and sorting using the multi-body constant-posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device as described above: a stepping motor rotates to drive the seedling picking mechanism to perform rotary motion along a special-shaped track, always maintaining a horizontal posture during motion, and when there is horizontal displacement, the distance between the seedling pickers changes, and under the action of a distance adjuster, the distance between any adjacent seedling pickers is equal, and on the rotary path, the center distance between two adjacent seedling pickers is adjusted to be the same as the center distance between two adjacent pot seedlings in a hole tray, and the center distance between two adjacent seedling pickers is adjusted to be the same as the center distance between two adjacent seedling cups, each at least once, to complete seedling picking and seedling planting.

[0020] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0021] 1. The present invention is equipped with multiple seedling removal mechanisms, which can achieve efficient seedling removal and delivery when the seedling delivery mechanism is running at a low speed. By keeping the seedling removal mechanism always in a horizontal posture, it solves the problems of reduced seedling removal success rate and severe damage to seedlings in pots caused by the high-speed movement of the seedling removal device.

[0022] 2. By replacing seedling-picking mechanisms of different specifications, the seedling-picking needs of seedling trays of different specifications (number of holes) can be met, solving the problem of poor versatility of current seedling-picking devices.

[0023] 3. The electric seedling extractor based on a servo unit is used. By controlling the servo rotation angle and speed, the clamping amount and stem clamping rate of the seedling extractor end effector can be adjusted to meet the needs of extracting seedlings of different varieties and thicknesses. At the same time, the present invention can realize missed seedling detection and constant pressure seedling extraction by equipping the seedling extractor with a pressure sensor.

[0024] 4. The present invention adopts a multi-stage scissor-type seedling separation mechanism to achieve slow seedling separation during the seedling delivery process, reducing damage to the seedlings in the pot during the seedling separation process. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Figure 1 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the horizontal seedling-feeding mechanism of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 3 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the seedling delivery drive structure of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 4 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of the limiting side plate of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 5 This is a front view of the limiting side plate of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the combination of the distance adjuster and the seedling remover of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 7 It is a front view of the distance adjuster of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 8 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the seedling extractor of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the structure of the cross fixing member.

[0034] Description of reference numerals:

[0035] 1-Seedling removal mechanism; 2-Horizontal maintenance and seedling delivery mechanism; 3-Space adjuster; 4-Seedling removal device; 5-Long connecting rod; 6-Short connecting rod; 7-Servo mounting seat; 8-Servo; 9-Fixed seat; 10-Incomplete gear I; 11-Incomplete gear II; 12-Clamping arm; 13-Rotating shaft I; 14-Connecting rod; 15-Rotating shaft II; 16-Connecting rod; 17-Horizontal maintenance track; 18-Seedling delivery drive structure; 19-Cross fixing piece; 20-Limiting side plate; 21-Left Slide; 22-right slide; 23-upper slide; 24-lower slide; 25-roller; 26-bent plate chain; 27-stepping motor; 28-rotating sleeve; 29-smooth transition part; 30-driving sprocket; 31-driven sprocket; 32-right angle commutator; 33-horizontal limit block; 34-vertical limit block; 35-transition block; 36-support block; 37-flexible protective body; 38-processor; 39-pressure sensor; 40-special-shaped track. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Generally, the components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the drawings herein can be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0037] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the invention as claimed, but rather merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments derived by persons of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative effort are intended to fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0038] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters denote similar items in the following drawings, and therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it does not need to be further defined or explained in subsequent drawings.

[0039] In the above description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "one side," "the other side," and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, or the orientations or positional relationships in which the inventive product is typically placed when in use. These terms are intended solely to facilitate the description of the present invention and simplify the description, and are not intended to indicate or imply that the devices or components referred to must have, be constructed, or operate in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and the like are used solely for distinction and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0040] Furthermore, the term "identical" and similar terms do not necessarily require that the components be absolutely identical; slight variations are permitted. The term "perpendicular" simply refers to the positional relationship between components being more perpendicular than "parallel," not that the structure must be perfectly vertical; rather, it can be slightly tilted.

[0041] like Figures 1 to 8 As shown, this embodiment provides a multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device, including at least one set of seedling picking mechanism 1 and two sets of horizontal seedling holding and sending mechanisms 2 symmetrically arranged on the left and right sides of the seedling picking mechanism and arranged at an angle. Specifically:

[0042] The seedling removal mechanism includes a distance adjuster 3 and a seedling remover 4. The distance adjuster includes a multi-stage scissor structure. The scissor structure includes two long connecting rods 5 hinged to each other, and the long connecting rods between two adjacent scissor structures are hinged end to end, so that the front and rear scissor structures are connected in sequence to form a retractable whole, similar to a spring that can be extended or shortened. In order to achieve the connection with the guide rail, a short connecting rod 6 is hinged at the end of the two long connecting rods of the front scissor structure.

[0043] At the same time, since the seedling pickers and the scissor-fork structures are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence, when the cross fixing part moves along the guide rail, the distance between adjacent seedling pickers also changes, that is, the distance between the seedlings in the pots changes. Therefore, during the movement, a change in state is realized. When the seedling pickers are close to each other, it is seedling picking, and vice versa, it is seedling separation. The change in distance is also realized. The distance is shortest when seedling picking, and the distance is farthest when seedling separation.

[0044] The seedling remover specifically includes a servo mounting seat 7, a servo 8 fixed on the servo mounting seat, a fixed seat 9 fixed on the servo and a clamping body rotatably fixed on the fixed seat. The clamping body includes an incomplete gear I 10 and an incomplete gear II 11 connected to the servo rotation drive. The incomplete gear I and the incomplete gear II are symmetrically connected and each is provided with a clamping arm 12. The clamping arm is rotationally connected to the incomplete gear I or the incomplete gear II through the rotating shaft I 13. A connecting rod 14 is also provided on the fixed seat, and the connecting rod is rotationally connected to the clamping arm through the rotating shaft II 15, thereby realizing the opening and closing restriction of the clamping arm. Through this reverse restriction, the clamping is relatively powerful and will not be deformed too much, resulting in the front end being unable to reach the predetermined clamping amount.

[0045] The horizontal seedling-keeping mechanism includes a connecting rod 16, a horizontal holding track 17 and a seedling-feeding drive structure 18. One end of the connecting rod is fixedly connected to a cross fixing member 19, and the other end is rotatably connected to the two short connecting rods on each side, thereby realizing the linear drive of the seedling remover and the distance adjuster through the connecting rod. The horizontal holding track includes a limiting side plate 20 and a left slide 21, a right slide 22, an upper slide 23 and a lower slide 24 arranged on the limiting side plate. The left slide and the right slide are single vertical slides, and the upper slide and the lower slide are both double horizontal slides. The double horizontal slides are arranged at intervals, and the two ends of all horizontal slides are smoothly connected to the vertical slides to form a special-shaped track 40 with double horizontal slides and a single vertical slide. Four rollers 25 are arranged at the bottom of the cross fixing member. At any time, there are two rollers in the special-shaped track. When the cross fixing member is When in the horizontal direction, a pair of rollers located in the upper and lower positions are respectively located in the upper and lower horizontal slides, and when the cross fixing piece is in the vertical direction, a pair of rollers located in the horizontal direction are located in the vertical slide. The seedling delivery drive structure includes a bent plate chain 26 matching the special-shaped track and a stepping motor 27 for rotating the bent plate chain. A rotating sleeve 28 is fixedly provided on the bent plate chain, and the rotating sleeve is rotatably mounted on the connecting rod through a rolling bearing. The connecting rod is rotatably connected to the short connecting rod. Therefore, under the rotation drive of the stepping motor, the bent plate chain performs annular circumferential motion along the set track, and at this time the rotating sleeve also rotates, thereby driving the connecting rod and the cross fixing piece to rotate, and finally making the roller move along the special-shaped track. At the same time, at the other end of the connecting rod, the distance adjuster is driven to perform horizontal separation or approach movement, so that the seedling remover can realize seedling removal and seedling throwing operations.

[0046] In this embodiment, appropriate design can be used to ensure that the cross fixing member can smoothly pass through the smooth transition portion 29 to achieve a change in movement direction.

[0047] In this embodiment, the seedling feeding drive structure also includes a driving sprocket 30 and a driven sprocket 31, each of which is connected to the bent plate chain. The stepper motor drives the driving sprocket through a right-angle commutator 32. The right-angle commutator changes the direction of movement from horizontal to vertical, and the power is applied to the driving sprocket and transmitted to the driven chain through the chain, making the movement smoother.

[0048] In this embodiment, the horizontal retaining track further includes a horizontal limit block 33 disposed between the two horizontal slides, and vertical limit blocks 34 disposed on the left and right sides of the vertical slides. The horizontal limit blocks limit the center roller, restricting its inward movement, while the vertical limit blocks restrict the left and right movement of the left and right rollers.

[0049] In the present embodiment, the horizontal holding track also includes transition blocks 35 on the four corners of the special-shaped track. The intermediate roller can be easily guided into the predetermined track by the transition blocks, making the movement more stable.

[0050] The combined design of the special-shaped tracks, smooth transition parts, horizontal limit blocks, vertical limit blocks and transition blocks of the above-mentioned double horizontal slides and single vertical slide enables the seedling retrieval mechanism to always maintain a horizontal posture during the spatial rotation and multi-position movement, so as to ensure that the seedlings in the pot will not be damaged due to the swinging of the seedling retrieval mechanism during the seedling retrieval process.

[0051] In this embodiment, a support block 36 is further arranged on the scissor structure. One end of the support block is hinged to the scissor structure, and the other end is slidably connected to the scissor structure. The clamping body is fixed on the support block.

[0052] In this embodiment, a flexible protective body 37 is provided on the clamping surface of the clamping arm, which can provide better protection for the seedlings in the pot.

[0053] In this embodiment, the number of seedling-picking mechanisms is not limited. In order to ensure the efficiency of seedling-picking, it is better to set at least 4 sets. The specific number can be expanded according to the height of the seedlings in the pot.

[0054] In this embodiment, a control system is also included, which includes a processor 38 and a pressure sensor 39. The processor is electrically connected to the pressure sensor and the servo. The pressure sensor is set on the clamping surface of the two clamping arms to measure the clamping force of the clamping arms and transmit the clamping force signal to the processor. After receiving the signal, the processor compares it with the set standard value. When it is higher than the standard value, a pressure reduction command is issued to move the two clamping arms away from each other. When it is lower than the standard value, a pressure increase command is issued to move the two clamping arms closer together, thereby reaching the range specified by the standard value.

[0055] In this embodiment, at least 4 sets of seedling taking mechanisms can be provided, mainly based on the fact that when all seedling taking mechanisms move on the track, there will be no interference between the seedlings in the pots.

[0056] The seedling separation method of the present embodiment:

[0057] The stepper motor rotates, driving the active sprocket to rotate, thereby driving the curved plate chain to rotate, and the curved plate chain drives the connecting rod to rotate, thereby driving the seedling taking mechanism to rotate along the special-shaped track. Since the two seedling sending mechanisms are set at an angle, the distance between the two changes uniformly in the horizontal direction. Therefore, when moving in the horizontal direction, the seedling taking mechanism is forced to undergo lateral displacement, thereby changing the distance between the seedling takers. Due to the presence of the distance adjuster, this change is consistent, so that the distance between each seedling taker is always equal. When this distance is small and the same as the center distance of two adjacent seedling pots in the hole tray, the seedling taking operation is implemented. When this distance is large and the same as the center distance of two adjacent seedling cups, the seedling throwing operation is implemented, thereby completing a cycle of seedling taking and separating operations.

[0058] During this process, due to the existence of the horizontal track, the direction of the seedling remover is always consistent, and the seedlings in the pot are always in a vertical state. The impact caused by this movement without changing the posture is extremely small, which is excellent for maintaining the seedlings in the pot and there is almost no damage.

[0059] At the same time, the change in lateral distance caused by longitudinal movement is an indirect change process, with extremely small impact load and smooth movement, thus avoiding inertial damage to the seedlings in the pot.

[0060] In addition, this embodiment can precisely control the rotation angle, rotation speed and stability level through the special clamping body structure, ensuring accurate clamping amount and stem clamping rate, thereby further reducing damage to the potted seedlings.

[0061] Furthermore, this embodiment also provides real-time feedback and control of the pressure through the control system, and accurately adjusts the clamping force in real time, so that the seedlings in the pot will not fall off or be injured, thereby achieving intelligent and safe control.

[0062] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not limiting. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that the technical solutions of the present invention may be modified or replaced by equivalents without departing from the purpose and scope of the technical solutions of the present invention, which should all be included in the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. Multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling picking and sorting device, characterized by: It includes at least one set of seedling taking mechanism and two sets of horizontal seedling holding and sending mechanisms symmetrically arranged on the left and right sides of the seedling taking mechanism and arranged at an angle. The seedling removing mechanism includes a distance adjuster and a seedling removing device, the distance adjuster includes a multi-stage scissor-fork structure, the scissor-fork structure includes two long connecting rods hinged to each other, and the long connecting rods between two adjacent scissor-fork structures are hinged end to end, and the ends of the long connecting rods of the scissor-fork structures at the front end and the rear end are hinged to a short connecting rod; the seedling removing device and the scissor-fork structure are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence, and include a servo mounting seat, a servo fixed on the servo mounting seat, a fixed seat fixed on the servo and a clamping body rotatably fixed on the fixed seat, the clamping body includes an incomplete gear I and an incomplete gear II connected to the servo rotation drive, the incomplete gear I and the incomplete gear II are symmetrically connected and each is provided with a clamping arm, the clamping arm is rotatably connected to the incomplete gear I or the incomplete gear II through the rotating shaft I, and a connecting rod is further provided on the fixed seat, and the connecting rod is rotatably connected to the clamping arm through the rotating shaft II, thereby realizing the opening and closing restriction of the clamping arm, The two wheels are connected at the same time, and the two ends of the upper and lower wheels are connected to the upper and lower wheels respectively.

2. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to claim 1 is characterized by: The seedling delivery drive structure also includes a driving sprocket and a driven sprocket respectively connected to the bent plate chain transmission, and the stepping motor drives the driving sprocket in a steering manner through a right-angle commutator.

3. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to claim 1 is characterized by: The horizontal holding track further comprises a horizontal limit block arranged between the two horizontal slideways, and vertical limit blocks arranged on the left and right sides of the vertical slideway.

4. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to claim 1 is characterized by: The horizontal retaining track further comprises transition blocks on the four corners of the special-shaped track.

5. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The scissor-fork structure is further provided with a support block, one end of the support block is hinged to the scissor-fork structure, and the other end is slidably connected to the scissor-fork structure, and the clamping body is fixed on the support block.

6. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The seedling taking mechanism is provided with at least 4 sets.

7. The multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling sorting device according to claim 1 is characterized by: It also includes a control system, which includes a processor and a pressure sensor. The processor is electrically connected to the pressure sensor and the servo. The pressure sensor is set on the clamping surface of the two clamping arms, and is used to measure the clamping force of the clamping arms and transmit the clamping force signal to the processor. After receiving the signal, the processor compares it with the set standard value. When it is higher than the standard value, a pressure reduction command is issued to move the two clamping arms away from each other. When it is lower than the standard value, a pressure increase command is issued to move the two clamping arms closer together, thereby reaching the range specified by the standard value.

8. A method for harvesting and sorting seedlings using the multi-body constant posture rotary high-efficiency whole-row seedling harvesting and sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 7: The stepper motor rotates and drives the seedling taking mechanism to rotate along the special-shaped track. It always maintains a horizontal posture during movement. When there is horizontal displacement, the distance between the seedling takers changes. Under the action of the distance adjuster, the distance between any adjacent seedling takers is equal. On the rotating path, the center distance between two adjacent seedling takers is adjusted to be the same as the center distance between two adjacent pot seedlings in the hole tray, and the center distance between two adjacent seedling takers is adjusted to be the same as the center distance between two adjacent seedling cups at least once to complete seedling taking and seedling planting.

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