Transplanter

Abstract

To provide a rice transplanter that can perform harvesting in the advancing direction of planting and harvesting in the lateral direction orthogonal to the advancing direction smoothly.SOLUTION: A rice transplanter equipped with a planting device 8 that includes planting claws 8a for planting seedlings 2 in a farm field 1 is configured such that a control device 4 records each planting position when the seedlings are planted along a predetermined travel path 3 for teaching, and the control device 4 causes the planting device 8 to perform planting at positions located on respective planting reference lines (PL, PL, ...) extending in a direction orthogonal to the travel path 3 for teaching from each recorded planting position when the seedlings are planted along other travel paths (L2, L3, ...) that are parallel to the travel path 3 for teaching.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a rice transplanter equipped with a planting device having planting claws for receiving seedlings.

Background Art

[0002] In a conventional rice transplanter, when the machine body slips, the space between the plants becomes dense and it is impossible to plant at the desired space between the plants. Therefore, it has been difficult to manage the amount of seedlings used for each field.

[0003] Also, a rice transplanter equipped with a function of keeping the space between plants uniform (spacing key) is known. In this case, planting is performed while controlling the rotational speed of the planting claws according to the actual speed change (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, even if the conventional rice transplanter controls the space between plants uniformly in this way, there are cases where it does not work well due to misalignment of the start position in each process, immediate response when the speed changes, or the condition of the field. When the planted seedlings are viewed from a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the vehicle body, that is, in the lateral direction, the positions of the plants may not be aligned. Therefore, there is a problem that the sunlight exposure, ventilation, etc. deteriorate and the yield decreases.

[0006] Also, since they are not aligned in the lateral direction, it is impossible to advance the combine harvester laterally during harvesting, and it has been necessary to harvest only along the traveling direction of the vehicle body during planting.

[0007] In the present invention, in consideration of the problems of such conventional rice transplanters, an object is to provide a rice transplanter that has no problems in harvesting in the planting progress direction or in the lateral direction orthogonal to the progress direction.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] The first invention of the present disclosure is a rice transplanter equipped with a planting device having planting claws for planting seedlings in a field, wherein when seedlings are planted along a predetermined teaching travel path, each of the planting positions is recorded by a control device, and when the control device causes the planting device to plant seedlings along another travel path parallel to the teaching travel path, the control device plants the seedlings at positions on respective planting reference lines extending in a direction orthogonal to the teaching travel path from each of the recorded planting positions, and the control device plants the seedlings at positions on respective planting reference lines by controlling the rotational speed of the planting claws of the planting device, and when planting seedlings along the teaching travel path, the control device grasps the distance traveled by the vehicle body using GNSS, and controls the rotation of the planting claws accordingly to maintain a constant plant spacing, and executes a distance plant-spacing maintenance mode, which is a rice transplanter. The second invention of the present disclosure is equipped with a cylindrical seedling pick-up device that supplies the seedlings to the planting device having planting claws for planting seedlings in the field, wherein the seedlings are of the seedling mat type, and the cylindrical seedling pick-up device has a cylinder, a rail fixed at a central position inside the cylinder, and a plurality of round bars installed in parallel above the rail inside the cylinder, wherein a seedling box containing the seedling mat is inserted while being held on the rail inside the cylinder, and then, when the cylinder rotates 180 degrees in the circumferential direction, the seedling mat drops from the seedling box and is placed on the plurality of round bars, a seedling holding plate is inserted between the seedling box and the seedling mat, and when the cylinder rotates 180 degrees in the circumferential direction again together with the seedling holding plate, the seedling mat is placed on the seedling holding plate, and by moving the seedling holding plate on which the seedling mat is placed toward the planting device side, the seedling mat is supplied to the planting device, which is the rice transplanter of the first invention of the present disclosure. The first invention related to the present disclosure is a rice transplanter equipped with a planting device having planting claws for planting seedlings in a field, when seedlings are planted on a predetermined teaching travel path, each of the planting positions is recorded by a control device, when the control device plants seedlings on another travel path parallel to the teaching travel path by the planting device, the control device plants at positions on respective planting reference lines extending in a direction orthogonal to the teaching travel path from each of the recorded planting positions. The rice transplanter is characterized by this.

[0009] The second invention related to the present disclosure is the rice transplanter in which the control device plants seedlings at positions on respective planting reference lines by controlling the rotational speed of the planting claws of the planting device. The first invention related to the present disclosure of the rice transplanter.

[0010] The third invention related to the present disclosure is When planting seedlings on the teaching travel route, the control device grasps the distance traveled by the vehicle body, and accordingly controls the rotation of the planting claws to maintain a constant plant spacing, and executes a distance plant spacing maintenance mode. The second invention related to the present disclosure It is a rice transplanter of

[0011] The fourth invention related to the present disclosure is When planting seedlings on the other travel route, it is possible to switch whether to execute planting using the planting reference line, or instead execute the distance plant spacing maintenance mode, or execute a non-plant spacing maintenance mode in which the plant spacing of the seedlings to be planted is not kept constant. The third invention related to the present disclosure It is a rice transplanter of

[0012] The fifth invention related to the present disclosure is equipped with a straight-ahead assist function for traveling back and forth in the field, As the teaching travel route, it uses a travel route for obtaining a reference line for the straight-ahead assist, The planting reference line is perpendicular to the reference line. The fourth invention related to the present disclosure It is a rice transplanter of

[0013] The sixth invention related to the present disclosure is The determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line, is determined based on the number of rotations of the rear wheels from point A, which is the starting point. The fifth invention related to the present disclosure It is a rice transplanter of

[0014] The seventh invention related to the present disclosure is The determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line, is conditional on the difference between the orientation of the vehicle body at point B and the orientation of the vehicle body at point A, which is the starting point, being within a predetermined angle. The fifth invention related to the present disclosure It is a rice transplanter of

[0015] The eighth invention related to the present disclosure is The determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line, is conditional on the vehicle speed at point B continuing for a predetermined time at a vehicle speed equal to or higher than a predetermined vehicle speed. The fifth invention related to the present disclosure is a rice transplanter.

[0016] The ninth invention related to the present disclosure is equipped with a cylindrical seedling pick-up device that supplies the seedlings to a planting device having planting claws for planting the seedlings in the field. The seedlings are in the form of a seedling mat. The cylindrical seedling pick-up device has a cylinder, a rail fixed at the central position inside the cylinder, and a plurality of round bars installed in parallel above the rail inside the cylinder. The seedling box containing the seedling mat is inserted while being held on the rail inside the cylinder. Thereafter, by rotating the cylinder 180 degrees in the circumferential direction, the seedling mat drops from the seedling box and is placed on the plurality of round bars. A seedling holding plate is inserted between the seedling box and the seedling mat. Again, by rotating the cylinder 180 degrees in the circumferential direction together with the seedling holding plate, the seedling mat is placed on the seedling holding plate. By moving the seedling holding plate on which the seedling mat is placed toward the planting device side, the seedling mat is supplied to the planting device. The sixth to eighth inventions related to the present invention is a rice transplanter.

Advantages of the Invention

[0017] According to the present invention, a rice transplanter can be realized that has no problem whether harvesting is in the advancing direction of planting or in the lateral direction orthogonal to the advancing direction.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0018]

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Figure 23

Embodiment for Carrying Out the Invention

[0019] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a plan view of a field in which a rice transplanter according to an embodiment of the present invention travels. Hereinafter, front-rear and left-right directions are defined based on the traveling direction of the rice transplanter.

[0021] In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a field, and shows a case where seedlings 2 are planted by a four-row rice transplanter.

[0022] Reference numeral 3 denotes a teaching travel route, which is the first travel route L1 in this example. Further, this teaching travel route 3 uses a travel route for acquiring a reference line for straight-ahead assist. Reference numeral 2a denotes the space between plants of the seedlings 2.

[0023] That is, while manually driving the rice transplanter straight and planting the seedlings 2, the point A which is the starting point is indicated, and further the point B which is the end point is indicated, or after automatically acquiring the point B as described later, a reference line SL connecting the point A and the point B is acquired, and this reference line SL is used for straight-ahead assist of the travel routes L2, L3, L4,... in the subsequent processes. This is an example.

[0024] The travel routes L2, L3, L4,... in the subsequent processes are parallel to the first travel route 3.

[0025] In this way, when planting the seedlings 2 on the first travel route, each of the planting positions is recorded in the recording unit 4a of the control device 4. The recording of this planting position records the location where the planting claw 8a touches the field surface.

[0026] That is, FIG. 2 is a control configuration diagram of the rice transplanter. The control device 4 has a recording unit 4a, controls the speed of the wheels 6 via the traveling HST 5, and also controls the rotation of the planting claws 8a of the planting device 8 via the dedicated planting HST 7.

[0027] Next, when planting the seedlings 2 on the traveling routes L2, L3, L4,... after the next process, the control device 4 controls the rotation of the planting claws 8a, and from each of the planting positions recorded in the recording unit 4a, the seedlings 2 are planted at positions on the respective planting reference lines PL, PL, PL... extending in a direction orthogonal to the teaching traveling route 3.

[0028] That is, before entering the next process, the planting reference lines PL, PL, PL... have already been determined from the respective planting position data recorded in the recording unit 4a. Therefore, the control device 4 controls the rotation of the planting claws 8a, and while taking into account the speed of the traveling vehicle body so as to match the previously known planting positions, controls the rotation speed of the planting claws 8a. That is, when the planting reference line PL is wide, the rotation speed of the planting claws 8a is decreased, and when the planting reference line PL is narrow, the rotation speed of the planting claws 8a is increased, etc.

[0029] When planting seedlings on the teaching traveling route 3, the control device 4 may perform teaching while executing a distance and plant spacing maintenance mode in which the control device 4 grasps the distance traveled by the vehicle body and controls the rotation of the planting claws 8a accordingly to maintain a constant plant spacing. By that mode, the interval of the planting reference lines PL by teaching can be made more uniform.

[0030] For example, when it is desired to plant the seedlings 2 at a plant spacing of 30 cm, if the rotation position of the planting claws 8a is, for example, at about 10 o'clock when scraping the seedlings at a position 10 cm before reaching the distance of 30 cm advanced from the previous planting, during the 10 cm advance, the rotation speed of the planting claws 8a is adjusted so that the planting claws 8a just reach the ground. The distance traveled can be achieved by known techniques such as detecting the rear wheel rotation speed or using GNSS.

[0031] Also, when planting seedlings on the subsequent driving routes L2, L3, ··· (corresponding to other driving routes of the present invention) after the above-described next process, the control device 4 can also be switched as follows.

[0032] That is, it may be possible to switch between a mode of performing planting at each position using the above-described planting reference line PL, alternatively executing the above-described distance plant spacing maintenance mode, or executing a non-plant spacing maintenance mode in which the plant spacing of the seedlings to be planted is not maintained constant.

[0033] In addition, the determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line SL executed during the above-described teaching, can be automatically determined based on the number of rotations of the rear wheels from point A, which is the start point.

[0034] As a result, instead of determining point B based on the absolute distance from point A, it is possible to obtain point B even if there is a predetermined distance slip.

[0035] Alternatively, the determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line SL, may be conditional on the difference between the orientation of the vehicle body at point B and the orientation of the vehicle body at point A, which is the start point, being within a predetermined angle.

[0036] That is, for example, even if the operator manually indicates point B, if the difference in the orientation of the vehicle body is greatly deviated, point B will not be determined.

[0037] Alternatively, the determination of point B, which is the end point for obtaining the reference line SL, may be conditional on the vehicle speed at point B continuing for a predetermined time at a vehicle speed equal to or higher than a predetermined vehicle speed.

[0038] That is, for example, even if it was assumed that point B may be determined if the vehicle has traveled a predetermined distance or more from point A, if the vehicle speed at point B is too slow and the low speed continues for a predetermined time, point B will not be determined.

[0039] In addition to the above, as a method for determining point B, there is a method of setting it at a position that is a predetermined distance from point A. As the predetermined distance, in addition to being determined by the number of rotations of the rear wheels described above, it can also be obtained by time-integrating the vehicle speed information from GNSS or the vehicle speed calculated value obtained by detecting the rotation of the rear wheels. Alternatively, point B may be determined based on the elapse of a predetermined time from point A.

[0040] In the above embodiment, in the teaching travel route, the operations of acquiring points A and B for straight-ahead assist are utilized. However, it is not necessarily limited to this. Without acquiring points A and B, it is also possible to obtain the planting reference lines PL, PL... by planting.

[0041] Since the lateral plant spacing is aligned in all processes, the amount of seedlings used can be managed with higher precision than before, so the time and cost required for preparation can be saved, and cost reduction can be achieved. Furthermore, the efficiency of sunlight exposure, ventilation, and weeding operations can be improved, increasing the yield. Also, the workability during harvesting is improved.

[0042] Next, FIG. 3 shows a technique for driving a fertilizer applicator. In FIG. 3, 10 is a fertilizer drive shaft, 11 is a low reduction ratio transmission path, 12 is a high reduction ratio transmission circuit, 13 is a one-way clutch, 14 is an intermediate shaft, and 15 is a motor.

[0043] Here, in a rice transplanter that rotates the fertilizer drive shaft 10 by the driving force of a single motor 15 to perform fertilization, the reduction ratio is changed by using the forward and reverse switching of the motor 15.

[0044] Thereby, when the output load increases due to fertilizer clogging or the like, it is possible to shift to a large reduction ratio to ensure torque.

[0045] The input shaft of the motor 15, the fertilizer drive shaft 10, and the intermediate shaft 14 are provided in parallel, respectively. Two arrangements of gears for transmitting power from the motor 15 to the fertilizer drive shaft 10 are prepared. Among the above two arrangements, the intermediate shaft 14 is used in one gear arrangement to transmit power to the fertilizer drive shaft 10.

[0046] This allows for the provision of two-way output from the motor 15 to the fertilizer drive shaft 10.

[0047] Also, in the gear arrangement for power transmission using the intermediate shaft 14, the number of teeth of the gears was adjusted to provide deceleration.

[0048] This enables the separation of the two-way output into high-torque and low-torque uses.

[0049] Also, a one-way clutch 13 is provided between the gear on the fertilizer drive shaft 10 and the fertilizer drive shaft 10 to rotate the fertilizer drive shaft 10 in a fixed direction regardless of the rotation direction of the motor 15.

[0050] This allows for the selection of the power transmission path while maintaining the rotation direction of the fertilizer drive shaft 10 by switching the rotation direction of the motor 15.

[0051] Also, when the fertilizer application setting amount is small or the vehicle speed is low, the motor is rotated in the direction of using the low-torque transmission path. This can narrow the rotation speed range of the motor 15.

[0052] Next, an example of another invention will be described.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 4, when the sub-shift lever 20 is placed in the pit planting position with the machine stopped, the fertilizer clutch turns on, the feeding roll rotates, and fertilization can be performed. Since the fertilization drive is performed by the motor, the drive from the rear wheels is not used.

[0054] Conventionally, when the lever is pit-planted at the edge of the paddy field, planting can be performed with the machine stopped, but fertilization was not possible, so the growth was poor only at the location where the pit planting was performed. However, with the above configuration, fertilization is also performed at the location where the pit planting is performed, resulting in uniform growth.

[0055] While the lever 20 is tilted, the fertilizer roll is rotated. The user can freely control the amount of fertilizer applied.

[0056] As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, instead of the time when the lever 20 is tilted, the amount of dibbling fertilization may be changed according to the set fertilization amount. The rotation speed of the fertilization roll is counted by the rotation sensor 21 and controlled by the motor 22. Thereby, it is possible to automatically spread the same amount of fertilizer as in other places.

[0057] Fertilizer is spread only while the lever 20 is tilted, but it is also possible that the fertilization roll does not rotate even if the lever is tilted further after the set amount is spread. If it is detected that the lever 20 has been tilted once and fertilization continues, if it cannot be canceled, it is dangerous because it cannot be turned off when pinched, etc. According to this, safety is improved and fertilizer can be spread accurately.

[0058] Even if the float is not grounded, fertilizer will not be spread even if the sub-shift lever 20 is set to the dibbling position. As a result, when operating by mistake, it is possible to prevent malfunction without scattering in the air.

[0059] It is also possible that fertilizer is not spread even if it is set to the dibbling position when the blower is not ON. Thereby, clogging of fertilizer can be prevented.

[0060] When the blower is OFF and the dibbling position is set, fertilizer is not spread and a warning can be issued to turn on the blower on the monitor. Clogging of fertilizer can be prevented.

[0061] Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following invention, when taking out the seedling mat of the auxiliary seedlings in the seedling box, the operator takes out the seedling mat with a ladle while holding the seedling box by hand. However, this method is troublesome and has a problem that it cannot keep up with the trend of automation. This invention solves this problem. In this embodiment, the seedlings 33 are in the form of a seedling mat.

[0062] In FIG. 7, reference numeral 30 denotes a cylinder that has a diameter equal to or greater than the short side of the seedling tray 34 and a length equal to or greater than the long side of the seedling tray 34, and is sized to accommodate the seedling tray 34 therein, and is rotatable in the circumferential direction. A semi-cylindrical member 30a that is slightly smaller than the cylinder 30 is attached therein, and rails 31 that can engage and hold the edges of the seedling tray at intervals corresponding to the short side of the seedling tray 34 are provided and fixed near the center thereof.

[0063] In addition, at an interval approximately 1 to 2 times the thickness of the seedlings 33 on the floor, a plurality of round bars 32 are arranged in the long side direction parallel to the surface of the seedling tray 34 to be fitted into the rails 31, and are attached in a comb shape. The round side surfaces of the semi-cylindrical member 30a are each opened to allow the auxiliary seedlings 33 to pass through including the leaf portions for each seedling tray 34. Further, the cylinder 30 is configured to be rotatable in the circumferential direction about the cylinder center axis. These members as a whole are referred to as unit 300.

[0064] With this device, the auxiliary seedlings 33 are taken out from the seedling tray 34 in the following steps.

[0065] (1) FIG. 8(a) is a front view of the cylinder 30, and (b) is a side view. The seedling tray 34 containing the auxiliary seedlings 33 is horizontally inserted into the rails 31, and with the comb-shaped round bars 32 thereon, the seedling tray 34 is inserted all the way into the rails 31 and stored and held inside the cylinder. At this time, it is inserted in the direction in which the auxiliary seedlings 33 extend, and the leaf portions of the auxiliary seedlings 33 are separated and inserted between the horizontally arranged comb-shaped round bars 32.

[0066] (2) As shown in FIGS. 9(a) and (b), the cylinder 30 is rotated 180°, the auxiliary seedlings 33 are dropped from the seedling tray 34, and are received and held by the comb-shaped round bars 32 coming below.

[0067] (3) Further, a seedling holding plate 35 for placing seedlings between the dropped auxiliary seedlings 33 and the seedling tray 34 that remains held is inserted from the direction opposite to the direction in which the auxiliary seedlings 33 are inserted.

[0068] (4) As shown in FIGS. 10(a) and 10(b), rotate the cylinder 30 by 180° together with the seedling holding plate 35, and drop and hold the auxiliary seedlings 33 into the seedling holding plate 35 into which they are inserted.

[0069] (5) Pull out the inserted seedling holding plate 35 together with the auxiliary seedlings 33 placed thereon, and take out the seedlings.

[0070] With such a configuration, the operator can perform the operation of taking out the seedlings from the seedling box 34 with the seedling holding plate 35 in a unit. If the operations of inserting the auxiliary seedlings 33, rotating the unit, and inserting and removing the seedling holding plate 35 are automated by electricity or the like, it can be used as a part of a configuration for automatically supplying seedlings in a robot rice transplanter or the like.

[0071] Although the seedlings will be turned upside down, they will not fall apart like rolled seedlings. Also, even if some of the soil covering the upper surface of the seedlings falls off, there will be no particular problem during planting. By dropping the soil not held by the roots of the seedlings with this unit, the soil that falls when the seedlings are scraped off with the planting rod is reduced, and it becomes difficult for the floating soil under the seedlings to accumulate on the float below, leading to an improvement in the planting performance.

[0072] In the unit 300 that rotates the above-mentioned cylinder to turn over the seedlings and take them out from the seedling box, this unit 300 is mounted on a rice transplanter and used as a part of a configuration for automatically supplying seedlings in a fully automatic manner.

[0073] As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the same number of units 300 as the number of planting rows are used, and these are arranged side by side horizontally at the upper center of the traveling section 100 of the rice transplanter, aligning the front and rear positions of each row at the center position of the seedling tank 101. At this time, considering the size of the cylinder in which the seedling box 34 can be accommodated, when aligning the front and rear positions of each row in the seedling tank 101, the units 300 of adjacent rows cannot be arranged exactly side by side, so they are arranged with a slight vertical offset every other row.

[0074] In addition, a gear 36 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of each cylinder of the unit 300, and the gears 36 on the outer peripheries of the units 300 arranged in a staggered manner are configured to mesh with each other (see Fig. 13). Further, since the height of the unit 300 is shifted up and down every other row, the position of the upper end 101a of the seedling tank 101 is also shifted every other row accordingly (see Fig. 14).

[0075] With this configuration, when the seedling tank 101 is stopped at the central position, the units 300 in each row will be arranged in front of and behind each row of the seedling tank 101. If the auxiliary seedlings 33 are put into each unit 300 from the front, the seedlings 33 taken out from the seedling box 34 from the back will come out. Additionally, by connecting this unit 300 and the seedling tank 101 in each row, it can be used as part of a configuration for fully automatic seedling supply.

[0076] Also, as shown in Fig. 13, by connecting each unit 300 with the gear 36, all the units 300 can be rotated by one drive, enabling a simple and inexpensive configuration. The rotation direction can be either left or right, and it only needs to rotate 180°. Note that the rotation drive configuration of all the units 300 does not have to be the gear 36, and it can also be connected with a belt, a chain, or the like.

[0077] As described above, in the unit 300 that rotates the cylinder 30 to turn over the seedlings 33 and take them out from the seedling box 34, when providing a configuration for mounting this unit 300 on a rice transplanter and performing fully automatic seedling supply, the configuration of the seedling holding plate 35 for moving the seedlings 33 from the unit 300 to the seedling tank 101 is as follows.

[0078] The size of the seedling holding plate 35 is large enough to accommodate one or more seedlings 33 and is sized to fit into the unit 300. A main shaft 35a extending in the front-rear direction is provided at the upper, lower, left, right, and center positions, and the seedlings are inserted and held there. Further, as shown in FIGS. 15, 16(a), and (b), the seedling holding plate 35 is configured to be slidable back and forth along the main shaft 35a and rotatable about the main shaft 35a as a rotation axis. In addition, when the seedling holding plate 35 is moved backward, two left and right stopper shafts 35b are provided so that it can be held horizontally without rotating with respect to the main shaft 35a, and the posture is maintained by inserting the stopper shafts 35b into the seedling holding plate 35 by sliding movement. Furthermore, the main shaft 35a and the left and right stopper shafts 35b are fixed to a vertical rotation axis stay 35c provided at the rear, and when the seedling holding plate 35 moves to the rearmost position, the vertical rotation axis stay 35c is used as a rotation axis, and the seedling holding plate 35 is configured to be rotatable in the vertical direction together with each axis (see FIG. 17).

[0079] The vertical rotation axis stay 35c and the seedling holding plate 35 may be provided independently behind the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 (see FIG. 17), or may be provided fixed to the upper end of the seedling tank 101 and connected to the planting device 8 (see FIG. 18). As an arrangement for performing seedling replenishment, the rotation axis of the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 and the rotation axis of the seedling holding plate 35 are arranged coaxially.

[0080] With this configuration, it is possible to move the seedlings 33 from the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 provided at the upper center of the traveling section 100 of the rice transplanter to the planting section seedling tank 101.

[0081] Auxiliary seedlings 33 are put into the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 and rotated 180°. When the seedlings 33 are dropped from the seedling box 34, the seedling holding plate 35 is slid forward along the main shaft 35a and inserted into the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300. At this time, the seedling holding plate 35 moves forward from the position where it is held by the left and right stopper shafts 35b. When the stopper shaft 35b comes off, the front portion of the seedling holding plate 35 enters the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300, and from there, it is rotated together with the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300.

[0082] After that, the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 is rotated 180° together with the seedling holding plate 35. When the seedlings 33 are placed on the seedling holding plate 35, the seedling holding plate 35 is slid backward to take out the seedlings 33. When the seedlings 33 are moved to the rear end, the seedling holding plate 35 is rotated vertically upward by the vertical rotation axis stay 35c. When tilted, the placed seedlings 33 slide down by their own weight and are moved to the lower seedling tank 101.

[0083] If the sliding movement of the seedling holding plate 35 back and forth and the rotational movement in the vertical direction at the rear end are automated by electricity or the like, it becomes a unit that can move the seedlings 33 from the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 to the planting part seedling tank 101 fully automatically, and can be used as a part of a configuration for performing seedling supply fully automatically.

[0084] Next, in the unit 300 that rotates the cylinder 30 to turn over the seedlings 33 and take them out of the seedling box 34, a brush 37 is provided in front of the unit 300 on the auxiliary seedling input side (see Fig. 19). Here, the position where the seedling box 34 is inserted into the cylindrical seedling picking unit 300 is not configured to align the center of the thickness of the seedling box 34 with the center of the unit 300, but is configured such that the seedling box 34 is arranged slightly below the center of the unit 300 in the direction of inserting the auxiliary seedlings 33. Also, the position of the lower end of the brush 37 provided is configured to be at a position slightly above the center of the unit 300, separated by the distance to the back surface of the seedling box 34 that is displaced from the center of the unit 300.

[0085] In addition, the empty box 34 from which the seedlings 33 remaining in the unit 300 have been dropped is to be returned and collected in front of the unit 300 on the auxiliary seedling input side in a state where the unit 300 is rotated 180° and turned over. The brush 37 is to be a rough one with gaps at each part about the interval of the round bars 32 of the seedling holding comb.

[0086] By configuring it in this way, as shown in FIGS. 19 and 21, when the auxiliary seedlings are inserted, the rough brush 37 hits the leaf part of the seedling 33. After the brush 37 gently separates the leaves of the seedling 33, it enters the round bar 32 of the seedling holding comb part of the unit 300. In this way, the leaves of the seedling 33 can be smoothly separated and inserted, and it is possible to make it difficult to damage the leaves of the seedling 33. At this time, the lower end of the brush 37 is arranged so as not to hit the floor of the seedling 33 or the seedling box 34.

[0087] Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 22, when the empty box is collected, the back surface of the empty box 34 turned over by 180° hits a slightly higher position at the lower end of the brush 37. When pulling back the empty box 34, the tip of the brush 37 comes out while hitting the back surface of the empty box 34. Therefore, it becomes possible to collect while brushing off the roots and mud attached to the back surface of the seedling box 34 by the brush 37.

[0088] Also, the seedling holding plate 35 behind the unit 300 is configured to have a certain thickness (see FIGS. 19 and 20). When inserting the auxiliary seedling 33 or taking out the empty box 34, if the front side surface of the seedling holding plate 35 hits the rear side surface of the seedling box 34 in either arrangement, when configuring a continuous seedling supply operation, the next auxiliary seedling 33 pushes out the seedling holding plate 35 to move the previous seedling 33. Inserting the seedling holding plate 35 into the unit 300 is convenient for configuring a series of operations such as pushing out the empty box 34 forward and simultaneously cleaning the back surface of the seedling box.

[0089] Next, in the unit 300 that rotates the cylinder 30 to turn over the seedling 33 and take it out from the seedling box 34, a configuration for transporting the fertilizer bag P to the upper front of the fertilizer hopper 38 of the mid-fertilizer (see FIG. 11) by using the drive to rotate the cylinder 30 in a configuration where this unit 300 is arranged in a staggered manner at the upper center of the traveling part 100 of the rice transplanter will be described next.

[0090] As shown in FIGS. 11, 12, and 23, it is composed of a fertilizer transport table 39 sized to carry the fertilizer bag P and a fertilizer transport frame 40 that serves as a rail for the transport table 39 to move along.

[0091] First, the fertilizer transport frame 40 is provided horizontally on the upper part of the staggered cylindrical seedling pick-up units 300, parallel to the fertilizer hopper 38. In addition to this, a vertical fertilizer transport frame 40 is provided on either the left or right side of the staggered cylindrical seedling pick-up units 300, and the corner is formed in a large R shape so as to surround the staggered cylindrical seedling pick-up units 300 in an L shape and configure the fertilizer transport frame 40 to be connected.

[0092] Next, a fertilizer transport table 39 that moves along the fertilizer transport frame 40 is connected to the cylindrical seedling pick-up unit 300 that is farthest from the side where the fertilizer transport frame 40 is provided on the side by a rope, and the fertilizer transport table 39 is configured to be pulled by rotating the cylinder 30 and winding the rope around the outer circumference of the cylinder. Guides are provided on the fertilizer transport frame 40 at various places for the rope 41, and it is assumed that the rope 41 is stretched along the fertilizer transport frame 40 in the same way as the fertilizer transport table 39.

[0093] With this configuration, if the fertilizer bag P is placed on the fertilizer transport table 39 at a low position on the side of the rice transplanter traveling unit 100, then by rotating the cylindrical seedling pick-up unit 300, the fertilizer transport table 39 on which the fertilizer bag P is placed is pulled up, and furthermore, the upper part of the staggered cylindrical seedling pick-up unit 300 in front of the upper part of the mid-fertilizer hopper 38 can be moved left and right, and the fertilizer bag P can be moved to the position where fertilizer replenishment is desired in front of the fertilizer hopper 38.

[0094] In addition, by providing a configuration in which the fertilizer bag P placed on the fertilizer transport table 39 is automatically tilted to drop fertilizer downward to the rear and a configuration in which the fertilizer hopper lid automatically opens, it is possible to configure the fertilizer replenishment to be performed automatically, and this fertilizer transport unit can be used as a part thereof.

Industrial Applicability

[0095] The present invention can realize a working device that has no problem in harvesting in the planting progress direction or in the lateral direction orthogonal to the progress direction, and is therefore optimal for a seedling planting rice transplanter.

Explanation of Signs

[0096] 1 Field 2 Seedlings 2a Inter-plant spacing 3 Travel path for teaching 4 Control device 4a Memory unit 5 Travel HST 6 Wheels 7 HST for planting claws 8 Planting device 8a Planting claws 10 Fertilizer drive shaft 11 Low reduction ratio transmission path 12 High reduction ratio transmission circuit 13 One-way clutch 14 Intermediate shaft 15 Motor 20 Sub-shift lever 21 Rotation sensor 22 Motor 30 Cylinder 30a Semi-cylindrical member 31 Rail 32 Round bar (rake) 33 Seedlings 34 Seedling box 35 Seedling holding plate 35a Main shaft 35b Stopper shaft 35c Vertical rotation shaft stand 36 Gear 37 Brush 38 Fertilizer hopper 39 Fertilizer carrier 40 Fertilizer transport frame 41 Rope 300 Unit L1, L2, L3 ··· Travel path P Fertilizer bag PL Planting reference line SL Reference line

Claims

1. A rice transplanter equipped with a planting device having planting claws for planting seedlings in a field, when seedlings are planted along a predetermined teaching travel path, each of the planting positions is recorded by a control device, when the control device causes the planting device to plant seedlings along another travel path parallel to the teaching travel path, the control device plants the seedlings at positions on respective planting reference lines extending in a direction orthogonal to the teaching travel path, starting from each of the recorded planting positions, the control device plants the seedlings at positions on respective planting reference lines by controlling the rotational speed of the planting claws of the planting device, when planting seedlings along the teaching travel path, the control device grasps the distance traveled by the vehicle body using GNSS, and accordingly controls the rotation of the planting claws to maintain a constant plant spacing, and executes a distance plant spacing maintenance mode, a rice transplanter.

2. equipped with a cylindrical seedling pick-up device for supplying the seedlings to the planting device having planting claws for planting seedlings in the field, the seedlings are of the seedling mat type, the cylindrical seedling pick-up device has a cylinder, a rail fixed at the central position inside the cylinder, and a plurality of round bars installed in parallel above the rail inside the cylinder, a seedling box containing the seedling mat is inserted while being held on the rail inside the cylinder, subsequently, when the cylinder rotates 180 degrees in the circumferential direction, the seedling mat drops from the seedling box and is placed on the plurality of round bars, a seedling holding plate is inserted between the seedling box and the seedling mat, when the cylinder rotates 180 degrees in the circumferential direction again together with the seedling holding plate, the seedling mat is placed on the seedling holding plate, the rice transplanter according to claim 1, wherein the seedling mat is supplied to the planting device by moving the seedling holding plate on which the seedling mat is placed toward the planting device side.

Images