rice transplanter

Abstract

To provide a rice transplanter which can suppress seedlings planted in a going route from falling down or being flowed out during a flowing operation in a returning route.SOLUTION: A rice transplanter 1 comprises: a travel machine body 10 which can travel in a farm field; and a seedling planting unit 20 which is supported on a rear part of the travel machine body 10. On a lower end of the seedling planting unit 20, multiple floats 30A, 30B, 30C for ground leveling are provided so as to be arrayed in a lateral direction, and a side blocking member 50 blocking from a side, a wave W1 of muddy water generated in front of the floats 30A, 30B, 30C is provided so as to be opposed to a part including front end parts 38 of ground planes 36 in the floats 30A, 30C on lateral end parts out of the multiple floats 30A, 30B, 30C from the outside in the lateral direction X1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a rice transplanter equipped with a float for ground leveling. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, a rice transplanter comprises a traveling body capable of traveling in a field and a seedling planting unit supported at the rear of the traveling body. The seedling planting unit is typically provided at its lower end with a float for leveling the soil, sliding along the soil surface of the field. This type of rice transplanter is disclosed in many documents, including Patent Document 1.

[0003] As shown in the plan view of Figure 5, rice planting work by the rice transplanter 101 is usually performed while the traveling body 110 travels back and forth in a zigzag pattern across the field 100. At this time, behind the traveling body 110, the seedling planting unit 120 plants seedlings at a desired depth in the soil that has been leveled by the float 130. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 59-036929 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, as shown in the enlarged plan view of Figure 6, when planting work is being carried out on the return path 202 after planting work on the outbound path 201 has been completed, the seedlings 210 planted on the outbound path 201 may fall over or be washed away. In this case, the seedlings must be replanted, which reduces work efficiency. This problem of seedlings 210 falling over and being washed away on the outbound path 201 is particularly likely to occur when rice planting is carried out in a loose field immediately after tilling, or when rice planting is carried out while the traveling machine body 110 is traveling at high speed.

[0006] The inventors of the present application have discovered that the falling and washing away of seedlings 210 on the outbound journey 201 can be caused by muddy water waves W1 generated in front of the float 130 directly hitting the seedlings 210 diagonally behind.

[0007] Although Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for preventing seedlings from falling over immediately after being planted behind a float, it does not take into consideration the problem of seedlings falling over or being washed away during planting work on the return trip. Furthermore, no effective solution to this problem has been proposed to date.

[0008] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a rice transplanter that can prevent seedlings planted on the outbound journey from falling over or being washed away during planting work on the return journey. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] One aspect of the present invention is a rice transplanter comprising a traveling body capable of traveling in a field and a seedling planting unit supported at the rear of the traveling body, and a plurality of floats for ground leveling are arranged in a horizontal row at the lower end of the seedling planting unit, and a side blocking member that blocks muddy water waves generated in front of the floats from the side is arranged to face the lateral outside of a portion including the front edge of the ground contact surface of the float at the lateral end of the plurality of floats, and the side blocking member is arm-shaped, connected to the side blocking member at one end and connected to the traveling machine at the other end via a first connecting part, and a first support member that is rotatably connected to each of the side blocking member and the first connecting part via a first connecting shaft extending laterally, and an arm-shaped member that is connected to the side blocking member at one end rearward of the first support member and connected to the seedling planting unit at the other end via a second connecting part, The side blocking member is rotatably connected to the side blocking member via a second connecting shaft extending laterally, and the seedling planting unit is rotatably connected to the side blocking member via a third connecting shaft extending laterally, The second connecting shaft is supported by a second support member provided with an elongated hole extending slidably in the length direction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the rice transplanter of the present invention, during the planting operation of seedlings, the lateral blocking members reliably block muddy water waves that are generated in front of the float and propagate to the sides of the rice transplanter. As a result, when rice planting is performed using a rice transplanter that travels back and forth in a zigzag pattern within a field, the falling over and washing away of seedlings that were planted on the outward journey during the planting operation on the return journey is effectively prevented. This enables smooth rice planting even immediately after plowing, when the soil surface becomes muddy. Furthermore, the rice transplanter's travel speed can be increased during rice planting, and the amount of seedling replanting work can be reduced. This effectively improves the efficiency of rice planting. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a rice transplanter according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] 2A and 2B are an enlarged side view and an enlarged plan view showing the positional relationship between the float and the side blocking member in the rice transplanter. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing the movement trajectory of a rice transplanter in a field. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is an enlarged plan view for explaining the problems of a conventional rice transplanter. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present invention, its application, or its uses.

[0013] [Overall configuration] Fig. 1 is a side view showing a rice transplanter 1 according to this embodiment, Fig. 2 is a plan view of the rice transplanter 1, and Fig. 3 is a rear view of the rice transplanter 1. In each figure, the horizontal direction when viewed from the traveling direction of the rice transplanter 1 is indicated by reference symbol X1, the front-to-rear direction parallel to the traveling direction of the rice transplanter 1 is indicated by reference symbol Y1, and the up-down direction (height direction) of the rice transplanter 1 is indicated by reference symbol Z1.

[0014] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the rice transplanter 1 comprises a traveling body 10 capable of traveling in a field, and a seedling planting unit 20 supported at the rear of the traveling body 10. To facilitate understanding of the invention, the seedling planting unit 20 is shown in simplified form by a dashed line in Figures 2 and 3. Although not shown, the rice transplanter 1 may further comprise attachments other than the seedling planting unit 20 (for example, a fertilization unit).

[0015] The rice transplanter 1 according to this embodiment is a riding type, and a driver's seat 12 is provided on the traveling machine body 10. The traveling machine body 10 is configured with a pair of front wheels 14 and a pair of rear wheels 16. The traveling machine body 10 is equipped with a drive source such as an engine (not shown), a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the output of the drive source to the wheels 14, 16, and various operating parts (for example, a handlebar 17, levers, and pedals) that are operated by the occupant.

[0016] The seedling planting unit 20 is connected to the rear of the traveling machine body 10 via a connecting part 18. The connecting part 18 is configured, for example, by a link mechanism. The seedling planting unit 20 is supported on the traveling machine body 10 via the connecting part 18 so that it can be raised and lowered.

[0017] The seedling planting unit 20 includes a seedling loading table 22 on which seedlings can be placed in multiple rows, and a planting section 24 that grabs the lowest seedling placed on the seedling loading table 22 and plants it in the field. Note that although Figures 2 and 3 show a seedling loading table 22 for planting five rows, the number of rows of the rice transplanter 1 is not important in the present invention.

[0018] [float] At the lower end of the seedling planting unit 20, multiple floats 30 (30A, 30B, 30C) for ground leveling are arranged in a row in the horizontal direction X1. Specifically, one center float 30B is arranged in the center of the horizontal direction X1, and one side float 30A, one side float 30C are arranged at each end of the horizontal direction X1. Note that although the rice transplanter 1 according to this embodiment is provided with three floats 30, the number of floats 30 can be changed as appropriate.

[0019] Each float 30 (30A, 30B, 30C) has a wide portion 32 that includes the front end of the float 30, and a narrow portion 34 that extends rearward from the center of the wide portion 32 in the lateral direction X1. The wide portion 32 is generally rectangular in plan view. The narrow portion 34 is generally rectangular in plan view, and has a smaller dimension in the lateral direction X1 than the wide portion 32. The boundary between the wide portion 32 and the narrow portion 34 tapers rearward in the front-to-rear direction Y1.

[0020] A rising portion 33 extending obliquely upward toward the front is provided at the front end of each float 30, i.e., the front end of the wide portion 32. The rising portion 33 is curved so as to bulge toward the front.

[0021] 4(a), the portion of the underside of the float 30 rearward of the rising portion 33 forms a ground contact surface 36 that comes into contact with the soil surface S1 of the field. The portion of the underside of the float 30 forward of the ground contact surface 36, i.e., the surface below the rising portion 33, forms a front surface 39 of the float 30. The lower edge of the front surface 39 coincides with a front edge 38 of the ground contact surface 36.

[0022] During the rice transplanter 1's seedling planting operation, the float 30 glides along the soil surface S1 at the ground contact surface 36. If the soil surface S1 becomes muddy due to soiling, for example, a muddy water wave W1 may be generated in front of the front surface 39 of the float 30. The inventors of the present application have discovered that this wave W1 may spread to the side of the rice transplanter 1, causing the seedlings 210 to tip over and wash away on the outbound path 201, as shown in FIG. 6. To solve this problem, the rice transplanter 1 according to this embodiment is configured as follows.

[0023] [Side blocking member] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the rice transplanter 1 is equipped with a pair of side blocking members 50 that block muddy water waves W1 (see Figure 4(a)) generated in front of the floats 30 from the sides (lateral direction X1). The side blocking members 50 are provided on both sides of all the floats 30 (30A, 30B, 30C) in the lateral direction X1. In this embodiment, the pair of side blocking members 50 have a common configuration. The configuration of the side blocking members 50 will be specifically described below.

[0024] The side blocking member 50 is an elongated member extending in the front-rear direction Y1. The side blocking member 50 is a plate-shaped member arranged approximately perpendicular to the lateral direction X1. The side blocking member 50 is configured, for example, as a plate-shaped member that is closed over the entire surface.

[0025] However, the configuration of the side blocking member 50 can be changed as appropriate as long as it can block the muddy water waves W1. For example, the side blocking member 50 may be a lattice-like member with multiple elongated openings aligned in one direction, or a mesh-like member with multiple openings arranged in a grid pattern.

[0026] In this embodiment, the side blocking member 50 is supported by the traveling body 10 and the seedling planting unit 20.

[0027] The side blocking member 50 is supported by the traveling machine body 10 via a first support member 70. The first support member 70 is an arm-shaped member connected at one end to the side blocking member 50 and at the other end to the traveling machine body 10. One end of the first support member 70 is rotatably connected to the side blocking member 50 via a connecting shaft 62 extending in the lateral direction X1. The other end of the first support member 70 is rotatably connected to a connecting portion 72 provided on the traveling machine body 10 via a connecting shaft 74 extending in the lateral direction X1.

[0028] The side blocking member 50 is supported on the seedling planting unit 20 via a second support member 80. The second support member 80 is an arm-shaped member connected at one end to the side blocking member 50 and at the other end to the seedling planting unit 20. One end of the second support member 80 is rotatably connected to the side blocking member 50 via a connecting shaft 64 extending in the lateral direction X1. The second support member 80 is connected to the side blocking member 50 rearward of the first support member 70. The other end of the second support member 80 is rotatably connected to a connecting part 82 provided on the seedling planting unit 20 via a connecting shaft 84 extending in the lateral direction X1. The connecting part 82 is provided, for example, on the seedling tray 22, but may also be provided elsewhere in the seedling planting unit 20 (for example, on the float 30).

[0029] The second support member 80 has an elongated hole 86 extending in the length direction. A connecting shaft 64 attached to the side blocking member 50 is engaged in the elongated hole 86 so as to be able to slide along the elongated hole 86. When the seedling planting unit 20 moves up and down, the side blocking member 50 supported on the seedling planting unit 20 via the second support member 80 can also move up and down. At this time, the connecting shaft 64 slides along the elongated hole 86, allowing the side blocking member 50 to move up and down smoothly.

[0030] However, the support structure of the side blocking member 50 can be changed as appropriate depending on the structure of the rice transplanter. For example, the side blocking member 50 may be supported only by the traveling body 10, or only by the seedling planting unit 20. The side blocking member 50 may also be supported by the side floats 30A, 30C.

[0031] [Positional relationship between side blocking members and side floats] The positional relationship between the side blocking member 50 and the side floats 30A, 30C will be explained with reference to the enlarged side view in Fig. 4(a) and the enlarged plan view in Fig. 4(b). Note that Fig. 4(a) shows the positional relationship between the side float 30C on the right side facing forward in the front-rear direction Y1 (the forward direction of the rice transplanter 1) and the side blocking member 50, but the positional relationship between the side float 30A on the left side and the side blocking member 50 is similar.

[0032] The side blocking members 50 are provided so as to face the portions of the side floats 30A, 30C that include the front edge portions 38 of the contact surfaces 36 from the outside in the lateral direction X1. The side blocking members 50 are arranged at intervals in the lateral direction X1 from the side floats 30A, 30C.

[0033] The opposing surfaces 51 of the lateral blocking members 50 facing the side floats 30A, 30C are arranged along the traveling direction (front-rear direction Y1) of the traveling machine body 10 so as to guide the muddy water waves W1 rearward. More specifically, the opposing surfaces 51 are arranged parallel to the front-rear direction Y1. Furthermore, the opposing surfaces 51 are arranged perpendicular to the lateral direction X1.

[0034] The upper edge 52 of the opposing surface 51 is arranged parallel to the front-rear direction Y1. The upper edge 52 of the opposing surface 51 is arranged above the upper edge of the part of the side float 30A, 30C that is rearward of the rising portion 33, and is arranged below the upper end of the rising portion 33.

[0035] The lower edge 53 of the opposing surface 51 is disposed parallel to the front-rear direction Y1. The lower edge 53 of the opposing surface 51 is disposed below the ground contact surfaces (lower edges) 36 of the side floats 30A, 30C. In other words, the opposing surface 51 protrudes below the ground contact surfaces (lower edges) 36 of the side floats 30A, 30C.

[0036] The front edge 54 of the opposing surface 51 is inclined obliquely upward and forward along the rising portion 33 of the side floats 30A, 30C. The front edge 54 of the opposing surface 51 is located forward of the rising portion 33. In other words, the opposing surface 51 protrudes forward of the front surface 39 of the side floats 30A, 30C.

[0037] The rear edge 55 of the opposing surface 51 is disposed parallel to the up-down direction Z1. The rear edge 55 of the opposing surface 51 is disposed rearward of the front end of the narrow portion 34 of the side floats 30A, 30C. In other words, the opposing surface 51 is disposed to face the side floats 30A, 30C in the region in the front-rear direction Y1 that extends from the wide portion 32 to the narrow portion 34.

[0038] [Function of side blocking member 50] With the above configuration, during the planting operation of seedlings by the rice transplanter 1, the muddy water wave W1 that is generated in front of the float 30 and propagates to the side of the rice transplanter 1 reliably collides with the opposing surface 51 of the side blocking member 50. The muddy water wave W1 that collides with the opposing surface 51 of the side blocking member 50 is guided along the opposing surface 51 to the rear in the front-to-rear direction Y1 and attenuates. As a result, the muddy water wave W1 that propagates to the side of the rice transplanter 1 is reliably blocked by the side blocking member 50.

[0039] Therefore, according to this embodiment, the falling over and washing away of seedlings that were previously planted on the outbound path 201 (see FIG. 6) is effectively prevented during planting work on the inbound path 202 (see FIG. 6). This allows the rice transplanter 1 to perform good rice planting work even immediately after the soil surface S1 becomes muddy. Furthermore, it is possible to increase the travel speed of the traveling body 10 during rice planting work and reduce the amount of work required to replant seedlings. This effectively improves the efficiency of rice planting work.

[0040] To achieve this effect, it is sufficient to provide one side blocking member 50 on each of the right and left sides of the rice transplanter 1, regardless of the number of floats 30. In other words, since it is not necessary to provide a side blocking member 50 for each of all floats 30, it is possible to prevent an increase in the number of parts and a complicated structure.

[0041] [Wheel barrier] As shown by the dotted line in Figure 2, the rice transplanter 1 may further be provided with a wheel blocking member 90 for blocking waves of muddy water generated in front of the wheels (front wheels 14 and / or rear wheels 16) of the running body 10 from the side.

[0042] Specifically, the wheel blocking member 90 may be provided so as to face the lower end portions of each of the pair of front wheels 14 from the outside in the lateral direction X1. The wheel blocking member 90 is supported on the traveling body 10, for example, via a pair of support members 92, 94. As a result, when waves of muddy water generated in front of the front wheels 14 are transmitted laterally during planting work by the rice transplanter 1, the waves of muddy water are effectively blocked by the wheel blocking member 90. Therefore, as described above, the falling over and washing away of seedlings planted earlier is more effectively suppressed, and the work efficiency of rice planting by the rice transplanter 1 is more effectively improved.

[0043] In addition, a similar wheel blocking member 90 may be similarly provided opposite the lower end of the rear wheel 16. In this case, the same effect can be achieved with respect to muddy water waves generated in front of the rear wheel 16. In addition, if a soil leveling rotor is provided on the rice transplanter 1, a corresponding rotor blocking member may be provided on the soil leveling rotor from the outside in the lateral direction X1 of the soil leveling rotor. Waves are generated from the rice transplanter 1 at four locations: the front wheel, rear wheel, float, and soil leveling rotor. Therefore, blocking members can be provided corresponding to any of these. However, when a soil leveling rotor is not used, it is preferable to always provide a blocking member corresponding to the float, as the float generates the most waves. When a soil leveling rotor is used, it is preferable to provide blocking members corresponding to the float and soil leveling rotor, as the float and soil leveling rotor generate the most waves. Furthermore, if the thickness of the planting layer (topsoil) in a paddy field is not uniform and there are areas where it is deep, the rice transplanter may sink and the soil leveling rotor may push against the topsoil, causing the topsoil to cover the seedlings that have already been planted.However, this can be prevented by installing a blocking member that corresponds to the soil leveling rotor.

[0044] Although the present invention has been described above using the above-mentioned embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. For example, the shape of the side blocking member 50 described above is merely an example, and in the present invention, the shape of the side blocking member can be appropriately changed depending on the configuration of the float, etc. Also, in the above-mentioned embodiments, an example is described in which a pair of side blocking members 50 have a common configuration, but the configurations of the pair of side blocking members 50 do not necessarily have to be the same. Furthermore, in the above-mentioned embodiments, a riding rice transplanter is described, but the present invention is also applicable to a walk-behind rice transplanter. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 1. Rice transplanter 10 Running body 14 Front wheels (wheels) 16 Rear wheel (wheel) 20 Seedling Planting Unit 30A, 30C Side float (float at the lateral end) 30B Center Float 32 Wide section 33 Rising section 34 Narrow part 36 Ground plane 38 Leading edge of contact patch 50 Side blocking member 51 Float facing surface 52 Upper edge of opposing surface 53 Lower edge of opposing surface 54 Leading edge of opposing surface 55 Trailing edge of opposing surface 70 first support member 80 second support member 90 Wheel blocking member S1 Soil surface W1 Muddy Wave

Claims

1. A rice transplanter comprising a traveling body capable of traveling in a field and a seedling planting unit supported on the rear of the traveling body, and a plurality of floats for ground leveling are arranged horizontally at the lower end of the seedling planting unit, a lateral blocking member for blocking muddy water waves generated in front of the floats from the sides is provided so as to face from the lateral outside a portion including a front edge portion of the ground contact surface of the float at the lateral end of the plurality of floats, The side blocking member is a first support member having an arm shape, one end of which is connected to the side blocking member and the other end of which is connected to the traveling machine via a first connecting part, and which is rotatably connected to each of the side blocking member and the first connecting part via a first connecting shaft extending laterally; a second support member having an arm shape, one end of which is connected to the side blocking member rearward of the first support member and the other end of which is connected to the seedling planting unit via a second connecting part, the second support member being rotatably connected to the side blocking member via a second connecting shaft extending laterally, and the second support member being rotatably connected to the seedling planting unit via a third connecting shaft extending laterally, the second connecting shaft having an elongated hole extending longitudinally so as to allow the second connecting shaft to slide; A rice transplanter characterized by being supported by.

2. The rice transplanter according to claim 1, wherein the side blocking members are arranged laterally spaced apart from the floats at the lateral ends.

3. A rice transplanter as described in claim 2, characterized in that the surface of the lateral blocking member facing the float at the lateral end is arranged to protrude forward from the front surface of the float at the lateral end and to protrude downward from the lower edge of the float at the lateral end.

4. The rice transplanter according to claim 3, wherein the opposing surface is arranged along the traveling direction of the traveling body so as to guide the muddy water waves rearward.

5. The float at the lateral end portion has a wide portion including a front end of the float and a narrow portion extending rearward from a lateral center portion of the wide portion, The rice transplanter according to claim 4, characterized in that the opposing surface is arranged to face the float at the lateral end in a front-to-rear region extending from the wide portion to the narrow portion.

6. A rising portion extending obliquely upward toward the front is provided at the front end of the float at the lateral end, A rice transplanter as described in any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the front edge portion of the opposing surface is arranged so as to slope diagonally upward toward the front along the rising portion and to be positioned forward of the rising portion.

7. The rice transplanter according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the side blocking members are provided on both sides of the plurality of floats in the lateral direction.

8. A wheel blocking member that blocks muddy water waves generated in front of the wheels of the traveling body from the side, The rice transplanter according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the lower end of the wheel is provided so as to face the outside in the lateral direction.

9. The traveling machine body includes a pair of front wheels and a pair of rear wheels, The rice transplanter according to claim 8, wherein the wheel blocking members are provided so as to face each of the pair of front wheels from the lateral outer side.

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