Agricultural material ejection device

Abstract

Provided is an agricultural material ejection device capable of operating favorably while enabling an agricultural material to be ejected vigorously, without defects such as crushing or clogging of the agricultural material. This agricultural material ejection device comprises: a storage part 7 for storing an agricultural material; a delivery part 8 for delivering the agricultural material stored in the storage part 7; and an ejection mechanism 10 for ejecting, from an ejection port 9 to a supplied place, the agricultural material delivered by the delivery part 8. The ejection mechanism 10 includes: a gas compression part for compressing a gas; a gas passage part through which the compressed gas from the gas compression part passes toward the ejection port; and a temporary holding part 42 capable of temporarily holding the agricultural material in the middle of the passage of the gas passage part. The temporary holding part 42 is capable of temporarily holding the agricultural material delivered from the delivery part 8 and allows the agricultural material to be ejected toward the supplied place by the compressed gas.

Description

Agricultural material injection device

[0001] The present invention relates to an agricultural material ejection device that is suspended and supported by an aircraft and that delivers granular agricultural materials, such as seeds and fertilizer, to a delivery location.

[0002] A conventional seed drill, which is an example of an agricultural material ejection device, is configured as follows: It includes a tank for storing seeds, which are an example of agricultural material, a delivery mechanism that delivers the seeds from the bottom of the tank, a shooter unit that shoots the delivered seeds into a field, and a cylindrical guide body that extends vertically and guides the seeds delivered by the delivery mechanism to the shooter unit. The shooter unit includes a rotor that has multiple blades extending radially and is driven to rotate at high speed, and is configured so that the seeds that are delivered by the delivery mechanism and fall downward through the inside of the guide body are ejected downward by the blades of the rotor (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] International Publication No. WO2021-182108

[0004] In the above-described conventional configuration, the blades must be used to forcefully eject agricultural materials downward, requiring the rotor to rotate at high speed. However, since the agricultural materials fall freely relative to the rotor rotating at high speed, they do not necessarily enter the upstream side of the blades in the direction of rotation. For example, the agricultural materials may become caught between the tip of the blades and the inner surface of the cylindrical guide. In such a situation, the blades may press the agricultural materials against the inner surface of the guide with such force that the agricultural materials may be crushed or may become jammed due to the agricultural materials being caught.

[0005] Therefore, there was a demand for an agricultural material injection device that could eject agricultural materials with force, without causing problems such as crushing or clogging of the agricultural materials, and that could smoothly supply the agricultural materials to the destination.

[0006] A characteristic configuration of the agricultural material injection device according to the present invention is an agricultural material injection device that is suspended and supported by an aircraft and supplies granular agricultural material to a supply destination, and is provided with: a storage section that stores the agricultural material; a delivery section that delivers the agricultural material stored in the storage section; and an injection mechanism that delivers the agricultural material delivered by the delivery section from an injection port to the supply destination, the injection mechanism comprising: a gas compression section that compresses gas; a gas passing section through which gas compressed from the gas compression section toward the injection port passes; and a temporary holding section that can temporarily hold the agricultural material midway along the path of the gas passing section, and the temporary holding section is a cylindrical storage section that allows seeds to pass through an inner passage section. the agricultural material is pushed by the compressed gas, and the agricultural material is pushed against the biasing force of the biasing means, thereby allowing the agricultural material to be ejected toward the destination.

[0007] A gas such as air is compressed in the gas compression section, and the gas compressed in the gas compression section is guided through the gas passing section to the ejection port and ejected from the ejection port toward a supply destination such as a farm field. A plurality of holding members are provided along the path of the gas passing section. The holding members are positioned in a standby position by the elastic force of the elastic means and can temporarily hold the agricultural material delivered from the delivery section. When the compressed gas supplied through the gas passing section acts on the agricultural material temporarily held by the holding members, the agricultural material is pushed, causing the holding members to move in a direction away from the passage destination against the biasing force of the biasing means, and the agricultural material is ejected toward the supply destination.

[0008] This configuration allows the compressed gas to act efficiently on the agricultural materials temporarily held in place, ejecting them with great force. Furthermore, the agricultural materials are only acted upon by the compressed gas, and do not collide with objects moving at high speed, preventing the agricultural materials from becoming pinched between objects.

[0009] Therefore, it is possible to eject agricultural materials with force, without problems such as crushing or clogging of the agricultural materials, and it is possible to supply the agricultural materials to the destination in an efficient manner.

[0010] In the present invention, the holding members are arranged at positions spaced apart by approximately 120 degrees along the circumferential direction.

[0011] According to this configuration, the holding members are arranged at approximately equal intervals, so that agricultural materials can be temporarily stored in an appropriate manner.

[0012] In the present invention, the holding member is spherical, and the biasing means is a coil spring.

[0013] According to this configuration, the elasticity of the coil spring can be utilized to suitably move the holding member. Also, since the holding member is spherical, damage to agricultural materials due to contact with the holding member can be prevented.

[0014] In the present invention, it is preferable that the gas compression section comprises a cylinder tube, a piston that slides within the cylinder tube, a gas supply / discharge means that can be switched between a supply state in which gas is supplied to the internal space of the cylinder tube and an open state in which the internal space is opened to the outside, and a discharge section that discharges the gas that has been supplied to the internal space and compressed from the cylinder tube to the gas passage section as the piston moves.

[0015] According to this configuration, when gas is supplied to the internal space of the cylinder tube by the gas supply / discharge means while the piston is stopped, the gas is compressed in the internal space. Then, as the piston moves with the gas compressed in the internal space, the compressed gas is discharged through the discharge part toward the gas passage part. This configuration can be achieved with a simple configuration in which the gas is injected by compressing the gas and moving the piston.

[0016] In the present invention, it is preferable that the cylinder tube is provided with a first gas chamber located on one side of the piston in the sliding direction and a second gas chamber located on the other side of the piston in the sliding direction, a rod is provided on one side of the piston in the sliding direction and extends along the sliding direction, the discharge portion is provided at one end of the cylinder tube in the sliding direction, and the rod is switchable between a closed state in which it closes the discharge portion and an open state in which it opens the discharge portion to discharge gas as the piston moves, when the gas supply and discharge means is switched to the supply state, the rod is switched to the closed state, and gas is supplied to and compressed in the first gas chamber and the second gas chamber, and when the gas supply and discharge means is switched to the open state, the rod is switched to the open state, and the gas compressed in the first gas chamber is discharged from the discharge portion to the outside of the cylinder tube.

[0017] According to this configuration, when the gas supply / discharge means is switched to the supply state, the rod is closed, and gas is supplied to the first gas chamber and the second gas chamber and compressed. Thereafter, when the gas supply / discharge means is switched to the open state, the rod is opened, and the gas compressed in the first gas chamber is discharged from the discharge portion. With this configuration, the configuration of the injection mechanism can be simplified by effectively utilizing the rod provided on the piston.

[0018] 1 is a front view showing the work system; FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the work system; FIG. 3 is a longitudinal side view of the seeding device; FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the injection mechanism; FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the injection mechanism; FIG. 6 is a plan view of the temporary holding unit; FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the attachment state of the temporary holding unit; FIG. 8 is a plan view of the temporary holding unit of another embodiment; FIG. 9 is a plan view of the temporary holding unit of another embodiment; FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the attachment state of the temporary holding unit of another embodiment.

[0019] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the direction of the arrow FR shown in Fig. 2 will be referred to as "front," the direction of the arrow BK will be referred to as "rear," the direction of the arrow LH shown in Figs. 1 and 2 will be referred to as "left," and the direction of the arrow RH will be referred to as "right." The direction of the arrow UP shown in Fig. 1 will be referred to as "up," and the direction of the arrow DW will be referred to as "down."

[0020] 1 and 2 show a work system for supplying agricultural materials to a field. The work system includes a work unit A equipped with multiple seeding devices 1 as an example of an agricultural material injection device according to the present invention, an unmanned aerial vehicle B known as a drone, and multiple connecting bodies C that suspend and support the work unit A from the aerial vehicle B. The aerial vehicle B is configured to be able to fly independently. The aerial vehicle B has a main body 4, multiple propellers 5, and multiple arms 6.

[0021] Although the number of propellers 5 and arms 6 is not particularly limited, in this embodiment, there are four propellers 5 and four arms 6. The four arms 6 extend from the main body 4 to the left front, right front, left rear, and right rear, respectively.

[0022] Each propeller 5 is driven by the driving force of an electric motor (not shown). Driving each propeller 5 enables flying vehicle B. That is, by driving each propeller 5, flying vehicle B can move up and down, forward and backward, and left and right while floating in the air. Driving each propeller 5 enables flying vehicle B to fly while stationary.

[0023] The seeding device 1 is suspended and supported by the main body 4 via a plurality of connectors C (e.g., wires). A plurality of seeding devices 1 are provided, spaced apart in the left-right direction, and are assembled together to form the working unit 2. Although the example shows a case in which there are four connectors C, the number is not limited to four and may be changed.

[0024] The sowing device 1 can deliver seeds, which are an example of agricultural materials, to a field by shooting them. Although not described in detail, the flight state of the flying object B is managed so that the sowing device 1 moves along the path to sow seeds. At this time, the flying object B may repeat a movement operation and a position stop operation, and sowing work may be performed while the flying object B is stopped in position. Sowing work may also be performed while the flying object B moves continuously.

[0025] Although not shown, the aircraft B is equipped with a well-known satellite positioning device and a control unit that controls the drive of each propeller 5 to control the movement of the aircraft B. The satellite positioning device receives GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) signals from artificial satellites and generates positioning data indicating the position of the aircraft B based on the received signals. GNSS can be GPS, QZSS, Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou, or the like. The control unit controls the drive of each propeller 5 so that the aircraft B moves along a predetermined work route based on the measurement results of the satellite positioning device and preset map data of the field.

[0026] Next, we will explain the configuration of the seeding device 1. As shown in Figure 3, the seeding device 1 includes a hopper 7 as a storage unit for storing seeds, a delivery unit 8 that delivers the seeds stored in the hopper 7, and an injection mechanism 10 that ejects the seeds delivered by the delivery unit 8 from an injection port 9 into a field W as a supply location.

[0027] The hopper 7 has a storage space surrounded by side walls. An opening is formed at the top of the storage space, allowing a large number of seeds N to be poured in. After the seeds N have been poured in, the opening is closed with a removable lid 13. The bottom of the hopper 7 is provided with a flow-down guide section 11 that tapers downward. The seeds N can be discharged downward from the bottom of the flow-down guide section 11. A delivery roller 14 is provided at the discharge point.

[0028] The delivery roller 14 is supported rotatably around a left-right axis X1. Recesses 16 into which seeds N can fit are formed on the outer periphery of the delivery roller 14. Multiple recesses 16 are formed at regular intervals around the circumferential direction. The delivery roller 14 is formed with a narrow width along the rotation axis so that one or several seeds N can fit into each recess 16. The delivery roller 14 is driven to rotate around the axis X1 by an electric motor (not shown).

[0029] As the delivery roller 14 rotates, the seeds N that have entered the recess 16 are discharged downward. A cylindrical supply section 17 that guides the seeds N discharged from the delivery roller 14 is provided at the bottom of the hopper 7.

[0030] An ejection mechanism 10 is provided on the side of the feeding section 8. The seeds N fed from the feeding section 8 are ejected by the ejection mechanism 10 and supplied toward the field W with force.

[0031] The injection mechanism 10 in the embodiment of the present disclosure is equipped with a gas compression section 18 that compresses gas, and a gas guide section 20 that extends from the gas compression section 18 and has an injection port 9 formed at its tip, and that guides the gas compressed in the gas compression section 18 to the injection port 9 while maintaining the pressure of the gas, and then injects the seeds N from the injection port 9 toward the field W.

[0032] The gas compression section 18 is provided with a cylinder tube 21, a piston 22 that slides within the cylinder tube 21, a gas supply / discharge means 23, and a discharge section 24. The gas supply / discharge means 23 is switchable between a supply state in which gas is supplied to the internal space of the cylinder tube 21 and an open state in which the internal space is open to the outside. The discharge section 24 discharges the gas that has been supplied to the internal space and compressed to the outside of the cylinder tube 21 as the piston 22 moves.

[0033] The gas guide section 20 is provided in a state of communicating with the discharge section 24 and is composed of a cylindrical guide member 25. The guide member 25 has an inner diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the cylinder tube 21 and large enough for the seeds N to pass through.

[0034] The injection mechanism 10 will be described in detail. As shown in Figure 4, the injection mechanism 10 includes a cylinder tube 21 and a piston 22 that slides within the cylinder tube 21. The cylinder tube 21 includes an internal space that includes a first gas chamber 26 and a second gas chamber 27. The first gas chamber 26 is located on one side of the piston 22 in the sliding direction. The second gas chamber 27 is located on the other side of the piston 22 in the sliding direction.

[0035] A rod 28 extending along the sliding direction is provided on one side of the piston 22 in the sliding direction. A discharge portion 24 is provided at one end of the cylinder tube 21 in the sliding direction. The discharge portion 24 is configured by forming an opening in one sealing block body 29 that is inserted along the sliding direction. The end of the rod 28 on one side in the sliding direction can be inserted into the opening of the discharge portion 24.

[0036] When one end of the rod 28 in the sliding direction is inserted into the opening of the discharge portion 24, the discharge portion 24 is closed (the state shown in FIG. 4 ). When the rod 28 slides to the other side in the sliding direction, the rod 28 comes out of the opening and opens the discharge portion 24. That is, as the piston 22 moves, the rod 28 can be switched between a closed state in which the rod 28 closes the discharge portion 24 and an open state in which the rod 28 opens the discharge portion 24 and allows gas to be ejected.

[0037] A gas supply / exhaust means 23 is provided which can be switched between a supply state in which gas is supplied to each of the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27 of the cylinder tube 21, and an open state in which the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27 are open to the outside.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 4, the gas supply / discharge means 23 includes a compressor 32 as a gas supply source, a first switching valve 33, a check valve 34, a second switching valve 35, and a quick discharge valve 36.

[0039] The first switching valve 33 is switchable between a supply state in which gas is output from the compressor 32 to the first gas chamber 26 and a stop state in which the output is stopped. The second switching valve 35 is switchable between a supply state in which gas is output from the compressor 32 to the second gas chamber 27 and a stop state in which the output is stopped. When the second switching valve 35 is switched to the supply state, the quick discharge valve 36 allows gas to be supplied to the second gas chamber 27. When the second switching valve 35 is switched to the stop state, the check valve 34 prevents backflow toward the second switching valve 35, and the quick discharge valve 36 is switched to a state in which the second gas chamber 27 is suddenly opened to the outside.

[0040] The quick discharge valve 36 has a well-known configuration and includes an inlet portion 36a to which gas is supplied from the second switching valve 35, and a discharge portion 36b through which gas is discharged from the second gas chamber 27. The quick discharge valve 36 also includes a silencer 36c (see FIG. 5) that suppresses discharge noise when gas is discharged from the second gas chamber 27.

[0041] When the rod 28 is in the closed state, the gas supply / discharge means 23 can supply gas to the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27. When gas is supplied to the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27, the gas is compressed in each of the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27, and the internal pressure increases. At this time, the rod 28 is maintained in the closed state due to the difference in the area of ​​the pressure acting surface of the piston 22. Then, when the gas supply / discharge means 23 thereafter switches from the supply state to the open state, the compressed gas inside the second gas chamber 27 is released, the rod 28 switches to the open state, and the compressed gas is discharged from the discharge portion 24.

[0042] A central sealing block 37 is provided midway in the sliding direction of the cylinder tube 21. The central sealing block 37 is hollow to allow the rod 28 to pass through. The piston 22 is slidable between the central sealing block 37 and the other sealing block 38.

[0043] The cylinder tube 21 is provided with a first air supply section 39 and a second air supply section 40. Gas is supplied to the first air supply section 39 from the first selector valve 33. Gas is supplied to the second air supply section 40 from the second selector valve 35 via the quick exhaust valve 36. The first air supply section 39 is provided in the central sealing block 37. The second air supply section 40 is provided in the other sealing block 38.

[0044] 3 and 4, a guide member 25 constituting the gas guide portion 20 is provided on one outer side in the sliding direction of the cylinder tube 21. The guide member 25 is connected to communicate with the opening of the discharge portion 24. Gas discharged from the discharge portion 24 is discharged downward through the guide member 25.

[0045] When the rod 28 is switched to the open state with the gas compressed in the internal space of the cylinder tube 21, the gas in the internal space does not suddenly expand at the discharge part 24, but is guided to the injection port 9 through the inside of the guide member 25 while maintaining a high pressure. The gas passing through the inside of the guide member 25 can eject the seeds N forcefully downward.

[0046] The guide member 25 is detachably attached to the discharge portion 24 of the cylinder tube 21. As shown in Figure 4, a flange portion 25A is provided on the outer periphery of the upper end of the guide member 25, and this flange portion 25A is bolted to the end of the cylinder tube 21. By releasing the bolt connection, the guide member 25 can be removed from the cylinder tube 21. The injection speed at which the seeds N are injected from the injection port 9 can be changed by changing the guide length of the guide member 25 or by changing the pressure of the gas generated by the compressor 32.

[0047] The supply unit 17 is connected to the guide member 25 at a vertically intermediate portion thereof. The seeds N fed from the feeding unit 8 are supplied to the inside of the guide member 25 through the supply unit 17. The supplied seeds N are ejected toward the field W by gas forcefully ejected from the discharge unit 24.

[0048] [Temporary holding section] The guide member 25 functions as a gas passing section KT through which the gas compressed from the gas compression section 18 toward the injection port 9 passes. The guide member 25 is provided with a temporary holding section 42 capable of temporarily holding the seeds N midway through the gas passing section KT. The temporary holding section 42 is capable of temporarily holding the seeds N fed from the feeding section 8, and allows the seeds N to be injected by the compressed gas toward the field W as a supply destination.

[0049] 6 and 7, the temporary holding portion 42 is made of a circular plate-shaped soft material such as rubber, has a holding force capable of receiving the seeds N, and includes a passage portion 43 through which the seeds N can pass by the application of a pressing force from compressed gas. Arm portions 44, which are flared outward and wider toward the outside, are provided around the passage portion 43 and are arranged in the circumferential direction, with the outer peripheral side of the multiple arm portions 44 connected in series and the passage portion 43 side formed in a cantilever shape so as to be elastically deformable.

[0050] In other words, the temporary holding portion 42 has an insertion hole 45 formed in the center of a circular rubber plate, the insertion hole 45 having a diameter smaller than that of the seed N. A plurality of notches 46 are formed extending radially from the insertion hole 45 to a portion midway in the radial direction, and a plurality of arm portions 44 are formed by a plurality of regions sandwiched between the notches 46. A configuration in which the arm portions 44 extend to the center and no insertion hole 45 is formed may also be used.

[0051] 3 and 7, the temporary holding portion 42 has a larger diameter than the guide member 25 and is held in a sandwiched state between upper and lower holding plates 47a, 47b. The guide member 25 is divided into upper and lower portions midway, with the upper holding plate 47a integrally connected to the outer periphery of the lower end of the upper guide member 25a and the lower holding plate 47b integrally connected to the outer periphery of the upper end of the lower guide member 25b. With the temporary holding portion 42 sandwiched between the upper holding plate 47a and the lower holding plate 47b, the upper holding plate 47a and the lower holding plate 47b are fastened and fixed with a plurality of bolts.

[0052] By providing such a temporary holding section 42 midway along the path, the seeds N delivered from the delivery section 8 are temporarily received and held in this temporary holding section 42. When compressed gas is then ejected from the gas compression section 18, the pressure of the gas causes the arm section 44 of the temporary holding section 42 to deform, and the seeds N are forcefully ejected toward the field W.

[0053] [Operation of Injection Mechanism] Next, the operation of the injection mechanism 10 will be described.

[0054] 5(a), both the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27 are open. When the second switching valve 35 is switched to the supply state, gas is supplied to the second gas chamber 27 of the cylinder tube 21 through the second gas supply part 40.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 5B, when gas is supplied to the second gas chamber 27, the piston 22 slides to one side in the sliding direction, and the rod 28 switches to a closed state in which it closes the discharge portion 24.

[0056] 5(c), when the supply of gas to the second gas chamber 27 continues and the supply of gas to the first gas chamber 26 begins, the internal pressure of each of the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27 increases due to the compression of the gas. This state corresponds to the supply state of the gas supply / discharge means 23. At this time, the rod 28 is maintained in a closed state. That is, because the area of ​​the pressure acting surface of the piston 22 on the second gas chamber 27 side is larger than the area of ​​the pressure acting surface on the first gas chamber 26 side, the piston 22 is pushed toward the first gas chamber 26 side, and the rod 28 is maintained in a closed state.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 5( d ), when the first switching valve 33 is switched to the stopped state, the compressed gas stored in the second gas chamber 27 is discharged to the outside through the quick discharge valve 36 .

[0058] 5(e), as the internal pressure of the second gas chamber 27 decreases, the piston 22 moves to the other side in the sliding direction (toward the second gas chamber 27) due to the pressure difference between the first gas chamber 26 and the second gas chamber 27, and the rod 28 opens. This operation corresponds to the gas supply / discharge means 23 switching to the open state.

[0059] As a result, the discharge section 24 is opened, and the compressed gas held in the first gas chamber 26 is forcefully discharged from the discharge section 24. Then, the gas forcefully discharged from the discharge section 24 is guided to the injection port 9 via the guide member 25, and the seeds N fed from the feeding section 8 are injected toward the field W.

[0060] [Alternative Embodiment] (1) The temporary holding portion 42 may be configured as follows. It is the same as the above embodiment in that it is made of a plate-shaped soft material and has the holding force to receive the seeds N (agricultural materials). However, the passing portion may be configured as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 8 , a generally circular insertion hole 50 having a diameter larger than the agricultural materials is formed in the center of a disc-shaped rubber plate. Protrusions 51 protruding radially inward are integrally formed on the inner periphery of the insertion hole 50 at locations spaced approximately 120 degrees apart in the circumferential direction. The imaginary circle passing through the tips of the protrusions 51 is configured to be smaller than the outer shape of the seeds N. In this configuration, the seeds N are received and supported by three protrusions 51. Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 8( a), (b), and (c), the width of the protrusions 51 may be changed, and the inner diameter of the insertion hole 50 may be changed.

[0061] (2) The temporary holding unit 42 may be configured as follows. Instead of including a plate-shaped soft material, as shown in FIG. 9 , a cylindrical container 53 through which the seeds N can pass is provided. Three radially extending insertion holes 54 are formed within the container 53 at circumferentially spaced locations approximately 120 degrees apart. Spherical holding members 56 are provided within the insertion holes 54, and are radially movable and biased radially inward by coil springs 55. The three holding members 56 are received by locking portions 57 at positions protruding radially inward from the inner circumferential surface of the container 53 by a predetermined amount, and are held in that position. The temporary holding unit 42 is sandwiched and held between an upper holding plate 47 a and a lower holding plate 47 b, as in the above embodiment. With this configuration, when seeds N are supplied, they are received and held by the three holding members 56. The force of the coil spring 55 that biases the holding member 56 is set to have a holding force that is capable of receiving the seeds N, and also to a force that allows the seeds N to pass through due to the pressing force of the compressed gas.

[0062] (3) A guide member 25 having a fixed guide length may be fixed to the cylinder tube 21. In this case, the injection speed of the seeds N injected from the injection port 9 may be changed by changing the pressure of the gas generated by the compressor 32.

[0063] (4) Aircraft B may be of a drive type in which the propeller is driven by an internal combustion engine (engine), or may be of a parallel hybrid drive type in which the propeller is driven by both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine. Also, it may be of a series hybrid drive type in which a generator is driven by an internal combustion engine and the generated electricity drives an electric motor. Aircraft B is not limited to being unmanned, and may also be piloted by a person.

[0064] (5) The gas supply source may be configured as follows instead of the compressor 32. For example, a liquid substance that vaporizes easily may be stored in a tank, and the liquid may be vaporized from the internal space of the tank via an on-off valve, and the gas that expands rapidly may be ejected from a discharge port via the on-off valve. Alternatively, a piston may be slid using an actuator to increase the pressure in the internal space of the cylinder tube. In this way, various configurations may be adopted as the gas supply source.

[0065] (6) The gas compression unit 18 may be configured to supply gas from a gas supply source (compressor) only to the second gas chamber 27, and may be provided with a backflow prevention unit that allows gas to move in only one direction from the second gas chamber 27 to the first gas chamber 26, so that gas is compressed not only in the second gas chamber 27 but also in the first gas chamber 26. In this case, the number of gas supply paths is reduced, simplifying the configuration.

[0066] (7) The agricultural materials to be sprayed are not limited to seeds N, and fertilizers, chemicals, etc. may also be sprayed.

[0067] The present invention can be applied to an agricultural material injection device that is suspended and supported by an aircraft and supplies granular agricultural materials such as seeds N and fertilizer to a destination.

[0068] 7 Storage section 8 Delivery section 9 Injection port 10 Injection mechanism 18 Gas compression section 20 Gas guide section 21 Cylinder tube 22 Piston 23 Gas supply / exhaust means 24 Exhaust section 26 First gas chamber 27 Second gas chamber 28 Rod 42 Temporary holding section 43 Passage section 44 Arm section 53 Storage body 55 Coil spring (biasing means) B Flying object KT Gas passage section

Claims

1. An agricultural material injection device that is suspended and supported by a flying object and supplies granular agricultural materials to a supply location, comprising: a storage unit that stores the agricultural materials; a feeding unit that feeds out the agricultural materials stored in the storage unit; and an injection mechanism that injects the agricultural materials fed out by the feeding unit from an injection port to the supply location, wherein the injection mechanism includes a gas compression unit that compresses gas, a gas passage unit through which the gas compressed from the gas compression unit toward the injection port passes, and a temporary holding unit that can temporarily hold the agricultural materials in the middle of the path of the gas passage unit. The temporary holding unit includes a cylindrical storage body through which seeds can pass through an inner passage location, a plurality of holding members that are provided on the outer side of the passage location in the storage body with different circumferential positions and can move in and out along a direction approaching and separating from the passage location, and biasing means that biases the plurality of holding members toward a standby position where they enter the passage location. When the plurality of holding members are in the standby position, they can receive and temporarily hold the agricultural materials fed out from the feeding unit, and when the compressed gas acts and the agricultural materials are pushed, the plurality of holding members move in a direction away from the passage location against the biasing force of the biasing means, allowing the agricultural materials to be injected toward the supply location.

2. The agricultural material injection device according to claim 1, wherein the holding members are arranged at positions spaced apart by approximately 120 degrees along the circumferential direction.

3. The agricultural material injection device according to claim 1, wherein the holding members are spherical and the biasing means is a coil spring.

4. The agricultural material injection device according to claim 1, wherein the gas compression unit includes a cylinder tube, a piston that slides inside the cylinder tube, gas supply and discharge means that can be switched between a supply state in which gas is supplied to the internal space of the cylinder tube and an open state in which the internal space is opened to the outside, and a discharge unit that discharges the gas compressed and supplied to the internal space from the cylinder tube to the gas passage unit as the piston moves.

5. Inside the cylinder tube, a first gas chamber located on one side in the sliding direction with respect to the piston and a second gas chamber located on the other side in the sliding direction with respect to the piston are provided. A rod extending along the sliding direction is provided on one side in the sliding direction of the piston. The discharge portion is provided at one end of the cylinder tube in the sliding direction. Along with the movement of the piston, it is possible to switch between a closed state in which the rod closes the discharge portion and an open state in which the rod opens the discharge portion to discharge gas. When the gas supply / discharge means switches to the supply state, the rod becomes the closed state, and gas is supplied to and compressed in the first gas chamber and the second gas chamber. When the gas supply / discharge means switches to the open state, the rod switches to the open state, and the gas compressed in the first gas chamber is discharged from the discharge portion to the outside of the cylinder tube. The agricultural material injection device according to claim 4.

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