Motorized Tillage Machine With Counter-Rotating Tools for Soil Biodiversity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing motorized machines for working the earth or soil cause soil imbalance by bringing lower layers to the surface, harm living organisms like earthworms, pose a risk to users due to high-speed tool rotation and stone throw, and create driving discomfort due to vibrations, making them unsuitable for elderly or young users.
Innovation Solution
A motorized machine with counter-rotating tools on separate parallel axes, featuring curved claws that penetrate the soil vertically, rotate at low speeds, and have adjustable or fixed tool head orientations, powered by a rechargeable battery, with safety features to prevent accidents.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional rotating tools are used to work the soil, then the soil can be loosened and cultivated, but the lower layers containing microorganisms are brought to the surface causing soil imbalance and living organisms like earthworms are cut
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using conventional rotating tools that turn soil layers upside down, the invention uses vertically oriented tools that move in opposite directions to loosen soil while preserving the natural layer structure. This inverts the approach from horizontal rotation to vertical counter-directional movement, preventing microorganism displacement and earthworm injury.
Solution Approach 2:
The tool assembly is segmented into multiple independently controlled tools that can move in opposite directions. This segmentation allows each tool to work the soil separately without mixing layers, maintaining soil structure integrity while achieving effective loosening.
2Productivity
If tools rotate at high speeds to work the soil efficiently, then productivity is improved, but stones can be thrown towards the user creating safety risks
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of high-speed rotation that throws stones outward, the invention uses low-speed vertical movement in opposite directions. This reverses the motion pattern from centrifugal rotation to controlled vertical progression, keeping stones in place and preventing them from being thrown toward the user.
Solution Approach 2:
The operating parameters are changed from high rotational speed to low vertical movement speed. This parameter change reduces the kinetic energy involved, preventing stone projection while maintaining effective soil working capability.
3Productivity
If conventional tools are used to work the soil, then the soil can be cultivated, but significant vibrations are generated causing driving discomfort and affecting user comfort
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using rotating tools that generate centrifugal vibrations, the invention employs vertically moving tools that operate in opposite directions. This inverted motion pattern creates balanced forces that counteract each other, significantly reducing vibrations and improving user comfort while maintaining cultivation effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The tools are designed to move in opposite directions, creating counterbalancing forces that act as anti-weight to each other. This reduces the net vibration transmitted to the user, making operation more comfortable and less fatiguing.
4Productivity
If the machine is designed for effective soil working, then productivity is achieved, but the machine becomes unsuitable for elderly or young users due to difficult and demanding driving conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The invention inverts the conventional approach by using low-speed vertical tool movement instead of high-speed rotation. This reduces the physical strength required to operate the machine, making it accessible to elderly and young users while maintaining effective soil working capability through the counter-directional tool action.
Solution Approach 2:
The operating parameters are fundamentally changed from high-speed rotation requiring strong physical control to low-speed vertical movement that is easier to control. This parameter change reduces the physical demands on the operator, expanding the machine's usability to include elderly and young users.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The machine preserves soil biodiversity by not raising lower layers, reduces user risk, enhances ergonomics, and provides comfortable operation suitable for all users, including the elderly and young, while effectively loosening the upper soil layer.
Implementation Method 1
a tool head (3) mounted on the side of a second end of said body, opposite the first end, said head carrying at least two tools; means for driving said tools in rotation in counter-rotating directions around separate parallel axes of rotation
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
The invention relates to a motorised machine (1) for ground or soil cultivation, in particular comprising: - means (2, 7) for gripping the machine which are located on the side of a first end of the machine; - a tool head (3) mounted on the side of a second end of the machine opposite the first end, the head supporting at least two tools (5, 6); - a body (C) connecting the first and second ends, - means (4) for rotating the tools (5, 6) in counter-rotating directions around separate parallel axes of rotation (R1, R2), the axes of rotation of the tools extending, in the use configuration of the machine, in parallel planes substantially perpendicular to the surface of the ground or the soil, the at least two tools (5, 6) each comprising claws having a round cross-section and a curved shape.