Flexible Drop Tubes for Variable Width Crop Application
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional agricultural applicators face challenges in applying liquids at the correct height and angle to crops, causing crop damage due to rigidity, limited flexibility, and difficulty in navigating varying row widths and terrain, leading to inefficient application and increased maintenance costs.
Innovation Solution
A variable width agricultural applicator system with flexible drop tubes that can pivot and adjust to maintain application accuracy and prevent crop damage, featuring a splitter that distributes liquid to both rows and allows for horizontal and vertical movement, enabling efficient application of liquids to crop roots while being foldable for easy transport.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If rigid drop tubes are used to maintain proper width between them, then liquid application to crop rows is precise, but crop damage occurs when encountering smaller row widths or crop stalks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies flexible drop tubes instead of rigid ones, allowing the tubes to bend and flex as they navigate between crop rows. This flexibility prevents the tubes from damaging crops when encountering smaller row widths or crop stalks, while still maintaining sufficient rigidity to deliver liquid precisely to the target area through controlled bending rather than breaking
2Stability of the object's composition
If rigid drop systems are used, then structural stability is maintained, but the system cannot adapt to varying row widths and terrain conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic drop tubes that can change their shape and configuration in response to varying row widths and terrain conditions. The tubes are designed to flex, bend, and adapt their form factor while maintaining structural integrity, allowing the system to transition between different operational states without compromising either stability or adaptability
3Manufacturing precision
If conventional rigid drop tubes are used, then application accuracy is maintained, but setup and teardown time increases due to manual folding requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates dynamic folding capabilities into the drop tube system, allowing the tubes to be automatically folded and stored on the boom structure. This eliminates the need for manual folding operations, significantly reducing setup and teardown time while maintaining application accuracy when deployed, as the tubes can be quickly extended to their operational position
4Object-affected harmful factors
If drop tubes are made flexible to prevent crop damage, then crop safety is improved, but liquid delivery precision may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different levels of flexibility to different portions of the drop tube system. The tubes are designed with localized flexibility characteristics, allowing them to bend in specific areas to navigate row widths while maintaining sufficient rigidity in other sections to ensure precise liquid delivery to the target zone, achieving both crop protection and application accuracy simultaneously
Data Source
AI summary
A variable width agricultural applicator is provided. The variable width agricultural applicator is attachable to a boom to apply a liquid to a crop in rows. The variable width agricultural sprayer includes a drop tube and a splitter downstream of the drop tube. The splitter is fluidly connected to the drop tube. A pair of flexible delivery tubes is fluidly connected to the splitter. Each one of the pair of flexible delivery tubes has a predetermined bend.