Flexible Frame Aerator for Perpendicular Hole Penetration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aerators struggle to maintain holes perpendicular to sloped or undulating ground surfaces, leading to uneven hole depth and spacing, which can cause erosion and affect the quality of aerated turf surfaces.
Innovation Solution
An aerator with a coring head mounted on a flexible frame that uses a flex frame actuator, adjusted by electronic signals from a ground sensor, to ensure tines penetrate the ground surface at a perpendicular angle, maintaining uniform depth and spacing across varying terrain.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the aerator uses a rigid frame with fixed coring head position, then the structure is simple and stable, but the holes cannot remain perpendicular to sloped or undulating ground surfaces, resulting in uneven depth and spacing
Solution Approach 1:
The frame is designed to be flexible rather than rigid, allowing it to dynamically adjust its configuration in response to ground surface variations. The frame sections can pivot relative to each other about a horizontal axis, enabling the coring head to maintain perpendicular orientation to sloped or undulating surfaces while keeping the overall structure relatively simple.
2Manufacturing precision
If the coring head is mounted behind the supporting axle, then the structure is simplified, but wheel movement over ground contours causes inconsistent hole depth
Solution Approach 1:
The frame allowing pivoting motion enables the coring head to dynamically compensate for wheel position variations. When wheels move over rises or dips, the flexible frame adjusts the coring head position accordingly, maintaining consistent hole depth without requiring complex active control systems.
3Manufacturing precision
If the aerator maintains fixed frame orientation, then the mechanism is simple, but forward movement speed differences cause tines to rake or break the ground surface
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible frame with pivot capability provides passive dynamic adjustment that keeps tines vertical during operation. This maintains clean hole edges by preventing raking or breaking of the ground surface, while avoiding the need for complex active control mechanisms through its mechanically simple pivoting design.
Data Source
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AI summary
An aerator (100) having a flexible frame (102) for use on sloped or undulating ground surfaces of golf courses and other turf. The aerator (100) includes a pair of frame sections (104, 106) linked together at a horizontal pivot axis, one of the frame section (106) supporting a coring head (1229. A ground sensor (138) is pivotably attached to one of the frame sections (104, 106) so that the ground sensor (138) may pivot in response to changes in ground slope and provide output relating to the magnitude of the change. Based on the output, a flex frame actuator (140) pivots the pair of frame sections (104, 106) with respect to each other.