Grapevine Soil-Cleaning Device Using Pneumatic Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing grapevine digging machines in Ningxia, China, are inefficient and labor-intensive, as they cannot effectively clear soil from the central area around grapevines without damaging the vines, and require manual operation.
Innovation Solution
A grapevine soil clearing device using a high-power fan with double air outlets and a built-in air outlet reversing device for non-contact soil clearing, combined with an angle sensor and controller for automation, allowing for efficient and painless soil removal without the need for a steering mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a high-power fan with large volume and mass is used to improve soil clearing efficiency, then the productivity increases, but the device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The air outlet is divided into multiple independent outlets arranged in an array, allowing the fan system to be distributed rather than concentrated. This segmentation enables the use of high-power fans while reducing the complexity and weight concentration of any single component, and allows for modular assembly and maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
The air outlets are arranged in a two-dimensional array pattern rather than a single linear direction. This dimensional change distributes the air flow generation across multiple points, improving soil clearing coverage and efficiency while allowing the fan system to be more compact and better balanced, reducing overall device complexity.
2Device complexity
If a single air outlet is used to simplify the structure, then the device complexity decreases, but pits are generated due to wind concentration and soil clearing performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The single air outlet is segmented into multiple air outlets arranged in an array. This segmentation distributes the wind flow across multiple discharge points, preventing wind concentration that would create pits, while improving overall soil clearing performance through broader coverage and more uniform air distribution.
3Device complexity
If manual operation is used to reduce automation complexity, then the device complexity decreases, but labor consumption increases and efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The device incorporates automatic control capabilities that allow it to operate autonomously without manual intervention. The system can automatically adjust fan operation, air outlet configuration, and navigation, reducing labor consumption while maintaining manageable device complexity through standardized control systems.
4Productivity
If contact-based soil removal methods are used to improve clearing effectiveness, then the productivity increases, but the grapevines and buds are damaged
Solution Approach 1:
The mechanical contact-based soil removal methods (such as plows or scrapers) are replaced with a pneumatic system using a high-power fan to generate air flow. This substitution allows soil to be removed through aerodynamic forces rather than mechanical contact, effectively clearing soil while preventing damage to grapevines and buds.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses pneumatic principles by employing a high-power fan to generate controlled air flow that lifts and removes soil particles. This pneumatic approach enables effective soil clearing without physical contact with the grapevines, eliminating the harmful mechanical forces that would otherwise damage the plants.
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 device achieves non-contact soil clearing, reduces manual labor, increases efficiency, and prevents damage to grapevines by ensuring consistent wind direction and power adjustment, while maintaining a small and lightweight design.
Implementation Method 1
This invention utilizes the wind from the fan for non-contact clearing
Data Source
AI summary
A grapevine soil-cleaning device and engineering machinery installed with the soil-cleaning device, comprising an air blower (4), an air vent direction reversal device, a soil-retaining device, an angular sensor (7) and a controller (19). The controller (19) is connected to the air blower (4), the angular sensor (7), the air vent direction reversal device and the soil-retaining device respectively. The present device achieves non-contact soil cleaning by blowing air, and has the advantages of no harmful impact on buds and branches, one-time cleaning, and highly efficient soil cleaning. The air vent direction reversal device may achieve a consistent air-blowing direction when the grapevine soil-cleaning device moves among rows of the grapevine. The soil-retaining device may hold back the blown soil and reduce the displacement distance of the blown soil. An auxiliary air pipe is provided below a main air pipe to assist soil-cleaning operations and avoid generating pits on a ridge due to concentrated wind power of the main air pipe. The air vent direction reversal, adjustment of the air power of the air blower and automated direction reversal of the soil-retaining device when moving among ridges are achieved by using the angular sensor (7) and the controller (19), thus achieving a high level of technological intelligence.