Sectional Control for Agricultural Seeders Preventing Over-Seeding
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing farm implements struggle with precise seeding and fertilizing, particularly in irregularly shaped or smaller fields, leading to over-seeding and over-fertilization, which results in uneven germination and harvest issues, and prior solutions have not effectively addressed the issue of double seeding and seed bed destruction.
Innovation Solution
A system that notifies the operator when the implement is crossing previously seeded or fertilized areas, allowing manual control of the seeding system and ground-engaging openers to prevent repetitive seeding and disturbance of the seed bed, using a combination of GPS/GNSS technology and manually operable gates and hydraulic actuators to selectively obstruct the seed flow and lift openers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If larger air seeders with greater field coverage are used, then productivity increases, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to over-seeding and over-fertilization in irregular or smaller fields
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is divided into multiple independently controllable sections corresponding to different groups of row units. Each section can be individually activated or deactivated based on the field geometry and seeding requirements, allowing precise control of seed and fertilizer application in irregular or smaller fields while maintaining high productivity with large equipment.
2Manufacturing precision
If metering devices are implemented to apply specific quantity of seed per linear distance, then manufacturing precision improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates GPS positioning and control section activation status feedback to monitor and adjust seed and fertilizer application in real-time. This feedback mechanism ensures precise metering while maintaining manageable system complexity through automated control based on positional information and section status.
3Reliability
If ground-engaging openers remain engaged to maintain seed bed, then reliability improves, but object-affected harmful factors increase due to seed bed destruction in overlapped areas
Solution Approach 1:
The ground-engaging openers are designed with dynamic control capability, allowing them to be raised or lowered based on real-time control section activation status. When a control section is deactivated to prevent over-seeding, the corresponding openers are automatically raised to avoid disturbing the seed bed in those areas, thereby eliminating seed bed destruction in overlapped regions while maintaining seed bed integrity in active sections.
Data Source
AI summary
A sectional control apparatus and method prompts the operator of an implement when the implement, or portion thereof, is traversing over land that has already been seeded and/or disturbed. The apparatus includes a GPS or GNSS receiver that communicates with a GPS or GNSS system and a controller that maps movement of the implement so that real-time positional data for the implement can be compared to the movement map. When the position of the implement, or portion thereof, is detected as moving over previously seeded and/or disturbed land, the controller activates an alert mechanism in the operator cab of the implement to notify the operator that sectional control, i.e., shutting down metering of product or raising the tool bar, needs to be implemented.