Seed Planting Unit Depth Adjustment With a Common Drive Assembly

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current agricultural seed planting systems face inefficiencies in adjusting penetration depth settings, particularly when multiple seed planting units are involved, leading to significant delays and decreased seeding efficiency due to the time-consuming process of adjusting individual openers.

Innovation Solution

A system with a common drive assembly that simultaneously adjusts the penetration depth settings of multiple seed planting units, utilizing a depth adjustment assembly with a cam member and depth adjustment gear, allowing for simultaneous and efficient reconfiguration of penetration depths across all units.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If individual packer arms are adjusted manually for each seed planting unit, then penetration depth can be precisely controlled for each unit, but the adjustment process becomes time-consuming and reduces seeding efficiency

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepenetration depth control precisionVSAvoidseeding efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple individual adjustment mechanisms into a single common drive assembly that simultaneously adjusts all packer arms across multiple seed planting units. This merging of previously separate adjustment operations into one unified system maintains precise penetration depth control for each unit while dramatically reducing the total adjustment time and improving seeding efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The common drive assembly serves as a universal adjustment mechanism that can simultaneously control the penetration depth of multiple different seed planting units with different opener configurations. This multi-functional system replaces the need for separate adjustment mechanisms for each unit, maintaining precision while enhancing productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Stability of the object's composition

If multiple seed planting units are equipped with individual depth adjustment mechanisms, then each unit can maintain consistent penetration depth, but the overall reconfiguration time for the implement increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepenetration depth consistencyVSAvoidreconfiguration time

Core Design Contradiction:

Stability of the object's compositionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple individual depth adjustment mechanisms into a single common drive assembly that simultaneously controls all packer arms across multiple seed planting units. This unified system maintains consistent penetration depth across all units while reducing reconfiguration time from multiple sequential adjustments to a single simultaneous operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The common drive assembly is pre-configured with multiple packer arms positioned to simultaneously adjust multiple seed planting units to the desired penetration depth. This preliminary arrangement of the adjustment mechanism allows all units to be reconfigured at once rather than requiring sequential individual adjustments, thereby maintaining consistency while minimizing time loss.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

3Productivity

If a common drive assembly is used to simultaneously adjust multiple seed planting units, then adjustment time is reduced and seeding efficiency improves, but the system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveseeding efficiencyVSAvoiddepth adjustment system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The common drive assembly is segmented into multiple independent packer arm mechanisms, each capable of individually adjusting a specific seed planting unit. This segmentation allows the system to maintain simplicity at the component level while achieving coordinated simultaneous adjustment across all units, thereby improving seeding efficiency without excessive increase in overall system complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The common drive assembly is designed as a universal system that uses a single drive mechanism to control multiple packer arms across different seed planting units. This multi-functional design reduces the total number of separate adjustment mechanisms needed, thereby improving productivity while actually reducing overall system complexity compared to having fully independent adjustment systems for each unit.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS10912243B2Depth adjustment system for seed planting units of an agricultural implement and related assemblies

Publication Date: 2021.02.09 CNH IND CANADA

AI summary

A system for adjusting penetration depth settings of seed planting units of an agricultural implement, the system may include a plurality of seed planting units and a common drive assembly. Each of the seed planting units may have a depth adjustment assembly. The common drive assembly may be configured to drive the depth adjustment assemblies of the plurality of seed planting units so as to simultaneously adjust a penetration depth setting of each respective seed planting unit.