Seed Drill Parallelogram Assembly for Stable Curved-Path Sowing

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing soil cultivator seed drills face issues with inefficient seed distribution due to lateral movement of seed-sowing assemblies, leading to reduced accuracy, increased wear, and higher operating costs, especially when encountering obstacles or turning.

Innovation Solution

A soil cultivator seed drill with a parallelogram assembly connected by universal joints and pivot assemblies about horizontal axes, allowing the seed delivery member to maintain a constant orientation and depth, and a soil loosening assembly with adjustable tines and disc coulters for precise seed placement.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If seed-sowing assemblies are connected by a vertical pivot axis, then the seed-sowing assemblies can move laterally to follow curved paths, but the resistance to lateral movement is substantially equal at any pivot angle causing the apparatus to bounce from side-to-side and not run straight

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to follow curved pathsVSAvoidlateral stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces the symmetric vertical pivot axis with an asymmetric horizontal pivot axis. This asymmetry in the pivot orientation allows the seed-sowing assembly to follow curved paths effectively while creating unequal resistance characteristics that prevent bouncing and maintain lateral stability during operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #4Asymmetry

Solution Approach 2:

The patent inverts the conventional approach by using a horizontal pivot axis instead of a vertical one. This inversion fundamentally changes the resistance characteristics during lateral movement, allowing the assembly to navigate corners and obstacles smoothly without the side-to-side bouncing caused by equal resistance at all angles.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

2Device complexity

If fixed soil loosening members are used, then the structure is simple, but it is difficult to go around corners effectively or to avoid obstructions without encountering high resistance

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural simplicityVSAvoidability to navigate obstacles

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent transforms the fixed soil loosening member into a dynamic, movable component connected through the parallelogram assembly with horizontal pivot axes. This allows the member to move laterally and adapt its position when encountering obstacles or during turning operations, significantly improving navigate ability while maintaining reasonable structural complexity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

3Adaptability or versatility

If seed-sowing assemblies move laterally when encountering obstacles, then they can avoid obstructions, but this causes the apparatus to bounce from side-to-side and not run straight

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to avoid obstructionsVSAvoidstraight-line operation

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The horizontal pivot axis creates asymmetric resistance characteristics during lateral movement. When the seed-sowing assembly encounters an obstruction and moves laterally, the unequal resistance at different pivot angles allows smooth navigation while preventing the symmetric bouncing motion that occurs with vertical pivots, thereby maintaining straight-line operation reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #4Asymmetry

Solution Approach 2:

By inverting the pivot axis orientation from vertical to horizontal, the patent fundamentally changes the movement characteristics. This inversion allows the assembly to absorb and navigate obstacles smoothly without transferring lateral movements into vertical bouncing motions, preserving both adaptability and operational reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Data Source

PatentEP4346367B1Soil cultivator seed drill

Publication Date: 2025.11.05 MZURI WORLD SP ZOO

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4

AI summary

A soil cultivator seed drill having clamp (1) for connection to an agricultural machine and including a parallelogram assembly (103) having a pair of substantially parallel arms (109, 111), each connected at one end thereof to the clamp and at the other end thereof to a connecting member (117) which interconnects the two other ends, the parallel arms being connected to the clamp (1) by a universal joint (113, 115) and to the connecting member (117) by a pivot assembly (119, 121) which is pivotable about a substantially horizontal axis. The connecting member (117) also supports a seed delivery member (105) for delivering seed and a depth controlling member (107) for determining the depth at which the seed delivery member sows seed.