CA1063880A - Planting machine - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A planting machine for mechanised planting which simultan-eously performs earth preparation and planting. The machine has a plant store from which plants are transferred by a planting member to respective planting locations. The planting member has on both sides plow-share type earth preparation means.

Description

The present invention refers to a planting machine, comprising a planting unit advanced by a vehicle, where plants from a plant store are transferred, via a planting member, to respective earth-prepared planting spots.
In accordance with the conventional method for mechanized planting, the earth-preparation and planting are effected at separate times; this has caused inconveniences as the earth-preparing for a plant may destroy the preparation for the preceding plant, or that the plant does not land within the prepared earth area.
These obvious drawbacks are eliminated by the fact that, according to the invention, the planting member is on both sides provided with earth-preparing means so that the planting operation and the earth-preparing operation are performed in the same time moment. The planting member is pivoted on the machine, and delivers consecutive plants to respective planting areas, and the outlet of the planting member includes a plow tube which cooperates with two share-like earth preparing means respectively positioned on each side of the plow tube to shovel earth around the plant when this has been set, to form a flower-bed-like non-compacted mound for the ;
same.
__ , The invention is described more in detail while 1 -j: , refexring to the accompanying drawings. There Fig. 1 shows a schematic side view of a fully automatic version of a planting 1 ~-machine of the invention, and Fig. 2 shows a plan view of the j, - .
same.

A so-called base machine with an advancing unit 1 supports on the towed platform 2 a crane 3 for filling a plant store 4; and ~; .

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., ~' ', energizing ~ource ror the various runctions is shown at 5.

From the plant store a case 6 containing plants is transported (automatically) at regular time intervals to the mouth of a curved plough tube 7. ~wo such plough tubes are provided in the shown embodiment, designated 7a and 7b in Fig. 2~

E~ch of the plough tubes 7a and 7b is at its end secured to a different support 8a and 8b, respectively, between respective earth-disintegrating plough shares ser~ing as earth-preparing means (means ~or exposing mineral earth within an area of circa 1/2 m2) 9a and lOa, and 9b and lOb~ respectively. The un.iform earth-preparation around the planting plough allows the planting Or the plant in the centre Or the earth-preparing spot as is highly desirable rrom a biological view. The plough tubes are flexible .
and rOllow the motion Or the support~ 8 by means of an arm 11.
This arm, which can prererably be act;uated by a double-acting .hydraulic cylinder, is momentary lowered during the advance ror spot-wise earth-preparation and planting. For alleviating the two .
plough shares 9 may be arran~ed ~lexible in the vertical plane.

~~ In order to simultaneously with.the earth-preparing, in which - in the example shown - also the plant ~ plough partakes, produce a planting with a satisractory arter-filling, the - ~
ends o~-the plough tubes-have-to--be suitably rormed,-as expanding l .
do~nwards to initiate an inherent collapse of the wa~ls around ¦
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the set plant, which preferably is rooted in a substrate lump in a manner kno~ln per se.

. :
The idea of the shown doubled planting units, carried by the supports 8a and 8b, is to let them work principally alternately so that power from the supply source is saved - in effect, two parallel pl2nt rows are obtained with use o~ llsingle'l power -at the same time as the load of the supply source will be more uniform which in its turn facilitates the continuous driving of the planting machine. The respective wor~ing and resting positions of the supports 8a and 8b are shown at A and V, respectively, in Fig. 1. The raising and lowering of the supports is effected as already mentioned - by the respective supports and actuated by hydraulic cylinders 16 acting between a point 14 on the arm and a point 15 on the plat~orm. -..
The invention is not restricted to the arrangement described above but various modifications thereof can be imagined within the scope of the invention, especially with respect to the various details. Thus, althou~h it is preferred to use alternately ~-operating planting units~ this is no necessary criterion. The ., only criterion is that the preparation Or earth and the planting operation are effected in direct connection with each other. The planting member, here shown as a plough tube, can be formed as a soparate unit without any ploughlng eff~ct.

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Claims (2)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. In a planting machine comprising a vehicle supporting a plant store, a planting member pivoted on the machine, means for transferring plants from said plant store to said planting member, said member delivering consecutive plants to respective planting areas, and plow means for pre-paring the earth before the plants are set, the improvement wherein the plow means consist of a plow tube, also forming the outlet of said planting member, and two share-like earth-preparing means respectively positioned on each side of the outlet of said planting member to shuffle earth toward the outlet to form a flower-bed-like non-compacted mound at the planting area for a plant.

2. A planting unit as defined in claim 1, wherein an additional member is provided having the same features as the first planting member, the two members having limited oscillatory movement coordinated to lower one planting member to its working position simultaneously with raising the other planting member to its resting position, and vice versa.