DK173198B1

DK173198B1 - Apparatus for control of unwanted plant growth

Info

Publication number: DK173198B1
Application number: DK56997A
Authority: DK
Inventors: Henrik G Nielsen; Anders Hjorth-Westh; Bent Keller; Carsten Damgaard
Original assignee: Wr Damp Aps
Priority date: 1997-05-16
Filing date: 1997-05-16
Publication date: 2000-03-13
Also published as: NL1009183C2; SE515460C2; SE9801721D0; SE9801721L; DK56997A

Description

TT

i DK 173198 B1in DK 173198 B1

Den foreliggende opfindelse angår et apparat til bekæmpelse af uønsket plantevækst ved tilførsel af termisk energi til en plantes overjordiske dele, omfattende en dampudvikler, såsom en kedel, til op-5 varmning og fordampning af vand, et udløb for damp fra dampudvikleren placeret over det tilsigtet højeste vandspejl i kedlen, et opadtil lukket og nedadtil åbent dække til placering over en uønsket plantevækst og en ledningsforbindelse mellem dampudløbet fra dampudvik-10 leren og dækkets indre.The present invention relates to an apparatus for controlling unwanted plant growth by supplying thermal energy to a plant's above-ground parts, including a steam generator, such as a boiler, for heating and evaporating water, an outlet for steam from the steam developer located above the intended the highest water level in the boiler, an upwardly closed and downwardly open deck for placement of undesirable plant growth and a conduit connection between the steam outlet from the steam developer and the interior of the deck.

Apparater af denne art kendes fra SE-B-468 497 og US-A-5 381 958, som begge viser apparater ved hvilke dampen udledes gennem dyser, som retter dampen direkte ned mod jorden, som derved opvarmes af damp, som ikke 15 rammer plantedele, hvilket kan medføre et spild.Apparatus of this kind are known from SE-B-468 497 and US-A-5 381 958, both of which show apparatus by which the steam is discharged through nozzles which direct the steam directly to the ground, which is thereby heated by steam which does not hit 15 plant parts, which can cause a waste.

Det er også kendt at svide en plantes overjordiske dele af ved hjælp af en gasflamme.It is also known to burn off a plant's underground parts by means of a gas flame.

Det er endvidere kendt at højtryksspule uønsket plantevækst med vand ved en temperatur få grader under 20 kogepunktet.Furthermore, it is known that high-pressure flushing unwanted plant growth with water at a temperature a few degrees below the boiling point.

Disse to sidstnævnte kendte metoder har hver især deres ulemper. Anvendelse af en gasflamme medfører således en brandfare, og anvendelse af varmt vand kræver minimum 0,5 liter vand pr. m for at opnå den 25 ønskede virkning.These two latter known methods each have their drawbacks. The use of a gas flame thus creates a fire hazard and the use of hot water requires a minimum of 0.5 liters of water per day. m to achieve the desired effect.

Formålet med den foreliggende opfindelse er at undgå ulemperne ved den kendte teknik.The object of the present invention is to avoid the disadvantages of the prior art.

Formålet opfyldes ved hjælp af et apparat, som er særegent ved, at der er anbragt en lede- eller prel-30 leplade overfor et udløb for damp fra ledningsforbindelsen under dækket til at sikre en diffus udledning af dampen under dækket. Ved hjælp af dette apparat kan de overjordiske dele af en plante indhylles i en sky af LThe object is accomplished by means of an apparatus which is peculiar in that a guide or baffle plate is placed opposite an outlet for steam from the conduit connection under the tire to ensure a diffuse discharge of the steam under the tire. With the aid of this apparatus, the above-ground parts of a plant can be shrouded in a cloud of L

vanddamp som tilvejebringes under dækket, idet den 35 tilførte vanddamp fordriver luften under dækket og 2 DK 173198 B1 kondenserer på plantedelene, hvorved disse skoldes, j Denne skoldning ødelægger cellerne i plantedelenes overflade, og plantens overjordiske dele visner i løbet af 48 timer fra de har været udsat for damppåvirk-5 ningen. Ved denne fremgangsmåde kan vanddampen ledes ind under dækket i en mængde af mindre end ca. 0,15 kg o damp pr. m . Dette er under en tredjedel af den mængde vand der kræves ved den kendte besprøjtning med hedt vand. Vanddampen kan tilføres plantedelene i et tids-10 interval som er mindre end 3 sek., fortrinsvis mindre end 2 sek. og navnlig ca. l sek.water vapor provided beneath the tire, the 35 vapor supply evaporating the air beneath the tire and condensing on the plant parts, causing them to scald; been exposed to the vapor effect. In this method, the water vapor can be fed under the tire in an amount of less than about 100 g. 0.15 kg of steam per m. This is less than one third of the amount of water required in the known hot water spray. The water vapor may be supplied to the plant parts in a time interval of less than 3 seconds, preferably less than 2 seconds. and in particular approx. l sec.

Dækket har fortrinsvis form af en flad skal med en nedad vendende rand som fortrinsvis udgøres af et fleksibelt tætningselement, eksempelvis en elastisk 15 læbe eller børster. Herved opnås en klar afgrænsning på den overflade der behandles mellem behandlet og ubehandlet areal samtidig med at det undgås, at der spildes damp som slipper ud under dækkets rand.Preferably, the tire is in the form of a flat shell with a downwardly directed rim which is preferably constituted by a flexible sealing member, for example an elastic lip or brush. This provides a clear demarcation of the surface being treated between treated and untreated area while avoiding the release of vapor escaping below the tire rim.

Dækket kan være opdelt i to sektioner som er 20 bevægelige i forhold til hinanden for tilpasning til en ikke plan overflade såsom en kantsten.The deck may be divided into two sections which are movable relative to one another for adaptation to a non-planar surface such as a curb.

Opfindelsen vil i det følgende blive forklaret nærmere ved hjælp af et eksempel på en udførelsesform under henvisning til den skematiske tegning, på hvilken 25 fig. 1 viser et apparat ifølge opfindelsen og fig. 2a og 2b viser dækket henholdsvis set oppefra og i lodret snit.The invention will now be explained in more detail by way of example of an embodiment with reference to the schematic drawing, in which FIG. 1 shows an apparatus according to the invention and FIG. 2a and 2b show the tire seen from above and in vertical section respectively.

Det i fig. 1 viste apparat omfatter en dampudvikler i form af en kedel 1 med et hus 2 og et opvarm-30 ningsaggregat som i dette tilfælde er en gasbrænder 3.The FIG. 1 comprises a steam generator in the form of a boiler 1 with a housing 2 and a heater which in this case is a gas burner 3.

I kedlen l's hus findes vand 4 med en overflade 5. Over vandoverfladen 5 er tilvejebragt et udløb 6 til hvilket er sluttet en ledning 7 der fører til det indre eller undersiden af et dække 8. Der er vist en yderligere 35 gasbrænder 9 til overhedning af damp som strømmer i m m DK 173198 B1 3 m ledningen 7.In the housing of boiler 1, water 4 is provided with a surface 5. Above the water surface 5 is provided an outlet 6 to which is connected a conduit 7 leading to the interior or underside of a cover 8. An additional 35 gas burner 9 is shown for overheating. steam flowing imm DK 173198 B1 3 m cord 7.

Dækket 8 har form af en flad skal med en nedre rand langs hvilken der strækker sig børsteelementer 10, som danner tætning mod en overflade 11 som skal behand-5 les. Dette kan eksempelvis være en jordoverflade som er bevokset med ukrudt 12.The tire 8 is in the form of a flat shell with a lower edge along which extends brush elements 10 which seal against a surface 11 to be treated. This may be, for example, a soil surface that is overgrown with weeds 12.

Når dækket 8 som vist anbringes over en overflade 11 vil damp som udvikles ved kogning i kedlen l strømme gennem ledningen 7 og fortrænge luften fra rummet under 10 dækket 8. Derved vil ukrudtet 12 blive indhyllet i en sky af damp som skolder overfladen af de enkelte ukrudtplantedele.As shown, the tire 8 is placed over a surface 11, steam generated by boiling in the boiler 1 flows through the conduit 7 and displaces the air from the space below the tire 8. Thus, the weeds 12 will be enveloped in a cloud of steam which rinses the surface of the individual weed plants.

Dampen ledes diffust ud under dækket 8 for at danne en sky som indhyl ler ukrudtet snarere end at 15 blive udledt som en stråle der rammer jorden under ukrudtet hvorved jorden og ikke ukrudtet opvarmes.The vapor is diffusely discharged under the deck 8 to form a cloud that envelops the weeds rather than being discharged as a beam that strikes the ground beneath the weeds thereby heating the soil and not the weeds.

Denne diffuse udledning opnås ved, som vist i fig.This diffuse discharge is obtained by, as shown in FIG.

2a og 2b, overfor udløbet 14 fra ledningen 7 at tilvejebringe en lede- eller prelleplade 13 under dækket 20 for at lede dampen fra ledningen 7 ud langs omkredsen af dækket således, at dampens hastighed nedsættes kraftigt, hvorved det opnås at dampen fordeles jævnt under dækket 8, og det undgås at en stråle af damp rammer ned mod jorden.2a and 2b, opposite the outlet 14 from the conduit 7 to provide a guide or baffle plate 13 under the tire 20 to direct the steam from the conduit 7 along the circumference of the tire so as to greatly reduce the velocity of the steam, thereby obtaining the vapor evenly distributed beneath the tire 8, and a jet of steam is prevented from hitting the ground.

25 Med et apparat ifølge opfindelsen har opfinderne konstateret, at en bevoksning svarende til en slået græsplæne (længde af strå ca. 40 mm) kan bringes til at visne ved udledning af en mængde damp i størrelses-ordenen 0,15 kg pr. m . Planterne vil blive stående 30 umiddelbart efter behandlingen, men deres overflade vil være ødelagt og i løbet af 48 timer vil de overjordiske dele være visnet. En behandling vil som regel ikke umiddelbart dræbe planternes rødder men disse kan dræbes ved gentagende behandlinger med nogle ugers 35 mellemrum.With an apparatus according to the invention, the inventors have found that an overgrowth corresponding to a mowed lawn (length of straw about 40 mm) can be made to wither by the discharge of an amount of steam in the order of 0.15 kg per day. m. The plants will stand 30 immediately after treatment, but their surface will be damaged and within 48 hours the supernatural parts will wither. A treatment will usually not immediately kill the roots of the plants but these can be killed by repetitive treatments at some 35 week intervals.

f 9 DK 173198 B1 4 *·f 9 DK 173198 B1 4 * ·

Fremgangsmåden kan både anvendes ved relativt små bærbare apparater til behandling af mindre arealer I (eksempelvis til privat havebrug) eller ved større traktorbårne apparater til behandling af større area-5 ler.The method can be used both for relatively small portable appliances for the treatment of smaller areas I (for example for private horticulture) or for larger tractor-borne appliances for the treatment of larger areas.

Fremgangsmåden kan anvendes såvel på almindelige jordoverflader som på befæstigede arealer dvs. eksempelvis flise- eller grusbelagte arealer.The method can be applied both to ordinary soil surfaces and to fortified areas ie. for example, tiled or gravel-covered areas.

Fremgangsmåden medfører ingen brandfare for 10 omgivelserne og i kraft af tætningselementerne (børsteelementerne 10) ved dækket 8's rand opnås en skarp afgrænsning mellem behandlet og ikke behandlet areal.The method does not cause a fire hazard to the surroundings and, due to the sealing elements (brush elements 10) at the edge of the tire 8, a sharp demarcation is achieved between treated and untreated area.

Det skal forstås af den præcise mængde damp, der kræves for at behandle et givet areal afhænger af 15 mængden og arten af beplantning som skal bekæmpes.It must be understood that the exact amount of steam required to treat a given area depends on the amount and nature of planting to be controlled.

Det skal endvidere forstås at der til opvarmning af vand og eventuelt damp kan anvendes enhver egnet varmekilde.It is further understood that any suitable heat source can be used for heating water and possibly steam.

Claims

5 DK 173198 B1 f i

An apparatus for controlling undesirable plant growth by applying thermal energy to a plant's above-ground parts (12), comprising a steam generator (1), such as a boiler, for heating and evaporating water (4), an outlet (6) for steam from the steam developer (1) located above the intended highest water level (5) in the steam developer (1), an upwardly closed and downwardly open cover (8) for positioning an undesirable plant growth 10 (12) and a conduit connection (7) between the steam outlet ( 6) from the steam developer (1) and the interior of the tire (8), characterized in that a conductor or baffle plate (13) is arranged opposite an outlet (14) for steam from the conduit connection (7) under the tire (8) to ensure a diffuse discharge of steam under the tire (8).

Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the tire is divided into two sections which are movable relative to each other for adaptation to a non-planar surface, for example a curb.