Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
  • A01M—CATCHING, TRAPPING OR SCARING OF ANIMALS; APPARATUS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS ANIMALS OR NOXIOUS PLANTS
  • A01M9/00—Special adaptations or arrangements of powder-spraying apparatus for purposes covered by this subclass
  • A01M9/0053—Mechanical dusters
  • A01M9/0061—Centrifugal dusters

Definitions

• the present invention relates to the dispensing of biological material from a drone, such as for dispensing larvae or insects onto an agricultural area by letting the drone pass over the agricultural area while performing the dispensing.
• the biological material is blown away from the dispenser and the rotor blades of the drone by use of a blower.
• the invention relates to a blower head for mounting on such a blower and with which it is possible to obtain a well-defined, wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet of the blower head. Hereby a gentle handling and thereby a low mortality rate of the biological material can be obtained.
• the invention further relates to a device, such as a hand-held device, comprisning a blower head and for use in the dispensing of biological material.
• a known substitute for herbicides and insecticides is the dispensing of natural predators, relative to the pest, e.g. mites that eat the eggs of harmful insects, ladybugs that feed on soft-bodied harmful larvae, or bees that pollinate the crops and thereby increase the yield of a field.
• Dispensing insects or larvae by hand is a gentle but labor-intensive method, and mechanical dispensing is difficult to accomplish without harming or killing the living insects or larvae.
• an improved method of pest control within agriculture would be advantageous.
• a more eco-friendly and non-toxic method preferably with none or at least low long-term impact on the environment, would be advantageous. It would be advantageous if dispensing of biological material could be performed with a method which is so gentle to the biological material being dispensed that a low mortality rate could be ensured.
• blower head When the blower head is used for dispensing live beneficial animals, it is an object of the present invention to provide a blower head with which the mortality rate of the beneficial animals is lower than with prior art.
• blower head for providing a wide- angular airstream, the blower head comprising:
• an inlet for entry of a flow of air into the inner chamber the inlet being configured to be in fluid communication with a blower for providing the flow of air when in use
• the outlet is in the form of an elongated aperture facing away from the blower head, and extending over an angle of between 20 and 180 degrees, such as between 30 and 180 degrees, such as 60 to 180 degrees, such as 60 to 120 degrees, and wherein the inner chamber and the aperture are dimensioned and shaped so that air flowing through the inner chamber changes direction by hitting inner walls of the inner chamber in a manner resulting in a wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet.
• aperture is meant an opening, i.e. a through-going hole, through which the air can exit from the inner chamber.
• the aperture could also be referred to as orifice or opening.
• wide-angular is meant that the airstream spreads away from the outlet in a fan-shaped manner.
• the biological material will be spread over a larger area than would be the case, if the outlet were e.g. in the form of a circular opening.
• Such an opening would result in a narrow airstream, such as an airstream being in one or substantially one direction.
• the airstream could also be referred to as “spread” or “wide-spread”.
• the angle could be defined as the angle between imaginary lines between the outermost rays of air exiting the outlet.
• the aperture having an angle of 180 degrees would result in the biological material being spread over the whole of the region behind the moving drone. This would ensure a coverage over as large an area as possible for a given type of biological material.
• the biological material would of course fall down due to gravity, and a given flight pattern should be chosen to make sure that a given surface area on the ground is covered as intended.
• blower head therefore makes it possible to obtain a well-defined airstream exiting the outlet.
• well-defined is meant that it is possible to provide some parameters that objectively describe the airstream.
• An example of such a parameter is the angle of the airstream as will be further explained in the following.
• Another example could be the thickness, i.e. the vertical extension, of the airstream at a given distance from the outlet.
• the invention was primarily developed for use in relation to dispensing of beneficial animals by a drone.
• air is considered an advantageous medium for the spreading.
• the blower head itself would also work for other types of gasses.
• any mentioning of "air” could be replaced by "gas”.
• beneficial animals in the following, could also be referred to as “beneficial species” or “beneficial organisms”.
• beneficial animals are organisms that decimate pests, but also have other valuable, yield-increasing or stabilising functions. Today, they are also used in intensive crop cultivation as a cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solution for sustainable production.
• Biological crop protection is part of an integrated approach in which the potential of microorganisms and insects for the reduction of chemical pest control agents is systematically used.
• chemical pesticides cannot be used, and therefore the targeted use of beneficial organisms has a long tradition there. If the naturally occurring beneficial insect populations are not sufficient, farmers can use numerous beneficial insects to treat crops. Examples of “beneficial animals” are insects, larvae, or mites that eat the eggs of harmful insects, ladybugs that feed on soft-bodied harmful larvae, or bees that pollinate the crops.
• the invention can also be applied in other kinds of devices, such as in hand-held devices, rail guided devices, or motorized ground devices such as tractors or mobile robots.
• the shape, dimensions and orientation of the aperture is preferably designed such that a normal along the aperture defines desired directions of the airstream exiting the outlet.
• normal is meant a vector extending at a right angle to an imaginary surface forming the aperture. This will be illustrated in figure 5.
• the aperture is in the form of a circular segment in a plane of extension of the aperture.
• circular segment is preferably meant a portion of a circular disk, where one edge is a circular arc and another edge is a chord, i.e. a straight line joining two points on a circle.
• Another way to describe a circular segment is that it is the shape obtained by cutting off a part of a circle from the rest of the circle, wherein the cut is a straight line between two points on the circle.
• such an aperture can be obtained by arranging the outlet in a part of the blower head having a circular cross-section.
• the aperture may have a varying opening size in a direction perpendicular to the airstream; i.e. in the direction shown as vertical in figure 6.
• the opening size is larger at end regions of the aperture than at a central region of the aperture.
• the blower head further comprises a protrusion which, when the blower head is in use, is arranged above the outlet and facing upwards, the protrusion having an outer surface which is inclined with respect to vertical, when the blower head is in use.
• a protrusion which, when the blower head is used for the spreading of material being dispensed from above the blower head, this material hits and slides along the protrusion before being influenced by the airstream.
• such a design of the blower head provides a gentle handling of the typically vulnerable animals whereby a low mortality rate can be ensured.
• the protrusion may be shaped as a cone or as a truncated cone.
• the outlet may be provided in a wall of the protrusion.
• Such a shape of the protrusion makes the created vector field of the airstream start in essentially a point.
• the inlet is configured to be mounted directly to the blower, such as by press fit or by a threaded connection.
• the blower head is integrally made with the blower.
• the invention relates to a drone for dispensing biological material, such as beneficial animals, the drone comprising:
• a dispenser unit for dispensing the biological material - a blower
• blower head as described above, the blower head being mounted to the blower, wherein the blower head is arranged below the dispenser unit so that biological material leaving the dispenser unit during dispensing falls towards the outlet of the blower head and is spread over an area by the wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet.
• the container may be detachably mounted, so that an empty container can easily be replaced by another one which has been filled e.g. at another location.
• the blower and the blower head may be arranged at a distance from rotor blades of the drone which ensures that the biological material being dispensed does not hit the rotor blades.
• This will be particularly advantageous when the biological material is beneficial animals that could become injured or killed by impact with the rotor blades.
• the biological material is beneficial animals that could become injured or killed by impact with the rotor blades.
• it is easier to control the spreading, such as to ensure an even spreading, by avoiding any significant influence from the airflow caused by the rotating blades.
• the drone there is a plurality of dispenser units and a corresponding number of blower heads, and the blower supplies air to all of the blower heads.
• the blower supplies air to all of the blower heads.
• An alternative of the second aspect of the invention relates to a device for dispensing biological material, such as beneficial animals, the device comprising:
• blower head being mounted to the blower, wherein the blower head is arranged below the dispenser unit so that biological material leaving the dispenser unit during dispensing falls towards the outlet of the blower head and is spread over an area by the wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet.
• a device may be selected from a hand-held device, a rail-guided device, or a motorized ground device, such as a tractor or a mobile robot.
• the invention relates to a method of dispensing biological material by use of a drone as described above, the method comprising the following steps:
• the step of filling the biological material into the container may be performed before or after the container is mounted to the drone body.
• the biological material is beneficial animals. This is the method for which the invention was developed, but a blower head as described above may also be used for other applications where it is advantageous to obtain a well-defined wide-angular airstream.
• An alternative of the third aspect of the invention relates to a method of dispensing biological material, such as live beneficial animals, by use of a device as described above, the method comprising the following steps:
• blower head according to the invention as well as a dispensing of biological material by use of such a blower head will now be described in more detail with regard to the accompanying figures.
• the figures show one way of implementing the present invention and is not to be construed as being limiting to other possible embodiments falling within the scope of the attached claim set.
• Figure 1 schematically shows a three-dimensional side view an embodiment of a drone according to the present invention.
• Figure 2 is a top view of the drone in figure 1.
• Figure 3 schematically shows an embodiment of a blower head connected to a blower and arranged below a dispensing unit of a drone, such as the drone in figure 1.
• Figure 4 schematically shows a blower head having a section cut-off to reveal the inner chamber.
• Figure 5 schematically shows the wide-angular airstream spread from the aperture of a blower head.
• Figure 6 schematically shows a front view of the blower head in figure 5.
• Figure 7 schematically shows another embodiment of a drone having two dispensing units and having two corresponding blower heads connected to one centrally arranged blower.
• Figure 8 schematically shows an embodiment of the invention in the form of a hand-held device.
• a blower head according to the present invention has been developed in relation to the technical field of dispensing biological material by use of a drone. However, as mentioned above, it can also be used for other ways of dispensing. When dispensing live beneficial animals, it is desired to ensure a gentle handling of the live beneficial animals so that the mortality rate thereof can be kept as low as possible.
• FIG 1 schematically shows an example of a drone 1 for dispensing biological material, such as live beneficial animals.
• the drone 1 has a drone body 2 which in the embodiment of figure 1 is in the form of four arms arranged in the shape of a cross. Each of the arms is provided with a leg 3 on which the drone 1 can stand when landed. The legs 3 can also be considered as a part of the drone body 2.
• a rotor blade 4 is arranged at an outer end region of each arm.
• the rotor blades 4 together with at least one driving motor (not shown) and at least one battery (not shown) form the propulsion means for providing the propulsion of the drone 1 during use.
• the drone 1 has a container 5 for storage of biological material to be dispensed.
• the container 5 is mounted centrally at or close to the centre of gravity of the drone 1, and the drone 1 has a guide 6 for transferring the biological material from the container 5 to the dispenser unit 7.
• the dispenser unit 7 may e.g. be arranged adjacent to the container 5.
• the design of the dispenser unit 7 may differ from what is shown in figure 1.
• the guide 6 is arranged inclined with respect to vertical so that the transfer of the biological material can take place at least partially due to gravity.
• the drone 1 is further provided with a blower 14 and a blower head 13 arranged at or near the dispenser unit 7 in order to blow the biological material 11 exiting the dispenser unit 7 away from the dispenser unit 7 and away from the drone 1.
• Figure 2 schematically shows a top view of the drone 1 in figure 1.
• the guide 6 and dispensing unit 7 are shown as arranged midway between two arms of the drone body 2.
• the influence, such as collision, on dispensed biological material 11 from the rotating blades 4 can be kept to a minimum ensuring the desired gentle and controlled dispensing.
• Figure 2 also illustrates the biological material 11 being blown away from the dispensing unit 7 in a wide-angular airstream.
• FIG 3 schematically shows an embodiment of the invention with the dispenser unit 7, a blower 14 and a blower head 13.
• the blower head 13 is arranged below the dispenser unit 7 so that biological material leaving the dispenser unit outlet 8 during dispensing falls towards the outlet 15 of the blower head 13 and is spread over an area by the wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet 15 of the blower head 13 as shown in figure 2.
• the blower head 13 has a bottom plate 16 which may be removable e.g. for cleaning of the interior of the blower head 13.
• the blower head 13 comprises an inner chamber 17, an inlet 18 for entry of a flow of air into the inner chamber 17, and an outlet 15 for exit of air from the inner chamber 17.
• Figure 4 schematically shows a blower head having a section cut-off to reveal the inner chamber.
• the inlet 18 is configured to be in fluid communication with a blower 14 for providing the flow of air when in use as shown in figure 3.
• the outlet 15 is in the form of an elongated aperture 15 facing away from the blower head 13. Since the outlet is in the form of the aperture, these are the same features and therefore the same reference number is used.
• the inner chamber 17 is dimensioned and shaped so that air flowing through the inner chamber 17 changes direction by hitting inner walls 19 of the inner chamber 17 in a manner resulting in a wide-angular airstream exiting the outlet 15.
• the inner chamber 17 is shown as being located in a part of the blower head 13 extending in another direction than the inlet 18, the inlet being shown in the form of a pipe.
• the air changes from a substantially vertical to a substantially horizontal direction when the blower head 13 is in use.
• other designs of the blower head 13 are also covered by the scope of protection as long as they fall under the wording of claim 1.
• the parts of the blower head 13 comprising the inlet 18 and the inner chamber 17, respectively may be manufactured as one unit or by two parts that are to be assembled to provide the blower head 13.
• the shape, dimensions and orientation of the aperture 15 are designed such that a normal along the aperture defines desired directions of the airstream exiting the outlet 15; this is shown schematically in figure 5.
• the illustrated aperture 15 is in the form of a circular segment in a plane of extension of the aperture.
• the aperture extends over an angle of between 20 and 180 degrees, such as 30 and 180 degrees, such as 60 to 180 degrees, such as 60 to 120 degrees. Which shape and angle to choose for a given application can e.g. be determined by a combination of computer simulations and experiments.
• Figure 6 shows an embodiment of a blower head 13 in which the aperture 15 has a varying opening size in a direction perpendicular to the airstream.
• the opening size is larger at end regions 15e of the aperture than at a central region 15c of the aperture 15.
• the fact that more air is blown out of the blower head 13 at the end regions 15e of the aperture means that the biological material being carried by this part of the airstream is spread over a longer distance than the biological material being spread from the central region 15c.
• the blower head 13 has a protrusion 20 which, when the blower head 13 is in use, is arranged above the outlet 15 and facing upwards.
• the protrusion 20 is shaped as a truncated cone and has an outer surface 21 which is inclined with respect to vertical.
• the outlet 15 is provided in a wall of the protrusion 20.
• blower head 13 In relation to the dispensing of beneficial animals by drone, such a design of the blower head 13 provides a gentle handling of the typically vulnerable animals whereby a low mortality rate can be ensured. In some instances, such contact is not permissible at all and the blower head is positioned rearward of the dispenser unit outlet 8.
• the inlet 18 of the blower head 13 is configured to be mounted directly to the blower 14, such as by press fit or by a threaded connection.
• the scope of protection also covers embodiments, wherein the blower head 13 is integrally made with the blower 14. This could look as in figure 3 just without the connection between the blower 14 and the blower head 13.
• Figure 7 schematically shows another embodiment of a drone 1 having two containers 5, two dispensing units 7 and having two corresponding blower heads 13 connected to one centrally arranged blower 14 via two tubes 23 and a plenum 24.
• the drone 1 has the two containers 5 arranged at a cross-bar 22 mounted to the drone body 2. It would also be possible to have one centrally arranged container 5 from which the biological material to be dispensed is transferred to the two dispensing units, e.g. via two guide resembling the one in figure 1.
• Figure 8 schematically shows an embodiment of the invention in the form of a hand-held device 25 to be used for the dispensing of biological material.
• the illustrated device comprises a blower head 13 as described above and two handles 26 for carrying the device during use.
• the remaining elements of the device 25 are not shown in the figure, but their designs may resemble those in the above figures and just be dimensioned and shaped to be arranged inside an outer housing of the device.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Insects & Arthropods (AREA)
• Pest Control & Pesticides (AREA)
• Wood Science & Technology (AREA)
• Zoology (AREA)
• Environmental Sciences (AREA)
• Catching Or Destruction (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=76444291

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (2)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 2022
  • 2022-06-13 WO PCT/EP2022/066011 patent/WO2022263367A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2022-06-13 EP EP22733067.7A patent/EP4355093A1/de active Pending

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events