GB2099726A - Spraying apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Spraying apparatus comprises a fork-lift device (11) which can be mounted on the land vehicle such as a tractor and which has a carriage (14), a spraying head (25) and means (not shown) to force solution from a container supported on the carriage to the head. The fork-lift device has guides (12) defining a path for the carriage and a hydraulic ram (17) for moving the carriage along the path from a loading position to an operational position. In the loading position, the carriage (14) is near the ground for ease of loading the container (15) thereonto when the tractor is driven to a container supply station. In the operational position, the carriage (14) is raised for efficient spraying from the head (25) when the tractor is driven across the area to be sprayed. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Spraying apparatus This invention relates to apparatus for spraying fields or crops with a liquid solution. Conventional apparatus comprises a container for the solution, a spraying head and a pump for pumping liquid from the container through the spraying head. The conventional apparatus is usually transported by a tractor and is provided with means for attachment to the three-point linkage of the tractor. Some conventional devices are provided with a plurality of spraying heads mounted on booms which extend on either side of the tractor and are usually hingeable to lie along the direction of travel when not in use and being transported in restricted areas.

According to the invention there is provided spraying apparatus comprising a fork-lift device adapted for mounting on a land vehicle, the device having a carriage, a spraying head, means to force solution from a container supported on the carriage to the head, guides defining a path for the carriage and means for moving the carriage along said path from a position in which, when the device is mounted on said land vehicle, the carriage is near the ground for ease of loading a container of spraying solution thereon when the land vehicle is driven to a container supply station to a raised position at which the spraying head can be operated when the land vehicle is driven across the area to be sprayed.

An example of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a spraying device, showing the booms and spraying heads in operational position, but with other parts of the apparatus removed, and Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the platform without the boom and its spraying heads, but showing a single spraying head and also showing the container about to be loaded on the platform.

The spraying device illustrated in the drawings comprises a frame 11 provided with conventional brackets (not shown) for attachment to the threepoint linkage of a tractor (also not shown). The device is intended to be mounted at the rear end of the tractor, and the view in Figure 1 is from the side of the device remote from the operational position of the tractor. The frame 11 is formed with vertical guides 12 and a fork lift platform 1 3 mounted for movement up and down the guides 12.The platform 13 has a fork inciuding a pair of arms 14 for engagement with a conventional pallet on which is mounted a container for the spraying solution, or special containers such as that illustrated at 1 5 in Figure 2 may be provided with rectangular section channels 1 6 on their underside for engagement with the arms 14 of the platform 13.

A main boom 21 is mounted on the platform 1 3 between the guides 1 2 and the operational position of the container 15. The boom 21 comprises a central section 22 containing no spraying heads and a pair of opposite end sections 23, 24 hingedly connected to the central section and each containing four spraying heads 25 uniformly distributed along the section. The end sections 23, 24 hinge forwardly or backwardly when not in use to lie parallel to the arms 14 to allow passage through gateways and along roads.

A rear boom 26 is provided with two spraying heads 25 which fill the gap between the heads on the main boom 21 to give a uniform coverage of the ground between the outer ends of the main boom 21. The rear boom 26 is hingedly mounted to the central section 22 and is provided with the necessary mechanical, electrical and fluid connections thereto as will be described later. The rear boom 26 is hinged upwards to clear the container 1 5 so that it does not obstruct loading and unloading of the container 1 5 from the arms 14.

For different applications, a single spraying head 27 (Figure 2), such as is described in British Patent Specification No. 1,590,650, is provided on an articulated spraying arm 28. This single head 27 can be provided as an alternative to the main and subsidiary booms 21 and 26 if desired.

The apparatus so far described differs from the conventional spraying apparatus in that the container 1 5 is not permanently included in the device. Instead, the device is used in conjunction with a supply of containers on pallets from a central station. The fork lift arrangement on the device is used to collect a container full of spraying solution from the central station. The container is provided with an outlet pipe which extends to the bottom of the container and an inlet pipe opening into the top of the container. The device includes conduits which connect these pipes to a pump, and the pump outlet is also connected to the spraying head or heads through flow control apparatus to be described. The pipes and associated apparatus are conventional, and are not illustrated in the present drawings.Details of such apparatus can be obtained from the above-noted British Patent Specification.

When the spraying device is to be operated, the platform 13 is raised by an hydraulic ram 1 7 to the desired height in the guides 12, so that the spraying head or heads 25, 27 are at the height above the ground appropriate to the desired spraying pattern. If the single additional head 27 is provided, the extension of its arm 28 is adjusted to direct the outlet of the additional head 27 at the right height and direction. This arm 28 is similarly adjusted hydraulically.

The mounting of the main boom forward of the container is as close as practicable to the front of the apparatus and thus as near as possible to the back axle of the tractor. This minimum distance between the boom and the back axle reduces the effect of.pitching of the tractor so that the spraying pattern of the heads on the main boom is only minimally affected by pitching of the tractor over rough ground. The main boom may be mounted on the platform by a gimbal arrangement which compensates for pitching and rolling of the tractor, keeping the main boom parallel to the average position of the back axle. The main boom should not be kept horizontal by this arrangement, since it would not then be possible to keep the heads on the main boom a controlled height above transverse scans of a sloping field.

The construction and operation of the head 25 is fully described in application 811 9238 from which this application is divided (Serial No.

2078550).

Claims (3)

1. Spraying apparatus comprising a fork-lift device having a carriage, a spraying head, means to force solution from a container supported on the carriage to the head, guides defining a path for the carriage and means for moving the carriage along said path from a position in which, when the device is mounted on said land vehicle, the carriage is near the ground for ease of loading a container of spraying solution thereon when the land vehicle is driven to a container supply station to a raised position at which the spraying head can be operated when the land vehicle is driven across the area to be sprayed.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the head is mounted on the platform for movement therewith.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the head is mounted on a boom located between the guides and the operational position of the container on the platform.