JP7310789B2 - automatic seedling transplanter - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a seedling transplanter that transplants seedlings while traveling in a field.

As a seedling transplanter, Patent Document 1 describes a walking seedling transplanter in which a worker performs a transplanting operation while walking.

Further, Patent Document 2 describes an unmanned seedling transplanter that runs independently.

JP 2010-187553 A JP-A-2009-5666

The walking-type seedling transplanter described in Patent Document 1 is a transplanter in which a worker takes out seedlings from a seedling tray and puts the seedlings into a planting hopper into a field, and the worker follows the rear or rear side of the machine body. While walking, the seedlings are fed and maneuvering operations such as moving direction and turning are performed.

With this transplanter, the operator must always follow the machine body and keep walking during the planting work, and when turning, it is necessary to push up and tilt the front side of the machine body, which requires a lot of labor. Also, when all the seedlings in the seedling tray are exhausted, a new seedling tray must be set, but the work is interrupted and the machine is moved to the seedling tray storage area, during which the seedling planting operation is interrupted. Therefore, there is a problem that the work efficiency is lowered.

In addition, although the vehicle height is adjusted by rotating a ridge height sensor provided at the bottom of the traveling vehicle body, it is necessary to provide an elevating cylinder or a mechanism for vertically rotating the transmission case of the traveling wheel. Therefore, there is a problem that the structure becomes complicated and the weight and parts cost increase.

Furthermore, since the ridge height sensor is a plate and is lightly pressed against the ridge surface, even small protrusions are picked up as fluctuations in ridge height, and the average ridge height cannot be detected. I can't do it.

The transplanter shown in Patent Document 2 uses GPS to automatically plant and travel along a ridge, and when it reaches the end of the ridge, it automatically moves to the next planting ridge, so the operator does not need to follow the machine. Therefore, the labor of the operator is reduced.

However, when the seedlings for planting mounted on the aircraft run out, the transplanting work must be interrupted and the operator must carry seedlings for replenishment to the aircraft. There's a problem.

In addition, although the above-mentioned seedling transplanter is battery-driven, if the battery runs out during operation, it is necessary to replace it with another battery, which causes the planting operation to be interrupted, resulting in reduced work efficiency.

The present invention provides an automatic seedling transplanter capable of efficient transplanting work, taking into consideration the fact that conventional seedling transplanters require workers to follow the machine body and that replenishment of seedlings requires labor. The task is to

The above problems of the present invention are solved by the following technical means.

A first aspect of the present invention is
A seedling tray conveyor (10) for switching the conveying direction back and forth is provided at the center of a vehicle body frame (7) that runs independently by controlling traveling devices (6A, 6B, 6C, 6D) with a control device (15),
A leveling roller (30) for smoothing ridges is provided at the front and rear central bottom of the vehicle body frame (7) so as to be able to move up and down,
An in-wheel motor (6AM, 6BM, 6CM, 6DM) of a traveling device (6A, 6B, 6C, 6D), a main motor (4) and a vehicle battery (14) are mounted with a ground leveling roller (30) sandwiched between the front and rear. A configuration for driving the conveyor motor (10M) of the seedling tray carrier (10),
A front seedling feeding device (9F) and a front seedling planting device (8F) are provided on the front side of the seedling tray carrier (10), and a rear seedling feeding device (9R) and a rear seedling are provided on the rear side of the seedling tray carrier (10). A planting device (8R) is provided,
A seedling tray guide (18) is provided at each of the front and rear ends of the seedling tray carrier (10) to guide the seedling tray (NT) onto the front seedling feeder (9F) and the rear seedling feeder (9R),
A conveyor motor (10M) provided on the seedling tray transport table (10) feeds the seedling tray (NT) to the front seedling feeder (9F) in the forward transport of the conveyor, and forwards the seedling tray (NT) in the backward transport of the conveyor. The seedling tray (NT) can be transferred to the forward seedling feeder (9F) or the backward seedling feeder (9R) by switching the conveying direction of the seedling tray conveying table (10) so as to be sent out to the device (9R). The seedlings are sent, and the seedlings are taken out from the seedling tray (NT) by the seedling planting device (8F, 8R) on the rear side in the traveling direction and planted on the ridge,
The front seedling feeder (9F) and the front seedling planting device (8F) are driven from the main motor (4) through the front transmission mechanism (5F), and the rear seedling feeder (9R) is driven through the rear transmission mechanism (5R). ) and the rear seedling planting device (8R), and by connecting one of the planting transmission clutches 21 provided in each of the front transmission mechanism (5F) and the rear transmission mechanism (5R), the front transmission mechanism ( 5F) and the rear transmission mechanism (5R) are restricted from being driven at the same time,
A front soil covering device (35F) is provided in front of the front seedling planting device (8F), a rear soil covering device (35R) is provided behind the rear seedling planting device (8R), and a front soil covering device (35F) and a rear soil covering device are provided. The device (35R) is configured to be lifted to float from the ridge when moving forward, and lowered to touch the ridge when moving backward,
A roller (26) is provided at the tip of an arm (25), and when the roller (26) is brought into contact with the ridge surface and the arm (25) rotates up and down greatly, a ridge sensor (27) warns that the edge of the ridge has been reached. The arm (25) projects forward from the front bottom of the body frame (7) and backward from the rear bottom of the body frame (7).
A second aspect of the present invention is
A vehicle body position recognition device (24) for recognizing the movement position of the vehicle body frame (7) is provided,
An open space is provided above the seedling tray carrier (10),
A carrier flying object (12) carries the seedling tray (NT), flies onto the seedling tray carrier (10), approaches the seedling tray carrier (10), and transfers the seedling tray NT to the seedling tray carrier (10). ), the automatic seedling transplanter according to the first aspect of the present invention is characterized by being capable of dropping and supplying seedlings.
A first invention related to the present invention is to switch the conveying direction back and forth to the center of a vehicle body frame (7) that runs independently by controlling the traveling devices (6A, 6B, 6C, 6D) with a control device (15). A seedling tray carrier (10) is provided, a leveling roller (30) for smoothing ridges is provided at the front and rear central bottom of a body frame (7) so as to be able to move up and down, and front and rear seedling feeding devices are provided in front and behind the seedling tray carrier (10). (9F, 9R) and front and rear seedling planting devices (8F, 8R) are provided, and the seedlings in the seedling tray (NT) are transferred to the front and rear seedling feeding devices (9F, 9R) by switching the conveying direction of the seedling tray carrier (10). , and the seedlings are taken out from the seedling tray (NT) by the seedling planting device (8F, 8R) on the rear side in the traveling direction and planted on the ridge.

A second invention related to the present invention is characterized in that the leveling roller (30) is arranged to be urged downward from the vehicle body frame (7) according to the first invention related to the present invention. An automatic seedling transplanter will be used.

A third invention related to the present invention is provided with front and rear soil covering devices (35F, 35R) for evenly filling the field after planting before and after the front and rear seedling planting devices (8F, 8R), and the front and rear soil covering devices (35F) , 35R), the front side is spaced upward from the ridge surface, and the rear side is grounded .

A fourth invention related to the present invention is to provide a vehicle body position recognition device (24) for recognizing the movement position of the body frame (7), and the vehicle body position recognition device (24) stops the movement of the body frame (7) or The automatic seedling transplanter according to any one of the first to third inventions related to the present invention is characterized by notifying a portable terminal (40) of an abnormality when recognizing deviation from a planned transplanting route.

A fifth invention related to the present invention is provided with an empty tray storage part (45) for placing an empty seedling tray (NT) at the bottom of the seedling tray carrier (10) on the body frame (7). The automatic seedling transplanter according to any one of the first to third inventions related to the present invention is characterized by:

According to the present invention, seedlings can be transplanted in each ridge by moving forward or backward without turning the body frame (7) in a large arc at the edge of the ridge, thereby realizing efficient transplanting work. be. In addition, the ground can be leveled in a well-balanced manner. Furthermore, the seedling tray (NT) can be smoothly guided over the front seedling feeder (9F) and the rear seedling feeder (9R). Furthermore, a common main motor can drive the front and rear seedling feeders and the seedling planting devices. Furthermore, it is possible to reliably grasp that the ridge ends have been reached.
In the first invention related to the present invention , the seedling tray (NT) placed on the seedling tray carrier (10) of the body frame (7) that runs independently is conveyed forward or backward of the seedling tray carrier (10). are sent to front and rear seedling feeders (9F, 9R), taken out by front and rear seedling planting devices (8F, 8R) provided on the take-out side, respectively, and ground leveling rollers (30) provided at the bottom of the body frame (7). Since the seedlings are planted on the leveled ridges, the seedlings can be transplanted by moving forward or backward on each ridge without turning the body frame (7) in a large arc at the edge of the ridge, which is efficient. A transplant operation is realized.

In the second invention related to the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first invention related to the present invention , a ground leveling roller (30) is provided with an urging force directed from the vehicle body frame (7) toward the ridge surface. The transplanting attitude of seedlings is stabilized by the rollers (30) pressurizing and flattening the ridges.

In the third invention related to the present invention, in addition to the effects of the first invention related to the present invention, the soil covering devices (35F, 35R) on the forward side of the body frame (7) are separated upward from the ridge surface. As a result, the seedling planting operation can be carried out without roughening the ridge surface, and the seedling planting device (8F, 8R) on the rear side in the direction of movement can press and level the soil around the planted seedlings. Stable planting posture of seedlings.

In a fourth invention related to the present invention, in addition to the effect of any one of the first to third related inventions, an automatic seedling transplanter that self-propelled to transplant seedlings is When it stops or deviates from the planned transplantation route, it is notified to the mobile terminal (40), so that the problem can be dealt with quickly and the work interruption time can be reduced.

In the fifth invention related to the present invention, in addition to the effect of any one of the first to third inventions related to the present invention, The seedlings are transplanted to the ridges by the front and rear seedling feeding devices (9F, 9R) and the front and rear seedling planting devices (8F, 8R), and the empty seedling tray (NT) is accommodated in the empty tray accommodation section (45). The seedling tray (NT) does not crush the transplanted seedlings left in the field or blow them away with the wind.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The top view of the automatic seedling transplanter of embodiment in this invention Side view of automatic seedling transplanter (A) and side view of carrier aircraft (B) Automatic control block diagram of automatic seedling transplanter Automatic control flow chart for the electric motor of the automatic seedling transplanter Automatic control flow chart for the electric motor of the automatic seedling transplanter Flight control diagram of carrier air vehicle Partial perspective view of another embodiment of the automatic seedling transplanter

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to examples shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an automatic seedling transplanter. Front wheels (running devices) 6A, 6B and rear wheels (running devices) 6A, 6B driven by in-wheel motors 6AM, 6BM, 6CM, 6DM are arranged on the front, rear, left, and right of a body frame 7, which is rectangular in plan view. Traveling device) A traveling unit consisting of 6C and 6D is provided, and the rotation is controlled by the control device 15 to travel forward and backward and turn.

A ground leveling roller 30 is provided at the front and rear center of the bottom of a vehicle body frame 7 to be freely rotated by being supported by springs 31 of left and right support legs 32, and the ground leveling roller 30 is sandwiched between the front and rear sides, and power is supplied by a non-contact power supply device 13. A battery 14 is mounted to drive the in-wheel motors 6AM, 6BM, 6CM and 6DM of the front wheels 6A and 6B and the rear wheels 6C and 6D, the main motor 4 and the conveyor motor 10M of the seedling tray carrier 10. When the power of the vehicle-mounted battery 14 decreases, the traveling devices 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D are driven to move the non-contact power supply device 13 onto a power supply device (not shown) to charge it.

The biasing force of the spring 31 that presses the leveling roller 30 against the ridged surface is set to the extent that the small projections on the ridged surface are flattened, and the driving force transmission of the front wheels 6A, 6B and the rear wheels 6C, 6D is not affected. . Alternatively, the leveling roller 30 may be driven forward.

A seedling tray carrier 10 is floated and supported by a conveyor support base 17 on the upper part of the body frame 7, and a front seedling feeding device 9F and a front seedling planting device 8F are provided on the front side of the seedling tray carrier 10, and on the rear side. A rear seedling feeding device 9R and a rear seedling planting device 8R are provided, and a conveyor motor 10M provided on a seedling tray conveying table 10 feeds the seedling tray NT to the front seedling feeding device 9F in the forward transportation of the conveyor, and the seedling tray NT in the backward transportation of the conveyor. It is made switchable so as to feed the NT to the rear seedling feeding device 9R.

Seedling tray guides 18 are provided on the front and rear sides of the seedling tray carrier 10 to guide the seedling tray NT onto the front seedling feeding device 9F and the rear seedling feeding device 9R. A front seedling reduction sensor 19F is provided above the front seedling feeding device 9F, and a rear seedling reduction sensor 19R is provided above the rear seedling feeding device 9R to detect the seedling tray NT.

The front seedling feeding device 9F and the rear seedling feeding device 9R can reciprocate the seedling placing table to the left and right by the lead cam mechanism 20, and the conveyer of the seedling tray conveying table 10 is fed to the rear side of the body frame 7 in the moving direction, and is operated. The rear seedling feeding device 9R and the rear seedling planting device 8R or the front seedling feeding device 9F and the front seedling planting device 8F on the sending side are driven to take out the seedlings from the seedling tray NT and transplant them into ridges. The front seedling feeding device 9F and the rear seedling feeding device 9R are provided with a seedling feeding end detection switch 22 on the side thereof to detect that the seedling mounting table has moved to the side end.

An empty tray storage part 45 is provided on the lower side of the seedling tray transport base 10, and an empty seedling tray NT from which seedlings have been taken out is placed thereon and transported. Therefore, empty seedling trays NT are not scattered in the field.

A front seedling feeding device 9F and a front seedling planting device 8F are driven from the main motor 4 via a front transmission mechanism (front planting transmission case) 5F, and rear seedlings are driven via a rear transmission mechanism (back planting transmission case) 5R. The feeding device 9R and the rear seedling planting device 8R are driven, and the front transmission mechanism (front planting transmission case) 5F and the rear transmission mechanism (rear planting transmission case) 5R are transmitted by a one-way clutch and driven simultaneously. The driving is interrupted by the planted transmission clutch 21, respectively.

A front soil covering device 35F is provided on the front side of the front seedling planting device 8F, and a rear soil covering device 35 is provided on the rear side of the rear seedling planting device 8R. It is made to float, and when it comes to the rear side of the forward movement, it is lowered and grounded on the ridge surface.

The front and rear soil covering devices 35F and 35R have conical rollers facing each other to hold the base of the transplanted seedlings and stabilize the transplanting attitude.

Front GPS receivers 24A and 24B and rear GPS receivers 24C and 24D serving as a vehicle body position recognition device 24 are provided at the upper four corners of the seedling tray carriage 10, and radio waves from positioning satellites are received to send the seedling tray carriage to the controller 15. 10 is recognized on the map, and as shown in FIG. 2, the controller 15 guides the carrier aircraft 12 onto the seedling tray carrier 10 so that the seedling tray NT can be dropped and supplied.

A transport flying object (drone) 12 is provided with a tray receiving hook 12B at the bottom, transports the seedling tray NT, approaches the sky above the seedling tray transport base 10, and drops and supplies the seedling tray NT. In addition, a GPS receiver 12A is installed in the carrier flying body 12 to recognize the position of the body on the map, fly over the seedling tray carrier 10, and approach the seedling tray carrier 10. - 特許庁

In addition, the vehicle body position recognition device 24 inputs the position of the vehicle body frame 7 to the control device 15, and if the stop state continues or the planned transplantation route is deviated, the mobile terminal 40 carried by the worker is notified. I'm making it so that I can quickly become the emperor.

FIG. 3 is a signal input/output control diagram of the control device 15. The positional information of the seedling tray carrier 10 and the position of the body frame 7 are obtained from the front GPS receivers 24A and 24B and the rear GPS receivers 24C and 24D, which are the vehicle body position recognition device 24. Information is input to the control device 15, a detection signal from the front seedling reduction sensor 19F that the seedling tray NT on the front seedling feeder 9F is gone, and a signal from the back seedling reduction sensor 19R that the seedling tray NT on the rear seedling feeder 9R is gone. A detection signal is input to the controller 15 .

In addition, drive signals are output to in-wheel motors 6AM and 6BM for front wheels 6A and 6B and in-wheel motors 6CM and 6DM for rear wheels 6C and 6D, and drive signals are also output to main motor 4 and conveyor motor 10M. Movement information of the body frame 7 is output to 40 .

In addition, positional information of the seedling tray carrier 10 on the map is output to the carrier flying object 12, and a flight command is output. Further, a clutch switching signal is output to the planted transmission clutch 21 of the front planted transmission case 5F and the planted transmission clutch 21 of the rear planted transmission case 5R.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart for controlling the driving of the seedling tray carrier 10, the front and rear seedling feeding devices 9F and 9R, and the front and rear seedling planting devices 8F and 8R as the body frame 7 moves forward and backward. and drive the rear wheels 6C, 6D, check the rotation of the in-wheel motors 6AM, 6BM, 6CM, 6DM in step S2, and if forward rotation, that is, forward running, execute steps S3 to 9, the rear seedling feeding device 9R and the rear seedling planting device 8R are driven, and when the seedling tray NT on the rear seedling feeding device 9R runs out, the conveyor motor 10M of the seedling tray carrier 10 is stopped.

Further, if the rotation of the in-wheel motors 6AM, 6BM, 6CM, 6DM is reversed in step S2, that is, if it is traveling backward, steps S10 to 16 are executed, the front seedling feeding device 9F and the front seedling planting device 8F are driven, When the seedling tray NT on the front seedling feeder 9F runs out, the conveyor motor 10M of the seedling tray transport base 10 is stopped.

As a result, the seedling tray NT is automatically transported to the planting side in accordance with the traveling direction, so that the supply of the seedling tray NT is not interrupted and the efficiency of the planting work is prevented from being lowered.

In addition, since the operator does not need to move the seedling tray NT following the machine body, the labor of the operator can be reduced, and the number of workers can be reduced.

FIG. 5 is a control flow chart for controlling the movement of the vehicle body frame 7 to the next non-planted ridge based on the position detection information of the seedling tray carrier 10 when it reaches the end of the ridge with planting. , 24B and rear GPS receivers 24C and 24D obtain the map position of the seedling tray carriage 10, guide the position of the body frame 7 to the planned planting ridge in steps S32, 33, 39 and 40, and next step S36. After moving to an unplanted ridge, the planting work by running in reverse is started in step S38.

This eliminates the need for the operator to move the machine body after finishing the planting work on one ridge, thus reducing the labor of the operator.

In addition, since the worker does not need to wait until the end of the ridge when moving the machine body to the next ridge, work efficiency can be improved.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of supply control of the seedling tray NT in the carrier aircraft 12. As shown in FIG. When the seedling reduction sensor 9NS detects the reduction of seedlings in step S50, the control device 15 commands the transport flying body 12 to carry out a transport flight in steps S51 to S54, and the position of the seedling tray carrier 10 on the map and the transport flying body 12 , and in steps S55 to S57, the transport flying body 12 is lowered to a height suitable for dropping, and the seedling tray NT is dropped onto the seedling tray carrier 10. FIG.

As a result, the planting work can be prevented from being interrupted while the seedlings run out in the middle of the ridge and the worker is moving to replenish the seedling tray NT, thereby preventing the work efficiency from being lowered.

In addition, when the number of seedlings is detected to decrease, the transport flying body 12 is commanded to carry out a transport flight, so that the seedling tray NT is replenished before the seedlings run out or immediately after the seedlings run out. The time during which work is interrupted is minimized, and work efficiency is prevented from deteriorating.

FIG. 7 shows a configuration in which a ridge sensor 27 is provided forward at the bottom of the vehicle body frame 7, and a roller 26 is provided at the tip of an arm 25 to form the ridge sensor 27. The roller 26 is grounded on the ridge surface to allow the arm 25 to move. When it rotates up and down greatly, it reports to the portable terminal 40 with an alarm that it reached the ridge end.

If the ridge sensor 27 is provided at the front and rear of the vehicle body frame 7, the edge of the ridge can be detected regardless of whether the vehicle travels forward or backward.

NT seedling tray 6A, 6B front wheel 6C, 6D rear wheel 7 body frame 8F front seedling planting device 8R rear seedling planting device 9F front seedling feeding device 9R rear seedling feeding device 10 seedling tray carrier 15 control device 24 body position recognition device 30 Leveling roller 35F Front soil covering device 35R Rear soil covering device 40 Portable terminal 45 Empty tray housing

Claims (2)

A seedling tray conveyor (10) for switching the conveying direction back and forth is provided at the center of a vehicle body frame (7) that runs independently by controlling traveling devices (6A, 6B, 6C, 6D) with a control device (15),
A leveling roller (30) for smoothing ridges is provided at the front and rear central bottom of the vehicle body frame (7) so as to be able to move up and down,
An in-wheel motor (6AM, 6BM, 6CM, 6DM) of a traveling device (6A, 6B, 6C, 6D), a main motor (4) and a vehicle battery (14) are mounted with a ground leveling roller (30) sandwiched between the front and rear. A configuration for driving the conveyor motor (10M) of the seedling tray carrier (10),
A front seedling feeding device (9F) and a front seedling planting device (8F) are provided on the front side of the seedling tray carrier (10), and a rear seedling feeding device (9R) and a rear seedling are provided on the rear side of the seedling tray carrier (10). A planting device (8R) is provided,
A seedling tray guide (18) is provided at each of the front and rear ends of the seedling tray carrier (10) to guide the seedling tray (NT) onto the front seedling feeder (9F) and the rear seedling feeder (9R),
A conveyor motor (10M) provided on the seedling tray transport table (10) feeds the seedling tray (NT) to the front seedling feeder (9F) in the forward transport of the conveyor, and forwards the seedling tray (NT) in the backward transport of the conveyor. The seedling tray (NT) can be transferred to the forward seedling feeder (9F) or the backward seedling feeder (9R) by switching the conveying direction of the seedling tray conveying table (10) so as to be sent out to the device (9R). The seedlings are sent, and the seedlings are taken out from the seedling tray (NT) by the seedling planting device (8F, 8R) on the rear side in the traveling direction and planted on the ridge,
The front seedling feeder (9F) and the front seedling planting device (8F) are driven from the main motor (4) through the front transmission mechanism (5F), and the rear seedling feeder (9R) is driven through the rear transmission mechanism (5R). ) and the rear seedling planting device (8R), and by connecting one of the planting transmission clutches 21 provided in each of the front transmission mechanism (5F) and the rear transmission mechanism (5R), the front transmission mechanism ( 5F) and the rear transmission mechanism (5R) are restricted from being driven at the same time,
A front soil covering device (35F) is provided in front of the front seedling planting device (8F), a rear soil covering device (35R) is provided behind the rear seedling planting device (8R), and a front soil covering device (35F) and a rear soil covering device are provided. The device (35R) is configured to be lifted to float from the ridge when moving forward, and lowered to touch the ridge when moving backward,
A roller (26) is provided at the tip of an arm (25), and when the roller (26) is brought into contact with the ridge surface and the arm (25) rotates up and down greatly, a ridge sensor (27) warns that the edge of the ridge has been reached. wherein the arm (25) protrudes forward from the front bottom of the body frame (7) and rearward from the rear bottom of the body frame (7). A vehicle body position recognition device (24) for recognizing the movement position of the vehicle body frame (7) is provided,
An open space is provided above the seedling tray carrier (10),
A carrier flying object (12) carries the seedling tray (NT), flies onto the seedling tray carrier (10), approaches the seedling tray carrier (10), and transfers the seedling tray NT to the seedling tray carrier (10). ), the automatic seedling transplanter according to claim 1.

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