JP7449516B2 - weeding device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a weeding device.

Weeding between crops (paths) in fields and the like has traditionally been carried out by methods such as spraying herbicides, mowing with a brush cutter, scraping, and removing by hand (sometimes using a sickle or hoe). These methods have the problem of environmental burden due to the use of chemicals and the problem of being extremely labor-intensive and time-consuming.

Therefore, weeding devices (weeding robots) that have a self-propelling function have been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 listed below discloses an agricultural machine that uses a weeding mechanism to weed plants that are located at positions other than the memorized planting positions. Further, Patent Document 2 listed below discloses an electric work vehicle that can perform weeding work between rows of crops by autonomous driving. Further, Patent Document 3 listed below discloses a weed control machine that autonomously travels across the entire rice field in the direction between rows and between plants and suppresses the germination and growth of weeds by generating turbidity.

When weeding fields, etc. by installing a weeding mechanism in the conventional autonomous vehicle, etc., weeding efficiency is required to be equal to or higher than when weeding is done manually by humans. The easiest way to weed is to remove the weeds when they begin to sprout, before they grow large, and it is preferable to remove the sprouts by moving them along with the soil.

However, the above-mentioned conventional technology does not propose a weeding mechanism suitable for moving and disposing of newly emerging grass buds along with the soil.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2013-59296 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-146748 JP2016-52276A

An object of the present invention is to provide a weeding device equipped with a weeding means suitable for moving and disposing newly sprouted grass sprouts along with the soil while being towed by an autonomous vehicle.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes the following embodiments.

[1] A traction means, a rotating plate that is a weeding means towed by the traction means and has a weeding blade that weeds while rotating on a side in contact with the ground, and a rotating plate that weeds in two arbitrary different directions. A weeding device comprising: a posture control means for rotating the surface of the rotary plate by a shaft; and a weeding means.

[2] The weeding device according to [1], wherein the attitude control means rotates the surface of the rotary plate in a direction in which the weeding means is pulled by the traction means and by a rotating shaft in a direction perpendicular to the pulling direction.

[3] The weeding device according to [1] or [2], which includes two rotary plates, and the rotating directions of the respective rotary plates are opposite to each other.

[4] The weeding device according to [1] or [2], wherein the rotation speed of the rotating plate is 60 to 720 rpm.

[5] The weeding blade is folded back and raised with one end fixed to the rotating plate, and the other end is fixed while being fixed to the rotating plate. Any one of [1] to [4], which has a shape that is lowered in front of the position and has an upper surface substantially parallel to the surface of the rotary plate on the one end side and the other end side. The weeding device described in 1.

[6] The weeding device according to [5], wherein the rising height on the one end side and the falling height on the other end side of the weeding blade are 2 to 5 cm from the surface of the rotary plate. .

[7] One end of the weeding blade is fixed at a distance from the outer periphery of the rotary plate within 70 to 100% of the radius of the rotary plate, and the weeding blade is fixed at a distance from the fixed position of the one end to the rotary plate. An angle in a direction from the fixed position of the one end to the fixed position of the other end of the weeding blade with respect to the direction toward the rotation center of the weeding blade The weeding device according to [5] or [6], wherein the weeding device is 20° to 60° in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the rotary plate from a straight line connecting the fixed position and the rotation center of the rotary plate.

[8] The fixing position of the one end is shifted from the upper surface in the rotational direction of the rotary plate, and the fixing position of the other end is shifted from the parallel blade in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the rotary plate. The weeding device according to any one of [5] to [7], which is deviated from the above.

[9] The weeding device according to any one of [1] to [8], wherein three to six weeding blades are attached to the rotary plate.

[10] The weeding device according to [9], wherein each weeding blade is attached with n-fold rotational symmetry, where n is the number of the weeding blades.

According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a weeding device equipped with a weeding means suitable for moving and disposing newly emerging buds along with the soil while being towed by an autonomous vehicle.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall configuration of a weeding device according to an embodiment. It is an explanatory view of an example of composition of a weeding means concerning an embodiment. It is an explanatory view of the shape of the weeding blade concerning an embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the attachment state of the weeding blade to the rotary plate concerning embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view showing the overall configuration of a weeding device according to an embodiment. In FIG. 1, the weeding device includes a traction means 10 and a weeding means 20. The weeding means 20 weeds while being pulled by the traction means 10.

The traction means 10 is not particularly limited. For example, any device can be used as long as it is capable of towing the weeding means 20 in a field or the like and can autonomously travel using GPS or the like. Note that the weeding means 20 may be pulled by a person or an animal.

Further, the weeding means 20 is a device that moves and disposes the sprouts of grass that have just started appearing in a field or the like, along with the soil. Here, "treatment" refers to actions to inhibit the growth of grass, such as cutting off the grass to wither it, and separating the upper layer of the soil where the grass roots exist from the lower layer to kill the grass and cutting off the water supply. , or to damage grass in order to inhibit its growth.

FIG. 2 shows an explanatory diagram of a configuration example of the weeding means 20 according to the embodiment. In FIG. 2, the weeding means 20 includes a rotary plate 22 in which a weeding blade (weeding blade 28 to be described later) that weeds while rotating is provided on the side in contact with the ground, and a position in which the surface of the rotary plate 22 is rotated. The control device 24 is configured to include a control device 24.

The rotary plate 22 is rotated by a motor 26, and a weeding blade 28, which will be described later, moves the grass sprouts along with the soil, that is, scrapes the soil on the ground where the grass sprouts have grown.

The attitude control device 24 has a rotating plate 22 rotatably mounted in the pulling direction (direction of arrow A) by the pulling means 10 and a rotating shaft in a direction orthogonal to the pulling direction, and rotates by rotating the surface of the rotating plate 22. The attitude of the plate 22 is controlled. In this case, the attitude control device 24 itself may be configured to rotate along with the rotary plate 22 attached thereto about the two rotation axes, or may be configured such that only the rotary plate 22 rotates. In FIG. 2, the rotation axis in the traction direction is shown as a left-right axis 24a, and the rotation axis in a direction orthogonal to the traction direction is shown as a vertical axis 24b. Further, in the example of FIG. 2, the attitude control device 24 is provided for each of the two rotary plates 22. Here, "control" of the attitude of the rotating plate 22 does not mean actively rotating the rotating plate 22 attached to the attitude control device 24 by the left-right axis 24a and the vertical axis 24b, but rather This means that the rotary plate 22 passively rotates according to unevenness, inclination, etc., and the surface of the rotary plate 22 to which the weeding blade 28 is attached maintains a state close to parallel to the ground. Thereby, the ground can be scraped by the weeding blade 28, which will be described later, following the unevenness, slope, etc. of the ground such as a farmland, and the amount of uncut parts can be reduced.

In the example shown in FIG. 2, the left-right axis 24a is shown as a rotation axis in the traction direction, and the vertical axis 24b is shown as a rotation axis in a direction perpendicular to the traction direction. The rotation axis is not limited to the left-right axis 24a and the vertical axis 24b. If the rotary plate 22 can passively rotate according to the unevenness, slope, etc. of the ground such as a field, and the surface of the rotary plate 22 to which the weeding blade 28 is attached can be maintained in a state close to parallel to the ground, two The two rotation axes can be set in any two different directions.

As described above, the weeding device according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 includes two rotary plates 22, each of which is rotated by the motor 26. At this time, the rotation directions of the pair of rotary plates 22 are opposite to each other. In the example of FIG. 2, the rotational directions of the rotary plate 22 are indicated by ra and rb. By setting the rotation directions to be opposite to each other, the direction of the interaction (reaction) that occurs between the weeding blade 28 provided on the rotary plate 22 and the ground when the weeding blade 28 provided on the rotary plate 22 scrapes the ground due to the rotation of the rotary plate 22 is changed. , the pair of rotating plates 22 are in opposite directions, so the reactions from the ground that occur on each of the two rotating plates 22 cancel each other out, and the rotating plates 22 and the attitude control device 24 to which they are attached are moved in opposite directions by the reactions from the ground. Irregular movements can be suppressed.

Further, it is preferable that the rotation speed of the rotary plate 22 is in the range of 60 to 720 rpm. By rotating the rotary plate 22 within the above rotational speed range, it can be driven with less power than when rotating at a higher speed, and it is possible to avoid entrainment of surrounding materials, thereby improving safety. It is also possible to prevent the generation of dirt and dust. In addition, the weeding device according to the embodiment is used to treat the sprouts of grass that have just started to appear in a field or the like along with the soil, and weeding can be sufficiently performed within the above-mentioned rotational speed range.

FIG. 3 shows an explanatory diagram of the shape of the weeding blade. In FIG. 3, the weeding blade 28 has both ends Fo and Fi fixed to the surface of the rotary plate 22 on the ground contacting side with fixing members 30 and 32 such as bolts.

The weeding blade 28 is made of a strip-shaped metal plate, and the strip-shaped metal plate is fixed to the rotary plate 22 at one end Fo by a fixture 30 and then folded back so that the front and back are reversed (180 The other end Fi is attached to the rotating plate 22 by the fixture 32 to create a rising edge and a falling edge in front of the other end Fi through the upper surface H that is substantially parallel to the surface of the rotating plate 22. Fixed. If you want to fold it back so that the front and back sides are reversed (twist it 180 degrees), you can fold it back with a fold line (crease line) on the strip metal plate, or you can fold it in a loop shape without adding a fold line. You can turn it around. In addition, when folding the rotary plate 22 with the one end Fo fixed to the rotary plate 22 so that the front and back sides are reversed, the folding line when viewed from above the surface of the rotary plate 22 (plan view) is indicated by B. . In this case, when the strip metal plate is folded with a fold line, the fold line B is the fold line that is closest to the inner circumference of the rotary plate 22 or is the outermost fold that extends beyond the circumference. In the case of folding back into a loop shape without a folding line, it is the boundary line that is closest to the inside of the circumference of the rotary plate 22 or protrudes from the circumference and is the outermost boundary line. As described above, the weeding blade 28 according to the present embodiment is made of a strip-shaped metal plate, so it has high strength and is difficult to deform. In this case, stainless steel, spring steel, high-strength steel, etc. can be suitably used as the material for the strip-shaped metal plate. Further, it is preferable that the thickness of the strip-like metal plate be 0.1 mm to 3 mm, from the viewpoint of maintaining the strength of the weeding blade 28 while reducing the resistance to scraping the soil.

In FIG. 3, the angle formed by the side S1 of the rising slope on the side of one end Fo and the perpendicular line P erected on the surface of the rotary plate 22 is called an advance angle α. In this case, the fixing position of the end Fo of the weeding blade 28 by the fixture 30 is shifted (advanced) in front of the upper surface H with respect to the rotational direction of the rotary plate 22 (direction of arrow R). The angle α is the advancing angle. Further, the angle formed by the side S2 of the falling slope on the side of the other end Fi and the perpendicular line P erected on the surface of the rotating plate 22 is called a receding angle β. In this case, the position at which the end portion Fi of the weeding blade 28 is fixed by the fixture 32 is deviated (backward) from the upper surface H with respect to the rotational direction of the rotary plate 22 (arrow R direction), so the above-mentioned The angle β is the receding angle. By setting the advance angle α described above, the rising slope on the end Fo side becomes an angle that recedes with respect to the rotation direction of the rotary plate 22, so that the resistance when scraping the soil can be reduced. . The magnitudes of the advancing angle α and receding angle β are not particularly limited, but may be in the range of 10 to 80 degrees.

By making the weeding blade 28 at the one end Fo side into the above shape, the folding line B of the weeding blade 28 fixed by the fixture 30 at the one end Fo can be aligned with the circumference of the rotary plate 22. The turning line B can be placed closer to the circumference without protruding from the circumference of the rotating plate 22, or the folding line B can be arranged so as to protrude from the circumference of the rotary plate 22, and the forward angle α can be easily set on one end Fo side.

Further, it is preferable that the height h from the surface of the rotary plate 22 of the rising edge on the one end Fo side and the falling edge on the other end Fi side is 2 to 5 cm. By setting the rising and falling heights h within this range, the soil is not scraped too deep, so the resistance to scraping the soil can be reduced. In addition, when scraping soil, soil does not stick to the blade and does not get clogged, so soil can be removed effectively. In addition, as shown in FIG. 4(a) described later, if there is a radius Rp perpendicular to the folding line B, that is, when the radius Rp intersects with the circumference of the rotary plate 22, the tangent T to the circumference and the folding When line B is parallel, folding line B becomes parallel to the rotating direction of rotating plate 22 (because the rising edge on one end Fo side advances in the rotating direction), reducing the resistance to scraping the soil. I can contribute to this.

4A to 4D show examples of how the weeding blade 28 is attached to the rotary plate 22. Fig. 4(a) shows an example in which three weeding blades 28 are attached to the rotating plate 22, Fig. 4(b) shows an example in which four weeding blades 28 are attached, and Fig. 4(c) shows an example in which five weeding blades 28 are attached. As an example, FIG. 4(d) shows an example in which six pieces are attached. Note that the weeding blade 28 is attached to the surface of the rotary plate 22 that is in contact with the ground.

In FIG. 4(a), one end Fo of the weeding blade 28 is fixed at a position near the outer periphery of the rotary plate 22, which is a circular plate, and the other end Fi is rotated from the end Fo. It is fixed at a position close to the rotation center C of the plate 22. At this time, a direction ( The angle De (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the inclination angle θ) (in the direction from the fixture 30 that fixes one end Fo to the fixture 32 that fixes the other end Fi) , in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the rotary plate 22 from a straight line connecting the fixed position of one end Fo and the rotation center C of the rotary plate 22 (with the fixed position of one end Fo as the center of rotation) When rotating the other end Fi, it is preferable that the angle is 20° to 60° in the same direction as the rotational direction R of the rotary plate 22. If the above-mentioned inclination angle θ is less than 20°, the resistance to scraping the soil becomes large, making it difficult to weed (move the sprouts of grass that have just started to appear along with the soil). Furthermore, when the above-mentioned inclination angle θ exceeds 60°, the angular difference between the direction of the weeding blade 28 and the rotation direction of the rotary plate 22 (the tangential direction of the outer circumference of the rotary plate 22) becomes small, and the amount of soil removed decreases. Therefore, the soil cannot be removed efficiently.

Here, the length of the weeding blade 28, that is, the length of a straight line drawn from the fixture 30 that fixes one end Fo to the fixture 32 that fixes the other end Fi, is the radius of the rotating plate 22. 10% or more, and less than or equal to the length from the above one end Fo to one end Fo of the adjacent weeding blade 28 (the distance between the fixtures 30 that fix one end Fo at each position) , is suitable. If the length is not 10% or more of the radius of the rotary plate 22, it will be difficult to scrape the soil effectively, and the length from the above one end Fo to one end Fo of the adjacent weeding blade 28 or less Otherwise, adjacent weeding blades 28 will intersect with each other.

Further, the above-mentioned position near the outer periphery of the rotating plate 22 to which one end Fo is fixed refers to a distance within 70 to 100% of the radius of the rotating plate 22 from the outer periphery.

In the example shown in FIG. 4(a), the three weeding blades 28 are attached at three-fold rotationally symmetrical positions, but the attachment position of the weeding blades 28 is It can be selected as appropriate depending on the ground conditions of the farmland etc. to be used. At this time, the magnitude of the inclination angle θ may also be changed for each of the three weeding blades 28.

Although the above example has been described assuming that the rotating plate 22 is a circular plate, the shape of the rotating plate 22 is not limited as long as the weeding blade 28 can be rotated. For example, a polygonal plate such as a triangle or a quadrangle, a rod-shaped plate extending radially from the rotation center C, etc. can also be used. In this case, the above explanation regarding the circular rotary plate 22 applies to concentric circles having appropriate radii at the center of rotation C.

In the example of FIG. 4(b), the four weeding blades 28 are attached at four-fold rotationally symmetrical positions, and the fixed positions and inclination angles θ of the ends Fo and Fi of the weeding blades 28 and the rotating plate 22 are The shape is the same as in the case of FIG. 4(a) above. Further, the mounting positions of the four weeding blades 28 are not limited to four-fold rotational symmetry, and can be appropriately selected depending on the ground condition of the field or the like where weeding is to be performed. For example, every other pair of weeding blades 28 may be attached at positions that are rotationally symmetrical twice, or the four weeding blades 28 may be attached at positions that are not rotationally symmetrical. At this time, the magnitude of the inclination angle θ may also be changed for each of the four weeding blades 28.

In the example of FIG. 4(c), the five weeding blades 28 are attached at five-fold rotationally symmetrical positions, and the fixed positions and inclination angles θ of the ends Fo and Fi of the weeding blades 28 and the rotary plate 22 The shape is the same as in the case of FIG. 4(a) above. Further, the mounting positions of the five weeding blades 28 are not limited to five-fold rotational symmetry, and can be appropriately selected depending on the ground condition of the field or the like where weeding is to be performed. At this time, the magnitude of the inclination angle θ may also be changed for every five weeding blades 28.

In the example of FIG. 4(d), the six weeding blades 28 are attached at six-fold rotationally symmetrical positions, and the fixed positions and inclination angles θ of the ends Fo and Fi of the weeding blades 28 and the rotary plate 22 The shape is the same as in the case of FIG. 4(a) above. Furthermore, the mounting positions of the six weeding blades 28 are not limited to six-fold rotational symmetry, and can be appropriately selected depending on the condition of the ground such as a field where weeding is to be performed. For example, every other combination of three weeding blades 28 may be attached at three-fold rotationally symmetrical positions, or the six weeding blades 28 may be attached at positions that are not rotationally symmetrical. Furthermore, as in FIGS. 4(a) to 4(c), the magnitude of the above-mentioned inclination angle θ may be changed for each of the six weeding blades 28.

As described above, the number of weeding blades 28 attached to the rotary plate 22 according to the embodiment is preferably 3 to 6. This is because if the number of weeding blades 28 is less than 2, the rotation of the rotary plate 22 will not be stable when scraping the ground with the weeding blades 28, and if it is more than 7, the weeding will become clogged with soil and grass. This is because it is difficult to do. The number of weeding blades 28 is appropriately selected within the range of 3 to 6 depending on the ground condition of the field or the like where weeding is to be performed.

Reference Signs List 10 Traction means, 20 Weeding means, 22 Rotating plate, 24 Posture control device, 24a Left and right axis, 24b Vertical axis, 26 Motor, 28 Weeding blade, 30, 32 Fixing tool.

Claims (10)

traction means;
The weeding means is pulled by the traction means, and the weeding blade that weeds while rotating has a rotary plate provided on the ground contact side, and the rotary plate is rotated by rotating shafts in two arbitrary different directions. The rotary plate is movably attached, and the rotary plate passively rotates according to the unevenness and slope of the ground such as a field, and the surface of the rotary plate to which the weeding blade is attached is maintained in a state close to parallel to the ground. a posture control means; a weeding means having a posture control means;
Weeding device equipped with. The weeding device according to claim 1, wherein the attitude control means rotates the surface of the rotary plate in a direction in which the weeding means is pulled by the traction means and a rotation axis in a direction perpendicular to the pulling direction. The weeding device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising two rotating plates, and the rotating directions of the respective rotating plates are opposite to each other. The weeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the rotation speed of the rotary plate is 60 to 720 rpm. The weeding blade is folded back and raised with one end side fixed to the rotary plate, and the other end side is fixed to the rotary plate, just before the fixed position. According to any one of claims 1 to 4, the rotating plate has a shape in which an upper surface is formed on the one end side and the other end side, and is substantially parallel to the surface of the rotary plate. Weeding device as described. The weeding device according to claim 5, wherein a rising height of the one end of the weeding blade and a falling height of the other end of the weeding blade are 2 to 5 cm from the surface of the rotary plate. The weeding blade has one end fixed at a distance from the outer periphery of the rotary plate within 70 to 100% of the radius of the rotary plate, and is moved from the fixed position of the one end to the center of rotation of the rotary plate. The angle in the direction from the fixed position of the one end to the fixed position of the other end of the weeding blade is such that the angle between the other end and the fixed position of the one end is The weeding device according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the weeding device is 20° to 60° in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the rotary plate from a straight line connecting the rotation center of the rotary plate. A fixed position of the one end is shifted from the upper surface in a direction of rotation of the rotary plate, and a fixed position of the other end is shifted from the upper surface in a direction opposite to the rotational direction of the rotary plate. , A weeding device according to any one of claims 5 to 7. The weeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein three to six weeding blades are attached to the rotary plate. The weeding device according to claim 9, wherein each weeding blade is attached with n-fold rotational symmetry, where n is the number of the weeding blades.

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