WO2006056767A1

WO2006056767A1 - Soil conditioner

Info

Publication number: WO2006056767A1
Application number: PCT/GB2005/004496
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Richard Newble
Original assignee: John Richard Newble
Priority date: 2004-11-23
Filing date: 2005-11-23
Publication date: 2006-06-01

Abstract

A device for conditioning soil comprises a frame (13) having front and rear rollers (1, 2; 3, 4, 5, 6) mounted thereon about parallel axes of rotation. The rear roller is adapted to roll at ground speed, and the front roller is adapted to roll in the same direction as the rear roller at less than ground speed. The rollers may be toothed or plain. The front roller is preferably driven by the rear roller.

Description

Soil Conditioner

This invention relates to a device suitable for conditioning ploughed soil, in particular to obtain a fine, level and firm seed bed. The invention may also be used for firming and ievelling other kinds of loose material, for example, sand or hoggin or road planings.

Primary cultivators, i.e. those machines that undertake the first cultivation pass, be they plough or tined cultivation machines, leave large lumps of soil on the surface, arranged in ridges and troughs. The levelling of these ridges and troughs and the breaking down of surface lumps is difficult to achieve, particularly in the presence of old crop or weed residue. Secondary cultivation machines, such as harrows and rollers are used to break down the soil to a smaller particle size, and to provide a level and firm surface. Existing secondary cultivation machines are often complex in their construction, expensive to manufacture, and incur high maintenance costs. Many existing machines are slow in operation, resulting in high fuel consumption over a given area. Another difficulty is that existing machines are not always suitable for all types and conditions of soil.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a soil conditioning device comprising a frame, and two ground engaging rollers mounted on the frame about parallel axes of rotation, the rear roller being adapted to roll at ground speed, and the front roller being adapted to roll in the same direction as the rear roller at less than ground speed. , • ^• .

In operation the front roller skids across the surface of the soil breaking down the lumps of soil. This skidding action pushes soil from high areas in front of the first roller into low areas. As the rollers are always rolling forward, the device rarely blocks with old crop residue. The invention overcomes the disadvantage of simple rollers, which tend to reinforce and deepen hollows rather than redistributing material to give a level surface. . In a preferred embodiment the front roller is of smaller diameter than the rear roller, and thus presents a more upright front face to a typical earth clod than the rear roller. The diameter ratio of the rear roller to the front roller is preferably less than 4:3, most preferably about 2:1, and not less than 4:1.

The clearance between the front and rear rollers is preferably as small as is commensurate with clearing clods and crop residues, and may be adjustable.

In the preferred embodiment the device is in use mounted behind a primary agricultural machine, the rear roller being driven by engagement with the ground, and the front roller being driven by the rear roller. Drive to the front roller may be for example by chain and sprockets, gears, belt or shaft, or any other suitable means.

The speed ratio between rear and front roller is preferably less than 3:2 and most preferably about 2:1. A chain and sprocket drive allows ready adjustment of the speed ratio to suit differing soil conditions. It will however be understood that the diameter ratio and speed ratio are both variables which can be adjusted by trial and error to obtain an optimal seed bed.

In a preferred embodiment, the pitch of the device is adjustable to bring the centre of gravity closer to the axis of the front roller. Such an arrangement allows the front roller to bear on the ground with greater pressure, and is beneficial in certain ground conditions. In a simple reversible drive from rear to front roller, excessive front roller pressure will allow the rear roller to lift from the ground, or be driven by the front roller, and this is the practical limit to which front roller pressure may be increased.

Preferably an adjustable linkage between the machine that the invention is mounted on, and the device of the invention, enables the operator to increase or decrease the downward pressure that the front roller can exert on the soil surface. It will be understood that in one embodiment the device can be pulled behind a tractor in use, but be mounted on suitable powered arms so as to be lifted from the ground during non-operational transit. The device may also be mounted behind another agricultural machine, such as a primary cultivator, drill, or other soil preparation device. Alternatively the device may be in the form of a stand alone trailed roller.

It has been found that the device of the invention can be adjusted to level and firm soil effectively in all conditions. It can be embodied as a stand alone machine. In certain forms a device according to the invention can also cultivate soil.

The rollers may be plain or toothed. Where teeth are provided they may be constituted by individual spikes. Toothed and plain rollers may be used in combination. The device may further includes scrapers to remove excess soil and crop residue from the rollers.

In a preferred embodiment, the device consists of two rollers each mounted parallel to the other, within a frame. The rear roller rotates at ground speed; i.e. with one rotation of the roller, the device travels forward approximately the same distance as the circumference of the roller. The front roller is geared to the rear roller via a chain and two sprockets. This front roller rotates slower than, and in the same direction as the rear roller, and is smaller in diameter than the rear roller.

Preferably the device of the invention has the rollers and frame made of steel. Where teeth are provided on the rollers, they are of wear resistant steel; scrapers can be of steel or plastics material. The invention may however be constructed of other suitable materials, and the wearing parts may be coated with wear resistant material.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a segmented toothed annulus for a ground engaging roller, the annulus comprising two or more segments each having radially outwardly protruding teeth, and adapted for endwise connection to form a ring, and each segment having an abutment surface on the inner peripheral surface for driving engagement with roller to which the annulus is in use mounted. Preferably the abutment surface comprises a projection engageable in a recess of a roller. The segments are preferably of steel and connectable together by welding to form a ring.

According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a toothed ground engaging roller comprising a cylinder having a toothed annulus thereon, the annulus comprising a plurality of segments adapted for endwise connection to form a ring, and each segment having a radially inwardly directed projection engageable in a corresponding recess of the roller.

Other features of the invention will be apparent from the following description of several preferred embodiments shown by way of example only in the accompanying drawings in which:-

Figure 1 shows a side view of one embodiment of the invention, illustrating the front and rear rollers, the side frame and chain.

Figure 2, 3 and 4 show a side view of the front and rear rollers, the side frame and chain of other roller configurations according to the invention.

Figure 5 shows a partial transverse section from above, illustrating rollers, mounted on bearings, within a frame, with chain and sprockets.

Figure 6 shows another side view of the rollers and frame.

Figure 7 shows a side view of the front and rear rollers of the type fitted with teeth, the side frame and chain.

Figure 8 shows a section through the rear view of part of the rear roller of the type fitted with teeth. Figure 9 shows a segment of roller teeth, complete with dowel.

Figure 10 shows segments of roller teeth assembled to form a ring of teeth.

Figure 11 shows a section through a front roller viewed from the side, showing a ring of teeth assembled onto the roller.

Figure 12 shows a segment of roller teeth for a rear roller.

Figure 13 shows a section through a rear roller viewed from the side, showing a ring of teeth assembled onto the roller.

Figure 14 shows a section through a front roller viewed from the side, showing a scraper assembly mounted against the roller.

Figure 15 shows a section through a rear roller viewed from the side, showing a scraper assembly mounted against the roller.

Figure 16 shows an overhead view of a mounting frame suitable for attaching the invention to a cultivation or seed drilling machine.

Figure 17 shows a plate with a semicircle of holes suitable for adjusting the working depth of the machine that the invention is fitted to.

Figure 18 shows how the machine working depth may be adjusted.

Figure 19 shows the invention fitted to a soil cultivation machine.

Figure 20 shows an alternative means by which the machine working depth may be adjusted. Figure 21 shows the invention fitted to a seed drilling machine, with the alternative means of adjusting the machine working depth of the machine.

With reference to the drawings, the device according to the invention comprises a front cylindrical roller, 1, 2 and a rear cylindrical roller 3, 4, 5, 6. These rollers may be plain (i.e. smooth or lightly ribbed) 1, 3, 4; or fitted with teeth or spikes of varying types 2, 5; or fitted with rubber tyres 6; or made up of rubber tyred wheels mounted adjacent to one another to form a roller, cylindrical in appearance; or any other design of cylindrical roller.

Figures 9-15 shows how teeth may be fitted to smooth rollers. Figures 9 and 12 show a segment of teeth 15,16 cut from a sheet of wear resistant steel or other suitable material. The teeth may be coated in a wear resistant material. Each segment of teeth has a steel dowel 14 welded into a recess in the inner periphery. Figure 10 shows the segments of teeth assembled into a complete ring. Figures 11 and 13 show that the dowels 14 are inserted into holes drilled into the rollers 2, 5, and the segments 15, 16 are welded to each other 17. This enables the teeth to be easily removed from the rollers when worn out or no longer required. The dowels provide suitable registration, and the ability to transmit rotary drive.

Figures 14 and 15 shows the scraper assembly 23 mounted so that it touches the roller 2, 5 between the teeth. This prevents the build up of soil on the rollers, such as in wet conditions.

Figure 5 shows that a shaft 7 is fabricated centrally to the ends of each roller 1, 3 on which is mounted a bearing 8 which allows the rollers to freely rotate in the frame. A chain sprocket 9, 10 is mounted to the end of the shafts on one side of the device, and a chain 11 connects the two sprockets. The two sprockets have a different diameter, so that the front roller rotates more slowly than the rear. Endwise mounting of sprockets provides for easy changing of the speed ratio. Figure 6 shows that the bearings are mounted on steel plates 12 on each side of the machine, which are part of a frame 13, that extends across the machine between the rollers. These plates 12 hold the rollers at a defined spacing.

Figures 7 and 8 show the bearing and drive arrangement for toothed rollers.

Figures 16-19 show the invention mounted by parallelogram linkage on a cultivator. Mounting plates 18 are welded to the cultivator frame to carry sub frame 19, that connects the invention to the cultivator. Inserting a pin through one of the series of holes 20 in mounting plates 18, allows the operator to adjust the working depth of the cultivator. The top link 21 is a turnbuckle which gives the operator fine adjustment of pitch and thus the downward pressure exerted on the front roller 1, 2.

Figures 19-21 shows the invention fitted to a seed drilling machine. Again the invention is connected to the seed drill by sub frame 19. In this circumstance it is advantageous to adjust the working depth of the rear of the seed drill at the same time as depth wheels are adjusted at the front. This is achieved by turning a cam 22, which adjusts the working depth of the rear of the seed drill as illustrated by Figure 20.

The cam is mounted on a shaft that is connected by a linkage that turns the shaft in accordance with adjustment of the front depth wheels.

The diameter and length of the rollers to be used, and the kind of rollers, is to some extent dependant on the tractive effort available. In the example of Fig.4, rollers having an overall diameter of about 250mm and 500mm are provided at a spacing of 600 mm in the fore and aft direction. The drive ratio is 2:1. The axial length of the rollers is 3m.

Although the invention has been described in relation to soil conditioning, the invention is also suitable for levelling and firming other relatively loose materials such as sand, hoggin and road planings. One possible use of the invention is to create a level playing surface in sand or hoggin by repeated traverse of a device according to the invention. Another use is to create a flat firm roadway from tarmacadam road planings.

Claims

1. A soil conditioning device comprising a frame, and two ground engaging rollers mounted on the frame about parallel axes of rotation, the rear roller being adapted to roll at ground speed, and the front roller being adapted to roll in the same direction as the rear roller at less than ground speed.

2. A device according to claim 1 wherein the front roller is of smaller diameter than the rear roller.

3. A device according to claim 2 wherein the diameter ratio of the rear roller to the front roller is less than 4:3.

4. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the diameter ratio of the rear roller to the front roller is not less than 4:1.

5. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the clearance between the front and rear rollers is adjustable.

6. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the rear roller is driven by engagement with the ground, and the front roller is driven by the rear roller.

7. A device according to claim 6 wherein drive to the front roller is by one of chain and sprockets, gears, belt and shaft.

8. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the speed ratio between rear and front roller is less than 3:2.

9. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the centre of gravity is adjustable in the fore and aft direction.

10. A device according to any preceding claim and further including scrapers to remove excess soil and crop residue from the rollers, in use.

11. A device according to any preceding claim wherein the rollers are plain.

12. A device according to any of claims 1-10 wherein the rollers are toothed.

13. A device according to any of claims 1-10 wherein one roller is plain, and the other is toothed.

14. A device according to claim 12 or claim 13 wherein a toothed roller is provided with a segmented toothed annulus, the annulus comprising two or more segments each having radially outwardly protruding teeth, and adapted for endwise connection to form a ring, and each segment having an abutment surface on the inner peripheral surface for driving engagement with roller to which the annulus is in use mounted.

15. A device according to claim 14 wherein said abutment surface comprises a projection engageable in a recess of a roller.