IMPROVED SPRAYER

Abstract

The invention relates to a sprayer of the type comprising a turbine that generates an air current, a nozzle that channels the air current and an outlet of this current to the outside, carrying with it the product dosed by a series of nozzles arranged in the area of influence of the air current, the sprayer being special in that both the air outlet opening and the turbine can be configured and act in a coordinated manner to obtain the desired air flow for each type of crop and spray application, where the optimum air flow for each spray application and the configuration of the turbine and opening are determined by the actual sprayer by means of a processor and auxiliary means.

Claims

1. IMPROVED SPRAYER of the type comprising at least one turbine for generating air currents, a nozzle (1) through which said air current passes during the spraying operations, said nozzle comprising at least one opening (3) where, by the action of one or more deflectors (4) and (5), the air is channelled to the outside and a series of nozzles (2) arranged in the area of influence of the air current through which the product to be sprayed is incorporated into said current, characterised in that at least one of the turbines and one of the openings can be configured in a coordinated manner, and also comprises means for a coordinated determination of the configuration of the turbine and the opening that comprise: I. Means for entering information into the system, comprising at least one of the following: Interface (18) for manual data entry. Memory (19) with stored data applicable to the current spraying operation. Sensors (21) arranged in the actual sprayer. Connections (20) for obtaining data from outside sources. II. A processor (16) for determining the optimum outlet air flow for the sprayer and determining the optimum coordinated configuration of the turbine and opening. III. Means for adapting the configuration of the sprayer to the optimum coordinated configuration, which comprise: An actuator for the nozzle (6). Means for changing the turbine configuration.

2. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for changing the turbine configuration comprise a gearbox associated with the turbine.

3. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for changing the turbine configuration comprise an electric motor and a current variator such as a potentiometer.

4. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for changing the turbine configuration comprise vanes (8) with an adjustable angle such that, taking as 0° the position in which the transverse axis of the vane is perpendicular to the rotation shaft of the turbine (14), the turning angle of the vanes ranges from +89° to −89°, preferably from +50° to −50°, and more preferably from +45 to −45°.

5. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the means for changing the turbine configuration comprise a drum with a peripheral circular channel (11) suitable for housing therein the eccentric shafts (10) of the vanes, in which the turbine actuator (12) and said drum are connected.

6. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for changing the turbine configuration comprise a nozzle (1) associated with the nozzle actuator (6).

7. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the means for determining the optimum air flow and the optimum configuration of the sprayer comprising the turbine configuration and the opening comprise a memory and a library of optimum flows and optimum configurations for each air flow and a processor.

8. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 4, characterised in that the sensors (21) are vane position sensors.

9. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 10, characterised in that the vane position sensors are arranged in the turbine actuator (12).

10. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 1, characterised in that the sensors (21) are opening position sensors.

11. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 12, characterised in that the opening position sensors are arranged in the nozzle actuator (6).

12. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 2, characterised in that the gearbox comprises a gear for inverting the rotation of the turbine.

13. IMPROVED SPRAYER according to claim 3, characterised in that the current variator comprises an inverter of the rotation of the motor.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0103] FIG. 1 shows a cross-section of a possible embodiment where the variation in the airflow generated by the turbine is obtained by changing the vane angle, showing the main elements of the device such as the nozzle (1), spray nozzles (2), opening (3), deflectors (4) and (5), nozzle actuator (6), nozzle transmission (15), main suction channel grid (7), vanes (8), rotation shaft (9) of the vanes, eccentric shaft (10) of the vanes, peripheral circular channel (11) housing the end of the eccentric shaft of the vanes, turbine actuator (12), turbine transmission (13) and turbine shaft (14).

[0104] FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation with the microprocessor (16), the connections to the actuators (17), the interface (18) for entering data, the memory (19), connections for obtaining data from external sources (20), sensors (21) arranged on the actual sprayer.

DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

[0105] An embodiment of the invention is described by way of example and in a non-limiting sense, that the scope of protection shall extend to embodiments other than that described that share the technical solutions claimed herein.

[0106] The device that is the subject matter of the invention is meant to optimise spraying operations by adjusting the airflow required in order to avoid product drifting or insufficient product penetration, configuring the sprayer such that each air flow required is obtained in an optimum manner with the resulting savings in energy.

[0107] The sprayer used to explain an embodiment of the invention is of the type comprising at least one turbine, a nozzle, at least one deflector directing the air current to an outlet opening, and a series of nozzles for dispensing the product arranged in the area of influence of the outgoing air flow.

[0108] In the proposed sprayer, the determination of the necessary air flow is obtained using a processor and considering a number of parameters, and the air flow regulation is carried out by a combination of two elements of the sprayer, in this case the turbine configuration by controlling the position of the turbine vanes and the opening configuration which, acting jointly, provide accurate of the outlet air flow that disperses the product to be sprayed, and optimise energy use.

[0109] However, the variation in the outlet air flow is not directly proportional to the variation in the opening size or the variation in the vane position, nor does it follow an arithmetic or geometric progression. Instead, for each required air flow, a specific configuration of the turbine and opening is needed in order for the sprayer to perform optimally.

[0110] The intended device comprises:

1.—Means for determining the correct air flow, which in turn comprise: [0111] a) An information entry system, comprising: [0112] a. An interface (18) for manually entering data on the type of crop, treatment, pruning, plant volume per unit area, treatment dose, weather conditions, vehicle speed or nozzle discharge among others. [0113] b. Means for retrieving parameters stored in the memory (19). [0114] c. Means for obtaining parameters from external sources (20), such as weather data. [0115] d. Sensors (21) arranged in the actual sprayer. [0116] b) Memory (19) for storing data. [0117] c) A processor (16) for running the air flow calculation processes, although in an alternative embodiment the air flow can be determined by consulting a data library. [0118] d) Means for retrieving, from the memory (19), data on optimum sprayer configurations for each air flow, although in an alternative embodiment the optimum configuration can be obtained via mathematical calculations.
2.—Turbine with adjustable vanes.
3.—Adjustable opening (3).
4.—Means for adapting the configuration of the sprayer to the configuration considered to be optimum, which comprise: [0119] Means for changing the position of the vanes, which in turn comprise: [0120] a. Turbine actuator (12). [0121] b. Peripheral circular channel (11). [0122] c. Vane eccentric shaft (10) [0123] d. Turbine transmission (13) [0124] Means for changing the size of the openings, which in turn comprise: [0125] e. Nozzle actuator (6) [0126] f. Nozzle transmission (15)
6.—Means for determining the position of the vanes, comprising position sensors placed on the turbine actuator (12) which are referred to as vane sensors, although in an alternative embodiment it is possible to determine the position of the vanes by a combination of data on their last known position and on the movement of the turbine actuator.
7.—Means for determining the size of the opening, comprising sensors placed on the nozzle actuator (6) which are referred to as opening sensors, although in an alternative embodiment it is possible to determine the size of the opening by a combination of data on their last known position and on the movement of the nozzle actuator.
8.—Means for coordinating the movement of the vanes and the nozzle in order to change the opening size, which comprise: [0127] a) A processor (16) for calculating the movement needed to take the vanes and the opening to the optimum configuration based on their initial positions. [0128] b) Connections to the actuators (17).

[0129] The device comprising the specified elements behaves as follows:

[0130] The interface (18) can be a tablet device or smartphone that allows data to be entered, as well as displaying data on the sprayer or the spraying process.

[0131] The processor (1.6) is preferably located on the sprayer, in a protected area.

[0132] Also on the sprayer, in a protected area, are the memory (19) for storing information, the means for retrieving from the memory data on the optimum configurations of the device for each air flow, and the means for coordinating the movement of the vanes.

[0133] This is not the only option as it is technologically possible to connect several elements so that, for example, the data are stored in the cloud or in a device external to the sprayer, and the microprocessor can be located elsewhere and be connected to the remaining elements.

[0134] The interface and the other means for entering information are used to enter the parameters required to calculate the air flow necessary for the specific spraying operation to be performed.

[0135] After the processor (16) determines the required air flow, either by consulting a data library or by calculation with the appropriate formulas, the optimum sprayer configuration is calculated, i.e. the position of the vanes (8) which, in combination with the size of the opening (3), provides the desired air flow with the lowest consumption level.

[0136] This is done by comparing the values of the required air flow to a configuration library until finding the one that corresponds to the required air flow.

[0137] Alternatively, this could also be calculated, although it is considered safer to use data from previously confirmed tests.

[0138] After determining the optimum configuration of the sprayer, it is necessary to adapt the sprayer to this configuration, for which the necessary movements are calculated based on the initial configurations of the vanes and nozzle.

[0139] The initial positions of the vane and nozzle are well known from the nozzle and turbine sensors, or can be calculated based on the last known position and the movements performed subsequently by the corresponding actuators.

[0140] If sensors are used, they will not be placed on the vanes or the nozzle, but instead on the corresponding actuators in order to ensure the correct and lasting calibration thereof.

[0141] After calculating the movements to be performed, the means for coordinating the movement of the vanes and nozzle that control the turbine and nozzle actuators will activate them until each reaches the predetermined optimum position.

[0142] At any time during the spraying operation, the user can invert the air current to clean leaves and plant remains from the grating of the suction channel.

[0143] The air current can be inverted without having to invert the rotation of the turbine, simply by changing the angle of attack of the vanes, which is a considerable advantage.