Inline product metering system for fertilizer and seed application system

Abstract

The present invention is directed to an applicator having an agricultural product conveying system which transfers particulate material from one or more source containers to application equipment on demand, and meters the material at the application equipment. The conveying system includes an inline metering system including a number of metering devices associated with each compartment of a particulate material tank on the applicator to meter the particulate material disposed within each compartment. The individual metering devices include gates to initially enable the particulate material from a compartment to enter the metering device, and a rotary metering shaft to meter the flow of the particulate material into the conduits while limiting the passage of pressurized air through the metering device and into the compartment. The individual metering devices also include individual motors to control the operation of the metering devices independently from one another that can allow with sectional control and turning compensation.

Claims

1. An agricultural product delivery system, comprising: a plurality of particulate material supply compartments, each compartment including a plurality of outlets; a plurality of particle delivery units, each of the plurality of particle delivery units applying particulate material from the plurality of particulate supply compartments; a plurality of conveying systems operatively connected to each of the plurality of particulate material supply compartments, each of the plurality of conveying systems interconnecting one of plurality of outlets of each of the plurality of particulate material supply compartments to a corresponding one of the plurality of particle delivery units to provide a flow of particulate material from the plurality of particulate material supply compartments to the plurality of particle delivery units; and a plurality of metering devices operably connected between the plurality of particulate material supply compartments and the plurality of conveying systems, each of the plurality of metering device includes: a housing connected between the each of the plurality of particulate material supply compartments and a supply line of each of the plurality of conveying systems; and a shaft disposed within the housing, the shaft including a number of paddles thereon, wherein the clearance between the paddles and the housing limits air flow through the plurality of metering devices.

2. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the paddles are formed with a sleeve disposed around and engaged with the shaft.

3. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 2, wherein the paddles are integrally formed on the sleeve.

4. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 3, wherein the paddles and sleeve are formed from a moldable material.

5. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the paddles are spaced from one another on the shaft to form pockets between adjacent paddles.

6. An agricultural product delivery system, comprising: at least one particulate material supply compartment; at least one particulate delivery unit for applying particulate material from the supply compartment; a conveying system providing a flow of particulate material from the at least one particulate material supply compartment to the at least one particle delivery unit; and at least one metering device operably connected between the at least one particulate material supply compartment and the conveying system, wherein the at least one metering device comprises: a housing connected between the at least one particulate material supply compartment and a supply line of the conveying system; and a shaft disposed within the housing, the shaft including a number of paddles thereon, wherein the clearance between the paddles and the housing limits air flow through the at least one metering device; wherein the paddles are separated on the shaft into segments, in which the paddles of each segment are offset from one another.

7. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 6, further comprising a separator plate disposed between each segment.

8. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of metering devices comprises: a guide defining an inlet opening disposed in alignment with a discharge aperture in the at least one particulate material supply compartment; and a gate slidably engaged with the guide to selectively open and close the inlet opening.

9. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the number of paddles are non-metallic forming an interference fit between the paddles and the housing that limits air flow through the plurality of metering devices.

10. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the paddles are disposed at least one angle with regard to a central axis of the shaft.

11. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the paddles are disposed at least one angle of between 5-55 with regard to the central axis of the shaft.

12. The agricultural product delivery system of claim 1, wherein the paddles are curved.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The drawings illustrate the best mode of practicing the present disclosure.

(2) In the drawings:

(3) FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an agricultural application implement, in the nature of a fertilizer spreader, having a conveying system according to one exemplary embodiment of the invention.

(4) FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the fertilizer spreader shown in FIG. 1

(5) FIG. 3 is bottom plan view of the conveying system according to another exemplary embodiment of the invention.

(6) FIG. 4 is a rear isometric view of a conveying system on a fertilizer spreader according to another exemplary embodiment of the invention.

(7) FIG. 5 is an isometric view of a tank and inline metering system according to another exemplary embodiment of the invention.

(8) FIG. 6 is a partially broken away, isometric view of the inline metering system of FIG. 5.

(9) FIG. 7 is a partially broken away, isometric view of the inline metering system of FIG. 6.

(10) FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of the inline metering system of FIG. 6 is a first configuration.

(11) FIG. 9 is an isometric view of the inline metering system of FIG. 8 in a first configuration.

(12) FIG. 10 is a side elevational view of the inline metering system of FIG. 6 is a second configuration.

(13) FIG. 11 is an isometric view of the inline metering system of FIG. 10 in a second configuration.

(14) FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the inline metering system of FIG. 6.

(15) FIG. 13 is an isometric view of the rotary shaft of the inline metering system of FIG. 6.

(16) FIG. 14 is an isometric view of an exemplary embodiment of a metering wheel for the inline metering system of FIG. 6.

(17) FIG. 15 is a top plan view of the metering wheel of FIG. 14.

(18) FIG. 16 is an isometric view of one segment of the metering wheel of FIG. 14.

(19) FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of the segment of FIG. 16.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

(20) Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1-3, there is shown an agricultural application implement 10, on which a pneumatic conveying system 100 can be used. In the exemplary embodiment shown, application implement 10 is a granular fertilizer applicator 10. As is known in the art, applicator 10 generally includes a large tired transport unit 12 such as truck chassis or tractor, and laterally extending particle delivery booms 14 and 16, which may be pivoted to a stowed position close to the implement for storage or transport. Each boom 14, 16 includes a plurality of boom tubes or conduits terminating at the outboard end in a particle delivering unit, which for fertilizer applicator 10 are a spreading outlet or nozzle. In the exemplary embodiment shown, boom 14 includes ten nozzles 18, 19, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29, 30 and 32; and boom 16 includes ten nozzles 34, 35, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 45, 46 and 48. Additionally, at the back of applicator 10 there are five rear nozzles 50, 52, 54, 56 and 58 to provide full and complete coverage across the width of implement 10, including the area between the inboard-most nozzles 32 and 34 of booms 14, 16. Implement transport unit 12 is self-propelled by an engine in an engine compartment 59 and includes an operator cab 60. In the exemplary embodiment shown, an uncovered tank 62 includes compartments 64 and 70 for carrying particulate material to be distributed to and disbursed by nozzles 18-58. Further smaller compartments 66 and 68 can be provided to supply micro-nutrients or other materials to nozzles 18-58. The supply of particulate in compartments 64, 66, 68, 70 is replenished periodically from a still larger volume supply vehicle (not shown).

(21) Fertilizer applicator 10 is illustrative of the types of equipment for which the conveying system 100 can be used; however, it should be understood that the conveying system 100 may, of course, be employed in conjunction with other agricultural equipment such as tillage, seeding or planting devices, and is useful in distributing particulate material other than fertilizer.

(22) Looking now at FIGS. 1-3, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment the compartments 64-70 of the tank 62 are each disposed directly above the conveying system or assembly 100, which is a pneumatic conveying system 100. The system 100 includes five large diameter supply lines 102 that extend from a plenum 104 at one end, under the compartments 64-70 and terminate at the booms 14, 16 or at the rear nozzles 50-58. At the booms 14, 16, the supply lines 102 and the particulate material or product transported therein can be split by a suitable distribution structure or mechanism 107, such as a horizontal rotary distributor(s) 108, among or into a number of secondary or smaller supply lines 106 that are connected to the nozzles 18-58.

(23) To collect and drive the particulate material along the lines 102, in the illustrated embodiment one or more fans 110 are operably connected to the plenum 104 opposite the lines 102. The air flow from the fans 110 is directed from the fans 110 through the plenum 104 and into the respective lines 102 as a result of the structure of the plenum 104. After the air flow passes through the one or more plenums 104 connected to the one or more fans 110 and collects/entrains the particulate material from the compartments 64-70 in a manner to be described, the air flow continues to flow along each of four (4) of the large diameter lines 102 that make approximately a 90 turn to connect to the booms 14, 16.

(24) In order to spread the particulate material/product over/onto the center section over which the machine 10 passes, a large line 102 must move product to the rear nozzles 50-58 where there is no interference by the machine 10 on the spread pattern. To accomplish this a line 102 carrying only air is added on the side of the machine 10 and has a forward section 105 that extends from the plenum 104 to the front of the machine 10. At the front of the machine 10, the line 102 turns 180 and has a rearward section 109 that passes beneath the compartments 64-70 where the line 102 collects the particulate material/product and transports the product to the nozzles 50-58 at the rear of the machine 10. Tube 105 can be formed as one tube or several tubes to carry the air forward, then recollect into line 109 which then passes beneath compartments 64-70.

(25) In an alternative exemplary embodiment, it is contemplated that the conveying system 100 can be formed, in addition to or as a substitute for the pneumatic system 100, with the one or more mechanical conveyors (not shown) taking the form of one or more augers (not shown) that are disposed within the lines 102 and encircle the auger(s) along their length. The augers are each operably connected to a motor (not shown) that causes the augers to rotate within the respective lines 102, moving the particulate material in conjunction with the air flow through the lines 102. The operation of the motor can be controlled to control the speed of rotation of the augers, either collectively or independently from one another, such that the speed of the conveying system 100 can be varied as desired but not to meter the product(s).

(26) Looking now at FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment the plenums 104 provide airflow from the fans 110 to all five lines 102 of the system 100, with one plenum 104 connected to the two (2) outside lines 102, with the other plenum 104 supplying the air flow to the center three (3) lines 102. The lines 102 are split in this fashion because of the higher pressure drop associated with the outermost lines 102 as a result of their length. With only the two higher pressure lines supplied by one plenum 104, it allows the fan 110 connected to the longer lines 102 to supply a higher pressure airflow through these lines 102 since less airflow is required for two lines 102 vs three lines 102. In the illustrated exemplary embodiment, the two fans 110 and associated plenums 104 are stacked vertically with respect to one another. However a different configuration can be utilized where the fans 110 and plenums 104 are arranged in the same horizontal plane in order to minimize the space requirements, with the plenums 104 also optionally being rotated 90 from the illustrated configuration.

(27) In an alternative exemplary embodiment, it is contemplated that the plenums 104 are identical in configuration, where two larger lines 102 of each plenum 104 feed the boom tubes of booms 14 and 16, and one or more smaller lines 105 feed the rear leading tube 109.

(28) Referring now to FIGS. 4-13, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment the particulate material/product contained within each of the compartments 64-70 of the tank 62 is introduced into the airflow in the various lines 102 via an airtight inline product metering system 111, that is formed of a number of metering devices 112 that function to meter the product flowing from the compartments 64-70 into each line 102.

(29) In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 5, the metering devices 112 forming the inline metering system 111 are disposed in sets 114 located directly beneath each compartment 64-70 of the tank 62, with each set 114 of metering devices 112 associated with one compartment 64-70 of the tank 62. The metering devices 112 are connected in alignment with apertures (not shown) formed in the compartments 64-70 to enable particulate material to enter the metering devices 112 and with openings 118 (FIG. 8) in the lines 102 to enable the particulate material to be dispensed from the metering devices 112 into the lines 102. The number of metering devices 112 forming each set 114 corresponds to the number of lines 102 in the conveying system 100, such that the particulate material from each compartment can be dispensed into each line 102 utilizing the same set 114 of metering devices 112.

(30) In addition, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment, while the width of the metering devices 112 in each set 114 is the same in order to correspond to the size of the lines 102, the length of the metering devices 112 in each set 114 is dependent of the size of the compartment 64-70 associated with the set 114, and/or tank and the type of particulate material held within that compartment 64-70. For example, the larger compartments 66, 70 of the tank 62 can contain urea that will be metered at a higher rate per acre, thus requiring longer metering devices 112 in the set 114 associated with the compartments 66, 70 to avoid excessive operational speeds for the metering devices 112. In contrast, smaller compartments 64, 68 are configured to retain micro-nutrients therein, such as zinc, for example, which are normally spread at a lower rate per acre, and thus have smaller metering devices 112 in the sets 114 associated with these compartments 64, 68. The positioning of compartments 64-70 of different sizes within the tank 62 is selected to avoid physical interference between the operating parts of the metering devices 112 and could be in any order, large or small compartments.

(31) Looking now at FIGS. 6, 7 and 12, the metering devices 112 are each formed with a gate 120 that is slidably disposed within a guide 122 that is secured to the tank 62 below the compartment 64-70 associated with the metering device 112. The gate 120 selectively covers an inlet opening 124 defined within the guide 122 that is aligned with a discharge aperture (not shown) in the adjacent compartment 64-70 and that communicates with an optionally flared or straight inlet channel 126 that extends downwardly from the guide 122. The inlet channel 126 is connected to and communicates with the interior of a housing 128 for a rotating shaft 130. The shaft 130 includes a number of radially extending paddles 132 thereon. The paddles 132 can be positioned on the shaft 130 in any suitable configuration, and in the illustrated exemplary embodiment are positioned equidistant from one another around the circumference of the shaft 130. The paddles 132 extend towards the housing 128 with a very small space 134 (FIG. 12) left between the outer edge 136 of the paddle 132 and the housing 128 in order to prevent particulate material from falling directly through the metering device 112 and prevent or limit the flow of pressurized air from the lines 102 upwardly through the metering device 112 and into the compartments 64-70 by forming a somewhat airtight seal between the paddles 132 and the housing 128. If paddles 132 are non-metallic, they can have an interference fit with housing 128 to make a better air seal.

(32) With reference now to FIGS. 7, 8 and 13, in metering devices 112 for different sets 114, the length of the device 112 can vary the number and positioning of the paddles 132 present on the shaft 130. For example, while the metering device 112 associated with the largest compartment 70 has equal sized paddles 132 disposed across the shaft 130, the devices 112 associated with the compartment 64-68 have paddles 132 of different sizes disposed on the shaft 130 to accommodate for the length of the shaft 130. Further, as best shown in FIG. 13, the metering device 112 can be formed with multiple segments 140, each segment 140 separated by a circular separator plate 141, that is formed with a close tolerance to the housing 128 similar to paddles 132, and including paddles 132 that are offset by thirty (30) degrees to create pockets 142 between the paddles 132 of sixty (60) degrees. The pockets 142 can be offset to lower the torque variation during operation of the shaft 130 as well as reducing the product pulsing effect at lower rotational speeds. Other angles and/or number of paddles 132 may be used. Other spacings, and/or variable spacings of separator plate/divider 141 may also be used.

(33) In another exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 14-17, the metering device 112 of FIGS. 6-8 can include a metering wheel 200 including one or more segments 202 disposed on a rotating shaft 204 that extends across the housing 128 of the metering device 112. Each segment 202 includes a number of paddles 206 extending outwardly from the shaft 204. The paddles 206 can be affixed to or formed integrally with a sleeve 208 defining a passage 209 within which the shaft 204 can be inserted to secure the sleeve 208 and the paddles 206 to the shaft 204 for rotation therewith. In the exemplary embodiment, the paddles 206 each have a curve with respect to the sleeve 208, e.g., a spiral or helical configuration, but paddles 206 having a straight orientation, which can be angled as well, are also contemplated as being within the scope of this disclosure. Further, while the paddles 206 can be aligned with one another across the shaft 204, in the illustrated exemplary embodiment the paddles 204 in each segment 202 are offset from one another. Additionally, in another exemplary embodiment the paddles 204 of each segment 202 can separated from one another by plates 210 disposed between and optionally connected to the ends of adjacent paddles 204. The plates 210 are illustrated in the exemplary embodiment as being circular in shape and can conform closely to the interior of the housing 128 to prevent materials from moving between segments 202.

(34) Looking at FIGS. 16 and 17, each segment 202 can be formed integrally of a suitable material, such as a moldable material, including a thermoplastic or thermoset material, e.g., a urethane material. The segment 202 can be molded or otherwise formed into the desired shape for the sleeve 208 to conform to the shape of the shaft 204, and for the paddles 206 to extend in a curved manner across the sleeve 208. The plate 210 can also be integrally formed with the sleeve 208, such as on one end of the sleeve 208 in connection with the paddles 206, such that the individual sleeves 208 can be slid onto the shaft 204 to abut an adjacent sleeve 208 and form the segments 202.

(35) Each paddle 206 is formed to extend along the associated sleeve 208 at an angle with regard to an axis A of the shaft 204, which can be a straight angle or a curved angle depending on the straight or spiral configuration for the paddle 206, as best shown in the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15. The angle can vary between 50-55 and in particular exemplary embodiments, can be selected to be between 10-15, such as 12, between 25-30, such as 27, or between 35-45, such as 40, or at different angles at various points along the length of the paddle 206 as the paddle 206 curves along the length of the sleeve 208.

(36) The shaft 130 is operably connected to a motor 138, such as an electric or hydraulic motor, that operates to rotate the shaft 130 and the paddles 132 within the housing 128 at the desired speed to meter the flow of the particulate material through the metering device 112 into the line 102. In an alternative embodiment, the motor 138, or a separate motor/actuator (not shown), is additionally operably connected to the gate 120 in order to selectively open or close the gate 120 relative to the guide 122, thus controlling the flow of particulate material into the metering device 112 from the compartment 64-70.

(37) Below the shaft 130, the housing 128 is connected to a discharge channel 144 that extends between the housing 128 and the line 102. In the illustrated exemplary embodiments of FIGS. 6, 12 and 13, the discharge channel 144 can be formed to be straight or to optionally flare outwardly as it extends away from the housing 128 in order to enable the particulate material discharged through the channel 144 to be move evenly distributed into the line 102. Further, as best shown in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 13, the channel 144 can contain baffles 146 therein that extend across the discharge channel 144 and are disposed any angle from ninety (90) degrees to forty-five (45) degrees to deflect the flow of particulate material and mix it more smoothly with the air flow in the line 102 as well as with other particulate materials metered from an upstream compartment 64-70. The baffles 146 can also be present in the inlet channels 126, as shown in the exemplary illustrated embodiment of FIG. 13. Other devices can be placed in discharge channel 144 that may aid in material dispersion as it flow into line 102.

(38) With reference now to FIGS. 8-11, in operation initially the metering system 111 is in the configuration of FIGS. 10 and 11, where the gates 120 are all in the fully closed position to completely cover the openings 124 in the guides 122. To begin to dispense the particulate into the metering system 111, the gates 120 for each set 114 of metering devices 112 are moved outwardly from the closed position, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. In the illustrated exemplary embodiments, the gates 120 all include a handle 148 opposite the guide 122 that can be grasped to manually slide the gate 120 relative to the guide 122. Further, the handles 148 for the gates 120 in each set 114 can be interconnected via a linkage 150, such that the gates 120 in each set 114 can be moved in unison to provide identical dispensing of the particulate material through the metering devices 112 within the set 114 into the lines 102 connected with each device 112. Depending upon the desired application rate for the material to be dispensed from each compartment 64-70, the gates 120 for the metering devices 112 in the associated set 114 can be adjusted to provide the desired flow of particulate material from the individual compartments 64-70 into the metering devices 112 to provide the desired flow rate into the lines 102. For example, as illustrated in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 7, the gates 120 are partially opened to enable the operator to run the system 111 with the metering devices 112 at higher rotational speeds and using only a few sections, instead of operating with all gates opened for a given series of five sets 114 on the same tank 62 that would run at slower speed in order to eliminate possible material pulsing in the airstream. In addition, each metering device 112 in each set 114 can run independently at various speeds to allow sectional control, and the gates 120 for each set 114 can be disposed at or between the fully opened (FIG. 8) or fully closed (FIG. 10) positions independently of any other gates 120 for the sets 114 associated with other compartments 64-70. For example, in Table 1 below, certain exemplary configurations for the gates 120 of the individual sets 114 associated with the compartments 64-70 in the tank 62 are shown when the inline metering system 111 is utilized to supply the conveying system 100 with the various types of fertilizers (urea, potash, . . . etc) seeds (canola, wheat, . . . etc.) and micro-nutrients (zinc, manganese, potassium, sulfur, . . . etc) for different utilizations of the applicator 10.

(39) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Exemplary Metering System Configurations Compartment 64 Compartment 66 Compartment 68 Compartment 70 Products Examples (small- 4) (medium - 10) (small- 4) (large- 20) Single Product Urea Gates Closed Gates Closed Gates Closed X Dual Products Urea + Potash Gates Closed X Gates Closed X Dual Products + Urea + Potash + X X X X Micro-Nutrients 2 Micro-Nutrients Canola Canola Gates Closed Gates Closed X Gates Closed Wheat Wheat Gates Closed X Gates Closed Gates Closed Rice Rice Gates Closed X Gates Closed Gates Closed Soybean Soybean Gates Closed X Gates Closed Gates Closed

(40) In addition to the use of the gates 120 to control the flow of particulate materials into the metering devices 112, other purposes or uses of the gates 120 include: 1. Closing the gates 120 to perform maintenance on the metering device 112 where the gates 120 prevent particle dripping; 2. Closing the gates 120 to close the bottom of any compartment 64-70 when not needed or in use to avoid air flow leakage from the metering device 112 into the compartments 64-70; 3. Adjusting the position of the gates 120 within the guides 112 to control the size of the longitudinal opening 124 to synchronize the rotational speed of the metering devices 112 to obtain the proper rate; 4. Closing the gates 120 to keep the bottom of the compartments 64-70 clean because the gates 120 move over the top of the metering devices 112 and can push any extra particulate material of the compartment and into the metering device 112; and 5. Closing the gates with product in the tank while transporting the unit from one location to another location, reducing the compacting and settling effect of the material onto the meter wheel.

(41) While the conveying system 100 including the inline metering system 111 disclosed so far herein have been primarily with respect to pneumatic and/or mechanical fertilizer application equipment or applicator commonly referred to as a floater, it should be understood that the advantages from the conveying system 100 including the inline metering system 111 disclosed herein can be obtained on other types of equipment for applying particulate materials in a field. Planters of various types are known to include an applicator unit, such as a drill or seeder, and may include an air cart having one or more bulk tanks carrying fertilizer and/or seeds to be planted. The conveying system 100 including the inline metering system 111 disclosed herein can be provided on the planter, and one or more air/seed inductors on the air cart. If the air cart is then used with a planter of a different type, or with another type of particle application equipment, adjustments to the conveying system 100 including the inline metering system 111 can be made without the need to adjust the air/seed inductor assembly on the air cart. Accordingly, switching from one crop to another crop or from one planter to another planter does not require major adjustment of the air/seed inductor assembly on the air cart.

(42) In using a conveying system 100 as disclosed herein, a variety of materials can be applied by a variety of different implements. The particulate material to be applied is contained in one or more compartments. The particulate material or materials are supplied from the tanks to the conveying system 100 wherein the material or materials are conveyed to one or more particle injectors while being intermixed with one another. At the particle injector the conveyed product or products are provided in a metered flow and transferred to one or more particle delivery unit, which can be a broadcast spreader, seeder for depositing seeds or other materials across the surface of soil, a row opener unit for depositing seeds or other material in rows, or the like.

(43) Various other alternatives are contemplated is being within the scope of the following claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter regarded as the invention.