Distributor for granulated material.

The invention relates to a machine for spreading granular material, especially seeds, fertilizers, etc., including a hopper and one or more metering members, of which or from which the material is supplied to the ground in adjustable quantities, wherein in the region of at least one metering element, a sensor for detecting the discharged by this metering material quantity or the number of discharged grains of the material is arranged.

From US-PS 34 22 776, such a machine is already known. It is fitted underneath the metering member with a sensor plate, on the fall-dosed granules. Upon impingement of the grains on the sensor board these will be deflected and thereby generates a pulse which is fed to an evaluation circuit. A disadvantage of this known machine that only sufficiently large and heavy grains are able to operate the sensor plate so that a clear signal is produced.

The invention has for its object to improve the detection of the votes from the metering material quantity or the number of grains of material through the sensor. This object is achieved by an accelerator for accelerating the metered material grains is disposed towards the sensor between the metering member and the sensor. As a result of this measure the funded or metered by the metering grains are much stronger than the acceleration due to gravity towards the sensor is accelerated. By this acceleration, the grains meet at such a rate and energy on the sensor, that a sufficiently strong for an evaluation signal is generated. Thus, more time or simultaneously incident on the sensor grains can also be detected close chronological succession. The grains obtained due to their acceleration towards a defined movement sensor so that the signal produced by each impact can be analyzed. Furthermore, can be suppressed by the acceleration acting on the sensor of the grains environmental signals. An additional advantage results from the fact that with the acceleration of the device, the object is achieved in a structurally simpler manner than, for example, compared with a purpose of task solution advanced sensor.

In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides that the acceleration device is designed in the form of a blower with a lock. This makes it possible, even retrospectively installed in mass-produced machines with minimal design and construction effort, the accelerator even in confined spaces.

The accelerator is designed essentially, that it can be installed in different positions. Here, the acceleration section be aligned at least approximately horizontally to achieve a particularly low construction of the accelerator. Such accelerator can also be used for drills with a short distance between dosing and coulter, whose freedom of movement must not be restricted, readily.

According to a further embodiment, the accelerator may be formed at least as a conveyor belt. Especially suitable for this type of accelerator granular materials, which are coated with dust-like means.

Thus, the accelerated by the accelerating apparatus in the direction of the sensor grains are not hampered by the impinged already on the sensor grains, the sensor is preferably arranged at an angle to the direction of acceleration of the acceleration device is smaller than 90 ° and greater than 0 °.

To be particularly advantageous, an angle in the order of 45 ° to 70 ° has become, especially in the horizontal direction of acceleration, exposed.

For accelerators that use air to accelerate the grains, can be arranged on a sensor board according to an embodiment of the invention the sensor in which are formed at least outside the impact zone of the grains holes. This ensures that the grains accelerating air escapes through holes and thus the impact of the grains on the sensor plate can not distort. The escape of air can also be ensured in that laterally of the sensor plate is disposed at least an open gap. This measure will at least ensure that no air vortex, which could hinder or impair their impinging on the sensor board to speed up the grains.

Further details of the invention are disclosed in the dependent claims, and the description below of some embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawing. Show it<ul><li>FIG. 1 is a side view in schematic representation of a drill with an accelerator according to a first embodiment of the invention,</li><li>FIG. 2 is a side view in schematic representation of an accelerator according to a second embodiment of the invention,</li><li>FIG. 3 is a side view in schematic representation of an accelerator according to a third embodiment of the invention,</li><li>_Fig. 4 is a side view in schematic representation of an accelerator according to a fourth embodiment of the invention,</li><li>_Fig. 5, the accelerator according_Fig. 4 in section along the line VV, and</li><li>Fig. 6 shows a sensor plate with sensor.</li></ul>

A reservoir 1 a drill has in its lower region outlet openings 2, above which metering 3 contained therein, designed as Nokkenräder metering members 4 are arranged.

The dosing on a 5 rotatably disposed Nokkenräder 4 are driven by a variable speed gear stufenlös'einstellbares 6 and a chain drive 7 by a motor shaft, not shown. Below the metering device 8 is disposed an acceleration. This consists of a driven from a power source not shown blower 9, an injector 10 lock with an inlet funnel 11 and a form of a tube 12 acceleration zone 13. At the end of the acceleration section 13 is a sensor plate 14 having a sensor 15 at an angle oc .. attached to the acceleration direction 16 of the acceleration section. 13 The angle oc has approximately a size of 45 °. Below the sensor plate 14 is an opening 17 with an outlet 18, to which a hopper 19 of a leading coulter for 21 Särohres 20 connects. Because all dosing units 4 are of identical design and are driven by the same dosing shaft 5, it is sufficient if the acceleration device 8 is arranged to the sensor 15 only below a metering member 4th Laterally, the sensor plate 14 is an air discharge S, thus funded by the blower 9 air can escape.

The function of the acceleration device 8 is as follows: the seeds situated in the hopper 1 22 are supplied in adjustable quantities, or number per distance traveled of the drill from the respective metering members 4 of the seed coulters 21 and thus placed in the ground. The metering element 4, at which the acceleration device 8 is arranged, the metered seeds 22 leads to the inlet funnel 11 of the venturi cone 10th In the latter, the seeds 22 can be detected by the air flow generated by the fan 9 and relatively strongly accelerated in the direction of the sensor 15 in the area of ​​the acceleration section thirteenth The accelerated seeds 22 then hit with a relatively large kinetic energy on the sensor plate 14th By the impingement of the seeds 22 on the sensor plate 14 pulses, signals or vibrations are generated, which are received from the sensor 15th After striking the sensor plate 14, the seeds are 22 oa because the angle of attack. the sensor plate 14 to the acceleration direction 16 of the seeds 22 deflected downward toward the funnel 19 of Saatrohres 20th From here, the seeds drop 22 then in freefall over the coulter 21 in the heat generated by this furrow.

The collected by the sensor 15 pulses, or vibration signals are fed via a line 23 to a microprocessor 24th At these a distance measuring device 25 is connected. This determines the distance traveled by the drill path. The distance values ​​determined are also forwarded to the microprocessor 24th From these values, the microprocessor 24 then calculates the real yielded number of seeds 22 that the metering element is a 4-the coulter 21 fed. This determined number actually seeded seeds is then compared in the microprocessor 24 with the input in this setpoint. If the determined actual value deviates from the setpoint, the microprocessor corresponding signals to a servomotor 26, then a lever 27 of the variator 6 is correspondingly adjusted so that the metering 4 doses the the setpoint corresponding number seeds per distance traveled. This control cycle is repeated continuously.

The acceleration device 28 shown in FIG. 2 differs from the accelerating device 8 according to FIG. 1 only by the other training the lock. The lock of this acceleration device 28 is designed as a rotary 29th The operation of the acceleration device 28 corresponds to that of the accelerating device eighth

The acceleration device 30 shown in FIG. 3 is also located on a drill below a metering 4 and as two superimposed conveyor belts formed 31 and 32. The lower conveyor belt 31 extends from the front of the metering member 4 to the hopper 19 of the Särohres 20, whereas the upper conveyor belt 32 extends from the rear side of the metering 4 to the hopper 19 of the Särohres 20th The upper conveyor belt 32 is resiliently pressed against the lower conveyance belt 31, so that the respective conveying strand on one another. The conveyor belts 31 and 32 are driven at relatively high speed, so that they accelerate the 22 metered by the metering members 4 seeds after detection by the superposed conveying of the conveyor belts 31 and 32 in the direction of the sensor 15th The accelerated seeds 22 are thrown with great kinetic energy against the sensor plate 14, from where they are then deflected toward the funnel 19th Subsequently, these seeds are deposited with the aid of a coulter in the soil. The acceleration section 33, which is formed by the conveyor belts 31 and 32 is at an angle ß, which is in the range between 0 ° and 45 ° to the horizontal H, disposed on the seed drill.

The operation of the accelerator 30 with regard to the evaluation of the data received from the sensor seeds-of impingement and the control of the processed by the metering 4 amount corresponds to the operation of the accelerator 8 in FIG. 1.

In the embodiment of FIG. 3 is a drawn with dashed lines retardation plate 44 is arranged in the metering housing 3, which covers half the cross-section of the metering housing 3 partially. The delay plate 44 are seeds 22, the fall in clumps from the metering 4, occasionally at least somewhat, since the incident on the retardation plates 44 seeds need 22 to travel a slightly longer path than the seeds not covered on the Waveplates 44th

The acceleration device 34 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 has a rotating centrifugal disc 35, which is driven by a power source not shown. The slinger 35 is arranged in a fixed ring 36th This has in the region of the sensor 15 on a facing towards the sensor 15 opening 37th The dose from the metering 4 seeds 22 fall on the slinger 35 and are accelerated by this, so that the seeds are thrown through the opening 37 in the direction of the sensor 15th The seeds 22 meet with a large kinetic energy on the sensor plate 14th The signal produced thereby, as described above, a Mik fed roprozessor, the 1 the application rate as regulated in accordance with the embodiment of FIG. That the target number of Saatkörnemausgebracht is.

The sensor 38 shown in FIG. 6 is mounted on a sensor plate 39. Outside the knitting-dashed impact region 40 of the seeds on the sensor plate 39 are in the same holes 41, evenly distributed around the sensor 38, formed. Through these holes 41 supported by the fan air can escape, so that will be no air vortex in front of the sensor plate. 39 In order to improve the air discharge even further, holes 42 are also arranged within the impact region 40 yet. An even better air discharge is achieved by additional array of holes 43 in the sensor 38 itself. The holes 41, 42 and 43 may be mutually formed in the sensor plate 39 so that the air can be optimally discharged both parallel to one another as well as at different angles.