Data processing: measuring – calibrating – or testing – Measurement system – Dimensional determination
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-08
2003-05-20
Barlow, John (Department: 2863)
Data processing: measuring, calibrating, or testing
Measurement system
Dimensional determination
C702S094000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06567764
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for regulating to a predetermined value the interval of seedlings to be planted in a field, such as paper-tube seedlings (i.e., soil-encased seedlings grown in soil-packed paper tubes) or plug seedlings (i.e., soil-encased seedlings grown in soil-packed plastic cells).
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, in order to increase commercial value on the market, plants such as beets and other vegetables are desired to be grown to the same or similar sizes. Therefore, when the seedlings of such plants are transplanted to a field, it is important to regulate the interval of the seedlings to a desired interval suitable for the plant; i.e., to a predetermined planting interval.
Japanese Patent Publication (kokoku) No. 7-110168 discloses a conventional seedling-interval regulation apparatus.
As shown in
FIG. 16
, in the conventional apparatus, two adjacent paper-tube seedlings Pn and Pn+1, among a plurality of paper-tube seedlings P, are transported successively in the vertical direction by upper transport belts
1
and
1
′ and lower transport belts
2
and
2
′. When a pair of seedling sensors
3
and
3
′ detect the following paper-tube seedling Pn+1 conveyed by the upper transport belts
1
and
1
′ after the paper-tube seedling Pn has been conveyed to the lower transport belts
2
and
2
′, the upper transport belts
1
and
1
′ are stopped temporarily. Subsequently, when a count value obtained from a rotary encoder
5
attached to a planting disk
4
assumes a predetermined value, rotation of the temporarily-stopped upper transport belts
1
and
1
′ is resumed in order to maintain the interval between the two paper-tube seedlings Pn and Pn+1 at a predetermined planting interval.
The conventional apparatus is designed on the assumption that the interval t between two adjacent paper-tube seedlings Pn and Pn+1 is narrower than a predetermined planting interval. Further, the interval between two adjacent paper-tube seedlings Pn and Pn+1 is increased through temporary stoppage of the upper transport belts
1
and
1
′, to thereby regulate their transport interval to the predetermined planting interval. Therefore, the conventional apparatus cannot cope with cases in which the paper-tube seedlings Pn and Pn+1 are conveyed at an interval greater than the predetermined planting interval.
Further, since the regulation of the transport interval t is effected through temporal stoppage of the upper transport belts
1
and
1
′, overall processing efficiency is deteriorated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus which can accurately regulate the interval of seedlings to a predetermined planting interval in both the case in which two successive seedlings are conveyed at an interval larger than the predetermined planting interval and the case in which two successive seedlings are conveyed at an interval smaller than the predetermined planting interval and which can improve overall planting efficiency.
A seedling-interval regulation method according to the present invention comprises the steps of calculating the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported by a variable speed conveyer, by measuring a distance over which the preceding seedling is transported between a point in time when the preceding seedling is detected by a seedling sensor and a point in time when the succeeding seedling is detected by the seedling sensor; comparing the calculated transport interval and a predetermined planting interval; maintaining the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer when the calculated transport interval coincides with the predetermined planting interval, and increasing or decreasing the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer or stopping the variable speed conveyer when the calculated transport interval does not coincide with the predetermined planting interval, such that the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported by the variable speed conveyer becomes equal to the predetermined planting interval immediately after the preceding seedling is discharged from the variable speed conveyer.
A seedling-interval regulation apparatus according to the present invention comprises a variable speed conveyer; seedling-interval calculation means for calculating the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported by the variable speed conveyer, by measuring a distance over which the preceding seedling is transported between a point in time when the preceding seedling is detected by a seedling sensor and a point in time when the succeeding seedling is detected by the seedling sensor; seedling-interval comparison means for comparing the calculated transport interval between the seedlings and a predetermined planting interval; and transport-speed control means for controlling the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer on the basis of the comparison result such that when the calculated transport interval coincides with the predetermined planting interval, the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer is maintained, and when the calculated transport interval does not coincide with the predetermined planting interval, the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer is increased or decreased or the variable speed conveyer is stopped, such that the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported by the variable speed conveyer becomes equal to the predetermined planting interval immediately after the preceding seedling is discharged from the variable speed conveyer.
According to the present invention, the transport interval between adjacent seedlings successively transported is regulated through an increase or decrease in the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer or through temporal stoppage of the variable speed conveyer. Accordingly, the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported can be accurately made the same as the predetermined planting interval, not only when the seedlings are transported at an interval greater than the predetermined planting interval but also when the seedlings are transported at an interval less than the predetermined planting interval.
Further, the regulation of the seedling transport interval can be performed through increasing and decreasing the transport speed of the variable speed conveyer. Therefore, overall planting efficiency can be improved.
In the present invention, the variable speed conveyer may be constituted by a pair of nipping belts, and each seedling is transported by the pair of nipping belts while being nipped between the pair of nipping belts. Alternatively, the variable speed conveyer may be constituted by a reception belt, and each seedling is transported by the reception belt while being placed on the reception belt.
In the present invention, the transport interval between two adjacent seedlings successively transported may be calculated by measuring, by use of a measuring unit, a traveling distance of the variable speed conveyer between a point in time when the preceding seedling is detected by the seedling sensor and a point in time when the succeeding seedling is detected by the seedling sensor.
In the present invention, selection of good seedlings may be performed as follows. Good and defective seedlings are transported in a horizontal orientation by a transport belt; leaf portions of only the good seedlings are nipped between a leaf-portion nipping belt and the transport belt; one of opposite side portions of the transport belt is caused to bend downward to thereby cause only the defective seedlings whose leaf portions are not nipped by the leaf-portion nipping belt to slip down to the outside of a transport path, whereby only the good seedlings are fed toward the variable speed conveyer. In this case,
Kaji Masayuki
Yamamoto Nobuhiro
Barlow John
Circle Tekko Co., Ltd.
Lau Tung S
Sughrue & Mion, PLLC
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