| Patent application number | Description | Published |
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| 20100192818 | Differential Pressure Seed Meter With An Endless Belt Seed Transport Member - A seed meter is provided having an endless belt as a seed transport member together with a pressure differential to hold the seed onto the belt. The use of an endless belt as the seed transport member enables the spatial orientation of the seed transport member to vary from location to location along the path of the belt where different seed meter functions are performed. The belt allows greater freedom in determining the location of the seed pick-up region and the seed release or removal region beyond the constraints of a fixed diameter seed disk. The belt further allows for a narrow envelope seed meter which can cross-feed seed into a substantially vertically oriented delivery device. | 08-05-2010 |
| 20100192819 | Seeding Machine With Seed Delivery System - A seed delivery system for use in a seeding or planting machine that removes the seed from a seed meter by capturing the seed therefrom. The delivery system then moves the seed down to a lower discharge point and accelerates the seed horizontally rearward to a speed approximately equal to the forward travel speed of the seeding machine such that the seed, when discharged has a low or zero horizontal velocity relative to the ground. Rolling of the seed in the trench is thus reduced. Furthermore, as the seed only has a short drop from the outlet to the bottom of the seed trench, the seed has little vertical speed to induce bounce. The delivery system uses a brush belt to capture, move and accelerate the seed. By capturing the seed and moving it from the meter to the discharge, the seed is held in place relative to other seeds and the planter row unit. As a result, the seeds are isolated from row unit dynamics thereby maintaining seed spacing. | 08-05-2010 |
| 20100192821 | SEED DELIVERY APPARATUS WITH SENSOR AND MOVING MEMBER TO CAPTURE AND MOVE SEED TO A LOWER OUTLET OPENING - A seed delivery apparatus has a moving member that captures and entraps the seed from the seed meter and physically moves the seed from the meter to the lower outlet opening. In so doing, the seed engages and travels along an interior surface of the seed delivery apparatus. A seed sensor is mounted on the housing wall such that the seed passes directly in front of the sensor. The sensor has both the light emitting devices and the photo-sensitive elements on the same wall of the delivery apparatus, or on two opposed walls. The moving member prevents ambient light, dust and dirt from entering the housing and impacting the sensor output signal. | 08-05-2010 |
| 20100224110 | Seed Meter And Seed Disk With Peripheral Edge Seed Pick-Up - A seed meter with a flat seed disk with seed apertures on the peripheral edge of the disk results is provided. The seed pick-up on the disk edge enables a more predictable seed trajectory thereby improving the accuracy of seed spacing. With seed pick-up on the disk periphery, the seed reservoir in the meter housing is located rearward of the disk as opposed to the side of the disk, resulting in a narrowing of the meter housing, making it easier to package two meters close together for twin row planting or to lower the meter in the row unit, reducing the seed drop distance. With improved seed placement accuracy, the planter travel speed can be increased. Further efficiency is gained by a vacuum clean-out of the seed meters, reducing the time required to change seed type or variety. | 09-09-2010 |
| 20100294612 | ADJUSTABLE SEED METER DRIVE COUPLING - A seed meter for a planting machine is provided with an adjustable drive coupling between the seed meter and the planting machine main drive. The drive coupling includes a drive member connected to the planter drive and a driven member coupled to the seed meter shaft. The drive member and driven member are drivingly engagable with one another and held into the engaged position by a biasing member. The drive member and driven member are selectively movable relative to one another to a disengaged position, enabling adjustment of the seed meter relative to the drive by rotation of the meter shaft. Once released, the coupling self-engages. | 11-25-2010 |
| 20110113996 | Row Unit Wheel Turning Monitor For An Agricultural Machine - A row unit of a planter or other agricultural machine having ground engaging wheels is equipped with a rotation sensor to determine if and when a wheel stops rotating. An alert is issued by a monitor to the operator so that corrective action can be taken. Further, means are provided to determine when the machine is in used depositing an input versus turning at the end of the rows so that the rotation sensors to not generate an alert when the machine is not in use delivering an input to the field. | 05-19-2011 |
| Patent application number | Description | Published |
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| 20080250993 | SEED DISK FOR A SEED METER - A seed metering system having a housing and a disk rotatably positioned within the housing and having a plurality of holes extending from a first face to a second face thereof, the holes being substantially uniformly placed from one another around the circumference of the disk and each sized to receive a single seed. A pressure differential is maintained between the first and second face of the disk within the housing, the pressure on the first face being higher than the pressure on the second face to urge seeds against the first face of the disk. A plurality of seeds are distributed against the first face of the disk, whereby the pressure differential substantially urges a single seed into a single hole on the disk. A device is provided for releasing the single seeds from the holes on the disk at substantially the same location for sequential distribution of seeds. The plate has a protrusion to interrupt each of the holes, the protrusion having at least a portion thereof substantially in the plane of the intersection between the first face and the holes for preventing seeds to be retained within the holes to promote unimpeded release of the seeds, the area of the protrusion within the plane being selected to permit the maintenance of a pressure differential between the first and second faces of the plate. | 10-16-2008 |
| 20090025620 | SEED METER WITH FLEXIBLE SEED DISC - A seed meter for use in an agricultural seeding machine includes a housing having an inner chamber and one or more deflectors within the inner chamber, and a seed disc rotatably carried by the housing. The seed disc includes at least a portion thereof formed from a flexible material which is deflectable by the one or more deflectors during rotation within the housing. | 01-29-2009 |
| 20100116185 | SEED METER WITH FLEXIBLE SEED DISC - A seed meter for use in an agricultural seeding machine includes a housing having an inner chamber and one or more deflectors within the inner chamber, and a seed disc rotatably carried by the housing. The seed disc includes at least a portion thereof formed from a flexible material which is deflectable by the one or more deflectors during rotation within the housing. | 05-13-2010 |
