In order to explore the temporal and spatial distribution and motion state of the grains of wheatgrass (Agropyron) seeds and powder in pelleting process, and to find the optimal inlet air speed of pelleting premixer, the pelleting forming mechanism was revealed. Based on Herz-Mindlin contact theory, the contact mechanics model of seed and powder was established. Besides, CPFD software was used to model and simulate the pelleting premixer, and the contact, collision and friction rules among particles were analysed. The simulation and experimental results show that with the increase of inlet wind speed, the bed expansion increases and the unit volume particle concentration decreases, while the air pressure difference only slightly increases. When the inlet wind speed is set at 3.5 m/s, the atomizing nozzle velocity is set at 4.1 m/s, and the seed coating agent flow rate is 0.36 L/min, the particles are suspended due to air isolation, forming a spouted fluidized bed. It is good for seed and powder contact and rapid prototyping. In this time, the pelleting qualified rate was 95.8%. The results provide theoretical basis and technical support for the research of small irregular seeds pelletizing technology.

In the current paper, a coated cotton-seed discrete element model was established. Furthermore, we designed a device for the simultaneous determination of the repose and accumulation angles, and Plackett–Burman and central composite design (CCD) tests were performed with the repose and accumulation angles as the test indexes. The static friction coefficient between seeds (SFCC) and the dynamic friction coefficient between seeds (DFCC) were observed to have a significant influence on the indexes and were thus selected for the subsequent analysis (P < 0.05). Analysis of variance revealed the terms of these two parameters to have a significant effect on the relative error of the repose angle (RERA) and the relative error of accumulation angles (REAA) (P < 0.05). A solution to the proposed mathematical model was determined via the NSGA-? genetic algorithm and the Pareto optimal solution set was obtained. Based on multi-objective optimization, the SFCC and DFCC were determined as 0.174 and 0.068, for RERA and REAA values of 1.715% and 1.712%, respectively. Simulations were then performed using the optimal parameters. Results of the T-test demonstrated that there were no significant differences between the simulated and physical test results.

To address problems involving the poor matching ability of supply and demand information and outdated scheduling methods in agricultural machinery operation service, in this study, we proposed a harvester operation scheduling model and algorithm for an order-oriented multi-machine collaborative operation within a region. First, we analysed the order-oriented multi-machine collaborative operation within the region and the characteristics of agricultural machinery operation scheduling, examined the revenue of a mechanized harvesting operation and the components of each cost, and constructed a harvester operation scheduling model with the operation income as the optimization goal. Second, we proposed a simulated annealing genetic algorithm-based harvester operation scheduling algorithm and analysed the validity and stability of the algorithm through experimental simulations. The results showed that the proposed harvester operation scheduling model effectively integrated the operating cost, transfer cost, waiting time cost, and operation delay cost of the harvester, and the accuracy of the harvester operation scheduling model was improved; the harvester operation scheduling algorithm based on simulated annealing genetic algorithm (SAGA) was able to obtain a global near-optimal solution of high quality and stability with high computational efficiency.

For tractor operation on deformable terrains, accurate terrain profiles are critically needed to determine the dynamic tractor response, which is affected by the terrain roughness. Effective profiles for tractors operating on agricultural terrains were identified in this study. A novel technique, called independent component analysis (ICA), was used to estimate the effective profiles. ICA can use a known system dynamic response (observed signals) to identify road-induced excitation. In this context, tractor wheel vibration signals were used as observed signals, and the ICA method was used to estimate the source signals, which are the effective profiles of the terrain. The proposed approach was validated by comparing the estimated profiles with those measured by a profiling apparatus in the time and frequency domains. The calculated root mean square error RMSE and the relative error Ef between the measured and estimated profiles showed that the proposed approach can be used to accurately estimate road profiles. A group of grass-field roughness data was taken as an example to compare the characteristics of the original and effective profiles, and the parameters of the effective profiles, such as the RMS, roughness index C and waviness W were found to noticeably change during the interaction between the tractor wheel and the terrain soil.

A comb-type harvesting test bench was designed to address low fruit collection rate and theoretical analysis and simulation analysis of the harvesting process were carried out in this work. Single factor simulation experiment and bench experiment were carried out, and fruit collection rate was used as the evaluation index. The motor speed, bending angle of comb teeth and radial diameter of comb teeth arrangement were selected as the experimental factors. Results showed that the collection rate decreased with the increase of motor speed; and increased with the increase of the bending angle of comb teeth or the radial diameter of comb teeth arrangement. The orthogonal experiment of three-factor and three-level quadratic rotation centre combination was performed. The results showed that motor speed had the largest effect on collection rate, followed by radial diameter of comb teeth arrangement and bending angle of comb teeth. The optimal parameter combination was predicted by the response surface model as follows: motor speed of 25 r/min, bending angle of comb teeth of 120°, radial diameter of comb teeth arrangement of 868.45 mm and correspondingly the collection rate reached 91.51%. Based on actual harvesting efficiency and the machining problems of the test bench, the bench experiment was performed with the motor speed of 25 r/min, the bending angle of comb teeth of 120°, the radial diameter of comb teeth arrangement of 900 mm, and the collection rate was 93.82%. The relative error with the predicted optimal result was 2.48%, achieving the purpose of improving the collection rate.

In order to improve the safety of agricultural vehicle in the field, we established a vehicle kinematics model for hanging agricultural tools, and comprehensively considered driving speed, the agricultural tool rotation radius, and vehicle movement trend to propose an agricultural vehicle field operation cross- boundary warning method based on a Robot Operating System (ROS). Furthermore, we designed a set of agricultural vehicle safety warning systems and employed Qt Creator to develop the agricultural vehicle warning system operation interface. Following this, a test platform was built based on the Oubao 4040 tractor and unilateral cross-boundary warning tests were conducted. Test results demonstrate the ability of the proposed cross-boundary warning system to: i) correctly determine the warning area at different speeds (low (3.6km/h±0.5km/h), medium (10.8km/h±1.0km/h) and high (18.0km/h±1.5km/h)) and driving paths ("V" and "U"-shaped routes); ii) and to prompt the operator in a timely manner. The proposed framework exhibits strong applicability and improves the safety of agricultural vehicle hanging agricultural tools

Field efficiency is a main factor for obtaining high productivity of agricultural machinery. The aim of this paper was to determine the field efficiency of KTP 2M and CASE IH 8000 sugarcane harvester machines, working with different lengths of cutting fronts. The research was carried out in the Panchito Gómez Toro area of production, belonging to Sugar Enterprise, Villa Clara, during February and March 2020. The main movement times of the harvester inside the field was obtained by stop watch, as well as the fuel consumption during the works. The influence of the length of the cutting fronts on the turning time, time for completing the task and field efficiency were determined according to the sugarcane yield. The results show that lengths of cutting front less than 300 m, represent greater losses in time and higher rate of fuel consumption.Lengths of cutting fronts greater than 500 m, do not represent an increase in field efficiency.

Flat circular discs in powered operation mode create driving forces. These forces enable to decrease the wheel slippage of the energy saturated tractor of tillage unit and to reduce the specific energy consumption. The objective of this study was to develop a technique that enables to determine the driving disc optimal parameters for maximum efficiency criterion. The earlier developed mathematical model of soil-disc interaction was used for this purpose. Soil properties in the model are characterized by means of two empirical constants. The relative depth and the kinematic parameter determine the disc operation mode. It was shown that the driving disc can operate with high efficiency, if the disc operates at the optimal values of the parameters. The driving disc efficiency can achieve the value about fifty percent. The experimental results confirmed the adequacy of the technique. The discrepancy between the predicted and field experimental values of driving forces and applied moments was about 25%. The proposed technique can be modified to optimize the parameters of other powered rotary tools of tillage machines and units.

Field efficiency is a main factor for obtaining high productivity of agricultural machinery. The aim of this paper was to determine the field efficiency of KTP 2M and CASE IH 8000 sugarcane harvester machines, working with different lengths of cutting fronts. The research was carried out in the Panchito Gómez Toro area of production, belonging to Sugar Enterprise, Villa Clara, during February and March 2020. The main movement times of the harvester inside the field was obtained by stop watch, as well as the fuel consumption during the works. The influence of the length of the cutting fronts on the turning time, time for completing the task and field efficiency were determined according to the sugarcane yield. The results show that lengths of cutting front less than 300 m, represent greater losses in time and higher rate of fuel consumption.Lengths of cutting fronts greater than 500 m, do not represent an increase in field efficiency.

In this work we make a comparative analysis of the dynamics for two variants of seedling planting machines equipped with distributors and articulated buckets respectively: with the seedlings being placed in the furrow opened by a coulter; with the seedling being planted directly into the ground. The dynamics of the seedling planting machine equipped with vertical distributors and articulated buckets is seen from the perspective of the working process involving the placement of the seedling in the ground, its release, its covering with earth and its additional compaction. In principle, furrow opening is performed by a coulter and the vertical distributor with articulated buckets places and releases the seedling in the furrow, in the first variant, and in the second one, the seedling is inserted and released directly into the ground. In the paper are written the mathematical relations describing the dynamics of the seedling planting machine, in the two variants, and we perform their testing, make recordings, interpret the results, reach conclusions and make recommendations on the optimum variant. The agro-technical parameters and tensile strength of the planting machine are analysed in the two functional variants. The experiments were performed under the same working conditions for both variants analysed.

Precision machinery is one of the most important technology in the recent decades in respect to judicious use of resources. In precision machinery one of the most important machine is seeding machines because it picks the seed from the hopper and individually placed in field. An effort has been made to optimize the operational (forward speed and vacuum pressure) and design (nozzle diameter) parameters of the precision seed drill. For optimizing the metering mechanism three parameters i.e. nozzle diameters: 2.00, 2.50, 3.00, 3.50 and 4.0 mm; forward speed: 0.27, 0.55, 0.83, 1.11 and 1.38 m/s and vacuum pressure: 19.33, 39.32, 43.98, 58.64 and 68.63 kPa were selected. The seed to seed spacing was 300 mm. The RSM technique was used to optimize the above parameters. The machine was evaluated on the basis performance parameters like miss index, multiple index, quality of feed index and precision. The optimum value for forward speed, vacuum pressure and the nozzle holes diameter was 0.83 m/s, 43.98 kPa and 3.50 mm, respectively. The most important variable that governs planting phenomenon for vegetable pigeon pea seed is nozzle diameter as well as vacuum pressure.

In rice planting technology, the planting depth of seedlings has high requirements for transplanters, which directly determines the survival rate and tillering effect of seedlings. Aiming at the problems of low automation degree and low working efficiency of rice transplanter, the rice transplanter is designed under WSN (Wireless Sensor Network) technology, and its electric control system is optimized and analysed. In this paper, in order to optimize the overall working performance of the electronic control mechanism system of adjustable width and narrow row high-speed rice transplanter, the discipline analysis of the electronic control mechanism system is carried out based on WSN (Wireless Sensor Network) technology. Combined with the working characteristics of electronic control mechanism and the influence index of design parameters, the multidisciplinary design optimization framework of electronic control mechanism is established, and the optimization objectives, design variables and constraints at system level and discipline level are determined, and the multidisciplinary design optimization mathematical model of electronic control mechanism is constructed. Finally, the optimization results are analysed. The results show that the optimized design variable value can significantly improve the overall working performance of the adjusting mechanism of the electronic control system.

In recent years, combine harvesters are increasingly developing in the direction of large-scale, technology, automation and intelligence, and more and more electrical equipment is installed on combine harvesters. The electrical system of combine harvester is prone to failure when it works in high temperature, high humidity, dusty and strong vibration environment. Parameters to be adjusted in the header system of combine harvester include header height, drum height, drum front and back position, cutting frequency and drum speed. Aiming at the inconvenience of debugging and testing the measurement and control system of combine harvester in the field operation environment, an intelligent control test bed of combine harvester was designed. The test bed can simulate various intelligent control algorithms of combine harvester in laboratory environment, control the forward speed of combine harvester according to data processing results, classify faults, and send and print stored data through serial communication. Experiments show that the system works stably and reliably, and can realize the integration of the monitoring system of combine harvester operation process. It can save costs and improve efficiency in the application of the monitoring system of combine harvester.

The shell of inclined conveyor of combine often has the defect of serious vibration. In order to solve this problem, this study uses the dynamic signal test and analysis system and control the electromagnetic directional valve to realize the horizontal stability control of agricultural machinery. In order to improve the bearing accuracy, this paper designs a bearing tilt detection device. When the tilt reaches its set point, an alarm can be issued to initiate an emergency response. Taking tractor as the object, the application of real-time tilt angle measurement algorithm on three-axis multifunctional turntable is tested. At the same time, the automatic leveling system of agricultural machinery was tested in the field, and the minimum inclination angle of the chute conveying all kinds of grain and oil materials was obtained. The image collected by AGV has the characteristics of high speed, high efficiency and small resolution error. It can also correct the tilt image in real time. This study is helpful to adapt to the new requirements of modern agricultural large-scale agricultural machinery or production facilities. The monitoring system has practical guiding significance in the construction process, and has a certain promotion value.

The production and quality of any agricultural crop is determined both by the factors acting from the moment of sowing until harvesting, as well as by those that directly influence the seeds before sowing. In the organic cultivation of cereals, industrial plants, vegetables, medicinal plants, the seeds must be clean without any impurities because the maintenance of these crops does not allow using chemicals. There is a number of technologies and pieces of equipment for separating impurities. In case of separating impurities from the mass of small seeds, especially vegetable and flower seeds, the use of separation on sieves is very expensive because compared to other crops, vegetable seeds are produced in small quantities (except for beans, peas, lentils, etc.) and have a wide variety of characteristics. Vegetables belong to a large number of plant families. This is why their seeds have a very different structure, shape, size and chemical composition. To overcome these challenges, the experimental model Seed conditioning module for vegetable species – MCSL, which separates impurities by using the aerodynamic properties of the seeds was developed. Seed conditioning module for vegetable species is designed to improve the technologies of organic seed production for vegetable seeds, flowers, industrial plants, cereals and to solve practical problems regarding seed production in the case of vegetable crops. Starting from these considerations, the paper will present theoretical and experimental information on the influence of some factors on the aerodynamic properties of cereal seeds, vegetables and industrial plants. The quality of seed separation in this module depends on the degree of uniformity of the air velocity field in the working area, on the stability of this field and on its extent.

Trimming for postharvest cabbage is useful to increase its economic value added. For obtaining the optimal root-cutting parameters, a root-cutting test platform based on universal testing machine was designed. Then shear contrast test and orthogonal test were carried out respectively, and shear properties were explained according to root morphology obtained by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that the effect of sliding-cutting with single-edged cutter was the best. The optimal parameters of cutter thickness, shear position, shear speed and sliding-cutting angle were respectively 0.89 mm, 0.00 mm, 388.94 mm/min and 34.84°, and the shear stress was 28.02 kPa.

Omni-directional vision sensor can provide information within the sensor range, and the directional angle of an object can be accurately obtained through omni-directional images. Based on this characteristic, an automatic navigation and positioning system for agricultural machinery is developed, and a three-dimensional positioning algorithm for agricultural wireless sensor networks based on cross particle swarm optimization is proposed. The method mainly includes three stages: convergence node selection, measurement distance correction and node location. Using the idea of crossover operation of genetic algorithm for reference, the diversity of particles is increased, and the influence of ranging error and the number of anchor nodes on positioning results is effectively improved. The location algorithm has the ability of global search. On the positioning node, the symmetric bidirectional ranging algorithm based on LFM (Linear frequency modulation) spread spectrum technology is used to calculate the distance between the positioning node and each beacon node, and the trilateral centroid positioning algorithm is used to calculate the coordinate position information of unknown nodes. Finally, the Kalman filter algorithm is used to superimpose the observed values of the target state to solve the influence of measurement noise on the positioning accuracy.

Dynamic soil behaviour at the contact interface during transplanting makes it difficult to ensure transplanting quality. To solve this problem, the Hertz-Mindlin with bonding contact model was used to calibrate the parameters of soils in Inner Mongolia. Based on the response surface design principle, four-factor and three-level tests were performed using the repose angle as an evaluation index, and the following influence factors were considered: the soil-soil restoration coefficient, the soil-steel restoration coeficient, the soil-steel static friction coefficient and the soil-steel static friction coefficient. A regression model was analysed, and an optimization procedure yielded the following optimum combination of parameters: a soil-soil restoration coefficient of 0.45, a soil-steel restoration coefficient of 0.35, a soil-steel static friction coefficient of 0.85 and a soil-steel rolling friction coefficient of 0.13. This optimal combination was used to simulate the soil at the contact interface. The particle dynamic behaviour and soil particle mass flow were used to analyse the soil dynamic behaviour, showing that the average mass flow during the gradual opening of the duckbilled planter tends to increase over time; when the duckbilled planter gradually leaves soil, the contact interface of soil particles in the corner of the duckbilled planter unit causes a reduction in the fluctuation range of the soil mass flow, which exhibits a wave-like change. After the duckbilled planter has left soil, the contact interface of the soil changes tends to stabilize. The duckbilled planter-soil discrete element simulation model was verified. The results of this study provide a reference for the optimal design of a duckbilled planter structure.

Vegetable industry occupies a significant position in the world agricultural production, China has been the largest vegetable producing country in the world. However, the mechanization of vegetable production is still in the initial stage. There are many problems such as complex environment, non-uniform agronomy, various kinds of agricultural machinery etc. In order to meet the varied requirements of vegetable field work, in this paper, a new type of high-efficiency vegetable field operation power equipment was developed by adopting the idea of "frame-type", and the key components are developed. They include ground gap adjusting mechanism, wheel spacing adjusting mechanism, inter-axle hitch mechanism, the rear hitch mechanism and frame. The vibration modal analysis and stiffness analysis of the frame are carried out by ANSYS, which proves that the frame design is reasonable and meets the use requirements. Finally, a prototype was made and field experiments were carried out. The results showed that the maximum running speed of the multifunctional vegetable field machine was 16 km/h, the maximum operating speed was 8 km/h, the maximum gradient was 20, and the adjustable range of ground clearance was 400~800 mm. The adjustable range of wheel spacing was 1600-2000 mm.

In order to simulate straw cutting process, this paper established a maize straw cutting model with discrete element method (DEM) based on straw cutting experiment. Firstly, maize straw model consisting of several small particles was established by DEM. Then, a straw cutting experiment was conducted and the maximum straw cutting resistance was 199 N for straw with 15 mm diameter. Then, single-factor experiment was conducted to analyze the effect of DEM parameters on straw cutting effect and the max straw cutting resistance Fmax. The normal stiffness between particles and blade (ball-facet-kn) and shear stiffness between particles and blade (ball-facet-ks) were found to be the significant factors affecting Fmax, and the value of the parameters that has no significance was determined. The optimum combination of the significant parameters was 17662 N·m-1 of ball-facet-kn and 52499 N·m-1 of ball-facet-ks. The verification test results showed that the maize straw model was cut off, thus it could simulate the real straw cutting effect, and the relative error of max straw cutting resistance Fmax between the simulation and the experiment was below 9.1%. Thus, it could be concluded that the established maize straw cutting model was accurate and reliable.

The article presents the developed design of the pneumatic-screw conveyor, as well as its experimental installation. The method of conducting experimental researches to determine force indicators at movement of different types of loose materials under the influence of air pressure and their volume of various types of bulk materials. Based on the conducted experimental studies, the response surfaces and two-dimensional cross-sections of the pneumatic-screw conveyor productivity when the material passes from the whole area in the hopper transition zone to the screw feeder, its rotation frequency and the working air pressure in the process line have been constructed.

In order to quantitatively describe the influence between the mixing process and the pelleting quality of the vibration pelletizer, this paper uses EDEM to conduct a numerical simulation study on the uniformity of the seeds and powder mixing of the pelleting machine under vibration force field. Meanwhile, a single factor test was established to verify the feasibility of numerical simulation. The results show that the coefficient of variation CV is the smallest and the mixing uniformity between the seeds and powder is the highest when the vibration frequency is 20Hz, the rotation speed is 45r/min, the tilt angle is 40° during numerical simulation. The pelleting qualified rate J and single seed rate P as the test index of the mixing uniformity of seed pelleting shows the optimum value in the single factor test, EDEM can be used to analyse the mixing uniformity and pelleting quality in pelletizer. The results of orthogonal experiment indicated that the best combination of parameters was obtained as follows: vibration frequency of 20Hz, rotation speed of 45r/min and tilt angle of 40°, the mixing uniformity of seeds and powder and the pelleting quality of Agropyron seeds are the highest. This study can effectively provide reference for design of pelleting machine of small seeds under vibration force field.

The article presents results of some test sketches - validation and ordering - of the mathematical models proposed for the physical law rank on soil tillage draft force. The results constitute the continuation and partial completion of a method of testing - validation and ordering - the models proposed and published by researchers in the specialized literature of the last seventy years. The material defines and completes the method (initially only a validation method), up to a method of ordering the models according to their accuracy in relation to the experimental results. The proposed tests are intended to increase the coherence of research in the field of searching for a physical law of soil tillage draft force, assuming that it exists. The method can also be applied in case of other physical laws in research, construction or improvement stage.

At present, straw harvesting operation is performed according to artificial experience, and there is no scientific method to detect the feeding quantity of the mobile straw granulator. This paper designed a feeding quantity detection system based on the power of the motive power shaft of the screw conveyor of the mobile straw granulator. The detection system includes the detection device and the detection method. The detection device consists of torque sensor, rotation speed sensor and on-board industrial computer. The detection method obtains the feeding quantity with the power that can be computed according to torque and rotation speed. The detection system was evaluated on the mobile straw granulator of Liaoning Ningyue agricultural machinery company. The field experiment shows that the average error of feeding quantity detection system is 7.5%, and the detection accuracy can meet the actual needs of the field application.

A method and procedure for automatic calculation of field capacity and fuel consumption of mobile machinery with tanks, hoppers and bunkers is suggested. They are based on a combination of two well-founded approaches: East-European and North-American. To increase its calculation area some applications for machines with containers as grain, fertilizer, solution, etc. are added. An example of five linked field operations, namely potato transportation, fertilization, spraying, planting and harvesting is presented. A list of needed information with relations between them and main indices of agricultural aggregates is prepared. For convenience and objectivity calculations are automated with spreadsheets.

In order to solve problems of lower seed-filling stability and wheat seed damage of mechanical shooting seed-metering device, the filling structure of the shooting device was optimized. The effects of seed movement were obtained through analysing the kinematics and dynamics of wheat seed through seed distributor. The influence factors were the inner diameter of seed distributor, the rotational speed of seed distributor and the inclination angle of distributor window. The discrete element software (DEM) was used to simulate the motion process to explore the different factors on the wheat seeds’ movement characteristics in the shooting device. The coefficient of variation of shooting uniformity and shooting speed of wheat seed were selected as test indicators. A verification experiment was conducted, and a high-speed camera was taken to obtain wheat seed’s movement and shooting speed. The verification test showed that the constant uniform variation coefficient of seed amount and average shooting depth was 8.6% and 32 mm, respectively.

The results of the research on the influence of the drum type reactor design-technological parameters and the substrate`s physical-chemical parameters on the substrate`s components mixing evenness, that influence the quality of the received compost, are presented in this paper. By the method of the multifactor experiment rational values of the drum rotation speed, the blades (mounted on the inner drum surface) angle and the substrate`s moisture content are defined at which the components distribution homogeneity in the substrate reaches maximal value. The abovementioned, in turn, provides high compost quality by the agrichemical indices. The recommendations are given to pick the design parameters and operational modes of the drum type reactor.

To ensure optimum peach quality during precooling, air supply temperature within the precooled facility should be precisely controlled. Three-dimensional unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was established in this research, taking air supply temperature as an influencing factor, a dynamic simulation of this model was performed based on Fluent, and its reliability was verified through experiments. Simulation results showed that the decrease of air supply temperature did not affect the 7/8ths cooling time (SECT) significantly, but shortened the cooling time of the fruit which was cooled from the initial temperature to a fixed temperature, especially when air supply temperature dropped below 4oC, its corresponding cooling time showed a trend of steady variation. Meanwhile, respiration rate of 6-8 oC was about twice as high as that of 2-4 oC, its corresponding moisture loss was also increased by 34.71-39.74%. Thus, the range of 2-4 oC was more suitable for quick precooling peaches after harvest. Experiments showed that the root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.7 and 2.7 m·s-1 were 0.747 and 0.836 oC, respectively. It could be seen that simulation results were in good agreement with experimental results, which fully verified the feasibility and high accuracy of this new modeling method. Finally, this study can provide a reliable reference for establishing an accurate precooling numerical model, and rationally optimizing air supply temperature range of fruits precooling experiment to maintain its high quality.

Due to climate change, there have been changes in temperature, distribution and precipitation, phenomena that have led to the development of technologies that increase the efficiency of precipitation water use and support the preservation of soil quality. The paper presents some theoretical considerations on the cam mechanisms for actuating the working parts the equipment for opening and interrupting watering furrows are provided with; setting the optimal dimensions of the blades of the equipment for furrow opening through the experiments performed is also made. By using the cam mechanisms in the equipment for opening and interrupting watering furrows both superior quality indices in the execution of the work but also a quiet operation of the equipment are obtained and by optimizing the size of the working part, the volume of water accumulated between furrows increases significantly.

To solve problems of non-adjustable fertilizer and low fertilization precision in the precision hole fertilization of dry direct-seeding rice, an adjustable socket-wheel precision hole fertilizer apparatus for rice was designed. The basic structure and working principle of the fertilizer apparatus were expounded, the structural parameters of key components were determined. The numerical simulation experiments based on the discrete element method were carried out by using sulfurized urea as the research object. Selecting the rotation speed of the socket-wheel, the length of the trough, the depth of the socket as the experimental factors, and taking the average amount of fertilizer discharging and the coefficient of variation of fertilization uniformity as evaluation indicators, the orthogonal rotation combined experiments with three factors and five levels were carried out. A multi-objective optimization method was used to determine the best parameter combination under the constraint of the target value of the hole fertilizer discharging of 1.500 g. The simulation results show that the coefficient of variation of fertilizer uniformity was the smallest and the coefficient of variation was 15.80% when the rotation speed of socket-wheel was 26.57 r/min, the length of the trough was 5.36 mm and the depth of socket was 5.64 mm. By using slow-release urea, sulfurized urea and bio-organic fertilizer as test materials, the bench test and field test was carried out on the fertilizer apparatus and the reliability of the simulation results and the adaptability of the fertilizer apparatus were verified.

Structural layouts of coulters and their groups in potato planters are justified in the article based on the morphological features of the potato plant, its requirements for growing conditions and ensuring the quality of the planting process. The purpose of coulter groups is to form a bed for placing tubers with a loose layer of soil in 5-8 cm and sealing them with loosened soil to a certain depth. To substantiate the type of potato planter coulters that meet the requirements for potato growing conditions to the maximum extent possible, optimize the parameters of coulter groups that automatically ensure the stability of the coulter travel depth when imitating irregularities of the field microrelief. A comparative analysis of the impact on the soil of the most common anchor coulters with a blunt angle of soil entry and a sharp angle with an individual floating suspension is given, and indicators of the quality of their operation are described. It was found that coulters with an individual floating suspension and an acute angle of soil entry meet the requirements for potato growing conditions to the maximum extent possible. In order to ensure travel stabilization of such a coulter at a given depth when imitating field irregularities, a version of the coulter group has been developed that provides automatic correction of the coulters angle of attack when changing its travel depth. Experimental studies have optimized the parameters of the coulter suspension that ensure automatic imitation of field microrelief irregularities up to 20 cm deep within the initial requirements for potato planting machines. Coulters with an individual floating suspension and a sharp angle of soil entry most fully meet the requirements for potato growing conditions to the maximum extent possible. A coulter group with a suspension aspect ratio of 150:200:400:400 cm and an acute angle of coulter entry into the soil provides automatic maintenance of the set coulter travel depth within the initial requirements (±2 cm) for irregularities in the field microrelief of up to 200 mm. In this case, the bottom and walls of the furrow are not compacted.

Transpiration rate is an essential factor in the water vapor balance method for estimating the ventilation rate in a greenhouse continuously. Several methods of transpiration measurement, i.e., electronic weighing device (Control), the sap flow measurement (SF), water level measurement (WL), and water flow rate measurement (WF) tested and evaluated on tomato crops in a naturally ventilated greenhouse. The objective was to compare these methods and establish the most affordable one to be used in a greenhouse condition to determine the ventilation rate using the water vapor balance approach. Results obtained with the SF particularly have a strong correlation and are not statistically different from the Control (r=0.89). The WF method gave good results and reliable for predicting the total of transpiration in the greenhouse. However, in our conditions, this method generally had a lag time of the transpiration rate in a short time interval basis (minute and hourly). But it had an excellent predicted transpiration rate in daily evapotranspiration. The WL suffered weak agreement to the Control due to the scattering data. It was affected by the very high sensitivity of the device, and it is not recommended to use on the farm level, like in a greenhouse. It appears that measurements with the control and the SF could be considered for monitoring the ventilation rate in the greenhouse using a water vapor balance technique.

In this study, a segmented type mixer with double spiral ribbon was designed to destroy choking and accumulation of agricultural waste in the mixing process, by improving the mixing uniformity and reducing the residual amount of maize straw and cow dung. To determine the optimal working parameters of the mixer, the ternary quadratic regression orthogonal rotation combined experiment was carried out by using the mixing uniformity and residual rate of material as the evaluation indexes and the spindle speed, full coefficient and mixing time as the influencing factors. The results showed that the order of the influences on the mixing uniformity was spindle speed>mixing time>fullness coefficient, and the order of the influences on the residual rate of material was fullness factor>spindle speed>mixing time. The study established a regression model of influencing factors and evaluation indexes, and analysed the influence of significant factors and their interaction on evaluation indexes. The optimum combination after parameter optimization based on response surface method was determined to be as follows: spindle speed of 38.00rad/min, full coefficient of 55.00%, mixing time of 9.33min. While the mixing uniformity and residual rate of material corresponding to the verification test were 91.25% and 95.19%, respectively, the relative error of the predicted result was less than 0.5%. The study meets the requirements of mixing agricultural waste materials to make fertilizers, and provides technical solutions for improving the localized resource utilization of agricultural waste

In view of the nonlinearity and large time delay characteristics of the aquaculture, this paper proposes an environment monitoring system based on low long range (LoRa) communication technology. The system integrates sensor nodes, dissolved oxygen regulation node, LoRa communication network and personal computer (PC) platform to realize real-time monitoring, storage and data sharing. The environmental parameters were processed by programmable logic controller (PLC) intelligent controller, in which, the dissolved oxygen was adjusted with the variable universe fuzzy PID algorithm. The system was tested in a fish pond with an area of 110*120 square meters. The results show that the system can obtain temperature, pH and dissolved oxygen in real time and it has the advantages of high measurement accuracy, stable and reliable data transmission, and can satisfy the needs of aquaculture intelligent management.

Through the mechanical analysis of air-pressure subsoiler, it is found that the main factors affecting its tractive resistance are the air pressure injected into the soil, the soil cohesion, the length and width of the shovel surface, the soil disturbance coefficient, and moving speed of the subsoiler. The traditional air-pressure subsoiler was redesigned to solve the problem of large tractive resistance. In the soil trench experiment, the subsoiling shovel’s shape, the air pressure, and the position of air hole were used as test factors, and the ratio of the traction resistance of the shovel to the soil disturbance, namely SDF (Specific Draft Force), was used as the evaluation index. By the response surface test method and analysing the soil disturbance and the tractive resistance, it is determined that rectangular subsoiling shovel with the air hole in the upper part of the shovel is the optimal under the pressure of 1.2 MPa.

This study proposes a measurement system that comprises an e-Tape water level sensor, Arduino and XBee. The system was considered a success because of the linear relation between measured voltage signals and water depths obtained by it. This linearity was essential because Arduino does not have non-linear calculation ability. As a result, the numerical order of RMSE in measuring water depth using this system was obtained as 3.52 mm. For measuring water consumption for 1 day at the standard scale of paddy fields in Japan, water consumption can be estimated using the system below non-flowing water surfaces. However, when there is water flow, it will be difficult to estimate water consumption because discharge errors may be cumulative.

As the core part of precision seeder, the performance of pickup finger seed metering device directly affects the seeding quality. Aiming at the problem that the traditional pickup finger seed metering device can be easily affected by the performance of spring material, and the reliability of spring decreases with the increase of service time, a magnetic pickup finger seed metering device is designed to open and close the pickup finger by magnetic force, so as to improve the stability of seed metering performance. Through the design and optimization of permanent magnet structure, cam structure and seed taking pickup finger structure, the magnetic force distribution of ring magnet is analysed by using ANSYS Maxwell magnetic simulation software. Under the working speed of 3.9km/h, the vibration frequency, vibration amplitude and magnetic induction intensity were selected for orthogonal test. The experimental results show that the optimal combination of factors is vibration frequency 6Hz, vibration amplitude 3.1mm and magnetic induction intensity 316.34mT. Under the condition of the combination of operation parameters, the seed arrangement performance is 91.7% of the qualified rate, 6.2% of the replant rate and 2.1% of the missed rate, which meets the requirements of the national standard for the performance of the seeder. This study can provide a reference for the optimization of the structure and the improvement of the seed metering performance of the pickup finger seed metering device.

Manual harvesting of large area fruits is inefficient, which consumes manpower and resources. Mechanized harvesting is the inevitable trend of fruit harvest. Vibration harvesting is one of the important forms in terms of fruit mechanized harvesting. According to the different striking parts of fruit trees, the vibration modes were classified as trunk, crown, and branch types. The harvesting efficiency of fruit is an important index to measure the quality of all fruit harvesting machines. The reduction of fruit damage is considered in the harvesting of vulnerable fruits. In this study, the development of vibration harvesting technologies were studied in terms of vibration mode. The development of fruit damage, harvesting efficiency, and fruit tree modeling were discussed. Finally, the development direction of fruit vibration mechanized harvesting was looked forward. Machinery instead of manpower, fully mechanized harvesting is the inevitable development direction of fruit harvesting.