Planter with seed delivery apparatus

• US 10,485,159 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2017
• Issued: 11/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kinze Manufacturing Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Kinze Manufacturing Incorporated
• Inventors: Wilhelmi, Matthew J., Bachman, Marvin, Hahn, Dustan, Myers, Michael J., Stevenson, Vaughan, Blackwell, Robert, Achen, Courtney N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Novosad, Christopher J.
• Application Number:
  US15/701,132
• Publication Number:
  US 20170367255A1
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/046 with perforated seeding discs
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/20 Parts of seeders for conducting and depositing seed
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/206 Seed pipes

Abstract

An agricultural implement includes a number of row units. The row units include one or more seed meters for receiving, singulating, and dispensing seed to the ground such that preferred spacing of subsequent seed is attained. Seed delivery systems are included to aid in transporting the seed from the seed meter to the ground in a controlled manner to mitigate skips and to aid in controlling the spacing of the seeds, which can be based upon the ground speed of the implement as it moves through the field. The seed delivery systems can control the transport of the seed to a furrow in the field such that the seed can experience zero or near zero relative velocity so that the seed will have little to no movement once positioned in the furrow.

Claims

1. A row unit for use with an agricultural implement, comprising:

at least one seed meter comprising at least one seed disc; and

a shared seed chute adjacent to a seed delivery system, said seed delivery system for transporting seed from the at least one seed meter towards a furrow in the ground, the seed delivery system comprising;

a first belt and a second belt in facing arrangement, wherein seed is received between the first and second belts and the first and second belts are rotated to move the seed via the first and second belts towards the furrow.

2. The row unit of claim 1, wherein the first and second belts move substantially in sync with one another.

3. The row unit of claim 1, wherein the first and second belts comprise a resilient material.

4. The row unit of claim 1, further comprising a first motor operatively connected to a roller of the first belt, and a second motor operatively connected to a roller of the second belt to provide movement of the belts.

5. The row unit of claim 1, further comprising a belt housing at least partially enclosing the first and second belts.

6. The row unit of claim 5, wherein the belt housing comprises an opening at a lower end, and wherein seed is released from the first and second belts at the opening of the belt housing.

7. The row unit of claim 6, wherein a belt opening is oriented downward and rearward relative to a direction of travel of the agricultural implement such that the seed experiences substantially zero velocity when released therefrom.

8. The row unit of claim 1, wherein the at least one seed meter comprises first and second seed meters positioned therein and both associated with the first and second belts.

9. A method of planting seeds with an agricultural implement, the method comprising:

providing a row unit with at least one seed meter and a seed delivery system operatively connected to the at least one seed meter for transporting seed towards a furrow, the seed delivery system comprising a first belt and a second belt including a portion in facing arrangement;

selecting a type of seed to be planted from at least two types of seed stored in a plurality of hoppers;

delivering the selected type of seed from a shared seed chute and the at least one seed meter to the seed delivery system, wherein the selected type of seed is positioned between the first and second belts; and

transporting the seed between the first and second belts to a seed release position, wherein the seed is released towards the furrow.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising rotating the first and second belts in a speed that corresponds substantially with a travel speed of the agricultural implement.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the first and second belts are rotated by independent first and second motors operatively connected to the first and second belts to control the rotational speeds thereof.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first and second belts rotate in a manner such that they will move substantially in sync with one another.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising operating the at least one seed meter to singulate seed and to release a singulated seed from a seed disk in the at least one seed meter towards the seed delivery system.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the seed is held substantially in place between the first and second belts during transport from the at least one seed meter towards the furrow.

15. A row unit for use with an agricultural planting implement, comprising:

a plurality of seed meters with a seed disc and a seed exit; and

a seed delivery system at least partially aligned with each of the seed exits of the plurality of seed meters for directing seed from the plurality of seed meters to the ground, said seed delivery system comprising first and second belts, and

wherein seed is positioned between the first and second belts to be transported therebetween to a location where the seed is released towards a furrow in the ground;

wherein the seed is released from an operating seed meter of the plurality of seed meters into a shared seed chute, the shared seed chute being adjacent to the seed delivery system.

16. The row unit of claim 15, wherein the first and second belts move substantially in sync with one another.

17. The row unit of claim 15, wherein the first and second belts comprise a resilient material.

18. The row unit of claim 15, further comprising a first motor operatively connected to a roller of the first belt, and a second motor operatively connected to a roller of the second belt to provide movement of the first and second belts.

19. The row unit of claim 15, further comprising a housing of the seed delivery system for housing the first and second belts therein.