AGRICULTURAL VEHICLE PNEUMATIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

• US 20180229946A1
• Filed: 04/11/2018
• Published: 08/16/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Borkgren, Stanley R.
• Granted Patent: US 10,457,500 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 15/04 using blowers
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/081 Seeders depositing seeds in rows using pneumatic means
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 7/082 Ducts, distribution pipes or details thereof for pneumatic seeders
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 53/04 Conveying materials in bulk pneumatically through pipes or tubes; Air slides

Abstract

A pneumatic distribution system for pneumatically distributing material in an agricultural vehicle is described. In one example, the pneumatic distribution system comprises an air source having an outlet with different air pressures defining a pressure gradient across the outlet, and a plurality of inlet ports configured to receive air from the outlet for a plurality of distribution streams, comprising at least a first distribution stream with a first pressure loss value and a second distribution stream with a second pressure loss value that is greater than the first pressure loss value. The inlet ports for the first and second distribution streams are located relative to the pressure gradient such that the second distribution stream receives a higher air pressure than the first distribution stream.

Claims

1. An agricultural pneumatic distribution system comprising:

a fan assembly having an outlet; and

a plurality of conduits, each configured to receive an air stream for conveying an agricultural material to an end point, wherein a first one of conduits is positioned such that it receives a first air stream from a high pressure area of the outlet and a second one of the conduits is positioned such that it receives a second air stream from a low pressure area along the pressure gradient, wherein the first conduit is associated with a first distribution line having a higher pressure drop than a second distribution line associated with the second conduit.

2. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 1, wherein the fan assembly comprises a centrifugal fan having a fan axis, and wherein a first inlet for the first conduit is located further away from the fan axis than a second inlet for the second conduit.

3. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 1, wherein the agricultural pneumatic distribution system further comprises a fixed portion configured to receive the air stream from the outlet and provide the air stream to the plurality of conduits.

4. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 3, wherein the fixed portion comprises a plurality of passageways with inlet apertures configured to separate the air stream such that the first one of the conduits receives the first air stream from the high pressure area of the outlet and the second one of the conduits receives the second air stream from the low pressure area of the outlet.

5. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 4, wherein the plurality of passageways have a substantially similar cross-sectional area.

6. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 4, wherein the plurality of passageways have different cross-sectional areas.

7. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 1, wherein the first distribution line is configured to receive a first air stream from the first conduit and convey the agricultural material to a first end point, and the second distribution line is configured to receive a second air stream from the second conduit and convey the agricultural material to a second end point.

8. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 7, wherein the first and the second distribution lines, at the respective first and second end points, have substantially similar air flow rates.

9. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 8, wherein the first and second end points each comprise row units configured to disperse the agricultural material in rows.

10. An agricultural pneumatic distribution system comprising:

an air source having an outlet with different air pressures defining a pressure gradient across the outlet; and

a fixed portion proximate the outlet of the air source and comprising a plurality of inlet apertures configured to receive air from the air source for a plurality of conduits, the plurality of inlet apertures comprising a first inlet aperture configured to receive a higher air pressure for a first one of the conduits compared to a second inlet aperture for a second one of the conduits, wherein the first conduit is associated with a first distribution line having a higher pressure drop than a second distribution line associated with the second conduit.

11. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 10, wherein the fixed portion comprises:

a plurality of passageways configured to provide the air from the plurality of inlet apertures to the plurality of conduits, and wherein the plurality of passageways comprise a first passageway configured to provide the higher air pressure for the first one of the conduits and a second passageway configured to provide the lower air pressure for the second one of the conduits.

12. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of passageways are arranged symmetrically.

13. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of passageways are arranged in a T-shaped orientation.

14. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 11, wherein the plurality of inlet apertures are substantially rectangular in shape and differ in size from each other.

15. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 11, wherein the air source comprises a centrifugal fan.

16. The agricultural pneumatic distribution system of claim 15, wherein the centrifugal fan comprises a rotation axis, and the second inlet aperture is located closer to the rotation axis than the first inlet aperture.

17. An agricultural implement comprising:

a product source;

a metering system configured to meter product from the product source; and

an agricultural pneumatic distribution system configured to pneumatically distribute the metered product to a plurality of end point components on the agricultural implement, the pneumatic distribution system comprising;

a fan assembly having an outlet; and

a plurality of conduits, each configured to receive an air stream for conveying the agricultural material to at least one of the end point components, wherein a first one of conduits is positioned such that it receives a first air stream from a high pressure area of the outlet and a second one of the conduits is positioned such that it receives a second air stream from a low pressure area along the outlet, wherein the first conduit is associated with a first distribution line having a higher pressure drop than a second distribution line associated with the second conduit.

18. The agricultural implement of claim 17, wherein the fan assembly comprises a plurality of air sources configured to provide the air stream for conveying the agricultural material to the plurality of end point components.

19. The agricultural implement of claim 18, wherein the plurality of air sources comprises centrifugal fans.

20. The agricultural implement of claim 19, wherein each one of the centrifugal fans have a fan axis, and wherein a first inlet of the first conduit is located further away from the fan axis than a second inlet for the second conduit.