FR2997604A3 - Direct-injection spraying device useful in agricultural vehicle for spraying phytosanitary products on fields of plants, comprises main tank, spray boom, active substance store, cyclone mixer, and fluid circuit comprising e.g. main pump - Google Patents

Abstract

Direct-injection spraying device for an agricultural vehicle, comprises: a main tank; at least one spray boom; at least one active substance store; a cyclone mixer, in which a first portion comprises at least first and second tangential inlet ports, and a second portion comprises an outlet port; and a fluid circuit comprising a main pump, at least one inlet duct, at least one bypass controlling a flow rate in the boom in accordance with a traveling speed of the vehicle, at least one metering pump inserted between the store of active substance and second port, and at least one outlet duct. Direct-injection spraying device for an agricultural vehicle, comprises: a main tank; at least one spray boom; at least one active substance store; a cyclone mixer, in which a first portion comprises at least first and second tangential inlet ports, and a second portion comprises an outlet port; and a fluid circuit comprising a main pump, at least one inlet duct connecting the tank to the first port, at least one bypass controlling a flow rate in the boom in accordance with a traveling speed of the vehicle (where the bypass is connected to a regulating valve), at least one metering pump inserted between the store of active substance and the second port, and at least one outlet duct connecting the outlet port to the boom.

Description

The present invention relates to a direct injection spray device for a particular agricultural machine, and to a machine equipped with such a device. The direct injection spraying devices for a machine, in particular an agricultural machine, of the type comprise: a main vessel, at least one spray boom, a circuit connecting said tank to said ramp, this circuit comprising a main pump and a bypass regulating the flow rate in said ramp as a function of the forward speed of said machine, and - at least one active substance reservoir connected to said circuit by a metering pump. Such a device with direct injection makes it possible to inject the active substances downstream of the main tank, and thus to eliminate the rinsing stresses of this tank with large volumes of clear water, at the end of the spraying. In addition to making significant savings of rinse water, it allows to quickly change the active ingredient. Such a change can be made either by manually changing the active ingredient reservoir, or by providing a plurality of active ingredient tanks installed on the machine and connected to the spraying circuit by a valve system. In this way it is possible to carry out custom spraying, still called "on the plot". The pressure remains generally constant, and the amount of active material injected by the metering pump into the circuit is regulated to approach a surface amount of sprayed liquid substantially independent of the speed of the machine (often referred to as regulation DPA: "Proportionate Rate of Advancement"). Such a spraying device, however, has certain serious drawbacks, which have not allowed it to prosper: - when the agricultural machine slows down, the rate of injection of active ingredient in the liquid to be sprayed decreases, and the liquid more weakly dosed in active material takes a certain time before reaching all the nozzles of the or ramps: during this time, the plants are over-dosed active material; - Conversely, when the agricultural machine accelerates, the injection rate of active ingredient in the liquid to be sprayed increases, and the more highly dosed liquid active material takes a certain time before reaching all the nozzles of the or ramps: during this period, the plants are under-dosed active ingredient. - In case of short temporary slowdown, the two phenomena are asynchronous and their negative effects are cumulative. It has been observed furthermore that the phenomena of over or underdosage were irregular and asynchronous, depending on the distance of each nozzle 10 from the point of incorporation of the active ingredient into the liquid to be sprayed (especially in large ramps). length). The present invention is intended to overcome these disadvantages. This object of the invention is achieved with a direct injection spray device for a particularly agricultural machine, of the type comprising: a main vessel, at least one spray boom, at least one active substance reservoir, cyclone mixer comprising in a first portion (eg upper), first and second substantially tangential inlet ports, and in a second (eg lower) portion, an outlet port, and a fluid circuit comprising: a main pump interposed between said main tank 25 and said first inlet port; at least one flow control bypass in said ramp as a function of the forward speed of said machine, this branch being connected to a control valve interposed between said main pump and said first inlet port; - at least one metering pump interposed between said active material reservoir and said second me port, and - at least one outlet pipe connecting said outlet port to said ramp.

Thanks to the cyclone mixer, it is possible very quickly to achieve a perfectly homogeneous mixture of the active material (s) with the liquid to be sprayed (generally water or slurry). In addition, such a mixer is by definition an extremely simple and space-saving design so that it can be very easily incorporated into a conventional spray installation. Because of its small size, it is particularly possible to have the cyclone mixer, the pumps, the DPA control valve and the by-pass bypass very close to one another: in this way the length of the pipes and dead volumes of the whole circuit. Furthermore, the amount of active ingredient injected by each metering pump is proportional to the amount of liquid coming from the main tank C (measured in particular by a flow meter), that is to say to the quantity sprayed effectively by the only ones. open nozzles, everything seems to be as if we had sucked the liquid pre-metered directly from said tank C, as is the case in a conventional DPA sprayer. In addition, compared with the previous direct injection devices, said new device does not suffer from any of the disadvantages of over or under-dosing generated, as explained above, by the inertia of the pipe lengths during the changes. gear speed. Placing the main pump and the control bypass upstream of the cyclone mixer makes it possible to prevent the fraction of liquid circulating in the bypass from passing through the closed loop cyclone mixer, especially when the spray is cut, and does not heat up until it boils. This arrangement of the main pump and the control bypass also makes it possible to place the cyclone mixer as close as possible to the spray boom, and thus to limit the dead volumes lying between the mixer and the ramp, and thus the reaction time required to modify the composition of the sprayed mixture on the plants, in particular during a change of speed range of the agricultural machine. According to other optional features of the device according to the invention: - said device further comprises a return flow of said ramp to said mixer, and said mixer further comprises a third inlet port adapted to receive the liquid under pressure from this return: such a return (which has the usual name of continuous or semicontinuous circulation) makes it possible to avoid the risks of sedimentation or clogging of the nozzles of the spray bars, and contributes to the perfect homogenization of the active ingredients to the mixer interior; said device is able to operate according to at least two speed ranges: a relatively slow range, in which the flow of active material from said active substance reservoir is reduced with respect to the flow of liquid coming from said main vessel, and a relatively fast range, in which the flow of active material from said active substance reservoir is increased relative to the flow of liquid from said main tank; said device comprises a plurality of active substance reservoirs connected to said second orifice by respective dosing pumps: in this way it is possible to spray these active ingredients in combination or successively, according to the needs of the parcels traversed by the machine; - The tank is associated with a flow meter measuring the amount of liquid sucked into said main tank and adapted to allow the control of the metering pumps accordingly; the device comprises at least one means for delaying the spraying, activated in particular during a metering change of the metering pumps so as to ensure propagation of the new metering throughout the circuit before spraying; said device comprises a rinsing can connected to said circuit by a main rinsing valve arranged between said main tank and said mixer: this can rinses this circuit after a spraying campaign; - Said flushing canister is further connected to secondary flushing valves disposed between said tanks of active substances and said metering pumps: this flushing canister and rinses the pipes connecting the tanks to the mixer, for example when you want to change 35 tanks of active ingredients; said device further comprises an incorporation system, connected on the one hand to a general valve arranged between said main pump and said bypass, and on the other hand to said main vessel: such an incorporation device, known per se , in particular makes it possible to incorporate powdery products in the liquid (generally water) which is inside the main tank; - The outlet orifice is oriented substantially tangentially, especially in an exit direction of the cyclone; the outlet orifice is oriented in a substantially coaxial direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the mixer; this mixer has a shape chosen from the group comprising cylinders, cones and spheres: these forms are particularly simple to produce; this mixer comprises at least one inner lip disposed between its first and second parts (upper and lower): such a lip contributes to preventing the mixture from passing directly from the inlet orifices to the outlet orifice, which would risk to produce insufficient homogenization; this mixer comprises baffles or inner shutters 20 able to promote rapid homogenization of the different incoming liquids. The present invention also relates to an agricultural machine, remarkable in that it is equipped with a spraying device according to the foregoing. Other features and advantages of the present invention will emerge in the light of the description which follows, and on examining the appended figures, in which: FIG. 1 is a schematic overview of a direct injection spray device according to a first embodiment of the invention; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cyclone mixer (M) of FIG. 1, on a larger scale and with a tangential exit; - Figure 3 is a view similar to that of Figure 1 of another embodiment of the invention. In all of these figures, the same or similar references denote identical or similar members or sets of members. The spraying device which will now be described is intended to be installed on an agricultural machine for spraying plant protection products on plant fields. Referring now to Figure 1, it can be seen that this device comprises a main tank C, intended to receive clear water or another mixture, such as a liquid fertilizer or a pre-dosed treatment slurry. plants, allowing to use the sprayer in a traditional way, that is to say without direct incorporation (case of liquid fertilizers). The bottom of this tank C communicates with a main rinse valve VO. This main rinse valve VO in turn communicates with a main pump PP, which itself communicates with a first upper inlet port E1 of a cyclone mixing device M which will be described later (see FIG. 2 ). A general valve VG is interposed between the main pump PP and the tank C. A flow control bypass (d) is connected to a control valve VD interposed between the main pump PP and the first inlet port El. The flowmeter D is interposed between the flow control valve VD and the first orifice E1 of the mixer M. Several reservoirs of active substances, three in the example shown (ml, m 2, m 3), respectively communicate with three metering pumps P 1, P2, P3. These three metering pumps Pi, P2, P3 in turn communicate with a second upper inlet orifice E2 of the mixer M, offset slightly downstream (for example substantially a quarter of a turn) from the first inlet orifice El, by being able to project inside the mixer M, in order to penetrate directly into the core of the inlet flow El. The cyclone mixer M also has in its second part (lower in this case) an outlet orifice S of axis is substantially tangent to the direction out of rotation (here trigonometric) of the cyclone, either perpendicular to the axis A of the mixer M (see detail Figure 2), or coaxial or parallel to this axis, to optimize the homogenization. The output S is itself connected to at least one spraybar R provided with at least one return line (r) to a third inlet port E3 disposed in the first part (in the upper case) of the mixer M, and shifted a quarter turn relative to the second inlet port E2. A pressure measuring device PR makes it possible to know the pressure of the liquid which is in the spray bar R.

A PM mixing pump is preferably provided in the return loop (r). Referring more specifically to FIG. 2, it can be seen that the cyclone mixer M can be produced very simply by means of a cylinder 9 having in its first portion (upper) the inlet orifices El, E2, E3 and in its second part (lower) the outlet port S, the terms "upper" and "lower" of course referring to the vertical once the mixer M is installed on board the agricultural machine , knowing that these two terms and positions can be reversed. As already indicated above, the inlet ports 20 (upper) are preferably offset by a quarter of a turn relative to one another. The inlet orifices El, E3 and the outlet orifice S are arranged in a substantially tangential manner, in the direction of the internal flow (here trigonometric) with respect to the cylinder 9 forming the body of the mixer M. On the other hand, the input port E2 of active materials ml, m2, m3 is preferably oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the axis A of the mixer M, and substantially inward projection, to penetrate to the core of the flow entering by El; finally, there is provided a lip 11, the function of which will be explained in the following. Mixer M may be made of metal or plastic, and its dimensions may be typically of the order of twenty centimeters in height and diameter. This mixer does not need to have a high resistance because it undergoes no significant pressure, except that of the liquid column 35 formed by the tank C.

In all of the appended figures, this mixer M has been shown with an open upper part, for explanatory purposes; it should of course be understood that in the operating state, this upper part, like the lower part of this mixer, are closed.

The mode of operation and advantages of the above-mentioned spraying device will now be described in different phases of operation. All the adjustments that will be indicated can be done manually, even if it is obvious that it is clearly preferred to control them automatically, with a centralized electronic supervision system. For example, to incorporate an active ingredient ml in the entire circulation circuit (whose dead volume is known by construction), prior to a spraying phase, the procedure is as follows. The metering pump P1 is operated so as to send the active ingredient ml inside the mixer M through the second inlet port E2. The main flushing valve VO is opened and the general valve VG is closed. The control valve VD is placed in an intermediate position between the bypass line (d) and the first inlet orifice E1; the spray nozzles of the ramp R are closed. The main pump PP and the mixing pump PM 25 are actuated, which has the effect of mixing the active substance ml arriving via the second inlet orifice E 2 with other liquids arriving. on the one hand the conduit of the tank C by the first port El, and secondly the return line r by the third port E3. Due to the tangent orientation of the inlet ports E1 and E3, the active material arriving through the inlet port E2 is rotated by the flow of these two inputs E1 and E3, in the manner of a cyclone inside the cylinder 9, and progressively descends towards the outlet orifice S. The presence of at least one inner lip 11 prevents the mixture thus formed from coming out of the cylinder 9 too quickly: it is possible to so obtain an optimal and fast homogenization of all this circulation circuit.

The duration of this phase of incorporation and metering of the substance ml can be determined from the knowledge of the volume of the circuit indicated in strong lines in FIG. 3: once this time is reached, the metering pump Pl is stopped. while continuing to rotate the main pump PP and the mixing pump PM, to complete the homogenization of all the liquid flowing in this circuit. The cyclone mixer M makes it possible very rapidly to incorporate the active ingredient ml into the spraying circuit, it being noted that what has just been described is of course applicable to the other 10 active substance reservoirs m 2, m 3, ...., all these active ingredients may each be incorporated in their turn, or in a combined partial or total, depending on the nature of the needs of the plots of plants to be treated. We are now interested in a spraying phase during which it is desired to treat a parcel of plants with active ingredient 15 ml. The main valve VO is set to allow the circulation of the liquid (usually clear water or slurry) which is inside the main tank C to the inlet port E of the mixer M The dosing pump PI is electronically controlled from the information provided by the flowmeter D, so that the correct dosage of active material ml is obtained in the spray bar R, the nozzles of which are in the open position. It should be noted that the addition of active material, injected by the dosing pump Pi, is directly proportional (dosage provided) to the quantity of liquid, coming from the tank C and entering the mixer M via the inlet El, and therefore also the amount of liquid sprayed by the boom nozzles, regardless of the number of open nozzles. The dosage therefore remains continuously the same as expected. As is known per se, the pressure of the liquid 30 located inside the ramp R should remain substantially proportional to the square of the speed of advance of the agricultural machine, so as to ensure a volume per square meter substantially constant liquid sprayed by the nozzles open on the plants, that is to say a DPA (Rate Proportional to Progress), knowing that the dosage of active ingredient, the pulverized liquid, 35 remains constant, thanks to present device.

To obtain such a pressure, measured by the pressure gauge PR, it acts electrically on the control valve VD so as to divert the necessary flow to the bypass line which returns to the tank C. When the agricultural machine is traveling at speeds can reach 25 km / h or more, it is no longer sufficient to act on the pressure inside the ramp R to ensure the correct dosage of the sprayed pesticides, because it could become too high because, to go from 5 to 25 km / h, it is necessary to multiply the pressure by 25. This is why said device is provided, for example, with 3 10 ranges of speed variation: low, medium and high, all like 4x4 vehicles having 2 or 3 speed ranges depending on the position of the transfer case. Call these three ranges, for example: turtle (4 to 10 km / h), normal (8 to 20 km / h), hare (12 to 30 km / h), allowing, in each of them, 15 to limit the pressure variation at (2.5) 2 = 6.25 times only. The chosen speed range should preferably be chosen before starting to spray in a certain speed range. The choice of one of these configurations, will act automatically on the ratio between the flow rate of the dosing pump Pi, and the flow from the tank 20 C, so as to obtain the right dosage (concentration) desired. In the case of hare, the dosage of m1 with respect to this flow rate will be increased by 50% compared to the normal dosage, since the speed range is 50% higher than normal. Conversely, in the case of the turtle, it will be reduced by 50%, since the 25 speed bands are then half of normal. Note that it would be preferable, before changing the speed range, to redo (preferably automatically) a new cycle (fast) dosing of the circulation circuit, as explained above. Note that the return line r to the inlet (upper) 30 E3 of the mixer M limits the risk of sedimentation and clogging of the nozzles of the ramp R, as is known per se. We are now interested in a rinsing phase of the circuit after spraying the active ingredient ml. For this rinsing phase, the valve VG is closed and the main PP and mixing pumps PM are operated in order to circulate clear water from the tank C in all the pipes.

After such circulation, the nozzles of the spray boom R are opened so as to allow the evacuation of this water. Of course, what has just been indicated concerning the rinsing of the active ingredient ml is applicable mutatis mutandis to the active ingredients m2 5 and m3, by starting the respective dosing pumps P2 and P3. As can be understood in the light of the foregoing, the direct injection spray device according to the invention allows a very fast adjustment of the dosages of active ingredients inside the liquid to be sprayed, because of the high efficiency of the cyclone mixer M. Because of its operating principle, such a mixer makes it possible to perform virtually instantaneously the various homogenization operations required. Moreover, thanks to its small dimensions, such a mixer makes it possible to obtain a circuit and a dead volume of low volume slurry, which increases the reactivity of the device and limits the dead volumes to be cleaned in fine. All of these characteristics make it possible to overcome the problems of overdose or underdosing noted in the state of the art, inherent to the inertia of the prior systems whose DPA dosage was at the incorporation of the material. active, in proportion to the variation of the forward speed, causing the many inertial disadvantages explained above. In addition, the cyclone mixer M is extremely simple and inexpensive to produce, and requires no external energy input to operate. In addition, because of the simplicity of its forms, this mixer is very easy to clean. As will be understood, the architecture of the device according to the invention makes it possible to avoid any return of active ingredients ml, m2, m3 to the main tank C, these active substances reaching the spray bar R in closed circuit by through the mixer M, during the spraying phases. This considerably reduces the volumes of water needed to wash the entire installation. In particular, active ingredients can be changed with very short rinsing operations involving small volumes of water.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described and shown, provided as a simple example. For example, it is possible to envisage the variant of FIG. 3, in which the mixing pump PM is placed just at the outlet S 5 of the mixer M, upstream of the pressure probe PR and the ramp Spray R.

Claims (15)

REVENDICATIONS1. Spray device with direct injection for machinery, particularly agricultural machinery, of the type comprising: - a main tank (C), - at least one spray boom (R), - at least one active substance tank (m1, m2, m3), - A cyclone mixer (M) comprising in a first portion (for example upper), first and second substantially tangential inlet ports (E1, E2) and adapted to receive the liquid sucked into said tank (C), and in a second part (for example a lower part), an outlet orifice (S), and a fluid circuit comprising: a main pump (PP) interposed between said main tank (C) and said first inlet port (E1); at least one regulation bypass (d) of the flow rate in said ramp (R) as a function of the speed of advance of said machine, this bypass (d) being connected to a control valve (VD) interposed between said main pump (PP) and said first inlet port (E1), - at least s a dosing pump (P1, P2, P3) interposed between said active substance reservoir (m1, m2, m3) and said second orifice (E2), and - at least one outlet pipe connecting said outlet orifice (S) to said ramp (R). 2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it further comprises a return flow (r) of said ramp (R) to said mixer (M), and in that said mixer (M) further comprises a third inlet port (E3) adapted to receive the pressurized liquid from this return (r). 3. Device according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that it is capable of operating in at least two ranges of speeds: - a relatively slow range, in which the flow of active material (mi, m2) is reduced , m3) from said active substance reservoir with respect to the flow of liquid from said main vessel (C), and - a relatively fast range, in which the flow rate of active material (mi, m2, m3) from said active substance reservoir with respect to the flow of liquid from said main vessel. 4. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of active substance reservoirs (mi, m2, m3) connected to said second orifice (E2) by respective dosing pumps (Pi, P2 , P3). 5. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the tank (C) is associated with a flow meter (D) measuring the amount of liquid sucked into said main tank (C) and adapted to allow the piloting of dosing pumps (PI, P2, P3) accordingly. 6. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least one means for delaying the spraying, activated in particular during a metering change dosing pumps to ensure propagation of the new dosing to the entire circuit before spraying. 25 7. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a flushing can connected to said circuit by a main flushing valve (VO) disposed between said vessel (C) and said mixer (M). 30 8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that said flushing canister is further connected to secondary flushing valves arranged between said tanks of active materials (mi, m2, m3) and said dosing pumps (PI, P2, P3). ). 35 9. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it further comprises an incorporation system, connected on the one hand to a general valve (VG) arranged between said main pump (PP) and said bypass ( d), and secondly to said tank (C). 10. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the outlet (S) of said mixer (M) is oriented substantially tangentially, in particular in an exit direction of the cyclone. 11. Device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the outlet (S) of said mixer (M) is oriented in a substantially coaxial direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis (A) of the mixer . 12. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said mixer (M) has a shape selected from the group comprising cylinders, cones and spheres. 13. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said mixer comprises at least one inner lip (11) disposed between its first and second parts. 14. Device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said mixer (M) comprises baffles or inner shutters capable of promoting the rapid homogenization of the different incoming liquids. 15. Agricultural machine, characterized in that it is equipped with a spraying device according to any one of the preceding claims.