July, 2019 Int J Agric & Biol Eng Open Access at https://www.ijabe.org Vol. 12 No.

4 63

Design method and experiment of machinery for combined application of

seed, fertilizer and herbicide

Xin Huang1,2, Weiwei Wang3,4, Zhaodong Li3,4, Qingqing Wang3, Cunxi Zhu3, Liqing Chen3,4*
(1. Key Laboratory of Plant Protection Engineering, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China;
2. Key Laboratory of Modern Agricultural Equipment and Technology, Ministry of Education, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China;
3. College of Engineering, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China;
4. Anhui Province Engineering Laboratory of Intelligent Agricultural Machinery and Equipment, Hefei 230036, China)

Abstract: This study aimed to resolve the problems of full wheat straw returning to the field, which might readily cause stalk
obstruction, poor sowing quality, and serious weeds at the seedling stage, affecting the growth of maize. Based on the idea of
“simultaneous seeding and spraying, closed weeding”, this paper presented a design method for designing a corn
seed-fertilizer-herbicide simultaneous operation machine, which focuses on the design of vertical active straw-removing
anti-blocking device mechanism, design of nozzle key parameters, nozzle selection, seeding monomer analysis and spatial
layout design of seed-fertilizer-herbicide mechanism. In addition, the interrelated formulas were deduced and machine design
and field experiment were conducted. The experiment results showed that the average variation coefficient of spray
uniformity of machines was 17.70%. The post-experiment weed amount was 8.9%, which was lower than that before sowing,
8.5% lower than that before artificially closed weeding, and 14.3% lower than that in unenclosed weeding area. Moreover, the
weeds were less in the working area of the machine, and the growth of corn was better. Compared with manual closed
weeding, the average plant height uniformity and average stem diameter uniformity increased by 4.4% and 5.1%, respectively.
Compared with unclosed weeding, the average plant height uniformity and average stem diameter uniformity increased by
18.3% and 10.8%, respectively. Overall, the rationality of the design method proposed in this paper was validated, and these
can lay a foundation for the research and development of the same type of machine.
Keywords: seed-fertilizer-herbicide, combined application, precision seeding machine, spray device, closed weeding
DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20191204.4679

Citation: Huang X, Wang W W, Li Z D, Wang Q Q, Zhu C X, Chen L Q. Design method and experiment of machinery for
combined application of seed, fertilizer and herbicide. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2019; 12(4): 63–71.

rotary tiller and pulling wheel are the most commonly used
1 Introduction structures. In view of the weeding technology, scholars have
Straw mulching offers advantages such as increasing soil carried out a lot of research on plant protection machinery and
fertility, retaining moisture and improving the air pollution caused weed suppression. Wang et al.[18] used the method of UAV spray
by straw burning[1-4]. However, full wheat straw returning to the deposition mass balance to study the detection and distribution
field could readily account for stalk obstruction, poor sowing characteristics of space pesticides. Qin et al. [19] carried out a
quality and serious weeds at the seedling stage, thereby affecting droplet deposition and efficiency study on the control of wheat
the growth of maize[5-8]. Hence, several domestic and foreign powdery mildew using a small UAV by collecting droplet
scholars have comprehensively investigated anti-blocking mulching in different canopy layers of wheat. Yang et al.[20]
mechanism and weeding technology of maize no-tillage seeder. found that different types of sprinklers had different effects on
The research on anti-blocking mechanism can be divided into liquid deposition and aphid control. Cui et al.[21] reported that the
active and passive types[9-17], the existing research results show that spatial layout of sprinklers has a greater impact on the spraying
the passive stubble breaking disc and active rotating stubble killer, effect, and the appropriate layout of sprinklers can improve the
spraying effect. Guo et al.[22] found that wheat straw mulching
had a significant impact on weed germination and quantity in
Received date: 2018-12-05 Accepted date: 2019-06-08 Maize fields, which not only controlled weed germination, but also
Biographies: Xin Huang, PhD candidate, research interests: modern mechanical showed a good control effect. Aladesanwa et al.[23] studied the
design and theory, Email: 1520778196@qq.com; Weiwei Wang, PhD candidate, effect of sweet potato as a green plant mulch on grass control and
research interests: conservation tillage techniques and implements, Email:
yield of maize crops. Compared with random planting, narrow
wangww0618@163.com; Zhaodong Li, PhD, research interests: mechanized
planting technology and equipment for dry farming, Email: Lizd@ahau.edu.cn; equidistant planting could increase the yield of legume crops by
Qingqing Wang, Master, research interests: fully mechanized equipment for 30%-70%, and inhibit the growth of weeds at the same time[24].
dryland crops, Email: 632207759@qq.com; Cunxi Zhu, Master, research Briefly, numerous scholars have investigated no-tillage sowing
interests: design and research of mechanized conservation tillage equipment, and weed suppression and have made remarkable accomplishments.
Email: 836901173@qq.com.
However, simultaneously, it was revealed the research on corn
*Corresponding author: Liqing Chen, PhD, Professor, research interests: crop
protection and machinery engineering. College of Engineering, Anhui compound machine with the functions of sowing and plant
Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China. Tel: +86-13966658997, Email: protection was rare, warranting further investigation. Based on
lqchen@ahau.edu.cn. the idea of “simultaneous seeding and spraying, closed weeding”,
 64 July, 2019 Int J Agric & Biol Eng Open Access at https://www.ijabe.org Vol. 12 No.4

this study presents a design method of corn seed-fertilizer-herbicide 3 Design method of seed-fertilizer-herbicide combined
simultaneous operation machine. The proposed design method application machine
primarily involves the following: (1) clogging of maize seeding
under high stubble and full straw mulching; (2) assessing the 3.1 Design method of vertical active straw-removing
spatial position relationship of seeding, spraying and other anti-blocking device mechanism
components; (3) discussing the impact of the spatial layout of In order to solve the problem of corn seeding blocking under
spraying device on weed suppression. Accordingly, we studied high stubble and full straw mulching, the straw displacement
machine design and conducted field experiments. Hence, this anti-clogging device was designed. As shown in Figure 2, the
study aims to provide new ideas for further enhancing the structure primarily includes power components, vertical blades,
combined application of no-tillage maize planting and plant rotary cutter disc and rotary bearings.
protection spraying technology.

2 Structure and working principle of maize seed-

fertilizer-herbicide combined application machine
The complete structure of the maize seed-fertilizer-herbicide
combined application machine primarily comprised a vertical
active straw-removing anti-blocking device, seeding monomer,
herbicide spraying mechanism, fertilizer ejecting device,
overburden compacting device, limit depth wheel, frame and other
components, as shown in Figure 1.

1. Power components 2. Rotary bearings 3. Rotary cutter disc 4. Vertical

blades 5. Straw 6. Sowing area 7. Area between sowing
Figure 2 Structural diagram of straw displacement and
anti-blocking device
When the anti-blocking device rotates, it moves to reciprocate.
The vertical blade rotates relative motion around the center of the
1. Fertilizer ejecting device 2. Herbicide spraying mechanism 3. Seeding unit cutter disc, and the uniform forward motion of the machine
4. Repress driving wheels 5. Overburden compacting device 6. Trenching implicates motion. Assuming that at the beginning of the
device 7. Vertical active straw-removing anti-blocking device 8. Limit depth operation, the connection lines of the two ends of the vertical blade
wheel 9. Transmission system 10. Frame
coincide with the direction of seeding, the equation of the motion
Figure 1 Structure diagram of the maize seed-fertilizer-herbicide
trajectory of the endpoints of the anti-blocking device is as follows:
combined application machine
x = R cos ωt + Vz t = R(cos α + α / λ)
When the machine works, the tractor power is transmitted to
y = R sin ωt = R sin α
the transmission system of the vertical active straw-removing
α = ωt (1)
anti-blocking device through the output shaft, and then to the
herbicide spraying mechanism to realize the power transmission. vd = Rω
The anti-blocking device generates vertical rotation by power. Vd
λ=
Then, the swirl straw separation of “cut-pull-throw” in the seeding Vz
line was realized. In addition, straw mulching was created where, ω is rotating angular velocity of cutter shaft, rad/s; Vd is
between the adjacent two sowing rows, which effectively inhibited tangential velocity at the end of blade, m/s; Vz is operation speed,
the weed growth in non-sowing areas[22]. Then, the trenching km/h; x, y are coordinates of vertical blade endpoint at any time; α
device breaks the soil, the fertilizer ejecting device and seed is rotating angle of rotary cutter disc, (°); λ is velocity ratio; t is
metering device realize the fertilization and seeding under the working time, s; R is rotating radius of anti-blocking device.
wheel drive. Equation (1) shows that when λ>1, the locus of the
The herbicide spraying mechanism, driven by the power of the anti-blocking device is a trochoid, implying that the cutter shaft
tractor output shaft, pumps the herbicide in the herbicide box to the rotates for one cycle, and the forward distance of the machine is
sprinkler head, and completes the closed herbicide application. less than 2R, which meets the demand of straw displacement.
Notably, the spraying method uses the row-to-row arrangement of When λ<1, the cutter shaft rotates for one cycle, the forward
the seeding lines to ensure that the herbicide completely covers the distance of the machine is more than 2R, and the anti-blocking
seeding area. The combined application machine can complete device locus is a curtate cycloid, which cannot attain the purpose of
several agronomic processes, including seed bed preparation, straw cleaning and anti-blocking.
lateral deep fertilization, single seed sowing, soil covering Owing to a large amount of straw in a wheat stubble field, it is
suppression, closed weeding, to realize the simultaneous operation essential to ensure that the anti-blocking device shifts the straw in
of seed-fertilizer- herbicide. front of the fertilizer applicator and the seeding ditch opener from
 July, 2019 Huang X, et al. Design method and experiment of machinery for combined application of seed, fertilizer and herbicide Vol. 12 No.4 65

the sowing area to the area between sowing. As shown in Figure 8 km/h. Furthermore, the flow range of single sprinklers is as
3, the layout of active straw-removing anti-blocking device should follows:
satisfy the following requirements: Q ⋅V ⋅ L
0.03 × 10−3 ≤ Q = S Z P ≥ 0.05 × 10−3 (6)
⎧ Vz π πR 30Vz Z p ⋅ T ⋅ Sm
⎪ S = Vz t = ω = λ = n
⎪ where, QS is spray volume of designed, L·hm-2; LP is sprinkling
⎪2 R < H width, m; T is operating time per hectare, s; Sm is area per hectare,
⎨ (2)
⎪B ≤ 2R m2.
⎪ V 30Vz Combining the actual farmland operation in Huanghuaihai area,
⎪n = d ≥
⎩ πR R the area of one operation should not be less than 3 acres. Thus, it
where, B is cutter disc width, mm; S is straw disturbance pitch, mm; can be obtained from Equations (5) and (6), when the operating
H is seeding row spacing, mm; n is cutter disc speed, r/min. speed is 5 km/h, the volume of the herbicide box is R≥71.5 L, and
when the operating speed is 8 km/h, the volume of herbicide box is
R≥75.7 L In order to ensure the stability of the machine in the
process of operation, the herbicide box is arranged symmetrically
on the frame with double herbicide box and uniform distribution.
The length, width and height of the single herbicide box were 0.5 m,
0.3 m and 0.3 m, respectively, and the volume was 45 L.
3.2.2 Nozzle design method
Figure 3 Schematic layout of straw-removing anti-blocking In the design of the nozzle, the nozzle section area and section
device shape exerted significant impact on the atomization effect[27-29].
By equations (1) and (2), the following equation can be Previously, the nozzle was primarily investigated by experiment.
obtained: In this section, the section area and section shape of the nozzle are
S Vz ⎛B ⎞ B⎛ B⎞ discussed, along with the corresponding design method. Figure 4
= sin −1 ⎜ − 1⎟ + ⎜ 2 − ⎟ (3) presents the spray diagram when the nozzle is working.
R ωR ⎝R ⎠ R⎝ R⎠
Let B = kR, take k≤2, k as the overlap coefficient of cutter head
diameter and rotation radius, then there are:
S 1 −1
= sin ( k − 1) − k (2 − k ) = 0 (4)
R λ
Equation (4) shows that, k is proportional to λ, and decreases
with the reduction of λ, so that the disturbance pitch S of straw
decreases. Of note, the smaller the disturbance pitch, the less
amount of straw in the area to be sown. According to
document[25], the actual trenching ridge width of sowing is 40-
60 mm, and the lateral fertilization method requires the distance
between the fertilizer furrow opener and the seeder furrow opener Figure 4 Spray diagram
to be 30-50 mm. To ensure the space position and ridge width of One point P0 at the outlet of the nozzle and one point P inside
the seeder and fertilizer furrow opener, R is 120 mm. Based on the nozzle were located on the same streamline, which can be
the agronomic requirements, the row spacing H is 600 mm[26], the obtained using the Bernoulli equation:
operation speed of the seeder is 5-8 km/h, K is 1.5-1.8, B is P V2 P V2
216-240 mm, and λ is 2.9-3.5, and the cutter disc speed is 368- Z+ + = Z0 + 0 + 0 (7)
ρg 2 g ρg 2 g
710 r/min.
where, Z, Z0 is height at point P and P0, respectively, m; P, P0 is
3.2 Design method of herbicide spraying mechanism
pressure at point P and P0, respectively, Pa; V, V0 is the flow
3.2.1 Volume design of the herbicide box
velocity at point P and P0, respectively, m/s; ρ is fluid density,
To enhance the efficiency of operation, the volume of the
kg/m3; g is acceleration of gravity, 9.8 m/s.
herbicide box should ensure that under the prescribed spraying
By Equation (7):
amount, it can satisfy the simultaneous operation time of a single
addition of seeds and fertilizers. During the period, there should V0 = 2 g ( z − z0 ) + V 2 + 2( P − P0 ) / ρ (8)
be no shortage of herbicide, so the following equation should be 2
But 2g(z – z0)+V and 2(P – P0)ρ are very small and negligible,
satisfied: if ΔP=P – P0, there is a nozzle outlet velocity:
S
R ≥ Q ⋅ Zp ⋅t = Q ⋅ Zp ⋅ z (5) 2ΔP
LbVz V0 = (9)
ρ
where, R is volume of herbicide box, L; Q is single sprinklers flow
The flow rate of single nozzle is:
rate, m3/s; Zp number of sprinklers; t is operation time of single
addition of seeds and fertilizers, s; Sz is operation area of single 2ΔP
Q = Cd S pV0 = Cd S p (10)
addition of seeds and fertilizers, m2; Lb is sowing breadth, m. ρ
Refer to standard NY-T650-2002, closed weeding operations where, Q is single nozzle flow rate, m3·s-1; Cd is discharge
using low-volume spray, spray pressure of 0.3 MPa, designed spray coefficient, 0-1; Sp is nozzle cross section area, m2; ΔP is nozzle
volume of 300 L/hm2, reference standard GB/T 6973-2005 and pressure, Pa.
GB-T 9478-2005 to evaluate the speed of machine operation is 5- The nozzle section area is obtained from equation (11):
 66 July, 2019 Int J Agric & Biol Eng Open Access at https://www.ijabe.org Vol. 12 No.4

Q ρ shown in Figure 7, under rated working pressure, the spray angles

Sp = (11) of circular sprinklers, square sprinklers and fan sprinklers were 15°,
Cd 2ΔP
37° and 100°, respectively, demonstrating that the spray angle and
The sectional area of the nozzle can be obtained by equations
spray range of the circular nozzle are the smallest, and that the fan
(6) and (11): Sp=2.46×10-6 m2.
nozzle was the largest. Notably, as the spray angle becomes small,
To further determine the impact of nozzle shape on the
the droplet penetration ability becomes strong, whereas as the spray
performance of the nozzle, the different nozzle shape (circle,
angle becomes large, droplet distribution and uniformity become
square and fan shape) with the same cross section was selected as
good[34].
the object. The spray angle is taken as the evaluation index to
select the nozzle. Based on the Lattice Boltzmann approach, and
being particle based requires no involved meshing processes. In
addition, the multiphase flow simulation model of water air nozzle
was established by using the fluid analysis software, and the spray
angle performance was analyzed. Table 1 presents the simulation
environment parameter[30-33].
a. Circular nozzle b. Square nozzle c. Fan nozzle
Table 1 Simulation environment parameters
Figure 7 Sprinkler simulation diagram
Parameter The numerical
The spatial layout of sprinkler directly affects the field
Calculation domain outlet pressure/MPa 0
operation effect of the herbicide spraying mechanism. As the
Simulation time/s 0.2
herbicide spraying mechanism of the combined machine primarily
Height of nozzle/mm 500
sprays herbicide on the seeding line, the sprinkling width should
Turbulence model LES+ Wall function
fulfill the operating width of the machine. Meanwhile, the
Gravitational acceleration/m·s-2 –9.81
composition of the fog curtain should be as uniform as possible and
Water density/kg·m-3 998.3
the drift rate of the fog droplets should be as low as possible.
Water-dynamic viscosity/Pa· s 0.001
Notably, the uniformity of the fog curtain synthesis is affected by
Water- specific heat capacity/J·(kg· K)-1 4182
the installation height of sprinkler from ground, spray angle and
Water thermal conductivity/W·(m· K)-1 0.58
distance between sprinklers. In addition, the height of the
Air density/kg·m-3 1.225
sprinkler arrangement exerts a significant impact influence on the
Air dynamic viscosity of /Pa·s 1.7894e-05
droplet drift rate. Furthermore, the droplet drift rate is
Air- specific heat capacity/J·(kg· K)-1 1006.43
proportional to the sprinkler height. The higher the sprinkler
Air thermal conductivity/W·(m· K)-1 0.0243
height is, the larger the droplet drift rate is, and the lower the
Reference temperature/K 288.15
utilization of the liquid medicine. Based on the agronomic
To verify the accuracy of the simulation model, the circular requirements of maize seeding, as the spacing of seeding rows was
nozzle was taken as the study object, and its spray angle was 600 mm, so the distance between sprinklers was 600 mm too.
analyzed by simulation and high-definition photography. The Based on the multiphase flow simulation model, the simulation
spray angle was compared under the spray pressure of 0.1 MPa, analysis of fog curtain synthesis with sprinkler height 450 mm,
0.2 MPa and 0.3 MPa, respectively. The results are shown in 500 mm and 550 mm from the ground was carried out. The
Figure 5. results are shown in Figure 8.

Sprinkler height from ground is 450 mm

a. 0.1 MPa b. 0.2 MPa c. 0.3 MPa

Figure 5 Simulation spray angle and experiment spray angle
Based on the chart: under the spray pressures of 0.1 MPa,
0.2 MPa and 0.3 MPa, the simulation and experiment results were
similar. Further data analysis revealed that the error was within Sprinkler height from ground is 500 mm
10%, verifying the accuracy of the simulation model (Figure 6).

Figure 6 Result of spray angle experiment

Three kinds of sprinklers were tested under a rated working Sprinkler height from ground is 550 mm
pressure of 0.3 MPa using the simulation model. The results as Figure 8 Simulation test of fog curtain synthesis
 July, 2019 Huang X, et al. Design method and experiment of machinery for combined application of seed, fertilizer and herbicide Vol. 12 No.4 67

The results revealed that the spray uniformity was the best equation and the virtual work equation of the seeded monomer can
when the spray pressure was 0.3 MPa and the nozzle height was be obtained as follows:
500 mm. ⎧ d ⎛T ⎞ T
3.3 Spatial position design method of seed-fertilizer- herbicide ⎪ ⎜ ⎟ − = θβ
⎨ dt ⎝ β ⎠ β (14)
mechanism ⎪ Mδ = θ δ
3.3.1 Motion analysis of the seeding monomer ⎩ β β β

The seeding unit was connected with a frame through a If I0 is the moment of inertia of seeding monomer and m is the
quadrilateral profiling mechanism, which was equipped with a mass of seeding monomer, then:
force-regulating device that can provide a specific force for the 1 2 1 1
T= mv1 − mv1Lβ sin(α − β ) + mL2 β 2 + I 0 β 2
seeding monomer and ensure that the depth-limiting wheel is close 2 2 2
to the ground in the working process. With the relief of the terrain, θ β = PX H1 + RX ( H 2 + L sin α ) + RY L cos α + FX ( H 5 + L sin α ) +
the monomer floats up and down through the profiling mechanism FY ( H 4 + L cos α ) − G ( H 3 + L cos α )
to ensure the consistency of the seeding depth. During the
(15)
operation of the seeding monomer, four main forces are traction,
When the seeding monomer cannot reach the set seeding depth
ditch resistance, gravity and wheel resistance. Figure 9 shows the
because of other reasons when working in the field, the reaction
force analysis of the seeding monomer.
force at the crushing wheel can be ignored. The combined
Equations (7), (8) and (10) can be written as follows:
⎧θ β = c1 + c2 cos β − c3 sin β
⎪
⎪c1 = RX ( H1 + H 2 ) − GH 3
⎨ (16)
⎪c2 = ( RY L − GL) cos α + RX L sin α
⎪c = (GL − R L)sin α + R L cos α
⎩ 3 Y X

As the swing angle of the connecting rod of the copying

mechanism is small, there is: sinβ≈β, cosβ≈1–β. Thus, the
combined Equations (9) and (11) can be obtained as follows:
R ( H + H 2 ) − GH 3 + ( RY L − GL)cos α + RX L sin α
β= X 1
(GL − RY L)sin α + RX L cos α
(17)
⎛ (GL − RY L)sin α + RX L cos α ⎞
⎜⎜1 − cos t ⎟
⎟
Figure 9 Force analysis of seeding monomer ⎝ mL2 + I 0 ⎠
Of these: PX, PY is the traction of the seeding unit; M is the Based on Equation (17), the swing angle of the connecting
traction torque; G is the gravity of the seeding unit; L is the length rod decreases with the increase in weight and rotational inertia of
of the connecting rod of the profiling mechanism; α is the angle the seeding unit. To evade the excessive swing of the
between the connecting rod and the horizontal plane; RX, RY is the connecting rod during the seeding process, which would affect
resistance of the ditch opener. H1 is the distance from the traction the stability of the seeding depth, the weight of the seeding unit
PX to the connecting rod hinge point; H2 is the distance from the should not be too small. In addition, the swing angle of the four
resistance RX to the connecting rod end; H3 is the distance from the connecting rods linearly correlated with the horizontal distance
gravity G to the connecting rod end; H4 is the distance from the from the center of gravity to the connecting rod. With the
resistance FY to the connecting rod end; H5 is the distance from the increase in the distance from the center of gravity to the
resistance FX to the connecting rod end. connecting rod, the swing angle decreases. Moreover, with an
The stress analysis of the sowing monomer in the X and Y increase in horizontal and vertical resistance, the swing angle of
directions shows that: the connecting rod increases. Table 2 presents the relevant
⎧ PX − RX − FX = 0 structural parameters of the seeding monomer. Figure 10 shows
⎪ that the seeding unit can be designed.
⎪ PY − RY − FY = 0
⎨ (12)
⎪ PX H1 + RX ( H 2 + L sin α ) + RY L cos α + FX ( H 5 + L sin α ) +
Table 2 Sowing monomer parameters
⎪ FY ( H 4 + L cos α ) − G ( H 3 + L cos α ) = M Parameter Numerical value
⎩
Based on the motion analysis, the seeding monomer works at a Monomer weight/kg 60(66)
constant speed of V1. At a certain seeding depth, the center of α/(°) 10-50
gravity of the seeding monomer was C0 (X0, Y0). The horizontal L/mm 340
angle between the seeding monomer connecting rod and the frame H1/mm 120
was α, and the length of the connecting rod was L. Owing to the
H2/mm 300
force, the depth of ditching become shallow, and the angle between
H3/mm 50
the connecting rod and the horizontal plane swung at an angle of α
H4/mm 380-430
based on β. The position of the center of gravity moved to C1 (X1,
Y1), and the position of the center of gravity is presented as follows: H5/mm 160-320
Height of seed metering device from ground/mm 300
⎧ x1 = x0 + V1t − L[cos(α − β ) − cos α ]
⎨ (13) Diameter of repress drive wheels/mm 380
⎩ y1 = y0 + L[sin(α − β ) − sin α ]
Maximum ground pressure/kg 50
Using the Lagrangian equation, the motion differential
 68 July, 2019 Int J Agric & Biol Eng Open Access at https://www.ijabe.org Vol. 12 No.4

If the seeds and fertilizers fall to the sowing area without

inter-agency interference, they should be satisfied:
⎧ Lb ≤ Lz
⎪
⎨ R < Ls < Lb  (19)
⎪L > H
⎩ p 4

where, Ls is distance between fertilizer ditcher and rotary shaft of

anti-blocking device, mm; Lb is distance between seed ditcher and
rotary shaft of anti-blocking device, mm; Lp is sprinkler rod length,
mm.
From the foregoing paragraphs, Hp is 300 mm, R is 120 mm, Vz
1. Seed box 2. Profiling components 3. Seed metering device 4. Repression
is 5-8 km/h, H4 is 380-430 mm. Obtainable by Equations (18)
drive wheel 5. Pressure regulating device
and (19): Lp < 350 mm, 120 mm < Ls < 350 mm, Lp > 430 mm. So,
Figure 10 Corn seeding monomer
Lp = 340 mm, Ls = 130 mm, Lp = 450 mm.
3.3.2 Interposition relations analysis of mechanisms
The machine adopts side deep fertilization, and as shown in 4 Experiment and discussion
Figure 11. The density of the root system of maize was the
densest in the range of 0-100 mm at the initial stage of straw 4.1 Uniformity test of the fog curtain synthesis
returning[35]. Hence, the distance between the furrowing legs and The fog curtain synthesis uniformity experiment was carried
sowing legs M should be 0-100 mm. If M is too small, the former out based on the standard GB/T 20183.1-2006, and used the spray
crop straw may be blocked between the ditches. If M is too large, uniformity as the evaluation index. Under the working pressures
the effect of lateral fertilization would not be apparent. Hence, M of 0.1 MPa, 0.2 MPa and 0.3 MPa, the height between the nozzle
is 50 mm. and the fog collecting tank was set to 450 mm, 500 mm and
550 mm, and the experiment was conducted 3 times, each test time
is 1 min, and 36 recording points of the collecting tank are
collected. The uniformity of spray along the axial flow of the
mist is expressed by the coefficient of variation. The calculation
is as follows:
R1 + R2 + L + Rm ΣR
R= =
m m
ΣR 2
Σ( R − )
Figure 11 Side deep fertilization Σ( R − R ) 2 m  (20)
G= =
Figure 12 shows the spatial arrangement of seed-fertilizer- m m
herbicide mechanism. When the machine starts to work, there are: G
W = × 100%
R
⎧ 1 2
⎪ H p = gtb where, R is average; G is standard deviation; W is coefficient of
⎨ 2  (18)
⎪ Lz = Vz tb variation, %; R1, R2…Rm is spray volume at each measuring point,
⎩
mL; m is number of measuring points.
where, Hp is height of seed metering device from ground, mm; tb is
Table 3 presents the results of the spray uniformity experiment,
seed falling time, s; Lz is operating distance during tb time, mm.
when the spray pressure is 0.3 MPa and the nozzle height is
500mm from the ground, the average coefficient of variation of
spray uniformity is smallest, which is 17.70%, verifying the
correctness of the proposed method.
4.2 Field experiment
Based on the design method explained above, a maize
seed-fertilizer-herbicide mechanism (as shown in Figure 13) was
designed and field experiments were conducted in this study.
As shown in Figure 14, the field experiment was conducted in
the experimental field of Anhui Agricultural University, Xiaoxinji
Township, Mengcheng County, Anhui Province, on June 7, 2018.
The former crop of the field was wheat, and the harvesting method
was a harvester equipped with straw crusher. The stubble height
was 30 mm, and the average straw coverage was 1.49 kg/m2. The
spraying herbicide used in the experiment was a mixed aqueous
solution of nicosulfuron and atrazine, and the maize variety
Zhongza 598 was sown.
Three seeding groups were set up, which were the machine
closed weeding group A, the manual closed weeding group B, and
Figure 12 Schematic diagram of seed-fertilizer-herbicide the non-closed weeding group C, in which the herbicides and spray
mechanism amounts used in the groups A and B were the same.
 July, 2019 Huang X, et al. Design method and experiment of machinery for combined application of seed, fertilizer and herbicide Vol. 12 No.4 69

Table 3 Spray uniformity test the weeds were counted. Then the sowing experiment was
Pressure Height Coefficient of Average coefficient of conducted. After 10 d, the weeds in test group A, B and C were
Frequency
/MPa /mm variation/% variation/% recounted.
1 33.06
450 2 32.42 32.69
3 32.60
1 27.26
0.1 500 2 26.83 26.89
3 26.57
1 29.92
550 2 29.01 29.98
3 30.03
1 27.59 a. Straw of former crop b. Growth of maize
450 2 25.53 26.28 Figure 14 Field experiment
3 25.72
To investigate the relationship between closed weeding and
1 22.25
maize growth, at 10 d after sowing test, 1 m×1 m sampling area
0.2 500 2 23.62 22.87 was selected by using the nine-point sampling method in test
3 22.76 groups A, B and C, and the maize plant height uniformity and stem
1 22.26 diameter uniformity were used as evaluation indicators to evaluate
550 2 22.06 21.96 maize growth. The formula for calculating the uniformity is as
3 21.55 shown in Equation (21), and Table 4 presents the results of the field
1 21.59 experiment.
450 2 16.11 19.31 x + x + L + xn Σxi
x= 1 2 =
3 20.22 m m
1 18.6 Σx
Σ( xi − ) 2
0.3 500 2 16.96 17.70 Σ( xi − x ) 2 m 
J= = (21)
3 17.52 m m
1 22.48 x
M=
550 2 23.27 22.83 J
3 22.74 where, x is average value of a character; J is standard deviation of
a character, M is uniformity; x1, x2…xn is the character values of
each measuring point, mm; m is number of measured points.
4.3 Results and discussion
As can be seen from Table 4:
(1) The average amount of weeds before sowing was
1645.75 kg/hm2, the average amount of weeds in test groups A, B
and C was 1499.26 kg/hm2, 1637.86 kg/hm2, and 1748.57 kg/hm2,
respectively. The number of weeds in test group A decreased by
8.9% compared with that before sowing, which was 8.5% lower
than that in test group B and 14.3% compared with test group C.
The number of weed in test group B was the same as before
Figure 13 Maize seed-fertilizer-herbicide mechanism planting, and the relative test group C decreased by 6.3%. Test
Before sowing, the weeds in the test field were collected with a group C had the highest amount of weeds, an increase of 6.2%
metal frame of 1 m×1 m using the nine-point sampling method and compared to pre-planting.
Table 4 Result of field experiment
-2
Weeds/kg·hm Plant height uniformity Stem diameter uniformity
Collection
area
Before sowing Test group A Test group B Test group C Test group A Test group B Test group C Test group A Test group B Test group B

1 2101.05 1700.85 1878.22 2131.65 7.1 6.9 5.1 3.9 4.1 4.1
2 1900.95 1800.90 1775.51 1954.95 7.6 8.7 6.3 4.2 3.5 3.5
3 1800.90 1400.70 1802.37 1838.85 7.8 6.0 5.5 3.8 2.9 3.4
4 1300.65 1200.60 1340.12 1653.75 6.3 7.1 6.1 3.9 4.5 4.0
5 1500.75 1300.65 1431.41 1624.20 6.9 6.1 6.8 4.1 3.9 3.6
6 1657.11 1701.23 1489.65 1720.10 7.2 6.3 6.1 4.6 3.8 3.8
7 1560.25 1500.30 1688.15 1653.21 6.1 7.2 6.4 4.5 4.1 4.1
8 1400.23 1389.00 1755.98 1510.20 8.0 5.9 6.1 4.3 3.9 3.5
9 1589.86 1499.10 1579.29 1650.21 7.3 7.1 5.6 3.9 4.0 3.6
Average 1645.75 1499.26 1637.86 1748.57 7.1 6.8 6.0 4.1 3.9 3.7
 70 July, 2019 Int J Agric & Biol Eng Open Access at https://www.ijabe.org Vol. 12 No.4

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