New type of transverse moving box mechanism for pot seedling transplanting machine

The existing moving box mechanism pot seedling transplanting machine on the market moves too fast when the picked seedling is collected,which negatively impacts the seedling picking performance.In order to improve the performance,two types of variable speed continuous moving box schemes were designed in this study.The first scheme was to apply a spiral-gear moving box spiral shaft with sine curve characteristics in the box moving mechanism,whereas the second one was to change the circular gear in the moving box into an elliptical gear with a speed shifting transmission mechanism.The working mechanism of the mechanical structure was analyzed,and the kinematic model was established.A dynamic analysis of the slider mechanism was performed.A virtual prototype was established according to agronomic parameters,and the virtual prototype experiments were conducted in ADAMS.The physical prototype and the high-speed photography experiment were performed on the test bench of a transplanting machine frame.The theoretical analysis,virtual prototype and physical prototype test results were consistent,which verified the validity of the theoretical model,virtual prototype and physical prototype and ensured the feasibility of the system.

Compact plant type rice has higher lodging and N resistance under machine transplanting

To identify the major factors that contribute to the difference in lodging among different rice varieties under machine transplanting and their responses to nitrogen(N),field experiments were conducted at Danyang County(a representative eco-site of the Lower Yangtze River)in Jiangsu Province,China in 2017 and 2018,22 hybrid indica varieties(HIs),22 inbred japonica varieties(IJs)and two indica japonica hybrid varieties(IJHs)were transplanted by machine with three N rates(N0,N150 and N300,0,150 and 300 kg ha–1,respectively).Lodging-related physical parameters,morphological characteristics and apparent transport rates of dry matter were examined.Significant difference in yield was observed among different types of rice,and followed by IJs<HIs<IJHs.The average lodging index(LI)of hybrid varieties(HIs and IJHs)was higher than that of the inbred varieties(IJs)with higher plant height;moreover,lower apparent export rate of dry matter resulted lower LI in IJHs than in HIs.The HIs had a large difference in the LI,which came from the difference in bending stress(BS)induced by the difference in the apparent export rate of dry matter,varieties with lower leaf angle of upper three leaves possess strong lodging resistance capacity;however,the gap among the IJs was due to the difference in the cross section modulus(Z).The LI in the IJs or IJHs increased slightly with the increased N application,and there was no lodging incidence under the high N level,which was due to the low leaf angle and barely changed under high N;there was a significant interaction between varieties(HIs)and N rates in lodging rate and LI,varieties with lower leaf angle of upper three leaves were resistant to high N.These results suggest that compact plant type rice has higher lodging and N resistance at machine-transplanting method.

Hybrid rice yield response to potted-seedling machine transplanting and slow-release nitrogen fertilizer application combined with urea topdressing

Machine transplanting and the application of slow-release nitrogen(N) fertilizer(SRNF) have played vital roles in the modernization of rice production. We aimed to determine the effects of potted-seedling transplanting—a new machine-transplanting method—and SRNF on hybrid rice yields. A 2-year splitplot experiment(2016–2017) was conducted in Meishan, Sichuan province, China, using two machinetransplanting methods(potted-seedling and blanket-seedling) and three N treatments. Total green leaf area, high-effective leaf area and its rate at heading, net photosynthetic rate of flag leaves 7 days after heading, glutamate synthase(GOGAT) and glutamine synthase(GS) activity after heading, dry matter production, and N accumulation at heading and maturity increased under the potted-seedling method or 70% SRNF as a base + 30% urea application at the panicle initiation stage(SBUP). Stem diameter and number of small and of all vascular bundles at the neck–panicle node in potted-seedling plants increased as a result of increasing numbers of effective panicles, secondary branches, and spikelets. In pottedseedling plants, treatment with SBUP increased the number of large and total vascular bundles at the panicle–neck internode and the number of differentiated and surviving secondary branches and spikelets and decreased the number of ineffective tillers and degenerated secondary branches and spikelets. We conclude that the potted-seedling machine transplanting method and SRNF combined with urea topdressing can strengthen the source–sink relationship in rice, resulting in higher yields.

Why high grain yield can be achieved in single seedling machine-transplanted hybrid rice under dense planting conditions?

This study was conducted to identify the factors associated with high grain yield in single seedling machine-transplanted hybrid rice under dense planting conditions. Field experiments were done in Yong＇an Town, Hunan Province, China in 2015 and 2016. Two hybrid rice cultivars were grown under single seedling machine transplanting （SMT） and conventional machine transplanting （CMT） at a high planting density in each year. Grain yield and yield attributes were compared between SMT and CMT. Averaged across cultivars and years, grain yield was 12％ higher under SMT than under CMT. Plant height, basal stem width, and shoot and root dry weights were higher in seedlings for SMT than those for CMT. SMT had less maximum tiller number per m2 and consequently less panicle number per m2 than did CMT. Branch number per panicle, especially the secondary branch number per panicle, and spikelet number per cm of panicle length were more under SMT than under CMT, which resulted in more spikelet number per panicle under SMT than under CMT. SMT had higher or equal spikelet filling percentage than did CMT. The difference in grain weight between SMT and CMT was relatively small and inconsistent cross years. SMT had higher or equal total biomass and harvest index than did CMT. Dry weight per stem under SMT was heavier than that under CMT. Larger leaf area per stem was partly responsible for the heavier dry weight per stem under SMT than under CMT. Our study suggests that improvement in seedling quality, panicle size, and dry weight per stem are critical to the high grain yield in single seedling machine-transplanted hybrid rice under dense planting conditions.

Effects of different machine transplanting methods on the physiological and yield characteristics of late rice in China

To address problems caused by rice machine transplanting such as injury to the seedlings and recovery period that extend growth period,this study explored the effects of different machine transplanting methods on the physiological and yield characteristics of late rice in China,and determine the appropriate machine transplanting method for late rice,which was expected to provide a basis for high-yield and high-efficient cultivation of machine-transplanted late rice.Hybrid indica rice Taiyou 398 and conventional indica rice Jing Gangruanzhan were selected as the research objects,and large-pot carpet seedling machine transplanting(M1),conventional pot carpet seedling machine transplanting(M2)and ordinary carpet seedling machine transplanting(M3)were adopted respectively to analyze their effects on seedling quality,population physiological characteristics,yield and its components and economic benefits of late rice.The results showed that compared with M2 and M3,M1 achieved higher seedling quality,showing significant advantages in the early stage despite average root entwining force that met the requirement of machine transplanting.The seedlings transplanted using M1 had shorter recovery period after mechanical transplanting,with earlier tillering,earlier peak seedling,and slower declining of stems and tillers in the late stage;the peak seedling number was not high,but the effective tiller number and earbearing tiller percentage were significantly higher than those achieved by the other two machine transplanting methods.Also,M1 achieved stronger photosynthetic capacity of flag leaves before HS,with more photosynthetic products in stems and leaves transported to panicles and more efficiently after HS.Compared with seedlings transplanted using M2 and M3,the recovery period of those transplanted using M1 was shortened by 3 and 5 d,the heading stage(HS),and maturity stage(MS)were advanced,which effectively reduced the risk and impact of“cold dew wind”on machine-transplanted late rice.M1 had significant yield increase advantage and economic benefit,with better grain maturity,and“larger panicles,more panicles,more and fuller grains”.M1 achieved an average yield increase of 10.31%-11.10%,20.67%-25.10%in 2 years,and an average income increase of 18.65%-131.06%and 62.85%-323.78%,respectively.Therefore,vigorously developing M1 is the key to the high-yield and high-efficient cultivation of machine-transplanted late rice in China.

Optimized design and experiment of a fully automated potted cotton seedling transplanting mechanism

In order to improve the accuracy and stability of transplanting machine seedling picking,a seedling pick-up mechanism was designed,which was controlled by a controller and driven by brushless DC servo motor.At the same time,the parameters of the seedling manipulator were optimized:the mathematical model for the seedling pick-up mechanism was established.According to the predetermined trajectory requirements,the objective function and constraint conditions were proposed,and then the optimal size was obtained by a multi-objective genetic algorithm.At last,Automatic Dynamic Analysis of Mechanical Systems(ADAMS)software was used to simulate and analyze the kinematics and trajectory of the seedling pick-up mechanism,and the mechanism was tested to verify the effectiveness of the mechanism prototype.The experiments showed that the success rate of seedling picking was 94.32%,the rate of acceptably planted seedlings was 96.67%,and the rate of excellently planted seedlings was 63.48%.