DESIGN AND PARAMETER OPTIMIZATION OF A DOUBLE-CONE WHEAT PLOT SEED-METERING DEVICE BASED ON EDEM

Abstract

ABSTRACT The traditional wheat plot seed-metering device is hampered by poor seed dispersion uniformity and a long seed falling time. To improve upon these characteristics, in this paper, we designed a double-cone combined seed-metering device. Motion analysis was conducted of wheat seeds sliding down the device, and it was concluded that the motion of wheat seed grains is affected by the cone diameter (D), cone angle (θ), and cone compartment tray rotational speed (n). The D, θ, and n were listed as test factors, and the variation coefficient of seed dispersion uniformity (VCU) and the speed of seed entry into the compartment tray (SC) were used as test indexes to conduct a test with discrete element simulation software. The results of the simulation test showed that the best performance of the seed-metering device, a VCU of 8.75% and an SC of 1.03 m s-1, was obtained when the D was 173.23 mm, θ was 45.78°, and n was 4.43r min-1, and the bench verification test was carried out under the optimal parameters, a VCU of 9.10% and an SC of 1.05 m s-1. It was shown that the simulation test was consistent with the bench test. The results of this paper provide a reference for optimizing the design of the seed-metering device and improving the seed dispersion uniformity of the wheat plot seeder.

Keywords

• Plot seed-metering device
• wheat seeds
• DEM
• seeding performance
• optimal design