Design and Test of a Double-Curved Guiding Groove for a High-Speed Precision Seed-Metering Device

The instability of the seed release point in a seed-metering device is one of the main causes of the non-uniformity of seed spacing. To improve the seed spacing uniformity, a double-curved guiding groove (DGG) was designed based on the prerelease adaptive principle. The DGG was used at the seed release point of an existing high-speed precision soybean seed-metering device with a double-setting plate. The results showed that the prerelease curved surface of the DGG was capable of guiding seeds to be released at the same seed release point at all times, and the adaptive curved surface of the DGG prevented any changes in seed velocity caused by friction or collisions between seeds and the meter, thereby improving the seed spacing uniformity significantly. A discrete element model was developed and validated with laboratory tests. Through simulations using the model, the primary and secondary factors of the DGG impacting the qualified rate of seed metering (QRM) and the coefficient of variation of the seed spacing uniformity (CVU) were identified and were, in descending order, the spacing of prerelease (SPR), the starting position of prerelease (SPP), the inclination angle of the seed outlet (ASO), and the inclination angle of the receiving cup (ABR). Regression equations of the QRM and CVU with the two main impacting factors were then established. For a planter travel speed of 10 km h(-1), the optimal SPR was 10 mm, and the optimal SPP was 40 degrees, where the QRM was 100% and the CVU was 16.61%. When compared to seed metering without the DGG, the CVU was reduced by 2.55%, showing that the DGG significantly improved the uniformity of seed spacing.