US 4,703,868 AGranted

Apparatus for metering and dispensing seeds

AssigneeUniversity of Florida

InventorLawrance N. Shaw

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Abstract

Apparatus for metering and dispensing seeds from a liquid or gel suspension of seeds includes a rotor having a plurality of orifices disposed within concave-shaped recesses about the peripheral surface of the rotor, each recess communicating with a bore of the rotor by a passageway. The rotor is supported within a recess in a housing by a stationary pintle having circumferentially extending grooves which are aligned with the radial passageways in the rotor, the grooves being connected to a pressure source and to a suction source so as to enable a suction to be applied to orifices located at a first region of the housing and a pressure to be applied to orifices located at a second region of the housing. The orifices located at the first region are exposed to the seed suspension, and the suction causes a seed from the suspension to be drawn to and held on the peripheral surface. The orifices located at the second region are adjacent to a transfer fluid passageway through the housing which communicates with the peripheral surface of the rotor at the second region, and the pressure causes the seeds carried by the rotor to be ejected into the transfer fluid flow. The apparatus enables sprouted seeds to be handled without damage and affords a uniform distribution of seeds in the transfer fluid, thereby promoting uniform planting of seeds.

Apparatus for metering and dispensing seeds from a fluid suspension of seeds, comprising a housing adapted to be disposed within the fluid suspension, the housing having a surface defining a housing recess within the housing and having a passageway therethrough, the passageway communicating with the surface;

means for providing a flow of a transfer fluid through the passageway;
a disk rotatably supported within the housing recess, the disk having a plurality of orifices disposed about a circumferential peripheral surface thereof, each orifice being disposed within a corresponding shallow recess in the peripheral surface and communicating with a corresponding passageway in the disk, and the housing recess being formed such that the peripheral surface of the disk is exposed to the seed suspension at a first region and such that the housing surface closely conforms to the peripheral surface of the disk at a second region, the transfer fluid passageway communicating with the peripheral surface within said seond region;
means for rotating the disk;
means for applying a suction to orifices located at the first region so as to cause a seed from said suspension to be drawn to and held on the peripheral surface of the disk at such orifices;
means for applying a pressure to orifices located within said second region in order to eject seeds located at such orifices into the transfer fluid flow;
an elongated follower member slidably disposed within a groove in the housing which communicates with said fluid transfer passageway;
and means for biasing the follower member into engagement with the peripheral surface of the disk, the follower member being formed to enter said shallow recesses in the peripheral surface so that it follows a contour of the peripheral surface and acts between the disk and the housing as a sliding seal for preventing transfer fluid from being carried on the peripheral surface of the disk to the seed suspension.

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Abstract

Claims18