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    12 views19 pages

    Us 5653389 A

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    Patente

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    US005653389A. United States Patent 1 111) Patent Number: 5,653,389 Henderson et al. [45] Date of Patent: Aug. 5, 1997 [54] INDEPENDENT FLOW RATE AND DROPLET OTHER PUBLICATIONS ‘SIZE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD Micro-Trak Systems, Inc. MT-S000 Automatic Sprayer FOR SPRAYER ‘Control System Installaion/Operator's Mantal, no dae. Satloe, no date. (76) Inventors: Graeme W. Henderson, 1777 La a irra Trackin Cresta Dr, Pasadena, Calif. 91103; a Durham K. Giles, 43 Parkside Dr, ; : K. Giles, Past, Cuzent, and Future Collaboration between the USDA Davis, Calif. S616; Kent D. Funk. #1 Forest Service Pesticide Application Technology Group Quivta C.. Hiawatha, Kans. 66834; Forest Pest Management, Davis, CA and the New Zealand Troy C. Kolb, RR. 1, Box 131, Forest Research Institute Plant Protection Chemistry Group, Fairview, Kans, 66425 Rotorua, New Zealand, no date. ‘Thimble, TrimPlight GPS Technical Overview, Application [21] Appl. No.: 528,941 & Technical Notes, no date. (22) Filed: Sep. 15, 1995 Primary Examiner -Lediey D. Mortis en Bess 1200 (571 ‘ABSTRACT (52) ~~ 239/69; 239/172 4 flow rate and droplet size control system for 2 spray (58) wns 239168, 73, 74, system including & spray lguld source, « pump, 4 spay "171, 72; 36442407, 42401, guid line anda nozzle assembly. The contol system ‘55101, 553 jncludes a setpoint conversion subroutine for independently controling the flow rate and volume median droplet size 150 References Cited setpoins, The control system also includes performance Sten Docs ‘envelopes for various nozzle ips. An independent flow rato and droplet size control mothod is provided for use withthe control. system. A position-responsive control system 16132407 _seccives information pertaining tothe boundaries of spray zones and spray conditions, such as application rates and ‘volume median droplet diameters associated with the spray 239162 ones. The postion-esponsive control system monitors the “Zioig9 X position ofa spray vehicle, which can comprise a ground 1g681 Vehicle or an aircraft. The position-based contol system "236/69 changes the spray system operating conditions in response to ‘36442407 the sprayer vehicle position. A position-based method of 34257 controlling the spray system utlizes the position-basod 23971 contol system. AA2LT6T ONITS Jen8e0 vonmnon 4523280 6/1985 Bachmann 4530463 7/985 Hiniker et al. 4630,773 12/1986 Ortip 4.967.957 11/1990 Bachman 2/1991 Douglas 121981. Batter. ‘81992. Giles a. 171983. Bengtsson 11/1993 Toe etl. ‘#71994 ‘Teach ‘971994. Heiniger 41995. Thompson etal. 34s0t98 31996 Gar era 56 Claims, § Drawing Sheets o Tease cone nr v0 we ey « —— Bae | T pace wn La fea] coe : BH oan Astin t ect ¥ Te c—— , ° rreomre | 8 LH row mae [] Presse L tone H srs yuayed *S' LO6L ‘5 “Sny 830 T 04S 68E"ES9'S U.S. Patent Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 2 of 8 5,653,389 Initialization * Initialization Interface 37 36 Boom Pressure Regulator Pressure ‘Transducer Data Storage Transmitted Central Data Application Interface Controller 40 34 6 yusyed “SN L661 ‘s “Sny 8 JO € ONS 68E"ES9'S US. Patent ‘Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 4 of 8 5,653,389 Flow Rate Setpoint Setpoint Conversion Volume Median Droplet Size Se Liquid Pressure Setpoint 3 T 400] 350 Volume Median Droplet Diameter, sm 8 x 3 100-200 "300 400-—~—~00~- 800 ~700 Liquid Supply Pressure, kPa FIG. 5 US. Patent Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 5 of 8 5,653,389 \soquant Lines Are Flow In Liters/Minute 700 2 Xd ~ on s 2 500] “3 & tg ® = 409 oN g z. Gd 1g, ?\_*00 = 200) ] Duty Cycle % FIG. 6 0.0 02 04 06 08 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 Flow Rate, Liter/Min FIG. 7 US. Patent ‘Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 6 of 8 5,653,389 00 os 10 15 20 25 3.0 35 Flow Rate, Liter/Min FIG. 8 U.S. Patent Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 7 of 8 5,653,389 Velocity, Spray ‘System Operating Characteristics and Field Conditions Calculaton Liquid Pressure Transducer ‘Spray System ‘Operating Characteristics Calculation Median Droplet Size, Droplet Size Controt Application Control Process FIG. 9 oad US. Patent Longitudinal Velocity Latitudinal Velocity [Dissolution of Position Calculate Rate land Droplet Size| plication Rate tpoint Aug. 5, 1997 Sheet 8 of 8 Location of Prescribed Spray Deposition Locations and Allowable |Amounts of Non-Target [Spray Drift FIG. 10 5,653,389 Spray] 210 System and Vehicle [Configuration 206 Spray Transport and Environmental ‘Conditions 5,653,389 1 INDEPENDENT FLOW RATE AND DROPLET SIZE CONTROL SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SPRAYER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention ‘The present invention selates generally o spraying, and in particular to agricultural spraying with vehicle-mounted spraying equipment, and more particularly to agricultural spraying with independent control of spray droplet sizes and. application rates, and with a position-responsive control system, 2, Description of the Related Art Spraying is a well-known method of applying a wide ‘variety of bulk materials, primarily in Liquid and powdered {form in a fluid propellant medium. Such spray materials can be dispensed in air currents, under liquid pressure, by gravity flow, or with any other suitable discharge means, Spray application of bulk materials offers many potential advantages, including efficiency, uniformity of coverage and ‘lexbiity o adapt spraying equipment to Various conditions ‘unique to the objects being sprayed and their particular environments. However, a disadvantage with many spray systems relates, to the drift of spray particles and droplets away from their intended targets. Such drift is at best inefficient, as in the case of the overspray which represents wasted spray ‘material, and in more serious situations can cause damage to nearby property, environment and people. ‘The field of agricultural spraying includes pesticide app cation for crop pest management and the application of fertilizer and growth regulators for nutrient managemcat. ‘The agricultural spraying industry is quite large, with pes- ticides alone currently accounting for approximately $3,000, (000,000 in estimated annual expenditures. However, the use of pesticides in agricultural applications produces substan- tial benefits in crop yields with an estimated annual savings of approximately $12,000,000.000 in crops which would otherwise be lost to pests. The spray application of fertilizers and growth regulators likewise produces substantial benefits in crop yields and the like. ‘Notwithstanding the substantial advantages of agricul- tural spraying applications of pesticides and other spray materials. agricultural spraying is generally a relatively inefficient process. Factors which contribute to such inefi- ciecncies include the susceptibility of sprayed materials to wind drift, overspray and inaccurate placement on the intended target crop plants. Irregularities in terrain and ‘nonuniform plantings also contribute tothe inconsistent and ineficient application of agricultural spray materials, Moreover, variations in ambient conditions such as wind, humidity levels and temperature tend to reduce the unifor- rity and efficiency with which spray materials are applied to their intended crop targets. Tn addition to the inefficiencies associated with misdi rected agricultural spray materials, overspray and spray drift ‘can create significant problems if the materials are inadvert- cently applied to adjoining arcas for which they were not intended. Such misapplication of agricultural spray materi- als can result in crop damage. injury to livestock. contami nation of environmentally-sensitive areas and unnecessary ‘human exposure to toxic materials. “The problems associated with the misapplication of agri- cultural spray materials are exacerbated by the use of larger 2s “ 2 spraying equipment covering wider swaths, high vehicles, air-blast spraying, and by acral spraying. The inherent difcultics associated with large-scale spraying ‘operations are balanced against the relative efficiencies Which are achieved by covering larger areas more rapidly ‘with wide-swath spraying equipment. ‘The Heiniger et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,348,226 discloses a spray boom system wit automatic boom end height control ‘hich uses an ultrasonic height control system for conform- ing the spray boom orientations to topography and slope of fa zone being sprayed in order to increase uniformity of ‘coverage. Uniform spray nozzle height can be a significant factor in achieving uniform spray material coverage. ‘Another important factor in spray material deposition control is the droplet size spectrum of the liquid being sprayed. Spray droplet size has been shown to significantly affect both the efficacy of pesticide treatments and the potential for ofttarget spray movement. Such off-target ‘movement and deposition of spray is often called “spray rit", Insecticies, fungicides, growth regulators and post- emergence herbicides are generally more effective when ied using relatively small droplets, which tend to pro- Vide greater penetration of plant canopies and uniform coverage of foliar surfaces. Smaller spray droplets, with shorter mechanical relaxation times, have the advantage of ‘more closely following air currents into dense plant canopies for achieving greater penetration and more uniform cover- age. Conversely, such droplet mobility associated with smaller droplet sizes can exacerbate problems associated with spray drift away from application sites, Generally speaking, larger droplets tend to fall more directly due to ther greater mass and are thus less susceptible to spray drift, ‘evaporation, etc. ‘A.common technique for controling the-application rate ‘of spray liquid involves adjusting the spray liquid pressure, for example, with the use of a throttling valve in a main distribution ‘line of a spray liquid distribution system. However, altering the liquid pressure also generally alters the droplet size, thus effecting the deposition and its sus- ceptibility to spray drift, evaporation, ete. ‘The Giles et al. US. Pat. No. 5.134.961 discloses an electrically actuated variable flow control system wherein solenoid valves are actuated by square wave pulses, which can be varied in frequency and duty cycle for controling Volumetric flow through spray nozzles. The volumetric low rate can thus be varied without changing droplet size and spray patter since the liquid supply pressure can be main tained constant. However, heretofore there has not been available a control system for a spray system which com- bines selective and independent control ofthe flow rate and the median droplet size stpoints with the advantages and features of the present invention. ‘In addition tothe aforementioned advantages of indepen- dently and selectively controlling the application rate and median droplet size setpoims, substantial advantages can be achieved by controlling spray deposition with respect to field position ofa spray vehicle, such as a ground vehicle or an aircraft, Such postionresponsive contol can be impor- tant because spray zones in and around afield tobe sprayed can require different treatment by a spray system, ranging from ltl or no application of spray materials (i. outside the boundary of a given ste) io a maximum application rate in heavily infested areas or regions of poor fertility. The ‘boundaties for such differential application rate spray zones can be isegular, with such iegularties increasing the

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