TRACTORS AS BACKBONE TO FARM MECHANIZATION

Mechanization in agricultural production can be defined by the amount of mechanical

power utilized in the different processes at varying levels. Agricultural tractors has
been a significant part in the advancement of mechanization of farm activities. These
machines are utilized to provide power in land preparation (tillage), planting, crop
protection (spraying) and harvesting operations. According to Goering and Hansen
(2008), there are three objectives of farm mechanization:
1. To reduce drudgery of farm work;
2. To increase the productivity of farm workers; and
3. To increase the timeliness and quality of farm work.

Goering and Hansen (2008) stated that “The first objective has already been
accomplished. A century ago, farm work was so hard and low-paying that many
considered farm life something to escape. Human beings cannot live well using only
their muscle power. An adult human can produce approximately 150 W (0.2 hp) of
power, or 0.15 kW-h (0.2 hp-h) of energy per hour while working continually. A good
diesel tractor can produce 3.0 kW-h of energy/L (15.2 hp-h/gal) of fuel. Thus, a human
being working as a power unit is equivalent to only 0.05 L/h (0.013 gal/h) of diesel
fuel. If fuel costs were $1.00/L ($3.79/gal), a human being would only be 5 cents per
hour as a power unit. Fortunately, mechanization allowed farm workers to escape a
life of drudgery and low pay by multiplying their efforts far beyond what their own
muscles could accomplish.

Productivity is increased when farm workers use mechanization. As shown in Figure 1,

the increasing trend of farm workers using mechanization since 1915 has been
accomplished by increased productivity per ha (acre) and per hour of labor. Although
improved seeds, fertilizers, herbicides, and other farm supplies have played a role in
these productivity gains, mechanization also has been a contributing factor.
Mechanization has been a major contributor to the gains in productivity per hour of
labor.

Figure 1. Trends in agricultural worker productivity (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

There is an optimum time for performing critical farming operations such as planting
and harvesting. Crop yields tend to be highest when these critical operations are done
closest to the optimum time. Farmers with high-capacity machines can perform the
critical operations quickly and thus accomplish them close to the optimum time.
Mechanization can also improve the quality of farm operations. For example, plows
pulled by modern farm tractors can till the soil deeper and more thoroughly than
wooden plows that were once pulled by draft animals”
 HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES AND FARM
TRACTOR

In the ancient past, human power is the only source of motive power. At the
beginning of modern times, not only manpower but also domesticated animals came
into use as a motive power.The first ideas concerning the operation and construction
of internal combustion engine were based upon the action of an ordinary rifle or canon;
that is the barrel served as the cylinder and the bullet of canon ball as the piston.

In 1678, Abbe Jean de Hautefeuille proposed the use of gun powder to obtain
power. Christian Huyghens, a Dutchman, is being credited to construct an engine with
a cylinder and a piston in 1680. As civilization progressed, the steam engine was made
by Papin in France.

In 1698, Sepaley in England invented steam engines to power pumps to remove

water from mines. The invention of reciprocating engine by James Watt led to the
machine age and various types of transportation using steam engines.

In 1769, Nicholas Joseph Qunoe invented a car that ran on steam. The most
famous inventor of locomotive engines was George Stevenson. This invention led to
the present day trains.

In 1838, Barnett improved the system of flame ignition and the actual
construction and manufacture of internal combustion engine on a commercial scale by
Jean Joseph Lenoir in 1860.

In 1860, Binotti made an electric motor. Around this time, the study of
electricity became popular. The German Nicholas Otto patented the very first really
successful engine operating on a four stroke cycle although the four stroke cycle theory
was originally proposed by Beau de Rochas.

In 1862, this man advanced the actual theory of operation of all modern types
of internal combustion engines. He first stated that there were four conditions that
were essential for efficient operation. These were as follows:

1. The greatest possible cylinder volume with the least possible cooling surface.
2. The greatest possible piston speed.
3. The highest possible compression at the beginning of expansion.
4. The greatest possible expansion.

These principles are still considered as fundamental and extremely important in gas
engine design. Beau de Rochas proposed further that a successful engine embodying
these principles must consist of a single cylinder and a piston that made a stroke for
each of the four distinct events constituting a cycle, as follows:

1. Drawing in of the combustible fuel mixture on an outward stoke.

2. Compression of the mixture on an inward stroke.
3. Ignition of the mixture at maximum compression producing an outward power
or expansion stroke.
4. Discharge of the products of combustion on a fourth or inward stroke.

In 1876, Otto made a gasoline engine and in 1885 his apprentice Daimler made
a 4-wheel gasoline powered car. At the same time, the German Karl Benz produced a
3-wheel gasoline powered car. Dugald Clerk, an Englishman, invented a two-stroke
cycle engine.

Another notable contribution to the development of internal combustion engine

is the Diesel engine which was invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel in 1893. He conceived
the idea of utilizing the heat produced by high compression for igniting the fuel charge
in the cylinder. In 1892 he secured a patent on an engine designed to operate in this
manner. The first machine proved unsatisfactory, however, and it was not until about
1898 that the first successful diesel-type engines were produced. During the past 35
years, rapid strides have been made in the development and utilization of the diesel
principle in internal combustion engines for both stationary and tractor applications.

In 1958, Alfred Wankel, a German engineer, developed the rotary engine with
which the output shaft is three times the rotor rpm which means there are three power
impulses per rotor rpm.

History and Development of the Farm Tractor

A tractor is defined specifically a self propelled machine that can be used for
supplying power for (1) pulling mobile machines and (2) operating the mechanisms of
either stationary or mobile machines by means of a belt pulley or a power take off.
The two common types are the steam tractors, in which an external combustion or
steam engine supplies the power, and the gas tractor in which an internal combustion
engine serves as the power source.

Steam Tractor. The invention and development of the steam engine preceded
those of the internal combustion engine by 100 years or more. Consequently, the
earliest known tractors were of the steam type. They first came into general use for
operating threshers (see Fig. 2)

Figure 2. Steam tractor operating a grain thresher (Courtesy of

Jones,F.R., 1966)

The steam tractor for field work had its limitations. It was very heavy and slow
moving, the fuel was bulky and difficult to handle, and the matter of boiler-water
supply and fueling meant constant attention on the part of one man, with a second
man to handle and guide the machine.

Early gas tractors. Certain manufacturers, foreseeing a greater future demand

for suitable mechanical power for field work, particularly in the wheat growing sections
of the country, started the construction of gas tractors even before the close of the
nineteenth century. Figure 3 shows a tractor that has been built in 1892.

Figure 3. A gas tractor built in 1892 (Courtesy of Jones, F.R., 1966).

Figure 4 shows another tractor built in 1897 and figure 5 shows the first Hart
Parr tractor which was sold in 1902. These heavy, cumbersome appearing machines
were the forerunners of the present day tractor industry.

Figure 4. A gas tractor built in 1897 (Courtesy of Jone, F.R., 1966).

 Figure 5. A gas tractor sold in 1902 (Courtesy of Jones, F.R., 1966).

Numerous other significant developments have taken place since 1925 which
have accelerated the adoption of tractors for agricultural power, extended their range
and utility, and improved their convenience and ease of operation. The first tractors
supplying power directly to the mechanism of a field machine by means of a power
take off attachment appeared about 1927 and this device is now considered as
standard equipment on all farm tractors and quite indispensable for many farm power
applications.

Tractors equipped with diesel engines were introduced 1n 1931. In spite of their
higher first cost, diesel engine tractors have proved highly successful for certain kinds
of works and for jobs requiring considerable power or operation under extremely
adverse traction conditions.

Other developments which have contributed to the popularity and more effective
utilization of tractors, particularly the all purpose types are:

1. Improved hydraulic lifting and control devices

2. Special direct connected and quickly attached implements and tools
3. Power steering
4. Greater range of travel speeds
5. Electric starting and lighting
6. Better brakes, and
7. Improved operator comfort.

Types of Farm Tractors

Classification of tractor types

A. According to the method of securing traction and self propulsion:
1. Wheel tractors
a. Tricycle or three wheels
b. Four wheels
2. Crawler tractors
3. Belted agricultural tractors
B. According to utility:
1. Standard tractor
 2. Row-crop tractors
3. Utility tractors
4. Four-wheel-drive (4WD)
5. Orchard
6. Industrial
7. Garden

Wheel Tractors

The wheel type tractor is the predominating type of machine, particularly for
agricultural purposes. Wheel tractors are made either with three wheels (see Fig. 6)
or with four wheels (see Fig. 7)

Figure 6. A three wheel all purpose tractor ( Courtesy of Jones, F.R.,

1966).

Figure 7. A four wheel general purpose tractor (Courtesy of Jones, F.R.,

1966).
Crawler Tractors

The traction mechanism in the track type tractor consists essentially of two
heavy, endless, metal linked devices known as tracks. Each runs on two iron wheels,
one of which beras sprockets and acts as a driver. The other serves as an idler.
Steering is accomplished through the cracks themselves by reducing the movement of
one track below the speed of the other. Figure 8 shows a track type tractor.

Figure 8. A track type tractor pulling a subsoiler ( Courtesy of Jones,

F.R., 1966).

Belted agricultural tractor

This type of tractor (see Fig. 9) has been introduced to combine the benefits of low
ground pressures of crawler type tractors with the mobility of wheel tractors.

Figure 9. A belted agricultural tractor (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Standard, row- crop and utility tractors

Goering et al (2006) stated that “a standard tractor was developed primarily

for traction. It is characterized by a drive through the two rear wheels, with center of
gravity located approximately one third the wheelbase ahead of the rear axles. A row-
crop tractor (see Fig. 10), in addition to being suitable for traction work, are especially
adapted for use on row crops, allowing quick attachment of various tillage and
cultivation tools as well as implements for such tasks as mowing and handling forages”.
Utility tractors (see Fig. 11) are usually smaller and have less clearance than row-crop
tractors. These tractors are often used for jobs around the farmstead.

Figure 10. A standard or row-crop tractor (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Figure 11. A utility tractor (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Four-wheel-drive tractors

Goering et al (2206) stated that “a four-wheel drive, or simply a 4WD, tractors have
been developed to produce more drawbar power. The size of 4WD tractors varies in
the United and Canada from 100 kW to more than 300 kW. In Europe, 4WD tractors
may be as small as 15 kW and are used specially in vineyards. 4WD tractors can be
steered by pivoting the tractor in the center or frame steer (see Fig. 12) or steering
the wheels”. These tractors can have equal-sized wheels with articulated steering and
a four-wheel drive tractor with small steering wheels in front. This tractor is similar to
standard or row crop tractor and has become particularly popular in Southeast Asian
countries due to its excellent steering and traction suitable for soft and wet rice fields.

Figure 12. A four-wheel drive tractor with articulated steering (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Orchard and Industrial tractors

Orchard or garden tractors are small or medium size, general purpose machines
or either the wheel or crawler type (see Fig. 13), so constructed and equipped as to
be operated to better advantage around the trees. Such tractors are often built lower
as few projecting parts as possible and with special fenders.

Figure 13. An orchard tractor (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Industrial tractors are machines of any size or type specially constructed for
various industrial operations and for heavy hauling about factories, freight depots,
airports and so on. They are equipped with rubber-tired wheels and may have hoisting,
excavating, power loading, and similar attachments (front end loaders and back hoes)
built on them as shown in Figure 14. Another example is a compact tractor called skid-
steer loaders (see Fig. 15) also used to move earth and other materials. They have
four-wheel drive and steered by operating the wheels on one side faster than the other.
The wheels must skid sideways during turns, which explains its name.
 Figure 14. An industrial tractor (Courtesy of Jones, F.R., 1966).

Figure 15. A skid-steer loader (Courtesy of Goering and Hansen, 2008)

Homework:

1. The earliest tractors had steams engines, but modern tractors have internal
combustion engines. Briefly explain why steam engines lost the competition, and
identify the time period when their disadvantages became apparent.