ABE 30A – Basic Farm Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory Report

Name: Lyn Heart Auman Date Given: 04-07-24

Lecture Instructor: Mark Nestor Olila Date Due: 04-12-24

Laboratory Exercise 4

CALIBRATION OF MANUALLY-OPERATED RICE DRUM SEEDER

I. Introduction
Crop establishment is an essential aspect of rice production that involves various
activities such as soil preparation, seed selection and seedling management. This phase
plays a significant role in laying the groundwork for the entire growth and productivity of
the rice crop. One of the agricultural machineries used for crop establishment is a rice-
drum seeder.
The rice drum seeder is a mechanical device designed for planting rice seeds in the
fields. It operates by using a rotating drum to distribute rice seeds uniformly over the soil
surface. The effectiveness of the rice drum seeder should be evaluated based on several
factors, including the accuracy of seeding, placement and distribution of the seeds, and
the emergence of seedlings. It is important that the machine plants seeds at a consistent
depth and spacing, with minimal damage or loss, and that the seedlings emerge uniformly
with a high survival rate.
In this laboratory exercise, with the guidelines provided by PAES 143:2005 and PAES
144:2005, the students will gain first-hand experience on the methods of test and
inspection for manually-operated rice drum seeder for wet fields.

II. Objectives

At the end of the exercise the student must be able to:

1. Calibrate the manually-operated rice drum seeder;
2. Calculate the seeding rate per hectare; and
3. Draw the calibration curve.

III. Materials
Rice-drum seeder, Rice seeds, Measuring tape, Digital scale, Masking tape,
Marker, Grain Collecting Pan

IV. Methods

A. Calibration of the drum seeder

1. Measure the row spacing and the diameter of the ground wheel.
2. Mark one side of the ground wheel to determine each successive revolution.
3. Place the collecting pans at the bottom of each drum
4. Fill the rice drum seeder with known quantity of seeds (e.g. 500 grams) and set
the seeder to the lowest seeding rate setting.
5. Rotate the ground wheel continuously until it reaches 10 revolutions, allowing the
grains to drop into the collecting pans.
6. Using a digital scale, weigh the discharged seeds on each of the collecting pans.
Record the data on table 2.
7. Replicate three times.
8. Compute the seeding rate per hectare using the equation 1.
9. Repeat steps 4- 8 with the seeder set to progressively higher setting (medium &
high).
10. Draw the calibration curve (Figure 1) by plotting the results on a graph, with the
adjustment setting on the x-axis and seeding rate on the y-axis.

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 ABE 30A – Basic Farm Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory Report

V. Results and/or Discussion

Table 1. Machine Specification

Name of Machine:
Brand: Model:
Dimensions
Overall Length: 2.26m No. of Planting Rows:
Overall Width: Row Distance:
DRUM SEEDER
No. of Drums: 5 Size of Opening (LxW, mm):
Size of Drum ( LxW, mm):
GROUND WHEEL
Diameter: 0.73m Number of pieces:

Table 2. Data obtained from the Calibration Test of the Seeder

LOW ROW (grams/10 revolutions)
trial 1 2 3 4 5
1 41.4 38.8 36.6 35.0 29.6
2 34.2 28.4 32.2 30.6 21.2
3 46.2 35.4 33.6 34.8 25.4
average 40.6 34.2 34.13 33.5 25.4

MEDIUM ROW (grams/10 revolutions)

trial 1 2 3 4 5
1 37.8 27.8 32.0 32.0 27.0
2 42.8 31.6 41.6 37.2 33.8
3 59.6 46.0 54.0 49.8 50.0
average 46.73 35.13 42.53 39.7 36.93

HIGH ROW (grams/10 revolutions)

trial 1 2 3 4
1 86.0 83.6 87.0 82.8 79.6
2 73.6 70.2 64.6 69.6 57.6
3 80.4 63.2 71.6 83.2 65.8
average 80 72.3 74.4 78.53 67.7
Seeding rate
ROW (grams/10 revolutions) TOTAL ha
(kg/ha)
REPLICATIO
1 2 3 4 5 grams kg
N
LOW 40.6 34.2 34.13 33.5 25.4 33.6 0.0336 0.0052 32.275 kg/ha
MEDIUM 46.73 35.13 42.53 39.7 36.93 40.2 0.0402 0.0052 38.65 kg/ha
HIGH 80 72.3 74.4 78.53 67.7 74.6 0.0746 0.0052 71.72 kg/ha

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ABE 30A – Basic Farm Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory Report

⮚ Calculation of Seeding Rate

Total weigℎt of seedsdiscℎarged , kg

X= ( eq. 1)
Area, ℎa

Calculation of Area:
Area = W x S 10

Where:
W = width of the seeder -
S10=πxDxN -
D = ground wheel (GW) diameter
N = no. of GW revolutions

Figure 1. Calibration Curve

Discussion Questions:

1. How does the process of manually rice drum seeding compare to other traditional

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ABE 30A – Basic Farm Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory Report

2. What do you think are the disadvantages of using a manually rice drum seeder.?
-.

3. What are some of the factors that can impact the efficiency of using a rice drum
seeder, and how do these factors influence the overall effectiveness of the seeding
process?

VI. Conclusion

VII. Citation
PAES 103: 2005. Agricultural Machinery – Rice Drum Seeder – Specifications
PAES 104: 2005. Agricultural Machinery – Rice Drum Seeder – Methods of Test

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ABE 30A – Basic Farm Machinery and Mechanization Laboratory Report

VIII. Appendices

- Attach at least two pictures of yourself doing the exercise (a picture with proper caption)

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