Division of Information Technology, Engineering and the Environment
Agricultural Machinery Research Design Centre
Agricultural Machinery Research Design Centre
Tine geometry influence of implements passing through cereal crop residue.
Australian grain producers must continue to reduce production costs
and remain economically viable while also protecting and improving their
most valued asset, their land resource. For continued adoption of for
sustainable farming practice, there is a need to improve seeding and
tillage implements that can effectively deal with large quantities of
crop residue that is so valuable to the practice of conservation
farming.
This research is investigating the various geometry factors and spatial
arrangements associated with Australian broadacre tined, tillage and
seeding machinery that influence the handling of crop residues. Wheat
stubble has been chosen for the evaluation of the tine parameters as
this is generally found to be one of the most difficult residues to
handle. The research includes evaluation of tine length, shank shape,
shank cross section, tillage points and speed of operation using an
individual tine in a number of heavy wheat crop residue conditions.
Following this, favourable tine factors are selected and used to
investigate the interactive effects on residue flow on the spatial
arrangement of tines.
The results of this work will be used to provide manufactures and
farmers with information in designing and choosing tillage equipment
suitable to handle wheat crop residues effectively. It is expected that
a number of factors such as shape and dimensions will be able to be
optimised for wheat stubble providing farmers with machinery to more
effectively handle heavy crop residues.
