| CPC A01C 1/04 (2013.01) [A01C 7/004 (2013.01); A01C 7/105 (2013.01)] | 14 Claims |
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1. A seed planting apparatus comprising:
a container for holding a selected quantity of germinated seeds suspended in a thixotropic hydrogel fluid;
a source of compressed air;
a source of vacuum;
a fluid conduit through which said hydrogel fluid passes so that said seeds become singulated from one another within a fluid stream;
a first sensor to detect optically a passage of said singulated seeds within said fluid conduit;
a second sensor to detect electrically flow conditions within said fluid conduit;
an outlet though which said singulated seeds, each with a quantity of surrounding hydrogel fluid, are discharged at selected points in a planting medium;
a control system and power supply to control said sources of compressed air and vacuum, monitor outputs of said first and second sensors, and provide information to a user interface device;
a buffer device upstream of said outlet and having a plurality of chambers receiving said hydrogel fluid and controlled so that:
a chamber having a seed will be discharged into a next available planting location; and,
a chamber containing only hydrogel fluid without a seed will be ignored so that each available planting location will receive a seed; and wherein: said control system receives data on a status of said buffer device and provides an output signal to slow a speed of forward progress of a planter if a number of seeds in the buffer device falls below a first selected value, and provides an output signal to increase a speed of forward progress of the planter when the buffer device has been reloaded to a second selected value.
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