Abstract:
Ridging is beneficial for increasing soil permeability and water retention capacity, and is an important part of potato cultivation. A two-stage combined ridging device suitable for Shandong region was proposed to address the problems of single function, low efficiency, and poor operation effect of the current potato seeder ridging device. By combining the soil covering disc and wing shovel, the device can simultaneously complete the soil covering, ridging, and shaping operations, which was conducive to stable rooting and developed growth of potatoes, and improved the efficiency and quality of potato seeder operations. By analyzing the operation process of the soil covering disc and wing shovel, as well as the movement process of the soil, the overall size of the shovel and the main components such as the shovel tip, shovel surface, and wing plate were designed with parameters. Using EDEM simulation software to establish a joint simulation model of soil combined two-stage combined ridging device, and conducting experiments, the simulation curve of ridging amount of the device was analyzed. It was found that compared with relying solely on the covered disc for ridging operation, the operation quality of the two-stage combined ridging device was significantly improved. Field experiments showed that when the potato seeder advanced at a speed of 0.25 m/s, the average height of the soil ridge raised by the two-stage combined ridging device was 251 mm, the average width of the ridge bottom was 698 mm, the average ridge distance was 902 mm, and the average soil compaction of the ridge can reach 390.33 kPa. The operation effect was good, meeting the agricultural requirements of the potato ridge raising in Shandong.