Smart sprayer for precision agriculture

Abstract

An illustrative smart sprayer for a precision agricultural implement includes a mount for coupling the sprayer to a modular tool arm of the implement, and a spray head, an airflow generator, a solenoid valve, and an inspirator mixer located within a containment shroud. The smart sprayer is one of alternative agricultural tools that can be selectively coupled to and be operated by a control system of the common platform precision agricultural implement, including a machine vision module for identifying and locating commodity plants, non-commodity plants, and positioning the agricultural tools laterally and vertically relative to commodity plant lines.

1 . A smart sprayer for use with a precision agriculture implement to apply a treatment material to selective application sites, comprising:
 a shroud;   a single spray head located within the shroud and positioned to direct the treatment material toward one of the selective application sites as it is traversed by the smart sprayer;   an airflow generator positioned to direct an airflow around the single spray head and toward the one of the selective application sites.   
     
     
         2 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , further comprising a mixer located coaxially around the single spray head, the mixer for mixing the airflow and the treatment material. 
     
     
         3 . The smart sprayer of  claim 2 , wherein the mixer is a Venturi type inspirator. 
     
     
         4 . The smart sprayer of  claim 3 , wherein:
 the single spray head includes a discharge tip; and   the discharge tip is located within a diverging cone of the mixer and adjacent to a throat of the mixer.   
     
     
         5 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , further comprising a first valve for selectively supplying the treatment material to the single spray head. 
     
     
         6 . The smart sprayer of  claim 5 , wherein the first valve is located within the shroud and adjacent an inlet of the single spray head. 
     
     
         7 . The smart sprayer of  claim 6 , wherein the first valve is a solenoid valve. 
     
     
         8 . The smart sprayer of  claim 5 , further comprising a second valve for regulating the pressure of the treatment material discharged by the single spray head. 
     
     
         9 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , further comprising a flowmeter for measuring the treatment material discharged by at least the single spray head. 
     
     
         10 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein the airflow generator comprises a fan located within the shroud. 
     
     
         11 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein the airflow volume flowing over the single spray head provides atomization of the treatment material discharged by the single spray head and clears a discharge tip of the single spray head of residue treatment material after a discharge cycle of treatment material is complete. 
     
     
         12 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an airflow generator controller for selectively setting an airflow volume produced by the airflow generator; and   wherein the airflow volume produced by the airflow generator is at least 300 cubic feet per minute   
     
     
         13 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein an airflow channel is formed between an outer surface of the mixer and the shroud; and an air curtain is formed by a portion of the airflow flowing through the airflow channel and around a mixture of the airflow and the treatment material exiting the mixer. 
     
     
         14 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein the shroud is cylindrical. 
     
     
         15 . The smart sprayer of  claim 14 , wherein the shroud has a diameter between 3 inches and 9 inches and a length between 6 inches and 18 inches. 
     
     
         16 . The smart sprayer of  claim 14 , wherein the shroud has a diameter of about 6 inches. 
     
     
         17 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein a discharge tip of the single spray head is located less than 4 inches above a bottom edge of the shroud. 
     
     
         18 . The smart sprayer of  claim 1 , wherein a discharge tip of the single spray head is located within 2 inches of a bottom edge of the shroud. 
     
     
         19 . A smart sprayer for use with a precision agriculture implement to apply treatment materials to selective application sites, comprising:
 a shroud;   a first spray head located within the shroud and positioned to direct a first treatment material toward one of the selective application sites as it is traversed by the smart sprayer;   an airflow generator positioned to direct an airflow around the first spray head and toward the one of the selective application sites; and   a mixer located coaxially around the first spray head, the mixer for mixing the airflow and the treatment material.   
     
     
         20 . The smart sprayer of  claim 19 , further comprising a second spray head located within the shroud and positioned to direct a second treatment material toward the one of the selective application sites as it is traversed by the smart sprayer. 
     
     
         21 . The smart sprayer of  claim 19 , further comprising a second spray head located within the shroud and positioned to direct the first treatment material toward another one of the selective application sites as it is traversed by the smart sprayer. 
     
     
         22 . The smart sprayer of  claim 19 , further comprising a second spray head located within the shroud and positioned to direct a second treatment material toward the one of the selective application sites as it is traversed by the smart sprayer, and wherein a spray pattern of the first spray head is different than a spray pattern of the second spray head. 
     
     
         23 . A smart sprayer for a precision agriculture implement for use with commodity plants in a commodity field, comprising:
 a first sprayer;   a modular tool arm for coupling with the precision agriculture implement, the tool arm including:
 a machine vision module coupled to the modular tool arm and including at least one digital camera; 
 an agricultural tool mount; and 
 a height adjustment mechanism for translating the first agricultural tool mount along a vertical axis; 
   a plurality of modular agricultural tools selectively couplable with the first agricultural tool mount, the plurality of modular agricultural tools including the first sprayer.   
     
     
         24 . The smart sprayer of  claim 23 , wherein the first sprayer comprises a shroud, an airflow generator, and a spray head; and one of the modular tool arm and the precision agricultural implement includes a control processor. 
     
     
         25 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein the control processor controls the height adjustment mechanism to position a bottom of the shroud within a preselected distance from one of the commodity plants and the commodity plant bed. 
     
     
         26 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein the control processor controls the height adjustment mechanism to position a discharge tip of the spray head a preselected distance from the commodity plants based at least in part on a spray angle of the spray head and the size of each of the commodity plants. 
     
     
         27 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein:
 the first sprayer further comprises a first valve for selectively supplying a treatment material to the spray head;   the machine vision module and control processor identify and locate relative to the first sprayer at least one of the commodity plants or a non-commodity plant for treatment;   the processor selectively actuates the first valve to apply treatment material as the first sprayer transients at least one of: a commodity plant, a non-commodity plant, and an area around the commodity plants.   
     
     
         28 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein the first sprayer further includes a flowmeter and the control processor calculates and stores an amount of treatment material applied by the first sprayer to each of the at least one of the commodity plants or a non-commodity plant identified and located by the processor. 
     
     
         29 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein:
 the first sprayer further includes a second valve for regulating the discharge rate of treatment material from the first sprayer;   the processor is configured to receive a treatment protocol for each of the at least one of the commodity plants or a non-commodity plant identified and located by the processor; and   the processor controls at least one of the first valve and the second valve to selectively discharge treatment material based on the treatment protocol received.   
     
     
         30 . The smart sprayer of  claim 24 , wherein:
 the plurality of modular agricultural tools includes a second sprayer;   the first sprayer and the second sprayer are coupled to the agricultural tool mount; and   the control processor positions the modular tool arm so that the first sprayer is aligned with a first plant line detected by the machine vision module and the second sprayer is aligned with a second plant line detected by the machine vision module.   
     
     
         31 . The smart sprayer of  claim 23 , wherein:
 one of the modular tool arm and the precision agricultural implement includes a control processor; and   the plurality of modular agricultural tools selectively couplable with the first agricultural tool mount further includes a cultivating tool selectively actuatable by the control processor.