Patent ID: 6105878
Filing Date: 2000-08-22
Classification: A01M,B05B

Abstract:
A method of applying a liquid agriculturally active substance to a crop in a controlled manner ground borne in order to obtain an effective droplet size range at low volume output per unit area comprising the steps of:a) providing a spray unit for controlled droplet atomizers mounted on mobile means, with the spray unit comprising at least one powered, high volume, low-to-medium velocity crossflow vortex fan operating at substantially between 2500-3500 rpm, with each fan having a delivery throat and at least one controlled droplet atomizer which turns at substantially 2500 rpm and is located in the delivery throat, and with each controlled droplet atomizer having a spray head and with each spray head being opened to ambient, and with each spray head connected to a material supply line and with the material supply line also connected to a reservoir that contains the liquid agriculturally active substance and with the liquid agriculturally active substance being pumped from the reservoir through a material supply line by pumping means to at least one spray head so that when the spray unit is activated an airflow that is a high volume of low-to-medium velocity air moves in a parallel columnar manner through the delivery throat and the at least one atomizer generates a core of droplets from the spray head in a plane substantially parallel to the airflow in the delivery throat with the air enveloping the core and projecting the core of droplets from the fan;b) mounting a wind deflector comprising a solid object in the delivery throat of the fan upstream from and in proximity to each spray head, so that the wind deflector shields the spray head from direct impingement of airflow generated by the fan while allowing the airflow to flow around the spray head and exit from the delivery throat of the fan andc) heating the liquid agriculturally active substance to obtain an appropriate fluidity for the effective droplet size;d) transporting the spray unit on the ground at a speed substantially equal to 5 mph and, pumping a total volume per unit time V of the liquid agriculturally active substance through each spray head, and rotating each spray head at a rotational velocity R that is effective in producing a spray having the effective droplet size range consisting of between 600 microns to about 800 microns, and projecting the spray through a spray band having a width W with the spray unit having an output of spray per unit area OP that is defined by the equation:OP=KV/WS,wherein K is a constant conversion factor.