Patent ID: 6926657

Claim:
A loader device for dispensing seeds from a seed magazine and spacers into a seed implant needle, wherein the seed magazine includes a plurality of serially-aligned seeds within a locating arm and means for intermittently advancing the seeds to a position aligned with a seed outlet defined by the locating arm, said loader device comprising: an elongate loader body defining a seed input aperture, a spacer input aperture, and a dispense aperture, a substantially longitudinally-oriented seed passageway extending between said seed input aperture and said dispense aperture, and a substantially longitudinally-oriented spacer passageway extending between said spacer input aperture and said dispense aperture, said loader body further defining means for retentatively accommodating the seed magazine so as to position the seed outlet of the magazine in registry with said seed passageway; and a plunger assembly operably associated with said loader body, said plunger assembly including an elongate plunger rod positionable in spaced registry with the seed outlet of the seed magazine, said plunger rod urgeable against a seed aligned with the seed outlet of the seed magazine so as to eject the seed into said seed passageway.