Theoretical research into directional stability of trailed tandem- type disk harrow

Abstract

Disking is one of the methods of soil cultivation, provides its effective crumbling, loosening, partial mixing and soil inversion. This ensures that crop residues on the soil surface are shredded and intermixing with loosened soil particles. Since, in addition to crop stubble, weeds are also counted as crop residues, soil disking, along with the use of herbicides, is often regarded as the most effective method of controlling the weediness of the agricultural background. Despite the fact that numerous studies on the disk harrow working process are available, insufficient attention has been paid to the study of the stability of harrow machine-tractor units, especially trailed ones. The purpose of this study is to establish the theoretical patterns that would provide for selecting the trailed disk harrow parameters that ensure the desired directional stability of the implement, which, in its turn, helps to achieve the desired qualitative performance of the disk harrowing machine-tractor unit. The principles of the theory agricultural machine, analytical mechanics, higher mathematics, as well as methods of PC-assisted numerical calculations have been used. According to the results of the study, it has been established that sufficient directional stability of the trailed disk harrow can be ensured if its working width B, the distance from the hitch point to the centre of resistance (parameter d) and the operating speed 𝑉𝑜 are properly selected. Determining the above-mentioned parameters of the disk harrow with the use of the obtained new analytical relations ensures achieving just their optimal combination, which provides for the maximum field productivity of the harrow machine-tractor unit with the satisfactory stability of disk harrow movement in the horizontal plane.