Course Objectives

• To enable the students to understand the basic principles of plant protection equipment, cutting mechanism on various harvesting machines, working principles of threshers, harvesting of field and horticultural crops.

Course Outcomes

• CO1: To equip the students with technical knowledge of plant protection and intercultural equipment(PO1,PO2,PO4,PO8,PO12).
• CO2: To train the students with skills required for the operation, maintenance and evaluation of harvesting, threshing machineries needed for agricultural farms(PO1,PO2,PO4,PO11,PO12).
• C03:To abreast the students with mathematical, experimental and computational skills for solving different field problems(PO1,PO2,PO8,PO12).

Programme Outcomes (POs)

PO1: Engineering knowledge: Apply the knowledge of mathematics, science, engineering fundamentals, and to understand and solve the complex agricultural engineering problems.

PO2:Problem analysis: Identify, formulate, review literature and analyze agriculture engineering problems to design, conduct experiments, analyze data and interpret data

PO3:Design /development of solutions: Design solutions for complex engineering problems and to design agricultural machine components and processes with consideration for the public health, safety and eco-friendly environmental conditions.

PO4: Conduct investigations of complex problems: Use research based knowledge and research methods including design of experiments, analysis and interpretation of data, and synthesis of the information to provide valid conclusions for agricultural engineering problems

PO6:The engineer and society: Apply reasoning informed by the contextual knowledge to assess societal, health, safety, legal and cultural issues and the consequent responsibilities relevant to agricultural engineering practice.

PO8:Ethics: Apply ethical principles and commit to professional ethics and responsibilities and norms of the agricultural engineering practice

PO11:Project Management and finance: Demonstrate knowledge & understanding of the agricultural engineering principles and management principles and apply these to one’s own work, as a member and leader in a team, to manage projects and in multidisciplinary environments in agricultural engineering

PO12:Life- long learning: Recognize the need for, and have the preparation and ability to engage in independent and lifelong learning in the broadest context of technological change pertaining to agricultural engineering.

Course Syllabus

Theory

Module I

Introduction to plant protection equipment – sprayers and dusters. Classification of sprayers and sprays. Types of nozzles. Calculations for calibration of sprayers . Introduction to interculture equipment. Use of weeders – manual and powered. Study of functional requirements of weeders and main components. Familiarization of fertilizer application equipment.

Module II

Study of harvesting operation – harvesting methods, harvesting terminology. Study of mowers – types, constructional details, working and adjustments. Study of shear type harvesting devices – cutter bar, inertial forces, counter balancing, terminology, cutting pattern. Study of reapers, binders and windrowers – principle of operation and constructional details. Importance of hay conditioning, methods of hay conditioning. Introduction to threshing systems – manual and mechanical systems.

Module III

Types of threshing drums and their applications. Types of threshers- tangential and axial, their constructional details and cleaning systems. Study of factors affecting thresher performance. Study of grain combines, combine terminology, classification of grain combines, study of material flow in combines. Computation of combine losses,  Study of chaff cutters and capacity calculations.

Module IV

Study of straw combines – working principle and constructional details. Study of root crop diggers – principle of operation, blade adjustment and approach angle, and calculation of material handled. Study of potato and groundnut diggers. Study of Cotton harvesting – Cotton harvesting mechanisms, study of cotton pickers and strippers, functional components. Study of maize harvesting combines. Introduction to vegetables and fruit harvesting equipment and tools.

Project (12.5 hr)

Familiarization with plant protection and interculture equipment. Study of sprayers, types, functional components. Study of dusters, types and functional components. Study of nozzle types and spread pattern using patternator. Familiarization with manual and powered weeding equipment and identification of functional components. Study of fertilizer application equipment including manure spreaders and fertilizer broadcasters. Study of various types of mowers, reaper, reaper binder. Study of functional components of mowers and reapers. Familiarization with threshing systems, cleaning systems in threshers. Calculations of losses in threshers. Familiarization with functional units of Grain combines and their types. Calculations for grain losses in a combine. Study of root crop diggers and familiarization with the functional units and attachments. Familiarization with the working of cotton and maize harvesters. Familiarization with vegetable and fruit harvesters.

Suggested Reading

• Kepner RA, Roy Barger & EL Barger. Principles of Farm Machinery.
• Smith HP and LH Wilkey. Farm Machinery and Equipment.
• Culpin Claude. Farm Machinery. S
• rivastava AC. Elements of Farm Machinery.
• Lal Radhey and AC Datta. Agricultural Engineering Principles of Farm Machinery.

Session Plan

Session 1

Introduction to plant protection equipment – sprayers and dusters. Classification of sprayers and sprays.

pdf: 1.2 Familiarization with Plant Protection equipment

link: https://youtu.be/E2a2yadn_i4

sprayer and duster : https://youtu.be/_VJYb-iT3lM

Session 2

Types of nozzles. Calculations for calibration of sprayers

pdf: 1.3 Types of nozzles. Calculations for calibration of sprayers and chemical application rates

link: https://youtu.be/uspCrwiysGA

project (1 hr) Demonstration and presentation on sprayer and duster. Review collection on drone spraying.

sprayer calibration : https://youtu.be/-U3yd0kxRR0

drone spraying https://youtu.be/P2YPG8PO9JU

Session 3

Introduction to interculture equipment. Use of weeders – manual and powered. Study of functional requirements of weeders and main components.

pdf: 1.4 Introduction to interculture equipment. Use of weeders – manual and powered

pdf: 1.4.1 Study of functional requirements of weeders and main components.

link: http://• https://youtu.be/m9UNgPi6aV0

project(1 hr) : presentation on recent developments on weeder.

power weeder https://youtu.be/AhR29rCtMvk

Session 4

Familiarization of fertilizer application equipment.

pdf: 1.5 Familiarization of fertilizer application equipment

fertiliser broadcaster : https://youtu.be/T4DjLdG-Zv8

project (1 hr) : Review article collection on fertiliser application equipment.

Session 5

Study of harvesting operation – harvesting methods, harvesting terminology.

pdf: 1.6 Study of harvesting operation – harvesting methods, harvesting terminology.

link : https://youtu.be/FT5tOwFCMi8

https://youtu.be/Q5PdBZ1DCYw

Session 6

Study of mowers – types, constructional details, working and adjustments.

pdf: 1.7 Study of mowers – types, constructional details, working and adjustments.

mower: https://youtu.be/pOZi8IjKeQg

Project (1 hr): Presentation on mower by students

Session 7

. Study of reapers, binders and windrowers – principle of operation and constructional details.

pdfd: 1.8 Study of reapers, binders and windrowers – principle of operation and constructional details.

reaper : https://youtu.be/RFNdC6szlXI

project(1 hr): Demonstration of different parts of reaper and presentation on binder and windrower by students

reaper binder : https://youtu.be/X9DlwHD5bgQ

windroiwer: https://youtu.be/clKUCKXRuHw

Session 8

Importance of hay conditioning, methods of hay conditioning.

pdf: 2.1 IMPORTANCE AND METHODS OF HAY CONDITIONING

link:https://youtu.be/M18urlx2-IE

Session 9

Introduction to threshing systems – manual and mechanical systems.

pdf: 2.2 Introduction to threshing systems – manual and mechanical systems

thresher: https://youtu.be/cphF0TEZjrM

project:(1 hr) Demonstration of different part and principle of thresher.

Session 10

Types of threshing drums and their applications. Types of threshers- tangential and axial, their constructional details and cleaning systems

pdf: 2.3 Types of threshing drums and their applications

2.4 Types of threshers- tangential and axial, their constructional details and cleaning systems.

threshing equipment : https://youtu.be/6Ry2XKwCEFY

Session 11

Study of factors affecting thresher performance.

pdf: 2.5 Study of factors affecting thresher performance

link https://youtu.be/oUZ18-UZ7n0

Session 12

Study of grain combines, combine terminology, classification of grain combines, study of material flow in combines.

pdf: 2.6 Study of grain combines, combine terminology, classification of grain combines

straw combine: https://youtu.be/6jo8tD8jutM

Project(1 hr): Demonstration and driving of combine harvester

Session 13

Computation of combine losses.

pdf: Computation of combine losses, study of combine troubles and troubleshooting

reduce losses https://youtu.be/dURDaLcBKK4

Session 14

Study of chaff cutters and capacity calculations.

pdf:2.8 Study of chaff cutters and capacity calculation

chaff cutter: https://youtu.be/-mcu-wi78FM

Project (1 hr): presentation on chaff cutter

Session 15

Study of straw combines – working principle and constructional details.

pdf: 3.1 Study of straw combines – working principle and constructional details

principle https://youtu.be/ki06aLBWqcg

project (2 hr) : presentation on different grain and straw harvesting machine.

Session 16

Study of root crop diggers – principle of operation. Study of potato and groundnut  diggers.

pdf: 3.2 Study of potato diggers

3.3 Study of groundnut diggers

potato digger : https://youtu.be/FJDp3C3Kp3w

groundnut digger https://youtu.be/JdJnNgJlCZA

project (1 hr) :presentation on different root crop diggers.

Session 17

Study of Cotton harvesting – Cotton harvesting mechanisms.3.4 Study of Cotton harvesting – Cotton harvesting mechanisms, study of cotton pickers and strippers, functional components

cotton stripper https://youtu.be/HV9Px8TVWGU

cotton harvesting machine https://youtu.be/GMAnEUwIs4A

Session 18

study of cotton pickers and strippers, functional components.

pdf: 3.5 study of cotton strippers

cotton picker https://youtu.be/loBhGwXfK98

Session 19

Study of maize harvesting combines.

pdf : 3.6 Study of maize harvesting combines

maize harvester https://youtu.be/hM8mV2bKOZM

https://youtu.be/DYLe31R9zQw

Session 20

Introduction to vegetables and fruit harvesting equipment.

pdf : 3.7 Introduction to vegetables and fruit harvesting equipment and tools

fruit harvesting machine https://youtu.be/gHVA_FyXvPk

grape harvesting machine https://youtu.be/rcgG2GmK9xY

cherry harvesting machine https://youtu.be/ykGuOIMGbLI

cabbage harvester https://youtu.be/nZ3ZUoz6cWM

carrot harvester https://youtu.be/BAU08Pxg6SQ

Project( 1.5 hr): Presentation on different fruit and vegetable harvesting machine by students

Question bank : Question bank FME- II

MCQ : MCQs FME -II