Operating instructions

Great Plains Manufacturing, Inc. Table of Contents Index Operating Instructions 15
2013-03-25 Table of Contents Index 403-362M
Seeding System Overview
Refer to Figure 5 on page 14
1. Hydraulic Fan:
The hydraulic fan supplies air for both seed and
fertilizer delivery. Fan rpm is operator-adjusted via
the tractor circuit’s hydraulic flow control.
2. Fan RPM Sensor:
Fan rpm is measured by a sensor mounted inside
the fan cage, and reported on the seed monitor
console.
3. Butterfly Valve (Seed Leg):
Manually-adjusted butterfly valves are provided on
the splitter at the fan outlet. The valve on the left leg
controls air for the seeding system. See page 19 for
valve adjustment.
4. Air Box Air Inlet:
Fan air enters the air box at the manifold inlet and is
mixed with seed.
5. Seed Hopper:
The rear hopper is the seed hopper. See “Loading
Seed” on page 11. The hopper contains a
pressure-balancing system (not shown) to help
prevent seed bridging.
6. Slide Gate:
There is a slide gate at the base of the seed hopper,
used to shut off seed flow during transport,
maintenance and storage.
7. Air Box Seed Inlet:
Seed enters the air box manifold at the top.
8. Seed Level Sensor:
The inlet contains a level sensor. When this sensor is
exposed (seed level below sensor), there may be
less than a hectare of seed remaining.
9. Seed Manifold Outlets:
The fan airflow entrains seed inside the air box, and
exits at the manifold outlets. On this model planter,
there is one outlet port per row.
10. Seed Hoses:
Seed hoses deliver seed to the rows. On this model
planter, there is one hose per row, and no Y-tube
splitters.
11. Air Release Vents:
The meter inlets contain a venting system to exhaust
the delivery air. When seed backs up above the vent,
seed flow to that row stops until the meter has
consumed enough seed to re-expose the vent.
12. Seed Meter:
The Singulator Plus
®
or finger pickup meter contains
a seed wheel or finger-set that capture seeds at a
precise rate.
13. Seed Meter Drive:
Meter rotation is coupled to the drive system, which
is powered by a hydraulic motor (not shown) under
control of the seed monitor. Clutches control drive
shafts for entire planter sections. See planter
Operator manual for clutch operation.
Note: Seeding rate is independent of air system
operation, if the air system is set to provide
enough bulk seed flow to keep the meters full, but
not so much flow that system plugging occurs.
See page 19 for fan operation.
Note: A coupler at the meter may be disengaged to shut
off seeding at that row. See planter Operator
manual for row shut off. Fertilizer application
cannot be shut off at individual rows.
14. Seed Tube:
The seed wheel or finger set deposits seed in the
row’s seed tube, for delivery to the furrow.
15. Seed Sensor:
In the seed tube, the seed sensor detects passage of
seeds. Medium size and large seeds are counted
individually. With smaller seeds, most are detected,
allowing the monitor to detect stoppages.