Seed metering means

Claim 2

In a seed planter for withdrawing seeds from a hopper and depositing the seeds into an underlying furrow at regular intervals, a seed metering apparatus including: a housing having a side opening framed by an upright circumferential rim with the lower portion of said opening defining a seed chamber; means comprising a drop chute depending from said housing for discharging seeds into said furrow; gravity feed means for conveying seeds from said hopper to said seed chamber; a disc-shaped seed metering member having an inwardly-facing surface with a circumferential margin and a periphery rotatably fitting within said rim and having a plurality of seed pockets in the margin of said disc each dimensioned to receive a predetermined one or more number of said seeds, said metering member being rotatably mounted so as to bring each of said pockets sequentially in communication with said chamber and said drop chute, and each of said pockets being porvided with at least one pressure-relief passageway communicating to the outside of said housing; means for supplying pressurized air to said seed chamber to urge said seeds into said pockets; means for at least substantially isolating said pockets from said pressurized air while said pockets are in communication with said drop chute to allow the seeds in said pockets to discharge into said drop chute; and, means for rotating said metering member as said seed planter moves along said furrow; the improvement, comprising, an elongated pocket-exposing formation in said housing defining a major portion of the bottom wall of said seed chamber with one end thereof being adjacent to where said pockets sequentially enter into communication with said seed chamber, the relative shapes and dimensions of said formation and pockets being such as to progressively expose in a primarily radial direction each of said pockets to the interior of said seed chamber as each pocket passes over said formation while traveling in an arcuate path of substantial length several times longer than the radial length of said pockets.

Claim 3

In a seed planter for withdrawing seeds from a hopper and depositing the seeds into an underlying furrow at regular intervals, a seed metering apparatus including: a housing having a side opening framed by an upright circumferential rim with the lower portion of said opening defining a seed chamber; means comprising a drop chute depending from said housing for discharging seeds into said furrow; gravity feed means for conveying seeds from said hopper to said seed chamber;

Claim 4

In a seed planter for withdrawing seeds from a hopper and depositing the seeds into an underlying furrow at regular intervals, a seed metering apparatus including: a housing having a side opening framed by an upright circumferential rim with the lower portion of said opening defining a seed chamber; means comprising a drop chute depending from said housing for discharging seeds into said furrow; gravity feed means for conveying seeds from said hopper to said seed chamber;

Claim 5

a disc-shaped seed metering member having an inwardly-facing surface with a circumferential margin and a periphery rotatably fitting within said rim and having a plurality of seed pockets in the margin of said disc each dimensioned to receive a predetermined one or more number of said seeds, said metering member being rotatably mounted so as to bring each of said pockets sequentially in communication with said chamber and said drop chute, and each of said pockets being provided with at least one pressure-relief passageway communicating to the outside of said housing; means for supplying pressurized air to said seed chamber to urge said seeds into said pockets; means for at least substantially isolating said pockets from said pressurized air while said pockets are in communication with said drop chute to allow the seeds in said pockets to discharge into said drop chute; and, means for rotating said metering member as said seed planter moves along said furrow; the improvement, comprising, an elongated pocket-exposing formation in said housing defining a major portion of the bottom wall of said seed chamber where said pockets sequentially enter into communication with said seed chamber and shaped to progressively expose in a generally radial direction each of said pockets to the interior of said seed chamber as each pocket passes over said formation while traveling in an arcuate path of substantial length, said pocket-exposing formation being a generally arcuate ledge the upper end of which coincides with the radially inner ends of the seed pockets and the lower end of which coincides with the radially outer ends of said pockets.

Claim 6

a disc-shaped seed metering member having an inwardly-facing surface with a circumferential margin and a periphery rotatably fitting within said rim and having a plurality of seed pockets in the margin of said disc each dimensioned to receive a predetermined one or more number of said seeds, said metering member being rotatably mounted so as to bring each of said pockets sequentially in communication with said chamber and said drop chute, and each of said pockets being provided with at least one pressure-relief passageway communicating to the outside of said housing; means for supplying pressurized air to said seed chamber to urge said seeds into said pockets; means for at least substantially isolating said pockets from said pressurized air while said pockets are in communication with said drop chute to allow the seeds in said pockets to discharge into said drop chute; and, means for rotating said metering member as said seed planter moves along said furrow; the improvement, comprising, an elongated pocket-exposing formation in said housing defining a major portion of the bottom wall of said seed chamber where said pockets sequentially enter into communication with said seed chamber and shaped to progressively expose in a generally radial direction each of said pockets to the interior of said seed chamber as each pocket passes over said formation while traveling in an arcuate path of substantial length, said pocket-exposing formation being a generally arcuate ledge the upper end of which coincides with the radially inner ends of the seed pockets and the lower end of which coincides with the radially outer ends of said pockets.

Claim 7

The improvement of claim 1 wherein said pocket-exposing ledge formation has an upper surface which is downwardly inclined toward said pockets.

Claim 8

In a seed planter for withdrawing seeds from a hopper and depositing the seeds into an underlying furrow at regular intervals, a seed metering apparatus including: a housing having a side opening framed by an upright circumferential rim having an inner generally cylindrical surface with the lower portion of said opening defining a seed chamber; means comprising a drop chute depending from said housing for discharging seeds into said furrow; gravity feed means for conveying seeds from said hopper to said seed chamber; a disc-shaped seed metering member having an inwardly-facing side surface with a circumferential margin and a periphery with a generally cylindrical outer surface rotatably fitting within and operating in close proximity to said inner generally cylindrical surface in said rim so as to form a pneumatic non-wearing seal therewith and having a plurality of seed pockets in the margin of said disc each pocket being open to said seed chamber and dimensioned to receive one or more of said seeds from within said seed chamber, said metering member being rotatably mounted so as to bring each of said pockets sequentially in communication with said chamber and said drop chute, and each of said pockets being provided with at least one pressure-relief passageway communicating to the outside of said housing; means for supplying pressurized air to said chamber to urge said seeds into said pockets; means for at least substantially isolating said pockets from said pressurized air while said pockets are in communication with said drop chute to allow the seeds in said pockets to fall into said drop chute; and means for rotating said metering member as said seed planter moves along said furrow; said upright circumferential rim and said pneumatic non-wearing seal being co-incidally discontinuous over the upper end of said drop chute so as to allow seeds to discharge from said pockets into said chute; and, said seed pockets being open at the periphery of said seed disc so that seeds discharge radially therefrom into said upper end of said drop chute.

Claim 9

In a seed planter for withdrawing seeds from a hopper and depositing the seeds into an underlying furrow at regular intervals, a seed metering apparatus including: a housing having a side opening framed by an upright circumferential rim having an inner generally cylindrical surface with the lower portion of said opening defining a seed chamber; means comprising a drop chute depending from said housing for discharging seeds into said furrow; gravity feed means for conveying seeds from said hopper to said seed chamber; a disc-shaped seed metering member having an inwardly-facing side surface with a circumferential margin and a periphery with a generally cylindrical outer surface rotatably fitting within and operating in close proximity to said inner generally cylindrical surface in said rim so as to form a pneumatic non-wearing seal therewith and having a plurality of seed pockets in the margin of said disc each pocket being open to said seed chamber and dimensioned to receive one or more of said seeds from within said seed chamber, said metering member being rotatably mounted so as to bring each of said pockets sequentially in communication with said chamber and said drop chute, and each of said pockets being provided with at least one pressure-relief passageway communicating to the outside of said housing; means for supplying pressurized air to said chamber to urge said seeds into said pockets; means for at least substantially isolating said pockets from said pressurized air while said pockets are in communication with said drop chute to allow the seeds in said pockets to fall into said drop chute; and means for rotating said metering member as said seed planter moves along said furrow; said upright circumferential rim and said pneumatic non-wearing seal being co-incidally discontinuous over the upper end of said drop chute so as to allow seeds to discharge from said pockets into said chute; and, said seed pockets being open at the periphery of said seed disc so that seeds discharge radially therefrom into said upper end of said drop chute.