The transformation and upgrading of traditional agriculture are required to address its shortcomings and deficiencies, which have resulted in environmental pollution or water problems. Precision agriculture emerged at the historic moment to solve the current problems. Field information collection, information management and decision-making, and execution systems are the three key links of precision fertilization and irrigation. The technical principle and application of field information acquisition systems are analyzed. The information management and decision-making system describes the management and summary of information in crop growth. The execution system combines the knowledge of various disciplines and experts for targeted applications to specific crops. It further focuses on the core implementation system, that is, variable fertilization technology and variable spraying technology that can realize variable operations. Major contributions from different countries, institutions, corresponding authors, and journals are presented in detail. This study proposes several suggestions and ideas based on the research status and progress of the three key systems to provide a theoretical basis and technical support for the research and development of key technologies and innovative devices of precision agricultural fertilization and irrigation.

Discrete element method (DEM) simulation is an important method to analyze the interaction relationship between materials and equipment, and to develop machinery and/or equipment. However, it is necessary to input specific simulation parameters when establishing a DEM simulation model. In this study, the interval values were measured through angle of repose tests of fallen jujube fruit (FJF), and the simulation angle of repose tests for FJF were established with EDEM software (DEM Solutions Ltd. Edinburgh, Scotland, UK). Then, the Plackett-Burman design, steepest ascent search experiment, and center composite design experimental methods were utilized to obtain the specific values of the simulation parameters from the interval values. The results showed that significant influencing factors in the simulation angle of repose include the Poisson’s ratio, the static friction coefficient between FJF, and the static friction coefficient between FJF and the steel plate, for which the optimal values were 0.248, 0.480, and 0.309, respectively. The angle of repose tests’ results showed that the error was 0.53% between the simulation angle of repose (29.69°) and the angle of repose (29.85°). In addition, the flow rate test results showed that the average error was 5.84% between the physical and simulation tests. This indicated that the calibrated parameters were accurate and reliable, and that the simulation model can accurately represent the physical tests. Consequently, this study provides an EDEM model of FJF that was essential in designing machinery and equipment through the EDEM simulation method.

The accuracy of the material parameter settings directly affects the reliability of the results of the discrete element method simulation. It is necessary to calibrate the relevant parameters to obtain accurate discrete element simulation results when separating the cotton stalk particles from the residual film after crushing. The repose angle of the chopped cotton stalk particles was used as the response value to calibrate the contact parameters between particles. Physical tests measured the intrinsic particle and contact parameters between the cotton stalk particles and the contact material, which provided data for the simulation tests. According to the biological structure characteristics of cotton stalk, the discrete element method model of cotton stalk particles was constructed by bonding the elements of nonequal-diameter basic particles. Based on the response surface methodology, the stacking test of particles was simulated. The response model between the contact parameters and repose angle was established, and the effect law of the single-factor terms and interaction terms on the repose angle was analyzed. The optimal combination of contact parameters was obtained through the single-objective and multi-variable optimization methods. Finally, the contact parameter combination was verified by a simulation test of the repose angle. The results showed that the average relative error of the repose angle between the simulation test and the physical test was 1.04%, which verified the accuracy of the calibrated contact parameters and the reliability of the simulation test. These parameters provide a basis for the discrete element simulation study of cotton stalk motion in the separation process of cotton stalks and residual film and the subsequent gas–solid coupling simulation research.

Calibration and test of the contact parameters for chopped cotton stems based on discrete element method

The restitution coefficient (RC) of cotton stalks is an important elementary physical parameter that is required to establish the crushing mechanical model and research the film residue separation machinery. In this study, the calculation method of restitution coefficient considering the rotation motion of stalk-shaped agricultural materials was derived based on the principle of kinematics and the energy restitution coefficient method, and a test bench for measuring the RC was designed and built. The effects of collision material, moisture content, length, diameter, release height, and collision angle respectively on the RC were investigated by single-factor experiments and orthogonal experiments, and the regression models between influence factors and the RC were established. The results showed that Q235 showed the highest value of the RC, and it was followed by cotton stalks and soil lumps, sequentially. The RC of cotton stalks decreased with the increase of moisture content and diameter, while it increased at first and then decreased with the increase of length. As the release height was less than 500 mm, the RC increased with the increased release height. As the collision angle was less than 40°, the RC showed a linear increasing trend. The significance of the effects of factors on RC decreased with the following sequence: collision angle, length, release height, diameter, and moisture content. Length, collision angle, and release height were extremely significant. The contrast test results showed that the values based on Newton’s restitution coefficient method were smaller than that based on the energy restitution coefficient method. The verification test showed that the predicted rebound height of cotton stalks calculated based on the energy restitution coefficient method was closer to the actual rebound height, and the relative error was less than 5%. Keywords: high-speed camera technology, cotton stalk, collision, restitution coefficient, determination test DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20221504.6370 Citation: Zhang B C, Chen X G, Liang R Q, Li J L, Wang X Z, Meng H W, et al. Cotton stalk restitution coefficient determination tests based on the binocular high-speed camera technology. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2022; 15(4): 181–189.

Low working efficiency is an important reason for the limited application of the traditional aspirated-air type jujube fruit pickup machine. In this study, a provoke-suction type harvester for ground jujube fruit (PSH) was designed, based on the principle of negative pressure suction after shoveling the jujube fruit mechanically. The main working parameters were analyzed and the structures of the key devices were designed. Then, a three-factor and three-level Box–Behnken method was used to evaluate the performance of the PSH. The results showed that the pickup rate, impurity rate, and working efficiency were 99.36%, 5.63%, and 1672.3 kg∙h⁻¹, respectively; as the forward speed, provoke teeth buried depth, and airflow velocity were 0.21 kg∙h⁻¹, 74 mm, and 26.4 kg∙h⁻¹, respectively. Furthermore, the verification results showed that the pickup rate, impurity rate, and working efficiency were 98.05%, 5.97%, and 1591.2 kg∙h⁻¹, respectively, moreover, the relative errors were 1.32%, 6.04%, and 4.85%, respectively, indicating that the parameter optimization model can accurately predict the test results. The working efficiency of the PSH was significantly improved compared with the traditional aspirated-air type jujube fruit pickup machine. This research can provide a reference for the development of the jujube fruit pickup machine.