Introduction
Agriculture has been the mainstay of various populations and will remain so for an extended period. For instance, more than fifty-eight percent of Indian families rely on agriculture for survival (Mule et al.). Besides, it is the most crucial enterprise on the planet. Therefore, in developing nations, agriculture remains the key source of income, livelihood, and employment for between fifty to ninety percent of the population (Kwa 4). Of this proportion, small-scale farmers make up seventy to ninety-five percent of the farming population; thus, they are a crucial part of the population (Kwa 4). However, for several years, small-scale farmers have conducted agricultural practices using human labour and traditional equipment like a big sickle, wooden plough, and yoke. These tools are used in weeding and harvesting, sowing seeds, and land preparation (Mule et al.). Most small-scale farmers cannot use modern agricultural methods and tools since they are costly and hard to buy. Besides, most of these farmers lack the expenditure or knowledge to employ modern equipment. Thus, they tend to rely on human labour and traditional tools for farming. Nevertheless, these traditional tools are linked to low yields and poor-quality crops (Parajuli). Besides, farmers require labour intensive to carry out all the farm operations, including land preparation, sowing, weeding, spraying, and harvesting. Thus, this research seeks to explore if the design and making of multipurpose farming equipment will enable farmers to achieve maximum yields and improve crop quality, saving them from penniless.
Background of the research
Farming to feed families is becoming hard, labour intensive, and time-consuming for many small-scale farmers. This is because many small-scale peasants still use human labour and traditional equipment since they cannot use modern agricultural methods and tools since they are costly and hard to buy (Mule et al.). Thus, assessing agricultural mechanisation requires a more profound understanding of small-scale farmers’ operations. Additionally, a significant gap exists in technology adoption and tools employed by small-scale peasants. Therefore, sustainable enhancement in the livelihoods of small-scale farmers, particularly in developing nations, relies heavily on implementing enhanced farming equipment. Although most of the crucial elements already exist, information concerning the accessibility and performance of tools is lacking. Besides, successful contact between the development department, agricultural research, and farmers is ineffective. Hence, this research focuses on designing and making multipurpose farming equipment. Moreover, the research focuses on small-scale farmers since they comprise seventy to ninety-five percent of the farming population (Kwa 4). Thus, the research offers a solution to maximize yields and improve crop quality.
Problem statement
For several years, small-scale farmers have conducted agricultural practices using human labour and traditional equipment like a big sickle, wooden plough, and yoke. These tools are used in weeding and harvesting, sowing seeds, and land preparation (Mule et al.). Besides, farmers use separate tools for each operation since the traditional tools are single-purpose. However, these traditional tools are linked to low yields and poor-quality crops (Parajuli). Besides, farmers require labour intensive to carry out all the farm operations, including land preparation, sowing, weeding, spraying, and harvesting. Thus, this research tries to design and make automated equipment that performs all farm operations such as ploughing, levelling, fertilizing, sowing, weeding, and spraying and is pulled by an animal or a tractor.
Research objectives
• To investigate if the design and making of multipurpose agricultural equipment will assist farmers in achieving greater harvest and enhanced crop quality.
• To explore whether a multipurpose tool lowers labour costs by lowering the number of workers.
• To introduce new agricultural technology to small-scale peasants in rural areas.
Literature review
This research investigates whether the design and making of multipurpose farming equipment help farmers attain maximum yields, lower labour costs, and improve crop quality. Thus, this section reviews the study concerning multipurpose farming equipment. Academic journals are the most often utilized sources for information search. Keywords and phrases used for information search entail multipurpose, farming tools/equipment, labour costs, maximum yields and time. Many researchers have come up with positive results concerning the design and making of multipurpose farming equipment to attain greater yields, reduce production costs by lowering the number of labourers, increase crop quality, and lower operations time. Chandran et al. developed a multipurpose machine to enhance the current way of farming (Chandran et al. 1). Their machine is moved by a vehicle using solar energy. They developed a multipurpose device that performs three multipurpose operations, including weeding, spraying of water, and sowing. They discovered that the machine lowers labour costs by reducing the number of labourers. Besides, all the elements are linked so that in all farming activities, the device can quickly be rebuilt or incorporated with fasteners to the needed specification and length of field activity (Chandran et al.). Moreover, the equipment takes little time to perform any farm operations, and it is economical since it uses solar energy.
Ashwin et al. also designed and fabricated a multipurpose farming machine to reduce human and animal efforts, particularly for small-scale farmers with 1 to 3 hectares of land. They employed a 12V for sowing and a 98 cc bike engine for weeding and tilling activities. Thus, the equipment performs five different agricultural operations, including tilling, ploughing, weeding, levelling, and seeding used in small-scale farming (Ashwin et al. 3). They found out that the equipment allows farmers to conduct several farm operations in a more economical way and in less time. Additionally, all the sections are linked in such a way that in each step of farming, the machine can easily be reorganized or collected with fasteners to desired specifications and lengths of field activity in a modular way, making the equipment less bulky compared to the rest of the multipurpose farming tools (Ashwin et al. 3). As a result, the machine helps small-scale peasants to increase their yields by reducing drudgery and monotony. It also enables them to reduce the labour costs, efforts, and cost of hiring individual machines to perform different farm operations.
Ugale et al. (qtd. in Riyaz 3) researched and established farming requirements to discover new ways to enhance productivity. They found that one technique is to employ the existing information skills in the formula of more knowledgeable machines to lower and target power involvements in more successful ways compared to the ancient. Here the authors are attempting to fabricate a machine that can perform several farm operations entailing grass cutting, sowing, spraying, weeding, and tillage. Amol (qtd. in Riyaz 3) also offered information regarding the various innovations performed in seeding equipment accessible for cultivating and farm use. In their presentation, the key objective of seed sowing activity is to place the seed in rows and at the required depth, develop a specific seed-to-seed spacing with soil, and offer a suitable application of the strength over the seed (Riyaz 3). Thus, it indicates suitable row spacing in the seeds, their seed rate and depth related to various agro-climatic situations to attain maximum yields and crop quality, saving farmers from penniless.
Methodology
Components of the equipment
This research aims to offer farmers multipurpose farming tools that apply all the scientific agricultural requirements and expertise to attain optimum yield and good crop quality by lowering investment and labour costs. Thus, the equipment is designed to be pulled by a tractor or animals, benefiting small and large-scale farmers. Therefore, the components detail of the equipment includes the following.
Handle
The handle functions as a support for the farmer and also assists him in directing the animal in a straight direction (See appendix a). A suitable handle needs to be 80cm long, 4cm in diameter, and 2mm in thickness (Sadiq et al.).
Plough
It is suitable for all types of soils. Besides, ideal for clod breaking and ridging. A pair of bullocks can also pull it (See appendix b). Thus, constructing a plough is easy, strong, and durable (Sadiq et al.).
Yoke and beam
Yoke is suitable when using an animal to pull the equipment. It places animals 90cm apart on a yoke shaft (Achutha and Nataraj). A proper yoke requires six feet in length to avoid leaving strips of unploughed land during ploughing. At the same time, a beam is required to keep the distance between the equipment and the animal (Achutha and Nataraj). Hence a nine feet long bean is suitable for the simple operation of the machine (See appendix c).
Spike wheel
They prevent slip and convert the linear animal-drawn power into rotational mechanical energy (See appendix d). The wheel has a diameter of 65cm with 40 spikes, each 5.5cm in height, 4cm in width, and 3mm thick (Parajuli 4).
Weeder assembly
• Weedicide container with weeder frame and blade
A Weedicide container entails weedicide that assists in preventing weed formation by sopping it alongside the pathway between the crops. Weeder frame assists in the connection of weeding and leveller tools (Mule et al.). At the same time, a weeder blade is used in weed removal by employing force on the plant to remove the weeds. At the same time, weedicides are employed via holes at the base of the container during weeding (See appendix e).
Leveller blade
It is stretched by fastening the leveller blades with fasteners (See appendix f).
Seed metering disc
Depending on the type of crops, seeds are easily categorized based on their average diameter. Thus, the seed metering disc for this research entails two kinds of cells (Dhawale). The first type entails a sequence of 8mm depth and 14mm diameter cells designed to pick large seeds. At the same time, the second type consists of a series of4mm depth and 8mm diameter made to pick tiny seeds. Additionally, these cells are created so that the angle between them is fifteen degrees to allow the seeds to be located each 10cm apart (Chandran). However, suppose a farmer wants to modify the space between one seedling to another. In that case, they will need to close each alternative cell for the seeds to be placed each 20cm away from each other and close two alternative cells for the seeds to be placed every 30cm away from each other. Such a mechanism is considered the only mechanism in which all types of seed-to-seed farming are workable and able to operate under different seed spacing requirements (Riyaz). Besides, the closing of cells can be performed by utilizing any plain plaster or tape.
Fertilizer metering disc
This entails spikes in a circular disc that performs as a stopper for the fertiliser flow via the fertilizer metering container (Riyaz). Thus, the stopper enables the fertilizer to flow for every fifteen degrees spin in the disc.
Shaft
A shaft consists of a 120cm long threaded rod with a diameter of 10mm. It joins the two spike wheels on either side of the machine (Dhawale). Thus, both the fertilizer and seed metering discs are attached to the shaft so that when the wheel revolves, the metering of fertilizer and seeds occurs.
Fertilizer metering container
The container is designed using a CR sheet metal of gauge 16 (Mule et al.). Fertilizers are packed into the seed metering container using a hopper. This allows seeds to be pushed from a stopper-type mechanism of the fertilizer metering disc (See appendix g).
Seed metering container
Seeds are packed in the seed metering container using a hopper (See appendix h). They are picked up from the cell type mechanism of the seed metering disc (Sadiq et al.)
Seed cum fertilizer frame
The frame consists of a mild steel angle sector and flats. The frame is strong enough to endure every kind of weight in a working situation. Besides, all other sections of a seed drill are attached to the frame (Buradkar).
Fertilizer hopper
Like a fertilizer metering container, a hopper consists of CR sheet metal of gauge 16 (Buradkar). This hopper keeps an even and constant fertiliser flow in a fertilizer metering container.
Seed hopper
A hopper is also made up of CR sheet metal of gauge 16 (Buradkar). This hopper keeps an even and constant flow of seeds in the seed metering container (See appendix i).
Furrow opener
Furrow openers, notably shoe-type furrow openers, guarantee deeper seed location in the humid area for seeding under dryland situations (Ashwin et al.). This type of opener is preferred for easy working. Besides, the proper deepness of fertilizer and seed must be preserved for proper germination. Thus, the deepness of fertilizer and seed is controlled by a knob that is made up of four numbers of Nuts. This allows the seeds to be planted at a depth of 2-3 cm and fertilizer to be placed at a depth of 3-4 cm (Parajuli). The depth control arrangement manages the fertiliser and seed depth (See appendix j and appendix k for the final assembly of the multipurpose equipment).
Material used
The materials include sheet metal, wooden discs, flat plates, mild steel L-angles, PVC discs, hollow cylinders, and TVS fasteners.
Working
Normally, the farming of any crop entails several stages such as farm preparation, seed selection, sowing, irrigation, fertilizing, germination, weeding, thinning and filling, seedling stage, spraying, flowering stage, pod or fruit formation phase, harvesting and winnowing (Mule et al.). In all these stages, the farmer has to employ several farming tools and labourers to complete the processes. Thus, the main goal of this research is to blend all the individual equipment to develop a multipurpose tool that lowers the general labour and equipment expenses and maximizes the crop yield by executing a scientific agricultural technique. In this technique, a plough is fixed to a beam using fasteners to enable the tilling of the soil. During seed sowing, a drill is connected to the beam alongside the leveller for soil levelling for fertilizing and seeding. However, the fertilizer and the seed are kept in the primary fertilizer and seed box (Parajuli). Fertilizer and the seeds are transferred to a secondary seed box to uphold the level of seeds in the box. Thus, the disc collects the fertilizer and seeds from the fertilizer and seed hoppers, dropping them to the furrow via the seed tube. After the seeds have been dropped at a particular distance, they are covered by soil using a seed covering device, allowing them to germinate (Mule et al.). Generally, seed germination is accompanied by weed development. Therefore, to remove such weeds from the field, the seed drill is replaced by weeding equipment for a similar beam arrangement (Sadiq and Udupa). The weeding blade is connected in a slanting position to uproot the weeds, and at the same time, weedicide application through a weedicide container connection is made on the field.
Characteristics of the equipment
The designed and fabricated multipurpose farming equipment has various features. The equipment is multipurpose, meaning it can perform multiple farming operations, including clod breaking, spraying, weeding, ploughing, levelling, fertilizing, and seeding (Kwa). It is multitasking equipment. The equipment helps with levelling, fertilizing, and sowing in one assembly. While in another assembly, it assists in weeding and spraying. Additionally, the equipment is automated and only requires pulling by a tractor or an animal. Thus, it reduces investment and the number of workers, leading to reduced labour costs, increased yields and enhanced quality of crops (Chandran). It is also applicable to all kinds of seed-to-seed farming since the successive seed spacing lowers seed wastage and assists in the correct field utilization, lowering the filling and thinning efforts. The equipment is also variable with farming requirements and dimensions. Besides, it is also flexible for easy assembly and disassembly, making it suitable for several farm operations.
Results and discussion
The successfully designed and fabricated multipurpose farming tool can be employed for various farming operations, including ploughing, clod breaking, fertilizing, levelling, seeding and weed removal (Achutha and Nataraj.) All the sections are fixed so that in each phase of the farming operation, the equipment can easily be assembled or rearranged using fasteners to achieve the needed length and requirements of field activity. Besides, the concurrent application of fertilizing, seeding, and watering makes cultivation more simple and effective (Riyaz). The equipment needs less human and animal effort and time than other multipurpose equipment. Therefore, if the equipment is utilized on a large scale, the farming expenses reduce, thereby satisfying agriculture’s incomplete power (Buradkar et al.). Thus, the research is trying to make agriculture more practical and cost-effective, lessening the farming expenses.
Conclusion
Agriculture is vital for many individuals since it offers food security and aids a nation’s economic development. However, several fieldwork activities such as ploughing, seeding, fertilizing, weeding, and spraying are needed to produce such food and other products. However, agriculture is still struggling since most farmers are small-scale peasants who still use human labour and traditional farming tools like a big sickle, wooden plough, and yoke to produce such crops. These tools are utilized in weeding and harvesting, sowing of seeds, and land preparation. Besides, farmers use separate tools for each operation since the traditional tools are single-purpose. However, these traditional tools are linked to low yields and poor-quality crops. Besides, farmers require labour intensive to carry out all the farm operations. Thus, this research has focused on designing and making multipurpose farming equipment to help farmers, including small-scale peasants, attain maximum yields, lower labour costs, and improve crop quality. Therefore, the multipurpose farming equipment can be utilized for various farm operations, including fertilizing, ploughing, sowing, and weeding. This equipment helps in reducing human and animal efforts since it is automated. It also reduces labour charges by lowering the number of workers and investments, increasing yields and good quality of crops.
Scope for future study
Lifetime use of the multipurpose farming machine can be attained by expanding the equipment quality and strength to its climax. The multipurpose tool could also be created as a tractor-powered tool by offering hydraulics, changing gear arrangements and making particular slight modifications. Moreover, wireless technology can be added to control the equipment, making farm operations more effective and accessible.
Work Cited
Ashwin, Nair, et al. “DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF MULTIPURPOSE AGRICULTURAL MACHINE.” International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET) 7.7 (2020): 2682-2689.
Achutha, M. V., and Nataraj GK. “Concept Design and Analysis of Multipurpose Farm Equipment.” International Journal of Innovative Research in Advanced Engineering (IJIRAE) 2.3 (2016).
Buradkar, Mahesh, et al. “FABRICATION OF MULTIPURPOSE AGRICULTURAL EQUIPMENT.” (2020).
Chandran, Ashwin, et al. “Design and Fabrication of Multipurpose Farming Equipment.” International Journal of Research in Engineering, Science and Management 3.8 (2020): 443-444.
Dhawale, Asit, et al. “Review of Multipurpose Agriculture Machine.”
Parajuli, Bishnu. Design, Fabrication and Testing of Portable Plough. Diss. TRIBHUWAN UNIVERSITY, 2017.
Kwa, Aileen. “Agriculture in Developing Countries: Which Way Forward? Small Farmers and the Need for Alternative, Development-Friendly Food Production Systems.” TRADE Occasional Paper 4 (2001).
Mule, Amar B., et al. “Design and Fabrication of Harvesting Machine.” International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology 5.01 (2018).
Riyaz, Sarfaraz. “Multipurpose agriculture cultivator.” ScienceOpen Preprints (2021).
Sadiq, R. J., S. G. G. Krishna, and N. G. S. Udupa. “Design and Fabrication of Multi-Purpose Agricultural Equipment.” International journal of advances in production and mechanical engineering 1.1 (2015): 38.
Appendix
a) Handle
b) Plough
c) Yoke and beam
d) Spike wheel
e) Weedicide container with a frame
f) Leveller blade
g) Fertilizer metering container
h) Seed metering container
i) Seed hopper
j) Furrow opener
k) Final assembly
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