SUBSTANTIATION OF MACHINE WITH ELASTIC BLADE ROTOR FOR MECHANICAL COLLECTION OF COLORADO BEETLE

Abstract

Potato is the main food product in diet of many people around the world and takes the second place after rice in terms of the global spread. However, the high yields of potatoes are largely affected by pests - Colorado beetles. Colorado beetle control is one of the decisive factors for achieving high yield of potatoes. The widely used chemical method is not suitable for obtaining ecologically clean potatoes. in this case a timely and high-quality collection of the beetle from the tops of potatoes is required, but there are no machines manufactured for these purposes in our country. The use of special equipment for collection of Colorado beetle will make it possible to obtain ecologically clean potatoes and is economically and energetically justified at the present stage of development of agricultural production. The technological scheme of the machine as a part of combined unit for collecting Colorado beetle and inter-row potato cultivation ensuring production of potatoes without chemical protection is proposed. The main design parameters of the machine are theoretically and experimentally substantiated. Based on the research results, experimental unit was assembled for collecting Colorado beetle and potato hilling, it was tested and evaluated in the field.