Research in Agricultural Engineering, 2016 (vol. 62), issue 2

Application of 3D cameras in agriculture when evaluating the quality of soil tillageOriginal Paper

M. Kříž, M. Linda, J. Svatoš, M. Hromasová

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):39-49 | DOI: 10.17221/4/2014-RAE  

The paper deals with the evaluation of data collected by scanning the agricultural surface with a 3D Photonic Mixer Device (PMD) camera with IFM company electronics and a resolution of 64 × 50 pixels in different scanning modes. After short introduction various methods of measuring of soil surface characteristics are presented. These methods are laser, photogrammetric and radar measurement followed by experimental measurement by kinect system and O3D201 3D camera using the Photonic Mixer Device (PMD) technology. For 3D calibration measurements of the camera a quartered pyramid model was used. Measurement results before and after the field testing area...

Using of tiny encryption algorithm in CAN-Bus communicationOriginal Paper

M. Jukl, J. Čupera

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):50-55 | DOI: 10.17221/12/2015-RAE  

The rising costs of agriculture machine operation force manufacturers to look for solutions that simplify the machine operation to its users and increase user comfort. However, this trend requires farm machinery to be equipped with electronic systems. Electronic control units do not receive only the information from its own sensors. Modern electronic systems communicate with each other via the data bus. The most common data bus in modern agricultural technology is the CAN-Bus (Controller Area Network). The most common standard used in modern machinery is SAE J1939 standard, which is commonly used for engine control systems. CAN-Bus in modern agricultural...

Pneumatic conveying characteristics of seeds in a vertical ascending airstreamOriginal Paper

M. Kroulík, J. Hůla, A. Rybka, I. Honzík

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):56-63 | DOI: 10.17221/32/2014-RAE  

Pneumatic conveying characteristics were measured in vertical tubes for seeds of selected varieties of cereals, wide-row crops, oil crops, legumes and catch crops. The measured values were used for graphical representation of variation curves for the chosen groups of seeds. The values of the critical air velocity for seeds (velocity of seed lift) were computed. Statistical significance of differences in the mean values of critical velocities of tested seeds was determined. The critical velocity of cereal seeds ranged from 8.03 to 10.54 m/s. Among the crops grown in wide rows the highest critical velocity of seeds was found out in maize (13.29 m/s),...

Hydrothermal carbonization of kitchen wasteOriginal Paper

J. Malaťák, T. Dlabaja

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):64-72 | DOI: 10.17221/34/2014-RAE  

Hydrothermal carbonization is a suitable method for energy and material recovery of wet heterogeneous kitchen waste. The paper examines the ability of the process to produce stable, energy-rich material without harmful by-products from lunch leftovers, raw potatoes, creamy yogurt and raw onions. Results of the batch experiments confirm the hypothesis that waste processing results in homogenous energy-rich (> 24 MJ/kg) and carbon-rich (> 63 % wt.) material. The biochar of creamy yogurt reaches the highest lower-heating value of 31.75 MJ/kg. In terms of energy use and emission concentrations, all samples meet legal requirements for incineration...

Studies on biogas production by anaerobic process using agroindustrial wastesOriginal Paper

P. Elaiyaraju, N. Partha

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):73-82 | DOI: 10.17221/65/2013-RAE  

This study investigated the effect of factors namely temperature, pH, substrate concentration on sago and tannery effluents by the anaerobic digestion process for biogas production. Response surface methodology with the Central Composite Design (CCD) experiments verified that the biogas production rates were mainly affected by operating temperature, pH, and substrate concentration. The experiments were carried out by two distinct effluents at different organic loading rate under mesophilic range of temperature 31-33°C. Co-digestion was carried out for a period of 21 days. The gas produced was measured by the liquid displacement system. Meanwhile, the...

Influence of weather conditions on waste biomass productionOriginal Paper

O. Chotovinský, V. Altmann

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):83-91 | DOI: 10.17221/19/2014-RAE  

A significant effect of weather conditions on crop biomass yields was observed in various production areas during the last decade. Starting with the municipality of Březník within the period of 2007-2011, the present article studies the relationship between weather conditions and the volume of municipal residue biomass (MRB). A statistically significant impact of rainfall level on MRB production has been demonstrated. The development of biodegradable municipal solid waste collection in the municipality of Březník has also been described and evaluated.

Evaluation of Miscanthus grown for energy useOriginal Paper

Strašil Z.

Res. Agr. Eng., 2016, 62(2):92-97 | DOI: 10.17221/31/2014-RAE  

In the years 2003-2012 the effects of nitrogen fertilization and term of harvest on the dry matter yield and biomass quality of Miscanthus × giganteus were examined. The harvest was carried out each year in the autumn and in the spring following year. No significant differences in yields between the sites were observed but the effect of weather conditions in individual years dominated. The nitrogen fertilization increased average biomass yields at the site Prague-Ruzyně by about 14% at the dose of 100 kg/ha and at the site Lukavec by about 11% at the dose of 150 kg/ha in comparison without N fertilization. Average yields of dry matter...