Design of Pokkali Paddy Harvester

Abstract

The term 'Pokkali' used in the common parlor refers to a salt tolerant traditional rice cultivar grown in the coastal saline soils of Kerala. The conventional method of harvesting of pokkali paddy crop by using sickles. The various farming operations in Pokkali paddy cultivation, the harvesting is done by women labourers by walking on the swampy and marshy inundated paddy fields at waist-deep water, which is laborious, tedious and cumbersome. Though a number of paddy combine harvesters are commercially available, none cannot be used in such marshy water logged areas for harvesting paddy. Hence, a power operated floating harvester with provisions for harvesting and conveying the ear heads (panicles) of submerged paddy. Design of harvester is sequentially carried out for the floating barge, harvesting unit and hydraulic system. The capacity of the hydraulic tank was 150 litres and double acting hydraulic pump has 61.0 min . Harvesting unit of the -1harvester consists of a reel, cutter bar and conveyor. The overall size of the harvester is 6.2 x 1.7 x 1.7 m with a total weight of about 1700 kg.