Design and Parameter Optimization of a Reciprocating In-Soil Cutting Device in a Green Leafy Vegetable Orderly Harvester

Based on the single-crank linkage mechanism and the double-pendulum rod mechanism, herein, a reciprocating swing single-blade cutting device is appropriately designed for the needs of GLVs’ planting and cutting operations. It can effectively solve the existing double-blade cutting device’s in-soil operation issue, where clods of soil and stones adhere to the upper and lower cutting blades, resulting in problems such as excessive wear and blade fracture. Using ADAMS, a virtual model of the cutting device is established, and a kinematic analysis of the cutting process is performed to accurately determine the cutting trajectory curve and the mathematical model of the cutting rate. The single-factor test and quadratic regression orthogonal combination test are designed to investigate the influence of the test factors, including crank length, crank rotation speed, and forward speed on the repeated-cutting rate and the miss-cutting rate. Comprehensively considering the stability and reliability of cutting, power consumption, device design, and processing difficulty, the optimal operating parameters of the cutting device are obtained as crank length 19 mm, crank rotation speed 650 r/min, and forward speed 0.5 km/h. On this basis, the fitted regression equations of the repeated-cutting rate and the miss-cutting rate are established, the miss-cutting rate and the repeated-cutting rate under the optimal parameters are 1.519% and 28.503%, and the corresponding errors with the simulation values are obtained as 11.36% and −0.45%, respectively, which verified the validity of the fitted regression equations. In the present investigation, the motion behavior of the single-blade cutting device is methodically examined for the first time, and the cutting motion rules of the cutter are illustrated. The research results aim to provide a fairly solid theoretical basis and practical reference for the optimization design of the in-soil cutting device of GLVs’ orderly harvester.