Engineering Commons^™

Evaluating Strength & Energy Requirements For Workers Picking Vegetables, R. A. Cavaletto, J. Miles, J. Meyers, J. Mehlschau

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The paper discusses the need to obtain field data to evaluate the strength and energy requirements for workers picking a variety of vegetables. This information is central to the evaluation of hazards related to repetitive motion, excessive stress, and fatigue. Results can be used to select activities which should be targeted for future engineering design projects. Preliminary data from a commercial broccoli harvesting operation is included.

Gis Utilization For Analysis Of District Drainage Water Recycling, Charles M. Burt, Robert E. Walker

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

An ARC-INFO GIS system was used to identify physical drainage facilities in a 32,000 ha area of the San Joaquin Valley of California. Once the drainage facilities and linkages were established, it was possible to characterize the strategies used by various irrigation districts to control drainage outflows to the San Joaquin River. The motivation behind the study was the reduction of salt and selenium flows, via agricultural drainage, into the River.

Cal Poly Model Canal, John B. Parrish, Iii, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The Cal Poly Model Canal, located at the Water Delivery Facility. Irrigation Training and Research Center, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Calif., was built to accommodate the study and promotion of automated downstream control. Being a large, fully functional scale model of a canal, it was used to collect data for use by the Irrigation Canal System Hydraulic Modeling Task Committee of the ASCE Irrigation and Drainage Division. The data was used by Task Committee members to help evaluate numerical models for simulation of unsteady free-surface flow. The Model Canal and the collected data are discussed. This paper …

Irrigation-Canal - Simulation Model Usage, Charles M. Burt, Gregory Gartrell

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Unsteady canal-simulation model usage requires serious investments of time and personnel. The reasons for deciding to invest in a model, as well as reasons not to invest, are discussed. For most cases, it is better to invest in the improvement of an existing model than the writing of a new model. Many excellent models are available, although very few can be considered user-friendly for the average design engineer. Unsteady flow-simulation models are not recommended for real-time control, but are key tools for the study of various control scenarios. Canal models can simulate an actual canal, but the user must input …

Irrigation Methods For Drainage Reduction Subsurface Drip Vs. Furrow Irrigation, J.. D. Oster, R. B. Smith, C. Phene, A. Fulton, S. W. Styles, T. Fernandes

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

No abstract provided.

Broad-Crested Weir Application On 15,000-Acre Farm, Stuart W. Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Growers in California have been subjected to increasing pressure to account for water used on the farm due to limited water supplies and increasing energy costs. Water measurement capability provides for equitable distribution of assigned costs and enables effective water management to be accomplished. Broad-crested weirs are proven water measurement devices, especially when applied to on-farm applications. The broad-crested weirs and published data were developed by the USDA Agricultural Research Service in Phoenix, Arizona. This paper is a discussion of an application of these weirs.

Tailwater Recovery Demonstration Program Study, Doug Welch, Tim O'Halloran, Stuart Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

No abstract provided.

Spray Drift Reduction With Shrouded Boom Sprayers, Ronald J. Fehringer, Richard Cavaletto

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Downwind drift was measured from a standard boom sprayer and a shrouded boom sprayer. Using 8002 flat fan nozzles, the hooded sprayer provided a 180 to 275% reduction in drift. The effectiveness of the shroud is dependent upon the spray droplet spectrum.

Irrigation District Canal Automation - Cardd, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The first rule regarding irrigation district canal automation is that there is no single "best" method of automations. The locations of buffer reservoirs, the ability to allow water to spill at the ends of canals, the storage capacity of canal pools, and the topography will also play key roles in deciding if automation is desirable, and what type of automation should be used. These typical engineering considerations must also be coupled with recognition of the limitations and abilities of irrigation district staff regarding maintenance and trouble shooting of sophisticated controls.

Canal Control Training, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

When compared to other industrial processes, irrigation processes are poorly controlled. Due to the unpredictable and uncontrollable nature of many present aspects of irrigation, a high degree of non-transferrability, or "art", is associated with irrigation. The Irrigation Training and Research Center (ITRC) at Cal Poly is dedicated to finding a retirement home for "Art". T

There is a great potential for excellent on-farm irrigation water management. Many tools (center pivots, linear moves, surge irrigation, drip, laser land grading, to name a few) exist to enable farmers to distribute water evenly across their fields. Other tools (computerized irrigation scheduling programs, automated …

Water Seepage From Unlined Ditches And Reservoirs, Nigel W.T. Quinn, Richard B. Smith, Charles M. Burt, Tracy S. Slavin, Stuart W. Styles, Amir Mansoubi

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Seepage losses in the San Joaquin Valley's Westlands Water Districts were estimated at 27,000 acre-feet a year, or about 2% of the district's water supply. Ditch configuration and construction techniques appear to influence seepage rates.

Guarding Against Machine Hazards, R. A. Cavaletto

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Successful guarding strategies requires knowledge of machine functions, the physical and psychological characteristics of man, and the their interactions. Machine hazards are identified along with recognized guarding methods. Material is included that could be used to teach this subject (case study, prob!em set, glossary}.

Evaluation Of Two Models For Light Transmission In Biological Materials, R. A. Cavaletto, S. Upadhyaya, M. O'Brien, T. Cahill

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Two light transmission models for biological materials are developed and evaluated. The energy balance model showed promise. It's developed as a 3 coefficient model permitting varied sample absorption and scattering properties. The second model performed unsatisfactorily.

Evaluation Of Micro Irrigation Systems, Charles M. Burt, Robert E. Walker, Stuart W. Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

No abstract provided.

A Light Transmission Model For Biological Materials, R. A. Cavaletto, Shrinivasa Upadhyaya, Michael O'Brien

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This paper describes a model to predict light transmission in biological materials. The model can be used for any shaped sample. Scattering and absorption coefficients are used in the model and may be varied throughout the sample, thus allowing both uniformly distributed and concentrated defects to be modelled.

Guarding Of Table Saws With Light Beams: The Light Guard Concept, R. A. Cavaletto, M. S. Kaminaka, C. M. Zahner

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

This paper describes a unique type of psychological safety guard for hazardous tools such as table saws, presses. and other tools with areas and components which are dangerous to human fingers, hands, and limbs. It is not a piece of hardware but rather a shalt of light which defines a danger zone around the saw blade or cutting area.

Method For Stemming Tomatoes, Henry F. Studer, R. A. Cavaletto, Gene Giacomelli

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Method and apparatus for de-stemming picked tomatoes. Each tomato is introduced into the upper end of a generally vertically disposed, open-ended, resilient, open-mesh fabric tube, a substantial portion of which approximates but is larger than the diameter of the tomato. The stem penetrates into and through the open mesh at some point, the open areas being somewhat larger than the stem, while the tomato continues to fall, thereby exerting a bending moment on the stem that snaps the stem from the fruit. The tomato, free from its stem, is discharged from a lower end of the tube.