Introduction: In developing countries, since most farmers have small plots of land, they are unable to afford expensive machinery for cultivating vegetables, so they use the manual method. In this method, on average, each worker works for about 8 to 9 hours a day. This activity causes physical fatigue, reduces work accuracy, and uneven distribution of seedlings across the field. On the other hand, during peak work, due to the high demand for human resources, there is usually a shortage of human resources. This shortage of manpower during the planting season affects the right time and the final yield of the cropTransplanting machine is used to increase productivity, uniform distribution, precision in planting, save time, and timely planting. A review of the resources of the last few years in the special planting of seedlings has given automatic feeding with determinate pot seedlings, reducing manpower, increasing the final yield and increasing the carrying capacity at the same time, and as a result, it also helps to improve the performance of semi-auto games better and also helps to improve the performance of semi-autos, reducing human intervention, and on the other hand, seedlings grown in paper pots, to mechanize the transplanting operation by improving the quality of the pot in the soil and helping to meet the conditions. Growth and organic matter in the soil are a better option. Therefore, this research aimed to develop, design and evaluate a smart seedling planting device in small farms to identify the speed of the advance operation using seedlings grown in paper pots.

Materials and Methods: In this study, the physical and mechanical properties of two biodegradable pot models, an incomplete cone and a square pyramid, were evaluated for use in a transplanter in a pressure test device. According to the field data of tomato planting methods, a model with suitable dimensions for small farms was first designed using SolidWorks engineering software. Then, to build the transplanter, its frame was first built. Considering the dimensions of the device, a potting tractor model with a nominal power of 45 horsepower was used to provide driving forces due to its appropriate maneuverability in a small space and greenhouse. In this device, a furrow opener with adjustable height for working at different depths was installed at the beginning of the device. A finger covering system, soil leveler, and two-disc coverings were used to properly position the pot in the created furrow. To transfer the pots in this device to the drop tube, a turntable with a stepper motor was used to transport them at different rotational speeds, an electronic circuit to control its rotational speed, and two infrared sensors to detect and count the pots. Then, for its field evaluation, two factors, the advancing speed at three levels (0.7, 1.5, and 2.5) and the type of seedling at two levels (4 and 6 leaves) were studied in a completely randomized factorial design with three replications. The aim of designing this transplanting device is to use biodegradable pots to develop sustainable agriculture and reduce physical damage to roots during planting.

Results and Discussion: The results of this study showed that the most suitable incomplete cone pot that withstands the highest force in the pressure test was used as the most suitable pot for use in the transplanter. Then, to eliminate lateral forces on the movement of the pot in the drop tube, a diagonal position in the opposite direction of movement was used. The results of the analysis of the measured data showed that the effect of the forward speed on the parameters of the percentage of uniformity of the distribution of seedlings, the percentage of changes in the planting depth, the percentage of plant deviation from the row and the percentage of physical damage was significant at the 1% level, and its effect on the parameters of the percentage of multiple planting and non-planting, acceptable and unacceptable planting was significant at the 5% level. Also, the effect of the seedling type factor on the parameters of the percentage of seedling mortality after planting and plant deviation from the row were significant at the 1% and 5% levels, respectively. The interaction effect of the factors was not significant on any of the measured parameters. Comparison of the average effects of the measured factors at the three levels of forward speed and two types of seedlings showed that all factors had equal effects at the two speed levels of 0.75 and 1.5 km/h, except for the factor of the percentage of uniformity of seedling distribution (with an average of 89.36%) at the speed of 1.5 km/h and the mortality of seedlings after planting at four leaves (with an average of 22.33%).

Conclusion: Considering the physical characteristics of the biodegradable pot, the incomplete cone model was selected for use in the device. The best performance of the transplanter device at three levels of forward speed and two types of transplanting was achieved at a forward speed of 1.5 km/h and 6 leaves with the lowest percentage of plant deviation from the row, physical damage, multiple planting and non-planting, percentage of unacceptable planting, percentage of depth changes, and with the highest percentage of acceptable planting and uniform distribution.