Abstract: A transplanting machine has a frame, a plowing implement, a conveyor operable to present seedlings in a tray to picking mechanisms, a plurality of mechanical gates arranged to receive the seedlings, computerized circuitry adapted to analyze portions of pixelated images of seedlings, a channel array associated with the plurality of mechanical gates, an operating mechanism in the final planting gate adapted to gate each seedling arriving at the single position into the furrow, and a closing device adapted to close the furrow. The circuitry determines a status as suitable to plant, transmits the status to a controller that activates the mechanical gates in a sequential order, except for when the seedling is not suitable, in which circumstance that mechanical gate is skipped, such that in a next cycle two seedlings will be gated to the single position together, and one will be suitable to plant.

Abstract: A transplanting machine has a frame, a plowing implement, a conveyor operable to present seedlings in a tray to picking mechanisms, a plurality of mechanical gates arranged to receive the seedlings, computerized circuitry adapted to analyze portions of pixelated images of seedlings, a channel array associated with the plurality of mechanical gates, an operating mechanism in the final planting gate adapted to gate each seedling arriving at the single position into the furrow, and a closing device adapted to close the furrow. The circuitry determines a status as suitable to plant, transmits the status to a controller that activates the mechanical gates in a sequential order, except for when the seedling is not suitable, in which circumstance that mechanical gate is skipped, such that in a next cycle two seedlings will be gated to the single position together, and one will be suitable to plant.