A Victorian inventor is working to add efficiency to bulk grain container loading with a cost effective mobile system.
Designed to eliminate the need for fixed infrastructure, the Mantis container loader has been in development for the past nine years and allows containers to be packed on-site at grain bunkers, sheds or large silo sites.
While containers need to be inverted on fixed equipment to allow end filling, the Mantis uses a front mounted auger to enter the container on-truck, or on the ground, to begin packing.
The automated system measures grain pressure as the container is loaded and creeps the loader backwards.
The machine can also travel at slow speeds around loading sites which restricts the need to move the grain to the loader.
The front auger is fitted with a quick-hitch mechanism and is carried on the machine when it is transported between sites on a low loader.
Gee & Cee FCL’s Gavin Barnett said the Mantis was now in a second prototype phase with the first machine having packed about 10,000 containers to date.
“This second prototype has packed about 3000 tonnes in trials and we have been achieving six containers an hour,” Mr Barnett said.
Those numbers compare favourably with fixed single container inverter systems but come with the added efficiency of not needing to move grain.
“It gives packing flexibility and removes a lot of the logistics costs,” Mr Barnett said.
“Grain straight out of the bunker into the container is a lot more efficient than double or triple moving product to get it into a container.”
The bulk bin can be fed by a loader or auger and is fitted with load cells and a product sample probe.
The calibrated load cells means containers are loaded within about 100 kilograms of limits, Mr Barnett said.
“That's good enough for mass management issues, but we'd like to get it certified so we can print a weight ticket in the cabin which means drivers don't have to find a weighbridge.”
A protein and moisture testing system is on the cards to provide product and loading data direct to the client and grain loading team.
“That would give us a one-stop shop so we could send all the appropriate information and data straight to the client to complete the loop.”
The Mantis is targeted at grain receival sites, but could fit a contracting model, bigger growers or farmer groups,” Mr Barnett said.
“This machine is available on contract basis and if you had a cluster of farmers with one of their sites AQIS registered, you could use it on-farm,” he said.
A fire suppression system, CCTV and UHF radios, together with a mesh screened bin and automated bin cleaning, helps address site safety requirements.
