AGRICULTURAL WORK MACHINE WITH A DRONE DEVICE

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a self-propelled agricultural machine with at least one drone device.

[0002] EP 3 068 208 B1 describes a system for recording environmental parameters in connection with agricultural machinery. The system comprises at least one unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), which has an energy storage unit and at least one receptacle for transporting at least one functional unit. Furthermore, the system comprises at least one takeoff and landing device for at least one UAV, which can be mounted on a ground vehicle. This device includes at least one first device designed for exchanging, charging, and / or refilling the energy storage unit of the UAV, and at least one second device with a magazine for temporarily holding functional units, designed for exchanging functional units on the UAV.An autonomous movement of the unmanned aerial vehicle relative to the ground vehicle can be controlled by means of at least one control device, whereby the recorded parameters can be wirelessly transmitted to the control device.

[0003] Furthermore, EP 3 068 208 B1 stipulates that parameters of the environment are primarily understood to be those characteristics that enable topographic reconnaissance, including the detection of obstacles such as people, animals or vehicles, or boundaries.

[0004] EP 3 414 982 A1 discloses a further self-propelled agricultural machine for harvesting a crop from an agricultural field, with at least one drone device for detecting obstacles in the agricultural field according to the preamble of claim 1.

[0005] The present invention is based on the objective of providing an improved or at least an alternative embodiment of a self-propelled agricultural machine with at least one drone device, whereby in particular a work-technically optimized cultivation of an agricultural field by means of the self-propelled agricultural machine is made possible.

[0006] This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of independent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

[0007] The present invention is based on the general idea that an obstacle in the agricultural field is marked by means of the drone device.

[0008] The self-propelled agricultural machine according to the invention can be configured as a self-propelled combine harvester or as a self-propelled forage harvester for harvesting crops from an agricultural field. Furthermore, the self-propelled agricultural machine according to the invention comprises at least one drone device for detecting obstacles in the agricultural field.

[0009] The drone device can be designed as an autonomously flying drone device and / or as an autonomously flying unmanned aerial vehicle. This allows the drone device to be positioned relative to and / or in relation to the self-propelled agricultural machine without further human intervention or control.

[0010] The obstacles in the agricultural field that can be detected by the drone device can be living beings, in particular humans and / or animals. Alternatively or additionally, the obstacles can be objects that cause damage to the self-propelled agricultural machine and / or impair the quality of the harvested crop. In other words, the drone device can be designed and / or programmed to detect, in particular non-contact, such obstacles.

[0011] The drone device is designed and / or programmed to position itself above a detected obstacle. In doing so, the drone device can position itself above a detected obstacle, particularly with respect to the direction of gravity, such that at least part of the detected obstacle lies below the drone device. In other words, the drone device remains stationary above the detected and / or found obstacle.

[0012] The advantage of the invention is particularly evident in the fact that obstacles can be detected in time, so that the self-propelled agricultural machine is not contaminated and / or damaged by obstacles.

[0013] A particular advantage of the invention is that obstacles in the form of living beings are detected in time, so that these beings are neither seriously injured nor killed. Thus, the invention prevents incidents in which animal carcasses end up in a farmer's feed silo. In the worst case, such carcasses can contaminate the feed in the silo with Clostridia, and if the animals consume the contaminated feed, it can lead to fatal botulism. The loss of several animals due to contaminated feed is very detrimental to the farmer and often leads to the unavoidable destruction of the entire silo stock. These disadvantages regarding the silo stock are avoided by the invention.

[0014] By using the self-propelled agricultural machine according to the invention with the associated drone device, obstacles can be detected in time without requiring, in addition to the driver of the self-propelled agricultural machine, further groups of people with dogs and / or with human-controlled or non-autonomous drone devices for detecting obstacles in the form of living beings. In other words, the harvest is optimized in terms of timing, crop quality, and the safety of living beings in the agricultural field by means of the self-propelled agricultural machine according to the invention.

[0015] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the drone device is designed and / or programmed to detect an obstacle in the form of a living being and to position itself above this detected living being. This enables the driver of the self-propelled agricultural machine to immediately locate the living being detected by the drone device in the agricultural field without significant search effort, or to determine the position of the detected living being relative to the self-propelled agricultural machine, since the drone device has positioned itself above the detected living being, so that the detected living being is below the drone device.

[0016] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the drone device is designed and / or programmed to maintain its position above the detected organism when the organism moves within the agricultural field. This has the advantage of allowing the operator of the self-propelled agricultural machine to easily and quickly determine the position of the organism at all times without significant search effort. Furthermore, the drone device may be designed and / or programmed to avoid collisions with the self-propelled agricultural machine when tracking the organism, for example, if the organism moves uncontrollably into an area that is too close to the machine.

[0017] In an advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the drone device comprises at least one camera device for detecting obstacles, in particular living beings, in the agricultural field. The drone device may have one or more camera devices. The drone device may be designed such that, in flight mode, the at least one camera device for detecting obstacles is oriented and / or positioned towards the agricultural field in such a way that it captures image data relating to the agricultural field, in particular the agricultural field below the drone device.

[0018] In an advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the drone device is designed and / or programmed to generate an acoustic and / or visual warning signal while positioned above the detected obstacle, in particular the detected living being. The acoustic and / or visual warning signal can be configured such that the driver of the self-propelled agricultural machine can detect it. The drone device can include an acoustic device for generating the acoustic warning signal and / or a light device for generating the visual warning signal.Alternatively or additionally, the drone device can be trained and / or programmed to initiate an acoustic and / or visual warning signal inside the driver's cab of the self-propelled agricultural machine. For this purpose, the self-propelled agricultural machine can have an acoustic device to generate the acoustic warning signal and / or a light device to generate the visual warning signal.

[0019] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the agricultural machine comprises at least one control device for controlling and / or regulating the agricultural machine and / or components thereof. Furthermore, the drone device comprises at least one drone control device for controlling and / or regulating the drone device and / or components thereof.

[0020] Preferably, the term "control device" and / or drone control device can refer to an electronic circuit (e.g., with microprocessor(s) and data storage(s)) and / or a mechanical control system that, depending on its design, can perform and / or execute control and / or regulation tasks. Although the term "control" is used here, it can also appropriately encompass "regulation" or "control with feedback."

[0021] The control device of the agricultural machinery and the drone control device of the drone unit are interconnected.

[0022] A communicating connection, as used here, can be understood to mean a data connection, in particular a bidirectional or unidirectional data connection, between two interconnected components, enabling the transmission of electrical signals, especially control signals, regulation signals, and / or measurement signals, in analog and / or digital form. Furthermore, these interconnected components can establish a wireless data connection and / or a wireless communication connection for data transmission. The wireless data connection and / or wireless communication connection for data transmission can be a WLAN connection, in particular with a range of up to 50 m, and / or a radio connection, in particular with a range of up to 2000 m.

[0023] In an advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the drone control device is communicatively connected to a positioning device for determining the drone's position data relative to the agricultural field. The positioning device can be a Global Positioning System and / or a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). The control device of the agricultural machinery can also be communicatively connected to the positioning device for determining the machinery's position data relative to the agricultural field.

[0024] The drone's control unit is designed and / or programmed to transmit the drone's position data, determined by the positioning device, to the control unit of the agricultural machine when the drone is positioned above the detected obstacle, particularly the detected living being. This informs the control unit of the agricultural machine of the position of the detected obstacle. The control unit of the agricultural machine may be designed and / or programmed to determine the distance between the agricultural machine and the detected obstacle based on the agricultural machine's position data and the position of the detected obstacle transmitted by the drone.Depending on the determined distance between the agricultural machine and the detected obstacle, the control device of the agricultural machine may be designed and / or programmed to slow down the agricultural machine, in particular to stop it, and / or to cause a change in the route of the agricultural machine.

[0025] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, it is provided that the control device of the agricultural machine is designed and / or programmed to transmit route data relating to a route of the agricultural machine to the drone control device of the drone device, wherein the drone control device of the drone device is designed and / or programmed to control and / or steer the drone device based on the route data along the route of the agricultural machine in such a way that the drone device flies the route based on the route data before the agricultural machine flies this route, wherein the flying of the route based on the route data is interrupted when the drone device positions itself above the detected obstacle, in particular the living being.This allows the drone device to be used to mark the position of the detected obstacle.

[0026] The route data, particularly in the form of GPS and / or GNSS data, can also include the area of ​​the agricultural field being worked by the self-propelled agricultural machine. This allows a workspace limited by the agricultural field to be defined for the drone, which it then uses to check for obstacles. This route data can specify at least one direction of travel and / or multiple directions of travel for the self-propelled agricultural machine and / or turning strategies and / or turning areas. Furthermore, the drone can be designed and / or programmed to monitor the agricultural field for obstacles based on this route data and at a defined distance, particularly a minimum distance, from the self-propelled agricultural machine.

[0027] The field area is transmitted to the drone beforehand via GPS data to define a defined working space. The direction of travel and turning strategy are also specified to ensure the drone flies a short distance ahead of the harvester.

[0028] In an advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, a camera device for detecting obstacles, particularly living beings, is an infrared camera and / or a thermal imaging camera. Alternatively or additionally, a camera device for detecting obstacles, particularly living beings, can be designed as a color recognition device. Such a color recognition device can, for example, be a camera device designed and / or programmed to capture and / or measure a color spectrum. Here, brownish colors can be assigned to obstacles, while greenish colors can be assigned to the crop to be harvested in the agricultural field.

[0029] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, at least one camera device is designed and / or programmed to detect the crop to be harvested in the agricultural field until the drone device is positioned above a detected obstacle, in particular a detected living being. The camera device can, for example, generate and evaluate image data relating to the condition of the crop in the field. Using NIR constituent data and image material from the camera device, results values ​​for constituents can be generated, in particular by means of neural networks. Mapping of the acquired information can be provided. This allows image data collected incidentally during the drone's flight over the field to be used to examine the crop in the field with regard to constituents and / or moisture.This incidentally collected information can be provided and / or displayed to the driver, for example, on a terminal inside the self-propelled agricultural machine and / or on a terminal outside the self-propelled agricultural machine.

[0030] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the control device of the agricultural machine generates a warning signal, in particular a visual and / or acoustic warning signal, within the driver's cab of the agricultural machine, based on the position data of the drone device received from the drone control device. This allows the driver of the self-propelled agricultural machine to be additionally alerted to an obstacle. A visual warning signal can be a light signal.

[0031] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the control device of the agricultural machine initiates a route change of the agricultural machine to avoid the detected obstacle, based on the position data of the drone device received from the drone control device. It can be provided that the self-propelled agricultural machine is controlled and / or regulated by the evasive route change in such a way that the agricultural machine avoids a collision with the detected obstacle.

[0032] In an advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the drone device is designed and / or programmed to assume a flight altitude relative to the detected obstacle when it has positioned itself above the detected obstacle. This flight altitude is selected such that a driver located in the agricultural machine, particularly in the driver's cab, can visually detect the drone device. This flight altitude of the drone device may be less than or equal to the maximum height of the self-propelled agricultural machine. This allows the driver to remain in the cab, for example, to detect and / or perceive a visual warning signal from the drone device.

[0033] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the agricultural machine has at least one drone station for the drone device, and / or the drone device is designed and / or programmed to initially move away from the agricultural machine and / or subsequently maintain a constant distance from the agricultural machine until an obstacle is detected. The drone station can be designed and / or programmed to exchange, charge, and / or replenish an energy storage unit, in particular a battery, of the drone device.

[0034] The drone device can be designed and / or programmed in such a way that the drone device achieves a flight time of 15-20 minutes and / or a total weight of less than 500g and / or a flight range of 2 km and / or a flight speed of up to 25 km / h.

[0035] Further important features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the dependent claims.

[0036] Preferred embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawing and are explained in more detail in the following description, wherein identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar or functionally identical components.

[0037] The Fig. 1 Figure 1 schematically and exemplarily shows the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 according to the invention for harvesting a crop 4 from an agricultural field 3, wherein the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 is exemplarily configured as a self-propelled combine harvester 2. This self-propelled agricultural machine 1 has a drone device 5 for detecting obstacles 9 in the agricultural field 3.

[0038] The drone device 5 is designed as an autonomously flying unmanned aerial vehicle. This allows the drone device 5 to be positioned relative to and / or in relation to the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 without further human intervention or control.

[0039] The obstacle 9 in agricultural field 3, which was detected by the drone device 5, is, for example, an animal 10. The drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed for the contactless detection of this obstacle 9 in the form of an animal 10. As described in the Fig. 1 As indicated, the drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed to position itself above a detected obstacle 9. In doing so, the drone device 5 can position itself above the detected obstacle 9, particularly with respect to the direction of gravity 21, such that at least part of the detected obstacle 9 lies below the drone device 5. In other words, the drone device 5 remains above the detected and / or found obstacle 9.

[0040] An advantage of the invention is particularly evident in the fact that the obstacles 9 in the form of living beings 10 are recognized in time, so that such a living being 10 is neither seriously injured nor killed.

[0041] By using the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 according to the invention with the associated drone device 5, obstacles 9 are detected in time without requiring, in addition to a driver 17 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1, further groups of people with dogs and / or with human-controlled or non-autonomous drone devices for detecting obstacles 9 in the form of living beings 10. In other words, the harvest is optimized in terms of timing, the quality of the harvested crop, and the safety of the living beings 10 in the agricultural field 3 by means of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 according to the invention.

[0042] The drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed to maintain its position above the detected organism 10 as the organism 10 moves within the agricultural field 3. This has the advantage of allowing the operator 17 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 to easily and quickly determine the position of the organism 10 at all times without significant search effort. Furthermore, the drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed to prevent collisions with the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 when tracking the organism 5, for example, if the organism 5 moves uncontrollably into an area that is too close to the machine.

[0043] The drone device 5 has at least one camera device 20 for detecting obstacles 9, in particular living beings 10, in the agricultural field 4. The drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed to generate an acoustic and / or visual warning signal while the drone device 5 is positioned above the detected obstacle 9, in particular the detected living being 10. The driver 17 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 can detect this acoustic and / or visual warning signal.

[0044] The agricultural machine 1 has at least one control device 7 for controlling and / or regulating the agricultural machine 1 and / or components of the agricultural machine 1. Furthermore, the drone device 5 has at least one drone control device 19 for controlling and / or regulating the drone device 5 and / or components of the drone device. The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 and the drone control device 19 of the drone device 5 are interconnected via a wireless communication link 14. The wireless communication link 14 for data transmission can be configured as a WLAN connection and / or as a radio connection.

[0045] The drone control device 19 is connected to a positioning device 8 via a wireless communication link 15 for determining position data of the drone device 5 with respect to the agricultural field 4. The positioning device 8 can be a Global Positioning System and / or a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 is also connected to the positioning device 8 via a wireless communication link 16 for determining position data of the agricultural machine 1 with respect to the agricultural field 3.

[0046] The drone control device 19 of the drone device 5 is designed and / or programmed to transmit the position data of the drone device 5 with respect to the agricultural field 3, determined by the position determination device 8, to the control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 when the drone device 5 is positioned above the detected obstacle 9, in particular above the detected living being 10. That is, in the case described in the Fig. 1This is indicated. This informs the control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 regarding the position of the detected obstacle 9. The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 can be designed and / or programmed to determine the distance between the agricultural machine 1 and the detected obstacle 9 based on position data of the agricultural machine 1 and the position of the detected obstacle 9 transmitted by the drone device 5.Depending on the determined distance between the agricultural machine 1 and the detected obstacle 9, the control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 can be designed and / or programmed to slow down the agricultural machine 1, in particular to stop it, and / or to change the route of the agricultural machine 1 in order to bypass the obstacle 9. This ensures, for example, that a working unit 12, in particular a cutting unit 13, of the agricultural machine 1 does not contact, injure, or kill the obstacle 9 or living being 10.

[0047] The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 is configured and / or programmed to transmit route data relating to a route of the agricultural machine 1 to the drone control device 19 of the drone device 5, wherein the drone control device 19 of the drone device 5 is configured and / or programmed to control and / or steer the drone device 5 along the route of the agricultural machine 1 based on the route data such that the drone device 5 flies the route based on the route data before the agricultural machine 1 flies this route, wherein the flight of the route based on the route data is interrupted when the drone device 5 positions itself above the detected obstacle 9, in particular the living being 10. In doing so, the drone device 5 marks the position of the detected obstacle 9.

[0048] The route data, particularly in the form of GPS and / or GNSS data, can also include the area of ​​the agricultural field 3 being cultivated by the self-propelled agricultural machine 1. This allows a working area limited in relation to the agricultural field 3 to be defined for the drone device 5, which the drone device 5 checks for obstacles 9. This route data can specify at least one direction of travel 11 and / or several directions of travel 11 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 and / or turning strategies and / or turning areas. Furthermore, the drone device 5 can be designed and / or programmed to monitor the agricultural field 3 for obstacles 9 based on this route data and at a defined distance, in particular a minimum distance, from the self-propelled agricultural machine 1.

[0049] The area of ​​field 3 is transmitted to the drone device 5 in advance via GPS data to define a limited working space. The direction of travel and turning strategy are also specified to ensure that the drone always flies a short distance ahead of the harvesting machine.

[0050] The camera device 20 for detecting obstacles 9, in particular living beings 10, can be configured as an infrared camera and / or a thermal imaging camera. Alternatively or additionally, a camera device 20 can be configured as a color recognition device. Such a color recognition device can, for example, be a camera device 20 for detecting and / or measuring a color spectrum. In this case, brownish colors can be assigned to obstacles 9, 10, while greenish colors can be assigned to the crop 4 to be harvested from the agricultural field 3.

[0051] The at least one camera device 20 is designed and / or programmed to detect the crop 4 to be harvested in the agricultural field 3 until the drone device 5 is positioned above a detected obstacle 9, in particular a detected living being 10. During this process, the camera device 5 can, for example, generate and evaluate image data relating to the condition of the crop in the field 3. This allows image data collected incidentally during the drone's flight over the field 3 to be used to examine the crop in the field 3 with regard to its composition and / or moisture content. This incidentally collected information can be provided and / or displayed to the driver 17, for example, on a terminal inside the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 and / or on a terminal outside the self-propelled agricultural machine 1.

[0052] The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 can generate a warning signal, in particular a visual and / or acoustic warning signal, inside the driver's cab 23 of the agricultural machine 1, based on the position data of the drone device 5 received from the drone control device 19. This allows the driver 17 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 to be additionally alerted to the obstacle 9.

[0053] The control device 7 of the agricultural machine 1 can initiate a route change of the agricultural machine 1 to avoid the detected obstacle 9, based on the position data of the drone device 5 received from the drone control device 19. It may be designed so that the self-propelled agricultural machine 1 is controlled and / or regulated by the evasive route change in such a way that the agricultural machine 1 avoids a collision with the detected obstacle 9.

[0054] The drone device 5 can be designed and / or programmed to assume a flight altitude 18 relative to the detected obstacle 9 when the drone device 5 is positioned above the detected obstacle 9, wherein the flight altitude 18 relative to the detected obstacle 9 is selected such that a driver 17, who is located in the agricultural machine 1, in particular in the driver's cab 23, can visually detect the drone device 5. It can be provided that this flight altitude 18 of the drone device 5 is less than and / or equal to a maximum point 22 of the self-propelled agricultural machine 1. This allows the driver 17 to remain in the driver's cab 23, for example, to detect and / or perceive a visual warning signal from the drone device 5.

[0055] In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the agricultural machine 1 has at least one drone station 6 for the drone device 5. The drone station 6 can be designed and / or programmed to supply power to the drone device 5. The drone station 6 can be designed and / or arranged on a roof section and / or a hood section and / or a similar exposed position on the self-propelled agricultural machine 1. The drone device 5 is capable of autonomously carrying out overflights of the field 3 to be cultivated by the agricultural machine 1 at regular intervals.The drone device 5 can be trained and / or programmed to initially distance itself from the agricultural machine 1 and subsequently maintain a constant distance from the agricultural machine 1 until an obstacle 9 is detected. Reference symbol list

[0056] 1 Self-propelled agricultural machine 2 Combine harvester 3 Agricultural field 4 Crop to be harvested 5 Drone device 6 Drone station 7 Control device 8 Positioning device 9 Obstacle 10 Living being 11 Direction of travel 12 Working unit 13 Cutting unit 14 Wireless communication link 15 Wireless communication link 16 Wireless communication link 17 Driver 18 Flight altitude 19 Drone control device 20 Camera device 21 Direction of gravity 22 Maximum highest point of the self-propelled agricultural machine 23 Driver's cab

Claims

1. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1), in particular a combine harvester (2) or a forage harvester, for harvesting a crop (4) of an agricultural field (3), - having at least one drone device (5) for detecting obstacles (9) in the agricultural field (3), characterized - in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to position itself above a detected obstacle (9) and to remain above the detected obstacle (9).

2. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to detect an obstacle (9) in the form of a living being (10) and to position itself above this detected living being (10).

3. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to Claim 2, characterized in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to maintain the position above the detected living being (10) if the detected living being (10) moves on the agricultural field (3).

4. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the drone device (5) has at least one camera device (20) for detecting obstacles (9), in particular living beings (10), in the agricultural field (3).

5. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to generate an acoustic warning signal and / or an optical warning signal, while the drone device (5) is positioned above the detected obstacle (9), in particular the detected living being (10).

6. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized - in that the agricultural work machine (1, 2) has at least one control device (7) for controlling and / or regulating the agricultural work machine (1, 2), - wherein the drone device (5) has at least one drone control device (19) for controlling and / or regulating the drone device (5), - wherein the control device (7) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) and the drone control device (19) of the drone device (5) are communicatively connected to one another.

7. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to Claim 6, characterized - in that the drone control device (19) is communicatively connected to a position determination device (8) for the purpose of determining position data relating to the drone device (5) with respect to the agricultural field (3), - wherein the drone control device (19) of the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to transmit the position data relating to the drone device (5) with respect to the agricultural field (3), as determined with the position determination device (8), to the control device (7) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2), if the drone device (5) is positioned above the detected obstacle (9), in particular above the detected living being (10).

8. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to Claim 6 or 7, characterized - in that the control device (7) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) is designed and / or programmed to transmit route data relating to a route of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) to the drone control device (19) of the drone device (5), - wherein the drone control device (19) of the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to control the drone device (5) along the route of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) on the basis of the route data in such a way that the drone device (5) flies along the route based on the route data before the agricultural work machine (1, 2) travels along this route, wherein the flying along the route based on the route data is interrupted when the drone device (5) is positioned above the detected obstacle (9), in particular the living being (10).

9. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to Claim 4, characterized - in that a camera device (20) for detecting obstacles (9), in particular living beings (10), is an infrared camera, and / or - in that a camera device (20) for detecting obstacles (9), in particular living beings (10), is a colour recognition device.

10. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to either of Claims 4 and 9, characterized in that at least one camera device (20) is designed and / or programmed to detect the crop (4) to be harvested in the agricultural field (3) until the drone device (5) is positioned above a detected obstacle (9), in particular a detected living being (10).

11. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to either of Claims 7 and 8, characterized in that the control device (7) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) generates a warning signal within a driver's cab (23) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) on the basis of the position data relating to the drone device (5) which are received from the drone control device (19).

12. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of Claims 7, 8 and 11, characterized in that the control device (7) of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) initiates a route change of the route of the agricultural work machine (1, 2) that avoids the detected obstacle (9) on the basis of the position data relating to the drone device (5) which are received from the drone control device (19).

13. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized - in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to assume an altitude (18) with respect to the detected obstacle (9) when the drone device (5) has positioned itself above the detected obstacle (9), - wherein the altitude (18) with respect to the detected obstacle (9) is selected such that a driver (17) located in the agricultural work machine (1, 2) can optically detect the drone device (5).

14. Self-propelled agricultural work machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized - in that the agricultural work machine (1, 2) has at least one drone station (6) for the drone device (5), and / or - in that the drone device (5) is designed and / or programmed to initially be spaced apart from the agricultural work machine (1, 2) and / or to subsequently assume a constant spacing from the agricultural work machine (1, 2) until an obstacle (9) is detected.