Method and apparatus for setting up movement between multiple work areas by work vehicles.

Abstract

This system makes it easy to perform various settings for work vehicles that operate autonomously between multiple work areas. [Solution] A method for setting the movement of a work vehicle that automatically travels between multiple work areas between the multiple work areas includes: displaying a first setting screen on the display for the user to input information about the work to be performed by the work vehicle; displaying a second setting screen on the display for the user to select a first work area from which to move and a second work area to which to move from among the multiple work areas; and recording the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area selected on the second setting screen in a storage device in association with the information about the work selected on the first setting screen.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for setting movement between a plurality of work areas by a work vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] As next-generation agriculture, research and development of smart agriculture utilizing ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and IoT (Internet of Things) is underway. Research and development for the automation and unmanned operation of work vehicles such as tractors used in fields is also underway. For example, work vehicles that travel by automatic steering using a positioning system such as GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) capable of precise positioning have been put into practical use.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a work vehicle that can autonomously move between a plurality of tree rows by using SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) technology that simultaneously executes position estimation and map creation in an orchard such as a vineyard. Patent Document 1 describes that in an orchard, while the work vehicle travels between a plurality of tree rows, operations such as mowing and control are performed using a work implement (agricultural implement) connected to the work vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Automated work vehicles can typically be controlled to travel along a set work route within a work area, such as a field, while performing tasks with their implements. However, there are also cases where automated movement of work vehicles is required outside of the work area. For example, automating movement from one work area to another would improve convenience.

[0006] The present invention provides a system and apparatus that allows users to easily make various settings for a work vehicle that automatically travels between multiple work areas. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to embodiments of the present invention, the following solutions are provided.

[0008] [Item 1] A method performed by a computer that sets the movement of a work vehicle that automatically travels between multiple work areas between said multiple work areas, A first settings screen is displayed on the screen for the user to input information regarding the work performed by the aforementioned work vehicle, A second settings screen is displayed on the display to allow the user to select a first work area from which to move and a second work area to which to move from among the aforementioned multiple work areas. The inter-area path connecting the first work area and the second work area selected in the second setting screen is recorded in a storage device in association with the information regarding the work selected in the first setting screen, A method that includes this.

[0009] [Item 2] The second settings screen displays a map including the multiple work areas, The selection of the first work area and the second work area is performed by the user specifying the area representing the first work area and the area representing the second work area on the map. The method described in item 1.

[0010] [Item 3] After the first work area and the second work area are selected in the second settings screen, the process further includes generating the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area. The method described in item 1 or 2.

[0011] [Item 4] Generating the aforementioned inter-area routes is, The acquisition of location information of multiple points acquired by the positioning device while a work vehicle equipped with a positioning device is traveling from the first work area to the second work area by manual operation, The method according to item 3, comprising generating multiple waypoint data as inter-area routes based on location information of the multiple points.

[0012] [Item 5] The method according to item 4, further comprising displaying a message to the user prompting them to manually drive the work vehicle from the first work area to the second work area after the first work area and the second work area have been selected on the second setting screen.

[0013] [Item 6] The method according to any one of items 3 to 5, further comprising displaying a message on the second settings screen prompting the user to select a pair of work areas different from the pair of the first work area and the second work area in order to generate other inter-area routes after the generation of the inter-area routes has been completed.

[0014] [Item 7] When an inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area is already recorded in the storage device in association with information relating to the work, When information regarding the work is entered on the first settings screen and the first work area is selected on the second settings screen, On the second setting screen, display information indicating that the second work area has already been registered as a destination for moving from the first work area, and display one or more work areas other than the first work area and the second work area in a manner that allows selection as other destinations. The method according to any one of items 3 to 6, further comprising this.

[0015] [Item 8] Displaying the one or more work areas in a manner that allows selection as other destinations means The method according to item 7, comprising displaying the second work area in a first color and in a non-selectable manner, and displaying the one or more work areas in a second color different from the first color and in a selectable manner.

[0016] [Item 9] After a third work area is selected as the other destination, generate an inter-area path between other areas leading from the first work area to the third work area; Associate the inter-area path with the information related to the work, and the first work area and the third work area, and record it in the storage device; The method according to item 7 or 8, further comprising this.

[0017] [Item 10] The second setting screen has a user interface for setting the order of the plurality of work areas where the work is performed, Recording the inter-area path means The information related to the work input on the first setting screen, The information indicating the first work area and the second work area selected on the second setting screen, The information indicating the inter-area path Generate a work plan that defines the order of the plurality of work areas where the work is performed, including this, and record the work plan in the storage device. The method according to item 1 or 2.

[0018] [Item 11] One or more inter-area paths between the plurality of work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with information about the work, When work in the first work area is completed or interrupted, if one or more inter-area routes originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, the system further includes displaying one or more work areas that are the endpoints of the one or more inter-area routes in a manner that allows selection as the second work area. The method described in item 10.

[0019] [Item 12] One or more inter-area paths between the plurality of work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with information about the work, When information regarding the work is entered on the first setting screen and the first work area is selected on the second setting screen, and if one or more inter-area routes originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, the system further includes displaying one or more work areas that are the endpoints of the one or more inter-area routes in a manner that allows them to be selected as the second work area. The method described in item 10.

[0020] [Item 13] Displaying one or more work areas in a manner that allows them to be selected as the second work area includes displaying the one or more work areas in a different color from the other work areas, as described in item 11 or 12.

[0021] [Item 14] After the second work area is selected, the user is instructed to select one inter-area route from one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes connecting the first work area and the second work area. The selected inter-area route is determined to be the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area in the work plan, The method described in any of items 11 to 13, further including the method described in any of items 11 to 13.

[0022] [Item 15] Having the user select one of the aforementioned inter-area routes is, Display a list of one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes, Display a message prompting the user to select one inter-area route from the aforementioned list, The method described in item 14, including the method described in item 14.

[0023] [Item 16] The information relating to the work includes information relating to the type of work and / or the type of work equipment, The method of item 14 or 15, further comprising displaying a warning message if the selected inter-area route is associated with a different type of work and / or type of work equipment than the type of work and / or type of work equipment entered in the first setting screen.

[0024] [Item 17] One or more inter-area paths between the aforementioned multiple work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with the type of work machine, The first setting screen has a user interface for selecting the type of work machine, The system further includes displaying a warning message if the type of work machine associated with the selected inter-area route is a smaller model than the type of work machine selected on the first setting screen. The method described in item 14 or 16.

[0025] [Item 18] After the first work area, the second work area, and the route between the areas are selected, the user is instructed to select a third work area where work will be performed after the second work area. If one or more inter-area routes connecting the second work area and the third work area are pre-recorded in the storage device, the user is made to select one of the pre-recorded inter-area routes. The selected inter-area route is determined to be the inter-area route connecting the second work area and the third work area in the work plan, The method described in any of items 14 to 17, further including the method described in any of items 14 to 17.

[0026] [Item 19] When the user performs an operation to set the order of the multiple work areas in which the work is performed on the second setting screen, the estimated consumption of fuel or materials for the work vehicle is calculated, If the estimated consumption exceeds the standard amount of fuel or materials set for the work vehicle, a warning message will be displayed. The method described in any of items 10 to 18, further including the method described in any of items 10 to 18.

[0027] [Item 20] An apparatus comprising a computer configured or programmed to perform any of the methods described in items 1 through 19.

[0028] [Item 21] The device described in item 20, A positioning device that acquires location information of the aforementioned work vehicle, A work vehicle equipped with the following features.

[0029] [Item 22] A computer program that causes a computer to perform any of the methods described in items 1 through 19.

[0030] Comprehensive or specific embodiments of the present invention may be realized by apparatus, systems, methods, integrated circuits, computer programs, or computer-readable non-temporary storage media, or any combination thereof. Computer-readable storage media may include volatile storage media or non-volatile storage media. An apparatus may consist of multiple devices. If an apparatus consists of two or more devices, these two or more devices may be located in a single device or in two or more separate devices. [Effects of the Invention]

[0031] According to embodiments of the present invention, users can easily make various settings for a work vehicle that automatically travels between multiple work areas. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0032] [Figure 1] This is a schematic side view showing an example of a work vehicle in an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a schematic block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a work vehicle and work machine in an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3A] This block diagram shows a schematic configuration example of a driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3B] This is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control device in a driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5A] This figure schematically shows an example of a route traveled by a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention in recording mode. [Figure 5B] This figure schematically shows an example of a route traveled by a work vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention in regeneration mode. [Figure 6] This figure shows an example of waypoint data recorded in a storage device. [Figure 7] This flowchart shows an example of processing performed by the control unit in recording mode. [Figure 8] This flowchart shows how to configure the movement of a work vehicle between multiple work areas. [Figure 9A] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 9B] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 9C]This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 9D] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 10A] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 10B] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 10C] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 10D] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 11A] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 11B] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 11C] This is an example of a display screen shown on a user-operated terminal. [Figure 12A] This figure shows an example of the display screen that appears after the generation of inter-area routes is complete. [Figure 12B] This figure shows an example of a display screen for generating routes between other areas. [Figure 12C] This figure shows an example of a display screen for generating routes between other areas. [Figure 13] This flowchart shows an example of processing performed by the control unit in playback mode. [Figure 14] This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of processing performed by a control device. [Figure 15A] This figure shows an example of a display screen for starting the setting of a continuous work plan. [Figure 15B] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting the type of work. [Figure 15C] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting the type of work equipment. [Figure 15D] This figure shows an example of a display screen for setting the size of a work machine. [Figure 16A] This figure shows an example of a second settings screen that allows the user to select the first work area from which to move and the second work area to which to move. [Figure 16B] This figure shows an example of a second settings screen that allows the user to select the first work area from which to move and the second work area to which to move. [Figure 16C] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting a route between areas. [Figure 16D] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting a route between areas. [Figure 16E] This figure shows an example of the display screen that appears after an inter-area route has been selected. [Figure 16F] This figure shows an example of a display screen indicating that the selection of inter-area routes has been completed for all six work areas. [Figure 16G] This figure shows an example of a display screen indicating that the creation and recording of the work plan has been completed. [Figure 17] This figure shows an example of the structure of work plan data. [Figure 18] This figure shows an example of a warning message. [Figure 19A] Figure 1 shows an example of a GUI for deleting a work plan. [Figure 19B] The second figure shows an example of a GUI for deleting a work plan. [Figure 19C] The third figure shows an example of a GUI for deleting a work plan. [Figure 20A] This figure shows an example of a display screen where continuous operation can be selected. [Figure 20B] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting how to perform a series of tasks. [Figure 20C] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting a work area. [Figure 20D] This figure shows an example of a display screen for initiating automated driving in a selected work area. [Figure 20E] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work run is completed. [Figure 20F] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area after completing work in a certain work area. [Figure 20G] This figure shows an example of the display screen that appears after the next work area is selected. [Figure 20H] This figure shows an example of a display screen used to initiate movement between areas. [Figure 20I] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears after a work vehicle has reached the work area. [Figure 20J] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears while driving in a work area. [Figure 20K] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work drive in the work area is completed. [Figure 20L] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area after completing work in the current work area. [Figure 20M] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work run in the final work area is completed. [Figure 20N] This figure shows an example of a display screen that includes a warning message. [Figure 21A] This figure shows an example of a display screen when autonomous driving is being performed in a certain work area. [Figure 21B] This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears when the autonomous driving system is stopped. [Figure 21C] This figure shows an example of a screen that prompts the user to confirm a change in the work area. [Figure 21D] This figure shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area. [Figure 21E] This figure shows an example of the display screen that appears after the next work area is selected. [Figure 21F] This figure shows an example of the display screen that appears when moving from a work area where work was interrupted to the next work area. [Figure 21G]This figure shows an example of a display screen that appears when a work vehicle temporarily stops at the exit of a work area. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0033] (Definition of terms) In this specification, “work vehicle” means a vehicle used to perform work in a work area. “Work area” is any place where work can be performed, such as a field, forest, or construction site. “Field” is any place where agricultural work can be performed, such as an orchard, farm, rice paddy, grain farm, or pasture. A work vehicle may be agricultural machinery such as a tractor, rice transplanter, combine harvester, riding cultivator, or riding mower, or a vehicle used for non-agricultural purposes, such as a construction vehicle or snowplow. A work vehicle may be configured to be equipped with work implements (also called “working devices” or “implements”) on at least one of its front and rear ends, depending on the work being performed. In particular, work implements attached to agricultural tractors are sometimes called “agricultural implements.” The act of a work vehicle driving while performing work with work implements may be referred to as “work driving.” The “operation” of a work vehicle includes not only the driving of the work vehicle but also other operations.

[0034] "Automated driving" means that the vehicle's movement is controlled by a control device, without manual operation by the driver. During automated driving, not only the vehicle's movement but also the operation of work (e.g., the operation of work equipment) may be controlled automatically. The movement of the vehicle under automated driving conditions is referred to as "automated driving." The control device can control at least one of the following necessary for the vehicle's movement: steering, adjustment of driving speed, starting and stopping the vehicle. When controlling a work vehicle equipped with work equipment, the control device may also control operations such as raising and lowering the work equipment and starting and stopping the operation of the work equipment. Driving under automated driving conditions may include not only driving the vehicle along a predetermined route toward a destination but also driving while following a target. In addition to automated driving mode, a vehicle performing automated driving may also operate in manual driving mode, where it is driven by the driver's manual operation. Driving under the driver's manual operation is referred to as "manual driving." "Driver's manual operation" includes not only manual operation by the driver on the vehicle but also remote operation by an operator outside the vehicle. A vehicle performing automated driving conditions may be driven partially based on the driver's manual operation. "Automatic steering" refers to the steering of a vehicle by a control device, without manual operation by the driver. Part or all of the control device may be located outside the vehicle. Communication, such as control signals, commands, or data, may take place between the external control device and the vehicle. A vehicle capable of autonomous driving may operate autonomously, sensing its surroundings without human intervention in controlling its movement. A vehicle capable of autonomous driving can operate unmanned. Obstacle detection and obstacle avoidance may occur during autonomous driving.

[0035] A "work area" refers to the area where work is expected to be performed by a work vehicle. A work area can be, for example, a partitioned field. The environment in which a work vehicle is used may include multiple work areas. Which work area the work vehicle will operate in can be set, for example, by the user. Within a work area, a work route may be set. The work vehicle can be controlled to operate along the work route within the work area. Outside the work area, there is a non-work area (for example, a farm road) where no work is performed. A "non-work route" may be set in the non-work area. The work vehicle can be controlled to operate along the non-work route without performing any work in the non-work area. This makes it possible to automatically operate a work vehicle between two work areas.

[0036] (Embodiment) Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. However, unnecessarily detailed descriptions may be omitted. For example, detailed descriptions of already well-known matters and redundant descriptions of substantially identical configurations may be omitted. This is to avoid the following description becoming unnecessarily verbose and to facilitate understanding for those skilled in the art. The inventors provide the accompanying drawings and the following description so that those skilled in the art can fully understand the present invention, and not to limit the subject matter described in the claims. In the following description, components having the same or similar function are denoted by the same reference numerals.

[0037] The following embodiments are illustrative, and the technology of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. For example, the numerical values, shapes, materials, steps, order of steps, and display screen layouts shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and can be modified in various ways. Furthermore, it is possible to combine one embodiment with another.

[0038] The following describes an embodiment in which the work vehicle is a tractor used for agricultural work in fields such as orchards, farms, and rice paddies, as an example. The technology of the present invention is not limited to tractors, but can also be applied to other types of agricultural machinery such as rice transplanters, combine harvesters, riding cultivators, and riding lawnmowers. The technology of the present invention can also be applied to work vehicles used for purposes other than agriculture, such as construction vehicles or snowplows. The technology of the present invention can also be applied to the driving of work vehicles outside of work areas, and to the driving of work vehicles without performing any work.

[0039] [Outline of the work vehicle configuration] Figure 1 is a schematic side view showing an example of a work vehicle 100 and a work machine 300 connected to the work vehicle 100. Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram showing an example configuration of the work vehicle 100 and the work machine 300.

[0040] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the work vehicle 100 includes a positioning device 110 (e.g., a GNSS unit) that outputs positional data relating to the position of the work vehicle 100, and a control device 180 that controls the operation of the work vehicle 100.

[0041] The work vehicle 100 may further include an internal sensor group 150 that outputs sensor data related to the state of the work vehicle 100. The internal sensor group 150 includes one or more internal sensors. An "internal sensor" is a sensor that detects the state of the work vehicle 100.

[0042] The work vehicle 100 may further be equipped with a group of external sensors 160 that sense the surroundings of the work vehicle 100. An "external sensor" is a sensor that senses the external conditions of the work vehicle. In the example in Figure 1, the group of external sensors 160 includes a plurality of LiDAR sensors 140, a plurality of cameras 120, and a plurality of obstacle sensors 130.

[0043] The work vehicle 100 in the example shown in Figure 2 further includes a storage device 170, a communication device 190, an operating terminal 200, a group of operating switches 210, and a drive device 240. These components are connected to each other via a bus so as to be able to communicate with one another.

[0044] As shown in Figure 1, the work vehicle 100 comprises a body 101, a prime mover (engine) 102, and a transmission 103. The body 101 is provided with a running gear including wheels with tires 104 and a cabin 105. The running gear includes four wheels 104, axles that rotate the four wheels, and brakes that brake each axle. The wheels 104 include a pair of front wheels 104F and a pair of rear wheels 104R. Inside the cabin 105 are a driver's seat 107, a steering gear 106, an operating terminal 200, and a group of switches for operation. One or both of the front wheels 104F and the rear wheels 104R may be replaced with multiple wheels fitted with tracks (crawlers) instead of wheels with tires.

[0045] The prime mover 102 may be, for example, a diesel engine. An electric motor may be used instead of a diesel engine. The transmission 103 can change the propulsion force and travel speed of the work vehicle 100 by shifting gears. The transmission 103 can also switch the work vehicle 100 between forward and reverse.

[0046] The steering system 106 includes a steering wheel, a steering shaft connected to the steering wheel, and a power steering system that assists steering by the steering wheel. The front wheels 104F are steering wheels, and by changing their steering angle, the direction of travel of the work vehicle 100 can be changed. The steering angle of the front wheels 104F can be changed by operating the steering wheel. The power steering system includes a hydraulic system or electric motor that supplies auxiliary force to change the steering angle of the front wheels 104F. When automatic steering is performed, the steering angle is automatically adjusted by the force of the hydraulic system or electric motor under control from a control device located inside the work vehicle 100.

[0047] A coupling device 108 is provided at the rear of the vehicle body 101. The coupling device 108 includes, for example, a three-point support device (also called a "three-point hitch" or "three-point link"), a PTO (Power Take Off) shaft, a universal joint, and a communication cable. The coupling device 108 allows the work implement 300 to be attached to and detached from the work vehicle 100. The coupling device 108 can change the position or orientation of the work implement 300 by raising and lowering the three-point hitch, for example, by a hydraulic system. Power can also be supplied from the work vehicle 100 to the work implement 300 via the universal joint. The work vehicle 100 can pull the work implement 300 and have the work implement 300 perform a predetermined task. The coupling device may be provided at the front of the vehicle body 101. In that case, the work implement can be connected to the front of the work vehicle 100.

[0048] The implement 300 shown in Figure 1 is a sprayer for spraying chemicals onto crops, but the implement 300 is not limited to a sprayer. For example, any implement such as a mower, seeder, spreader, rake, baler, harvester, plow, harrow, or rotary tiller can be connected to the work vehicle 100 and used.

[0049] The positioning device 110 receives satellite signals (also referred to as GNSS signals) transmitted from multiple GNSS satellites and performs positioning based on these satellite signals. GNSS is a general term for satellite positioning systems such as GPS (Global Positioning System), QZSS (Quasi-Zenith Satellite System, e.g., Michibiki), GLONASS, Galileo, and BeiDou. In this embodiment, the positioning device 110 is located on top of the cabin 105, but it may be located in other positions.

[0050] As shown in Figure 2, the positioning device 110 comprises a GNSS receiver 111, an RTK receiver 112, and a processing circuit 116. The positioning device 110 may further include an inertial measurement unit (IMU) 115.

[0051] The GNSS receiver 111 includes an antenna for receiving signals from GNSS satellites and a processing circuit for determining the position of the work vehicle 100 based on the signals received by the antenna. The GNSS receiver 111 receives satellite signals transmitted from multiple GNSS satellites and generates GNSS data based on the satellite signals. The GNSS data is generated in a predetermined format, such as NMEA-0183 format. The GNSS data may include, for example, the identification number, elevation angle, azimuth angle, and received signal strength of each satellite from which the satellite signal was received.

[0052] The positioning device 110 may perform positioning of the work vehicle 100 using RTK (Real Time Kinematic)-GNSS. In RTK-GNSS positioning, in addition to satellite signals transmitted from multiple GNSS satellites, correction signals transmitted from a base station are used. The base station may be installed near the work site where the work vehicle 100 will be driving (for example, within 10 km of the work vehicle 100). Based on the satellite signals received from multiple GNSS satellites, the base station generates a correction signal, for example, in RTCM format and transmits it to the positioning device 110. The RTK receiver 112 includes an antenna and a modem and receives the correction signal transmitted from the base station. The processing circuit 116 of the positioning device 110 corrects the positioning result from the GNSS receiver 111 based on the correction signal. By using RTK-GNSS, it is possible to perform positioning with an accuracy of, for example, an error of a few centimeters. Position information, including latitude, longitude, and altitude information, is acquired by high-precision positioning using RTK-GNSS. The positioning device 110 calculates the position of the work vehicle 100 at a frequency of, for example, 1 to 10 times per second. The positioning method is not limited to RTK-GNSS; any positioning method that can obtain the necessary accuracy of positional information (such as interferometric positioning or relative positioning) can be used. For example, positioning may be performed using VRS (Virtual Reference Station) or DGPS (Differential Global Positioning System).

[0053] The positioning device 110 in this embodiment further includes an IMU 115. By including the IMU 115, the positioning device 110 can supplement position data using signals from the IMU 115. By supplementing position data based on satellite signals using data acquired by the IMU 115, the positioning performance can be improved.

[0054] The IMU115 may be equipped with a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope. The IMU115 may also be equipped with an orientation sensor, such as a 3-axis geomagnetic sensor. The IMU115 functions as a motion sensor and can output signals indicating various quantities such as acceleration, velocity, displacement, and attitude of the work vehicle 100. The processing circuit 116 can estimate the position and orientation of the work vehicle 100 with higher accuracy based on the signals output from the IMU115 in addition to the satellite signals and correction signals. The signals output from the IMU115 can be used to correct or complement the position calculated based on the satellite signals and correction signals. The IMU115 outputs signals at a higher frequency than the GNSS receiver 111. For example, the IMU115 outputs signals at a frequency of several tens to several thousand times per second. Using these high-frequency signals, the processing circuit 116 can measure the position and orientation of the work vehicle 100 at a higher frequency (e.g., 10 Hz or higher). Instead of the IMU115, a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope may be provided separately. The IMU 115 may be provided as a separate device from the positioning device 110.

[0055] The internal sensor group 150 may include various sensors for detecting the state of the work vehicle 100 or work machine 300. For example, the internal sensor group 150 may include a steering wheel sensor 152, a steering angle sensor 154, and an axle sensor 156.

[0056] The steering wheel sensor 152 measures the rotation angle of the steering wheel of the work vehicle 100. The steering angle sensor 154 measures the steering angle of the front wheels 104F, which are the steering wheels. The values ​​measured by the steering wheel sensor 152 and the steering angle sensor 154 can be used for steering control by the control device 180.

[0057] The axle sensor 156 measures the rotational speed of the axle connected to the wheel 104, i.e., the number of rotations per unit time. The axle sensor 156 may be a sensor that utilizes, for example, a magnetoresistive element (MR), a Hall element, or an electromagnetic pickup. The axle sensor 156 outputs a numerical value indicating, for example, the number of rotations of the axle per minute (unit: rpm). The axle sensor 156 is used to measure the speed of the work vehicle 100. The value measured by the axle sensor 156 can be used for speed control by the control device 180.

[0058] The storage device 170 includes one or more storage media such as flash memory or magnetic disks. The storage device 170 stores various data generated by the positioning device 110, the external sensor group 160, the internal sensor group 150, and the control device 180. The data stored in the storage device 170 may include an environmental map of the environment in which the work vehicle 100 travels, an obstacle map that is generated sequentially during travel, and route data for autonomous driving. The storage device 170 also stores computer programs that cause each ECU in the control device 180 to perform various operations described later. Such computer programs may be provided to the work vehicle 100 via a storage medium (e.g., semiconductor memory or optical disk) or a telecommunications line (e.g., the Internet). Such computer programs may be sold as commercial software.

[0059] The control device 180 includes a plurality of ECUs. These plurality of ECUs include, for example, an ECU 181 for speed control, an ECU 182 for steering control, an ECU 183 for work equipment control, and an ECU 184 for automatic driving control.

[0060] The ECU 181 controls the speed of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the prime mover 102, the transmission 103, and the brakes, which are included in the drive unit 240.

[0061] The ECU 182 controls the steering of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the hydraulic system or electric motor included in the steering device 106 based on the measurements of the steering wheel sensor 152.

[0062] The ECU 183 controls the operation of the three-point hitch and PTO shaft, etc., included in the coupling device 108, in order to make the work implement 300 perform the desired operation. The ECU 183 also generates signals to control the operation of the work implement 300 and transmits these signals from the communication device 190 to the work implement 300.

[0063] The ECU 184 performs calculations and controls to achieve autonomous driving based on data output from the positioning device 110, the external sensor group 160, and the internal sensor group 150. For example, the ECU 184 estimates the position of the work vehicle 100 based on data output from at least one of the positioning device 110, the camera 120, and the LiDAR sensor 140. In situations where the reception strength of satellite signals from GNSS satellites is sufficiently high, the ECU 184 may determine the position of the work vehicle 100 based only on the data output from the positioning device 110. On the other hand, in environments such as orchards where there are obstacles such as trees that obstruct the reception of satellite signals around the work vehicle 100, the ECU 184 may estimate the position of the work vehicle 100 using data output from the LiDAR sensor 140 or the camera 120. During autonomous driving, the ECU 184 performs calculations necessary for the work vehicle 100 to travel along the target path based on the estimated position of the work vehicle 100. ECU184 sends a command to ECU181 to change speed and a command to ECU182 to change steering angle. ECU181 changes the speed of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the prime mover 102, the transmission 103, or the brakes in response to the command to change speed. ECU182 changes the steering angle by controlling the steering device 106 in response to the command to change steering angle.

[0064] Through the operation of these ECUs, the control unit 180 enables autonomous driving. During autonomous driving, the control unit 180 controls the drive unit 240 based on the measured or estimated position of the work vehicle 100 and the sequentially generated target path. This allows the control unit 180 to drive the work vehicle 100 along the target path.

[0065] Multiple ECUs included in the control unit 180 can communicate with each other according to a vehicle bus standard such as CAN (Controller Area Network). Instead of CAN, a faster communication method such as Automotive Ethernet (registered trademark) may be used. In Figure 2, each of the ECUs 181 to 184 is shown as a separate block, but each of their functions may be implemented by multiple ECUs. An on-board computer integrating at least some of the functions of ECUs 181 to 184 may be provided. The control unit 180 may also include ECUs other than ECUs 181 to 184, and any number of ECUs can be provided depending on their function. Each ECU includes a processing circuit containing one or more processors.

[0066] Cameras 120 may be installed, for example, on the front, rear, left, and right sides of the work vehicle 100. Cameras 120 capture images of the environment around the work vehicle 100 and generate image data. The images acquired by cameras 120 may be transmitted, for example, to a terminal device for remote monitoring. These images may be used to monitor the work vehicle 100 during unmanned operation. Cameras 120 may be installed as needed, and their number is arbitrary.

[0067] The LiDAR sensor 140 is an example of an external sensor that outputs sensor data showing the distribution of features around the work vehicle 100. In the example in Figure 1, two LiDAR sensors 140 are located at the front and rear of the cabin 105. The LiDAR sensors 140 may be located in other places (for example, at the lower front of the vehicle body 101). Each LiDAR sensor 140 repeatedly outputs sensor data showing the distance and direction to each measurement point of an object in the surrounding environment, or the two-dimensional or three-dimensional coordinate values ​​of each measurement point, while the work vehicle 100 is in motion. The number of LiDAR sensors 140 is not limited to two; it may be one or three or more.

[0068] The LiDAR sensor 140 may be configured to output two-dimensional or three-dimensional point cloud data as sensor data. In this specification, “point cloud data” broadly means data showing the distribution of multiple reflection points observed by the LiDAR sensor 140. The point cloud data may include, for example, the coordinate values ​​of each reflection point in two-dimensional or three-dimensional space, or information indicating the distance and direction of each reflection point. The point cloud data may also include brightness information for each reflection point. The LiDAR sensor 140 may be configured to repeatedly output the point cloud data, for example, at a preset period. Thus, the external sensor group 160 may include one or more LiDAR sensors 140 that output point cloud data as sensor data.

[0069] Sensor data output from the LiDAR sensor 140 is processed by a control device that controls the automatic driving of the work vehicle 100. While the work vehicle 100 is driving, the control device can sequentially generate an obstacle map showing the distribution of objects around the work vehicle 100 based on the sensor data output from the LiDAR sensor 140. The control device can also generate an environmental map by stitching together the obstacle maps during automatic driving, for example, using an algorithm such as SLAM. The control device can also estimate the position and orientation of the work vehicle 100 (i.e., self-localization) by matching the sensor data with the environmental map.

[0070] The multiple obstacle sensors 130 shown in Figure 1 are located at the front and rear of the cabin 105. Obstacle sensors 130 may also be located in other areas. For example, one or more obstacle sensors 130 may be provided at any location on the sides, front, and rear of the vehicle body 101. Obstacle sensors 130 may include, for example, laser scanners or ultrasonic sonar. Obstacle sensors 130 are used to detect surrounding obstacles during autonomous driving and to stop or bypass the work vehicle 100.

[0071] The control device of the work vehicle 100 may use sensor data acquired by external sensors such as a camera 120 or LiDAR sensor 140 for positioning, in addition to the positioning results from the positioning device 110. If there are features that function as characteristic points in the environment in which the work vehicle 100 travels, such as farm roads, forest roads, public roads, or orchards, the position and orientation of the work vehicle 100 can be estimated with high accuracy based on the data acquired by the camera 120 or LiDAR sensor 140 and an environmental map stored in a storage device beforehand. By correcting or supplementing position data based on satellite signals using the data acquired by the camera 120 or LiDAR sensor 140, the position of the work vehicle 100 can be determined with even higher accuracy.

[0072] The work vehicle 100 and the work machine 300 can communicate with each other via a communication cable included in the coupling device 108. The work vehicle 100 can also communicate with a terminal device 400 for remote monitoring via the network 60. The terminal device 400 is any computer, such as a personal computer (PC), laptop computer, tablet computer, or smartphone.

[0073] The work machine 300 includes a drive unit 340, a control unit 380, and a communication device 390. Figure 2 shows components that are relatively highly relevant to the operation of the work vehicle 100's automatic driving function, and other components are not shown.

[0074] Camera 120 is an imaging device that captures the environment around the work vehicle 100. Camera 120 includes an image sensor such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor). Camera 120 may also include an optical system including one or more lenses and a signal processing circuit. While the work vehicle 100 is in motion, Camera 120 captures the environment around the work vehicle 100 and generates image (e.g., video) data. Camera 120 can capture video at a frame rate of, for example, 3 frames per second (fps) or higher. The images generated by Camera 120 can be used, for example, when a remote observer uses a terminal device 400 to check the environment around the work vehicle 100. The images generated by Camera 120 may be used for positioning or obstacle detection. As shown in Figure 1, multiple cameras 120 may be installed at different locations on the work vehicle 100, or a single camera may be installed. A visible light camera that generates visible light images and an infrared camera that generates infrared images may be provided separately. Both the visible light camera and the infrared camera may be provided as cameras that generate surveillance images. The infrared camera can also be used for detecting obstacles at night.

[0075] The obstacle sensor 130 detects objects present around the work vehicle 100. The obstacle sensor 130 may include, for example, a laser scanner or an ultrasonic sonar. The obstacle sensor 130 outputs a signal indicating the presence of an obstacle when an object is closer than a predetermined distance from the obstacle sensor 130. Multiple obstacle sensors 130 may be installed at different locations on the work vehicle 100. For example, multiple laser scanners and multiple ultrasonic sonars may be placed at different locations on the work vehicle 100. By providing many such obstacle sensors 130, blind spots in monitoring obstacles around the work vehicle 100 can be reduced.

[0076] The drive system 240 includes various devices necessary for the movement of the work vehicle 100 and the driving of the work equipment 300, such as the prime mover 102, the transmission 103, the steering system 106, and the coupling device 108. The prime mover 102 may be an internal combustion engine, such as a diesel engine. The drive system 240 may also be equipped with an electric motor for traction, either in place of or in conjunction with the internal combustion engine.

[0077] The communication device 190 is a device that includes a circuit for communicating with the work machine 300 and the terminal device 400. The communication device 190 includes a circuit for transmitting and receiving signals compliant with the ISOBUS standard, such as ISOBUS-TIM, to and from the communication device 390 of the work machine 300. This makes it possible to make the work machine 300 perform desired operations or to obtain information from the work machine 300. The communication device 190 may further include an antenna and a communication circuit for transmitting and receiving signals via the network 60 to and from the terminal device 400. The network 60 may include, for example, a cellular mobile communication network such as 3G, 4G, or 5G and the internet. The communication device 190 may also have a function for communicating with a mobile terminal used by a supervisor near the work vehicle 100. Communication with such a mobile terminal may be conducted in accordance with any wireless communication standard, such as Wi-Fi®, cellular mobile communication such as 3G, 4G, or 5G, or Bluetooth®.

[0078] The operation terminal 200 is a terminal for the user to perform operations related to the movement of the work vehicle 100 and the operation of the work machine 300, and is also called a virtual terminal (VT). The operation terminal 200 may be equipped with a display device such as a touch screen and / or one or more buttons. The display device may be a display such as a liquid crystal or organic light-emitting diode (OLED). By operating the operation terminal 200, the user can perform various operations such as switching the automatic driving mode on / off, switching the recording (teaching) mode and playback mode (described later) on / off, and switching the work machine 300 on / off. At least some of these operations can also be achieved by operating the operation switch group 210. The operation terminal 200 may be configured to be detachable from the work vehicle 100. A user located away from the work vehicle 100 may control the operation of the work vehicle 100 by operating the detached operation terminal 200. The operation terminal 200 may be equipped with a storage device. The storage device in the operating terminal 200 may store various data necessary for the operation of the work vehicle 100 instead of the storage device 170.

[0079] The drive unit 340 in the work machine 300 shown in Figure 2 performs the operations necessary for the work machine 300 to perform a predetermined operation. The drive unit 340 includes devices such as a hydraulic system, an electric motor, or a pump, depending on the application of the work machine 300. The control device 380 controls the operation of the drive unit 340. The control device 380 causes the drive unit 340 to perform various operations in response to signals transmitted from the work vehicle 100 via the communication device 390. It can also transmit signals corresponding to the status of the work machine 300 from the communication device 390 to the work vehicle 100.

[0080] [Driving control system] A driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described. The driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention is implemented, for example, in the work vehicle 100 described above. In the example shown in Figures 1 and 2, a work machine 300 is connected to the work vehicle 100, but it is not essential that the work machine 300 is connected to the work vehicle 100. In other words, the driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention can also be implemented in a work vehicle 100 that is not connected to the work machine 300.

[0081] Figure 3A is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a driving control system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 3A, the driving control system 1000 according to this embodiment includes a positioning device 110 that detects the position of a work vehicle 100 and outputs position data, and a control device 180 that controls the operation of the work vehicle 100. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, the positioning device 110 and the control device 180 are installed on the work vehicle 100. The control device 180 works in cooperation with the positioning device 110 to function as the driving control system 1000 of the work vehicle 100. The control device 180 and the positioning device 110 can be connected to communicate with each other via a bus 810.

[0082] Figure 3A shows an internal sensor group 150 that outputs first sensor data regarding the state of the work vehicle 100, and an external sensor group 160 that outputs second sensor data regarding the state of the surroundings of the work vehicle 100. Some or all of the internal sensors included in the internal sensor group 150 may be included in the driving control system 1000 or may be external elements of the driving control system 1000. The internal sensor group 150 may be installed on the work vehicle 100 as shown in Figure 2. The internal sensor group 150 may be connected to the control device 180 and the positioning device 110 so as to be able to communicate with each other via the bus 810. Some or all of the external sensors included in the external sensor group 160 may be included in the driving control system 1000 or may be external elements of the driving control system 1000. The external sensor group 160 may be installed on the work vehicle 100 as shown in Figure 2. Some or all of the external sensors included in the external sensor group 160 may be installed separately from the work vehicle 100. The external sensor group 160 is not limited to the LiDAR sensor 140, camera 120, and obstacle sensor 130 described above, but may also include other types of sensors that output sensor data regarding the conditions around the work vehicle 100.

[0083] Figure 3A also shows a storage device 870 in which information acquired by the control device 180 is recorded. The storage device 870 may be included in the travel control system 1000 or may be an external component of the travel control system 1000. The storage device 870 may be mounted on the work vehicle 100 or on the work machine 300. The storage device 870 may be connected to the control device 180 so as to be able to communicate with each other via the bus 810. For example, the storage device 870 may be the storage device 170 shown in Figure 2 or a storage device provided in the operation terminal 200. The operation terminal 200 may be included in the travel control system 1000. The storage device 870 may be located outside the work vehicle 100 and the work machine 300. A storage device 870 located outside the work vehicle 100 and the work machine 300 may be connected to the control device 180 via a communication network. The storage device 870 may be included in a server computer connected to the control device 180 via a communication network.

[0084] In the example shown in Figure 1, the positioning device 110 is mounted on the work vehicle 100, but the positioning device 110 may also be mounted on a work machine 300 connected to the work vehicle 100. In addition to, or instead of, the positioning device mounted on the work vehicle 100, a positioning device (e.g., a GNSS unit) mounted on the work machine 300 may function as the positioning device 110 of the driving control system 1000. The position measured by the positioning device mounted on the work vehicle 100 or the work machine 300 is strictly speaking the position of the point where the positioning device is located, but in this specification, that position is referred to as the "position of the work vehicle".

[0085] The internal sensor group 150 is not limited to the steering wheel sensor 152, steering angle sensor 154, and axle sensor 156 described above, but may include various sensors mounted on the work vehicle 100. For example, the internal sensor group 150 may include one or more sensors selected from a temperature sensor, illuminance sensor, fuel sensor, water temperature sensor, oil level gauge, engine speed sensor, vehicle speed sensor, battery voltage sensor, shuttle sensor, hand accelerator sensor, accelerator pedal sensor, main transmission lever sensor, sub-transmission lever sensor, seat belt sensor, PM sensor, acceleration sensor, angular velocity sensor, IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), and geomagnetic sensor. The internal sensor group 150 may also include a PTO sensor that detects the on / off state of rotation of the PTO shaft, and / or a 3P position sensor that detects the height position of the 3-point hitch (hereinafter also simply referred to as "height"). Furthermore, in addition to one or more sensors mounted on the work vehicle 100, or in place of one or more sensors mounted on the work machine 300, one or more sensors mounted on the work machine 300 may be included in the internal sensor group 150 of the travel control system 1000.

[0086] In the example shown in Figure 3A, the control unit 180 includes multiple ECUs. These ECUs may include, for example, ECUs 181 to 184 shown in Figure 2. However, the control unit 180 may be a single ECU or other computing device. Figure 3B is a block diagram showing an example configuration of such a control unit 180. In the example in Figure 3B, the control unit 180 comprises a processor 281, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 283, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 285, a communication device 287, and a storage device 289. These components may be interconnected via a bus 290.

[0087] The processor 281 is a semiconductor integrated circuit, also referred to as a central processing unit (CPU) or microprocessor. The processor 281 may include an image processing unit (GPU). The processor 281 sequentially executes a computer program describing a predetermined set of instructions stored in the ROM 283 to realize the processing performed by the driving control system of the present invention. The control device 180 may include multiple processors 281. The processing performed by the driving control system of the present invention may be performed collaboratively by multiple processors 281. Part or all of the processor 281 may be an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or ASSP (Application Specific Standard Product) equipped with a CPU.

[0088] The communication device 287 is an interface for data communication between the control device 180 and an external computing device. The communication device 287 can perform wired communication such as CAN (Controller Area Network), or wireless communication compliant with the Bluetooth® standard and / or Wi-Fi® standard.

[0089] The storage device 289 can store location data acquired from the positioning device 110, first sensor data acquired from the internal sensor group 150, second sensor data acquired from the external sensor group 160, location data and / or sensor data during processing, first information acquired from location data and second information acquired from sensor data, etc. The storage device 289 includes, for example, a hard disk drive or a non-volatile semiconductor memory. In this example, the storage device 289 may also function as the storage device 870 in the example in Figure 3A.

[0090] The hardware configuration of the control device 180 is not limited to the example above. It is not necessary for part or all of the control device 180 to be mounted on the work vehicle 100. By utilizing the communication device 287, one or more computing devices located outside the work vehicle 100 can function as part or all of the control device 180. For example, one or more server computers and / or computing devices included in a terminal device connected to a network can function as part or all of the control device 180. Alternatively, one or more computing devices mounted on the work vehicle 100 may perform all the functions required of the control device 180.

[0091] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration example of a driving control system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The system shown in Figure 4 includes a work vehicle 100, other work vehicles 700, a server computer 500, and a plurality of terminal devices 400. The terminal devices 400 may be portable or fixed. Some or all of the functions of the control device 180 shown in Figure 3B may be implemented by one or more computing devices connected to the communication device 287 of the control device 180 via a communication network 800. Such computing devices may be the server computer 500 or the terminal devices 400. Other work vehicles 700 may be connected to such a communication network 800. Communication may take place between the control device 180 in the work vehicle 100 and the other work vehicles 700. Some of the data used for processing by the control device 180 in the work vehicle 100 may be provided to the control device 180 from the other work vehicles 700 via the communication network 800. For example, waypoint data defining a route and a series of operations generated by a control device in another work vehicle 700 may be transmitted from the other work vehicle 700 to the control device 180 of work vehicle 100. Based on this waypoint data, the control device 180 can perform a playback operation in the playback mode described later.

[0092] As shown in Figure 3B, one example of a "control device" in an embodiment of the present invention is a computing device comprising at least one processor and at least one memory that stores a computer program (code) that defines a control process executed by the processor. The "control device" may also be a computing device comprising a hardware accelerator such as an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), ASSP (Application Specific Standard Product), or ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) configured to execute the control process.

[0093] In embodiments of the present invention, "processor" refers to hardware electronic circuits such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), ISP (Image Signal Processor), or NPU (Neural Network Processing Unit). "Memory" refers to hardware electronic circuits such as ROM (Read Only Memory) or RAM (Random Access Memory). Part of the memory may be a storage medium connected to the processor by wiring or a network. These hardware electronic circuits may be implemented by one or more integrated circuits (ICs) or large-scale integrated circuits (LSIs). Each functional unit or block and associated component within the electronic circuit may be manufactured individually as separate integrated circuit chips, or some or all of these functional units or blocks may be combined and manufactured as a single integrated circuit chip.

[0094] A program defining the operation of the processor is designed to cause the processor to perform one or more functions, operations, steps, or processes in embodiments of the present invention.

[0095] [Recording mode and playback mode] As described below, the travel control system 1000 can control the operation of the work vehicle 100 using the so-called teaching-playback method used in the field of robot control. The control device 180 in the travel control system 1000 can operate in recording mode and playback mode. Recording mode is a mode in which a plurality of positions (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "waypoints") that define the path traveled by the work vehicle 100 are recorded. In recording mode, the operation of the work vehicle 100 at each waypoint may be further recorded. Playback mode is a mode in which the travel path of the work vehicle 100 is reproduced based on the position data of the work vehicle 100 recorded in recording mode. If the operation of the work vehicle 100 at each waypoint is recorded in recording mode, the operation of the work vehicle 100 at each waypoint may also be reproduced in playback mode. The operations in recording mode and playback mode correspond to the teaching operation and playback operation in the teaching-playback method, respectively. The operation of the control device 180 in recording mode and playback mode may be referred to as "teaching" and "playback," respectively. Recording mode may also be referred to as "teaching mode," and playback mode as "playback mode."

[0096] The operation of the control device 180 in the travel control system 1000 in recording mode and playback mode will be explained with reference to Figures 5A and 5B. Figure 5A is a schematic diagram showing an example of a route 31T on which the work vehicle 100 travels in recording mode. Figure 5B is a schematic diagram showing an example of a route 31P on which the work vehicle 100 travels in playback mode. In this example, routes 31T and 31P are routes connecting the first field 70a and the second field 70b. Here, an example of generating inter-field routes by teaching is explained, but inter-area routes connecting multiple work areas other than fields can be generated in a similar manner.

[0097] (Recording mode) As shown in Figure 5A, in recording mode, the work vehicle 100 travels along route 31T from position R1 in the first field 70a to position R2 in the second field 70b. In recording mode, the control device 180 records the position data output from the positioning device 110, acquired when the work vehicle 100 travels along route 31T, into the storage device 870.

[0098] Figure 5A shows the state in which the work vehicle 100 is located at the starting point (position R1) of route 31T and the state in which the work vehicle 100 is located at the ending point (position R2). In this example, route 31T starts from position R1 in the first field 70a, exits the first field 70a through the entrance / exit 73a of the first field 70a, travels outside the field, enters the second field 70b through the entrance / exit 73b of the second field 70b, and ends at position R2 in the second field 70b.

[0099] In recording mode, the control device 180 records multiple waypoint data in the storage device 870 based on position data output from the positioning device 110, for example, while the work vehicle 100 is traveling along the route 31T. Each of the multiple waypoint data includes information about the position of the work vehicle 100 (sometimes referred to as "first information"). For example, as shown in Figure 5A, position data indicating each of the multiple positions (waypoints) Pr on the traveled route 31T is recorded in the storage device 870 as waypoint data. The multiple waypoint data may be recorded in the storage device 870 as "route data" indicating the route 31T, associated with information about the route 31T. Specific examples will be described later with reference to Figure 6.

[0100] In recording mode, the control device 180 may further record sensor data relating to the state of the work vehicle 100, output from the internal sensor group 150, in the storage device 870. In such a case, for example, each of the multiple waypoint data further includes information relating to the state of the work vehicle 100 (sometimes referred to as "second information"). The second information included in each of the multiple waypoint data may be recorded in association with the corresponding first information. By recording the second information in association with the corresponding first information, information on the state of the work vehicle 100 at each position on the path 31T traveled by the work vehicle 100 is recorded.

[0101] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of waypoint data recorded in the storage device 870. Each waypoint data 89 shown in Figure 6 includes a waypoint number (No.) 90, first information 91 indicating the position of the work vehicle 100, and second information 92 indicating the status of the work vehicle 100. The first information 91 indicates the position coordinates of the waypoint. The position coordinates may, for example, show latitude and longitude in a geographic coordinate system, or they may show position coordinates in a coordinate system different from the geographic coordinate system. In addition to latitude and longitude, the position coordinates may also include altitude information. In the example in Figure 6, the second information 92 includes information indicating the vehicle speed, heading, steering angle, and attitude of the work vehicle 100. The second information 92 may include only a portion of this information. Alternatively, the second information 92 may include other information not shown in Figure 6. As mentioned above, the waypoint data does not have to include the second information 92. Route data 88, which includes a collection of waypoint data 89 (i.e., multiple waypoint data), may be recorded in a storage device 870, associated with an identifier (e.g., route ID) 80 that identifies the route. The route identifier 80 is associated with information 81 about the route. In the illustrated example, the information 81 about the route includes, for example, information about the date and time the route data was created, information about the starting point of the route (e.g., the field from which the vehicle was moved), information about the ending point of the route (e.g., the field to which the vehicle was moved), information about the size of the implement attached to the work vehicle when the route was traveled, and information about the latitude and longitude of the reference points of the route (e.g., the start or end point of the route). The information 81 about the route may include only some of this information, or it may include other information not shown in Figure 6.

[0102] The second information may broadly include information about the state of the work vehicle 100 other than its position. The second information may include, for example, information about the operation of the work vehicle 100, such as its driving state. The driving state of the work vehicle 100 is determined by the speed of the work vehicle 100, acceleration (i.e., rate of change of speed per unit time), direction of travel (orientation), etc. Information about the driving state of the work vehicle 100 may include, for example, one or more of the following: information about the speed of the work vehicle 100, information about the engine speed of the work vehicle 100, information about the acceleration of the work vehicle 100, information about the direction of travel (orientation) of the work vehicle 100, information about the steering angle of the steering wheels of the work vehicle 100, information about the gear ratio of the transmission 103 of the work vehicle 100, etc. The second information may also include information about the attitude of the work vehicle 100. Information about the orientation of the work vehicle 100 may include, for example, information about the angle between the horizontal component of the direction of travel of the work vehicle 100 and the reference direction (e.g., north). The information regarding the posture of the work vehicle 100 may include, for example, information regarding the roll angle and pitch angle of the work vehicle 100. The second information is not limited to information regarding the operation of the work vehicle 100, but may also include, for example, information regarding the temperature of the work vehicle 100 (e.g., engine coolant temperature), information regarding the presence or absence of malfunctions in the work vehicle 100 (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes: DTC), etc. Specific examples of methods for acquiring the second information will be described later.

[0103] The second information may include information regarding the state of the coupling device 108 for connecting the work implement 300. The coupling device 108 may include, for example, a PTO shaft that supplies power to the work implement 300 and a three-point hitch for adjusting the height of the work implement 300. The information regarding the state of the coupling device 108 may include, for example, one or more of the following: information on whether the rotation of the PTO shaft is on or off, and information on the height of the three-point hitch.

[0104] The second information may include, in addition to information regarding the status of the work vehicle 100, information regarding the status of the work machine 300 if the work machine 300 is connected to the work vehicle 100. For example, if a positioning device is attached to the work machine 300, the second information may include information regarding the position or orientation of the work machine 300 (e.g., angle with respect to a reference bearing). Alternatively, if the work machine 300 is equipped with a sensor that detects the movement of a movable part of the work machine 300, the information detected by that sensor may be included in the second information.

[0105] In the example shown in Figure 5A, in recording mode, the work vehicle 100 is driven manually by the driver 9 (operator) on the work vehicle 100. However, the example is not limited to this, and in recording mode, the work vehicle 100 may also be driven automatically. When the work vehicle 100 is driven automatically in recording mode, it may drive autonomously without the intervention of the driver's manual operation, or it may drive automatically while partially based on the driver's manual operation. For example, automatic steering control may be performed during driving in recording mode, where the driver controls the driving speed of the work vehicle 100 and the steering is controlled automatically. Alternatively, during driving in recording mode, the work vehicle 100 may be driven automatically while the work machine 300 is operated by the driver's manual operation. The driver's manual operation includes not only the driver's manual operation on the work vehicle 100, but also remote operation by an operator outside the work vehicle 100. Such remote operation can be performed using, for example, the terminal device 400 shown in Figure 4, or other remote control devices.

[0106] (Playback mode) In the playback mode shown in Figure 5B, the work vehicle 100 drives automatically. In playback mode, the control device 180 drives the work vehicle 100 automatically by controlling its speed and steering based on the position data recorded in the storage device 870. In playback mode, the control device 180 drives the work vehicle 100 along a target path 31P defined by, for example, first information contained in multiple waypoint data recorded in the storage device 870. For example, the control device 180 controls the steering of the work vehicle 100 to minimize the deviation of the work vehicle 100's position and orientation (azimuth) from the target path 31P. This allows the work vehicle 100 to drive along the target path 31P. In playback mode, the work vehicle 100 can automatically reproduce the path of the work vehicle 100 recorded in recording mode.

[0107] In playback mode, as shown in Figure 5B, the automatic driving of the work vehicle 100 may be controlled by a driver (user) 9 located away from the work vehicle 100 by operating a terminal device 400. The driver operating the terminal device 400 may be on the work vehicle 100, although this is not limited to the illustrated example. The terminal device 400 operated by the driver 9 may be a portable control terminal or a fixed control terminal. A fixed control terminal may be attached to the work vehicle 100 or installed at a location away from the work vehicle 100. The terminal device 400 may be equipped with a display device such as a touchscreen. The display device may be a display such as a liquid crystal or organic light-emitting diode (OLED). The terminal device 400 may further be equipped with one or more buttons. The terminal device 400 may be equipped with a storage device.

[0108] According to the driving control system of this embodiment, in playback mode, the operation (e.g., driving) of the work vehicle 100 can be automatically reproduced based on first information regarding the position of the work vehicle 100 recorded in the storage device 870, so that repetitive operations of the work vehicle 100 can be performed efficiently. Therefore, automation and unmanned operation of the work vehicle 100 are promoted.

[0109] In recording mode, if second information relating to the state of the work vehicle 100 other than its position is further recorded in association with first information relating to the position of the work vehicle 100, the automation and unmanned operation of the work vehicle 100 can be further promoted.

[0110] As shown in the examples in Figures 5A and 5B, when the work machine 300 is connected to the work vehicle 100, the control device 180 can control the operation of the work vehicle 100 and the work machine 300 while the work vehicle 100 is automatically driven, based on the first information (or the first and second information) contained in the multiple waypoint data recorded in recording mode. In other words, in playback mode, the work vehicle 100 can automatically reproduce not only the operation of the work vehicle 100 recorded in recording mode, but also the operation of the work machine 300.

[0111] When a work implement 300 is attached to a work vehicle 100, in playback mode, the operation of the work vehicle 100 with the work implement 300 attached can be reproduced based on the first information recorded in recording mode, thus enabling efficient repetitive operations of the work vehicle 100 with the work implement 300 attached. For example, in recording mode, by recording second information regarding the state of the work implement 300 in association with first information regarding the position of the work vehicle 100, automation and unmanned operation of work by the work implement 300 can be promoted. In other words, the work vehicle 100 can automatically reproduce not only the operation of the work vehicle 100 recorded in recording mode, but also the operation of the work implement 300, thus enabling efficient repetitive operations performed by the work implement 300.

[0112] (Example of processing in recording mode) Figure 7 is a flowchart showing an example of processing performed by the control device 180 in recording mode.

[0113] The timing of the start of the recording mode is specified, for example, by the user. For example, the control device 180 may start the recording mode when a signal containing an instruction to start the recording mode is sent to the control device 180 by the driver's operation. For example, the driver on the work vehicle 100 can send a signal containing an instruction to start the recording mode from the input device to the control device 180 by operating an input device such as a predetermined operation switch or operation terminal 200 provided inside the work vehicle 100. The recording mode may be started while the work vehicle 100 is in motion, or it may be started when the work vehicle 100 is stopped.

[0114] When recording mode is started, in step S101, the control device 180 acquires position data output from the positioning device 110. The control device 180 may acquire position data at regular intervals, or it may acquire position data each time the work vehicle 100 travels a certain distance.

[0115] In step S102, the control device 180 determines whether there has been a change of a predetermined value or more in the driving state of the work vehicle 100. The driving state of the work vehicle 100 is defined by the speed, acceleration, direction of travel (orientation), etc., of the work vehicle 100, as described above. For example, if any change in the speed, acceleration, or direction of travel (orientation) of the work vehicle 100 exceeds a predetermined value, it is determined that there has been a change of a predetermined value or more in the driving state of the work vehicle 100 ("Yes" in step S102). For example, if the work vehicle 100 stops from a moving state, or if the work vehicle 100 starts moving from a stopped state, it is determined that there has been a change of a predetermined value or more in the driving state of the work vehicle 100. If "Yes" is answered in step S102, the process proceeds to step S103. If "No" is answered in step S102, the process proceeds to step S104.

[0116] In step S103, the control device 180 records the position data acquired in step S101. Recording the position data in step S103 includes not only recording the position data output from the positioning device 110 in the storage device 870, but also temporarily storing it in a storage device different from the storage device 870. The storage device different from the storage device 870 may be, for example, a memory of the control device 180 such as the RAM 285 shown in Figure 3B, or a storage device included in a server computer connected to the control device 180 via a communication network.

[0117] In step S104, the control device 180 determines whether the distance traveled from the position where the previous position data was recorded exceeds a threshold. The distance traveled threshold can be set to a value of, for example, several tens of centimeters (cm) to several meters (m). Alternatively, in step S104, the control device 180 may determine whether the time elapsed since the previous position data was recorded exceeds a threshold. The time threshold can be set to a value within the range of, for example, 1 second to 10 seconds.

[0118] If the answer in step S104 is "Yes", proceed to step S103. If the answer in step S104 is "No", no location data is recorded, and the process returns to step S101.

[0119] The control device 180 repeats the processes of steps S101, S102, S103, and S104 until it receives a signal that includes an instruction to terminate the recording of position data (step S105).

[0120] (Example of how to set up movement between work areas and the displayed screen) Next, we will explain how to set up the movement of a work vehicle 100, which performs automatic travel between multiple work areas (for example, between fields), between multiple work areas, and provide an example of the display screen.

[0121] This method can be performed by one or more computers, such as a control device 180, an operating terminal 200, a terminal device 400, or an external server computer 500. Hereinafter, as an example, the control device 180 in the work vehicle 100 will be used to perform this method. The method described below may also be performed by one or more other computers.

[0122] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the process for setting up the movement of the work vehicle 100 between multiple work areas. The control device 180 may be configured or programmed to perform the actions of steps S210, S220, and S230 shown in Figure 8.

[0123] In step S210, the control device 180 displays a first setting screen on its display for the user to input information about the work to be performed by the work vehicle 100. The display may be a display (also referred to as a "display device") built into or connected to an operating terminal 200 or terminal device 400 connected to the control device 180. The information about the work may include, for example, the type of work, the type of work equipment (e.g., model), the maximum height when the work equipment is raised, the size of the work equipment, or at least one of other work-related items registered by the user. The first setting screen may consist of one display screen or may be divided into multiple display screens.

[0124] In step S220, the control device 180 displays a second setting screen on the display for the user to select a first work area from which to move and a second work area to which to move from among a plurality of work areas. The second setting screen may consist of a single display screen or may be divided into multiple display screens. For example, it may be divided into a display screen for the user to select the first work area from which to move and a display screen for the user to select the second work area to which to move.

[0125] Note that the order of steps S210 and S220 may be reversed. That is, the control device 180 may first display the second setting screen on the display, and after the user has selected the first work area and the second work area, it may display the first setting screen.

[0126] In step S230, the control device 180 records the inter-area path connecting the first work area and the second work area selected on the second setting screen in the storage device, associating it with the information regarding the work selected on the first setting screen. The storage device may be, for example, the storage device 870 described above.

[0127] The second settings screen may be designed to display, for example, a map containing multiple work areas. The selection of the first work area from which to move and the second work area to which to move may be done, for example, by the user specifying the area on the map that represents the first work area and the area that represents the second work area.

[0128] In this embodiment, the control device 180 generates an inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area after the first work area and the second work area are selected on the second setting screen.

[0129] For example, the control device 180 can generate an inter-area route based on information from multiple waypoints acquired during driving in the aforementioned recording mode (teaching mode). More specifically, the control device 180 acquires location information from multiple points acquired by the positioning device 110 while the work vehicle 100 equipped with the positioning device 110 is driving manually from the first work area to the second work area. Based on the acquired location information from multiple points, the control device 180 can generate multiple waypoint data as an inter-area route.

[0130] After the first work area and the second work area are selected on the second setting screen, the control device 180 may display a message on the display prompting the user to manually drive the work vehicle 100 from the first work area to the second work area. This guides the user to manually drive in order to acquire waypoint data for generating a route between areas.

[0131] After the generation of inter-area routes is complete, the control device 180 may display a message to the user on the second setting screen prompting them to select a pair of work areas different from the pair of the first and second work areas in order to generate other inter-area routes. This guides the user to perform operations to generate other inter-area routes.

[0132] When the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area is already recorded in the storage device in association with work-related information, and work-related information is entered on the first setting screen and the first work area is selected on the second setting screen, the control device 180 may display information on the display on the second setting screen indicating that the second work area is already registered as a destination from the first work area. Furthermore, the control device 180 may display one or more work areas other than the first and second work areas in a manner that allows them to be selected as other destinations. Such a display allows the user to understand one or more work areas that are not yet registered as destinations from the first work area and select a new destination.

[0133] When the control device 180 displays one or more work areas in a manner that allows them to be selected as other destinations, it may display the second work area in a first color and display one or more work areas other than the second work area in a second color different from the first color and in a manner that allows them to be selected. In this case, the control device 180 may display the second work area in the first color and in a manner that does not allow it to be selected. Such a display makes it easier for the user to see one or more work areas for which an inter-area route starting from the first work area has not yet been generated.

[0134] After the third work area is selected as an alternative destination, the control device 180 can also generate other inter-area routes from the first work area to the third work area. In this case, the control device 180 may record the other inter-area routes in a storage device, associating them with work-related information and the first and third work areas. This allows for the generation of multiple inter-area routes, for example, in sequence. It is also possible to generate even more inter-area routes in a similar manner thereafter.

[0135] The following provides a more detailed explanation of an example of a settings screen displayed on the screen.

[0136] Figures 9A-9D, 10A-10D, 11A-11C, and 12A-12C show examples of display screens shown on an operating terminal operated by a user (e.g., the driver of the work vehicle 100). These display screens include a graphical user interface (GUI) for the user to configure settings related to the recording mode. These display screens are shown, for example, on a display device (i.e., a display) of the operating terminal 200 of the work vehicle 100. Here, we show an example of recording position data when the work vehicle 100 travels along a route connecting multiple work areas (e.g., between fields) in recording mode.

[0137] Figures 9A, 9B, 9C, and 9D are examples of display screens for setting the recording mode before the work vehicle 100 starts traveling in recording mode. Figures 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D are examples of display screens displayed in recording mode. Figures 11A, 11B, and 11C are examples of display screens displayed after the work vehicle 100 has finished traveling in recording mode. Figures 12A and 12B are examples of display screens for generating the next inter-area route after one inter-area route has been generated.

[0138] As shown in Figure 9A, a display screen is shown for selecting whether to create or delete route data. On the display screen in Figure 9A, the user can select either the "Create" button 51a or the "Delete" button 51b depending on the operation to be performed. To create new route data, select the "Create" button 51a, as shown in the example. If the "Create" button 51a is selected on the display screen in Figure 8A, the user will be redirected to the display screen in Figure 8B or Figure 8C.

[0139] Figure 9B shows an example of a first settings screen for allowing the user to input information about the work. The display screen in Figure 9B includes a GUI that allows the user to set the size of the work implement 300. In the illustrated example, the user can input the width and length of the work implement 300 in boxes 66a and 66b, respectively. The GUI may be configured to allow input of other information about the work in addition to the width and length of the work implement 300. For example, the GUI may be configured to allow input of the type of work, the type of work implement (e.g., model), the maximum height when the work implement is raised, or at least one of other items registered by the user.

[0140] Figures 9C and 9D show an example of a second settings screen that allows the user to select the source and destination work areas. The display screens shown in Figures 9C and 9D show a map containing multiple work areas 52a to 52d. The source and destination work areas can be selected by the user sequentially selecting those work areas on the map.

[0141] The display screen in Figure 9C includes a GUI that allows the user to set the source work area. In the illustrated example, the user selects the source work area from the displayed images of work areas 52a, 52b, 52c, and 52d. The display screen also shows an image 53 representing the work vehicle 100. The image 53 representing the work vehicle 100 may be displayed at a position that reflects the current position of the work vehicle 100 as determined by the positioning device 110. This allows the user to confirm the positional relationship between the work vehicle 100 and the work area from the display screen. In the example in Figure 9C, the upper left work area 52a is selected as the source work area. Once the source work area is selected, the display screen transitions to Figure 9D.

[0142] The display screen in Figure 9D includes a GUI that allows the user to set the destination work area. In the illustrated example, the user selects a destination work area from work areas 52b, 52c, and 52d, which are different from the source work area 52a. In the illustrated example, a dotted line and a checkmark are displayed to indicate that route data for the route 54 connecting the selected source work area 52a and the other work areas 52d has already been recorded.

[0143] Thus, if an inter-area path connecting work area 52a and another work area 52d is already stored in the storage device in association with work-related information, when work-related information is entered on the first setting screen and work area 52a is selected on the second setting screen, information indicating that work area 52d is already registered as a destination from the first work area 52a may be displayed on the display on the second setting screen. This information is not limited to the dotted line or check mark shown in Figure 9D, but may also be other types of lines, marks, or messages.

[0144] In the example shown in Figure 9D, work areas 52b and 52c, other than work areas 52a and 52d, may be displayed in a manner that allows them to be selected as other destinations. For example, work area 52d may be displayed in a first color (e.g., an inconspicuous color such as gray), and the other work areas 52b and 52c may be displayed in a second color different from the first color (e.g., a conspicuous color with high saturation or brightness) and in a manner that allows them to be selected. In this case, the control device 180 may display work area 52d for which an inter-area route 54 has already been generated with work area 52a in the first color and in a manner that does not allow it to be selected. This makes it easier for the user to see work areas 52b and 52c for which an inter-area route 54 has not yet been generated with work area 52a. Alternatively, work area 52d for which a route 54 starting from work area 52a has already been generated may also be displayed in a manner that allows it to be selected. In that case, it is possible to register multiple inter-area routes for a pair of two work areas 52a and 52d. The GUI may have a function that allows for individual configuration of work-related information (e.g., work equipment and / or type of work) for each inter-area route.

[0145] In the example shown in Figure 9D, the work area 52b in the lower left is selected as the destination work area. Once the destination work area is selected, the display screen shown in Figure 10A is displayed.

[0146] The display screen shown in Figure 10A may be displayed until the work vehicle 100 moves to the work area 52a from which it is moving. In the example in Figure 10A, the message "Please move to the field from which you are moving" is displayed. In this way, once the first work area from which the vehicle is moving and the second work area to which it is moving are selected in the second setting screen, a message prompting the user to manually drive the work vehicle 100 from the first work area to the second work area may be displayed. Upon seeing this message, the user manually drives the work vehicle 100 back to the work area 52a from which it is moving. Once the work vehicle 100 enters the work area 52a, the display screen shown in Figure 10B is displayed. At this point, the "Start Recording" button 64a becomes active, and recording can be started.

[0147] The display screen in Figure 10B includes a GUI for the user to perform operations to start recording location data. On the display screen in Figure 10B, the user performs the operation to start recording location data by selecting the "Start Recording" button 64a. Once the operation to start recording location data is performed, the display screen in Figure 10C is displayed.

[0148] The display screen in Figure 10C may be displayed while location data is being recorded. The display screen in Figure 10C includes an image 53 showing the current location of the work vehicle 100 and a trajectory 63 of the work vehicle 100. In the example in Figure 10C, the message "Please move to the field from which you started moving" is displayed. In this way, a message prompting the user to move the work vehicle 100 to the destination field may be displayed. While the work vehicle 100 is moving, the image 53 showing the location of the work vehicle 100 also moves, and the trajectory 63 gradually lengthens.

[0149] The display screen shown in Figure 10D may be displayed after the work vehicle 100 has reached the destination work area 52b. The display screen in Figure 10D includes a GUI for the user to perform an operation to end the recording of location data. In the example in Figure 10D, when the work vehicle 100 reaches the destination work area 52b, the "End Recording" button 64b becomes active. On the display screen in Figure 10D, the user performs an operation to end the recording of location data by selecting the "End Recording" button 64b. If the operation to end the recording of location data is performed, the display screen shown in Figure 11A may be displayed.

[0150] The display screen in Figure 11A includes a GUI for the user to perform operations to set whether or not to record the acquired location data as route data in the storage device 870. The user can set whether or not to record the route data in the storage device 870 by selecting the "Yes" button 61a or the "No" button 61b. In this example, while the work vehicle 100 is in motion, the location data acquired from the positioning device 110 is temporarily stored in the storage device 870 or a different storage device (for example, a memory such as the RAM 285 shown in Figure 3B). By selecting the "Yes" button 61a on the display screen in Figure 11A, the temporarily stored location data can be associated with a route identifier and route information and recorded in the storage device 870 as route data.

[0151] As shown in the display screen of Figure 11B, if route data for the path connecting the source work area 52a and the destination work area 52b has already been recorded in the storage device 870, a screen may be displayed to set whether or not to overwrite the route data. The user can set whether or not to overwrite (replace) the route data by selecting the "Yes" button 61a or the "No" button 61b. Multiple route data with the same combination of source and destination work areas may be recorded in the storage device 870. In the display screen of Figure 11B, the trajectory showing the route 67 already recorded in the storage device 870 and information 62a related to the route 67 (for example, the date and time when the route 67 was recorded) may also be displayed.

[0152] When route data is recorded in the storage device 870, the display screen shown in Figure 11C may be displayed. The display screen shown in Figure 11C includes a message 65a that notifies that route data has been recorded in the storage device 870.

[0153] As described above, in this embodiment, after the first work area 52a, the source of movement, and the second work area 52b, the destination, are selected on the second setting screen, the control device 180 generates an inter-area route based on information from multiple waypoints acquired during manual driving from the first work area 52a to the second work area 52b. The control device 180 acquires location information from multiple points acquired by the positioning device 110 while the work vehicle 100, equipped with the positioning device 110, is driving from the first work area 52a to the second work area 52b by manual driving. Based on the acquired location information from multiple points, the control device 180 generates multiple waypoint data as an inter-area route and records it in the storage device 870. At this time, the control device 180 records the inter-area route in the storage device 870 in association with work-related information and the work areas 52a and 53b.

[0154] Through the above operations, the user can record (register) an inter-area route connecting the source work area 52a and the destination work area 52b. Subsequently, the user can also record other inter-area routes. For example, an inter-area route can be recorded with work area 52b as the source and work area 52c or work area 52d as the destination. Examples of such operations will be explained below with reference to Figures 12A to 12C.

[0155] Figure 12A shows an example of the display screen (second settings screen) that appears after the generation of one inter-area route is complete. In the example in Figure 12A, after the generation of the inter-area route is complete, a message 65b is displayed prompting the user to select two pairs of work areas different from the pair of work areas 52a and 52b. If the user selects the "Yes" button 61a, the display screen shown in Figure 12B is displayed.

[0156] Figure 12B shows an example of a display screen for generating an inter-area route different from inter-area route 63. The content displayed in Figure 12B is the same as the content displayed in Figure 9C. In the example in Figure 12B, work area 52b is selected as the source of movement. After selection, the display screen shown in Figure 12C is displayed.

[0157] In the display screen of Figure 12C, the user selects a destination work area from work areas 52a, 52c, and 52d, which are different from the source work area 52b. In the illustrated example, a dotted line and a checkmark are displayed to indicate that route data for the route 54 connecting the selected source work area 52b and the upper right work area 52d has already been recorded. In the example of Figure 12C, the lower right work area 52c has been selected by the user. In this case, the control device 180 generates an inter-area route from work area 52b to work area 52c in the manner described with reference to Figures 10A to 11C. At this time, the control device 180 records the inter-area route in the storage device, associating it with work-related information and the selected work areas 52b and 53c.

[0158] This method allows for the sequential generation of multiple inter-area routes. Furthermore, many more inter-area routes can be generated using a similar process.

[0159] Furthermore, the GUI may be configured so that information regarding the work can be entered on the first setting screen for each inter-area route or for each work area. Such a GUI may be configured to allow setting information such as the type of work, the type of work equipment, and the size of the work equipment for each inter-area route or for each work area. With such a configuration, even if the type of work or the type of work equipment used differs for each inter-area route or for each work area, the inter-area route, the two work areas, and the information regarding the work corresponding to each work area can be associated and recorded.

[0160] Inter-area routes can be recorded as data containing information about multiple waypoints, for example, as shown in Figure 6. As shown in Figure 6, a single inter-area route can be recorded in association with the location of the source work area, the location of the destination work area, and information about the work, etc. Information about the work is not limited to the size of the work equipment in the example in Figure 6, but may also be the type of work equipment or the type of work.

[0161] (Example of processing in playback mode) Figure 13 is a flowchart showing an example of processing performed by the control device 180 in playback mode.

[0162] In playback mode, the control device 180 automatically drives the work vehicle 100 based on pre-recorded waypoint information. The control device 180 acquires position data indicating the position of the work vehicle 100 output from the positioning device 110 (step S121). Next, the control device 180 calculates the deviation between the position of the work vehicle 100 and the target path (step S122). The target path is defined by the position information (first information) of multiple waypoints recorded in recording mode. The deviation represents the distance between the position of the work vehicle 100 at that time and the target path. The control device 180 determines whether the calculated position deviation exceeds a preset threshold (step S123). If the deviation exceeds the threshold (if "Yes" is answered in step S123), the control device 180 changes the steering angle by changing the control parameters of the steering device 106 included in the drive device 240 so that the deviation becomes smaller (step S124). If the deviation does not exceed the threshold in step S123 (i.e., "No" in step S123), the process in step S124 is not performed. The control device 180 repeats the operations from steps S121 to S124 until it receives a signal including an instruction to end the playback mode (step S125).

[0163] In playback mode, the control device 180 automatically drives the work vehicle 100 along the target path by executing, for example, the process shown in Figure 13. The control device 180 may further control the operation of the work vehicle 100 based on state information (second information) corresponding to each of the multiple waypoints that define the target path. For example, if the second information includes information on the steering angle of the steering wheels of the work vehicle 100, in addition to the process shown in Figure 13, steering control of the work vehicle 100 based on the steering angle included in the second information may be performed. If the second information includes information on the speed of the work vehicle 100, the speed of the work vehicle 100 is controlled based on the speed information included in the second information.

[0164] Control technologies such as PID control or MPC control (model predictive control) can be applied to the steering and speed control of the work vehicle 100. By applying these control technologies, the control of the work vehicle 100 to approach the target path and target speed can be made smoother.

[0165] (If the second piece of information includes information about the driving status of the work vehicle) Referring to Figure 14, an example of processing performed by the control device 180 when the second information includes information regarding the driving state of the work vehicle 100 will be explained. Figure 14 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of processing performed by the control device 180 in the driving control system 1000. In addition to the driving control system 1000, Figure 14 also shows the drive unit 240 and the operation switch group 210. For simplicity, some components are omitted from the illustration in Figure 14.

[0166] (Control of the speed of work vehicles) The control device 180 controls the speed of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the prime mover 102, the braking device (brake) 293, and the transmission 103, which are included in the drive unit 240. The braking device 293 brakes the axle that rotates the wheels 104 of the work vehicle 100. Specifically, the speed of the work vehicle 100 can be controlled by controlling the engine speed of the prime mover (engine) 102 and / or the gear ratio of the transmission 103. For example, the transmission 103 has multiple gears, and the control device 180 controls the gear ratio of the transmission 103 by switching the gears of the transmission 103. The multiple gears of the transmission 103 may be composed of a combination of multiple main gears and multiple sub-gears. When the work vehicle 100 is being driven manually, the control device 180 controls the speed of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the engine 102, the braking system (brakes) 293, and the transmission 103 in response to the driver's operation of the accelerator control device 215 (e.g., accelerator lever or accelerator pedal), the braking control device 216 (e.g., brake pedal), and / or the gear shift control switch 218 (e.g., shift lever). The gear shift control switch 218 is a switch for selecting the gear of the transmission 103. The control device 180 may further switch between two-wheel drive mode and four-wheel drive mode in response to the driver's operation.

[0167] In recording mode, the control device 180 sequentially acquires sensor data output from vehicle speed sensors such as the axle sensor 156, the engine speed sensor 158, and the gear ratio sensor 159, which detects the gear ratio information of the transmission 103. Based on this sensor data, the control device 180 generates and records information on the speed of the work vehicle 100, the engine speed of the work vehicle 100, and the gear ratio information of the transmission 103 as second information, associated with the position information (first information) of each waypoint. In this case, in playback mode, the control device 180 controls the speed of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the prime mover 102, the transmission 103, and the braking system 293 included in the drive unit 240, based on the second information recorded in recording mode. The gear ratio sensor 159 is mounted on the rotating shaft within the transmission 103 and may be a sensor that detects the gear ratio, or it may be a shift position sensor that identifies the selected gear by detecting the position of the shift lever (gear position operation switch 218) for selecting a gear. The gear ratio information of the transmission 103 is not limited to information indicating the gear ratio itself, but may also be information that identifies the selected gear among the multiple gears of the transmission 103. Since one gear corresponds to one gear ratio, if the gear is identified, the gear ratio can be identified.

[0168] The work vehicle 100 may be equipped with a double-speed turn mode (front wheel speed increase function). Double-speed turn is an operation that increases the speed of the front wheels when the steering angle of the front wheels exceeds a threshold due to the driver turning the steering wheel a large amount. Performing a double-speed turn reduces the turning radius and enables smoother turning. The work vehicle 100 may be equipped with a solenoid (referred to as the "double-speed solenoid") for driving a clutch to switch the double-speed turn mode on and off. The control device 180 can switch the double-speed solenoid on and off via a hydraulic circuit. When the double-speed solenoid is on, the rotational speed of the front wheels is approximately twice as fast as when the double-speed solenoid is off.

[0169] The second information may further include information regarding the driving mode of the work vehicle 100. For example, the information regarding the driving mode of the work vehicle 100 may include information on whether it is moving forward or backward. The information regarding the driving mode may also include information on whether the driving mode of the work vehicle 100 is in four-wheel drive mode or two-wheel drive mode. The information regarding the driving mode may also include information on whether the double-speed turn mode is on or off. The information regarding the driving mode may further include information on whether the automatic single-sided braking mode is on or off. When the automatic single-sided braking mode is on, if the steering angle of the front wheels 104F, which are the steering wheels, exceeds a predetermined value while driving, the brakes are lightly applied to the inner rear wheel. In playback mode, the control device 180 controls the driving mode of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the prime mover 102, the transmission 103, and the braking device 293 included in the drive unit 240 based on the second information recorded in recording mode.

[0170] (Steering control of work vehicles) The control device 180 changes the steering angle of the front wheels 104F, which are the steering wheels of the work vehicle 100, by controlling the steering device 106, and changes the direction of the work vehicle 100 by changing the steering angle of the steering wheels. When the work vehicle 100 is being driven manually, the control device 180 changes the steering angle of the steering wheels and the direction of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the steering device 106 in response to the driver's operation of the steering wheel 217.

[0171] In recording mode, the control device 180 acquires information on the steering angle of the steering wheels of the work vehicle 100 as second information, based on sensor data (measured values) output from the steering wheel sensor 152 and / or steering angle sensor 154. In this case, in playback mode, the control device 180 controls the steering of the work vehicle 100 by controlling the hydraulic system or electric motor included in the steering system 106, based on the second information recorded in recording mode.

[0172] The second piece of information may further include information regarding the posture of the work vehicle 100. The posture of the work vehicle 100 may include, for example, the roll angle θ. R , pitch angle θ P , and yaw angle θ Y It is represented by the roll angle θ. R This represents the amount of rotation of the work vehicle 100 around its longitudinal axis. Pitch angle θ P This represents the amount of rotation of the work vehicle 100 around its left-right axis. Yaw angle θ Y This represents the amount of rotation of the work vehicle 100 around its vertical axis. The attitude can also be defined by other angles, such as Euler angles, or by quaternions. The control device 180 obtains information about the attitude of the work vehicle 100 based, for example, on data output from the IMU 115.

[0173] [Setting up a continuous work plan] Next, we will describe an example of how to set up a plan for tasks that will be performed sequentially across multiple work areas.

[0174] In this embodiment, after inter-area routes connecting multiple work areas are generated, the user can create a plan for work to be performed continuously by the work vehicle 100 in the multiple work areas using a GUI. Such a plan is referred to as a "continuous work plan". A continuous work plan can be created, for example, by the user operating the terminal device 400 shown in Figure 2 or Figure 4. Data related to the continuous work plan can be recorded in a storage device (e.g., storage device 870) built into or connected to a computer, such as a server computer 500 or a control device 180.

[0175] The following describes an example of a GUI for setting a continuous work plan that may be displayed on the terminal device 400. In the following example, a server computer 500 (hereinafter also referred to as "server 500") that communicates with the terminal device 400 will display a setting screen (GUI) related to the continuous work plan on the display of the terminal device 400. Each process in the following embodiment may be executed by the cooperation of one or more processors in the terminal device 400 and one or more processors in the server 500.

[0176] Figure 15A shows an example of the display screen for starting the setting of a continuous work plan. This display screen includes three buttons 71a, 71b, and 71c: "Create," "Edit," and "Delete." When the user selects the "Create" button 71a, the display screen shown in Figure 15B is displayed.

[0177] Figure 15B shows an example of a display screen for selecting the type of work. This display screen shows buttons 74a, 74b, and 74c indicating multiple types of work, such as "plowing," "puddling," and "spraying." The user can select one type of work by pressing one of the displayed buttons 74a, 74b, or 74c. The types of work displayed are not limited to the examples shown in the figure, and may include, for example, sowing, fertilizing, planting, or harvesting. Once a type of work is selected and the "Next" button 82 is pressed, the display screen shown in Figure 15C is displayed.

[0178] Figure 15C shows an example of a display screen for selecting the type of work implement. This display screen includes buttons 75a, 75b, and 75c that indicate multiple types of work implements (e.g., model name or classification name). The user can select one type of work implement by pressing one of the displayed buttons 75a, 75b, or 75c. The displayed types of work implements may include models registered by the user. In this way, the first setting screen may have a user interface for selecting the type of work implement. When a type of work implement is selected and the "Next" button 82 is pressed, the display screen shown in Figure 15D is displayed.

[0179] Furthermore, in Figures 15B and 15C, the GUI may be configured to allow selection of the type of work and the type of work implement in a manner other than selecting one from multiple displayed buttons. For example, the GUI may be configured to allow selection or input of the type of work or work implement by selecting from a pull-down menu or by direct input.

[0180] Figure 15D shows an example of a display screen for setting the size of the work implement. The display screen shown in Figure 15D has the same functionality as the display screen shown in Figure 9B. That is, this display screen includes a GUI that allows the user to input size information such as the width and length of the work implement. The GUI may also be configured to allow input of other values, such as the maximum height of the work implement when raised, in addition to the width and length.

[0181] The display screens shown in Figures 15B to 15D are examples of a first settings screen for allowing the user to set information related to the work. The first settings screen may include multiple display screens in this manner. Alternatively, the information related to the work machine shown in Figures 15B to 15D may be set on a single display screen.

[0182] Furthermore, the first setup screen displayed before starting the teaching shown in Figure 9B may also include display screens as shown in Figures 15B and 15C. As mentioned above, the information regarding the work may include at least one of the following items: the type of work, the type of work implement (e.g., model), the maximum height when the work implement is raised, the size of the work implement, or other work-related items registered by the user.

[0183] In the example shown in Figure 15D, the user enters the width and length of the work implement 300 into boxes 76a and 76b, respectively. Then, pressing the "Next" button 82 transitions to the display screen shown in Figure 16A.

[0184] Figures 16A and 16B show an example of a second setting screen that allows the user to select a first work area from which to move and a second work area to which to move from among multiple work areas. Similar to the second setting screens shown in Figures 9C to 12C, the inter-area path between the first and second work areas selected in the second setting screens shown in Figures 16A and 16B is associated with the information about the work selected in the first setting screen and recorded in the storage device as part of the work plan data.

[0185] The second settings screen shown in Figures 16A and 16B has a user interface for setting the order of multiple work areas 77a to 77f in which work is performed. The display screen shown in Figure 16A shows a map containing multiple work areas (in this example, six work areas 77a to 77f). Work areas can be selected by the user by specifying the area on the map that represents the work area. For each pair of work areas, the route between the areas can be recorded in association with information about those work areas and the work.

[0186] In the example in Figure 16A, the user selects the first work area from the displayed work areas 77a to 77f. In the example in Figure 16A, the upper left work area 77a is selected as the first work area. When work area 77a is selected, as shown in Figure 16B, the color of the image representing work area 77a changes to a more prominent color, and the number "1" indicating the order of work is displayed on the image of work area 77a. In this state, the user selects the second work area where work will be performed next. In the example in Figure 16B, the upper right work area 77b is selected as the second work area.

[0187] In this embodiment, one or more inter-area paths between a plurality of work areas 77a to 77f are pre-recorded in a storage device in association with work-related information (e.g., type of work and / or type of work equipment). In this state, when a first work area is selected, only work areas that can be moved from the first work area may be displayed in a manner that allows selection as a second work area. That is, when work-related information is entered on the first setting screen and a first work area is selected on the second setting screen, if one or more inter-area paths originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, one or more work areas that are the endpoints of those inter-area paths may be displayed in a manner that allows selection as a second work area. Displaying one or more work areas in a manner that allows selection as a second work area may include, for example, displaying those one or more work areas in a different color (e.g., a more conspicuous color) than the other work areas.

[0188] In the example shown in Figure 16B, when the second work area 77b is selected, the display screen transitions to the one shown in Figure 16C. Figure 16C shows an example of a display screen for selecting an inter-area route connecting the selected first work area 77a and the second work area 77b. In this example, multiple inter-area routes connecting work areas 77a and 77b are pre-recorded in the storage device. A list 79 containing information on these inter-area routes and a message 78 prompting the user to select one inter-area route from the list 79 are displayed. As shown in Figure 16C, the list 79 may include information for each of the multiple inter-area routes, such as the type of work equipment used (model name, etc.) and the creation date. Such a list may be displayed even if only one inter-area route from work area 77a to work area 77b is recorded. Alternatively, if only one inter-area route from work area 77a to work area 77b is recorded, the single recorded inter-area route may be automatically selected without displaying such a list.

[0189] Thus, the method for generating a work plan in this embodiment may include, after a second work area has been selected, having the user select one inter-area route from one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes connecting the first work area and the second work area. Having the user select one inter-area route may include displaying a list of one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes and displaying a message prompting the user to select one inter-area route from the list. The method may further include determining the selected inter-area route as the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area in the work plan.

[0190] When an inter-area route is selected, a work plan is generated and can be recorded in storage. This plan includes information about the work entered on the first setting screen, information indicating the first and second work areas selected on the second setting screen, and information indicating the inter-area route. The work plan may include information defining the order in which the work will be performed in multiple work areas. This process can be performed, for example, by server 500.

[0191] In the example shown in Figure 16C, if the information regarding the work associated with the selected inter-area route differs from the information regarding the work set in the first setting screen shown in Figures 15B to 15D, the display screen shown in Figure 16D may be displayed. The display screen shown in Figure 16D includes a warning message 83 indicating that the work equipment used when the inter-area route was generated is different from the work equipment set in the first setting screen. The user can choose whether or not to actually use the selected inter-area route by selecting the "Yes" button 84a or the "No" button 84b.

[0192] Thus, if the information regarding the work includes information regarding the type of work and / or the type of work equipment, a warning message 78 may be displayed if the selected inter-area route is associated with a different type of work and / or work equipment than the type of work and / or work equipment entered in the first setting screen.

[0193] Instead of such a warning message 78, a warning message may be displayed, for example, if the type of implement associated with the selected inter-area route is smaller than the type of implement selected on the first setting screen. When the work vehicle 100 travels along the inter-area route, if a larger implement is used than the one used when recording the inter-area route (i.e., during teaching), the implement is more likely to come into contact with an obstacle or veer off the farm road. By displaying a warning message when the implement used during teaching is smaller than the implement set on the setting screen shown in Figures 15C and 15D, the user can be alerted.

[0194] Figure 16E shows an example of a display screen that may be shown after an inter-area path between the first work area 77a and the second work area 77b has been selected. This display screen has a user interface similar to that of Figures 16A and 16B. This display screen includes a message 93 prompting the user to select a third work area where work will be performed after the second work area 77b. Thus, the GUI of the second setting screen in this embodiment has a function to allow the user to select a third work area where work will be performed after the second work area 77b, after the first work area 77a, the second work area 77b, and the inter-area path have been selected.

[0195] In the example shown in Figure 16E, work area 77c is selected as the third work area. Even after the third work area 77c is selected, a display screen similar to that in Figure 16C may be displayed. That is, if one or more inter-area routes connecting the second work area 77b and the third work area 77c are pre-recorded in the storage device, a display screen may be displayed that allows the user to select one of the pre-recorded inter-area routes. The inter-area route selected on that display screen may be determined as the inter-area route connecting the second work area 77b and the third work area 77c in the work plan.

[0196] The user performs the above operations for all work areas where work is scheduled to be performed consecutively within a certain work period. Figure 16F shows an example of a display screen (second setting screen) showing the state after the selection of inter-area routes has been completed for all six work areas 77a to 77f. In this example, numbers (1 to 6) indicating the order of work in multiple work areas 77a to 77f are displayed on the image representing each work area. When the user presses the "Complete" button, the work information entered in the first setting screen, the information of the work areas 77a to 77f selected in the second setting screen, the order of work in work areas 77a to 77f, and all selected inter-area routes are associated and can be recorded in the storage device as work plan data (also simply called "work plan").

[0197] Figure 16G shows an example of a display screen indicating that the creation and recording of the work plan has been completed. This display screen includes a display 85 that shows the name of the work plan. With the above operations, the setting of continuous work to be performed by the work vehicle 100 during a certain work period is completed.

[0198] Figure 17 shows an example of the structure of work plan data. As shown in Figure 17, work plan data may include, for example, an identifier (ID) that identifies the work plan, the date and time the work plan was created, the date and time the work started, the type of work, the type of work equipment, the size of the work equipment, the work area, and information on the route between areas. As shown in Figure 17, the information on the work area and the route between areas may include multiple sets of information, with each set consisting of a combination of the ID of the source work area, the ID of the destination work area, and the ID of the route between the two work areas. The route ID between areas corresponds to the route ID shown in Figure 6, for example, and can be associated with information on multiple waypoints. Such work plan data may be generated for each series of consecutive work performed by the work vehicle 100 over a certain period (e.g., several hours, half a day, a day, or several days). Such work plan data may be generated by a computer such as a server 500 that communicates with the terminal device 400 and stored in a storage device built into or connected to the server 500.

[0199] In the example above, after the work information is set on the first settings screen, the order of the work areas and the routes between areas are set on the second settings screen. However, the order of these settings may be reversed. That is, the GUI on the terminal device 400 may be configured such that the order of the work areas and the routes between areas are set on the second settings screen, and then the work information is set on the first settings screen.

[0200] In this embodiment, the same work machine is used in multiple work areas where continuous work is performed, but the GUI may be configured to allow setting work-related information (e.g., type of work and / or type of work machine) for each work area. In that case, the work plan may include information indicating the work to be performed and / or the work machine to be used for each work area. For example, a work plan may be created in which the work type, work machine type, and work machine size information shown in Figure 17 are recorded for each work area or for each route between areas.

[0201] In the above-described sequential work plan, the GUI may be configured so that, after a work area is selected, the next work area to be worked on is the already selected work area. Furthermore, it may be possible to select the same work area consecutively. For example, selections such as 1st work area → 2nd work area → 2nd work area → 3rd work area → ... or 1st work area → 2nd work area → 3rd work area → 1st work area → ... may be possible. By enabling such selections, different tasks can be set in the same work area within a single sequential work plan.

[0202] When a user is setting the order of multiple work areas on the second settings screen, a computer such as a terminal device 400 or server 500 may calculate the estimated fuel or material consumption of the work vehicle 100, and may display a warning message if the estimated consumption exceeds the standard amount of fuel or material set for the work vehicle 100. The materials are, for example, agricultural products that need to be replenished after consumption, such as fertilizers, pesticides, seeds, and seedlings. The work equipment used in this case may be, for example, a broadcaster, sprayer, seed planter, or planter.

[0203] In such embodiments, a computer, such as a terminal device 400 or server 500, calculates the amount of fuel and / or materials consumed by work travel and inter-area movement performed in each work area each time a work area and inter-area route are selected, and sequentially determines whether the total consumption exceeds a preset amount of fuel or materials (e.g., maximum load capacity). A warning message may be displayed when the total consumption exceeds the preset amount.

[0204] Figure 18 shows an example of a warning message. In the example in Figure 18, a warning message 99 is displayed indicating that fuel may be running low while the user is selecting the fifth work area. A similar warning message may be displayed if materials are running low instead of fuel. Such warnings allow the user to become aware of fuel or material shortages and make decisions such as revising the continuous work plan.

[0205] Figures 19A and 19C show examples of GUIs for deleting work plans. When the user selects the "Delete" button on the display screen shown in Figure 19A, the display screen shown in Figure 19B is accessed. The display screen shown in Figure 19B shows a list of created work plans. When the user selects the work plan they want to delete and presses the "Delete" button, a confirmation message is displayed as shown in Figure 19C. When the user presses the "Yes" button, the selected work plan is deleted.

[0206] (Sequential selection of routes between areas) Next, we will describe an example of a function that automates movement to the next work area and work in the next work area by allowing the user to select the next work area that is accessible from the work area when the work vehicle 100 has completed or interrupted its automated work run in one work area. In this example as well, a GUI similar to the GUI for setting up the continuous work plan described above may be used.

[0207] In this embodiment, one or more inter-area routes between multiple work areas are pre-recorded in a storage device in association with work-related information. When work in the first work area is completed or interrupted, if one or more inter-area routes originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, one or more work areas that are the endpoints of those inter-area routes are displayed in a manner that allows them to be selected as the second work area. A specific example of this function is described below.

[0208] Figure 20A shows an example of a display screen that may be shown on the display of the terminal device 400 or the operating terminal 200. This display screen includes three buttons indicating multiple functions such as "Automatic Operation," "Continuous Operation," and "Creating Inter-Field Movement Routes." When the user selects the "Continuous Operation" button 450, the display screen shown in Figure 20B is displayed.

[0209] Figure 20B shows an example of a display screen for selecting a method for executing a series of tasks. This display screen includes two buttons: "Execute from work plan" and "Execute by sequential selection." When the user selects the "Execute from work plan" button 451a, the system transitions to a display screen for selecting a work plan set up using the method described above. When the user selects the "Execute by sequential selection" button 451b, the system transitions to the display screen shown in Figure 20C.

[0210] Figure 20C shows an example of a display screen for selecting the work area (a field in the example) where the work will be performed first. This display screen shows a map containing multiple work areas. The user selects one work area from the displayed work areas 77a to 77f. In the example in Figure 20C, work area 77a is selected. Once a work area is selected, the display screen shown in Figure 20D is displayed.

[0211] Figure 20D shows an example of a display screen for starting automated driving in the selected work area 77a. This display screen shows a map of the selected work area 77a and the work route (shown by arrows) within the work area 77a. When the user presses the "Start Automated Driving" button 452, automated driving begins. Once the work in that work area is completed, the display screen shown in Figure 20E is displayed.

[0212] Figure 20E shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work run is completed. On this display screen, the area where work has been completed is shown in a different color from the area before work was performed on the work area map. This display screen includes a "Work Complete" button 453 and a "Select Next Field" button 454. When the user selects the "Select Next Field" button 454, the display screen shown in Figure 20F is displayed.

[0213] Figure 20F shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area after completing work in work area 77a. Similar to Figure 20C, this display screen shows a map containing multiple work areas 77a to 77f. The completed work area 77a is displayed in a different color from the other work areas, and the number "1" indicating the work order is displayed. On this display screen, the user selects the next work area to perform work. This display screen may also be displayed in a way that only one or more work areas for which an inter-area route from the completed work area 77a is registered are selectable. For example, in Figure 20F, work areas 77b and 77c are surrounded by thick borders, indicating that they are selectable work areas. These work areas 77b and 77c may be displayed in a different color from the other work areas. In this way, selectable work areas may be highlighted. In the example in Figure 20F, work area 77b is selected as the next work area.

[0214] Figure 20G shows an example of a display screen that appears after work area 77b is selected. This display screen includes images showing the completed work area 77a and the next work area 77b, as well as a message confirming whether or not to move to work area 77b. If the user selects the "Yes" button 454, the display screen shown in Figure 20H will appear. If multiple routes connecting work area 77a to work area 77b are pre-registered, a screen for selecting the route to use (for example, a screen like Figure 16C) may be displayed.

[0215] Figure 20H shows an example of a display screen for performing an operation to start movement between work areas 77a and 77b (in the example shown, movement between fields). This display screen shows a button 456 for instructing the start of movement between work areas 77a and 77b. As shown in Figure 20H, an image 455 captured by the camera of the work vehicle 100 at that time may also be displayed. When the user presses button 456, the control device 180 starts the movement of the work vehicle 100 between areas. When the work vehicle 100 reaches work area 77b, the display screen shown in Figure 20I is displayed.

[0216] Figure 20I shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work vehicle 100 reaches the work area 77b. As shown in Figure 20I, a message 458 indicating that work will begin in the work area 77b, a "Start" button 459, and a "Stop" button 460 are displayed. When the user presses the "Start" button 459, the work vehicle 100 starts moving within the work area 77b and transitions to the display screen shown in Figure 20J. When the user presses the "Stop" button 460, the work vehicle 100 stops. Alternatively, the work vehicle 100 may start moving immediately upon reaching the destination work area 77b without the "Start" button 459.

[0217] Figure 20J shows an example of a display screen shown during work driving in work area 77b. During work driving, a map of work area 77b and an icon image indicating the position of work vehicle 100 are displayed. When the user presses the "Stop" button 460, work vehicle 100 temporarily stops. Once work driving in work area 77b is complete, the display screen shown in Figure 20K is displayed.

[0218] Figure 20K shows an example of a display screen that appears after work in work area 77b is completed. This display screen is the same as the display screen shown in Figure 20E. When the user selects the "Select next field" button 461, the display screen shown in Figure 20L appears.

[0219] Figure 20L shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area after completing work in work area 77b. This display screen, like Figures 20C and 20F, shows a map containing multiple work areas 77a to 77f. Completed work areas 77a and 77b are displayed in a different color from the other work areas, and the numbers "1" and "2" indicating the order of work are displayed. On this display screen, the user selects the next work area to perform work on. In the example in Figure 20L, work area 77c is selected as the next work area. Once work area 77c is selected, screens similar to those in Figures 20G to 20K are displayed in sequence, and work in work area 77c is performed. The same operation can be performed for other work areas thereafter.

[0220] Figure 20M shows an example of a display screen that appears after the work run in the final work area is completed. When the user selects the "Work Complete" button 462, the series of operations performed by self-propelled operation is finished.

[0221] On the display screen shown in FIG. 20M, when the user selects the "Select Next Work Area" button 461, if there is no other work area movable from that work area, a warning message may be displayed. For example, when the work in all work areas on the map has been completed, or when there is no other work area where the inter-area route from that work area is recorded, a warning message may be displayed.

[0222] FIG. 20N is a diagram showing an example of a display screen including a warning message. This display screen includes a warning message 463 indicating that there is no movable work area. Such a warning message 463 may also be displayed in the display screen shown in FIG. 20L when a work area where the corresponding inter-area route is not recorded is specified.

[0223] By the above method, when the work vehicle 100 completes the work running by automatic driving in one work area, the user can select the next work area movable from that work area, thereby automating the movement to the next work area and the work in the next work area.

[0224] Note that instead of moving to the next work area after the work in one work area is completed, the system may be configured such that the work in one work area can be interrupted and moved to the next work area. Hereinafter, such an example will be described while referring to FIGS. 21A to 21G.

[0225] FIG. 21A shows an example of a display screen when automatic driving is being performed in a certain work area. This display screen is the same as the display screen shown in FIG. 20J. On this display screen, when the user presses the "Stop" button 460, the automatic driving is temporarily stopped and the display screen shown in FIG. 21B is transitioned to.

[0226] Figure 21B shows an example of a display screen that appears when automatic driving is temporarily paused. This display screen includes a button 465 for changing the work area (field), a button 466 for canceling the work, and a button 467 for starting automatic driving. When button 465 is selected, the display screen shown in Figure 21C is displayed. When button 466 is selected, the process of working by automatic driving ends. When button 467 is selected, automatic driving resumes.

[0227] Figure 21C shows an example of a screen that prompts the user to confirm a change in the work area. When the user presses the "Yes" button, the screen transitions to the display shown in Figure 21D.

[0228] Figure 21D shows an example of a display screen for selecting the next work area. This display screen is the same as that shown in Figure 20F. In the example in Figure 21D, work area 77b is selected as the next work area to be worked on. Once work area 77b is selected, the display screen shown in Figure 21E is displayed.

[0229] Figure 21E shows an example of a display screen that appears after the next work area 77b is selected. This display screen includes a message 464 that prompts the user to confirm that they want to interrupt their work and move to the next work area. When the user presses the "Yes" button, the display screen shown in Figure 21F is displayed.

[0230] Figure 21F shows an example of a display screen that appears when moving from work area 77a, where work has been interrupted, to the next work area 77b. This display screen includes a map of work area 77a and a "Start Auto Driving" button 468. When the "Start Auto Driving" button 468 is pressed, the work vehicle 100 starts moving towards the exit of work area 77a. When the work vehicle 100 reaches the exit, the work vehicle 100 pauses and transitions to the display screen shown in Figure 21G.

[0231] Figure 21G shows an example of a display screen that appears when the work vehicle 100 is temporarily stopped at the exit of work area 77a. This display screen includes a button 469 to initiate inter-area movement. When the user presses button 469, the work vehicle 100 begins inter-area movement to work area 77b.

[0232] By the above method, after the work vehicle 100 interrupts its automated work movement in one work area, the user can select the next work area that is accessible from that work area, thereby automating the movement to the next work area and the work in the next work area.

[0233] The systems according to embodiments of the present invention are not limited to those illustrated. For example, the above example shows the creation of route data for routes connecting fields, but the system is not limited to this example. For example, route data may be created for routes taken by work vehicles within a field. Route data may also be created for routes taken by work vehicles within a field while performing work using work implements.

[0234] The systems in the above embodiments can also be retrofitted to work vehicles that do not possess those functions. Such control systems can be manufactured and sold independently of work vehicles. Computer programs used in such control systems can also be manufactured and sold independently of work vehicles. Computer programs can be provided, for example, stored in a computer-readable non-temporary storage medium. Computer programs can also be provided by download via telecommunications lines (e.g., the Internet). [Industrial applicability]

[0235] The driving control system according to the embodiment of the present invention is widely applicable to various types of work vehicles used in smart agriculture. [Explanation of symbols]

[0236] 100...Work vehicle, 110...Positioning device (GNSS unit), 150...Sensor group (internal sensor group), 180...Control device, 210...Operation switch group, 300...Work machine, 1000...Driving control system

Claims

1. A method performed by a computer that sets the movement of a work vehicle that automatically travels between multiple work areas between said multiple work areas, A first settings screen is displayed on the screen for the user to input information regarding the work performed by the aforementioned work vehicle, A second setting screen is displayed on the display to allow the user to select a first work area from which to move and a second work area to which to move from among the aforementioned multiple work areas. The inter-area path connecting the first work area and the second work area selected in the second setting screen is recorded in a storage device in association with the information regarding the work selected in the first setting screen, A method that includes this.

2. The second settings screen displays a map including the multiple work areas, The selection of the first work area and the second work area is performed by the user specifying the area representing the first work area and the area representing the second work area on the map. The method according to claim 1.

3. The process further includes generating the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area after the first work area and the second work area have been selected in the second setting screen, The method according to claim 1.

4. Generating the aforementioned inter-area routes is The acquisition of location information of multiple points obtained by the positioning device while a work vehicle equipped with a positioning device is traveling from the first work area to the second work area by manual operation, The method according to claim 3, comprising generating a plurality of waypoint data as an inter-area route based on the location information of the plurality of points.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising displaying a message to the user prompting them to manually drive the work vehicle from the first work area to the second work area after the first work area and the second work area have been selected on the second setting screen.

6. The method according to claim 3, further comprising displaying a message on the second settings screen prompting the user to select a pair of work areas different from the pair of the first work area and the second work area in order to generate other inter-area routes after the generation of the inter-area routes has been completed,

7. When the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area is already recorded in the storage device in association with information related to the work, When information regarding the work is entered on the first setting screen and the first work area is selected on the second setting screen, In the second settings screen, information is displayed indicating that the second work area is already registered as a destination from the first work area, and one or more work areas other than the first and second work areas are displayed in a manner that allows them to be selected as other destinations. The method according to claim 3, further comprising:

8. Displaying one or more of the aforementioned work areas in a manner that allows them to be selected as other destinations is, The method according to claim 7, comprising displaying the second work area in a first color and in a non-selectable manner, and displaying one or more work areas in a second color different from the first color and in a selectable manner.

9. After the third work area is selected as the other destination, a route between other areas is generated from the first work area to the third work area. The aforementioned inter-area routes are recorded in the storage device in association with the work information and the first work area and the third work area. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

10. The second settings screen has a user interface for setting the order of the multiple work areas in which the above work is performed. Recording the aforementioned inter-area routes is, The information regarding the operation entered in the first setting screen, Information indicating the first work area and the second work area selected in the second setting screen, Information indicating the inter-area route and This includes generating a work plan that defines the order in which the aforementioned work is performed in the plurality of work areas, and recording the work plan in the storage device, The method according to claim 1.

11. One or more inter-area paths between the aforementioned work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with information related to the work, When work in the first work area is completed or interrupted, if one or more inter-area routes originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, the system further includes displaying one or more work areas that are the endpoints of the one or more inter-area routes in a manner that allows selection as the second work area. The method according to claim 10.

12. One or more inter-area paths between the aforementioned work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with information related to the work, When information regarding the work is entered on the first setting screen and the first work area is selected on the second setting screen, and if one or more inter-area routes originating from the first work area are pre-recorded, the system further includes displaying one or more work areas that are the endpoints of the one or more inter-area routes in a manner that allows them to be selected as the second work area. The method according to claim 10.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein displaying one or more work areas in a manner that allows them to be selected as the second work area includes displaying the one or more work areas in a different color from the other work areas.

14. After the second work area is selected, the user is instructed to select one inter-area route from one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes connecting the first work area and the second work area. The selected inter-area route is determined to be the inter-area route connecting the first work area and the second work area in the work plan, The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

15. Having the user select one of the aforementioned inter-area routes is, Display a list of one or more pre-recorded inter-area routes, A message is displayed prompting the user to select one inter-area route from the aforementioned list. The method according to claim 14, including the method described in claim 14.

16. The information relating to the work includes information relating to the type of work and / or the type of work equipment, The method according to claim 14, further comprising displaying a warning message if the selected inter-area route is associated with a type of work and / or type of work equipment that is different from the type of work and / or type of work equipment entered in the first setting screen.

17. One or more inter-area paths between the aforementioned multiple work areas are pre-recorded in the storage device in association with the type of work machine. The first setting screen has a user interface for selecting the type of work machine, The system further includes displaying a warning message if the type of work machine associated with the selected inter-area route is a smaller model than the type of work machine selected on the first setting screen. The method according to claim 14.

18. After the first work area, the second work area, and the route between the areas are selected, the user is instructed to select a third work area where work will be performed after the second work area. If one or more inter-area routes connecting the second work area and the third work area are pre-recorded in the storage device, the user is made to select one of the pre-recorded inter-area routes. The selected inter-area route is determined to be the inter-area route connecting the second work area and the third work area in the work plan, The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

19. When the user performs an operation to set the order of the multiple work areas in which the work is performed on the second setting screen, the estimated consumption of fuel or materials for the work vehicle is calculated, If the estimated consumption exceeds the standard amount of fuel or materials set for the work vehicle, a warning message will be displayed. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

20. An apparatus comprising a computer configured or programmed to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, A positioning device that acquires location information of the aforementioned work vehicle, A work vehicle equipped with the following features.

22. A computer program that causes a computer to perform the method described in any one of claims 1 to 19.

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