E-mail sending system and e-mail sending method

Abstract

To make it possible to transmit necessary information by email at appropriate timing and allow items and timing to be selected.SOLUTION: An email transmitting system includes: a combine harvester 1 that performs agricultural work and includes a traveling body 3 and an information detection unit 70 that detects operational information about the operation of the traveling body 3; a plurality of mobile devices 61, 62, 63; an information management unit 54 as a mail transmission unit that creates emails based on selected information selected from the operational information and sends the emails to the plurality of mobile devices 61, 62, 63 through the Internet 60; a mail creation unit 55; and an external communication unit 56. The mail transmission unit sets the selected information selected from the operational information and the timing of sending the email for each mobile device 61, 62, 63.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an email transmission system and email transmission method for transmitting email from a work vehicle used in agricultural work to a terminal device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, an email transmission system has been developed that transmits emails from a combine harvester, which is an example of a work vehicle used in agricultural work, to a terminal device (mobile terminal), in which the predicted time when the combine harvester's tank will be full is transmitted via email (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] Also, an e-mail transmission system is known in which operation information transmitted from an agricultural work vehicle is transmitted to a remote server, and the remote server collects, processes, and manages the operation information (see Patent Document 2). In this information management system, when the remote server acquires malfunction information of the work vehicle, it automatically transmits an e-mail including the malfunction information to a specified terminal device. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-34232 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2016-76854 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the email transmission system described in the above Patent Document 1, the information transmitted by email is limited to the predicted time when the tank will become full, and the situations in which the information can be used are limited, making it poorly adaptable to work. Also, in the email transmission system described in the above Patent Document 2, the items and timing of the email to be sent cannot be selected, making it poorly adaptable to work.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide an e-mail sending system and method that can send necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing and that allows selection of the items and timing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The email transmission system of the present invention includes a work vehicle (1, 1A, 1B) for performing agricultural work, the work vehicle having a vehicle body (3, 3A, 3B) and an information detection unit (70) for detecting operation information related to the operation of the vehicle body (3, 3A, 3B); A plurality of terminal devices (61, 62, 63); a mail sending unit (54, 55, 56, 154, 155, 156, 254, 255, 256) that creates an e-mail based on selection information selected from the operation information and sends the e-mail to the plurality of terminal devices (61, 62, 63) through a communication network (60); The mail sending unit (54, 55, 56, 154, 155, 156, 254, 255, 256) sets, for each of the terminal devices (61, 62, 63), the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing for sending the e-mail.

[0008] For example, referring to Figures 8(b) and 10(b), the mail sending unit (54, 55, 56, 154, 155, 156, 254, 255, 256) can execute a group setting operation to divide the multiple terminal devices (61, 62, 63) into groups and set the selection information and the timing to be the same within the group.

[0009] For example, referring to FIG. 8(b) and FIG. 10(b), the mail sending units (54, 55, 56, 154, 155, 156, 254, 255, 256) can change the group to which the terminal devices (61, 62, 63) belong.

[0010] For example, referring to Figs. 1, 5, 17 and 18, the work vehicle (1, 1A, 1B) is a combine harvester, The groups include a rice transporter group and a dryer operator group.

[0011] For example, with reference to Figures 1, 5, 17 and 18, the groups include an administrator group.

[0012] For example, referring to FIG. 8, the mail sending units (54, 55, 56, 154, 155, 156, 254, 255, 256) create and send the e-mail including a list of identification information of the plurality of terminal devices (61, 62, 63) and the groups to which they belong.

[0013] Also, referring to FIG. 6, for example, the email transmission method of the present invention includes an information detection step (step S2) of detecting operation information related to the operation of the vehicle body (3, 3A, 3B) of the work vehicle (1, 1A, 1B) performing agricultural work by an information detection unit (70); a mail sending step (steps S3 and S4) of creating an e-mail based on selection information selected from the operation information and sending the e-mail to a plurality of terminal devices (61, 62, 63) through a communication network (60); The method includes a setting step (step S1) of setting the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the e-mail for each of the terminal devices (61, 62, 63).

[0014] It should be noted that the reference numerals in parentheses are used for comparison with the drawings, and do not limit the configuration of the present invention in any way. Effect of the Invention

[0015] In the present invention according to claim 1, the email sending unit sets the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the email for each terminal device. Therefore, it becomes possible to send the necessary information by email at an appropriate timing, and the adaptability to the work can be improved by selecting the item and the timing.

[0016] In the present invention according to claim 2, the mail sending unit can execute a group setting operation in which a plurality of terminal devices are divided into groups and the selection information and timing are set to the same within the group. Therefore, without having to perform setting work on each of the plurality of terminal devices, it is possible to collectively set and manage them in group units, thereby improving operability.

[0017] In the present invention according to claim 3, since the mail sending unit can change the group to which the terminal device belongs, it can be changed by a simple operation of simply changing the group of the terminal device to be changed. Therefore, even if the change work occurs frequently, for example, changing the group on a daily basis, the operability can be improved.

[0018] In the present invention according to claim 4, the work vehicle is a combine harvester, and the group includes a group of rice-carrying workers and a group of dryer workers. Therefore, in harvesting work using a combine harvester, emails can be sent separately to the rice-carrying workers and the dryer workers, so that each worker can send the necessary information at the appropriate time, and work efficiency can be improved without sending unnecessary information.

[0019] In the present invention related to claim 5, since the group includes an administrator group, information necessary for managing work can be sent to the administrator separately from the workers, and work efficiency can be improved without unnecessary information being sent to the workers.

[0020] In the present invention according to claim 6, the mail sending unit creates and sends an email including a list of identification information of a plurality of terminal devices and groups to which they belong. This allows the person who receives this email to easily and quickly confirm which person (terminal device) belongs to which group. This function can also be used to perform an email sending test.

[0021] The present invention according to claim 7 includes a setting step for setting, for each terminal device, the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing for sending the e-mail. This makes it possible to send the necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing, and the ability to select the items and timing improves adaptability to the work. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a combine harvester according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the grain tank and its surrounding area. [Diagram 3] A plan view showing the inside of the grain tank. [Figure 4] 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2 showing the grain tank and its surrounding area. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a connection between the combine and a mobile terminal. [Figure 6] 11 is a flowchart showing the processing steps of an email sending method. [Figure 7] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing the display contents of the display device, where (a) is the standby screen, and (b) is the screen that appears when the monitor switching button is touched on the standby screen. [Figure 8] 8A and 8B are diagrams showing the display contents of the display device, in which (a) is the screen that appears when the role allocation button is touched on the standby screen, and (b) is the screen that appears when the change button is touched on the screen shown in FIG. 8A. [Figure 9] 9A and 9B are diagrams showing the display contents of the display device, where (a) is the screen that appears when the setting button is touched on the standby screen, and (b) is the administrator screen that appears when the login button is touched on the screen shown in FIG. 9A. [Figure 10] 13A and 13B are diagrams showing the display contents of the display device, in which (a) is the screen that appears when the information management button is touched on the administrator screen, and (b) is the screen that appears when the role allocation button is touched on the administrator screen. [Figure 11]11A and 11B are diagrams showing the display contents of the display device, where (a) is the screen that appears when the user information button is touched on the administrator screen, and (b) is the screen that appears when changing information on the screen shown in FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the display contents of the display device when the email information button is touched on the administrator screen. [Figure 13] 13 is a diagram showing the display contents of the display device, which is a screen when the monitoring log display button is touched on the standby screen. FIG. [Figure 14] 13A and 13B show the contents of the emails, where (a) is an email addressed to a rice transporter and (b) is an email addressed to a dryer operator. [Figure 15] FIG. 13 shows the contents of emails, where (a) is addressed to an administrator and is sent when the progress has reached 50%, and (b) is addressed to an administrator and is sent when the progress has reached 100%. [Figure 16] FIG. 13 shows the contents of an email sent to an administrator when an All_Log file is sent. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a connection between a combine harvester and a portable terminal in a second embodiment. [Figure 18] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a connection between a combine harvester and a portable terminal in a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0023] <First embodiment> A first embodiment of the email transmission system of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the work vehicle for performing agricultural work of the present invention is applied to a combine harvester 1. The combine harvester 1 according to this embodiment is a general-purpose combine harvester, and has a traveling machine body 3, which is an example of a vehicle body, supported by a pair of left and right crawler-type traveling devices 2, as shown in FIG. 1. A reaping unit 4 for reaping stalks in a field is provided in front of the traveling machine body 3 so as to be freely raised and lowered, and a driving operation unit 5 for an operator to sit and operate the combine harvester 1 is provided on one side in front of the traveling machine body 3. A threshing unit 6 for threshing the stalks reaped and transported by the reaping unit 4 is provided on the other side of the traveling machine body 3, and a sorting unit 7 for sorting the threshed stalks is provided below the threshing unit 6. A grain tank 8 for storing the grains sorted by the sorting unit 7 is disposed behind the driving operation unit 5, and a discharge auger 9 for discharging the grains stored in the grain tank 8 to the outside of the machine is provided behind the grain tank 8. In this embodiment, the front direction X toward which an operator seated on the driving operation unit 5 of the combine harvester 1 placed horizontally faces is defined as the forward direction, and the front, rear, left and right directions are defined based on this direction.

[0024] An engine (not shown) is provided at the right front of the traveling body 3, and the power generated by the engine is branched into power for the traveling system and power for the working system. The power for the traveling system is transmitted to the left and right crawler-type traveling devices 2, and the power for the working system is transmitted to the reaping unit 4 via a reaping clutch (not shown), and is also transmitted to the threshing unit 6 and the grain tank 8 via a threshing clutch (not shown). The reaping unit 4 has a reel 10 extending in the left-right direction, a movable mechanism (not shown) that supports the reel 10 so that it can move up and down and in the front-rear direction, and a feeder 13 equipped with a reciprocating type cutting blade 11 and a feeder conveyor 12. The stalks in the field raked in by the rotating reel 10 are cut by the cutting blade 11 and transported to the threshing unit 6 by the feeder conveyor 12.

[0025] The threshing section 6 has a threshing chamber 14 into which the stalks harvested by the harvesting section 4 are fed, and a threshing drum 15 that is rotatably supported within the threshing chamber 14 and has a guide plate 15a attached in a spiral shape to its outer circumferential surface, and the guide plate 15a is provided with a plurality of protruding threshing teeth 15b that hook the stalks and rotate them together with the threshing drum 15. The stalks fed into the threshing chamber 14 are rotated together with the threshing drum 15 by the threshing teeth 15b, and are threshed by being rubbed against a receiving net (not shown) while being transported to the rear side of the machine, and then fall into the sorting section 7 through the receiving net.

[0026] The sorting section 7 has a oscillating sorting body 16 disposed below the handling drum 15, and a winnowing fan 17 and a blowing fan 18 that blow a sorting air from the front lower side to the rear upper side of the oscillating sorting body 16. The oscillating sorting body 16 has a two-stage structure with chaff sieves on the top and bottom, which are oscillated back and forth to filter the sorted materials, and the first and second grains are wind-sorted by the sorting air of the winnowing fan 17 and the blowing fan 18. The first grains fall into the first spiral 19, and are transported to the inside of the grain tank 8 via a lifting conveying tube (not shown), where they are stored. The second grains fall into the second spiral 20, and are returned to the oscillating sorting body 16 via a return conveying tube (not shown).

[0027] Fig. 2 is a plan view showing the grain tank 8 and its surroundings, Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the inside of the grain tank 8 with the top plate 34, which will be described later, and the like removed, and Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in Fig. 2. As shown in these figures, a discharge spiral 21 is rotatably provided in the innermost part of the grain tank 8 along the front-rear direction. By the rotation of the discharge spiral 21, the grains stored in the innermost part of the grain tank 8 are transported toward the rear of the grain tank 8, and are discharged from the lower rear of the grain tank 8 to the outside of the grain tank 8, where they are discharged outside the machine by a discharge auger 9 equipped with a vertical transport spiral (not shown) for lifting the grains.

[0028] A grain lifting conveyor 22 is disposed between the threshing section 6 and the grain tank 8, and the grain lifting conveyor 22 has a power transmission case 23 and a horizontal spiral tube 24. Inside the power transmission case 23, there are provided a sprocket (not shown) that rotates on an axis, a conveying chain with buckets (not shown) that is operated by the rotation of the sprocket and extends from the bottom of the threshing section 6 to the top of the grain tank 8, and the like.

[0029] The cylindrical horizontal spiral tube 24 is provided so as to protrude from the upper end of the power transmission case 23 through the side wall near the upper part of the grain tank 8 toward the inside of the grain tank 8. The horizontal spiral tube 24 has a horizontal spiral 26 provided inside and integrally formed in a spiral shape around a horizontal spiral shaft 25, a discharge port 27 opening toward the rear on the cylindrical surface at the end of the horizontal spiral tube 24, a scraping plate 28 provided at the tip of the horizontal spiral 26, disposed close to the inner surface of the horizontal spiral tube 24 and fixed to the horizontal spiral 26, and a rotation sensor 29 that converts the amount of rotation of the horizontal spiral 26 into an electrical signal to detect abnormal rotation of the horizontal spiral 26.

[0030] The grains threshed in the threshing section 6 are lifted from the lower part of the threshing section 6 to the upper part of the grain tank 8 by a bucket-equipped conveying chain inside the power transmission case 23, then conveyed rightward inside the grain tank 8 by the rotation of the horizontal spiral 26 inside the horizontal spiral tube 24, and scattered into the grain tank 8 from the discharge port 27 by the scraping plate 28 that rotates integrally with the horizontal spiral 26. The discharge port 27 is formed in a predetermined range from the lower part to the upper part of the horizontal spiral tube 24, and the scraping plate 28 rotates clockwise when viewed from the right side, so that the grains are widely distributed inside the grain tank 8 from below the discharge port 27 to the rear. In addition, a moisture sensor 72 (see FIG. 5) is provided on the grain conveying path from the threshing section 6 to the grain tank 8 to sample a portion of the conveyed grains and detect their moisture.

[0031] The grain tank 8 has a front plate 30, a rear plate 31, a right plate 32, a left plate 33, and a top plate 34, which form the front, rear, left, right and top surfaces of the grain tank 8 so that the cross-sectional area of ​​a predetermined range in the vertical direction is approximately constant, and the bottom surface is closed with a first bottom plate 35 and a second bottom plate 36 to form a box shape. The front plate 30 and the top plate 34 are formed with an openable and closable maintenance hole 37 for checking the inside of the grain tank 8. The first bottom plate 35 and the second bottom plate 36 are both formed of approximately flat sheet metal extending in the front-rear direction, and are arranged at a predetermined angle to each other so that the bottom surface of the grain tank 8 is inclined downward toward the discharge spiral 21. In other words, the front plate 30, the rear plate 31, the first bottom plate 35 and the second bottom plate 36 are formed so that their cross-sectional areas gradually decrease toward the bottom, and when the grains stored in the deepest part of the grain tank 8 are transported rearward by the rotation of the discharge spiral 21, the grains at the top are successively collected in the discharge spiral 21 along the slope of the first bottom plate 35 and the second bottom plate 36.

[0032] The top plate 34 is provided with a pile sensor 71 capable of detecting the pile height (amount) of grains stored inside the grain tank 8. The pile sensor 71 is an optical distance sensor, and for example, a ToF (Time of Flight) type distance sensor using a laser is applied. Note that the pile sensor 71 is not limited to being a distance sensor, and for example, a detection unit that detects the pile height of grains using multiple mechanical switches arranged vertically may be applied.

[0033] The grain tank 8 is provided with an agitator 46 that smooths the accumulation of grains stored inside the grain tank 8. The agitator 46 has a rotating shaft 47 arranged vertically inside the grain tank 8, a plurality of agitating bars 48 attached to the rotating shaft 47, and a motor 49 attached to the top plate 34, and the rotating shaft 47 is rotated by the motor 49 as a drive source. A plurality of agitating bars 48 are provided at predetermined intervals along the axial direction of the rotating shaft 47, and each agitating bar 48 is arranged at 90 degree intervals around the axis of the rotating shaft 47.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 5, the combine harvester 1 is equipped with an ECU (Electric Control Unit) 50 for controlling the traveling machine body 3 by being connected to the traveling machine body 3. The ECU 50 is composed of a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc. The ECU 50 acquires and stores machine body information 51 and user information 52, and also has an information processing unit 53 for processing the stored information, an information management unit 54 for managing information, an email creation unit 55 for creating email, and an external communication unit 56 for transmitting and receiving information to and from the outside of the combine harvester 1 via the Internet 60. The information management unit 54, the email creation unit 55, and the external communication unit 56 correspond to an email transmission unit. In addition, the combine harvester 1 is equipped with a communication device 57 as hardware such as an antenna and electrical components for connecting the external communication unit 56 of the ECU 50 to the Internet 60.

[0035] The combine harvester 1 is equipped with an information detection unit 70 that detects operation information related to the operation of the traveling body 3. The operation information here is, for example, the position of the combine harvester 1, the amount of grains stored in the grain tank 8, the moisture content of the grains, etc. That is, the combine harvester 1 is equipped with an information management unit 54 and an email creation unit 55 that create emails based on the operation information (items to be sent) detected by the information detection unit 70, and an external communication unit 56 that transmits emails to a mobile terminal via the Internet 60.

[0036] The information detection unit 70 is provided with various sensors for detecting operation information, and for example, in addition to the above-mentioned accumulation sensor 71 and moisture sensor 72, a GPS sensor 73 is provided. All of the information detection units 70 are connected to the ECU 50. The GPS sensor 73 is a machine position detection sensor (GNSS) that receives radio waves (data) from a GPS satellite, measures the position of the traveling machine body 3 by GPS, and transmits the acquired position information to the ECU 50. In addition to the accumulation sensor 71 and moisture sensor 72, the information detection unit 70 is provided with, for example, a vehicle speed sensor that detects the vehicle speed of the traveling machine body 3, a reaping clutch sensor that detects the on / off of the reaping clutch, a threshing clutch sensor that detects the on / off of the threshing clutch, a stalk sensor and a sorting layer thickness sensor provided in the sorting unit 7, a fuel detection sensor that detects the remaining amount of fuel in the fuel tank, and the like.

[0037] In addition, the ECU 50 is connected to a grain discharge switch that is arranged on the driving operation unit 5 and switches the operation of the discharge auger 9 on and off, a measurement start switch and a measurement end switch that are arranged on the driving operation unit 5 and instruct the start and end of measurement, a crop setting dial that is arranged on the driving operation unit 5 and sets the crop to be sorted from rice, wheat, soybeans, etc., a storage target adjustment switch that sets an increase or decrease in the storage target value, and a storage target alarm switch that turns the alarm on and off.

[0038] A display device 74 that is disposed in the driving operation unit 5 and displays the output from the ECU 50, and an alarm device 75 that includes an alarm buzzer, an alarm lamp, etc. are connected to the ECU 50. The display device 74 is composed of a liquid crystal panel 76 having a display screen, and a touch panel 77 attached to the display screen of the liquid crystal panel 76, and a touch input signal of the touch panel 77 can be input to the ECU 50.

[0039] On the other hand, the grains stored in the grain tank 8 are transferred to and loaded onto a transport vehicle by a discharge auger 9 when the grain tank 8 is full or nearly full. The grains loaded onto the transport vehicle are transferred to and stored in the dryer after the transport vehicle moves to the dryer, and are then dried by the dryer. A rice transport worker who operates the transport vehicle has a mobile terminal 61 such as a tablet, and a dryer worker who operates the dryer also has a mobile terminal 62 such as a tablet. Furthermore, a manager who manages the work status of the combine harvester 1, the transport vehicle, and the dryer also has a mobile terminal 63 such as a tablet. These mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63, i.e., a plurality of terminal devices, and the communication device 57 of the combine harvester 1 are connected to each other via the Internet 60, which is an example of a communication network.

[0040] Next, the outline of the mail transmission system in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 5, the mail transmission system includes a combine harvester 1, a plurality of mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63, an information management unit 54 as a mail transmission unit, a mail creation unit 55, and an external communication unit 56. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the mail transmission method using this mail transmission system, and first, the outline of the procedure of the mail transmission method will be described along with the flowchart. As shown in FIG. 6, the manager performs various settings using the information management unit 54 before performing work with the combine harvester 1 (step S1, setting process). In the setting process, selection information to be described later and the timing of sending e-mail are set for each of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63, and details will be described later. In this embodiment, the manager performs various settings before performing work with the combine harvester 1, but this is not limited thereto, and various settings can be performed at any timing, such as during the work of the combine harvester 1.

[0041] When the combine harvester 1 starts working, the combine harvester 1 detects operation information of the combine harvester 1 (step S2, information detection step). That is, in the information detection step, the information detection unit 70 detects operation information related to the operation of the traveling body 3 of the combine harvester 1 performing agricultural work. The ECU 50 stores the information as user information 52 of the operator of the combine harvester 1 input in advance, and further stores the operation information detected by the information detection unit 70 as machine information 51. Since the measurement values ​​of each sensor are input to the ECU 50 from the information detection unit 70, the information processing unit 53 processes the measurement values ​​and acquires them as various types of operation information, and in the setting step, the information management unit 54 selects predetermined information from the operation information and sets the selected information.

[0042] The mail creation unit 55 of the ECU 50 creates an e-mail based on selection information (selection items) selected from operation information (transmission items) described below (step S3). The external communication unit 56 of the ECU 50 transmits the e-mail created by the mail creation unit 55 to a plurality of mobile terminals via the Internet 60 (step S4). Note that steps S3 and S4 constitute an e-mail transmission process. One process of this e-mail transmission method is completed by transmitting the e-mail.

[0043] Next, the setting process and the mail transmission process of the mail transmission method in this embodiment, that is, the processing of the information management unit 54, the mail creation unit 55, and the external communication unit 56 in the mail transmission system will be described in detail with reference to the specific example shown in FIG. 7(a) to FIG. 16. FIG. 7(a) is a standby screen displayed on the display device 74 of the traveling body 3 when the combine harvester 1 is driven. As shown in FIG. 7(a), the standby screen displays a monitoring switch button 81, a role allocation button 82, a setting button 83, a monitoring log display button 84, a screen switching button 85, and a monitoring status display unit 86. The monitoring status display unit 86 displays whether the monitoring status is monitoring or monitoring stopped. When the combine harvester 1 is driven, the monitoring status is monitoring, so the monitoring status display unit 86 displays "monitoring".

[0044] The monitoring switch button 81 is a button for switching the monitoring status between monitoring and monitoring stopped, and when the monitoring status is monitoring, "stopped" is displayed. The role allocation button 82 is a button for setting the user category. The setting button 83 is a button for setting various user information and the like, and can only be set by the administrator. The monitoring log display button 84 is a button for displaying the sending results of e-mails and the like. The screen switch button 85 is a button for switching between this screen shown in Figures 7(a) and 7(b) and another screen.

[0045] When the monitoring switch button 81 is touched on the standby screen shown in Fig. 7(a), the monitoring status is switched to "monitoring stopped" and the work completion detection is triggered. Also, as shown in Fig. 7(b), the display of the monitoring status display section 86 is switched to "monitoring stopped" and the display of the monitoring switch button 81 is switched to "operation".

[0046] When the role allocation button 82 is touched on the standby screen shown in FIG. 7(a), the screen transitions to a screen showing category allocation (role allocation) as shown in FIG. 8(a). On this screen, a category display 87, a user display 88, a close button 89 for returning to the standby screen, an email send button 90, and a change button 91 are displayed. The category indicates the role of the farm work related to the combine harvester 1, and in this embodiment, the categories are set as manager, rice transporter, dryer operator, and others, and each is displayed in the category display 87. By setting the manager in this way, it becomes possible to send information necessary for work management to the manager separately for operators such as rice transporter and dryer operator, and the work can be made more efficient. The user display 88 displays the user name or user identification number assigned to each category displayed in the category display 87. This makes it possible to confirm which user is set to which category.

[0047] When the send mail button 90 is touched, category allocation information is sent by email to all registered members. That is, by touching the send mail button 90, the information management unit 54 and the email creation unit 55 create an email including a list of the identification information of a plurality of portable devices and the categories (groups) to which they belong, and this email is sent by the external communication unit 56. This makes it possible to confirm which users (portable terminals) are assigned which roles, and also allows for an email sending test.

[0048] When the change button 91 is touched on the screen shown in FIG. 8(a), the screen moves to a screen in which the user can be set to belong to each category, as shown in FIG. 8(b). On this screen, a user setting table 92, a close button 93 for saving the changes and returning to the previous screen, and a cancel button 94 for returning to the previous screen without saving the changes are displayed. On the setting table 92, the user touches the corresponding cell to check or uncheck the box, and the information management unit 54 sets the user's category. That is, the information management unit 54 can change the category (group) to which the mobile terminal belongs. Therefore, even if the person in charge is changed on a daily basis, for example, it is only necessary to change the category of the mobile terminal to be changed. Here, overlapping settings in which one user belongs to multiple categories (for example, a paddy transporter group and a dryer operator group) are also possible. Also, one or more users can be registered in one category. Note that the administrator is not displayed as a category on this screen.

[0049] When the setting button 83 is touched on the standby screen shown in Fig. 7(a), the screen transitions to a login screen for the administrator to log in, as shown in Fig. 9(a). On this screen, an input field 95 for inputting a user code and password, a login button 96, and a close button 97 for returning to the previous screen are displayed. When the administrator's user code and password are input in the input field 95 and the login button 96 is touched, the screen transitions to the administrator screen shown in Fig. 9(b).

[0050] In the administrator screen shown in FIG. 9(b), an information management button 98, a role allocation button 99, a user information button 100, an email information button 101, and a close button 102 for returning to the previous screen are displayed. When the information management button 98 is touched in this administrator screen, as shown in FIG. 10(a), the following items are displayed: machine code, machine name, sending email address, sending email password, number of retransmissions, retransmission interval, email subject, All_Log email subject, information 103 for each item, and a close button 104 for returning to the previous screen. In this embodiment, the external communication unit 56 executes retransmission when an error occurs in sending an email to a mobile terminal. This can improve the reliability of email sending.

[0051] When the role allocation button 99 is touched on the manager screen shown in FIG. 9(b), the screen moves to a screen in which the user can be set to belong to each category, as shown in FIG. 10(b). On this screen, a user setting table 105, a close button 106 for saving the changes and returning to the previous screen, and a cancel button 107 for returning to the previous screen without saving the changes are displayed. On the setting table 105, the user touches the corresponding cell to check or uncheck the box, and the information management unit 54 sets the user's category. That is, the information management unit 54 can change the category (group) to which the mobile terminal belongs. Therefore, even if the person in charge is changed on a daily basis, for example, it is only necessary to change the category of the mobile terminal to be changed. Here, it is possible to set overlapping in which one user belongs to multiple categories (for example, the manager group, the rice transporter group, and the dryer operator group). In addition, one or more users can be registered in one category.

[0052] When the user information button 100 is touched on the administrator screen shown in Fig. 9(b), a table 108 showing the user code, user name, and email address, a close button 109 for returning to the previous screen, and an add new user button 110 for adding a new user are displayed as shown in Fig. 11(a). When the administrator wants to change the user's information, he touches the relevant user in the table 108, and when adding a new user, he touches the add new user button 110. As a result, as shown in Fig. 11(b), a user information change screen 111 showing the user code, password, user name, email address, and phone number for that user, a close button 112 for returning to the previous screen, and a register button 113 for registering information are displayed.

[0053] When the email information button 101 is touched on the administrator screen shown in FIG. 9(b), as shown in FIG. 12, a selection box 114 for selecting a category, a setting table 115 for setting the relationship between the timing (trigger) of sending email and the items to be sent in the category selected in the selection box 114, a setting button 116 for operating the setting table 115, a close button 117 for saving the settings in the setting table 115 and returning to the previous screen, a cancel button 118 for returning to the previous screen without saving the settings, and a registration button 119 for saving the settings and not changing the screen are displayed.

[0054] In the selection frame 114, the categories can be switched between administrator, rice transporter, dryer operator, and others. That is, the information management unit 54 can set the timing of sending e-mail and the items (operation information) of the e-mail for each category. In the setting table 115, examples of the timing of sending e-mail are shown as a time when the end of work is detected and the All_Log file is sent (All_Log), when the grain inside the grain tank 8 reaches a specified amount, when the grain discharge is completed, when the area of ​​the field is determined, when the progress status reaches 50%, when the progress status reaches 100%, and when the end of work is detected. The time when the end of work is detected here may be when the actual end of work is detected, or when the monitoring switch button 81 is operated to switch from monitoring to monitoring stop, which is regarded as the end of work. That is, it also includes the time when all logs are sent at the timing of monitoring stop. In addition, setting table 115 indicates, as examples of transmission items, the transmission date and time, the transmission time, the longitude and latitude of the transmission location, the estimated field area, the actual harvesting area (actual), the estimated yield, the yield (actual), the current amount of grain in the tank, the estimated time the tank will be full, the latest grain moisture percentage, the average grain moisture percentage in the field, the estimated total number of discharges, the number of discharges (actual), the estimated time of work completion, the total work time (actual), the remaining amount of fuel, the estimated amount of fuel used, the amount of fuel used (actual), the progress rate, the average grain moisture percentage in the tank, and the latest grain discharge amount.

[0055] Here, the transmission date and time are acquired using a timer built into the ECU 50, and the longitude and latitude of the transmission location are acquired using the GPS sensor 73. The current amount of grain in the tank is acquired using the accumulation sensor 71, and a known method using the ECU 50 can be applied to acquire the predicted tank full time. The latest grain moisture percentage and the average grain moisture percentage in the tank are acquired using the moisture sensor 72, and a known method using the ECU 50 can be applied to acquire the average grain moisture percentage in the field. The remaining fuel amount is acquired using a fuel remaining amount sensor (not shown) of the information detection unit 70, and a known method using the ECU 50 can be applied to acquire the predicted fuel usage amount and the fuel usage amount (actual). In addition, a known method using the ECU 50 can be applied to acquire the predicted field area, actual reaping area (actual), predicted yield, yield (actual), predicted total number of discharges, number of discharges (actual), predicted time of work completion, total work time (actual), progress rate, and latest grain discharge amount.

[0056] In the setting table 115, items to be sent can be selected as selection items (selection information) from among the transmission items at each timing of sending an e-mail. This allows the information management unit 54 to set the selection items to be selected from among all the transmission items and the timing of sending an e-mail containing the selection items for each category. In addition, since a user can be set for each category using the setting table 105 (see FIG. 10(b)), the information management unit 54 can set the selection items to be selected from among the transmission items and the timing of sending an e-mail for each mobile terminal (user) (setting process (see FIG. 6)). That is, the information management unit 54 can execute a group setting operation in which a plurality of mobile terminals are divided into groups for each category, and the selection items and the transmission timing are set to be the same within the category. Therefore, it is possible to set and manage the selection items for each category collectively without setting the selection items and the timing for each of the plurality of mobile terminals.

[0057] Also, the display order (indicated by numbers in FIG. 12) can be set for the selection items in setting table 115. Also, by touching the timing for sending an e-mail, a preview screen of the e-mail to be sent at that timing can be displayed.

[0058] When the monitoring log display button 84 is touched on the standby screen shown in Fig. 7(a), a setting field 120 for setting the display range, a result table 121 showing the transmission results of the e-mail, etc., and a close button 122 for returning to the previous screen are displayed, as shown in Fig. 13. In the setting field 120, the date and time of the e-mail to be displayed in the result table 121 and whether the transmission was successful or unsuccessful are set. In the result table 121, as one example, the log number, the date and time of occurrence, the transmission result of transmission success or failure, location information, and a trigger which is the transmission timing are displayed.

[0059] As described above, the selection items to be included in the e-mail and the transmission timing can be set for each category to which the e-mail is to be sent, and the ECU 50 operates accordingly. In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 5, the information management unit 54 sets the selection items, the mail creation unit 55 creates the e-mail based on the selection items, and the external communication unit 56 automatically sends the created e-mail to multiple mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63 via the Internet 60.

[0060] Next, specific examples of e-mails created by the e-mail creation unit 55 will be described in detail with reference to Figs. 14(a) to 16. The items and display order described in these e-mails are preset by the selection frame 114 and setting table 115 shown in Fig. 12. Fig. 14(a) is an example of an e-mail 123 sent from the combine harvester 1 to the mobile terminal 61 (see Fig. 5) of the rice transporter, and the trigger for sending is, for example, when the specified amount of grain in the tank is reached. In this e-mail 123, the sending items 123a are displayed in order, for example, as sending date and time, sending time, estimated time when the tank is full, remaining amount of fuel, actual reaping area (actual), yield (actual), number of discharges (actual), total work time (actual), amount of fuel used (actual), progress rate, and map link.

[0061] Fig. 14(b) is an example of an e-mail 124 sent from the combine harvester 1 to the mobile terminal 62 (see Fig. 5) of the dryer operator, where the trigger for sending is, for example, when the grain is discharged (when completed). In this e-mail 124, sending items 124a are displayed in order, for example, sending date and time, sending time, average moisture content of grain in the tank, latest grain discharge amount, estimated total number of discharges, number of discharges (actual), fuel usage (actual), progress rate, and map link.

[0062] Fig. 15(a) is an example of an e-mail 125 sent from the combine harvester 1 to the manager's mobile terminal 63 (see Fig. 5), where the trigger for sending is, for example, when the progress reaches 50%. In this e-mail 125, sending items 125a are displayed in order, such as sending date and time, sending time, progress rate, estimated time to fill the tank, yield (actual), average grain moisture percentage in the field, estimated time to complete the work, remaining fuel, and a map link.

[0063] Fig. 15(b) is an example of an e-mail 126 sent from the combine harvester 1 to the manager's mobile terminal 63 (see Fig. 5), where the trigger for sending is, for example, when the progress reaches 100%. In this e-mail 126, sending items 126a are displayed in order, such as sending date and time, sending time, progress rate, yield (actual), average grain moisture percentage in the field, actual reaping area (actual), total work time (actual), fuel consumption (actual), and map link.

[0064] Fig. 16 is an example of an e-mail 127 sent from the combine harvester 1 to the manager's mobile terminal 63 (see Fig. 5), where the trigger for sending is, for example, All_Log. In this e-mail 127, sending items 127a are displayed in order, for example, sending date and time, sending time, and map link. In addition, an All_Log file 127b is attached as an attachment. A series of operational information from when the combine harvester 1 is turned on is recorded in the All_Log file 127b.

[0065] As described above, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the information management unit 54 sets the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the e-mail for each of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63. Therefore, it becomes possible to send the necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing, and the adaptability to the work can be improved because the items and timing can be selected.

[0066] Furthermore, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the information management unit 54 can execute a group setting operation in which the multiple mobile terminals 61, 62, 63 are divided into categories (groups) and the selection information and timing are set to the same within the category. Therefore, even if the multiple mobile terminals 61, 62, 63 do not have to be set one by one, they can be set and managed collectively by category, improving operability.

[0067] Furthermore, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the information management unit 54 can change the category to which the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63 belong, so that the category can be changed by a simple operation of simply changing the category of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63 that one wishes to change. Therefore, even if the change work occurs frequently, such as changing the category on a daily basis, the operability can be improved.

[0068] According to the email transmission system of this embodiment, the work vehicle is the combine harvester 1, and the categories include a rice paddy transporter group and a dryer operator group. Therefore, in harvesting work using the combine harvester 1, emails can be sent separately to the rice paddy transporter and the dryer operator, so that each operator can send the necessary information at the appropriate time, and the efficiency of the work can be improved without sending unnecessary information.

[0069] Furthermore, according to the email sending system of this embodiment, since the category includes an administrator group, it becomes possible to send information necessary for managing work to the administrator separately from the worker, thereby making it possible to improve the efficiency of work without sending unnecessary information to the worker.

[0070] Furthermore, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the mail creation unit 55 and the external communication unit 56 create and send an e-mail including a list of identification information and categories to which the multiple mobile terminals 61, 62, 63 belong. Therefore, the person who receives this e-mail can easily and quickly confirm which category each person (mobile terminals 61, 62, 63) belongs to. In addition, this function can be used to perform an e-mail transmission test.

[0071] Furthermore, the mail sending method of this embodiment includes a setting step for setting the selection items to be selected from among the sending items and the timing for sending the e-mail for each of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63. This makes it possible to send necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing, and the ability to select the items and timing improves adaptability to work.

[0072] Furthermore, the combine harvester 1 of this embodiment is equipped with an information management unit 54 and an email creation unit 55 that create emails based on the operation information detected by the information detection unit 70, and an external communication unit 56 that transmits emails to a mobile terminal via the Internet 60. Therefore, emails are sent from the combine harvester 1 side, so that it is possible to prevent a situation in which the processing load of a remote server or the like becomes large and the automatic transmission of emails is delayed, compared to a case in which emails are sent via a remote server that monitors a large number of work vehicles. This makes it possible to prevent delays in automatically transmitting emails related to operation information to a mobile terminal.

[0073] Furthermore, according to the combine harvester 1 of this embodiment, the combine harvester 1 includes the traveling machine body 3 having the information detection unit 70, and the ECU 50 that is connected to the traveling machine body 3 and controls the traveling machine body 3, and the ECU 50 includes an information management unit 54, an e-mail creation unit 55, and an external communication unit 56. Therefore, since the ECU 50 provided in the combine harvester 1 creates and sends e-mails, the entire device can be configured compactly.

[0074] Furthermore, according to the combine harvester 1 of this embodiment, the external communication unit 56 executes retransmission when an error occurs in sending an e-mail to a mobile terminal. This improves the reliability of e-mail transmission, thereby preventing work from being hindered by non-delivery of e-mail.

[0075] <Second embodiment> Next, a second embodiment of the mail transmission system of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 17. In this embodiment, the combine harvester 1A is different from the first embodiment in that it includes a mobile terminal 160 such as a tablet, which is an example of an information processing device connected to the traveling machine body 3A so that communication therewith can be switched between a connected state and a disconnected state. However, other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so the same reference numerals are used and detailed description is omitted.

[0076] As shown in FIG. 17, the combine harvester 1A includes a traveling machine body 3A having an information detection unit 70, a mobile terminal 160 detachably connected to the traveling machine body 3A by wired communication using a cable, and an ECU 150 provided on the traveling machine body 3A. The mobile terminal 160 is, for example, a tablet, and in addition to acquiring and storing user information 152, has an information processing unit 153 that processes the stored information, an information management unit 154 that manages information, an email creation unit 155 that creates email, and an external communication unit 156 that transmits and receives information to and from the outside of the combine harvester 1A via the Internet 60. The information management unit 154, the email creation unit 155, and the external communication unit 156 correspond to an email transmission unit. The ECU 150 acquires and stores machine information 151. In this embodiment, the cable of the portable terminal 160 can be plugged in and unplugged from the combine 1A, making it possible to attach and detach the portable terminal 160 to the traveling body 3A, thereby making it possible to switch communication between the portable terminal 160 and the traveling body 3A between a connected state and a disconnected state.

[0077] In the combine harvester 1A of this embodiment, like the combine harvester 1 of the first embodiment, grains stored in the grain tank 8 (see FIG. 1) are transferred to and loaded on a transport vehicle by a discharge auger 9 (see FIG. 1) when the grain tank 8 is full or close to full. The grains loaded on the transport vehicle are transferred to and stored in the dryer after the transport vehicle moves to the dryer, and are dried by the dryer. A rice transporter who operates the transport vehicle has a mobile terminal 61 such as a tablet, and a dryer operator who operates the dryer also has a mobile terminal 62 such as a tablet. Furthermore, a manager who manages the work status of the combine harvester 1A, the transport vehicle, and the dryer also has a mobile terminal 63 such as a tablet. These mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63, i.e., a plurality of terminal devices, and the mobile terminal 160 of the combine harvester 1A are connected to each other via the Internet 60, which is an example of a communication network.

[0078] In this embodiment, the same mail transmission system and mail transmission method as in the first embodiment are adopted, and the flow chart shown in FIG. 6 and the setting screens shown in FIGS. 7(a) to 13 are applied as they are.

[0079] As described above, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the information management unit 154 sets the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the e-mail for each of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63. This makes it possible to send the necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing, and since the items and timing can be selected, adaptability to the work can be improved.

[0080] According to the combine harvester 1A of the present embodiment, the combine harvester 1A includes a traveling machine body 3A having an information detection unit 70 and a mobile terminal 160 detachably connected to the traveling machine body 3A, and the mobile terminal 160 includes an information management unit 154, an email creation unit 155, and an external communication unit 156. This allows the same mobile terminal 160 to be used for different combine harvesters, thereby reducing costs. In addition, the mobile terminal 160 used for the combine harvester 1A may be connected to other work vehicles such as a tractor or rice transplanter. In this case, the same mobile terminal 160 can collect, manage, and analyze data for the tractor, rice transplanter, and combine harvester, and the data for each of the two can be used, thereby improving efficiency.

[0081] In the above embodiment, the portable terminal 160 is connected to the traveling machine body 3A by a cable, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the portable terminal 160 and the traveling machine body 3A may be connected using wireless communication such as the Internet or Bluetooth (registered trademark). In this case, the communication between the portable terminal 160 and the traveling machine body 3A can be switched between a connected state and a disconnected state by turning the wireless communication on and off.

[0082] <Third embodiment> Next, a third embodiment of the mail transmission system of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 18. In this embodiment, the combine harvester 1B is different in configuration from the first embodiment in that it transmits mail using an external machine information server 260. However, other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so the same reference numerals are used and detailed description is omitted.

[0083] As shown in Fig. 18, the combine harvester 1B includes a traveling machine body 3B having an information detection unit 70, and an ECU 250 provided in the traveling machine body 3B. The ECU 250 acquires and stores machine body information 251. The traveling machine body 3B is provided with a communication device 261 as hardware such as an antenna and electrical components for communicating with a machine body information server 260 from the combine harvester 1 via the Internet 60, for example.

[0084] The machine information server 260 is a server device installed at an appropriate position inside or outside the field and connected to the Internet 60, and may be, for example, a general rental server or a server device prepared by the user. The machine information server 260 acquires and stores user information 252, and also has an information processing unit 253 that processes the stored information, an information management unit 254 that manages information, a mail creation unit 255 that creates e-mail, and an external communication unit 256 that transmits and receives information to and from the outside of the machine information server 260 via the Internet 60. The information management unit 254, the mail creation unit 255, and the external communication unit 256 correspond to a mail sending unit.

[0085] In the combine harvester 1B of this embodiment, like the combine harvester 1 of the first embodiment, grains stored in the grain tank 8 (see FIG. 1) are transferred to and loaded on a transport vehicle by a discharge auger 9 (see FIG. 1) when the grain tank 8 is full or close to full. The grains loaded on the transport vehicle are transferred to and stored in the dryer after the transport vehicle moves to the dryer, and are dried by the dryer. A rice transporter who operates the transport vehicle has a mobile terminal 61 such as a tablet, and a dryer operator who operates the dryer also has a mobile terminal 62 such as a tablet. Furthermore, a manager who manages the work status of the combine harvester 1B, the transport vehicle, and the dryer also has a mobile terminal 63 such as a tablet. These mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63, i.e., a plurality of terminal devices, and the machine information server 260 are connected to each other via the Internet 60, which is an example of a communication network.

[0086] In the first embodiment, the information management unit 54, the mail creation unit 55, and the external communication unit 56 as a mail transmission unit are mounted on the combine harvester 1, but in other embodiments, the information management unit 254, the mail creation unit 255, and the external communication unit 256 as a mail transmission unit are mounted on a machine information server 260 provided separately from the combine harvester 1. However, the only difference is the location of the mail transmission unit, and this embodiment employs a mail transmission system and mail transmission method similar to those of the first embodiment, and the flowchart shown in Fig. 6 and the setting screens shown in Figs. 7(a) to 13 are applied as they are.

[0087] As described above, according to the mail transmission system of this embodiment, the information management unit 254 sets the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the e-mail for each of the mobile terminals 61, 62, and 63. Therefore, it becomes possible to send the necessary information by e-mail at an appropriate timing, and the adaptability to the work can be improved because the items and timing can be selected.

[0088] In addition, according to the mail transmission system of the present embodiment, the machine information server 260 provided outside the combine harvester 1B is used as the mail transmission unit. Therefore, there is no need to provide a mail transmission unit in the combine harvester 1B, and the existing combine harvester 1B can be used as is, so that an increase in costs can be suppressed.

[0089] In the above-described embodiments, the combine harvesters 1, 1A, and 1B are described as the work vehicles, but the work vehicles are not limited to these. The work vehicles may be other work vehicles, such as tractors and rice transplanters.

[0090] In addition, in each of the above-described embodiments, the Internet 60 is used as the communication network, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a communication network that is used only within a farm field may be used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 1, 1A, 1B: Combine (work vehicle) 3, 3A, 3B: Running body (vehicle body) 54, 154, 254: Information management section (email sending section) 55,155,255: Email creation section (email sending section) 56,156,256: External communication section (email sending section) 60: Communication Network 61, 62, 63: Mobile terminal (terminal device) 70: Information detection unit

Claims

1. A work vehicle for performing agricultural work, the work vehicle having a vehicle body and an information detection unit for detecting operation information related to the operation of the vehicle body; A plurality of terminal devices; a mail sending unit that creates an e-mail based on selection information selected from the operation information and sends the e-mail to the plurality of terminal devices through a communication network; the email sending unit sets the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing for sending the email for each of the terminal devices; 1. An email sending system comprising:

2. the mail sending unit is capable of executing a group setting operation of dividing the plurality of terminal devices into groups and setting the selection information and the timing to be the same within the group; 2. The mail transmission system according to claim 1.

3. the mail sending unit is capable of changing the group to which the terminal device belongs; 3. The mail transmission system according to claim 2.

4. The work vehicle is a combine harvester, The group includes a rice-carrying worker group and a dryer worker group.

4. The mail transmission system according to claim 2 or 3.

5. The group includes an administrator group.

5. The mail transmission system according to claim 4.

6. the mail sending unit creates and sends the e-mail including a list of identification information of the plurality of terminal devices and the groups to which the terminal devices belong; 6. The mail transmission system according to claim 2, wherein the mail transmission system is a mail transmission system that transmits a mail to a mail server.

7. an information detection step of detecting operation information related to the operation of a vehicle body of a work vehicle performing agricultural work by an information detection unit; a mail sending step of creating an e-mail based on selection information selected from the operation information and sending the e-mail to a plurality of terminal devices through a communication network; a setting step of setting the selection information selected from the operation information and the timing of sending the email for each of the terminal devices.

13. An email sending method comprising:

Images