Aircraft Refilling for Agricultural Distribution Vehicles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional agricultural distribution vehicles face inefficiencies in liquid supply management, requiring return trips for refilling due to insufficient tank capacity, leading to reduced productivity and unnecessary waste.
Innovation Solution
Aircraft refilling system for the distribution vehicle's tank, allowing rapid replenishment without the need for a return trip, utilizing unmanned aerial vehicles to transfer rinsing fluid or active ingredients directly to the vehicle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the tank is filled with a sufficiently large safety margin to avoid refilling, then the risk of insufficient liquid is reduced, but unnecessary liquid is carried and must be disposed of later
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculation of the required liquid quantity based on the treatment area and planned application rate before departure. This allows the tank to be filled with the precise amount needed, avoiding both insufficient liquid and unnecessary waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the liquid quantity in the tank during operation and compares it with the planned consumption. This feedback mechanism enables real-time detection of deviations from the plan, allowing for timely adjustments or mid-operation refilling without carrying excessive liquid initially.
2Productivity
If the tank capacity is increased to avoid refilling, then the number of refilling operations is reduced, but the vehicle size and transport requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid supply system is segmented into a main tank for the distribution vehicle and a separate refill tank on the aircraft. This allows the distribution vehicle to maintain a smaller, more manageable tank size while ensuring operational continuity through aerial refilling when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
An aircraft acts as an intermediary refilling vehicle, transferring liquid from its tank to the distribution vehicle's tank during operation. This mediator enables the distribution vehicle to maintain smaller tank capacity while still achieving extended operational duration through on-demand refilling.
3Quantity of substance
If a land vehicle is used to transport additional liquid to the distribution vehicle, then the tank can be refilled, but productivity is reduced due to the return trip requirement
Solution Approach 1:
The refilling operation transitions from a ground-based dimension to an aerial dimension. The aircraft can access the distribution vehicle from above, eliminating the need for the distribution vehicle to return to the starting location or for ground vehicles to navigate to the current position, thus saving significant operational time.
Solution Approach 2:
The aircraft serves as a mobile intermediary refilling station that can reach the distribution vehicle at any location in the field. This eliminates the productivity loss associated with return trips to fixed refilling locations or coordination with ground support vehicles.
4Measurement precision
If sensor-controlled variable application rates are used, then application precision is improved, but advance planning of liquid quantities becomes problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculation of the required liquid quantity based on the known treatment area and planned variable application rate map before departure. This preliminary action provides an estimated total liquid requirement that ensures sufficient supply while minimizing waste, even though the exact sensor-controlled quantities cannot be known in advance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors actual sensor-controlled application rates and compares them with the planned rates during operation. This feedback allows real-time tracking of liquid consumption, enabling accurate determination of remaining liquid needs and triggering timely refilling operations without carrying excessive liquid reserves.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~5
Figure 6
AI summary
A method and arrangement for operating an agricultural distribution vehicle (10) with a tank (20, 28) for a liquid to be applied, a distribution boom (26) with attached spray nozzles (30) for distributing the liquid over an area and a chassis (12) supported on the ground, which is movable in a forward direction over the area, provide that, as required, the contents of the tank (20, 28) are refilled via an aircraft (38).