Autonomous Forage Pushing Vehicle with Oscillating Scraper
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
In cattle breeding, farmers face repetitive and labor-intensive tasks of pushing fodder closer to animals and cleaning up refused fodder, as existing solutions do not effectively address the scattering of fodder and efficient collection and disposal.
Innovation Solution
An autonomous vehicle with a steerable scraper member, control electronics, and obstacle detection means that can alternate between pushback and cleaning modes, using an oscillating trajectory to collect and evacuate fodder in a windrow or reject it to a designated zone, facilitated by a combination of propulsion and adjustable blade orientations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual fodder pushing and cleaning is performed, then fodder can be supplied to animals and refused fodder can be removed, but the work is repetitive and labor-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The invention implements autonomous vehicles that perform fodder pushing and cleaning operations independently without human intervention. The vehicles are equipped with self-navigation capabilities, obstacle detection sensors, and automated scraping mechanisms that enable them to execute their functions autonomously, thereby eliminating repetitive manual labor while maintaining high productivity in fodder management
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces manual mechanical operations with automated mechanical systems. The autonomous vehicles use electric or hydraulic propulsion systems, automated blade mechanisms for scraping fodder, and electronic control systems for navigation and operation control, substituting human physical labor with mechanized automated systems that improve efficiency and reduce labor intensity
2Ease of operation
If fodder is placed in an alley for animals to access, then feeding is simplified, but animals scatter the fodder making it inaccessible
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous vehicles perform continuous fodder pushing operations, repeatedly moving scattered fodder back toward the animals whenever it becomes inaccessible. This continuous action ensures that fodder remains consistently accessible to animals throughout the feeding period, maintaining both the simplicity of alley-based feeding and the accessibility of fodder despite animal scattering behavior
3Device complexity
If the scraper member pushes fodder in a straight line, then the vehicle movement is simple, but the windrow formation is not rectilinear
Solution Approach 1:
The invention implements dynamic control of the scraper blade orientation relative to the vehicle body. The blade can be adjusted angularly to different positions during operation, allowing the vehicle to follow curved or oscillating trajectories while maintaining rectilinear windrow formation. This dynamic adjustment enables the scraper to cut fodder at consistent angles despite complex vehicle motion paths, achieving straight windrows without requiring simple straight-line vehicle movement
4Reliability
If the vehicle operates autonomously with obstacle detection, then safety is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention introduces intermediary sensor systems (such as ultrasonic, infrared, or laser sensors) that act as mediators between the autonomous vehicle and its environment. These sensors detect obstacles, animals, and boundary conditions, providing data to the control system that enables safe autonomous operation. The intermediary sensors bridge the gap between the vehicle's navigation needs and environmental awareness, improving safety while adding manageable complexity through specialized detection components
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The invention relates to an autonomous vehicle (1) with means of propulsion. The autonomous vehicle (1) comprises an adjustable scraping member configured to clear fodder (Fo), an electronic control and means for detecting obstacles, the propulsion means and the electronic control enabling the vehicle (1) to switch into a clearing mode in which the vehicle (1) follows a substantially oscillating trajectory in order that the scraping member collects the fodder (Fo) and expels same laterally in the form of a windrow (A), or to switch into a cleaning mode in which the vehicle (1) follows a trajectory to a discharge zone (R), the scraping member collecting and clearing the fodder (Fo) over the entire trajectory to the discharge zone (R).