Automated Bale Collection Path Planning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for collecting agricultural bales scattered across a field are inefficient, as they often require manual planning and execution, leading to increased time and resource consumption without optimizing the bale collection path considering bale orientation, machine constraints, and terrain characteristics.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a mobile machine equipped with computing devices that receive location and orientation information of bales and automatically determine a preferred collection path, taking into account bale orientation, machine constraints such as turning radius and travel path profile, and terrain characteristics to optimize the collection process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual planning and execution methods are used for bale collection, then the process is simple to implement, but the time and resource consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical planning with an automated computing device that receives location and orientation information of bales, determines optimal collection paths, and provides guidance to operators. This substitution of manual mechanical operations with automated computational systems resolves the contradiction by maintaining ease of operation through automated decision-making while significantly reducing time consumption through optimized path calculation and real-time guidance.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by allowing the computing device to autonomously process bale location data, calculate optimal paths considering machine constraints and terrain, and provide unsupervised guidance to operators. This self-service capability eliminates the need for complex manual planning while reducing time consumption through automated real-time path determination.
2Productivity
If automated path determination systems are implemented, then collection efficiency improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The computing device performs multiple functions including receiving bale location data, determining optimal paths, considering machine constraints, accounting for terrain characteristics, and providing operator guidance. By consolidating these diverse functions into a single multi-functional system, the patent achieves high collection efficiency while managing complexity through functional integration rather than proliferation of separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The computing device serves as an intermediary between the dispersed bales, the mobile collection machine, and the operator. It processes bale location information, calculates optimal paths considering various constraints, and translates complex computational results into actionable guidance for operators. This intermediary role resolves the contradiction by automating complex path determination to improve productivity while presenting simplified information to operators.
3Loss of energy
If optimal path calculation considering bale orientation and machine constraints is performed, then resource consumption is reduced, but computational complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-calculating optimal collection paths before actual bale collection begins. The computing device receives all bale location and orientation information in advance, determines the most efficient path considering machine constraints and terrain characteristics, and provides this optimized route to operators beforehand. This preliminary computational action reduces resource consumption during actual collection while managing complexity through advance planning.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where the computing device continuously monitors bale locations, machine position, and path progress, then adjusts and recalculates optimal paths in real-time. This feedback loop ensures minimal resource consumption by constantly optimizing the collection route while providing updated guidance to operators. The feedback principle resolves the contradiction by using automated real-time optimization to reduce energy loss while managing computational complexity through iterative improvement.
Data Source
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AI summary
A system comprises a mobile machine for collecting a plurality of bales dispersed across a ground surface and one or more computing devices. The one or more computing devices are configured to receive location and orientation information for the plurality of bales, the location and orientation information including a location and an orientation of each of the bales, automatically determine a preferred path for collecting the bales using the location and orientation information, and present information about the preferred path to an operator of the mobile machine.