Agricultural Baler Flake Prediction for Bale Length Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
In agricultural balers, especially small square balers, the varying thickness of incoming flakes makes it uncertain when the bale is close to the defined length, leading to potential errors in knotting and bale formation.
Innovation Solution
A bale length sensor and controller system that estimates the completed bale length by determining the current bale length and predicting the thickness of incoming flakes, allowing for precise knotting and bale formation by initiating the knotting cycle before reaching the intended bale length.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the knotting cycle is initiated based on current bale length measurement only, then the control system is simple, but the bale length precision deteriorates due to unknown incoming flake thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by predicting the thickness of the incoming flake before it is actually added to the bale. The controller estimates the future bale length by combining the current measured bale length with the predicted thickness of the impending flake, allowing the knotting cycle to be initiated at the correct time rather than waiting until the bale reaches the final length.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback by continuously monitoring the current bale length with a sensor and using this information, combined with predicted flake thickness, to determine when to initiate the knotting cycle. The controller adjusts the knotting timing based on this feedback loop, improving bale length precision without requiring direct measurement of each incoming flake's thickness.
2Reliability
If the knotting cycle is delayed until the bale reaches defined length, then the bale length is accurate, but the system cannot compensate for variable flake thickness variations
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces an intermediary element - the predicted flake thickness - that mediates between the current bale length measurement and the final bale length target. This intermediary allows the controller to calculate when the knotting cycle should be initiated, bridging the gap caused by variable flake thickness variations and improving both reliability and ease of operation.
Data Source
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Figure 2
AI summary
An agricultural baler (10) includes a main bale chamber (26) in which crop material is compressed into bales. The main bale chamber (26) includes an inlet (104) for receiving a wad of crop material from a pre-compression chamber of the agricultural baler (10), and an outlet (32) for discharge of compressed crop material into a bale. The bale includes a plurality of flakes that are incrementally added to form the bale. A bale length sensor (212, 230) is configured to determine a current length of the bale as the bale is being formed in the main bale chamber (26). A controller (240) is configured to estimate a completed length of the bale during formation of the bale based on (i) the current length of the bale being formed and (ii) a predicted thickness of an impending flake to be added to the bale.