Automated Digging Implement Depth Control for Varying Soil Texture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Harvesting underground crops such as peanuts, potatoes, and carrots faces significant losses due to variations in soil texture, as existing harvesting methods struggle to maintain optimal blade depth across different soil types, leading to shearing, ripping, or leaving crops in the soil.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize soil texture mapping and real-time sensor data to adjust the digging implement's depth automatically, using GPS and control systems to maintain the desired depth across varying soil textures, ensuring efficient harvesting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If fixed digging implement settings are used, then operation simplicity is maintained, but harvesting efficiency decreases due to crop losses in varying soil textures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of digging implement depth based on real-time soil texture detection. The system continuously monitors soil properties through sensors and automatically modifies blade depth settings to match varying soil conditions across the field, transitioning from static fixed settings to dynamic adaptive control.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback loops where sensors detect soil texture characteristics and transmit this information to the control system, which then adjusts the digging implement depth accordingly. This closed-loop control ensures the harvesting equipment responds to actual field conditions, preventing crop losses while maintaining operational efficiency.
2Reliability
If blade depth is increased for hard soil, then digging effectiveness improves, but crop loss increases due to shearing and ripping
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality adjustment by modifying digging depth specifically in response to detected soil texture conditions. Rather than using a uniform depth setting across the entire field, the system tailors the digging depth to local soil characteristics, ensuring effective cutting in hard soils while preventing excessive depth that causes shearing and ripping in softer areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically changes the digging depth parameter based on real-time soil texture detection. When hard soil is detected, the blade depth is increased to ensure effective cutting; when softer soil is detected, the depth is reduced to prevent crop damage. This parameter adaptation resolves the contradiction between digging effectiveness and crop loss prevention.
3Reliability
If blade depth is decreased for soft soil, then crop damage is reduced, but harvesting completeness decreases leaving pods in soil
Solution Approach 1:
The system adjusts the digging depth parameter in response to detected soil softness. When soft soil conditions are detected, the blade depth is decreased to prevent excessive penetration that would cause taproot ripping and crop damage. The control system ensures the depth reduction is precise enough to maintain crop integrity while still achieving complete harvest by preventing pods from being left behind.
4Adaptability or versatility
If manual adjustment of digging implement is used, then adaptability to soil variation is improved, but labor requirements and time consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service operation where the harvesting system automatically detects soil texture variations and adjusts digging depth without operator intervention. The integrated sensors and control system perform the adaptation function autonomously, eliminating the time and labor required for manual adjustments while maintaining high adaptability to soil texture variations across the field.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and devices for automated adjustment of a digging implement during harvest of underground crops are described. Utilizing the devices, a digging implement, e.g., a blade, can be located and maintained at a desired depth as a harvester travels across a field. During use, the digging implement depth controls can be varied as the harvester travels within a single field under different operating conditions, e.g., different soil friability, consistency, etc., thereby preventing crop loss and improving crop yield.