Field Guidance Lines Based on Historical Crop Row Maps
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional agricultural vehicle systems face challenges in accurately navigating and performing operations on fields due to topography and crop row irregularities, leading to crop damage and inefficiency, as they fail to account for actual crop row locations and implement drift.
Innovation Solution
The method generates guidance lines based on field maps created using GPS and inertial data from previous operations, allowing for precise navigation and operation on fields regardless of terrain and implement size, and enables automatic generation of guidance lines for subsequent operations, including those on 'guess rows', to minimize operator error and ensure efficient crop handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional point-to-point guidance lines are generated without accounting for topography and crop row locations, then the guidance system is simple to implement, but the alignment with actual crop rows is poor leading to crop damage
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary mapping of the field during planting operations, recording actual crop row locations and terrain features. This advance preparation creates a digital field map that is later used to generate accurate guidance lines for subsequent operations, eliminating the need for complex real-time sensing and adjustment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a digital copy of the field layout including crop row locations and terrain characteristics through GPS tracking during planting. This digital replica is then used to generate guidance lines that accurately reflect actual field conditions without requiring physical measurement devices during subsequent operations.
2Measurement precision
If real-time sensing is used to detect crop row locations during operations, then alignment accuracy is improved, but the system becomes insufficient to avoid crop damage and increases complexity
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of relying on real-time sensing during operations, the system performs the measurement and mapping action preliminarily during the planting operation. The GPS system records the exact location of each crop row as it is planted, creating a permanent reference that can be used for all subsequent operations without requiring active sensing during those operations.
3Ease of operation
If manual operation is used to analyze and position the vehicle to minimize crop damage, then flexibility is maintained, but operator fatigue increases and efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables the agricultural vehicle to guide itself automatically using the pre-created digital field map and GPS tracking. The vehicle autonomously calculates and follows optimal paths that avoid crop rows and account for terrain features, eliminating the need for manual analysis and positioning while maintaining operational flexibility and improving efficiency.
4Extent of automation
If planned crop row locations are used for automated operations, then automation is achieved, but sources of error such as implement drift cause significant differences from actual locations
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback from actual planting operations into the guidance system. GPS tracking records the precise location where crops were actually planted, and this information is used to adjust and refine the digital field map. This feedback loop ensures that automated guidance lines accurately reflect actual crop row locations, compensating for any implement drift or terrain-induced variations.
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed for field operations based on historical field operation data. An example apparatus disclosed herein includes a guidance line generator to generate a guidance line for operation of a vehicle during a second operation on a field, the guidance line based on (1) a field map generated from location data collected during a first operation in the field, the field map including a plurality of crop rows and (2) an implement of the vehicle, the implement to perform the second operation on the field. The example apparatus further includes a drive commander to cause the vehicle to traverse the field along the guidance line, and an implement commander to cause the implement to perform the second operation as the vehicle traverses the field along the guidance line.