Agricultural Machine Guidance Along Headland Tramlines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing agricultural machines are not suitable for maintaining unharvested crops in a way that prevents undesired or inappropriate travel on the field, leading to potential damage.
Innovation Solution
An agricultural machine equipped with a satellite-based adjustment device that uses tramline information and position data to guide the machine along pre-established tramlines, ensuring it travels within the headland area without damaging unharvested crops, utilizing a tractor and implement with a computing device and data storage for precise navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the agricultural machine travels freely on the agricultural field during maintenance operations, then the machine has operational flexibility, but the unharvested crop in the headland area suffers damage from inappropriate travel paths
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-defines valid travel paths (tramlines) before maintenance operations begin. The adjustment device uses these pre-established paths to guide the agricultural machine, preventing crop damage while maintaining operational flexibility through structured navigation options.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment device acts as an intermediary between the operator and the agricultural field. It processes the desired travel path and provides guidance signals to the steering system, mediating between operational flexibility needs and crop protection requirements.
2Device complexity
If the agricultural machine uses traditional guidance methods without satellite-based adjustment, then the system is simpler, but the machine cannot accurately follow tramlines to prevent crop damage
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces traditional mechanical guidance methods with satellite-based GPS/GNSS positioning and electronic control. This substitution enables high-precision tracking of tramlines and headland areas, allowing accurate navigation to prevent crop damage while maintaining relative system simplicity through standardized satellite communication protocols.
3Device complexity
If the agricultural machine operates without automated path adjustment, then the control system is less complex, but the machine makes unwanted impacts on unharvested crops in the headland area
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment device continuously receives satellite-based position information and compares it with the predefined tramline and headland area data. This feedback loop enables real-time path correction and ensures the agricultural machine stays on valid travel paths, reliably preventing crop damage while maintaining manageable control system complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Reduces and prevents unwanted impacts on unharvested crops by accurately navigating along tramlines, minimizing damage and maintaining crop integrity.
Implementation Method 1
The satellite device can include one and/or more GNSS satellites. The satellite system can include NAVSTAR-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou, GPS, and/or Galileo satellites.
Implementation Method 2
The positioning system can be designed and/or programmed for positioning according to the RTK (Real-Time Kinematic) method, in which an RTK signal is used in addition to the satellite signals to determine the position of the agricultural machine in the field.
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The present invention relates to an agricultural machine (1) for agricultural use on an agricultural field (2) which has an unharvested crop (3) and tramlines (4, 5, 6, 7). The present invention is based on the general idea of adjusting the agricultural machine (1) with respect to the agricultural field (2) such that the agricultural machine (1) travels within a headland area (14) of the agricultural field (2) along a tramline (7) of the headland area (14).