Machine Guidance Pitch-Roll Compensation for Header Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional guidance systems for mobile agricultural machines fail to accurately align crops with the machine's header on sloping and uneven terrain, leading to reduced harvesting efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The system modifies the guidance line based on orientation information from sensors, including pitch and roll angles, and incorporates antenna and header heights to correct for misalignment, using a combination of GNSS and contact-based path sensors to ensure precise alignment of the guidance point with the guidance line.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional GNSS guidance systems are used without orientation compensation, then the system is simple and easy to operate, but the alignment accuracy between crops and machine header deteriorates on sloping and uneven terrain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent embeds multiple levels of correction within the guidance system. The orientation sensor data is nested within the guidance calculation, which itself is nested within the steering control. The system calculates orientation corrections based on pitch and roll angles, then nests these corrections into the guidance point or guidance line modification, creating a layered compensation approach that maintains accuracy while managing complexity through hierarchical integration
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary calculation layer that processes orientation sensor data and translates it into correction values. This intermediary step computes the relationship between machine orientation and desired crop alignment, then applies corrections to either the guidance point or guidance line. This mediator layer decouples the raw sensor data from the final steering commands, allowing the system to handle terrain complexity without directly increasing operational complexity
2Measurement precision
If orientation correction is calculated based on antenna height only, then the calculation is simple, but the correction accuracy deteriorates for the header level
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing different correction approaches for different parts of the machine. It calculates orientation corrections specifically tailored to the header level by incorporating header height into the calculation. The system can apply corrections locally at the header position rather than using a single antenna-based correction for the entire machine, ensuring that the correction accuracy matches the local requirements of the harvesting operation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional correction model (antenna height only) to a three-dimensional model that includes header height. By adding the vertical dimension of header height to the correction calculation, the system accounts for the actual working level where crops are harvested. This dimensional expansion allows the system to calculate corrections that are accurate at the header level while maintaining a manageable calculation framework
Data Source
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AI summary
Systems and methods for steering a mobile agricultural machine to align a guidance point with a guidance line. One method includes setting the guidance point and setting the guidance line. The method also includes receiving, from an orientation sensor mounted on the mobile agricultural machine, orientation information including one or both of a pitch angle and a roll angle of the mobile agricultural machine. The method further includes calculating an orientation correction based on the orientation information. The method also includes modifying the guidance point using the orientation correction and steering the mobile agricultural machine to align the modified guidance point with the guidance line and/or modifying the guidance line using the orientation correction and steering the mobile agricultural machine to align the guidance point with the modified guidance line.