Raster GNSS Swathing for Fast Contour Guidance and Spray Control
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing GNSS guidance systems for agricultural equipment face inefficiencies in handling irregular terrain and require significant computer overhead for computing form lines, leading to trade-offs between component costs and system responsiveness, especially when dealing with contour following modes.
Innovation Solution
A raster-based database system using GNSS and INS sensors to define an XY grid of pixels for guiding agricultural equipment, allowing for scalable guidance and control by marking applied pixels and using target aim points for subsequent passes, enabling adaptable and efficient operation in various terrains and machine control applications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If form line following method is used for GNSS guidance, then guidance accuracy is improved, but computer overhead and processing time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-computing and storing guidance information in a raster database during idle periods or previous operations. The raster database pre-calculates all possible guidance paths and stores them as pixel data, eliminating the need for real-time form line computations during actual guidance operations. This allows the system to quickly retrieve guidance information without significant processing delays.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a simplified copy of the field geometry in raster form rather than working with complex vector form lines. The continuous field boundaries are discretized into a grid of pixels, creating a manageable representation that can be processed and stored efficiently. This pixel-based copy replaces the computationally intensive vector-based form line representations.
2Measurement precision
If vector-based form line computation is used, then guidance precision is improved, but system complexity and computational requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces the mechanical/computational process of continuous vector-based form line calculations with a discrete raster-based lookup approach. Instead of dynamically computing guidance paths using complex mathematical models and sensor data processing, the system substitutes this with pre-computed pixel-based guidance stored in a database, dramatically reducing real-time computational requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments the continuous field space into discrete pixel elements of a raster grid. This segmentation transforms the continuous geometric problem into a discrete grid-based problem, where guidance information is represented as individual pixels rather than continuous mathematical curves. This segmentation simplifies the data structure and reduces computational complexity.
3Speed
If raster-based database system is implemented, then system responsiveness is improved, but memory requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements partial action by loading only the necessary portion of the raster database into memory based on the current operational context. Rather than loading the entire raster database at once, the system loads only the relevant pixel data for the current field or operational area, reducing memory requirements while maintaining fast access to needed guidance information.
Data Source
AI summary
A raster-based system for global navigation satellite system (GNSS) guidance includes a vehicle-mounted GNSS antenna and receiver. A processor provides guidance and/or autosteering commands based on GNSS-defined pixels forming a grid representing an area to be treated, such as a field. Specific guidance and chemical application methods are provided based on the pixel-defined treatment areas and preprogrammed chemical application prescription maps, which can include variable chemical application rates and dynamic control of the individual nozzles of a sprayer.