Stereo Spout Alignment for Moving Agricultural Vehicle Unloading
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for unloading agricultural material between vehicles often result in incomplete filling of the receiving vehicle's storage area or material spillage due to inadequate coordination of vehicle positions, especially during relative movement.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a stereo imaging device, identification modules, and an alignment module that detects relative motion and adjusts the spout's position to align with the container's longitudinal axis, dynamically adjusting the deadband volume based on relative motion to ensure precise and efficient transfer of agricultural material.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If GPS or imaging systems are used to maintain proper spacing between vehicles, then vehicle positioning is improved, but the storage area may not be filled to full capacity or material may fall outside the container unless operators precisely coordinate vehicle positions
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors the relative position between the spout and container using stereo imaging, and dynamically adjusts the spout position based on this feedback to ensure complete material transfer and prevent spillage
Solution Approach 2:
The spout position is made dynamically adjustable rather than fixed, allowing real-time coordination between vehicle movement and spout positioning to maintain optimal material transfer alignment
2Ease of operation
If the impact point is maintained within a fixed distance zone from container walls, then material transfer control is simplified, but the storage area is not fully loaded or material spills
Solution Approach 1:
The deadband distance is transformed from a fixed parameter to a dynamically adjustable parameter that adapts to relative vehicle motion, maintaining ease of operation while optimizing storage utilization
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of deadband distance based on relative motion conditions, adjusting it to be larger when motion is detected and smaller when stationary, thereby preventing spillage while maximizing storage capacity
3Device complexity
If the deadband volume is fixed, then system complexity is reduced, but material spillage occurs during relative vehicle movement
Solution Approach 1:
The deadband volume is made dynamically adjustable based on detected relative motion between vehicles, increasing reliability during movement while maintaining simplicity during stationary operations
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically adjusts the deadband volume based on self-detected relative motion conditions, eliminating the need for manual reconfiguration and ensuring reliable operation across varying conditions
Data Source
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AI summary
A spout identification module (22) is adapted to identify a spout (89) (e.g., or an associated spout position) of the harvesting vehicle (91, 191) in the collected image data. A relative motion detector (96) detects the relative motion of a receiving vehicle (79) and the harvesting vehicle (91, 191) or detects the relative motion between the spout and a container (85) of the receiving vehicle. An alignment module (24) is adapted to determine the relative position of the spout (89) and the cells in the container (85) via processing of the image data such that the spout (89) is aligned with the longitudinal axis or a lateral offset from the longitudinal axis based on the detected relative motion and where a longitudinal size of the deadband volume is adjusted based on the relative motion.