Sugarcane Header Feed Control for Lodged Stalks and Clog Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sugarcane harvesters face challenges in efficiently harvesting sugarcane with minimal damage and loss, particularly due to lodged or broken stalks, incorrect adjustment of knockdown rollers leading to clogging and reduced yield, and difficulty in measuring crop losses during the harvesting process.
Innovation Solution
A sugarcane harvester system that controls the rotational speed and position of crop dividers and knockdown rollers based on crop conditions and harvester speed, using sensor fusion from off-board and on-board imaging, pressure, and speed sensors to optimize feeding and reduce damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the rotational speed of crop dividers and knockdown rollers is increased to improve harvesting speed, then productivity increases, but crop damage and clogging increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the rotational speed of crop dividers and knockdown rollers based on real-time feedback from sensors monitoring crop flow conditions, crop density, and harvester speed. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize harvesting speed while preventing crop damage and clogging by adapting roller speeds to actual field conditions rather than operating at fixed high speeds.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs a feedback control mechanism where sensors continuously monitor crop flow conditions, crop density, and harvester speed, and this information is fed back to the controller which adjusts the rotational speed of crop dividers and knockdown rollers accordingly. This closed-loop feedback system ensures that harvesting speed is optimized while preventing crop damage and clogging by making real-time adjustments based on actual operating conditions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If knockdown rollers are adjusted to handle lodged or broken stalks, then adaptability to crop conditions improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses sensors to automatically detect lodged or broken stalks and autonomously adjusts the knockdown roller positions and speeds without requiring manual intervention. The controller processes sensor data about crop conditions and automatically modifies roller operation to handle problematic stalks, enabling the system to adapt to varying crop conditions while minimizing the complexity of manual adjustment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms with an electronically controlled system that uses sensors to detect crop conditions and electronically actuates roller adjustments. This substitution of mechanical systems with sensor-based electronic control simplifies the overall device complexity while maintaining high adaptability to handling lodged or broken stalks.
3Measurement precision
If sensor fusion systems are implemented to monitor crop conditions, then measurement precision of crop losses improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor fusion system uses multi-functional sensors that can detect multiple parameters including crop density, crop flow conditions, lodged stalks, and harvest speed simultaneously. By using sensors that perform multiple functions rather than dedicated single-purpose sensors, the system achieves high measurement precision for crop loss assessment while minimizing the overall number of sensors and reducing system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A sugarcane harvester and a method for harvesting a sugarcane crop having cane stalks. The sugarcane harvester includes a base cutter assembly configured to cut the cane stalks at a base and a header. The header includes a crop divider configured to position the cane stalks with respect to the sugarcane harvester, wherein the crop divider is rotatable about a divider rotational axis. A knockdown roller is configured to direct the positioned cane stalks to the base cutter assembly, wherein the knockdown roller is rotatable about a roller rotational axis. An imaging system is configured to provide crop information of the sugarcane crop and a controller is operatively connected to the imaging system. The controller is configured to receive the crop information, wherein the controller transmits one or more control signals in response to the crop information to one or both of the crop divider and the knockdown roller.