Agricultural Transport Vehicle Navigation Using Tractor Field Maps
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Solution Overview
Problem
Transport vehicles carrying agricultural machines lack the necessary maps and information to navigate effectively within agricultural fields, as their navigation systems do not include map data for agricultural fields or farm roads.
Innovation Solution
An agricultural support system is implemented, which includes communication devices on both the agricultural machine and the transport vehicle, allowing the transport vehicle to acquire and display information such as position, travel routes, and maps from the agricultural machine, thereby enhancing navigation and support for agricultural operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If transport vehicle uses conventional car navigation device with standard maps, then navigation on public roads is supported, but navigation in agricultural fields is not supported due to lack of farm road and agricultural field map information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the map information from the agricultural machine's navigation system with the transport vehicle's navigation system. The transport vehicle acquires and stores agricultural field maps and farm road information from the agricultural machine, combining these with its existing navigation capabilities to enable comprehensive navigation support for both public roads and agricultural fields.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a communication device as an intermediary between the agricultural machine and the transport vehicle. This communication device enables the transfer of map information and navigation data from the agricultural machine to the transport vehicle, allowing the transport vehicle to access agricultural field information without being permanently equipped with specialized agricultural navigation hardware.
2Adaptability or versatility
If transport vehicle is equipped with specialized agricultural navigation system, then navigation in agricultural fields is supported, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the transport vehicle's navigation system universal by enabling it to function both as a conventional car navigation device on public roads and as an agricultural field navigation device. By acquiring map information from the agricultural machine, the transport vehicle can navigate in both environments using a single integrated navigation system, eliminating the need for separate specialized systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The agricultural machine serves the dual purpose of its primary agricultural function and as a mobile map server for the transport vehicle. The map information is stored in the agricultural machine's storage device and can be transferred to the transport vehicle when needed, allowing the agricultural machine to provide navigation support services to the transport vehicle without requiring the transport vehicle to carry all map data permanently.
3Reliability
If transport vehicle relies on map data from map provider company, then navigation on registered roads is supported, but navigation in areas with insufficient map information is not supported
Solution Approach 1:
The agricultural field maps and farm road information are pre-acquired and stored in the agricultural machine's storage device before the transport vehicle needs them. This preliminary preparation of map data ensures that when the transport vehicle enters agricultural areas, the necessary navigation information is already available, eliminating delays and ensuring continuous navigation reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
An agricultural support system includes a first communication device located in or on a tractor to transmit information, and a second communication device located in or on a transport vehicle to acquire the information transmitted from the first communication device. The transport vehicle is capable of transporting the tractor. The agricultural support system further includes a position sensor in or on the working machine to detect a position of the working machine. The first communication device is operable to transmit the position detected by the position sensor to the second communication device as the information. The second communication device is operable to receive the position transmitted from the first communication device.