System and method for idle state determination

• US 10,037,634 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2016
• Issued: 07/31/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Christofferson, Craig A., Chaston, Keith N., Oglesby, Madeline T., Velde, Todd F., Stander, Francois
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaawat, Mussa A
• Application Number:
  US15/077,606
• Publication Number:
  US 20170278315A1
• Time in Patent Office: 861 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/02 Registering or indicating driving, working, idle, or waiting time only apparatus forming part of taximeters G07B13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/0825 using optical means

Abstract

An idle state determination system and method are disclosed for a work vehicle having an engine and at least one movable work implement. The movable work implement includes a load bin. The idle state determination system includes a source of work vehicle data that indicates one or more operational parameters of the work vehicle, including at least a speed, a state of an engine and a position of the load bin. The idle state determination system including a source of idle state classifications that include a plurality of idle states associated with the work vehicle, and the plurality of idle states including at least a waiting idle state and a loading idle state. The idle state determination system includes a controller that processes the work vehicle data to determine an idle state of the work vehicle. The controller classifies the idle state as one of the plurality of idle states.

Claims

1. An idle state determination system for a work vehicle having an engine and at least one movable work implement, the movable work implement including a load bin movable between loaded and unloaded positions by a hydraulic circuit, the load bin operable to receive a payload, and the idle state determination system comprising:

sensors associated with one or more of the engine, the load bin and the hydraulic circuit that provide signals containing work vehicle data indicating one or more operational parameters of the work vehicle, the operational parameters including at least a speed of the work vehicle, a state of the engine and a position of the load bin;

a datastore device providing a source of idle state classifications that include a plurality of idle states associated with the work vehicle, the plurality of idle states including at least a waiting idle state and a loading idle state; and

a controller that receives the signals from the sensors and processes the work vehicle data to determine an idle state of the work vehicle, wherein the controller communicates with the datastore device and classifies the determined idle state as one of the plurality of idle states.

2. The idle state determination system of claim 1, wherein the controller further determines a duration of the determined idle state based, at least in part, on the work vehicle data indicating a transition in at least one of the speed of the work vehicle and the position of the load bin.

3. The idle state determination system of claim 2, wherein the controller transmits the duration for each of the plurality of idle states to a remote processing system.

4. The idle state determination system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of idle states further comprise a warm-up idle state;

and

wherein the controller determines the warm-up idle state based on a prior state of the engine as off, a current state of the engine as running and the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold.

5. The idle state determination system of claim 1, wherein the waiting idle state comprises a waiting to load idle state and a waiting to dump idle state, and the operational parameters further include a weight of a payload;

and

wherein the controller determines the waiting to load idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold, the weight of the payload as below a first weight threshold and the weight of the payload as above a second weight threshold.

6. The idle state determination system of claim 5, wherein the controller determines the waiting to dump idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold, the weight of the payload as above the first weight threshold and the position of the load bin as above a position threshold.

7. The idle state determination system of claim 1, further comprising a sensor proving a source of a status of a park brake associated with the work vehicle, the plurality of idle states further comprise a break time idle state;

and

wherein the controller determines the break time idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold and the status of the park brake.

8. The idle state determination system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of idle states further comprise a waiting to return idle state, the operational parameters further include a weight of a payload;

and

wherein the controller determines the waiting to return idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold and the weight of the payload as below a first weight threshold.

9. The idle state determination system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of idle states include at least three of:

warm-up idle state, waiting to load idle state, waiting to dump idle state, wait during haul idle state, waiting to dump idle state, waiting during return idle state and cool down idle state.

10. A method for determining an idle state for a work vehicle having an engine, a drivetrain and at least one movable work implement, the movable work implement including a load bin movable between loaded and unloaded positions by a hydraulic circuit, the load bin operable to receive a payload, the method comprising:

receiving signals containing one or more operational parameters associated with the work vehicle from sensors associated with one or more of the engine, the load bin and the hydraulic circuit;

determining, by a processor, a state of the work vehicle based on the operational parameters, the state of the work vehicle comprising one of a plurality of vehicle states including an engine off state, at least one of a stationary state and at least one of a transport state;

determining, by the processor, a transition in the state of the work vehicle;

determining, by the processor, an idle state based on the determined transition;

communicating, by the processor, with a datastore device containing a plurality of idle states associated with the work vehicle, the plurality of idle states including at least a warm-up idle state, a waiting to load idle state, a loading idle state, a waiting to dump idle state and a cool-down idle state; and

classifying, by the processor, the determined idle state based on one of the plurality of idle states stored in the datastore device.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

determining, by the processor, a subsequent transition in the state of the work vehicle; and

determining a duration of the idle state, by the processor, based on determined subsequent transition.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

repeating the determining of the idle state, the determining of the duration of the idle state and the classifying of the determined idle state for each determined subsequent transition in the state of the work vehicle over a period of operation of the work vehicle.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

transmitting, by the processor, the duration for each of the plurality of idle states over the period of operation of the work vehicle to a remote processing system.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

determining, by the processor, an amount of fuel consumed during the period of operation of the work vehicle; and

determining, by the processor, the amount of fuel consumed in each of the plurality of idle states based on the duration for each of the plurality of idle states over the period of operation of the work vehicle.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining, by the processor, an amount of time spent by the work vehicle in each of the plurality of idle states based on the duration for each of the plurality of idle states over the period of operation.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising receiving a status of a park brake associated with the work vehicle and a speed of the work vehicle, the plurality of idle states further comprise a break time idle state, and the determining of the break time idle state comprises determining a transition in the speed of the work vehicle and the status of the park brake.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving the one or more operational parameters of the work vehicle comprises receiving a weight of the payload from one of the sensors providing a source of payload data and the determining of the loading idle state by the processor comprises determining a transition in a weight of the payload.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the receiving the one or more operational parameters of the work vehicle comprises receiving a speed of the work vehicle from one of the sensors providing a source of speed data and receiving a state of the engine;

and

wherein the determining of the warm up idle state by the processor comprises determining a transition in the engine state and determining a transition in the speed of the work vehicle.

19. An idle state determination system for a work vehicle having an engine and at least one movable work implement, the movable work implement including a load bin movable between loaded and unloaded positions by a hydraulic circuit, the load bin operable to receive a payload, and the idle state determination system comprising:

sensors associated with one or more of the engine, the load bin and the hydraulic circuit that provide signals containing work vehicle data that indicates one or more operational parameters of the work vehicle, the operational parameters including at least a speed of the work vehicle, a state of the engine, a weight of the payload and a state of the load bin;

a datastore device providing a source of idle state classifications that include a plurality of idle states associated with the work vehicle, the plurality of idle states including at least a warm-up idle state, a waiting to load idle state, a loading idle state, a waiting to dump idle state, a break time idle state and a cool-down idle state; and

a controller that receives and processes the work vehicle data and is configured to;

receive the signals from the sensors;

determine an idle state of the work vehicle based on the work vehicle data;

communicate with the datastore device;

classify the determined idle state as one of the plurality of idle states contained in the datastore device;

determine a duration of the determined idle state based, at least in part, on the work vehicle data indicating a transition in at least one of the speed of the work vehicle, the weight of the payload and the state of the load bin; and

transmit the duration for each of the plurality of idle states to a remote processing system.

20. The idle state determination system of claim 19, wherein the controller determines the waiting to dump idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold, a weight of the payload as above a first weight threshold and the state of the load bin;

and

wherein the controller receives a status of a park brake and determines the break time idle state based on the speed of the work vehicle as below a speed threshold and the status of the park brake.