Predictive overlap control model

• US 10,080,325 B2
• Filed: 10/27/2015
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blue Leaf IP Incorporated (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Original Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Inventors: Weisberg, Paul Gerhard, Stratton, John, Rapley, Anthony C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaawat, Mussa A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim, Kyung J
• Application Number:
  US14/924,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20170112049A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,064 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 21/005 Following a specific plan, e.g. pattern

Abstract

An overlap control system includes an agricultural vehicle control system operable to utilize a product delay (PD) value in seconds, a start early (SE) distance, and/or a stop late (SL) distance to determine at least one offset edge from a location of an agricultural implement. The agricultural vehicle control system is operable to look ahead along a guidance swath or at least one predicted path of the agricultural implement, and to determine that an intercept will occur between the at least one offset edge and a boundary along the guidance swath or predicted path. The agricultural vehicle control system is further operable to calculate a distance or time to the intercept, and to send a command to change an on/off state of the agricultural implement in the calculated distance or time.

Claims

1. An agricultural overlap control system for a tractor and an agricultural implement configured to carry and deliver a product, the agricultural implement connected to and moved by the tractor to deliver the product, the agricultural overlap control system comprising:

an agricultural vehicle control system carried by the tractor and configured to communicate with the agricultural implement, the agricultural implement physically connected to the tractor, an agricultural implement control system carried by the agricultural implement, the agricultural vehicle control system in communication with the agricultural implement control system to control the agricultural implement, the agricultural vehicle control system operable to utilize at least two product delay (PD) values, a start early (SE) distance to determine at least a start early edge offset from a location of the agricultural implement, and a stop late (SL) distance to determine at least a stop late edge offset from a location of the agricultural implement;

said agricultural vehicle control system operable to look ahead of the agricultural implement using at least one edge offset along one of a guidance swath and at least one predicted path of the agricultural implement and further operable to determine that an intercept by the agricultural implement of an area of soil or crop which has already received the product via the agricultural implement (overlap area) will occur between said at least one edge offset and a boundary between a non-overlap area and the overlap area along said guidance swath or predicted path, said agricultural vehicle control system further operable to calculate at least one of a distance and a time to said intercept without reliance on GPS position updates, said agricultural vehicle control system further operable to send a command to change an on/off state of said agricultural implement in said calculated distance or time to the agricultural implement control system so that the agricultural implement delivers product to soil or crop and avoids re-delivery of product to the overlap area, wherein the agricultural implement control system determines at least one of the at least two product delay (PD) values for the agricultural implement via calculation of at least one of time and distance.

2. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

the agricultural implement control systems is operable to utilize a product delay implement value in seconds to determine a further adjustment to said distance or time to said intercept.

3. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 2, wherein:

said agricultural vehicle control system uses said product delay implement value provided by said agricultural implement control system to determine a further edge offset, which is used to determine said further adjustment to said distance or time to said intercept.

4. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

the distance that said agricultural vehicle control system looks ahead along said guidance swath or said predicted path to determine whether said intercept will occur is a function of a latency delay of said agricultural implement in changing said on/off state.

5. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said at least one predicted path is based on at least one of a current position, a current velocity, a position history, previous turns, and driver inputs.

6. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said distance or time to said intercept is calculated based on a predicted path to said intercept chosen from multiple potential predicted paths to said intercept.

7. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 6, wherein:

a longest potential predicted path to said intercept is chosen when transitioning from the non-overlap area to the overlap area.

8. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 6, wherein:

a shortest potential predicted path to said intercept is chosen when transitioning from the overlap area to the non-overlap area.

9. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said distance or time calculated to said intercept is recalculated only on a change in velocity or bearing.

10. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said distance or time calculated to said intercept is recalculated at regular intervals.

11. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

the agricultural implement control system is operable to utilize a product delay implement value determined by the agricultural implement control center in seconds to determine a further offset edge; and

wherein said agricultural vehicle control system is further operable to calculate said distance to said intercept when transitioning from the non-overlap area to the overlap area, and wherein said agricultural vehicle control system is operable to calculate said distance from the overlap area to the non-overlap area when transitioning from the overlap area to the non-overlap area.

12. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

the agricultural implement control system is operable to utilize a product delay implement value determined by the agricultural implement control system in seconds to determine a further edge offset; and

wherein said agricultural vehicle control system is further operable to calculate said time to said intercept when transitioning from the non-overlap area to the overlap area, and wherein said agricultural vehicle control system is operable to calculate said time from the overlap area to the non-overlap area when transitioning from the overlap area to the non-overlap area.

13. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said agricultural vehicle control system is operable to send a “

start now”

command to deliver product to the soil or the crop, and the agricultural vehicle control system is operable to send a “

stop now”

command to stop delivery of product to the soil or the crop, upon occurrence of said intercept.

14. The agricultural overlap control system of claim 1, wherein:

said agricultural implement includes at least two sections;

said agricultural vehicle control system being further operable to determine that intercepts will occur between at least one edge offset for each section of said agricultural implement and a boundary along a guidance swath or predicted path for each section of said agricultural implement, said agricultural vehicle control system further operable to calculate distances or times to said intercepts for each of said sections, said agricultural vehicle control system further operable to send commands to change on/off states of each of said sections of said agricultural implement in said calculated distances or times.