GNSS and optical guidance and machine control

• US 10,168,714 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2017
• Issued: 01/01/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Agjunction LLC (Kubota Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Agjunction LLC (Kubota Corporation)
• Inventors: Webber, Mark R., Jones, Keith R., McClure, John A., Roberge, Andre C., Feller, Walter J., Whitehead, Michael L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shafi, Muhammad
• Application Number:
  US15/838,055
• Publication Number:
  US 20180113473A1
• Time in Patent Office: 386 Days
• Field of Search: 701213, 701200, 701 50, 701 41, 701 23, 701 25, 701301, 701120, 34235726, 34235737, 34235752, 34235736, 34235734, 34235753, 34235776, 34235731, 700284, 700253
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 69/007 Steering or guiding of agricultural vehicles, e.g. steering of the tractor to keep the plough in the furrow
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 69/008 automatic
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: E01C 19/004 Devices for guiding or controlling the machines along a predetermined path for graders or bulldozers E02F3/841; for other soil-shifting machines E02F9/2045
• CPC Class Codes: E01H 4/00 Working on surfaces of snow or ice in order to make them suitable for traffic or sporting purposes, e.g. by compacting snow production of artificial snow F25C3/04
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/123 Drives or control devices specially adapted therefor E02F9/125 and E02F9/128 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2029 Controlling the position of implements in function of its load, e.g. modifying the attitude of implements in accordance to vehicle speed control for hydraulic or pneumatic drives E02F9/2203, E02F9/2221 and E02F9/2253 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2045 Guiding machines along a predetermined path for graders E02F3/841; machines for construction of roads E01C19/004
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/2054 Fleet management
• CPC Class Codes: E02F 9/264 Sensors and their calibration for indicating the position of the work tool
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/1656 with passive imaging devices, e.g. cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 25/005 initial alignment, calibration or starting-up of inertial devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/04 providing carrier phase data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/13 Receivers
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/24 Acquisition or tracking or demodulation of signals transmitted by the system synchronisation aspects of direct sequence spread spectrum modulation H04B1/7073
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/41 Differential correction, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS]
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/44 Carrier phase ambiguity resolution; Floating ambiguity; LAMBDA [Least-squares AMBiguity Decorrelation Adjustment] method
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/53 Determining attitude
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/55 : Carrier phase ambiguity resolution; Floating ambiguity; LAMBDA [Least-squares AMBiguity Decorrelation Adjustment] method
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/027 : comprising intertial navigation means, e.g. azimuth detector inertial navigation G01C21/16; inertial navigation combined with non-inertial navigation instruments G01C21/165
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 : using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0278 : using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0287 : involving a plurality of land vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00, particularly anticollision systems G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0891 : specially adapted for land vehicles

Abstract

A global navigation satellite sensor system (GNSS) and gyroscope control system for vehicle steering control comprising a GNSS receiver and antennas at a fixed spacing to determine a vehicle position, velocity and at least one of a heading angle, a pitch angle and a roll angle based on carrier phase position differences. The system also includes a control system configured to receive the vehicle position, heading, and at least one of roll and pitch, and configured to generate a steering command to a vehicle steering system. The system includes gyroscopes for determining system attitude change with respect to multiple axes for integrating with GNSS-derived positioning information to determine vehicle position, velocity, rate-of-turn, attitude and other operating characteristics. Relative orientations and attitudes between motive and working components can be determined using optical sensors and cameras. The system can also be used to guide multiple vehicles in relation to each other.

Claims

1. A control system for controlling a vehicle, the vehicle attached to a sprayer and the sprayer including multiple spray nozzles for applying a material, the control system comprising:

a processor; and

a memory including one or more sequences of instructions stored in the memory which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

receive, by a control system, attitude measurements for the vehicle or sprayer;

compute, by the control system, a tilt rate of change of the vehicle or sprayer based on the attitude measurements; and

adjust, with the control system, an application rate of the material output by the spray nozzles based on the tilt rate of change of the vehicle or sprayer.

2. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

calculating, by the control system, a turn rate of the vehicle or sprayer; and

varying the application rate of the material output by the spray nozzles based on the turn rate of the vehicle or sprayer.

3. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising receiving as part of the attitude measurements a roll-rate from a gyroscope located on the vehicle or sprayer.

4. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

computing, by the control system, a heading of the vehicle or sprayer based on a measured x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer;

computing, by the control system, a roll angle of the vehicle or sprayer based on the measured x, y, z position; and

computing, by the control system, a true ground position of the vehicle or sprayer based on the heading of the vehicle or sprayer and the roll angle of the vehicle or sprayer.

5. The control system of claim 4, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

computing, by the control system, a ground position error between the true ground position of the vehicle or sprayer and a desired ground position of the vehicle or sprayer based on the measured x, y, z position; and

adjusting, by the control system, steering control commands based on the ground position error.

6. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

computing, by the control system, an actual heading of the vehicle or sprayer from a measured x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer;

computing, by the control system, a heading error between the actual heading of the vehicle or sprayer and a desired heading of the vehicle or sprayer; and

adjusting, by the control system, steering control commands based on the heading error so the vehicle or sprayer avoids crossing a desired track.

7. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

computing, by the control system, a first x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer from a first global positioning system (GPS) receiver;

computing, by the control system, a second x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer from a second global positioning system (GPS) receiver; and

computing, by the control system, a true ground position of the vehicle or sprayer based on a difference between the first x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer and the second x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer.

8. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

computing, by the control system, a first x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer from a first global positioning system (GPS) receiver;

computing, by the control system, a second x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer from a second global positioning system (GPS) receiver;

computing, by the control system, a reference yaw and roll based on the first x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer and the second x, y, z position of the vehicle or sprayer; and

calibrating, by the control system, yaw and roll gyroscopes on the vehicle or sprayer based on the reference yaw and roll.

9. The control system of claim 1, the instructions when executed by the processor further comprising:

recursively generating, by the control system, steering commands to steer the vehicle;

recursively measuring, by the control system, responses of the vehicle to the steering commands; and

calibrating, by the control system, the steering commands based on the recursively measured responses of the vehicle to the steering commands.

10. A control system for controlling a vehicle, comprising:

a processor; and

one or more sequences of instructions stored on a tangible computer-readable media which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

receive a vehicle position and attitude derived from a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) system;

calibrate one or more gyroscopes based on the GNSS-derived attitude;

receive a yaw angle and a yaw angle rate of change from the one or more calibrated gyroscopes; and

adjust steering control commands sent to a vehicle steering system to move the vehicle from a current location and heading to a desired location and heading where the vehicle is to move based on the yaw angle and yaw angle rate of change.

11. The control system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

receive a tilt rate of change from the one or more calibrated gyroscopes; and

adjust an application rate of a material output from a sprayer attached to the vehicle based on the tilt rate of change.

12. The control system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

calculate a turn rate of the vehicle from the attitude received from the GNSS system or the yaw angle rate received from the one or more calibrated gyroscopes; and

adjust an application rate of a material output from a sprayer attached to the vehicle based on the turn rate of the vehicle.

13. The control system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

determine a tire slippage based on a comparison of a GNSS-based measured velocity with a wheel sensor-based measured velocity; and

adjust an application rate of a material output from a sprayer attached to the vehicle based on the tire slippage.

14. The control system of claim 10, wherein:

the GNSS system includes at least one receiver and multiple antennas connected to the at least one receiver at a fixed spacing; and

the GNSS system computes the vehicle position and attitude based on measured GNSS carrier phase differences from the antennas.

15. The control system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

compute an actual heading of the vehicle from the vehicle attitude;

compute a heading error between the actual heading of the vehicle and a desired heading of the vehicle; and

biasing the steering control commands based on the heading error to avoid crossing a desired track of the vehicle.

16. The control system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

recursively generate steering commands to steer the vehicle;

recursively measure responses of the vehicle to the steering commands; and

calibrate the steering commands based on the recursively measured responses of the vehicle to the steering commands.

17. The control system of claim 10, wherein the GNSS system and the one or more gyroscopes are located on the vehicle or located on an implement towed by the vehicle.

18. A control system for controlling a vehicle, the vehicle attached to a sprayer having multiple spray nozzles for applying a material to a terrain, comprising:

a processor; and

one or more stored sequences of instructions stored on a tangible computer-readable media which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

receive attitude measurements for the vehicle or sprayer;

calculate a turn rate of the vehicle based on the attitude measurements; and

adjust an application rate of the material output from the spray nozzles based on the turn rate of the vehicle.

19. The control system of claim 18, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

compute a tilt rate of change of the terrain based on the attitude measurements; and

adjust the application rate of the material output from the spray nozzles based on the tilt rate of change in the terrain.

20. The control system of claim 18, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

determine a tire slippage based on a comparison of a GNSS-based velocity of the vehicle with a wheel sensor-based velocity of the vehicle; and

adjust the application rate of the material output from the spray nozzles based on the tire slippage.