Sensing device for guiding a harvest machine
First Claim
1. In an agricultural machine of the type having an automatic steering system for guiding said machine along rows of plants, said machine being provided with at least one feeler adapted to sense the location of plants in one of said rows to control said automatic steering system, and said machine also including a plant harvesting mechanism at the front end thereof cooperating with a plurality of spaced forwardly extending elongated casings comprising dividers which separate adjacent plant rows from one another as said machine moves in a forward direction along said rows during a plant harvesting operation, the improvement wherein two adjacent ones of said divider casings include a pair of elongated slots in the facing side walls thereof, respectively, a pair of feelers extending respectively from said two adjacent divider casings through the elongated slots in said casings in opposed relation to one another on opposite sides of the plants in said one of said rows, each of said feelers comprising a rod having one end thereof mounted for pivotal motion within its said casing, a transducer for each of said feelers located within the casing associated with said feeler adjacent said pivotally mounted one end of said rod and responsive to pivotal movement of said one end of said rod within its said casing for generating a control signal for said automatic steering system, said rod for each of said feelers extending from the interior to the exterior of its said casing through the elongated slot in said casing in a direction transverse to the direction of elongation of its said casing, the exterior portion of each of said rods extending from its said elongated slot in a rearward direction relative to said machine to a position rearward of the rear end of said slot and being curved into a comparatively shallow, convex arcuate configuration which bows outwardly from said side wall of the divider casing in which said rod is pivotally mounted to cause said rod to contact simultaneously at least two of the stalks in said one of said plant rows when said control signal is to be generated.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A self-propelled harvesting machine of the type having an automatic steering system is provided with a pair of feelers extending toward one another from the facing surfaces of a pair of plant row dividers located at the forward end of the machine. Each feeler is mounted for motion within the casing of one of the dividers in cooperation with a magnetic transducer located within that casing, and extends from the interior of the casing through an elongated slot in the side wall of the casing. The external portion of each feeler extends in a rearward direction relative to the side wall of the casing and has a comparatively shallow convex arcuate configuration terminating at a free end of the feeler which is located to the rear of the rearward end of the slot. The end of each feeler located within the divider casing includes a pivotal mounting, a cam, and associated abutments so arranged that the feeler can move in a forward direction from a predetermined neutral position to avoid damage to the feeler and its associated transducer during servicing operations or if the direction of motion of the harvesting machine is reversed.
-
Citations
15 Claims
- 1. In an agricultural machine of the type having an automatic steering system for guiding said machine along rows of plants, said machine being provided with at least one feeler adapted to sense the location of plants in one of said rows to control said automatic steering system, and said machine also including a plant harvesting mechanism at the front end thereof cooperating with a plurality of spaced forwardly extending elongated casings comprising dividers which separate adjacent plant rows from one another as said machine moves in a forward direction along said rows during a plant harvesting operation, the improvement wherein two adjacent ones of said divider casings include a pair of elongated slots in the facing side walls thereof, respectively, a pair of feelers extending respectively from said two adjacent divider casings through the elongated slots in said casings in opposed relation to one another on opposite sides of the plants in said one of said rows, each of said feelers comprising a rod having one end thereof mounted for pivotal motion within its said casing, a transducer for each of said feelers located within the casing associated with said feeler adjacent said pivotally mounted one end of said rod and responsive to pivotal movement of said one end of said rod within its said casing for generating a control signal for said automatic steering system, said rod for each of said feelers extending from the interior to the exterior of its said casing through the elongated slot in said casing in a direction transverse to the direction of elongation of its said casing, the exterior portion of each of said rods extending from its said elongated slot in a rearward direction relative to said machine to a position rearward of the rear end of said slot and being curved into a comparatively shallow, convex arcuate configuration which bows outwardly from said side wall of the divider casing in which said rod is pivotally mounted to cause said rod to contact simultaneously at least two of the stalks in said one of said plant rows when said control signal is to be generated.
Specification