Mobile station for unmanned vehicle

• US 7,957,850 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2009
• Issued: 06/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Anderson, Noel Wayne
• Primary Examiner(s): To; Tuan C
• Application Number:
  US12/543,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20090299582A1
• Time in Patent Office: 657 Days
• Field of Search: 700/113, 700/243, 700/245, 700/251, 700/255, 700/253, 700/159, 700/160, 562/04, 180/324
• US Class Current: 701/2
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0225 involving docking at a fixed facility, e.g. base station or loading bay parking aids B62D15/027

Abstract

A mobile station for an unmanned vehicle comprises a vehicular storage area for storing a vehicle during transit or at rest. A first wireless transceiver communicates a status or command between the vehicle and the mobile station during at least one of vehicular deployment and rest. A station controller manages a management plan of the vehicle comprising at least one of retooling the vehicle, loading a payload on the vehicle, and recharging or refueling of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A mobile station for an unmanned vehicle, the mobile station comprising:

a revolving storage device storing transportable modules that include payloads and implements associated with the payloads;

and

a retooling system coupled to the revolving storage device that supports a switching of the implements associated with the payloads.

2. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising:

a vehicle that secures to an interior of the mobile station during transit of the mobile station, the vehicle being unmanned and comprising vehicle electronics; and

a station electronics module comprising a station controller and a management planner, the management planner creating a management plan based on data that is collected by the vehicle electronics, the station controller managing the management plan created by the management planner for the vehicle.

3. The mobile station according to claim 2, wherein the station electronics module further comprises:

a first wireless communications device in the vehicle electronics that transmits the management plan to a second wireless communication device in the station electronics module.

4. The mobile station according to claim 2, wherein the management plan includes an agronomic management plan, wherein the agronomic management plan includes agricultural data associated with planting, growing, harvesting, and crop management, and wherein the vehicle electronics comprises a plan manager that couples and decouples at least one implement to perform a particular task consistent with the agronomic management plan.

5. The mobile station according to claim 2, wherein the vehicle electronics further comprises:

a soil moisture sensor including metallic probes that measure a volumetric water content of soil by transmission and reception of electromagnetic energy into the soil.

6. The mobile station according to claim 4, wherein the agronomic management plan further comprises at least one of irrigating a certain portion of the field, applying a fertilizer payload, conducting genetic tests, and disbursing fungicide to material portions of a field having a low chlorophyll content.

7. The mobile station according to claim 1, wherein the payloads include one or more crop inputs selected from a group comprising seed, fertilizer, herbicides, fungicides, miticides, pesticides, water, nutrients, trace minerals, nitrogen, potassium, phosphorous, and chemicals.

8. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising:

a loading system to load the payloads on the vehicle, the loading system comprising at least one of a pneumatic loading system, an auger loading system, a gravity-fed loading system, and a belt loading system.

9. The mobile station according to claim 3, wherein

the management planner determines information including an implement plan, a payload plan, a refueling plan, and a path plan, that is transmitted from the second communication device to the first wireless communication device.

10. The mobile station according to claim 2, the station electronics module further comprising:

a vehicular guidance system comprising a location-determining receiver that determines a location of the vehicle outside of the mobile station based on a global positioning system receiver;

an optical positioning system that determines position data for the vehicle within an interior of the mobile station with reference to at least one of a recharging system, a loading system, and a retooling system; and

a guidance data processing module including an obstacle detection module that guides the vehicle in accordance with a plan path.

11. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising:

a container for storing a payload for disbursement in a designated field in accordance with an agricultural management plan.

12. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising:

a security manager comprising

an identification and authentication system that opens the door of the mobile station upon receipt of a vehicle identifier transmitted by the vehicle.

13. The mobile station according to claim 12, wherein the security manager further comprises:

an intrusion detection system that determines whether an intrusion event has occurred and reports the intrusion event to an end user via a communications network, the intrusion event comprising a person or entity violating a boundary or perimeter of the mobile station.

14. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising:

a first coupling unit attached to the vehicle;

a second coupling unit attached to a transportable module and engagable with the first coupling unit, wherein the transportable module comprises at least one of an implement, a tool, a payload, and a crop input.

15. The mobile station according to claim 14 further comprising:

a storage assembly for storing a group of transportable modules and generally aligning the first coupling unit with the second coupling unit by rotation or other movement of the storage assembly.

16. The mobile station according to claim 1 further comprising a recharging system for recharging the vehicle with electrical energy.

17. The mobile station according to claim 1 wherein the mobile station comprises a shipping container, and wherein the vehicle is secured to an interior portion of the mobile station.