System and method for determining a location of an unloaded unit of agricultural product and locating a desired unit of agricultural product

• US 8,942,897 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2013
• Issued: 01/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blue Leaf IP Incorporated (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Original Assignee: CNH Industrial America LLC (CNH Industrial N.V.)
• Inventors: Foster, Christopher A., Ringwald, Justin R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Olszewski, John R
• Assistant Examiner(s): BOOMER, JEFFREY C
• Application Number:
  US13/845,880
• Publication Number:
  US 20140278083A1
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/50
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 46/08 of cotton
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/02 Agriculture; Fishing; Forestry; Mining
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

A system and method for determining a location of an unloaded unit of agricultural product and locating a desired unit of agricultural product or identifying a candidate unit of agricultural product as a function of sensing system information indicating contact of the unit with the ground or other surface onto which the unit is unloaded, global positioning system or other location system information identifying the contact or related location, and heading information, which information can then be used to discern the unit from others at the location for desired loading.

Claims

1. A system for determining a location of an unloaded unit of agricultural product and locating a desired unit of agricultural product, the unloaded unit being free of an electronically trackable tag, the system comprising:

a communication network configured and operable to communicate information between an unloading vehicle and a loading vehicle or between a central or base location and the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle;

the vehicles each including a holding structure for the unit of agricultural product and a structure deployable from the holding structure to a surface therebelow;

an unloading apparatus configured and operable to move the unit of agricultural product from the holding structure along the deployed structure to the surface therebelow;

a sensing system configured and operable to sense when the unit of agricultural product has reached and is stationary on the surface or has reached a location in predetermined relation thereto and provide an indicator representative thereof;

a location system configured and operable to receive information identifying a location of a receiver of the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle, the information being independent of a location of the unloaded unit of agricultural product;

a heading system configured and operable to determine a heading of the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle; and

at least one controller associated with the unloading vehicle and loading vehicle in communication with the location system, the heading system, and the sensing system, configured and operable to automatically determine the location of the unloaded unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the unloading vehicle and the heading thereof in response to the indicator provided by the sensing system.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a loading apparatus associated with the loading vehicle configured and operable to move the desired unit of agricultural product from the surface to the holding structure along the deployed structure;

the sensing system being configured and operable to sense when the deployed structure has reached a candidate unit of agricultural product or a location in predetermined relation thereto and provide an indicator representative thereof; and

the at least one controller being configured and operable to automatically determine whether the candidate unit of agricultural product is the desired unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the loading vehicle and the heading thereof when the sensing system has sensed and indicated that the deployed structure has reached the candidate unit of agricultural product or the location in predetermined relation thereto.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the controller determines a location of the candidate unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the loading vehicle when the sensing system has sensed and indicated that the loading structure has reached the candidate unit of agricultural product or the location in predetermined relation thereto.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the desired unit of agricultural product comprises the candidate unit of agricultural product having the location within a predetermined radius, or distance and direction from the location of the desired unit of agricultural product.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the heading of the unloading vehicle of the desired unit of agricultural product is compared to the heading of the loading vehicle located at the candidate unit of agricultural product.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein when the controller determines that the candidate unit of agricultural product is the desired unit of agricultural product, the loading vehicle apparatus engages and moves the desired unit along the loading structure from the surface to the holding structure in the loading vehicle.

7. The system of claim 2, wherein the location of the unit of agricultural product comprises a location of a predetermined reference point of the unit, and the predetermined reference point is a function of the heading of the unloading vehicle.

8. The system of claim 3, wherein a record stored in a database is associated with the unit of agricultural product, and the record includes at least information representative of unloading or loading vehicle identification, unloading or loading time, unloading or loading location, and the heading of the unloading or loading vehicle, respectively, for each time the unit of agricultural product is unloaded or loaded.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein when the controller determines that the candidate unit of agricultural product is not the desired unit of agricultural product, the controller accesses the records in the database to identify the candidate unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the candidate unit and the heading of the loading vehicle.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the record further includes information associated with the harvested unit of agricultural product including at least some of:

seed type, timing and quantity of one or more chemicals or fertilizers applied, time of harvest, yield data at time of harvest, moisture content, harvesting location, identification of a processing facility, yield data at the processing facility, and quality of the agricultural product.

11. A method for determining a location of an unloaded unit of agricultural product and locating a desired unit of agricultural product, comprising:

communicating information between an unloading vehicle and a loading vehicle or between a central location or base and the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle along a communication network;

sensing when the unit of agricultural product has unloaded to a surface and is stationary thereon or has reached a location in predetermined relation thereto with a sensing system, the sending system providing an indicator representative thereof;

receiving information identifying a location of a receiver of the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle with a location system in response to the indicator, the information being independent of a location of the unloaded unit of agricultural product;

determining a heading of the unloading vehicle and the loading vehicle with a beading system; and

providing at least one controller associated with the unloading vehicle and loading vehicle in communication with the location, system, the heading system, and the sensing system, for automatically determining a location of the unloaded unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the unloading vehicle and the heading thereof in response to the indicator provided by the sensing system.

12. The method of claim 11, further including the steps of:

sensing when a loading structure of the loading vehicle has reached a candidate unit of agricultural product or a location in predetermined relation thereto and providing an indicator representative thereof; and

automatically determining whether the candidate unit of agricultural product is the desired unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the loading vehicle and the heading thereof when the sensing system has sensed and indicated that the loading structure has reached the candidate unit of agricultural product or the location in predetermined relation thereto.

13. The method of claim 12, further including determining a location of the candidate unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the receiver of the loading vehicle when the sensing system has sensed and indicated that the loading structure has reached the candidate unit of agricultural product or the location in predetermined relation thereto.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the desired unit of agricultural product comprises the candidate unit of agricultural product having the location within a predetermined radius, or distance and direction, from the location of the desired unit of agricultural product.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the heading of the unloading vehicle of the desired unit of agricultural product is compared to the heading of the loading vehicle located at the candidate unit of agricultural product.

16. The method of claim 12, further including loading the candidate unit of agricultural product on the loading vehicle after the controller determines that the candidate unit of agricultural product is the desired unit of agricultural product.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein the location of the unit of agricultural product comprises a location of a predetermined reference point of the unit, and the predetermined reference point is a function of the heading of the unloading vehicle.

18. The method of claim 13, further including associating a record stored in a database with the unit of agricultural product the record including at least information representative of unloading or loading vehicle identification, unloading or loading time, unloading or loading location, and the heading of the unloading or loading vehicle, respectively, for each time the unit of agricultural product is unloaded or loaded.

19. The method of claim 18, further including accessing the records in the database to identify the candidate unit of agricultural product as a function of the location of the candidate unit when the controller determines that the candidate unit of agricultural product is not the desired unit of agricultural product.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the record further includes information associated with the harvested unit of agricultural product including at least some of:

seed type, timing and quantity of one or more chemicals or fertilizers applied, time of harvest, yield data at time of harvest, moisture content, harvesting location, identification of a processing facility, yield data at the processing facility, and quality of the agricultural product.