GNSS and optical guidance and machine control

• US 9,389,615 B2
• Filed: 09/22/2015
• Issued: 07/12/2016
• 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, Andr C., Feller, Walter J., Whitehead, Michael L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shafi, Muhammad
• Application Number:
  US14/862,142
• Publication Number:
  US 20160011597A1
• Time in Patent Office: 294 Days
• Field of Search: 701/213, 701/200, 701/50, 701/41, 701/23, 701/25, 701/301, 701/120, 323/572.6, 323/573.7, 323/575.2, 323/573.6, 323/573.4, 323/575.3, 323/577.6, 323/573.1, 700/284, 700/253
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 guidance system for a vehicle having optical sensors and a working component attached to the vehicle having optical targets, the guidance system comprising:

a guidance computer to;

receive inputs from the optical sensors associated with optical signals generated from the optical targets on the working component; and

calculate at least one of a roll (X) directional misalignment, pitch (Y) directional misalignment, or yaw (Z) directional misalignment of the working component in relation to an orientation of the vehicle based on the inputs from the optical sensors.

2. The guidance system of claim 1, wherein the guidance computer is further configured to:

receive global navigation satellite system (GNSS) based ranging signals from different antennas located on the vehicle or located on the working component indicating relative positions of the antennas;

determine signal quality characters of the ranging signals; and

select different combinations of the antennas for receiving the ranging signals based on the signal quality characteristics.

3. The guidance system of claim 2, wherein the guidance computer is further configured to transfer the ranging signals to said external computer.

4. The guidance system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises a tractor and the working component comprises an agricultural implement.

5. The guidance system of claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises earth-moving equipment and the working component comprises a ground-engaging tool.

6. A navigation computer configured for controlling a vehicle and auxiliary equipment, the computer comprising:

a processor to;

identify a fixed separation baseline between a first set of antennas on the vehicle;

determine multiple variable separation baselines extending between the first set of antennas on the vehicle and a second set of antennas on the auxiliary equipment, the variable separation baselines having variable lengths corresponding to relative variable orientations of the vehicle with the auxiliary equipment; and

compute positions of the vehicle and the auxiliary equipment based on the fixed separation baseline and the variable separation baselines, wherein the variable separation baselines identify a roll (X), pitch (Y), or yaw (Z) of the auxiliary equipment relative to a roll (X), pitch (Y), or yaw (Z) of the vehicle.

7. The navigation computer of claim 6, wherein the processor is preprogrammed with a guide path of movement for the auxiliary equipment.

8. The navigation computer of claim 7, wherein the processor is further to:

calculate a cross-track error between the guide path and the auxiliary equipment based on the variable separation baselines; and

compute a vehicle position to correct the cross-track error.

9. The navigation computer of claim 6, wherein the processor is further to:

receive inertial measurement unit (IMU) signals indicating a roll (X), pitch (Y), and yaw (Z) of the auxiliary equipment relative to the vehicle; and

compute corrections for the guide path based on the IMU signals.

10. The navigation computer of claim 6, wherein the processor is further to receive inputs from sensors on the vehicle associated with optical signals generated by the sensors from optical targets on the auxiliary equipment, the optical signals detecting roll (X), pitch (Y), and/or yaw (Z) directional misalignments of the auxiliary equipment in relation to the vehicle.

11. The navigation computer of claim 6, further comprising the processor to:

receive global navigation satellite system (GNSS) based ranging signals from the first and second set of antennas;

determine signal quality characters of the ranging signals; and

select different combinations of the first and second set of antennas for receiving the ranging signals based on the signal quality characteristics.

12. The navigation computer of claim 6, wherein:

the processor computes the variable separation baselines for both a first section of the auxiliary equipment and a second section of the auxiliary equipment that each move independently in relation to the vehicle; and

the processor computes positions of the vehicle based on the variable separation baselines for the first section and second section of the auxiliary equipment.