Yield estimation

• US 10,188,037 B2
• Filed: 09/24/2015
• Issued: 01/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deere & Company, Iowa State University Research Foundation Incorporated (Iowa State University)
• Original Assignee: Deere & Company
• Inventors: Bruns, Aaron J., Darr, Matthew J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lebentritt, Michael
• Application Number:
  US14/864,449
• Publication Number:
  US 20170089742A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 41/1273 for measuring grain loss

Abstract

A method and apparatus estimate yield. A first signal is received that an aggregate yield measured by an aggregate yield sensor during a measurement interval. A second signal is received that indicates a plurality of geo-referenced regions across which a harvester has traveled prior to the measurement interval. The method and apparatus allocate, to each of at least two geo-referenced regions, an aggregate yield portion allocation based upon different travel times for crops to the aggregate yield sensor Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data derived from sensing of plants in selected portions of the electromagnetic spectrum at a time other than harvest. The aggregate yield portion allocations are output.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a first signal indicating an aggregate yield measured by an aggregate yield sensor during a measurement interval;

receiving a second signal indicating a plurality of geo-referenced regions across which a harvester has traveled prior to the measurement interval, each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions having a region width less than a width of a head of the harvester;

allocating, to each of at least two geo-referenced regions, an aggregate yield portion allocation based upon different conveyance times selected from a manufacture'"'"'s database or measured for crops to travel from different transverse portions of the width of the head of the harvester to the aggregate yield sensor and Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data derived from sensing of plants in selected portions of the electromagnetic spectrum at a time other than harvest; and

outputting the aggregate yield portion allocations.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the allocating is based on differences in the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data for growth stages V8-V12 under the Iowa State University staging criteria, amongst the at least two geo-referenced regions.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data comprises Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVT) data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data comprises Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVT) data and wherein the method further comprises estimating a yield for each of the at least two geo-referenced regions using the NDVI data and allocating to each of the at least two geo-referenced regions the aggregate yield portion allocation based upon the NDVI yield estimate.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data comprises Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data and wherein the method further comprises estimating a yield relationship between each of the at least two geo-referenced regions using the NDVI data and allocating to each of the at least two geo-referenced regions the aggregate yield portion allocation based upon the yield relationship.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

sensing an orientation of the harvester; and

allocating a portion of the aggregate yield to the plurality of geo-referenced regions based upon the orientation.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

sensing an attribute of each of a plurality of plants being harvested by and across the harvester; and

allocating the aggregate yield amongst the plurality of plants based upon the sensed attribute of each of the plurality of plants.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

sensing different levels of power associated with different components of the harvester that interact with different plants across the harvester; and

allocating the aggregate yield amongst the different plants based upon the sensed different levels of power.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the geo-referenced regions to which portions of the aggregate yield from the measured interval are allocated are part of a chevron shape.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising applying a ground truth calibration to the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data.

11. An apparatus comprising:

a harvester having a harvester head width;

a sensor to output signals indicating an aggregate yield harvested by the harvester header during a measurement interval;

a location identifier to identify a plurality of geo-referenced regions across which the harvester has traveled prior to the measurement interval, each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions having a region width less than the harvester head width; and

a processor to;

determine the aggregate yield from the signals outputted by the sensor during the measurement interval and to allocate the aggregate yield to the plurality of geo-referenced regions based upon different travel times selected from a manufacture'"'"'s database or measured for crops sensed by the aggregate sensor during the measurement interval to travel from different transverse portions of the harvester width to the aggregate sensor and Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data derived from sensing of plants in selected portions of the electromagnetic spectrum at a time other than harvest; and

output crop allocations to each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the allocation is based on differences in the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data for growth stages V8-V12 under the Iowa State University staging criteria, amongst the plurality of geo-referenced regions.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data comprises normalized difference vegetation (NDVI) data for growth stages V8-V12 under the Iowa State University staging criteria, amongst the at least two geo-referenced regions.

14. The apparatus of claim 11 further comprising a second sensor to an orientation of the harvester, wherein the processor allocates a portion of the aggregate yield to at least one geo-referenced region other than the primary geo-referenced region additionally based upon the orientation.

15. The apparatus of claim 11 further comprising at least one second sensor to sense different levels of power associated with different components of the harvester that interact with different plants across the harvester, wherein the processor allocates aggregate yield amongst the different plants additionally based upon the sensed different levels of power.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing instructions to direct a processor to:

obtain Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index (VTRVT) data derived from sensing of plants in selected portions of the electromagnetic spectrum at a time other than harvest;

receive a second signal indicating a plurality of geo-referenced regions across which a harvester has traveled prior to the measurement interval, each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions having a region width less than a width of a head of the harvester;

allocate, to each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions, an aggregate yield portion allocation based upon different travel times selected from a manufacture'"'"'s database or measured for crops to travel from different transverse portions of the head of the harvester to the aggregate yield sensor and the VTRVI data; and

output a map of the plurality of geo-referenced regions, the map being at least partially based upon the aggregate yield portion allocations.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the allocation is based on differences in the Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data for growth stages V8-V12 under the Iowa State University staging criteria, amongst the plurality of geo-referenced regions.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the VTRVI data comprises normalized difference vegetation index (NDVT) data for growth stages V8-V12 under the Iowa State University staging criteria for a plurality of geo-referenced regions.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 16, wherein the geo-referenced regions to which portions of the aggregate yield from the measured interval are allocated are part of a chevron shape.

20. An apparatus comprising:

a harvester;

a sensor to output signals indicating an aggregate yield harvested by the harvester header during a measurement interval;

a location identifier to identify a plurality of geo-referenced regions across which the harvester has traveled prior to the measurement interval; and

a processor to;

determine the aggregate yield from the signals outputted by the sensor during the measurement interval and to allocate the aggregate yield to the plurality of geo-referenced regions based upon different travel times selected from a manufacture'"'"'s database or measured for crops sensed by the aggregate sensor during the measurement interval to travel to the aggregate sensor from different transverse portions across a width of the harvester head and Visual-Infrared Vegetative Index data derived from sensing of plants in selected portions of the electromagnetic spectrum at a time other than harvest; and

output crop allocations to each of the plurality of geo-referenced regions; and

at least one second sensor to sense different levels of power associated with different components of the harvester that interact with different plants across the harvester, wherein the processor allocates aggregate yield amongst the different plants additionally based upon the sensed different levels of power.