GNSS and optical guidance and machine control

• US 9,141,111 B2
• Filed: 04/07/2015
• Issued: 09/22/2015
• 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:
  US14/680,980
• Publication Number:
  US 20150212522A1
• Time in Patent Office: 168 Days
• Field of Search: 701/213, 701/200, 701/50, 701/41, 701/23, 701/25, 701/301, 701/120, 280/406.2, 280/186, 180/9.4
• 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 GNSS-based guidance system for guiding a vehicle comprising a motive component and a working component interconnected by an articulated hitch, which guidance system comprises;

a GNSS receiver;

a guidance computer on said motive component and connected to said receiver;

a working component computer on said working component and connected to said guidance computer;

optical targets and sensors on said working component;

GNSS antennas mounted on said motive and working components and connected to said receiver;

said guidance computer programmed for;

computing GNSS-defined positions of said antennas defining a guide path;

storing said guide path;

automatically steering said vehicle along said guide path; and

guiding said working component based on the relative positions of said working component, said motive component, and said guide path;

inertial measurement units (IMUs) mounted on said motive and working components and configured for outputting signals corresponding to roll (X), pitch (Y) and yaw (Z) movements of said motive and working components to said guidance and working component computers respectively;

said guidance and working component computers configured for computing guide path corrections for said motive and working components using said IMU signal inputs;

said guidance and working component computers configured for correcting said guide path using guide path correction output;

said guidance and working component computers configured for outputting signals corresponding to directional misalignments between said working component and said motive component based on signals output from said optical sensors; and

said guidance computer configured for correcting roll (X), pitch (Y), and/or yaw (Z) misalignments between said working component and said motive component using outputs from said guidance and working component computers.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said working component is movable relative to said prime component through 3 axes of movement corresponding to roll (X), pitch (Y), and yaw (Z) through said articulated connection.

3. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a switching circuit connected to said antennas and to said receiver;

said switching circuit being configured for switching among said antennas wherein respective antennas are selectively connected to said receiver;

said computer being configured for receiving GNSS-based ranging signal inputs based on relative positions of said antennas selected by said switching circuit; and

said computer being configured for selecting said antennas based on GNSS-based signal quality characteristics.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

said working component having first and second sections;

said first and second working component sections being hingedly connected for movement relative to each other;

multiple said working component antennas being mounted on each said first and second working component section; and

a variable baseline extending between each said working component antenna and said motive component antenna.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an external computer connected to said guidance computer;

said external computer being configured for transferring field data input to said guidance computer; and

said guidance computer being configured for transferring field data output to said external computer.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a vehicle operating parameter sensor mounted on said vehicle and connected to said guidance computer;

said vehicle operating parameter sensor configured for sensing vehicle operating parameters; and

said guidance computer being configured for computing position solutions using GNSS signals and said vehicle operating parameters.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said motive component comprises a tractor; and

said working component comprises an agricultural implement.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said vehicle comprises earth-moving equipment; and

said working component comprises a ground-engaging tool.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said vehicle comprises snow-grooming equipment; and

said working component comprises a snow-engaging tool.