Patent Application
20250000021
The present invention relates, in general, to a new method of controlling machines, more particularly, agricultural machines intended for harvesting tall and stalky plants, such as sugarcane and sweet sorghum. More specifically, this new control method was developed to improve working conditions of the machines, but mainly to optimize the machine operating parameters based on previous mapping of existing crop failures.
Numerous models of agricultural equipment and machines designed and developed to provide increased productivity in harvesting of different types of vegetable crops are known in the state of the art, for example, grain combine harvesters, forage harvesters, and also, agricultural machines for harvesting the so-called tall and stalky plants, such as sugarcane and sweet sorghum.
Machines designed to harvest these tall and stalky plants are designed and developed to allow the harvesting of this specific type of crop, because their intrinsic characteristics require specific conditions for their adequate processing, from cutting to transfer to transshipments, buckets and/or trailers.
In this context, it is known that these agricultural machines for harvesting tall and stalky plants comprise a chassis whose front portion bears a set of mechanisms configured to promote the concentration and cutting of plant stalks so that the material is harvested and conveyed towards a series of conveyor and chopper rollers responsible for conveying and chopping the sugarcane into billets, which are then transferred to transshipments and/or trailers via an elevator assembly.
As must be appreciated by those skilled in the art, it is common that in many planting regions there are failures caused by uneven plant growth, either due to seed distribution and sowing conditions or due to soil characteristics and/or climatic conditions that can, in some way, influence and interfere with the growth and development of plantations.
Therefore, these crop failures in the field, under certain conditions, end up causing a negative impact to the operating conditions of agricultural machines, since it is quite common for machines to work under conditions that ignore these failures or, in most cases, require operators having the expertise of being able to identify that he/she is getting closer to said crop failures and, then, try to adjust some operating parameters of the machine with the aim of optimizing operations and working conditions.
However, despite the expertise of the operators, as must be appreciated by those skilled in the art, one of the inconveniences observed in field operations carried out by agricultural machines for harvesting tall and stalky plants of the prior art is related to the concentration of stalks usually present at the borders of the aforementioned crop failures. These concentrations have a high density and cause more severe shocks to the base cutting discs, causing strangulation of the roots of tall and stalky plants and, as a result, the dimensions of the aforementioned crop failures increase annually, and reduce the productivity of the field in general. Furthermore, these shocks caused by the contact of the base cutting discs with the high concentration of stalks end up spreading throughout the machine and can cause discomfort to operators inside the cabin.
Additionally, depending on the dimensions of these crop failures in the field, agricultural machines end up consuming more energy than they actually should, since, normally, the operating parameters remain in the same conditions in an area where productivity is relatively low. Moreover, it is observed that in these areas of low productivity, agricultural machines end up moving at the same speed as they were moving in the productive areas and, consequently, interfering with the travel and working time of the machine, which, in the end, affects the general performance of operations.
Therefore, it is possible to observe that agricultural machines for harvesting tall and stalky plants in the state of the art present some inconveniences and operating limitations, especially in areas of the field that present crop failures, which restrict and interfere with the performance of work in the field, but they can also cause root damage that leads to an increase in crop failures over the years and in future harvests. In view of these reasons, it is interesting to provide means and operational conditions that take into account the existence of crop failures in the field so that harvesting work is more efficient and productive for farmers.
Hence, these are, among others, the problems, objectives, and solutions that are intended to be overcome and achieved by the development of the present invention.
In this sense, in accordance with the above, the present invention aims to provide a new proposal for a method of controlling a machine, and such new method was designed and developed to obtain a practical, functional, and highly efficient solution to the inconveniences, problems, and limitations identified in the prior art, as mentioned above.
More particularly, it is one of the objectives of the present invention provide a new method of controlling agricultural machines that is formed by technical, constructive and functional characteristics configured to obtain the optimization of the operating parameters of the equipment, cutting and harvesting mechanisms of the agricultural machine, based on previous mapping of crop failures in the field.
More objectively, and with the purpose of achieving the technical and functional effects summarized above, among others, the present invention refers to a method of controlling agricultural machines that have speed control and comprise a memory to receive and store information relating to the mapping of crop failures, and a base cutting assembly, wherein the method initially comprises the steps of loading information relating to the mapping of crop failures and starting a harvesting operation in the field. Additionally, the method comprises the steps of:
According to particular embodiments of the present invention, said steps (iii.a) and (iii.b) can be carried out when in proximity to the edge of the crop failure and, more specifically, before reaching the stalks of tall and stalky plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure. More specifically, the aforementioned steps (iii.a) and (iii.b) can be carried out around 1 second before reaching the concentration of plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the increase in discs speed of the base cutting assembly can be around of 10% in relation to the conventional speed of the machine. While the reduction in the travel speed of the agricultural machine in the field can represent something around of 5% of the speed in conventional mode.
In another embodiment of the method of the present invention, said step (v.a) can be carried out once the beginning of the crop failure is indicated, in this case, the discs speed of the base cutting assembly can be reduced. As for the aforementioned step (v.b), it can be carried out once the beginning of the crop failure is indicated, wherein the travel speed of the agricultural machine (10), in this case, can be increased by around of 10%.
According to the present invention, said steps (vii.a) and (vii.b) can be carried out once it is identified the end of the crop failure, more particularly, before reaching the stalks of tall and stalky plants disposed at the edge of the aforementioned crop failure. More particularly, the aforementioned steps (vii.a) and (vii.b) can be carried out around 1 second before reaching the concentration of plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure.
According to particular embodiments of the present invention, during said steps (vii.a) and (vii.b), the increase in the discs speed of the base cutting assembly can be about 10% in relation to the conventional speed, and the reduction in the travel speed of the agricultural machine in the field can be around of 5% of the speed in conventional mode.
According to a particular embodiment of the present invention, said time interval (ΔT1) of step (viii) needs to be sufficient to overpass the initial stalks positioned at the edge of the crop failure.
Additionally, after carrying out step (viii), the control method of the present invention, according to one embodiment, comprises step (ix), returning the working parameters to the conventional mode.
Furthermore, according to another possible and particular embodiment of the present invention, said step (iv), based on the characteristics of the crop failure, may also comprise the following steps:
In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the control method may comprise, in step (vi), a step of checking whether the complementary mechanisms are in economical mode, if so, then it is necessary to return the work parameters of the complementary mechanisms to the working mode, said complementary mechanisms may be one or more of a tip cutter assembly (22), a row divider assembly (30), a conveyor roller assembly (44), a chopper assembly (50), a primary extractor assembly (54)/a secondary extractor assembly (78), an elevator assembly (52), and a hydraulic pump.
According to another particular embodiment of the present invention, said time interval (ΔT2) of step (iv.a) is previously set and configured to represent a period of time between 5 and 10 seconds.
The characteristics, advantages and technical effects of the present invention, as indicated above, will be more adequately understood by a person skilled in the art from the detailed description below, made by way of example only, and not restrictive, and making reference to the schematic drawings attached, which:
The invention will now be described with respect to its particular embodiments, making reference to the attached figures. Such figures are schematic, and their dimensions and/or proportions may not correspond to the reality, as they only aim to describe the invention in a didactic way. Furthermore, certain known and common construction details may have been omitted for greater clarity and conciseness in the description that follows. The reference numbers used are repeated throughout the figures to identify identical or similar parts. The terms eventually used such as “above”, “below”, “front”, “back”, “right”, “left” etc. and variants thereof must be interpreted according to the orientation of
Referring now to the drawings, and by way of contextualization of the present invention,
As shown in
Additionally, the harvester 10 may include various components for cutting, processing, cleaning and unloading sugarcane as the sugarcane is harvested from an agricultural field 20. For example, the harvester 10 may include a tipping cutter assembly 22 positioned on its front end to intercept the sugarcane as the harvester 10 travels in the forward direction represented by the arrow X. As shown, the tipping cutter assembly 22 may include both a gathering disc 24 and a cutting disc 26. The gathering disc 24 can be configured to gather the sugarcane stalks together so that the cutting disc 26 can be used to cut off the tip of each stalk. Generally, the height of the tipping cutter assembly 22 may be adjustable by means of a pair of arms 28 hydraulically raised and lowered as desired by the operator.
Additionally, the harvester 10 may include a row divider assembly 30 that extends upward and rearward from the field 20. In general, the row divider assembly 30 may include spiral feed rollers 32, also known as “lollipop”. Each feed roller 32 may include a soil pad 34 as its lower end assists the row divider assembly 30 in separating sugarcane stalks for harvest. Furthermore, as shown in
Further referring to
Additionally, the harvester 10 may include a set of one or more conveyor rollers 44 located downstream of the base cutter assembly 42 to move the cut stalks of sugarcane from the base cutter assembly 42 along the processing trajectory. As shown in
Additionally, the harvester 10 may include a chopper assembly 50 located at the downstream end of the conveyor roller assembly 44 (e.g., adjacent to the rearmost lower and upper conveyor rollers 46, 48). In general, the chopper assembly 50 can be used to cut or chop harvested sugarcane stalks into smaller pieces or “fragments” 51 that may, for example, measure 15.24 centimeters (six inches), also called billets or stalk sections. The fragments 51 may then be propelled towards an elevator assembly 52 of the harvester 10 to be collected in an external receiver or storage device (not shown).
As is generally understood, pieces of waste 53 (e.g., dust, dirt, leaves, etc.) separated from the sugarcane fragments 51 may be expelled from the harvester 10 through a primary waste extractor assembly 54, which is located behind the chopper assembly 50 and is oriented to direct the waste 53 out of the harvester 10. Additionally, a fan 56 may be mounted on the primary extractor 54 to generate a suction force or vacuum sufficient to capture the waste 53 and force the waste 53 through the primary extractor 54. The waste 53 is then directed out and generally in the opposite direction of the harvester 10 through an outlet of the primary extractor 54. The separated fragments 51 and heavier than the waste 53 being expelled from the extractor 54, can then fall into the elevator assembly 52.
As shown in
In addition, pieces of waste 53 (e.g., dust, dirt, leaves, etc.) separated from the sugarcane fragments 51 may be expelled from the harvester 10 through a secondary waste extractor assembly 78 coupled to the rear end of the elevator 58. As shown in
During the operation, the harvester 10 is driven across the agricultural field 20 to harvest sugarcane. Once the height of the tipping cutter assembly 22 is adjusted (if used) by means of the arms 28, the gathering disc 24 on the tipping cutter assembly 22 may be operated to gather the sugarcane tips together as the harvester 10 advances through the field 20, while the cutting disc 26 cuts the leafy tips of the sugarcane stalks to dump them along both sides of the harvester 10. As the stalks enter the row divider assembly 30, the pads 34 can configure the operation width to determine the amount of sugarcane that enters the inlet opening of the harvester 10, either in a fixed or adjustable manner. The lollipops 32 then gather the stalks together at the machine inlet to enable the dropper roller 36 to bend the stalks down in conjunction with the action of the roller with protrusions 38. Since the stalks are positioned at an angle as shown in
The cut sugarcane stalks are conveyed backwards by the conveyor rollers 46, 48 which compress the stalks and harvested matter. At the downstream end of the conveyor roller assembly 44, the chopper assembly 50 cuts or chops the compacted sugarcane stalks into pieces or fragments 51. Conveyed waste 53 (e.g., dust, dirt, leaves, etc.) separated from the sugarcane fragments 51 are then extracted through the primary waste extractor assembly 54 using the suction or vacuum created by the fan 56. The separated/washed fragments 51 then fall onto the elevator assembly 52 and travel upwards by means of the elevator 60 from its proximal end 62 to its distal end 64. During normal operation, the elevator assembly 52 is moved to one side and, once the fragments 51 reach the distal end 64 of the elevator 60, the fragments 51 fall through the discharge opening 82 to an external storage device. Similar to the primary extractor 54, the waste is blown out of the harvester 10 through the secondary waste extractor assembly 78 with the assistance of the fan 80.
An agricultural machine 10, such as the one described above, can be, for example, a machine known in the state of the art, such as the sugarcane harvesters from CNH Industrial N.V. sold under the Case IH trademark.
The terms used herein such as harvester, harvesting machine and their variants are used interchangeably to indicate an agricultural machine intended for harvesting a vegetable crop and, in the case of this description, for harvesting tall and stalky plants, such as sugarcane, energy cane, sorghum, etc.
Therefore, considering the scenario contextualized above, and in accordance with the present invention, the new method of controlling an agricultural machine has a speed control and comprises a memory to receive and store information relating to the mapping of crop failures, a base cutting assembly, initially formed by uploading the mapping of crop failures previously generated through data collection technologies commonly known and adopted in the agricultural segment. Just for example purposes, among the countless technologies, there are those that use drones to capture images used for the virtual reconstruction of cultivation areas that include the identification of existing crop failures that are then combined with the respective positions determined according to the guidance given by GPS.
In this sense, it is possible to note that the mappings provided and loaded on the agricultural machines are generated to be able to provide, with precision, the locations and characteristics of the crop failures existing in that area where the harvesting operations will be carried out by the agricultural machine.
Then, after loading the information relating to the mapping of crop failures, the method of controlling a machine, according to the present invention, considers that the agricultural machine 10 is moving in the field and, at the same time, is performing its tasks in a condition in which the working parameters are in conventional mode, that is, all mechanisms are working under usual conditions, for example, the travel speed of the agricultural machine 10 in the field, the tipping cutter assembly 22, the row divider assembly 30, the base cutter assembly 42, the conveyor roller assembly 44, the chopper assembly 50, the primary and secondary extractor assemblies 54, 78, and the elevator assembly 52 are performing their tasks under normal operating conditions, such as in areas without crop failures.
In these initial operating conditions, the method of controlling agricultural machines of the present invention begins its harvesting operations in the field and starts to associate the current positioning of the agricultural machine in the field with the mapping of crop failures and, in this way, it starts to execute the following steps:
According to a particular embodiment of the present invention, steps (iii.a) and (iii.b) are carried out when in proximity to the edge of the crop failure, more specifically, before reaching the stalks of tall and stalky plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure. More specifically, according to a more particular embodiment, said steps (iii.a) and (iii.b) are executed around 1 second before reaching the concentration of plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure.
Furthermore, according to a possible embodiment of the present invention, the increase in the discs speed of the base cutting assembly 42 is about 10% in relation to the conventional speed, and the reduction in the travel speed of the agricultural machine 10 in the field is around of 5% of the speed in conventional mode.
Also, according to a particular mode of operation of the present invention, steps (v.a) and (v.b) are executed from the moment when the beginning of the crop failure is indicated and, thus, the discs speed of the base cutter assembly 42 can be reduced, and the travel speed of the agricultural machine 10 can be increased by around 10% in order to reduce the crossing time through said crop failure, which is a low productivity area.
The aforementioned steps (vii.a) and (vii.b) are carried out once it is identified the end of the crop failure, more specifically, before reaching the stalks of tall and stalky plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure. More especially, according to a more particular embodiment, these steps (vii.a) and (vii.b) are carried out around 1 second before reaching the concentration of plants disposed at the edge of the crop failure.
Additionally, according to another possible embodiment of the present invention, the increase in the discs speed of the base cutter assembly 42 is about 10% in relation to the conventional speed, and the reduction in the travel speed of the agricultural machine 10 in the field is around of 5% of the speed in conventional mode.
The time interval (ΔT1) of step (viii) must be sufficient to overpass the initial stalks positioned at the edge of the crop failure, which present a high concentration and, therefore, require more cautious operational care so that the roots of the cut plants are not strangled and damaged, which would result in an increase in the size of the crop failure in the next harvest.
According to the present invention, after step (viii) where the machine waits a time interval (ΔT1) sufficient to overpass the initial stalks after the crop failure, the method also comprises step (ix), returning the work parameters to the conventional way.
Optionally, according to a complementary embodiment of the method of the present invention, at the moment when the beginning of the crop failure is indicated (step iv), based on the information provided by the mapping of the crop failures, it is possible to determine the characteristics of said failure and, thus, it is possible to determine the time that the agricultural machine will need to cover the entire failure. In this sense, the method of controlling agricultural machines, according to the present invention, may also comprise the following complementary steps:
In this optional configuration of the method of the present invention, at moment of indicating the end of the crop failure (step vi), the method must also include a step of checking whether the complementary mechanisms are in economical mode, if so, then it is necessary to return the work parameters of the complementary mechanisms to the working mode.
As must be appreciated by those skilled in the art, said complementary mechanisms can be any mechanisms installed on agricultural machines that are in addition to the base cutter assembly, and the engine responsible for controlling the speed of the machine in the field. In this case, for example, these complementary mechanisms may be the tipping cutter assembly 22, row divider assembly 30, conveyor roller assembly 44, chopper assembly 50, primary extractor assembly 54/secondary extractor assembly 78, elevator assembly 52, hydraulic pump etc.
According to a particular embodiment of the present invention, the time interval (ΔT2) of step (iv.a) can be previously adjusted and configured to represent, for example, a period of time between 5 and 10 seconds. As should be appreciated by those skilled in the art, this step can be subdivided so that the working parameters of the complementary mechanisms are adjusted according to the convenience and expertise of operators and farmers.
As an example, if the aforementioned failures represents a ΔT2 on the order of 10 seconds, it is possible to adjust the work parameters of the extractors to perform their operations with a reduction on the order of 25% while the discs of the base cutter assembly work with a reduction on the order of 30%. In another situation, if the aforementioned ΔT2 represents an interval greater than 10 seconds, it is possible to adjust the mechanisms so that they work in a condition in which there is a reduction on around of 50% in capacity, in order to obtain a consumption reduction of substantial energy in an area of low productivity.
In this sense, as can be seen, the present invention is capable of providing particularly advantageous conditions that help the driving of agricultural machines in the field, especially based on the mapping of crop failures in order to obtain a significant increase in productivity and yield of operations in the field, considering that the machines begin to perform their tasks under appropriate conditions in the effectively productive areas, and are capable of optimizing the working conditions of their mechanisms to obtain a reduction in energy consumption, as well as more quickly transposing these areas of low productivity.
Furthermore, it is noted that the method of the present invention can manage and control the work operations of agricultural machines in order to ensure adequate cutting of the stalks that grow on the edges of the failures, with such edges proving to be critical portions that, if not treated properly, they may compromise subsequent crops due to the strangulation of the roots and the consequent increase in the general dimensions of the aforementioned crop failures.
It is worth highlighting that the effects and advantages of the present invention are obtained mainly due to the combined action of the previous mapping of crop failures of the field with the geo-positioning of the agricultural machines, so that the machine control systems are able to execute and signal, if applicable, work operations and, with it, efficiently assist machine operators to increase productivity and performance in the field.
Finally, considering everything discussed above, it is important to highlight that the present description aims only to present and define by way of example particular embodiments of the new method of controlling agricultural machines 10, according to the present invention. Therefore, as those skilled in the art must appreciate, various modifications and combinations of equivalent elements and details are possible without thereby departing from the scope of protection defined by the attached claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2023 013198 0 | Jun 2023 | BR | national |
