Agricultural rate management

{
  "publication_number": "US9338938B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Agricultural rate management",
  "abstract": "Agricultural rate adjustments performed by autopilots or farm information displays help eliminate guesswork and improve farm efficiency.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A method for managing agricultural rates comprising: providing a farm information display system for a vehicle, including: a display, processor and memory; a GNSS receiver that estimates vehicle position and speed; a material quantity sensor; and, an application rate actuator; estimating, using the processor, a material quantity on the vehicle using the material quantity sensor; estimating, using the processor, a rate of change of material on the vehicle; obtaining a desired vehicle end point from a user; estimating, using the processor, a time to the vehicle end point based on the estimated vehicle speed; and, adjusting, using the processor, the rate of change of material via the application rate actuator such that: (1) material quantity on the vehicle is exhausted when the vehicle reaches the vehicle end point, and (2) within a user-defined special rate area, the rate of change of material is different from that outside the special rate area.",
    "2. The method of claim 1 where the rate of change is estimated with respect to time.",
    "3. A method for managing agricultural rates comprising: providing a farm information display system for a vehicle, including: a display, processor and memory; a GNSS receiver that estimates vehicle position and speed; a material quantity sensor; and, an application rate actuator; estimating, using the processor, a material quantity on the vehicle using the material quantity sensor; estimating, using the processor, a rate of change of material on the vehicle; obtaining a desired vehicle end point from a user; estimating, using the processor, a distance to the vehicle end point based on the estimated vehicle position; and, adjusting, using the processor, the rate of change of material via the application rate actuator such that: (1) material quantity on the vehicle is exhausted when the vehicle reaches the vehicle end point, and (2) within a user-defined special rate area, the rate of change of material is different from that outside the special rate area.",
    "4. The method of claim 3 where the rate of change is estimated with respect to vehicle position.",
    "5. A method for managing agricultural rates comprising: providing a farm information display system for a vehicle, including: a display, processor and memory; a GNSS receiver that estimates vehicle position and speed; and, a material quantity sensor; estimating, using the processor, a material quantity on the vehicle using the material quantity sensor; estimating, using the processor, a rate of change of material on the vehicle; and, estimating, using the processor, a time and location where the material quantity on the vehicle will be exhausted, taking into account a different rate of change of material within a user-defined special rate area.",
    "6. The method of claim 5 further comprising communicating the estimated material quantity to another vehicle via a wireless network.",
    "7. The method of claim 5 further comprising communicating the estimated time and location to another vehicle via a wireless network.",
    "8. A farm information system comprising: a display including a processor and memory; a GNSS receiver in communication with the display, the receiver estimating position and speed of a vehicle; a material quantity sensor in communication with the display, the sensor estimating a material quantity on the vehicle; and, an application rate actuator in communication with the display, the actuator adjusting material application rate; wherein the display: estimates a rate of change of material quantity on the vehicle; obtains a desired vehicle end point from a user; estimates a time to the vehicle end point based on estimated vehicle speed; and, adjusts the rate of change of the material quantity via the application rate actuator such that: (1) the material quantity on the vehicle is exhausted when the vehicle reaches the vehicle end point, and (2) within a user-defined special rate area, the rate of change of material is different from that outside the special rate area.",
    "9. The system of claim 8 where the rate of change is estimated with respect to time.",
    "10. The system of claim 8 further comprising a wireless transceiver in communication with the display, the wireless transceiver communicating with a farm information system on a second vehicle.",
    "11. The system of claim 10, the wireless transceiver communicating the vehicle end point to the farm information system on the second vehicle.",
    "12. The system of claim 10, the wireless transceiver communicating a map location to the farm information system on the second vehicle."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "The disclosure is generally related to automatic control systems for agricultural machines such as tractors, spray trucks and harvesters.\n\nA common farming task is the application of material, such as seeds, fertilizer or pesticide, to a field. The material is stored in a tank or bin on a spray truck or tractor and dispensed over the field at a certain rate. A particular number of seeds or weight of fertilizer may be applied per acre, for example. Usually the amount of material carried by a farm vehicle is not exactly right to cover a farm field, however. There may be too much material resulting in some left over at the end of the job, or there may not be enough material and it runs out before the job is finished.\n\nRunning out of material early is clearly not desirable, but having material left over is also problematic. Materials often have limited lifetime and can't be stored for future use. Disposing of excess can be expensive and inconvenient. Furthermore farmers do not like to waste seeds, fertilizer, etc. They would rather use up the material in the field.\n\nAnalogous situations arise when harvesting except that material is collected from a field rather than dispensed over it. It is undesirable if a harvester reaches its maximum holding capacity at an inconvenient point. Farmers may prefer to unload a harvester near the edge of a field rather than in the middle, for example.\n\nPresently farmers solve problems of running out or having too much by guesswork and feel. As a vehicle nears the last few rows a field an operator applies a little more or less material to use up or stretch out the amount available.",
  "cpc": [
    "A01B 79/005",
    "A01C 15/003",
    "A01C 21/00",
    "A01C 7/102",
    "G01F 17/00",
    "G01F 25/00"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "G06F 19/00",
    "A01B 79/00",
    "A01C 21/00",
    "G06F 7/70",
    "G06G 7/00"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Trimble Navigation Ltd"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Michael F Cash",
    "Douglas B Mayfield",
    "Gregory D Chiocco",
    "Geoffrey W Mirfin"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2012-05-15",
  "publication_date": "2016-05-17",
  "grant_date": "2016-05-17",
  "priority_date": "2012-05-15",
  "application_number": "US-201213472013-A",
  "family_id": "49581982",
  "cited_by_count": 9,
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}