Crop transfer device and corresponding method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10143140-B2
Application number	US-201615343919-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 4, 2016
Priority date	Nov 6, 2015
Publication date	Dec 4, 2018
Grant date	Dec 4, 2018

Abstract

Crop transfer device (4) for transferring crop to a receptacle, the device comprising a conveyor (8) for transferring the crop and the conveyor defining a conveyor plane (CP). The conveyor has a conveyor outlet (10) defining an outlet direction (OD) which is the direction of the crop falling from the conveyor at the conveyor outlet. The crop transfer device (4) comprises a scanning device (12) adapted to scan the surface of crop situated below the conveyor outlet and the crop transfer device (4) comprises a mounting device (14) by which the scanning device is mounted to the conveyor (8) with a translational mobility of the scanning device with respect to the conveyor along a path (20).

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A crop transfer device for transferring crop to a receptacle, the device comprising:
a conveyor for transferring the crop, the conveyor defining a conveyor plane (CP), the conveyor having a conveyor outlet defining an outlet direction (OD) which is the direction of the crop falling from the conveyor at the conveyor outlet;
a scanning device adapted to scan the surface of crop situated below the conveyor outlet; and
a mounting device by which the scanning device is mounted to the conveyor with a translational mobility of the scanning device with respect to the conveyor along a path.

2. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the mounting device comprises a mounting arm rotationally linked to the conveyor around a mounting axis of rotation (x-x), and wherein the scanning device is attached to the mounting arm at a distance to the mounting axis of rotation.

3. The crop transfer device according to claim 2 , wherein the scanning device is attached to the mounting arm at a distance to the mounting axis of rotation so that the path has an arc shape.

4. The crop transfer device according to claim 2 , wherein the mounting device comprises drive means for driving the scanning device along the path and wherein the drive device comprises a linkage translating a unidirectional rotary motion of around more than 360° into an oscillating translation of the scanning device along the path.

5. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the scanning device is arranged above the conveyor plane with respect to the outlet direction.

6. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the conveyor comprises an outlet wall, and wherein the path of the scanning device is situated outside of the outlet wall, which is a side of the wall opposite the conveyor outlet.

7. The crop transfer device according to claim 6 , wherein the outlet wall extends perpendicular to the conveyor plane.

8. The crop transfer device according to claim 6 , wherein, the path is situated completely on the outside of the outlet wall.

9. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the scanning device comprises a scan head adapted to scan in a scan plane (SP).

10. The crop transfer device according to claim 9 , wherein the scan head comprises a 2D-Laserscanner.

11. The crop transfer device according to claim 9 , wherein the scan head is a rotational scan head having a rotational mobility around a scan axis (A-A).

12. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the mounting device comprises drive means for driving the scanning device along the path.

13. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the crop transfer device comprises control means adapted to generate a three-dimensional model of the crop heap surface and the receptacle based on the information generated by the scanning device.

14. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the crop transfer device comprises control means adapted to generate a three-dimensional model of the crop heap surface or the receptacle based on the information generated by the scanning device.

15. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the crop transfer device is a device for transferring root crop.

16. A method of transferring crop into a receptacle using a crop transfer device according to claim 1 , the method comprising:
conveying crop via the conveyor;
discharging the conveyed crop through the conveyor outlet;
scanning the surface of a heap in the receptacle created by the discharged crop and/or the receptacle by the scanning device; and
moving the conveyor with respect to the receptacle as a function of the information generated by the scanning device.

17. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the conveyor plane (CP) is coplanar with an upperside of a conveyor belt.

18. The crop transfer device according to claim 1 , wherein the mounting axis of rotation (x-x) is perpendicular to the conveyor plane (CP).

Assignees

• Exel Ind

Inventors

• Hirthammer Daniel

Classifications

• A01D33/10 Primary

  Crop collecting devices, with or without weighing apparatus · CPC title

• B65G67/04 Primary

  Loading land vehicles {(loading or unloading boats to or from land vehicles B60P3/10)} · CPC title

• A01D43/073

  with controllable discharge spout · CPC title

• G01N33/025

  Fruits or vegetables · CPC title

• G01N21/27

  using photo-electric detection (G01N21/31 takes precedence){; circuits for computing concentration (logarithmic circuits G06G7/24; photometric circuits in general G01J)} · CPC title