Grain management system and combine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10278329-B2
Application number	US-201515532640-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 25, 2015
Priority date	Mar 16, 2015
Publication date	May 7, 2019
Grant date	May 7, 2019

Abstract

A grain management system includes a combine and a management server. The combine includes a grain measurer for outputting a measured value related to a component of harvested grains supplied to a grain tank, and a data transmitter for transmitting the measured value and field identification information for specifying the field to the management server via a communication line. The management server includes a receiver for receiving the field identification information and the measured value from the combine, a table manager for determining a measured value-grain component value table for deriving a grain component value using the measured value based on the field identification information, and a grain component value computer for obtaining the grain component value based on the measured value, using the measured value-grain component value table that is determined by the table manager.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A grain management system comprising:
a combine for reaping culms in a field while traveling, and accumulating, in a grain tank, grains obtained by threshing reaped culms; and
a management server for managing quality of the grains harvested by the combine, the combine comprising:
a grain measurer for outputting a measured value related to a component of the grains supplied to the grain tank; and
a data transmitter for transmitting the measured value and field identification information for specifying the field to the management server via a communication line, and
the management server comprising:
a receiver for receiving the field identification information and the measured value from the combine;
a table manager for determining a measured value-grain component value table for deriving a grain component value using the measured value based on the field identification information; and
a grain component value computer for obtaining the grain component value based on the measured value using the measured value-grain component value table that is determined by the table manager.

2. The grain management system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the management server comprises a field database that records a type of grain, breed of grain, or both, harvested in each field so as to be able to be read out, based on the field identification information, and
the table manager determines an optimum measured value-grain component value table based on the type of grain, breed of grain, or both, read out from the field database.

3. The grain management system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the management server comprises a table storage for storing, in an extractable manner, a plurality of the measured value-grain component value tables associated with a type of harvested grain, breed of harvested grain, or both, and
the measured value-grain component value table extracted from the table storage using, as a search condition, a type of grain, breed of grain, or both, read out from the field database is determined as the optimum measured value-grain component value table.

4. The grain management system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the management server holds a reference measured value-grain component value table to serve as a reference of the measured value-grain component value table, and
the table manager determines the optimum measured value-grain component value table by correcting the reference measured value-grain component value table based on the type of grain, breed of grain, or both, read out from the field database.

5. The grain management system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the management server comprises a transmitter for transmitting, to the combine, the grain component value obtained by the grain component value computer.

6. The grain management system according to claim 5 ,
wherein the combines comprises:
a second receiver for receiving the grain component value transmitted from the transmitter in the management server; and
a display capable of displaying the grain component value.

7. The grain management system according to claim 1 ,
wherein a temporary accumulation chamber for receiving at least some of the grains supplied to the grain tank is provided,
the grain measurer outputs the measured value based on spectrometry performed on light with which the grains temporarily accumulated in the temporary accumulation chamber are irradiated, and
the grain component value computer obtains at least a moisture content based on the measured value.

8. The grain management system according to claim 7 ,
wherein the grain component value computer derives a component value of protein from the measured value.

9. A combine for reaping culms in a field while traveling, and accumulating, in a grain tank, grains obtained by threshing reaped culms, comprising:
a field identification information manager for managing field identification information for specifying the field;
a grain measurer for outputting a measured value related to a component of the grains supplied to the grain tank;
a communicator for transmitting the field identification information to the management server via a communication line, and receiving, from the management server, computation information for the field specified based on the field identification information;
a table manager for determining, using the computation information, an optimum measured value-grain component value table for deriving, from the measured value, a grain component value indicating a component of grains harvested in the field; and
a grain component value computer for obtaining the grain component value based on the measured value using the measured value-grain component value table that is determined by the table manager.

10. The combine according to claim 9 , further comprising:
a table storage for storing a plurality of the measured value-grain component value tables for deriving the grain component value from the measured value,
wherein the table manager determines, as the optimum measured value-grain component value table, the measured value-grain component value table extracted from the table storage using the computation information as a search condition.

11. The combine according to claim 9 ,
wherein a reference measured value-grain component value table to serve as a reference of the measured value-grain component value table is stored, and
the table manager determines the optimum measured value-grain component value table by correcting, based on the computation information, the reference measured value-grain component value table.

12. The combine according to claim 9 ,
wherein the computation information is a type of grain harvested in the field, breed of grain harvested in the field, or both.

13. The combine according to claim 9 ,
wherein the computation information is the optimum measured value-grain component value table for deriving the grain component value from the measured value.

14. The combine according to claim 9 ,
wherein a temporary accumulation chamber for receiving at least some of the grains supplied to the grain tank is provided, the grain measurer outputs the measured value based on spectrometry performed on light with which the grains temporarily accumulated in the temporary accumulation chamber are irradiated, and the grain component value computer obtains at least a moisture content based on the measured value.

15. The combine according to claim 14 ,
wherein the grain component value computer derives a component value of protein from the measured value.

16. The combine according to claim 9 , further comprising:
a display capable of displaying the grain component value.

Assignees

• Kubota Kk

Inventors

• Takahara Kazuhiro
• Ueda Mao

Classifications

• G01N2021/8592

  Grain or other flowing solid samples · CPC title

• A01D41/1277 Primary

  for measuring grain quality · CPC title

• G06Q50/02 Primary

  Agriculture; Fishing; Forestry; Mining · CPC title

• A01D41/1208

  Tanks for grain or chaff (for threshing machines A01F12/60) · CPC title

• A01F12/60

  Grain tanks {(for combines A01D41/1208)} · CPC title