System and method for determining the residue yield of plant materials harvested by an agricultural harvester

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10820504-B2
Application number	US-201816026158-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 3, 2018
Priority date	Jul 3, 2018
Publication date	Nov 3, 2020
Grant date	Nov 3, 2020

Abstract

An agricultural harvester may include a system for determining the residue yield of plant materials being ingested by a harvesting implement of the harvester. A controller of the system may be configured to determine the weight of the quantity of plant materials being ingested by a harvesting implement of the harvester based on measurement signals received from the plant yield sensor. The system may be configured to determine the weight of the quantity of crop materials removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials based on measurement signals received from the crop yield sensor. The system may be configured to determine the residue yield value by comparing the determined weight of the quantity of plant materials and the determined weight of the quantity of crop materials.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An agricultural harvester, comprising:
a harvesting implement configured to ingest a quantity of plant materials from a field;
a plant processing system configured to process the quantity of harvested plant materials ingested by harvesting implement; and
a system for determining a residue yield of the plant materials ingested by the harvesting implement, the system comprising:
a plant yield sensor configured to detect a parameter associated with a weight of the harvested plant materials being ingested by the harvesting implement;
a crop yield sensor configured to detect a parameter associated with a weight of a quantity of crop materials removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials by the plant processing system; and
a controller communicatively coupled to the plant and the crop yield sensors, the controller being configured to:
determine the weight of the quantity of plant materials being ingested by the harvesting implement based on measurement signals received from the plant yield sensor;
determine the weight of the quantity of crop materials removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials based on measurement signals received from the crop yield sensor; and
determine a residue yield value by comparing the determined weight of the quantity of plant materials and the determined weight of the quantity of crop materials.

2. The agricultural harvester of claim 1 , further comprising:
a feeder configured to transfer the quantity of harvested plant materials from the harvesting implement to the plant processing system, the plant yield sensor being provided in operative association with at least one of the harvesting implement or the feeder.

3. The agricultural harvester of claim 2 , wherein the plant yield sensor is provided in operative association with at least one of a harvesting implement conveyor, a feeder conveyor, or a feeder frame.

4. The agricultural harvester of claim 3 , wherein the plant yield sensor corresponds to a weight sensor configured to detect the weight of the harvested plant materials present on the harvesting implement conveyor or the feeder conveyor.

5. The agricultural harvester of claim 1 , wherein the determined residue yield value corresponds to an instantaneous residue yield value, the controller being further configured to continuously update the determined residue yield value based on the measurement signals received from the plant and crop yield sensors.

6. The agricultural harvester of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to initiate a control action associated with adjusting an operating parameter of the agricultural harvester based on the determined residue yield value.

7. The agricultural harvester of claim 6 , wherein the operating parameter corresponds to a spread width of residue being discharged by the agricultural harvester.

8. The agricultural harvester of claim 6 , wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the operating parameter based on variations in the residue yield value with time as the agricultural harvester is moved through the field.

9. The agricultural harvester of claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to filter a component of the measurement signals associated with an operation of the agricultural harvester from the measurement signals received from plant yield sensor.

10. The agricultural harvester of claim 9 , wherein the component corresponds to at least one of a speed of the agricultural harvester relative to the field, a vertical movement of the agricultural harvester relative to the field, a speed of a conveyor of the harvesting implement, or a speed of a conveyor of a feeder.

11. A method for determining a residue yield of plant material being harvested by an agricultural harvester, the agricultural harvester including a harvesting implement configured to ingest a quantity of plant materials from a field and a plant processing system configured to process the quantity of harvested plant materials ingested by harvesting implement, the method comprising:
controlling, with a computing device, an operation of the agricultural harvester such that a harvesting implement of the harvester ingests a quantity of plant materials from a field and a plant processing system of the harvester processes the quantity of harvested plant materials ingested by harvesting implement;
determining, with the computing device, a weight of the quantity of plant materials being ingested by the harvesting implement based on data received from a plant yield sensor;
determining, with the computing device, a weight of a quantity of crop removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials based on data received from a crop yield sensor; and
determining, with the computing device, a residue yield value by comparing the determined weight of the quantity of plant materials and the determined weight of the quantity of crop.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the determined residue yield value corresponds to an instantaneous residue yield value, the method further comprising:
continuously updating, with the computing device, the determined residue yield value based on the data received from the plant and crop yield sensors.

13. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
initiating, with the computing device, a control action associated with adjusting an operating parameter of the agricultural harvester based on the determined residue yield value.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
adjusting, with the computing device, the operating parameter based on variations in the residue yield value with time as the agricultural harvester is moved through the field.

15. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
filtering, with the computing device, a component of the data associated with an operation of the agricultural harvester from the data received from plant yield sensor.

16. A system for determining a residue yield of the plant materials ingested by a harvesting implement of an agricultural harvester, the system comprising:
a plant yield sensor configured to detect a parameter associated with a weight of the harvested plant materials being ingested by the harvesting implement;
a crop yield sensor configured to detect a parameter associated with a weight of a quantity of crop materials removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials by a plant processing system of the agricultural harvester; and
a controller communicatively coupled to the plant and the crop yield sensors, the controller being configured to:
determine the weight of the quantity of plant materials being ingested by the harvesting implement based on measurement signals received from the plant yield sensor;
determine the weight of the quantity of crop materials removed from the quantity of harvested plant materials based on measurement signals received from the crop yield sensor; and
determine a residue yield value by comparing the determined weight of the quantity of plant materials and the determined weight of the quantity of crop materials.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the plant yield sensor is provided in operative association with at least one of the harvesting implement or a feeder of the agricultural harvester.

18. The system of claim 17 , wherein the plant yield sensor is provided in operative association with at least one of a harvesting implement conveyor, a feeder conveyor, or a feeder frame.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the plant yield sensor corresponds to a weight sensor configured to de

Assignees

• Cnh Ind America Llc

Inventors

• Borsdorf John
• Prosser Greg

Classifications

• A01D41/1276 Primary

  for cleaning mechanisms · CPC title

• A01F12/10

  Feeders · CPC title

• A01D41/1243

  Devices for laying-out or distributing the straw · CPC title

• A01D41/1271 Primary

  for measuring crop flow · CPC title

• A01D61/00

  Elevators or conveyors for binders or combines · CPC title