Systems and methods for automated grain cart unloading

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12582033-B2
Application number	US-202418593375-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 1, 2024
Priority date	Apr 13, 2023
Publication date	Mar 24, 2026
Grant date	Mar 24, 2026

Abstract

Systems and methods for automatic unloading of harvested material from a grain cart to storage compartment(s). In response to activation of the system by an operator, harvested material can be automatically unloaded into the storage compartment based on a predetermined fill profile. The fill profile can provide an indication of the maximum height, weight, and distribution profile(s), among other information, for the one or more piles of the harvested material that are to be formed in the storage compartment. Information provided from a sensor can be utilized by a controller to determine whether adjustments are to be made during the unloading of the harvested material so as to attain the fill profile. Such adjustments can relate to the rate, quantity, and/or location at which harvested material is being unloaded into the storage compartment, as well as a speed and direction of travel of the grain cart.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . An apparatus for unloading a harvested material to a storage compartment, the apparatus comprising:
a plurality of sidewalls that at least partially define an inner area, the inner area configured to house the harvested material; a conveyance assembly comprising a base portion, a conveyance means, and a chute; a gate configured to control a passage of the harvested material from the inner area to the base portion, the conveyance means configured to convey the harvested material from the base portion to the chute, the chute configured to release at least a portion of harvested material into the storage compartment; an optical sensor configured to capture, repeatedly during the unloading operation, a sequence of images of a distribution of the harvested material as the harvested material accumulates in the storage compartment; at least one processor; and a memory device coupled with the at least one processor, the memory device including instructions that when executed by the at least one processor cause the at least one processor to:
generate, from the images of the distribution of the harvested material, a current fill profile;
identify a predetermined fill profile, the predetermined fill profile corresponding to at least one of a location or a height of one or more piles of harvested material that are to be formed within the storage compartment from the harvested material released from the chute;
determine a deviation between the predetermined fill profile and the current fill profile; and
generate, based at least on the deviation, an adjustment signal to adjust at least one of (1) the position of the gate to regulate a flow rate of harvested material, (2) a position or an orientation of the conveyance assembly or the chute, and (3) a speed or a location of the apparatus relative to the storage compartment, wherein the at least one adjustment is selected to minimize the deviation as harvested material is being deposited into the storage compartment.

2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the conveyance means is an auger, and wherein the apparatus is a mobile apparatus having a plurality of engagement bodies to contact a ground surface, and wherein the apparatus further includes one or more position sensors positioned and configured to sense at least one of a gate position of the gate, an auger position for the auger, and a chute position for the chute.

3 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the apparatus includes or is coupled to a prime mover that provides a propulsion force for a displacement of the apparatus along the ground surface, and wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to, based on the deviation, generate a command that adjusts an operation of the prime mover that adjusts a speed of the displacement of the apparatus.

4 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to, based on of the deviation, generate a command that adjusts a direction of the displacement of the apparatus.

5 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the fill profile indicates a weight for the one or more piles of harvested material that are to be formed within the storage compartment, and wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to determine at least one of the speed of the displacement of the apparatus, and a speed at which the auger is to be rotated for the one or more piles of harvested material to attain the weight.

6 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to, based on the deviation, generate a command that adjusts a speed at which the auger is rotated.

7 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the sensor is coupled to a conveyance housing of the conveyance assembly, the conveyance housing defining an interior passageway that houses at least a portion of the auger.

8 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to measure a size of the storage compartment from at least the captured information provided by the sensor, and wherein the fill profile is based at least in part on the size.

9 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to determine whether the apparatus is at a start position.

10 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to generate a signal to displace the conveyance assembly to change a position of the chute relative to a longitudinal center line of the storage compartment.

11 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the memory device includes instructions that when executed by the at least one processor further cause the at least one processor to:
determine, using at least the fill profile, when to displace the gate to a close position at which the gate prevents passage of the harvested material from the inner area to the base portion; and generate a signal to facilitate a recording of a position of at least one of the gate or the conveyance assembly at least when the gate was moved to the closed position.

12 . The apparatus of claim 11 , further including a neural network and a database, wherein the captured information obtained by the sensor and the position of at least one of the gate or the conveyance assembly at least when the gate was moved to the closed position are recorded as a training data in the database, and wherein the neural network is configured to analyze, for continuous training of the neural network based on machine learning, the training data to improve an accuracy of the adjustment signal generated by the at least one processor.

13 . A method for unloading a harvested material to a storage compartment, the method comprising:
displacing, by a gate actuator, a gate from a closed position to an at least partially open position; conveying the harvested material that passed by the gate along a conveyance means to a chute of a conveyance assembly, the chute being configured to deposit at least a portion of the harvested material into the storage compartment; capturing, repeatedly during the unloading operation, by an optical sensor associated with conveyance assembly, a sequence of images of a distribution of the harvested material as the harvested material accumulates in the storage compartment; generating, from the images of the distribution of the harvested material, a current fill profile; identifying a predetermined fill profile corresponding to at least one of a location or a height of one or more piles of harvested material that are to be formed within the storage compartment from the harvested material deposited into the storage compartment; determining a deviation between the predetermined fill profile and the current fill profile; generating, based at least on the deviation, an adjustment signal; and adjusting, in response to the adjustment signal, at least one of (1) the position of the gate to regulate a flow rate of harvested material, (2) a position or an orientation of the conveyance assembly or the chute, and (3) a speed or a location of the apparatus relative to the storage com

Assignees

• Deere & Co

Inventors

• Wegmann Riley J
• Vande Haar William J

Classifications

• B65G67/24

  Unloading land vehicles · CPC title

• B65G65/463

  arranged vertically or substantially vertically within the container (B65G65/466 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B65G67/26

  using rakes or scrapers · CPC title

• A01D41/1274 Primary

  for drives · CPC title

• A01D41/1217 Primary

  Unloading mechanisms · CPC title