Implements such as planters, conventional drills and air drills are used to plant seed in agricultural fields. Planting implements typically include a frame with one or more sections. Each section supports multiple row units configured to apply seeds to a field as the implement is pulled by a vehicle (e.g., wheeled or tracked tractor). Seeds are stored in one or more seed bins located on or pulled behind the implement. Planters and drills often include systems configured to apply granular or liquid fertilizer, insecticide or herbicide.
Planters include meters configured to dispense or meter individual seeds to row units. Drills use fluted rolls to meter a mass or volume of seed. Metering and placement accuracy is typically higher for planters than drills. Seeds of crop (e.g., corn) requiring relatively accurate metering and placement for efficient growth are typically planted using planters, and seeds of crop which grow efficiently in more varied environments (e.g., oats; wheat) are planted by less accurate and expensive drills.
Many planters and drills are made by Case Corp., the assignee of this invention. For example, the 955 Series EARLY RISER CYCLO AIRS Planters include central-fill seed bins for storing seed, pressurized air metering systems for metering seed, and air distribution systems for delivering seeds to row units. Planters in this series plant different numbers of rows at different row widths. For example, a 12/23 solid row crop (SRC) cyclo planter plants 23 narrow rows or 12 wide rows when every other row unit is locked up. Case Corp. also makes the 900 Series EARLY RISER Plate Planters. Conventional drills include 5300, 5400 and 5500 grain drills which include different numbers of openers, opener spacings and seeding widths. For example, a 5500 Soybean Special Grain Drill has 24 openers, 5 inch spacings and a 30 foot width. A family of Concord air drills is available from Case Corp.
Under conventional agricultural practices, fields are treated (e.g., planted) as having uniform parameters. However, crop production may be optimized by taking into account spatial variations often existing within fields. By varying inputs applied to a field according to local conditions within the field, the yield as a function of the inputs applied can be optimized while environmental damage is prevented or minimized. Farming inputs which have been applied according to local conditions include herbicides, insecticides and fertilizers. The practice of farming according to local field conditions has been called precision, site-specific or prescription farming.
To fully realize the benefits of precision farming, planting implements are needed which can monitor rates at which farming inputs are applied and which can control the rates of application on a site-specific basis. The control requirements for such planting implements would be more sophisticated than for conventional implements. Thus, it would be desirable to have planting implements (e.g., planters, conventional or air drills) equipped with control systems for monitoring rates at which inputs are applied to a field by row units, and for controlling the rates at which metering devices dispense the inputs.
Planting implements further include "global" output devices which perform global implement functions such as frame lighting control, frame position control and marker position control. These global functions are performed for the whole implement, rather than for each section or row unit. Frame lights are controlled to warn following motorists when the implement turns. The frame of the implement is controlled to raise and lower the implement, and to fold and unfold the frame wings. Markers attached to either side of the implement are raised and lowered to indicate the centerline of the next pass through a field.
The current standard for implement frame lighting includes tail lamp, right turn and left turn signal lamps controlled by a three-signal vehicle connector. However, implements will be required to meet an enhanced lighting standard (i.e., ASAE S279) which will include additional enhanced left and right turn signal lamps. The new lamps will enhance the turn warning signals. The enhanced lamps will perform the same functions as the current left and right turn lamps except the opposite turn signal lamp will not light steadily when making a turn. Additionally, neither lamp will flash during a regular transport mode. To accommodate the use of implements compatible with the new standard with today's vehicles, it would be desirable to provide a control system which receives standard lighting signals, converts them to enhanced lighting signals, and uses the enhanced lighting signals to control the enhanced lamps.
It would further be desirable to provide a control system for an implement which provides a central control console for the operator. This console, which would be located at the operator station (e.g., in the cab), would generate global command signals for the global implement functions and rate commands for local product metering devices mounted on each section of the implement. To reduce wiring requirements, it would also be desirable to provide an implement bus running between the cab and the implement for sending global and local commands to the implement, and for receiving monitored feedback signals.
The number of global output devices for performing global implement functions will generally be known since these functions are performed for the whole implement. Thus, the control requirements for a global control unit will be known. An implement, however, can include one, two, three or more sections, with each section having one or more product metering devices. It would be difficult to ascertain the control requirements for a single local implement controller. Thus, it would be desirable to provide a control system for a planting implement wherein one global controller controls global functions, while a plurality of distributed local controllers control the product application rates for the plurality of sections.
The movement from conventional to precision farming practices will take significant time as farmers evaluate the technology, learn to use it, study its economic and environmental costs and benefits, and upgrade equipment. To help make the transition, it would be desirable to provide an implement with a modular control system which can be upgraded over time by adding controllers with added functionality. The initial control system would provide monitoring and global control functions, with application rates being controlled conventionally. Such a control system could then be upgraded to provide variable-rate control capabilities. These capabilities would be controlled manually, or automatically based upon the position of the implement and geo-referenced maps.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds