Patent ID: 8718874
Filing Date: 2014-05-06
Classification: A01B,G05D

Abstract:
1. A method of guiding an agriculture sprayer vehicle including a motive component and a spray component with a spray boom having opposite ends and multiple spray nozzles mounted in spaced relation between said ends, said components being interconnected by a power hitch adapted for laterally shifting said working component relative to said motive component, which method comprises the steps of: providing an XY pixel grid corresponding to the area; providing a raster-based database page comprising said XY pixel grid for said area; providing a processor on the vehicle; providing a GNSS guidance system connected to the processor on the vehicle; receiving GNSS positioning signals with said guidance system; providing said GNSS positioning signals as input to said processor; computing GNSS-based positioning for said vehicle with said processor; defining a GNSS-defined reference point on said area and storing the reference point coordinates with said processor; computing X and Y pixel indices based on said GNSS-defined vehicle position in relation to said reference point with said processor; treating portions of said area with said working component; with said processor marking pixels in said treated area portions as treated; guiding said vehicle over said area utilizing said treated pixel information; defining additional raster-based XY pixel grid pages in said area; expanding said database by tiling said pixel grid pages over said area; generating X and Y scale factors for said database; relating said X and Y scale factors to latitude and longitude respectively; computing X and Y pixel indices based on the difference between current GNSS-defined position coordinates and the reference position coordinates; creating with said processor a linear or multidimensional database comprising said pixel grid pages; accessing with said processor said database; marking pixels in said database as treated; defining a swath coverage area with said working component ends forming opposite edges of said swath; with said GNSS system and said processor seeking pixels in proximity to said swath edges; with said GNSS system and said processor guiding said vehicle along said swath edges; providing an autosteer system on said vehicle; with said processor generating steering commands using the marked pixel information and said XY pixel page database; outputting said steering commands to said autosteer system for automatically steering said vehicle over said area; with said processor and said GNSS system laterally shifting said working component relative to said motive component for maintaining said working component generally within said swath; computing an application map for said area corresponding to treatments of pixels therein with said working component; guiding said vehicle with said application map while treating said pixels; and detecting a vehicle direction of travel with said GNSS system; walking up the pixels in the vehicle direction of travel to a target pixel; testing pixels in multiple scans alongside said vehicle path for treated conditions based on a swath width of said working component; guiding said vehicle towards said target pixel using said treated condition pixel information alongside said vehicle path; testing multiple distances ahead for treated pixels; detecting a curve condition defined by treated pixels; guiding said vehicle alongside said curve using said treated pixel information; preprogramming said processor with variables corresponding to vehicle performance dynamics; determining altitudes of said pixels with said GNSS system; and adjusting guidance and steering for vehicle slippage, sloping surface chemical spray patterns and crop heights using said vehicle performance dynamics and said pixel altitudes.