JP6718574B2 - Agricultural vehicle information collection system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information collection system for agricultural work vehicles that stores drive information in a server and a terminal device that communicate with the agricultural work vehicle.

In recent years, in order to efficiently and simply perform farm work in a field, a field data collection system has been proposed in which work content by an agricultural machine in the field is converted into data and the work content is collected by a collecting device installed in the farm machine ( See Patent Document 1). A production management system that uses a work plan registered in a work area on a remote server has been proposed (see Patent Document 2). In the production management system of Patent Document 2, operation information on the work vehicle is recorded in the remote server.

JP, 2013-210692, A JP, 2016-076123, A

By the way, in the field data collection system of Patent Document 1, since the work content is collected in the collection device installed in the agricultural machine, in order to store much work content as history information, a collection device with a large-capacity storage device is installed. There is a need to. On the other hand, in the production management system of Patent Document 2, since the telephone line network is used for communication connection with the remote server, there is a limit to the data capacity that can be transmitted to the remote server, and the data sampling interval becomes long, Unable to store detailed work history.

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and an technical object thereof is to provide an information collection system of an agricultural work vehicle that can easily supplement information stored in a server.

The present invention relates to a farm work vehicle including a server that stores the drive state of the farm work vehicle as basic history information by communication with the farm work vehicle, and a remote control device that can communicate with the farm work vehicle in a work area of the farm work vehicle. In the information collection system, the remote operation device stores the drive state of the agricultural work vehicle as additional history information, and when the remote operation device and the server are connected by communication, the server has already been stored. The basic history information is updated and stored with information obtained by adding the additional history information to the basic history information .

In the above information collection system, the basic history information and the additional history information each include time information, and the server compares the basic history information and the additional history information and detects a matching feature point. Then, the time difference is calculated from the time information at each characteristic point of the basic history information and the additional history information, and the basic history information and the time information of the additional history information are matched to each other, and the basic history information and the additional history information are obtained. May be combined.

In the above information collection system, the basic history information and the additional history information may each include position information of the farm work vehicle, and the characteristic points may be position information of the farm work vehicle.

In the above information collecting system, the characteristic point may be drive state information indicating a drive state of the agricultural work vehicle.

In the information collection system, the basic history information and the additional history information each include an identifier assigned to the work area, and the server performs the work on the basic history information and the additional history information. A work start point or a work end point in the work area by the agricultural work vehicle may be detected based on an area identifier, and the work start point or the work end point may be set as the characteristic point.

According to the present invention, the additional history information can be stored in the remote operation device that communicates with the agricultural work vehicle in the work area, and the basic history information in the server can be interpolated with the additional history information. It is possible to store various work histories. Therefore, the accuracy of analysis of the farm work executed in the past is improved, and the farm work plan is set based on the analysis result, whereby an efficient work plan can be prepared.

It is a whole figure showing composition of an autonomous running system in an embodiment. It is a side view of the tractor which is an agricultural work vehicle in the autonomous running system of FIG. It is a top view of the same tractor. It is a functional block diagram of the same tractor. 7 is a timing chart showing an authentication operation for starting autonomous traveling. 6 is a timing chart showing a communication operation during autonomous traveling. 7 is a timing chart showing a communication operation when an abnormality occurs during autonomous traveling. It is explanatory drawing which shows the communication state at the time of autonomous traveling of a tractor. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positional information on the tractor in a farm field. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positional information on the tractor in a farm field, and the relationship of standard time and this machine time. It is a figure which shows the structure of the basic work history information memorize|stored in a server. It is a figure which shows the structure of the additional work history information memorize|stored in a remote control. It is a timing chart which shows the collation operation of work history in a server. It is explanatory drawing which shows the collation operation of the work history in a server. It is a figure which shows the structure of the work history information after the combination memorize|stored in a server. It is a whole side view of an unmanned tractor and a manned tractor. It is the whole side view of a plurality of unmanned tractors monitored by one remote control.

<Autonomous driving system>
Embodiments embodying the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, an autonomous traveling system for autonomously traveling a tractor, which is an example of an agricultural work vehicle according to the present invention, will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. In the following description, a tractor that performs autonomous traveling and autonomous work may be referred to as an “unmanned tractor” or a “robot tractor”, and a tractor that travels and performs work by being directly operated by an operator may be referred to as a “manned tractor”. ..

In the present embodiment, the difference between the unmanned tractor and the manned tractor is the presence/absence of direct operation by the operator, and the configuration of the tractor is common to both unmanned and manned tractors. That is, even an unmanned tractor can be operated (directly operated) by the operator boarding (riding) (in other words, used as a manned tractor). Further, even with a manned tractor, the operator can get off the vehicle and perform autonomous traveling and autonomous work (in other words, it can be used as an unmanned tractor).

Further, the term "autonomous traveling" means that the configuration provided for the tractor 1 to travel is controlled by the autonomous traveling control device 51 and the like included in the tractor 1 shown in FIG. 4, and the tractor 1 travels along a predetermined route. Means that. Further, in the present specification, autonomous work means that the structure provided for the tractor 1 for work is controlled by the autonomous traveling control device 51 and the like, and the tractor 1 performs work along a predetermined route.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the autonomous traveling system of the present embodiment, the remote control device 70 operated by the operator performs wireless communication with the tractor 1 in the field (work area) H1 to communicate with the positioning satellite 63. The autonomous traveling of the tractor 1 that acquires position information (positioning information) by communication is controlled. The unmanned tractor 1 communicates with the server 100 installed in the management center C1 through a communication network N1 such as a telephone line network, and the driving information of the tractor 1 together with position information (positioning information) and time information is transmitted to the server 100. Sent to. The server 100 accumulates the drive information of the unmanned tractor 1 together with the position information and the time information, and stores it as work history information.

A reference station (portable reference station) 60 is installed in the vicinity of the field H1, and the reference station 60 has position information serving as a reference point, which is an installation position, and includes a signal from the positioning satellite 63 (hereinafter, “satellite signal”). ”) is directly received by the positioning antenna 61 and a signal from the positioning satellite 63 (hereinafter, referred to as “vehicle signal”) received by the unmanned tractor 1 is indirectly received by the wireless communication antenna 64.

The reference station 60 uses the reference station communication device 62 to calculate the position correction information from the satellite signal and the vehicle signal by the RTK positioning method or the like, and transmits it to the tractor 1 through the wireless communication antenna 64. The tractor 1 corrects the satellite positioning information measured by the positioning antenna 6 (see FIG. 2) using the correction information transmitted from the reference station 60 to obtain the current position information of the tractor 1 (for example, latitude information/longitude information). ).

In the field H1, the remote control device 70 wirelessly communicates with the tractor 1 without connecting to the communication network N1 and receives the driving information of the tractor 1 together with the position information and the time information, and as work history information. Remember. The operator operates the remote operation device 70 while visually confirming the situation in the field H1 and the state of the tractor 1 to start autonomous traveling with respect to the tractor 1 communicatively connected to the remote operation device 70. You can instruct to stop.

In the operator's office O1, the remote control device 70 is communicatively connected to an access point 90 such as a router communicatively connected to the communication network N1 via an ONU (Optical Network Unit) or a modem. The remote control device 70 can communicate with the server 100 via the communication network N1 by communicatively connecting to the access point 90 in the office O1. Then, the remote control device 70 is brought into a state in which it can communicate with the server 100. The work history information of the tractor 1 already stored is transmitted to the server 100.

When the server 100 receives the work history information (hereinafter referred to as “additional work history information”) from the remote control device 70, the work history information already received from the tractor 1 and stored (hereinafter, “basic work history”). Information)). Then, the server 100 collates the basic work history information with the additional work history information to generate updated work history information in which the additional work history information is added to the basic work history information, and the name of the operated operator or the tractor 1 is generated. Memorize with the model of.

The external terminal device (service tool) 80 is a terminal device possessed by a serviceman of a sales company or a manufacturing company of the tractor 1, and can connect to the tractor 1 by wire to communicate with the tractor 1. When the tractor 1 connected to the external terminal device 80 communicates with the server 100 via the communication network N1, for example, software (firmware) update in a control device or the like in the tractor 1 or failure diagnosis of the tractor 1 can be performed. To be executed.

<Tractor>
Next, the tractor 1 will be described below with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the tractor 1 includes a machine body 2 that autonomously travels in the field H1. A working machine 3 is detachably provided on the machine body 2. The working machine 3 is used for agricultural work. Examples of the working machine 3 include various working machines such as a tiller, a plow, a fertilizer applicator, a mower, and a seeder. Among them, a desired working machine 3 is selected according to need, and the machine body 2 is selected. Can be attached to. The machine body 2 is configured to be able to change the height and the posture of the work machine 3 attached. A body 2 which is a body of the tractor 1 has a front portion supported by a pair of left and right front wheels 7 and 7, and a rear portion thereof supported by a pair of left and right rear wheels 8 and 8. The front wheels 7, 7 and the rear wheels 8, 8 form a traveling unit.

A hood 9 is arranged at the front of the machine body 2. The bonnet 9 accommodates an engine 10 and the like, which is a drive source of the tractor 1. The engine 10 can be configured by, for example, a diesel engine, but is not limited to this, and may be configured by, for example, a gasoline engine. Moreover, as a drive source, an electric motor may be used in addition to or instead of the engine.

Behind the bonnet 9, a cabin 11 on which an operator is aboard is arranged. Inside the cabin 11, there are mainly provided a steering handle 12 for the steering operation by an operator, a seat 13 on which the operator can sit, and various operating devices for performing various operations. There is. However, the agricultural work vehicle is not limited to the vehicle with the cabin 11, and may not include the cabin 11.

Although illustration is omitted, examples of the operation device include a monitor device, a throttle lever, a main shift lever, a lift lever, a PTO switch, a PTO shift lever, and a plurality of hydraulic shift levers. These operation devices are arranged near the seat 13 or near the steering handle 12.

The monitor device is configured to be able to display various information of the tractor 1. The throttle lever sets the rotation speed of the engine 10. The main shift lever is for changing the gear ratio of the transmission case 22. The elevating lever is for elevating and lowering the height of the work machine 3 mounted on the machine body 2 within a predetermined range. The PTO switch connects and disconnects power transmission to the PTO shaft (power take-out shaft) protruding outward from the rear end side of the transmission case 22. That is, when the PTO switch is in the ON state, power is transmitted to the PTO shaft to rotate the PTO shaft and drive the work implement 3, while when the PTO switch is in the OFF state, power to the PTO shaft is cut off. The PTO shaft does not rotate and the working machine 3 stops. The PTO speed change lever is used to change the power input to the work machine 3, specifically, to change the rotational speed of the PTO shaft. The hydraulic speed change lever switches the hydraulic external extraction valve.

As shown in FIG. 1, a chassis 20 that constitutes the skeleton of the machine body 2 is provided below the machine body 2. The chassis 20 includes a body frame 21, a mission case 22, a front axle 23, a rear axle 24, and the like.

The machine body frame 21 is a support member in the front part of the tractor 1, and supports the engine 10 directly or via a vibration isolating member or the like. The mission case 22 changes the power from the engine 10 and transmits it to the front axle 23 and the rear axle 24. The front axle 23 is configured to transmit the power input from the mission case 22 to the front wheels 7. The rear axle 24 is configured to transmit the power input from the mission case 22 to the rear wheels 8.

As shown in FIG. 4, the tractor 1 is an engine control device capable of mutually communicating via a vehicle bus line 18 as a control unit for controlling the operation (forward, reverse, stop, turn, etc.) of the vehicle body 2. 15, a machine controller 16 and a work machine controller 17 are provided. The output side of the engine control device 15 is electrically connected to a common rail device 41 provided as a fuel injection device in the engine 5. On the other hand, the input side of the engine control device 15 is electrically connected to a rotation speed sensor 31 that detects the rotation speed of the engine 5.

The output side of the machine control device 16 includes a transmission 42 including a hydraulic transmission that shifts the power from the engine 5, and left and right brake devices that brake the power transmission to the left and right rear wheels 8 of the rear axle 24. 26 and the like. On the other hand, the input side of the machine control device 16 is electrically connected to a vehicle speed sensor 32 that detects the rotation speed of the rear wheels 8, a tilt angle sensor 33 that detects the tilt angle and tilt angular speed of the machine body 2, and the like. In addition, the output side of the work machine control device 17 is electrically connected to the work machine lifting actuator 44, and the input side of the work machine control device 17 detects the posture and operation state of the work machine 3 and the like. Electrically connected to.

The tractor 1 also includes a vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 connected to the vehicle bus line 18, and the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 can be connected to the communication network N1 via a wireless telephone line or the like. That is, the tractor 1 can communicate with the server 100 of the management center C1 by communicatively connecting to the communication network N1 with the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19. Furthermore, the tractor 1 is provided with an external terminal (not shown) capable of connecting to the vehicle bus line 18, and an external terminal device (service tool) 80 such as a computer operated by a service person is electrically connected to the vehicle bus line 18. It is configured to be connectable physically.

The common rail device 41 injects fuel into each cylinder of the engine 10. In this case, the fuel injection valve of the injector for each cylinder of the engine 10 is controlled to be opened and closed by the engine control device 15, so that high-pressure fuel pumped from the fuel tank to the common rail device 41 by the fuel supply pump is injected from each injector to the engine 10. The injection pressure, the injection timing, and the injection period (injection amount) of the fuel that is injected into each cylinder and supplied from each injector are controlled with high accuracy.

The transmission 42 is specifically, for example, a movable swash plate type hydraulic continuously variable transmission, and is provided in the mission case 22. By controlling the transmission 42 by the control device 16 of the main unit and appropriately adjusting the angle of the swash plate, the transmission ratio of the transmission case 22 can be set to a desired transmission ratio.

The elevating actuator 44 operates the three-point link mechanism connecting the working machine 3 to the machine body 2 to move the working machine 3 to a retracted position (a position where farm work is not performed) or a work position (a position where farm work is performed). It raises or lowers to either. By controlling the elevating actuator 44 by the work implement control device 17 and appropriately raising and lowering the work implement 3, for example, the work implement 3 can perform agricultural work at a desired height in the field area.

In the tractor 1 including the control devices 15 to 17 as described above, the control devices 15 to 17 communicate with each other via the vehicle bus line 18 based on various operations of the operator who gets in the cabin 11, and By controlling each part (the machine body 2, the working machine 3, etc.), the farm work can be executed while traveling in the field. In addition, the tractor 1 of the embodiment can be autonomously driven based on a predetermined control signal output from the remote control device 70 without an operator boarding.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the tractor 1 is added with various configurations such as an autonomous traveling control device 51 for enabling autonomous traveling. Furthermore, the tractor 1 is equipped with various configurations such as a positioning antenna 6 necessary for acquiring position information of itself (the body of the tractor) based on the positioning system. With such a configuration, the tractor 1 can acquire its own position information based on the positioning system and can autonomously travel on the field.

Next, the configuration of the tractor 1 for autonomous traveling will be described in detail. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the tractor 1 includes an autonomous traveling control device 51, a steering control device 52, a positioning surveying device 53, a wireless communication router (small power data communication device) 54, and a steering actuator 43. , A positioning antenna 6, a wireless communication antenna unit 48, and the like.

The autonomous traveling control device 51 and the steering control device 52 are configured to be capable of mutually communicating with the engine control device 15, the machine control device 16, and the work implement control device 17 via the vehicle bus line 18. Further, the autonomous traveling control device 51 communicates with each of the positioning surveying device 53 and the wireless communication router 54 via an autonomous traveling bus line 56 in an autonomous traveling communication system that is a system different from the control communication system for the vehicle bus line 18. Mutual communication is possible.

The steering actuator 43 is provided, for example, in the middle of the rotating shaft (steering shaft) of the steering handle 12 and adjusts the turning angle (steering angle) of the steering handle 12. When the tractor 1 travels on a predetermined route (as an unmanned tractor), the steering control device 52 calculates an appropriate turning angle of the steering wheel 12 so that the tractor 1 travels along the route, and calculates the steering angle. The steering actuator 43 is controlled so that the steering handle 12 rotates at the rotation angle.

Further, the steering control device 52 receives a detection signal of the rotation angle of the steering wheel 12 from the steering angle sensor 35, and also, via the vehicle bus line 18, the engine control device 15, the machine control device 16, and the work machine control device 17. By communicating with each, steering according to the vehicle speed of the tractor 1 can be executed. The steering actuator 43 may adjust the steering angle of the front wheels 7 of the tractor 1 instead of adjusting the rotation angle of the steering handle 12. In that case, the steering handle 12 does not move even when turning. Does not rotate.

The positioning antenna 6 receives a signal from a positioning satellite that constitutes a positioning system such as a satellite positioning system (GNSS). The positioning antenna 6 is arranged on the upper surface of the roof 14 in the cabin 11. The signal received by the positioning antenna 6 is input to the positioning surveying device 53, and the positioning surveying device 53 calculates the position information of the tractor 1 (strictly speaking, the positioning antenna 6) as, for example, latitude/longitude information. The position information calculated by the positioning surveying device 53 is acquired by the autonomous traveling control device 51 and used for controlling the tractor 1.

The positioning surveying device 53 is electrically connected to the first wireless communication antenna 48a in the wireless communication antenna unit 48, and will be described later through a first wireless communication network (for example, a 920 MHz band wireless communication network) using specific low power radio. Communication with a reference station (portable reference station) 60. The wireless communication antenna unit 48 is arranged on the upper surface of the roof 14 in the cabin 11. The positioning surveying device 53 corrects the satellite positioning information of the tractor 1 (mobile station) by receiving the correction information (positioning correction information) from the reference station 60 installed in the field proximity position via the first wireless communication antenna 48a. Then, the current position of the tractor 1 is obtained. For example, various positioning methods such as DGPS (differential GPS positioning) and RTK positioning (real-time kinematic positioning) can be applied.

In this embodiment, for example, RTK positioning is applied, and in addition to the positioning antenna 6 being provided on the tractor 1 on the mobile station side, a reference station 60 having a reference station positioning antenna 61 is provided. The reference station 60 is arranged at a position (reference point) that does not hinder the traveling of the tractor 1, such as around the field. The position information of the reference point, which is the installation position of the reference station 60, is preset. The reference station 60 is provided with a reference station communication device 62 capable of communicating via the first wireless communication network constructed between the positioning surveying device 53 of the tractor 1 and the communication device using the first wireless communication antenna 48a.

In the RTK positioning, the carrier phase (satellite positioning information) from the positioning satellite 63 is measured by both the reference station 60 installed at the reference point and the positioning antenna 6 of the tractor 1 which is the side of the mobile station whose position information is to be obtained. ing. The reference station 60 generates correction information including the measured satellite positioning information and the reference point position information each time the satellite positioning information is measured from the positioning satellite 63 or each time the set period elapses, and the reference station communication device 62 is generated. To transmit the correction information to the first wireless communication antenna 48a of the tractor 1. The positioning surveying device 53 of the tractor 1 (corresponding to a mobile station) corrects the satellite positioning information measured by the positioning antenna 6 using the correction information transmitted from the reference station 60 to obtain the current position information of the tractor 1 ( For example, latitude information/longitude information) is requested.

In this embodiment, a high-accuracy satellite positioning system using the GNSS-RTK method is used, but the present invention is not limited to this, and another positioning system is used as long as high-accuracy position coordinates can be obtained. May be. The GNSS-RTK is a positioning method in which the accuracy is corrected and increased based on the information of a reference station whose position is known, and there are a plurality of methods depending on the method of distributing information from the reference station. Since the present invention does not depend on the GNSS-RTK system, details thereof will be omitted in this embodiment.

Further, the positioning surveying device 53 is capable of measuring not only the position information of the tractor 1 (machine body 2) by satellite positioning but also the tilt angle information of front, rear, left and right by inertial measurement. The tilt angle information measured by the positioning surveying device 53 is acquired by the autonomous traveling control device 51 in a state of being associated with the position information (latitude/longitude information) and used for controlling the tractor 1. Note that the positioning surveying device 53 can also measure the height position of the positioning antenna 6 with respect to the field scene, and thus the vehicle height of the tractor 1 (machine 2).

The wireless communication antenna unit 48 is arranged on the upper surface of the roof 14 of the cabin 11 of the tractor 1, and is connected to the first and second wireless communication networks having different frequency bands so as to communicate with the first and second wireless communication antennas 48a and 48b. Equipped with. The first wireless communication network is constructed by, for example, a specific low-power wireless in the 920 MHz band having a high data transmission rate in order to communicate the positioning correction information by the reference station 60. The second wireless communication network is constructed by, for example, a low power data communication system in the 2.4 GHz band in order to perform high speed communication of data having a large data volume such as image data. Note that some of the antennas 48 a and 48 b may be arranged inside the cabin 11.

The first wireless communication antenna 48a is electrically connected to the positioning surveying device 53, and the second wireless communication antenna 48b is electrically connected to the wireless communication router 54. The wireless communication router 54 connected to the second wireless communication antenna 48b communicates with the remote control device 70 capable of displaying an image, which is operated by an operator outside the tractor 1, through the second wireless communication network. The wireless communication router 54 receives the control signal from the remote control device 70 and transmits it to the autonomous running control device 51 via the autonomous running bus line 56.

In addition, the wireless communication router 54 receives the image captured by the camera 36 by performing wireless communication with the camera 36 that captures the front of the tractor 1 via the second wireless communication network. The camera 36 is attached to the upper position of the cabin 11 and photographs the state of the farm field around the hood 6 in front of the cabin 11. Although the camera 36 is integrally attached to the wireless communication antenna unit 48 in the present embodiment, it may be attached to a plurality of positions such as a lateral position and a rear position of the roof 14 of the cabin 11.

The remote control device 70 is specifically configured as a tablet-type personal computer including a touch panel. The operator can refer to and confirm the information displayed on the touch panel of the remote control device 70 (for example, information about the field required for autonomous traveling). Further, the operator operates the remote control device 70 to transmit a control signal for controlling the tractor 1 to the autonomous traveling control device 51 of the tractor 1. The remote control device 70 of the embodiment is not limited to the tablet type personal computer, and instead of this, for example, it may be configured by a notebook type personal computer. Alternatively, a monitor device mounted on another tractor different from the tractor 1 can be used as the remote control device.

The autonomous traveling control device 51 compares the traveling route generated by the remote control device 70 with the position information of the tractor 1, and autonomously operates at a predetermined traveling speed while causing the tractor 1 to perform a predetermined work along the traveling route. In order to drive the vehicle, the steering angle of the tractor 1, the target engine speed, the gear ratio, etc. are calculated and communicated with the respective control devices 15 to 17, 52 through the vehicle bus line 18. As a result, the tractor 1 can perform agricultural work by the work machine 3 while autonomously traveling along the travel route. In this way, the route in the field region (travel region) in which the tractor 1 autonomously travels may be referred to as a “travel route” in the following description. In the field area (travel area), the area (work area) that is the target of the agricultural work by the work machine 3 of the tractor 1 is defined as the area excluding the headland and the margin allowance from the entire field area. Is set based on these registration points and the work width of the tractor 1 when the registration work of the registration points is executed.

When the operator performs a stop operation on the remote control device 70, the autonomous traveling control device 51 communicates with the engine control device 15 to stop the fuel injection in the common rail device 41, and to communicate with the main device control device 16. By communication, the transmission 42 is brought into a neutral state and then a braking operation by the brake device 26 described later is applied. At this time, the autonomous traveling control device 52 controls the steering actuator 43 so as to bring the steering wheel 12 to the neutral position by communicating with the steering control device 51, and directs the left and right front wheels 7, 7 in a straight traveling direction. May be

The autonomous traveling control device 51 communicates with the reference station 60 in the positioning surveying device 53 (communication state in the first communication network) and communicates with the remote control device 70 in the wireless communication router 54 (communication state in the second communication network). ) Confirm each via the autonomous bus line 56. When the autonomous traveling control device 51 confirms that the communication state in any of the first and second communication networks is cut off, the autonomous traveling control device 51 communicates with the engine control device 15, the shift control device 16 and the like to allow the autonomous operation of the tractor 1. Stop running. The autonomous traveling control device 51 determines that the communication with the communication partner is cut off when the positioning surveying device 53 and the wireless communication router 54 do not receive a signal from the communication partner for a predetermined period or longer. ..

Further, the tractor 1 is provided with a pair of left and right brake devices 26, 26 that apply a brake to the left and right rear wheels 8, 8 by two systems, that is, operation of a brake pedal or a parking brake lever and automatic control. That is, both the left and right brake devices 26, 26 are configured to apply a brake to the left and right rear wheels 8, 8 by operating the brake pedal (or the parking brake lever) in the braking direction. Further, when the turning angle of the steering wheel 12 becomes equal to or larger than a predetermined angle, the brake device 26 for the rear wheel 8 on the inside of the turn is automatically braked by a command from the control device 16 of the machine (( So-called auto brake).

The reference station 60 includes a reference station wireless communication antenna 64 that distributes correction information, a reference station positioning antenna 61 that receives a signal from a positioning satellite 63, and a reference station communication device electrically connected to each of the wireless communication antenna 64 and the positioning antenna 61. And 62. The reference station 60 is installed at a reference point for specifying the position of the tractor (work vehicle) 1 that serves as a mobile station. The portable reference station 60 installed at the reference point sends a signal from the positioning satellite 63 received by the reference station positioning antenna 61 to the reference station communication device 62, and the reference station communication device 62 measures the satellite positioning information and the position information of the reference point. The correction information including the above is generated. Then, the reference station 60 distributes the correction information generated by the reference station communication device 62 via the first wireless communication network. Note that the reference station 60 is configured to be disassembled into a plurality of members, and each disassembled member may be configured to have a size that can be housed in a predetermined case and transported.

<Basic processing operation in autonomous driving system>
Next, the basic processing operation of the unmanned tractor 1 in the field H1 during autonomous traveling will be described below with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 8, when the key switch is turned on for the unmanned tractor 1 in the field H1, the control devices 15 to 17, 51 and 52, the positioning surveying device 53, and the wireless communication router 54 are powered. As soon as the engine is turned on, the engine 10 is driven to enter the idling state. At this time, the unmanned tractor 1 is in a stopped state due to the braking action of the left and right brake devices 26. On the other hand, when the power of the remote control device 70 is turned on, a display constituted by a touch panel is displayed and the device side software is activated.

The unmanned tractor 1 controls the communication operation of the wireless communication router 54 by the autonomous traveling control device 51, so that the wireless communication router 54 starts searching for the remote control device 70 that can communicate through the second wireless communication network. That is, the wireless communication router 54 generates a communication confirmation signal including the tractor ID (identifier) unique to the unmanned tractor 1, and transmits it from the second wireless communication antenna 48b. The remote control device 70 stores in advance the tractor ID of the unmanned tractor 1 that can communicate with the autonomous traveling system. Then, when the remote operation device 70 receives the communication confirmation signal including the tractor ID, if the received tractor ID matches the previously stored tractor ID, the remote operation device 70 authenticates the communication with the wireless communication router 54 of the unmanned tractor 1. ..

The remote control device 70, after authenticating the communication with the unmanned tractor 1, generates a response signal to the communication confirmation signal and transmits it to the wireless communication router 54 of the unmanned tractor 1. The remote control device 70 generates a response signal including a device ID (identifier) unique to its own device, and transmits it to the wireless communication router 54 through the second wireless communication network. The unmanned tractor 1 stores in advance the device ID of the remote control device 70 capable of communicating with the autonomous traveling system in the autonomous traveling control device 51 or the wireless communication router 54. Therefore, when the wireless communication router 54 receives the response signal via the second wireless communication antenna 48b, the unmanned tractor 1 performs remote control when the device ID in the received response signal and the previously stored device ID match. Authenticates communication with device 70.

When communication is established between the unmanned tractor 1 (wireless communication router 54) and the remote control device 70 as described above, the unmanned tractor 1 notifies the server 100 that the communication has been established. At this time, the unmanned tractor 1 transmits the tractor ID of the unmanned tractor 1 and the device ID of the remote control device 70 from the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 to the server 100 via the communication network N1.

When the key switch of the unmanned tractor 1 is turned on and the positioning surveying device 53 is powered on, the position information of the unmanned tractor 1 is transmitted by communicating with the positioning satellite 63 and the reference station 60 through the antennas 6 and 48a. Latitude/longitude information) is calculated. Then, after the authentication process between the unmanned tractor 1 (wireless communication router 54) and the remote control device 70, the position information of the unmanned tractor 1 is transmitted to the server 100 together with the tractor ID and the device ID.

When the server 100 confirms from the tractor ID and the device ID that the tractor 1 and the remote operation device can use the autonomous traveling system, the server 100 authenticates the unmanned tractor 1 so that the unmanned tractor 1 and the server 100 can communicate with each other. .. When the server 100 authenticates the unmanned tractor 1, it reads the map information centered on the position information received from the unmanned tractor 1, and transmits the read map information to the unmanned tractor 1. At this time, the server 100 confirms the farm field (work area) assigned to the operator who operates the unmanned tractor 1 from the tractor ID and the device ID, and the information of the work field (work area) is used as map information. And is transmitted to the unmanned tractor 1.

When the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 receives the map information from the server 100, the unmanned tractor 1 gives the received map information to the wireless communication router 54 via the autonomous traveling control device 51, and the wireless communication router 54 receives the map information. It is transmitted to the remote control device 70. The remote control device 70 that has received the map information displays a map including a field (work area) assigned to the operator on a display (not shown) based on the received map information.

The operator specifies a field (working area) to be worked by the unmanned tractor 1 on the map displayed on the display by operating a touch panel forming a display (not shown) of the remote control device 70. .. In addition, the operator selects a work machine for performing work (cultivation work, seeding work, fertilizing work, scraping work, ridge work, etc.) by the unmanned tractor 1 with respect to the remote control device 70 and the size of the work machine. specify.

The remote control device 70 generates a work route (work route) along which the unmanned tractor 1 moves by calculation based on the designated field and work by the working machine, and displays the work route on a display (not shown). After that, when the operation of starting the autonomous traveling is accepted after the generated work route is selected by the operation of the operator, the remote control device 70 generates a response signal for permitting the autonomous traveling, and the unmanned tractor 1 (wireless). To the communication router 54). The response signal serving as the autonomous traveling permission signal includes the field (work area), the work machine, and the work route designated by the operator.

When the wireless communication router 54 receives the response signal serving as the autonomous traveling permission signal, the unmanned tractor 1 receives the response signal from the wireless communication router 54 through the engine control device 15, the machine control device 16, the work machine control device 17, and the steering control device 52. The control operation of each part is executed, and the autonomous traveling of the unmanned tractor 1 is started. At this time, in the unmanned tractor 1, the autonomous traveling control device 51 confirms the field (work area), working machine, and working route designated by the operator from the received response signal. Then, the autonomous traveling control device 51 communicates with the engine control device 15, the machine control device 16, the work implement control device 17, and the steering control device 52, so that the machine body 2 follows the work route set in the field. The work machine 3 is driven at the set value while moving at the set vehicle speed.

When the unmanned tractor 1 starts autonomous traveling, the drive states of the machine body 2 and the working machine 3 (engine speed, vehicle speed of the machine body 2, engine load, tilting attitude of the machine body 2, tilting attitude of the working machine 3, and working machine 3 The vertical position, the braking operation of the left and right brake devices 26, the steering angle of the steering wheel 10, the switching of the PTO switch, etc.) are transmitted to the server 100 together with the position information. Further, the unmanned tractor 1 also transmits drive state information indicating the drive states of the machine body 2 and the work machine 3 to the remote control device 70 together with the position information and the time information. The position information is latitude/longitude information calculated by the positioning surveying device 53 based on the information received from each of the positioning satellite 63 and the reference station 60, and the time information is the control devices 15 to 17, 52 of the unmanned tractor 1, This is information indicating the time counted by any one of 53.

The unmanned tractor 1 that is traveling autonomously connects the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 to the server 100 at every time T1, and transmits the driving state information and the position information indicating the driving states of the machine body 2 and the working machine 3 to the communication network. It is transmitted to the server 100 via the network N1. The server 100 associates the drive state information and the position information received at each time T1 with the reception time (or transmission time) in standard time and the field ID (identifier) and the tractor ID indicating the specified field (work area). Remember. The reception time (transmission time) in standard time is the time when the server 100 receives (transmits) the driving state information and the position information from the unmanned tractor 1, and if the farm field (work area) is in Japan, it is Japan. The time may be the standard time or the world standard time.

Also, the unmanned tractor 1 drives the wireless communication router 54 with a communication confirmation signal at every time T2 obtained by dividing the time T1 into n equal parts, together with drive status information, position information, and time information indicating the drive status of the machine body 2 and the working machine 3. Is transmitted to the remote control device 70 via the second wireless communication network. Upon receiving the communication confirmation signal from the unmanned tractor 1 (wireless communication router 54), the remote control device 70 returns a response signal as an autonomous running permission signal to the unmanned tractor 1 (wireless communication router 54). Further, the remote control device 70 stores the drive state information, the position information, and the time information received at each time T2 in association with the field ID and the tractor ID that indicate the specified field (work area). At this time, the number of items of drive state information stored in the remote control device 70 may be larger than the number of items of drive state information stored in the server 100.

In the wireless communication router 54, the unmanned tractor 1 confirms whether or not a response signal from the remote operation device 70 is returned in response to the communication confirmation signal transmitted at each time T2, and returns the response signal from the remote operation device 70. When is not longer than a predetermined time or a predetermined number of times, the autonomous traveling is stopped. That is, when the operator moves to a position away from the unmanned tractor 1 so that the remote control device 70 is located outside the communicable range with the wireless communication router 54, the remote control device 70 and the wireless communication router 54 are separated from each other. Communication is cut off. At this time, the autonomous traveling control device 51 determines that the distance is such that it is difficult for the operator to monitor the unmanned tractor 1, and stops the autonomous traveling of the unmanned tractor 1. Further, when the unmanned tractor 1 stops the autonomous traveling during the work, the unmanned tractor 1 notifies the server 100 that the autonomous traveling is stopped during the work.

Further, when the remote control device 70 receives the operation of stopping the autonomous traveling, the remote control device 70 cuts off the communication with the unmanned tractor 1 (the wireless communication router 54) and stops the reply of the response signal. As a result, the unmanned tractor 1 stops the autonomous traveling by the autonomous traveling control device 51 in order to confirm that the wireless communication router 54 has not returned the response signal to the communication confirmation signal. Therefore, when a person or an animal invades the field (working area) H1 or when the unmanned tractor 1 moves out of the working route, the operator who monitors the unmanned tractor 1 displays it on the display of the remote control device 70. The unmanned tractor 1 can be stopped by touching a stop button (not shown) to be operated, and the autonomous traveling system can be safely operated.

<Information collection system>
The autonomous traveling system of the present embodiment includes an information collecting system in which the server 100 and the remote control device 70 receive and store the driving state information of the unmanned tractor 1 during autonomous traveling. Hereinafter, an information collecting system in the autonomous traveling system will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 14. In the following description, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the field (work area) H1 to be worked is the field HD to which the field ID (identifier) “HD” is assigned, and the latitude XD and longitude YD are set. It is assumed that the time at which the unmanned tractor 1 is located is the time TMD at the time measured by the clock in the unmanned tractor 1 (hereinafter referred to as “main machine time”), while it is the time TD at the standard time. In the following description, it is assumed that the tractor ID (identifier) of the unmanned tractor 1 is “A1” and the device ID (identifier) of the remote control device 70 is “B1”.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 10, the unmanned tractor 1 that is autonomously traveling in the field HD acquires, by the autonomous traveling control device 51, the drive status information that is obtained through the control devices 15 to 17 and 52 every time T2. At the same time, the positioning side measuring device 53 calculates the position information (latitude/longitude information) of the unmanned tractor 1. Then, the unmanned tractor 1 transmits the acquired driving condition information and position information to the server 100 from the vehicle-mounted terminal device 19 at each time T1, while the acquired driving condition information and position information at each time T2. It is transmitted from the wireless communication router 54 to the remote control device 70 together with the time information based on the time of the main unit clocked by the clock in the unmanned tractor 1.

That is, the unmanned tractor 1 transmits position information (latitude XDm1, longitude YDm1) measured at the machine time TMDm1 and drive status information RDm1 acquired at the machine time TMDm1 to the server 100 while The position information (latitude XDm1, longitude YDm1) and drive status information RDm1 are transmitted to the remote control device 70 together with the machine time TMDm1. After that, when the time T2 has elapsed from the machine time TMDm1 at the machine time TMDm2 (=TDm1+T2), the unmanned tractor 1 acquires the position information (latitude XDm2, longitude YDm2) and the driving status information RDm, and then the position information (latitude). XDm2, longitude YDm2) and drive status information RDm are transmitted to the remote control device 70 together with the machine time TMDm2.

The unmanned tractor 1 repeats the acquisition operation of the position information and the driving status information and the transmission operation to the remote control device 70 n times at time T2, and the time T1 (m+1) of the machine time when the time T1 has elapsed from the machine time TMDm1. )1 (=TDm1+T1), the acquired position information (latitude XD(m+1)1, longitude YD(m+1)1) and drive status information RD(m+1)1 are transmitted to the server 100, and at the same time, this position information (latitude XD(m+1)1, longitude YD(m+1)1) and drive status information RD(m+1)1 are transmitted to the remote control device 70 together with the machine time TMD(m+1)1.

When the server 100 receives the position information and the driving status information from the unmanned tractor 1 every time T1, the server 100 uses the received position information and driving status information as a time server (NTP (Network Time Protocol) server) on the communication network N1. After adding the standard time acquired from the field and the field ID “HD” of the field HD, the tractor ID “A1” of the unmanned tractor 1 and the apparatus ID “B1” of the remote control device 70 are stored in association with each other. That is, when the server 100 receives the position information (latitude XD (m1, longitude YDm1) and drive status information RDm1 as shown in FIG. 11, the server 100 adds the standard time TDm1 and the field ID “HD” acquired from the communication network N1. Then, it is stored as work history information (basic work history information) for the tractor ID “A1” and the device ID “B1”.

On the other hand, when the remote control device 70 receives the position information, the driving status information, and the machine time (time information) from the unmanned tractor 1 every time T2, the remote control device 70 receives the position information, the driving status information, and the machine time at the received field information. After the HD field ID “HD” is added, it is stored in association with the tractor ID “A1” of the unmanned tractor 1 and the device ID “B1” of the remote control device 70. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, when the server 100 receives the position information (latitude XDm1, longitude YDm1), drive status information RDm1, and machine time TMDm1, the field ID “HD” is added and the tractor ID “. It is stored as work history information (additional work history information) for “A1” and device ID “B1”.

The unmanned tractor 1 communicates with the server 100 every time T1 and at the same time communicates with the remote control device 70 every time T2 until the work is completed, so that the work history information including the position information and the driving status information is transmitted to the server 100. And the remote control device 70 respectively. In addition, the unmanned tractor 1 also outputs position information and drive status information to the server 100 and remote control when traveling on the sloping road S1 so as to move from one of the farm fields HA to HF to any of the other farm fields HA to HF. Send to device 70. At this time, since the field ID is not assigned to the pavement S1, the server 100 and the remote control device 70 store the position information and the drive status information as work history information without adding the field ID.

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, when the operator completes the work by the unmanned tractor 1, the operator returns to the office O1 and connects the remote operation device 70 to the access point 90 by communication. As a result, since the remote control device 70 is communicatively connected to the communication network N1 via the access point 90, it becomes communicable with the server 100 and requests the server 100 to update the device-side software. In this case, the remote operation device 70 transmits the device ID of its own device to the server 100, so that the server 100 confirms the update request from the remote operation device 70 and authenticates the communication with the remote operation device 70. To do.

When the communication between the server 100 and the remote operation device 70 is established, the remote operation device 70, together with the tractor ID “A1” of the unmanned tractor 1 authenticated when executing autonomous traveling, together with the unmanned tractor of the tractor ID “A1”. The additional work history information for 1 is read. The additional work history information is composed of position information, drive status information, field ID, and time information (machine time) stored in association with the tractor ID “A1”. The remote control device 70 transmits the read tractor ID “A1” and additional work history information to the server 100.

The server 100 identifies the unmanned tractor 1 to be the target of collation of the work history based on the tractor ID “A1” received from the remote control device 70. Then, the server 100 uses the device ID “B1” received at the time of communication authentication and the tractor ID “A1” that specifies the unmanned tractor 1 to compare the basic work history information with the additional work history information received from the remote control device 70. Read out. After that, the server 100 compares the read basic work history information with the received additional work history information, and detects a feature point that is a coincident portion between the basic work history information and the additional work history information.

A method of detecting a feature point that matches the basic work history information and the additional work history information will be briefly described. The basic work history information is composed of position information, driving status information, and field ID for each time T1, while the additional work history information is composed of position information, driving status information, and field ID for each time T2. To be done. Hereinafter, a plurality of detection methods will be exemplified as the method of detecting the feature points of the work history information.

As a first example of the method for detecting the feature points of the work history information, first, by checking the presence or absence of a work history with respect to the basic work history information and the additional work history information, the work start point or the work end in the field H1 is confirmed. Detect points. Then, the position information at the detected work start point or work end point is compared. That is, the position information when the unmanned tractor 1 enters the field H1 from the road S1 is compared with the position information when the unmanned tractor 1 exits from the field H1 to the road S1. At this time, if there is a difference in the position information, check the work history before and after the work start point or work end point in the additional work history information, and check the work start point or work end point that matches the position information in the basic work history information. The work history in is detected as a feature point.

As a second example of the method of detecting the feature points of the work history information, first, the work history whose basic work history information and the additional work history information have the same time is read out, and the position information and the driving of the basic work history information and the additional work history information are driven. Compare state information. At this time, if both the position information and the driving state information of the basic work history information and the additional work history information match, the position information and the driving information based on the action history for each time T1 in the basic work history information and the additional work history information are further added. Check that the status information matches. When the position information and the driving state information of the basic work history information and the additional work history information do not match in a plurality of work histories, the work history of the additional work history information is shifted every time T2, and the position information of the basic work history information and After searching the work history that matches the drive state information, the work history changed every time T1 is compared again. Then, when it is confirmed that the position information and the drive state information match with each other in the plurality of work histories changed at each time T1, the work history whose matching is confirmed is detected as a feature point.

As a third example of the method of detecting the feature points of the work history information, first, the work history whose basic work history information and the additional work history information have the same time is read out, and the position information of the basic work history information (“basic history position information”) is read. Position of the unmanned tractor 1 (referred to as “additional history position”) and position information of additional work history information (referred to as “additional history position information”) of the unmanned tractor 1 (referred to as “additional history position”). ) And the distance. Further, the vehicle speed of the unmanned tractor 1 is predicted based on the vehicle speed of the unmanned tractor 1 based on the work history of the basic work history information and the vehicle speed of the unmanned tractor 1 based on the additional work history information work history.

Then, by dividing the distance between the basic history position and the additional history position by the predicted vehicle speed, the time difference (called “predicted time difference”) in the work history read from each of the basic work history information and the additional work history information is predicted. .. With respect to the additional work history information, the work history at the time shifted by the predicted time difference from the work history read for comparison is read and compared with the work history of the basic work history information. Then, when the work history of the additional work history information having the position information approaching the position information of the work history of the basic work history information is confirmed, the position information in the work history before and after the work history is calculated as the work history of the basic work history information. Of the basic work history information, the work history that matches the position information of the work history of the basic work history information is detected and used as a feature point.

In the basic work history information and the additional work history information, when a work history serving as a feature point in which the drive state information, the position information, and the field ID match is detected, the work history serving as a feature point in the basic work history information is based on the standard time. The time Tx is extracted, and the machine time TMx is extracted from the work history that is a feature point in the additional work history information. Then, when the time difference (Tx-TMx) between the basic work history information and the additional work history information is calculated, the time information (main machine time) in the additional work history information is corrected by the calculated time difference (Tx-TMx).

After correcting the time information in the additional work history information, the basic work history information and the corrected additional work history information are collated again to detect the missing information in the basic work history information from the additional work history information. Then, the basic work history information and the additional work history information are combined by incorporating them into the basic work history information. That is, as shown in FIG. 15, by interpolating the work history for each time T2 in the additional work history information between the work history for each time T1 in the basic work history information, the basic work history information and the additional work history information are obtained. To synthesize. If the number of items of the driving status information in the additional work history information is larger than the number of items of the driving status information in the basic work history information, the driving status information of the items missing in the basic work history information is interpolated from the additional work history information. To be done.

When the server 100 stores the combined work history information and completes the combination of the work history information by collating the basic work history information and the additional work history information, the server 100 remotely operates a completion notification indicating the completion of the work history information combining process. Send to device 70. At this time, the server 100 transmits the correction time indicating the time lag between the machine time and the standard time in the unmanned tractor 1 to the remote operation device 70 together with the completion notification. Then, when the server 100 transmits the completion notification to the remote operation device 70, it cuts off communication with the remote operation device 70.

On the other hand, when the remote operation device 70 receives the completion notification from the server 100, after deleting the stored additional work history information, the remote operation device 70 sets the correction time indicating the time lag between the machine time and the standard time in the unmanned tractor 1. It is displayed on a display (not shown). Thereby, the operator who operates the remote control device 70 confirms the time lag of the time of the machine in the unmanned tractor 1, and requests the service person, for example, to determine the external terminal device (based on the displayed correction time). The service time of the unmanned tractor 1 can be adjusted to the standard time by using the service tool) 80 or the like.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be embodied in various aspects. The configuration of each unit is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. That is, in the above-described embodiment, the single tractor 1 is used in the field, but a plurality of tractors 1 may be used. At this time, for example, as shown in FIG. 16, part of the agricultural work is performed by the unmanned tractor 1 in the field, and the remaining agricultural work is performed by the manned tractor 1A. The unmanned tractor 1 and the manned tractor 1A perform agricultural work cooperative work, follow-up work, accompanying work, and the like, whereby farm work can be shared in a single field. Further, in the above-mentioned cooperative work, the unmanned tractor 1 may perform the agricultural work in a certain field, and at the same time, the manned tractor 1A may perform the agricultural work in another field. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 17, any of the cooperative work, the follow-up work, and the accompanying work may be executed by a plurality of unmanned tractors 1, 1A, 1B.

1 tractor (work vehicle)
15 engine control device 16 main machine control device 17 work machine control device 18 vehicle bus line 19 vehicle-mounted terminal device 48 wireless communication antenna unit 48a first wireless communication antenna 48b second wireless communication antenna 51 autonomous traveling control device 52 steering control device 53 Positioning side device 54 Wireless communication router 56 Autonomous traveling bus line 60 Reference station 63 Positioning satellite 70 Remote control device 80 External terminal device 90 Access point 100 Server C1 Management center H1 Field (work area)
N1 communication network O1 office

Claims (5)

An information collection system for an agricultural work vehicle, comprising: a server that stores the drive state of the agricultural work vehicle as basic history information by communication with the agricultural work vehicle; and a remote control device that can communicate with the agricultural work vehicle in a work area of the agricultural work vehicle. There
The remote control device stores the drive state of the agricultural work vehicle as additional history information,
When the remote operation device and the server are communicatively connected, the server updates and stores the basic history information with information obtained by adding the additional history information to the stored basic history information. An information collection system for agricultural work vehicles characterized by: Each of the basic history information and the additional history information includes time information,
The server compares the basic history information and the additional history information, detects a matching feature point, calculates a time difference from time information at each feature point of the basic history information and the additional history information, The information collection system for an agricultural work vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the basic history information and the time information of the additional history information are matched to combine the basic history information and the additional history information. The information collection system for the agricultural work vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the characteristic point is drive state information indicating a drive state of the agricultural work vehicle. The farm work vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the basic history information and the additional history information each include position information of the farm work vehicle, and the characteristic points are position information of the farm work vehicle. Information collection system. Each of the basic history information and the additional history information includes an identifier assigned to the work area,
The server detects a work start point or a work end point in the work area by the agricultural work vehicle with respect to the basic history information and the additional history information, based on an identifier of the work area, and the work start point. Alternatively, the information collection system for agricultural work vehicles according to claim 2 , wherein the work end point is used as the characteristic point.

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