JP7038651B2 - Field work machine and farm work support system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a field work machine and a farm work support system.

Patent Document 1 describes a field work machine. This field work machine is a field work device that performs farm work on a field, a work setting unit that sets a running start point and a running end point, and work in a crossing direction with respect to a running direction of field information including at least topographical data and a running direction. A route calculation unit that calculates a travel route including a non-working route that involves a change of direction of the traveling aircraft based on the width, a traveling start point, and a traveling end point, and a working traveling route that performs traveling work using a field work device. It also has a driving support unit that provides driving support based on the driving route and the positioning data from the GPS module.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-112071

In the field work machine described in Patent Document 1, the traveling route can be calculated based on the field information including the topographical data. However, in the field work machine, a travel meter such as a travel route may be determined in advance. Even if the travel plan is set in advance, it may be desirable to perform optimization such as partially changing the travel plan in some cases. Therefore, a field work machine capable of optimizing a predetermined travel route is desired.

The present invention has been made in view of such an actual situation, and an object thereof is a field work machine capable of optimizing a predetermined traveling route and a farm work support system for supporting farm work by the field work machine. Is to provide.

The characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a traveling machine having a working device for performing agricultural work in the field, a position information acquisition unit for acquiring the position information of the traveling machine, and the field. A storage unit that stores field information including topographical data and a traveling plan including traveling speed and traveling route , and driving support of the traveling aircraft based on the position information and the traveling plan. A control unit and an aircraft sensor unit that acquires aircraft state information of the traveling aircraft during traveling are provided, and the aircraft sensor unit includes attitude information, speed information, and an engine of the traveling aircraft as the aircraft state information. The control unit has a sensor for acquiring at least one of the output information, and the control unit acquires the travel plan stored in the storage unit as an initial travel plan and stores the field in the storage unit. Based on the information, the optimum travel plan suitable for the topographical data is obtained, the optimum travel plan is stored in the storage unit as the travel plan, and the operation support of the traveling aircraft is performed based on the optimum travel plan. The point is to update the field information based on the machine state information and the position information .

According to the above configuration, the control unit obtains an optimum travel plan suitable for the topographical data included in the field information based on the field information, the position information, and the predetermined initial travel plan. Further, the control unit stores the optimum travel plan in the storage unit as a new travel plan. As a result, the traveling plan of the field work machine is updated to the optimum plan.
A further characteristic configuration of the field working machine according to the present invention is that the topographical data includes information on at least one of the area of the wasteland of the field and the position of the unevenness of the field.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention is that the control unit provides driving support for the traveling machine based on the optimum running plan.

According to the above configuration, it is possible to realize the optimum driving support based on the optimum driving plan.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention further includes a notification unit, the control unit notifies the notification unit of operation information based on the optimum travel plan, and the operation information is the optimum travel. It is a point that includes at least one of a speed, deceleration instruction, or acceleration instruction.

According to the above configuration, the control unit notifies the operation information based on the optimum travel plan by the notification unit. At this time, the control unit can provide accurate driving support to the user by notifying the user including at least one of the optimum traveling speed, deceleration instruction, or acceleration instruction as driving information. In addition, the user can be prepared for acceleration and deceleration.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention further includes an airframe sensor unit for acquiring airframe state information of the traveling airframe during traveling, and the airframe sensor unit is used as the airframe state information of the traveling airframe. It has a sensor that acquires at least one of attitude information, speed information, and engine output information, and the control unit updates the field information based on the aircraft state information and the position information. There is a point to do.

According to the above configuration, the field information is updated based on the aircraft state information and the position information including at least one of the attitude information, the speed information, and the engine output information of the traveling aircraft. As a result, the field information is stored in association with the machine state information when the traveling machine actually travels in the field and the position information in which the traveling machine has traveled.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention is that the field information includes the machine state information and the position information as the topographical data, and the machine state information and the position information are linked one-to-one. It is in the point that it is done.

According to the above configuration, the field information includes the aircraft state information and the position information as topographical data. Then, these aircraft state information and position information are linked one-to-one. In other words, the field information includes information corresponding to the position on the travel path when traveling in the field and the aircraft state information at that position as topographical data.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention further includes an output unit that outputs information to the outside, and the control unit outputs the field information stored in the storage unit via the output unit. At the point.

According to the above configuration, the field information stored in the storage unit can be output to the outside via the output unit. This makes it possible to store the field information in an external device or the like, or to provide the field information to another field working machine.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention further includes an input unit for acquiring information from the outside, and the control unit acquires the field information via the input unit and stores it in the storage unit. At the point.

According to the above configuration, the field information can be acquired from the outside via the input unit. As a result, it is possible to acquire the field information stored in an external device or the like, or to receive the field information from another field work machine.

A further characteristic configuration of the field work machine according to the present invention is that the output unit and the input unit are communication units that wirelessly communicate with the outside, and the input unit acquires the field information from the outside and outputs the output. The unit is at a point where the field information is output to the outside.

According to the above configuration, the field information is acquired from the outside by communication such as wireless communication, and the field information is output to the outside by communication such as wireless communication. Furthermore, the field information acquired from the outside can be updated and output to the outside again.

The characteristic configuration of the agricultural work support system according to the present invention for achieving the above object is provided with an external server that communicates with the field work machine, and the field information is acquired from at least one of the work machines and stored in the server storage unit. The point is to transmit the field information stored in the server storage unit to the field work machine.

According to the above configuration, the field work machine and the external server of the farm work support system can communicate with each other. The agricultural work support system acquires field information from at least one work machine and stores it in the server storage unit, and the field information stored in this server storage unit is stored in the same field work machine or another field work machine. Send to. As a result, the field information can be stored and managed by the external server, and the field information acquired by a certain field work machine can be used by a plurality of field work machines via the external server.

It is the whole side view of the field work machine. It is a schematic plan view which shows the structure related to steering. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a control part. It is a figure which shows the seedling amount adjustment mechanism and the feeding amount adjustment mechanism. It is a top view which shows a field and a traveling route. It is a conceptual diagram explaining the communication between a field work machine and the outside.

Hereinafter, the field work machine and the farm work support system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Explanation of field work machine]
Hereinafter, the passenger rice transplanter shown in FIG. 1 will be illustrated and described as a field work machine (hereinafter referred to as a work machine 100) in the present embodiment. FIG. 2 shows the components related to the steering of the working machine 100.

In the following description, the direction indicated by the reference numeral F shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is the front side of the airframe. The direction indicated by reference numeral B shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is the rear side of the machine body. The direction indicated by the reference numeral U shown in FIG. 1 is the upper side of the machine body. Further, the direction indicated by the reference numeral D is the lower side of the machine body. The direction indicated by the reference numeral R shown in FIG. 2 is the right side of the machine body. Further, the direction indicated by the reference numeral L is the left side of the aircraft.

As shown in FIG. 1, the working machine 100 includes a passenger-type, four-wheel drive type traveling machine (hereinafter referred to as machine 1). The machine body 1 has a parallel quadruple link type link mechanism 2 connected to the rear part of the machine body 1 so as to be able to move up and down, a hydraulic lift cylinder 3 for swinging the link mechanism 2, and a rear end portion of the link mechanism 2. It is provided with a seedling planting device 4 (an example of a working device) connected so as to be rollable, and a fertilizer application device 5 (another example of a working device) extending from the rear end of the machine body 1 to the seedling planting device 4. The elevating cylinder 3 is supplied with and discharged pressure oil by an electrically controlled valve unit 3A.

The airframe 1 includes wheels 6, an engine 7, and a hydraulic continuously variable transmission 8 as a mechanism for traveling. The wheels 6 have left and right front wheels 6A that can be steered and left and right rear wheels 6B that cannot be steered. The engine 7 and the continuously variable transmission 8 are mounted on the front portion of the machine body 1. The power from the engine 7 is supplied to the front wheels 6A, the rear wheels 6B, and the like via the continuously variable transmission 8 and the like.

The seedling planting device 4 plantes seedlings as the main agricultural work. The seedling planting device 4 is configured as an eight-row planting type as an example. The seedling planting device 4 includes a ground leveling float 14, a seedling stand 15, and an eight-row planting mechanism 16.

The leveling float 14 slides on the mud surface of the paddy field as the aircraft 1 travels in a state where they are in contact with the ground, and prepares the mud surface such as a place where seedlings are to be planted.

The seedling pedestal 15 is a pedestal on which eight rows of mat-shaped seedlings (an example of an in-vehicle object, an example of a consumable material) are placed (an example of mounting). The seedling stand 15 reciprocates in the left-right direction with a constant stroke corresponding to the left-right width of the mat-shaped seedling, and the vertical feed mechanism 17 moves on the seedling stand 15 each time the seedling stand 15 reaches the left and right stroke ends. Each mat-shaped seedling is vertically fed at a predetermined pitch toward the lower end of the seedling stand 15. The eight planting mechanisms 16 are rotary type and are arranged in the left-right direction at regular intervals corresponding to the spaces between the planting rows. Then, each planting mechanism 16 cuts out one seedling from the lower end of each mat-shaped seedling placed on the seedling stand 15 by the power from the machine body 1, and plants it in the mud portion after leveling. As a result, in the operating state of the seedling planting device 4, seedlings can be taken out from the mat-shaped seedlings placed on the seedling stand 15 and planted in the mud portion of the paddy field.

The seedling planting device 4 is provided with a seedling picking amount adjusting mechanism 18 for adjusting the seedling picking amount by the planting mechanism 16. As shown in FIG. 4, the planting mechanism 16 takes out and plants a seedling for one plant through a seedling take-out port formed on a guide rail 15a that slides and guides the lower end of the seedling mounting table 15. The amount of seedlings is adjusted by changing the positions of the guide rails 15a that slide and guide the seedling mounting table 15 and the lower ends of the seedling loading table 15 up and down.

As shown in FIG. 4, the seedling picking amount adjusting mechanism 18 includes a seedling picking amount adjusting motor 19 with a speed reduction mechanism, which is an actuator for changing the positions of the seedling loading table 15 and the guide rail 15a up and down. A fan-shaped gear 20 that meshes with a pinion gear provided on the output shaft of the seedling amount adjusting motor 19 is provided. Further, the seedling amount adjusting mechanism 18 includes a support arm 21 inserted in the front portion of the guide rail 15a, and a support shaft 22 that swingably supports the support arm 21. The support arm 21 and the fan-shaped gear 20 are linked by a connecting arm 23. The rotation shaft 24 of the fan-shaped gear 20 is provided with a seedling amount sensor 25 for detecting the rotation angle (seedling amount) of the fan-shaped gear 20. By driving the seedling amount adjusting motor 19 in one direction, the seedling loading table 15 and the guide rail 15a move to the ascending side, and by driving the seedling collecting amount adjusting motor 19 in the other direction, the seedling loading table 15 and the guide rail 15a move. Move to the descending side. The amount of seedlings taken is changed by moving the seedling stand 15 and the guide rail 15a up and down.

As shown in FIG. 1, the fertilizer application device 5 includes a horizontally long hopper 26, a feeding mechanism 27, an electric blower 28, a plurality of fertilizer application hoses 29, and a groove making device 30 provided for each row. .. The hopper 26 stores granular or powdery fertilizer (an example of an in-vehicle object, an example of a consumable material). The feeding mechanism 27 is operated by the power transmitted from the engine 7, and feeds out two rows of fertilizer from the hopper 26 in predetermined amounts.

The blower 28 is operated by electric power from a battery (not shown) mounted on the machine body 1, and generates a transport wind for transporting the fertilizer delivered by each feeding mechanism 27 toward the mud surface of the field. The fertilizer application device 5 can switch between an operating state in which a predetermined amount of fertilizer stored in the hopper 26 is supplied to the field and a non-operating state in which the supply is stopped by an intermittent operation of the blower 28 or the like.

Each fertilizer application hose 29 guides the fertilizer conveyed by the transport wind to each groove grooving device 30. Each groover 30 is arranged in each leveling float 14. Then, each groover 30 moves up and down together with each leveling float 14, and forms a fertilizer groove in the mud portion of the paddy field to guide the fertilizer into the fertilizer groove during the work running when each leveling float 14 touches the ground.

The fertilizer application device 5 applies fertilizer as the main agricultural work. The fertilizer application device 5 is provided with a feeding amount adjusting mechanism 31 capable of changing and adjusting the feeding amount of fertilizer by the feeding mechanism 27. As shown in FIG. 4, the feeding amount adjusting mechanism 31 displaces the adjusting body 32 for adjusting the feeding amount in the feeding mechanism 27, and the screw shaft 33 in the forward direction and the reverse direction via the gear. It has a fertilizer adjusting motor 34 to be rotated, a position detecting sensor 35 for detecting the displacement position of the adjusting body 32 based on the rotation of the screw shaft 33, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 1, the airframe 1 is provided with a driving unit 40 on the rear side. The driving unit 40 includes a steering wheel 41 for steering the front wheels, a main shift lever 42 that enables a change in the setting of the engine rotation speed and a shift operation of the continuously variable transmission 8, and an auxiliary shift that enables a shift operation of the auxiliary transmission. The lever 43, the first operation lever 45 and the second operation lever 46 that enable the raising and lowering operation of the seedling planting device 4 and the switching of the operating state, and various information are displayed (notified) and notified (output) to the operator. Along with this, a terminal 47 (an example of a display unit) having a touch panel for receiving input of various information, a driver's seat 48 for an operator, and the like are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, the terminal 47 has an input unit 47a. The input unit 47a is realized as a displayed input interface on the touch panel of the terminal 47. The input unit 47a accepts the selection input of the field targeted by the work vehicle for agricultural work.

The terminal 47 may be a device installed (fixed) on the machine body 1 or may be configured as a portable device capable of wireless communication with the machine body 1. Further, the input and output functions of the terminal 47 may be realized by a small computer such as a smartphone provided with a touch panel, or a personal computer in which an input device and a monitor are connected. As the terminal 47, both the one installed on the machine 1 and the one realized by a smartphone or the like may coexist. When a plurality of terminals 47 coexist, a priority may be set, for example, priority is given to the information input from the terminal installed in the machine 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the main shift lever 42 is adjacently arranged on the left side of the steering wheel 41. The main speed change lever 42 is a swing operation type that can swing in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction, and is linked to an operation shaft (not shown) of the continuously variable transmission device 8. Due to the holding action of the detent unit (not shown), the main shift lever 42 has a neutral position, a multiple forward shift position on the front side of the vehicle body from the neutral position, and a plurality of reverse shift positions on the rear side of the vehicle body from the neutral position. It is configured with a shift position.

The first operation lever 45 is a swing type that can be switched to each operation position of planting, lowering, neutral, ascending, and automatic, and is arranged adjacent to the right side of the driver's seat 48. The second operating lever 46 is a vertical swing type neutral return type, and is arranged adjacent to the lower right of the steering wheel 41. The second operating lever 46 commands the raising and lowering of the seedling planting device 4.

As shown in FIG. 2, the steering wheel 41 includes a steering gear 50 that rotates integrally with the steering wheel 41 via a steering shaft 49, a sector gear 51 that meshes with and interlocks with the steering gear 50, and a steering member 52 that swings integrally with the sector gear 51. , And left and right tie rods 54 extending over the steering member 52 and the operation arms 53 of the left and right front wheels 6A, etc., are interlocked and connected to the left and right front wheels 6A.

The machine body 1 is provided with a mechanism for intermittently operating the left and right side clutches 55 in conjunction with the operation of the steering wheel 41. That is, the left and right linking rods 58 that interlockably connect the steering member 52 and the operation arms 57 of the left and right side clutch 55s are provided. The left and right linking rods 58 are provided with elongated holes 58a at a linking point with the operation arm 57 to set the relationship between the steering angle θ, which is the steering angle of the steering member 52, and the intermittent operation of the left and right side clutches 55.

With the above configuration, the left and right front wheels 6A are steered from the straight-ahead position to the turning direction according to the amount of rotation of the steering wheel 41. If the steering member 52 has a steering angle smaller than the set angle θa, the side clutch 55 maintains the connected state, and when the steering member 52 becomes larger than the set angle θa, the left side clutch 55 switches to the cutoff state. On the other hand, the right side clutch 55 is maintained in the connected state. As a result, the transmission to the rear wheel 6B on the left side located inside the turn is cut off, and a left small turn state in which the turn radius of the aircraft 1 becomes small can be obtained. The swing operation of the steering member 52 is performed not only by the manual rotation operation of the steering wheel 41 but also by the steering motor 59 as described later.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the machine body 1, the steering shaft 49, that is, the steering motor 59 capable of rotating the steering member 52 via the gear mechanism 61 (see FIG. 2), and the main shift lever 42 are automatically operated. The electric speed change motor 62 is provided. In addition, a manual automatic on / off switch 64 that enables selection (hereinafter referred to as mode information) between a manual operation mode of the operation mode and an automatic operation mode for executing automatic work driving control described later is provided. .. The automatic on / off switch 64 is provided near the grip portion of the main shift lever 42 so that it can be operated by a finger.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, the aircraft 1 measures the position and orientation of the control unit 9 that executes various controls, the storage unit 90 that stores various information used by the control unit 9, and the aircraft 1. Positioning unit 63 (an example of a position information acquisition unit, an example of an aircraft sensor unit), IMU68 (an example of an aircraft sensor unit), which is an inertial measurement unit that acquires the tilt and acceleration of the three axes of the aircraft 1, and steering. The steering angle sensor 56, which is provided on the swing shaft of the member 52 and acquires steering information such as the steering angle θ corresponding to the rotation operation amount of the steering wheel 41, and the engine rotation speed of the engine 7 and the stepless transmission 8 (Example of engine output information) A travel sensor 69 (an example of an aircraft sensor unit) that acquires aircraft state information related to travel such as gear ratio, output-based speed information (travel speed) based on engine rotation speed and gear ratio. , A communication circuit 65 (see FIG. 1) having a communication antenna for wireless communication is provided. Hereinafter, the positioning unit 63, the IMU 68, the steering angle sensor 56, and the traveling sensor 69 may be collectively referred to as an airframe sensor unit D.

The positioning unit 63 is a device that measures the position and orientation of the machine 1 and acquires the position information of the machine 1. The positioning unit 63 is, for example, a satellite navigation system. In the present embodiment, the positioning unit 63 uses GPS (Global Positioning System), which is an example of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and as a positioning method, RTK-GPS suitable for positioning a moving object. (Real Time Kinematic GPS) is adopted.

The positioning unit 63 includes an antenna unit 66 for satellite navigation that receives radio waves transmitted from GPS satellites (not shown) and positioning data transmitted from a reference station (not shown) installed at a known position. ing. The reference station transmits the positioning data obtained by receiving the radio waves from the GPS satellites to the positioning unit 63. The positioning unit 63 obtains the position and orientation of the aircraft 1 based on the positioning data obtained by receiving the radio waves from the GPS satellites and the positioning data from the reference station. Further, the positioning unit 63 can also acquire the speed information (traveling speed) of the positioning reference as the aircraft state information from the amount of change in the position per unit time. The positioning unit 63 is housed in the antenna unit 66. The antenna unit 66 is arranged at the left and right center portions of the upper end of the preliminary seedling frame 67 so that the reception sensitivity of the radio wave from the GPS satellite is high. In the present embodiment, the IMU 68 and the communication circuit 65 are housed inside the antenna unit 66 together with the positioning unit 63.

The IMU68 has a three-axis gyroscope (not shown) and a three-way acceleration sensor (not shown), and has three-axis angular velocities such as yaw angle, pitch angle, roll angle, etc. of the aircraft 1 and its acceleration (not shown). Acquires aircraft state information including vehicle body attitude information such as (an example of speed information).

The storage unit 90 stores the field DB 90a and the travel plan DB 90b as a database storing information necessary for agricultural work.

The field DB 90a contains geographic information including position information such as the shape and shore of the field where the work machine 100 performs farm work, and topographical information such as the presence or absence of unevenness to the extent that attention is required for running in the rough land area of the field and its position ( Field information including an example of topographical data) is stored. In the present embodiment, the field information of the field targeted for the farm work is stored in advance before the start of the farm work. In the field DB 90a, the information related to the position is stored as, for example, latitude, longitude, and altitude information.

The travel plan DB 90b stores at least the travel plan of the work machine 100 in the field targeted for agricultural work. In the present embodiment, a travel plan including a travel route recommended for the work machine 100 (hereinafter referred to as a recommended route) in the field targeted for agricultural work is stored in advance. In the following, the travel plan stored in advance in the travel plan DB 90b will be referred to as an initial travel plan.

The control unit 9 includes a microcomputer, and realizes an operation control unit 91, a management unit 92, and a communication unit 93 by software stored in a storage unit 90 or the like.

The management unit 92 determines the travel plan based on the field information stored in the storage unit 90 and the like. When the user designates a field to be farmed by the terminal 47, the management unit 92 obtains (determines) the optimum running plan by referring to the field information corresponding to the field and the initial running plan. In the present embodiment, the management unit 92 determines the recommended route as the travel route Q (see FIG. 5) in the travel plan. If the storage unit 90 does not store the field information and the initial travel plan of the field targeted for agricultural work, the management unit 92 stores the field information and the initial travel plan in the communication unit 93 prior to the determination of the travel plan. It can be obtained from the outside.

In the area R, the management unit 92 has an area E (see FIG. 5) requiring attention, which is an area requiring attention for traveling by the aircraft 1 (a region of wasteland in the field or an area having irregularities to the extent that attention is required for traveling). If it exists, the portion of the travel route Q that overlaps with the caution area E is determined as the low-speed travel route QE (see FIG. 5) in which the aircraft 1 should travel at a low speed, and the travel plan is updated. In the following, the updated driving plan will be referred to as the optimum driving plan.

In addition, the management unit 92 has a function of transmitting the field information and the traveling plan stored in the storage unit 90 to the outside by the communication unit 93.

The operation control unit 91 is based on the position information of the aircraft 1 acquired by the positioning unit 63, the attitude information of the aircraft 1 acquired by the IMU 68, the output information acquired by the travel sensor 69, the mode information, the travel plan, and the like. , Manage the running of the aircraft 1. For example, if the automatic operation mode is selected in the mode information by switching the automatic on / off switch 64, the operation control unit 91 controls the steering motor 59, the speed change motor 62, and the like to perform automatic operation (operation). Achieve an example of support).

In automatic driving, the operation control unit 91 reduces the traveling speed when traveling on a low-speed traveling route QE or the like where the aircraft 1 should travel at a low speed. The automatic operation performed by the operation control unit 91 includes at least steering of the aircraft 1 and control of the traveling speed. The driving control unit 91 causes the terminal 47 to display running control information (an example of driving information) related to steering executed in automatic driving and control of running speed, and warning information for notifying the existence of a caution area E. Can be done. The driving control information includes the current parameters and change schedules of steering and speed control (engine speed and gear ratio), and warnings and warnings before turning the headland or entering the wasteland in the field. By notifying the travel control information and the alert information, the user can prepare for a change in the travel state of the aircraft 1.

If the manual operation mode is selected in the mode information by switching the automatic on / off switch 64, the operation control unit 91 will perform steering to be executed when automatic operation is realized and control of the traveling speed (engine rotation speed and gear ratio). ) Is displayed on the terminal 47 as assist information (an example of driving information) for assisting the driving of the user (an example of driving support). The operation control unit 91 reduces the traveling speed when traveling on a low-speed traveling route QE or the like where the aircraft 1 should travel at a low speed. The assist information includes speed control instructions and suggestions such as optimum traveling speed, acceleration, and deceleration, steering instructions and suggestions, and the above-mentioned alert information and warnings.

In addition, the operation control unit 91 associates the aircraft state information of the aircraft 1 with the position information of the aircraft 1 acquired from the positioning unit 63 on a one-to-one basis, stores the information in the storage unit 90 as field information, and stores the field DB 90a. It has a function to update.

The communication unit 93 causes the communication circuit 65 to transmit the travel control information and the assist information toward the external device. The external device is an Internet network N connected to a communication network of a mobile phone or the like, or a terminal 47x which is a terminal 47 configured as a portable device capable of performing wireless communication or the like (see FIG. 6). As a result, the user, the user's manager, the instructor, and the adviser can perform the position and work of the machine 1 even from a point away from the machine 1 (including a remote place far beyond the point where the machine 1 cannot be visually recognized). You can know the point, driving control information and assist information. In addition, the administrator or the instructor can give instructions and advice to the user as needed.

Further, the communication unit 93 has a management unit 92 based on an instruction via the terminal 47 of the user or when the storage unit 90 does not store the field information or the initial travel plan of the field targeted for agricultural work. Based on the command of the above, the field information is acquired from the external server S and stored in the storage unit 90 before the start of the farm work.

FIG. 6 illustrates an agricultural work support system in which an external server S connected to the Internet network N can communicate with a communication unit 93 (communication circuit 65). The external server S includes a server control unit S1, a server storage unit S2 that stores field information of various fields, and a server communication circuit S3. When the server control unit S1 receives a request for sending specific field information and an initial travel plan of the field from the communication unit 93 via the Internet network N, the server control unit S1 receives the specific field information and the initial travel plan as a server in response to the request. It is read from the storage unit S2 and transmitted to the communication unit 93 via the server communication circuit S3. The communication unit 93 stores the received field information in the field DB 90a. The communication unit 93 stores the received initial travel plan in the travel plan DB 90b. By doing so, as in the case where any one of the plurality of working machines 100 works in any one of the regions R of the plurality of fields (for example, the region R1 or the region R2), the storage unit of the working machine 100 Even if the field information of the field targeted for farm work and the initial running plan are not stored in 90, the working machine 100 that performs the farm work as needed utilizes the field information of the field targeted for farm work. Convenience is improved because it can be done.

In addition, the control unit 9 shown in FIG. 3 moves the seedling planting device 4 up and down, and the seedling planting device 4 and fertilizer application based on the commands from the first operating lever 45 and the second operating lever 46 shown in FIG. The operating state of the device 5 is controlled.

[Explanation of fields, field information, and running plans before the start of farm work]
FIG. 5 shows a field designated by the user as a target of farm work by the terminal 47, a region R in the field, a region requiring attention E, and a traveling route Q. In the following description, when simply described as traveling, it means traveling of the aircraft 1 in the field.

The field information includes the following information as geographic information. The region R is a rectangle in this embodiment. The outer circumference of the region R is surrounded by the shore G. FIG. 5 shows a mode in which the first shore G1, the second shore G2, the third shore G3, and the fourth shore G4 are arranged in this order counterclockwise as the shore G. The first shore G1 and the third shore G3 are arranged along the short side of the field. The second shore G2 and the fourth shore G4 are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the field.

The field is provided with an intrusion path Qz that allows the working machine 100 to invade the region R. The intrusion path Qz is arranged in the vicinity of the intersection of the first shore G1 and the fourth shore G4 in a direction along the fourth shore G4.

The topographical information includes information to the effect that the first wasteland E1 and the second wasteland E2 exist as information on the area E requiring attention, and information on their positions. In the field shown in FIG. 5, a third wasteland E3 exists as another caution area E, but the initial topographical information is not included in the information related to the third wasteland E3. On the other hand, although the topographical information includes the information of the second wasteland E2, the second wasteland E2 does not exist in the actual field.

The information of the region E requiring attention in the present embodiment is an engine in which the IMU 68 detects an acceleration that causes the aircraft 1 to be shaken during past driving (for example, during farm work last year), or an engine acquired by a traveling sensor 69. The rotation speed may decrease, the output reference speed information acquired by the traveling sensor 69 may be separated from the positioning reference speed information acquired by the positioning unit 63 (so-called slip), or the load on the steering motor 59 may increase. (For example, the difference between the steering angle θ set by the operation control unit 91 as the control target value and the steering angle θ acquired by the steering angle sensor 56 becomes large), and other specific changes in the aircraft state information (hereinafter, (Simply described as a specific change) is included in the topographical information as a region acquired by these aircraft sensor units D.

The traveling route Q is a second shore G2 or a traveling route Q between the first shore G1 and the third shore G3 after the first route Q1 and the first route Q1 traveling along the first shore G1 starting from the intrusion route Qz. After the second route Q2 and the second route Q2, which sequentially move from the side of the second side G2 to the side of the fourth side G4 while traveling linearly back and forth along the fourth side G4, the outer circumference of the region R ( Includes the fourth route Q4, which travels counterclockwise along the inner circumference of the shore G and returns to the intrusion route Qz.

In the second route Q2, the route of the headland turning near the first shore G1 or the third shore G3 is shown as the third route Q3. The second point P2 is a point at which the headland turn is started in the second route Q2. The first point P1 is a starting point for starting a linear run between the first shore G1 and the third shore G3.

In the present embodiment, the management unit 92 overlaps the first wasteland E1 and the second wasteland E2 with the second wasteland E2 in the second route Q2 because the first wasteland E1 and the second wasteland E2 overlap with the second route Q2. And, in the second route Q2, the routes in the vicinity of the front and back of these overlapping regions are determined as the low-speed traveling route QE, and are included in the traveling plan at least at the start of the agricultural work. In the present embodiment, the low-speed travel route QE corresponding to the first wasteland E1 and the second wasteland E2 is determined (planned) as the first low-speed route QE1 and the second low-speed route QE2, respectively.

In the present embodiment, the management unit 92 determines all of the third route Q3 as a route to travel at a low speed, and includes the route in the travel plan. Further, the management unit 92 includes in the travel plan that the travel speed on the third route Q3 should be controlled when the third route Q3 (second point P2) is reached.

[Explanation when driving]
In the following description, a case where the automatic operation mode is selected as the mode information will be described as an example. When the manual operation mode is selected instead of the automatic operation mode, the user himself / herself controls the steering wheel 41, the main shift lever 42, etc. to control the steering and the traveling speed performed by the operation control unit 91 in the automatic operation mode. It differs in that it is operated, and the other explanations in the following explanation are the same.

When the user instructs the start of farm work by the terminal 47 or the like, the operation control unit 91 drives the aircraft 1 according to the travel plan. In the present embodiment, the operation control unit 91 causes the aircraft 1 to travel along the travel path Q. The operation control unit 91 causes the aircraft 1 to travel within a predetermined traveling speed range (hereinafter, referred to as normal traveling). The operation control unit 91 travels the machine body 1 in a lower speed range than the normal traveling range as necessary (hereinafter, referred to as low speed traveling).

While traveling, the operation control unit 91 associates the aircraft state information of the aircraft 1 acquired from the IMU 68, the travel sensor 69, and the positioning unit 63 with the position information of the aircraft 1 acquired from the positioning unit 63 on a one-to-one basis. Then, it is stored in the storage unit 90 as field information, and the field DB 90a is updated.

The operation control unit 91 causes the aircraft 1 to travel at a low speed when it reaches the first low-speed route QE1 or the second low-speed route QE2 while traveling on the second route Q2. As a result, when the aircraft 1 travels on the first wasteland E1, it can appropriately follow the second route Q2.

While traveling on the first low-speed route QE1, a specific change is acquired by the airframe sensor unit D. The information on these specific changes is linked one-to-one with the position information and stored in the storage unit 90 as field information (stored in the field DB 90a), and the next time (for example, during farm work in the next year) is optimized for the travel plan. In some cases, it is used as information indicating the existence and position of the area E requiring attention.

Since the second wasteland E2 does not actually exist, no specific change is acquired while traveling on the second low-speed route QE2. Further, the load of the steering motor 59 does not increase. Therefore, the field information is updated assuming that the second wasteland E2 does not exist.

When the third wasteland E3 is reached while traveling on the second route Q2, a specific change is acquired. Therefore, the management unit 92 determines that the second route Q2 that overlaps with the third wasteland E3 is a new low-speed traveling route QE (hereinafter referred to as the third low-speed route QE3). In reality, the management unit 92 cannot grasp the existence range of the third wasteland E3 when the aircraft 1 reaches the second route Q2 that overlaps with the third wasteland E3. (3) Determine as low-speed route QE3 and update the travel plan. As a result, the operation control unit 91 causes the aircraft 1 to travel at a low speed, so that when the aircraft 1 travels on the third wasteland E3, it can appropriately follow the second route Q2.

No specific change is acquired when passing through the third wasteland E3 while traveling on the second route Q2. Therefore, the management unit 92 determines that the vehicle has passed the third wasteland E3, and updates the travel plan assuming that the subsequent travel route Q is not the third low-speed route QE3. As a result, the operation control unit 91 returns the machine body 1 to normal running and runs the machine 1.

The information on the change in the aircraft state information while traveling in the third wasteland E3 is linked to the position information on a one-to-one basis and stored in the storage unit 90 as field information, and the next travel plan (for example, during the next year's agricultural work). Is used as information indicating the existence and position of the caution area E (third wasteland E3) at the time of optimization.

In the present embodiment, the operation control unit 91 causes the aircraft 1 to travel at a low speed immediately before reaching the third route Q3 (second point P2) while traveling on the second route Q2. Then, the low-speed running is continued until the third route Q3 is passed. Due to the low-speed running, the operation control unit 91 can accurately follow the third route Q3 while determining whether the turn tends to be large or small during the headland turn. Specifically, by performing the headland turning at low speed, the operation control unit 91 acquires the measurement result of the position and direction of the aircraft 1 from the positioning unit 63 in the unit mileage, shifts the gear ratio, and steers the motor. The control of 59 can be performed diligently. Therefore, the followability to the third path Q3 when turning the headland is improved (the accuracy of the turning operation is improved). In addition, by running the aircraft 1 at a low speed immediately before reaching the third route Q3 (second point P2) and turning the headland at a low speed as it is, if the user is on the aircraft 1, the user's Anxiety can be reduced. After passing the third route Q3 (first point P1), the vehicle accelerates quickly and returns to normal driving.

While traveling in the automatic driving mode, the traveling control information is sequentially displayed on the terminal 47. While traveling in the manual operation mode, the assist information is sequentially displayed on the terminal 47.

When the farm work is completed, the management unit 92 commands the communication unit 93 to transmit the field information stored in the field DB 90a to the external server S. When the external server S receives the field information via the server communication circuit S3, the server control unit S1 stores the field information in the server storage unit S2. When the field information of the same field is stored in the server control unit S1, the stored field information is updated with the newly received field information.

In this way, it is possible to provide a field work machine capable of optimizing a predetermined travel route, and to provide a farm work support system that supports farm work by the field work machine.

[Another Embodiment] (1) In the above embodiment, a passenger rice transplanter for fertilizing and planting seedlings has been illustrated and described as the working machine 100. However, the working machine 100 is not limited to the passenger rice transplanter. Other working machines 100 include a direct sowing machine for sowing seeds as agricultural work, a tractor for harvesting planted culms as agricultural work, and a passenger management machine for performing agricultural work such as paddy field control work, granulation spraying, or grooving. Can be mentioned.

(2) In the above embodiment, when the optimum travel plan is obtained by referring to the field information and the initial travel plan, the aircraft 1 should travel at a low speed on the portion of the travel route Q that overlaps with the caution area E. The case where the route QE (see FIG. 5) or the like is determined and the travel plan is updated has been described as an example. However, the optimum travel plan is not limited to the case where the portion of the travel route Q that overlaps with the caution area E is determined as the low-speed travel route QE (see FIG. 5) in which the aircraft 1 should travel at a low speed. For example, a portion of the travel path Q where slip occurs when the aircraft 1 travels is specified, and the output reference speed based on the engine speed and gear ratio is increased according to the slip ratio of that portion for positioning. The speed adjustment area for keeping the reference speed constant may be determined and the travel plan may be updated. By keeping the speed of the positioning standard constant in this way, it is possible to reduce the variation in fertilization to the field and the variation in the planting interval of seedlings along the traveling direction.

(3) In the above embodiment, when the farm work is completed, the management unit 92 commands the communication unit 93 to transmit the field information stored in the field DB 90a to the external server S, and the server control unit S1 concerned. The case where the field information is stored in the server storage unit S2 has been described. However, the information transmitted to the external server S when the farm work is completed is not limited to the field information. For example, in addition to the field information, the travel plan stored in the travel plan DB 90b may be transmitted, and the external server S may store the travel plan in the server storage unit S2.

(4) In the above embodiment, when the traveling control information or the assist information is notified to the user or the like, the case where the information is displayed on the terminal 47 has been described as an example, but the notification is not limited to the display. For example, it may be notified by sound (voice or alarm sound) or vibration.

(5) In the above embodiment, the case where the machine body 1 is provided with a storage unit 90 in which various information used by the control unit 9 is stored has been described. However, the storage unit 90 is not limited to the case where the storage unit 90 is provided in the machine body 1. Instead of providing the storage unit 90 in the machine body 1, the storage unit may be provided only in another device or the like connected to the machine body 1 by wireless communication or the like. In this case, the working machine 100 includes other devices and the like connected to the machine 1 by wireless communication or the like.

FIG. 6 illustrates a case where the external server S connected to the Internet network N can communicate with the communication unit 93 (communication circuit 65). The external server S includes a server control unit S1, a server storage unit S2 that stores field information of various fields, and a server communication circuit S3. Instead of storing various information used by the control unit 9 in the storage unit 90, various information used by the control unit 9 may be stored in such a server storage unit S2. In this case, the control unit 9 can access the server storage unit S2 via the communication unit 93, the Internet network N, and the server communication circuit S3.

(6) In the above embodiment, the machine body 1 is provided with a control unit 9 for executing various controls, and the control unit 9 is equipped with a microcomputer and is operated and controlled by software stored in a storage unit 90 or the like. The case where the unit 91, the management unit 92, and the communication unit 93 are realized has been described as an example. Then, the case where the operation control unit 91 manages the travel of the aircraft 1 based on the travel plan and the like, and the management unit 92 determines the travel plan and the like based on the field information and the like has been described. However, this is not limited to the case where the operation control unit 91 manages the travel of the aircraft 1 based on the travel plan or the like, or the management unit 92 determines the travel plan or the like based on the field information or the like.

FIG. 6 illustrates a case where the external server S connected to the Internet network N can communicate with the communication unit 93 (communication circuit 65). The external server S includes a server control unit S1, a server storage unit S2 that stores field information of various fields, and a server communication circuit S3. Instead of the case where the operation control unit 91 and the management unit 92 of the control unit 9 manage the travel of the aircraft 1 based on the travel plan or the like, or determine the travel plan based on the field information or the like, this is the case. The server control unit S1 may realize the functions of the operation control unit 91 and the management unit 92. In this case, the server control unit S1 accesses the control unit 9 via the server communication circuit S3, the Internet network N, and the communication unit 93, and gives instructions and commands regarding the travel management of the aircraft 1 and the determined travel plan. .. Then, the control unit 9 executes various controls of the machine body 1 corresponding to these instructions and the like.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for a field work machine and a farm work support system for a field work machine.

1: Aircraft (traveling aircraft)
4: Seedling planting device (working device)
5: Fertilizer application device (working device)
9: Control unit 47: Terminal (notification unit)
47x: Terminal (notification unit)
56: Steering angle sensor (airframe sensor unit)
63: Positioning unit (airframe sensor unit)
64: Automatic on / off switch 65: Communication circuit (communication unit)
68: IMU (airframe sensor unit)
69: Travel sensor (airframe sensor)
90: Storage unit 91: Operation control unit (control unit)
92: Management unit (control unit)
93: Communication unit (input unit, output unit)
100: Working machine (field work machine)
D: Aircraft sensor unit E: Caution area G: Side N: Internet network Q: Travel route S: External server S2: Server storage unit

Claims (8)

A traveling machine equipped with a work device for farming in the field,
The position information acquisition unit that acquires the position information of the traveling machine, and
A storage unit that stores field information including topographical data of the field and a running plan for performing the farm work including a running speed and a running route .
A control unit that supports the operation of the traveling aircraft based on the position information and the traveling plan, and
It is equipped with an airframe sensor unit that acquires airframe state information of the traveling airframe during traveling .
The airframe sensor unit has a sensor that acquires at least one of the attitude information, speed information, and engine output information of the traveling airframe as the airframe state information.
The control unit acquires the travel plan stored in the storage unit as an initial travel plan , and obtains an optimum travel plan suitable for the topographical data based on the field information stored in the storage unit . The optimum travel plan is stored in the storage unit as the travel plan, driving support of the traveling aircraft is performed based on the optimum traveling plan, and the field information is stored based on the aircraft state information and the position information. Field work machine to be updated . The field work machine according to claim 1, wherein the topographical data includes information on at least one of a wasteland area of the field and a position of unevenness of the field. Further equipped with a notification unit,
The control unit causes the notification unit to notify the operation information based on the optimum travel plan.
The field work machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the driving information includes at least one of an optimum traveling speed, a deceleration instruction, and an acceleration instruction. The field information includes the aircraft state information and the position information as the terrain data, and the aircraft state information and the position information are one-to-one linked to any one of claims 1 to 3. The described field work machine. It also has an output unit that outputs information to the outside.
The field work machine according to claim 4 , wherein the control unit outputs the field information stored in the storage unit via the output unit. It also has an input section to acquire information from the outside.
The field work machine according to claim 5 , wherein the control unit acquires the field information via the input unit and stores it in the storage unit. The output unit and the input unit are communication units that wirelessly communicate with the outside.
The input unit acquires the field information from the outside and obtains the field information.
The field work machine according to claim 6 , wherein the output unit outputs the field information to the outside. An external server that communicates with the field work machine according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is provided.
The field information is acquired from at least one of the field work machines and stored in the server storage unit.
A farm work support system that transmits the field information stored in the server storage unit to the field work machine.

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