JPS6322110A - Harvester - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention includes an automatic handling depth adjustment device that adjusts the handling depth of grain culms fed to a threshing section based on the detection result of the culm length. Regarding harvesting machines.

[Prior art]

The automatic handling depth adjustment device of the harvester detects the length of the grain culm fed to the threshing section with a culm length sensor installed on the entrance side of the threshing section, and when the culm length sensor detects a long culm, The vertical conveyor chain is tilted to the shallow handling side, and when a short culm is detected, to the deep handling side, and the threshing process is carried out at the appropriate handling depth according to the culm length of the detected grain culm. The processing depth in the threshing section is automatically adjusted to enable the processing of grains. The culm length sensor consists of a plurality of detection rods arranged in parallel in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the grain culm, and limit switches that operate individually when the grain culm comes into contact with these detection rods. The length of the grain culm is detected by the on/off state of the switch.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

In such a conventional culm length sensor, if the operation of the detection rod is obstructed by, for example, being entangled with straw waste, there is a risk that the limit switch will malfunction and erroneously detect the length of the grain culm. In such cases, there is a problem in that appropriate handling depth adjustment cannot be performed.

Therefore, it is conceivable to use an image sensor that images the grain culm fed to the threshing section as a culm length sensor. When an image sensor is used as a culm length sensor, the sensor is attached to a part of the machine body facing the grain culm in order to image the grain within a predetermined field of view, and images the grain culm within the field of view. The length of the grain culm is detected from the imaging result.
I1. It is very difficult to correctly install a culm length sensor to capture the field of view correctly, and even if it is installed correctly, the sensor may be installed in a position or angle that is misaligned due to some external force during work. There is.

In such a case, the imaging field of the culm length sensor deviates from the preset imaging field of view, and if one round of treatment is carried out at the predetermined depth according to the detected value of the culm length based on the imaging result, the proper treatment depth will be obtained. There was a drawback that threshing could not be performed at the handling depth.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and there is no risk of incorrectly detecting the length of the grain culm, and it is possible to always handle a grain at an appropriate depth.
The purpose is to provide a harvesting machine that can process grain.

[Means for solving problems]

The harvesting machine according to the present invention uses an image sensor as a culm length sensor, and the sensor is installed so that the length of the grain culm can be accurately detected regardless of whether it is in good or bad condition. A harvester equipped with an automatic handling depth adjustment device that detects the length and shortness of the grain culms being transported and adjusts the handling depth based on the detection results! In the i machine, there is an image sensor that images the grain culm in the conveyance path from the reaping section to the threshing section, an optical mark located within the imaging field of view of the image sensor, and an optical mark located within the field of view of the ti image by the image sensor. The present invention is characterized by comprising means for detecting the length of the grain culm based on the position of the marker from the imaging result.

[Effect]

That is, before the grain culm cut by the reaping section of the harvester is sent to the threshing section, the grain culm, together with the optical mark, is imaged by the image sensor in the field of view of the image sensor. The length of the grain culm is detected based on the position of the mark in the captured image, and the handling depth is automatically adjusted based on the detection result.

〔Example〕

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in detail below based on drawings showing embodiments thereof. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a harvester according to the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the drive mechanism of the vertical conveyance chain.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a main body on which a threshing section 2 is mounted, and a cutting blade 3. A reaping section 5 composed of a grain culm lifting device 4 and the like is attached so as to be movable up and down. On the rear side of the reaping section 5, there is a vertical conveyance chain 10 for conveying the harvested grain culms rearward and upward, and the terminal end thereof is connected to a grain culm pinching transfer device extending along the handling opening of the threshing section 2. It is provided facing the starting end of II.

Grain culms harvested by the reaping section 5 are conveyed to the front part of the threshing section 2 by a vertical conveyance chain 1o via a lower conveyance device (not shown), and are transferred to the grain culm pinching transfer device 11. In the device 11, the tip side is passed from the handling port to the handling chamber 2 of the threshing section 2.
While the grains are being transported while being inserted into the grain a, they are about to be threshed in the handling drum 2b provided in the handling room 2a.

As shown in FIG. 2, the vertical conveyance chain 10 has its left (right side in FIG. 2) central portion rotatably supported on the upper end of a column 12 erected at the front of the main body 1. Bracket 1 protrudes from the lower right side of the
A distal end portion of a drive arm 14 that moves forward and backward in accordance with the rotation of the drive motor 13 is rotatably supported at 0a.

When the drive motor 13 rotates forward (or reversely) and the drive arm 14 advances (or retracts), the vertical conveyance chain 10 pivots around the pivot point of the support column 12, and rotates in reverse when viewed from the front. It is designed to be tilted clockwise (or clockwise).

Then, when the vertical conveyance chain 10 is moved counterclockwise (or clockwise) around 1, the grain stalks being conveyed by the chain 1o are transferred to the grain stalk transfer device 11. 1
In step 1, the main side of the plant (or the tip side) becomes more pinched, and the insertion length into the handling chamber 2a becomes longer (or shorter), causing the grain culm to be handled deeply (or shallowly). ) will be threshed.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the front part of the harvester, and FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the handling depth control system. The culm length sensor 6 using an image sensor includes a part of the grain culm transported by the vertical transport chain IO, and is parallel to the transport direction of the grain culm, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. In order to image within the rectangular imaging field of view A, it is attached to the front part of the grain explanatory section 2 so as to face slightly forward and downward. The part of the body that is included in the imaging field of view A and is imaged as the background of the grain culm by the culm length sensor 6 has an optical sensor that serves as a reference when calculating the length of the grain culm from the imaging results of the sensor 6. A reference mark M, which is a sign, is provided. This can be done by attaching a paint color that has a higher reflectivity compared to the paint color of the surrounding aircraft to the corresponding position, or by attaching a reflective mirror, metal plate, etc. to the corresponding position so that it can be optically distinguished from the surrounding area. A small piece of an object having a high reflectivity may be provided by placing the reflective surface facing the culm length sensor 6 and attaching it to the corresponding position as desired.

The shape of the reference mark M is not limited to a rectangle as shown in FIG. 3, but may be, for example, a triangular shape or a nine-circular shape, and its size is as shown in the photograph. It is sufficient if it is sufficiently small compared to the size of M field A. Furthermore, if the reference mark M is provided at a position corresponding to one side of the imaging field of view A near the center of the machine body, as shown in FIG. There is less possibility that the reflected light from M will be blocked.

The culm length sensor 6 has a number of pixels of, for example, nxm.
CDCCharge Coupled Device
, a charge-coupled device) 60 and an optical lens 61 for forming an image of an object on the photosensitive surface of the CCD 60, and its output signal is sent to an A/D converter 70 and a video signal. The image signal processing unit 7 includes memories 71a and 71b and an arithmetic control unit 72.

The CCD 60 accumulates charges corresponding to the intensity and irradiation time of light that passes through the optical lens 61 and irradiates each pixel, and receives clock pulses from the arithmetic control section 72 at predetermined time intervals. Each time an image signal is given, an image signal having a level corresponding to the charge in each pixel is sequentially output to the A/D converter 70 of the image signal processing unit 7, with the grain culm transport direction in the imaging field of view A set as the main scanning direction. .

The A/D converter 70 converts the image signal from the CCD 60 into bright and dark binarized values based on a predetermined threshold value, and alternately supplies it to the video memory 71a or 71b, and divides the image signal into 1" representing bright areas and 1" representing dark areas. It is stored as binary image data consisting of "O" representing "0".

The arithmetic control unit 72 using a microcomputer is
The image data stored in the video memory 71a or 71b is read, and the calculations described later are performed from this data, and a control signal of a level corresponding to the culm length of the grain culm within the image field of view A is sent to the processing depth control unit 8. Output.

The drive motor 13 for tilting the vertical conveyance chain 10 is connected to the output side of the handling depth control section 8 so as to be capable of forward and reverse rotation via a drive circuit (not shown). When the level of the control signal from 72 is equal to or higher than the predetermined value, the drive motor 13 is operated to rotate forward, tilting the vertical conveyance chain 10 toward the deep handling side, and the level of the input signal reaches the predetermined value. If the value is less than another predetermined value, the drive motor 13 is operated in reverse, tilting the vertical feed chain 10 to the shallow handling side, and automatically adjusting the handling depth to an appropriate value. Adjust.

Now, the operation of the harvester according to the present invention configured as above will be explained. Harvesting [M] runs on the field surface while operating the reaping section 5, cuts the grain culms to be planted on the field surface with the cutting blade 3, and then sequentially conveys the grain culms with the vertical conveyance chain 10. It is transported to the front part of the grain section 2. Thereafter, the grain culm is transferred to the grain culm transfer device 11, and in the device 11, the grain culm is transferred to the handling room 2a.
One ton of grain is transferred to the rear and threshed in the handling drum 2b in the handling room 2a.

The culm length sensor 6 determines whether cutting i? When the reaping section 5 is in operation, that is, when reaping work is being performed, the imaging field of view A is always activated. The inner grain culm,
Images are taken together with a part of the aircraft as a background, and image signals obtained from the imaging results are sequentially output to the image signal processing section 7.

5 and 6 are schematic diagrams each showing an example of the imaging results of the culm length sensor 6, and FIG. 5 is a diagram immediately after the start of reaping, that is, before the reaped grain culm reaches the #li image field of view A. The imaging results are shown, and FIG. 6 shows the imaging results after the harvested grain culm reaches the grain extrusion section 2.

Now, as mentioned above, the reference mark M has a higher reflectance than the surrounding area, and the grain culm also has a higher reflectance than the part of the aircraft that is imaged as the background.
The part of the reference mark M shown by cross hatching in FIGS. 5 and 6 and the part where the grain culm is present, shown by hunting in FIG. 6, are imaged brightly compared to other background parts, and the culm length is When the image signal output from +6 is converted into bright and dark binary values using a predetermined threshold value as a reference in the A/D converter 70 of the image signal processing section 7, the reference mark M
"1" indicates the bright part and the part where the grain culm is present,
The squared portions are respectively binarized to "0" representing dark areas and stored in the corresponding positions of the video memory 71a or 71b.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control contents of the arithmetic control section 72. The arithmetic control section 72 reads binary image data from the video memory 71a or 71b, but since the culm length sensor 6 starts its operation at the same time as the start of the reaping operation as described above, the arithmetic control section 72 reads the binary image data first. The image data captured is before the grain culm reaches within the imaging field of view A, that is, the fifth image data.
This corresponds to the imaging result as shown in the figure, and in this image data, only the portion corresponding to the position of the reference mark M is "1", and the rest are all "0". The arithmetic control unit 72 calculates the initial position and size of the reference mark M from the initially read image data. The initial position of the reference mark M is calculated, for example, as follows. The image data is read from the video memory 71a or 71b from the left side (reaping side) to the right side (the reaping side) in FIG.
The image data is scanned from the top to the bottom along the main scanning lines toward the grain processing side (grain processing side), and image data is
It is checked whether or not there is a transition from "O" to 11'.As shown in FIG. The position is calculated by the following equation as the vertical distance X' in FIG.

X'-n (nI+n2)/N is the number of pixels of the CCV (60) arranged in the direction perpendicular to the grain culm conveyance direction as described above, that is, the number of the main scanning lines.

Further, the size of the reference mark M, that is, the area S' occupied by the mark M is calculated, for example, by counting the number of data "1" in all the image data read from the video memory 71a or 71b. Ru.

Initial position X' of the reference mark M calculated in this way
and its size S' are respectively written and stored in the memory within the arithmetic control unit 72.

Next, the arithmetic control section 72 controls the video memory 71a or the video memory 71a.
The next image data is read from 1b, the number of data "1" in this image data is counted to find the area B of the bright part in the imaging field of view A, and this value is set as the preset reference value B.
'Repeat this routine until J2J is reached. As described above, the bright area within the imaging field of view A is the area where the grain culm is present and the area where the reference mark M is located, so the area B is the total area of these areas, and the area B is II? Transport chain 1
The front end of the grain culm being conveyed at 0 is the front end of the imaging field (
After reaching the left end in FIG. 5, it increases as the grain culm progresses. That is, the area B of the bright part is the reference value B'
The above routine, which is repeated until the above is reached, is a routine for determining whether the leading part of the grain culm has reached a predetermined position corresponding to the reference value B' within the two visual fields A, and is clear. When the surface [B of the part] becomes equal to or greater than the reference value B', the process proceeds to the next step to start the handling depth adjustment according to the culm length of the grain culm within the imaging field of view A.

After passing through the routine, the arithmetic control unit 72 reads the next image data from the video memory 718 or 71b, and determines the position At the same time, count the number of “1” data in the image data and calculate the bright area area B.
seek.

Now, when the grain culm begins to pass within the imaging field of view A, the upper side of the reference mark M may be covered by a part of the grain culm, or foreign matter such as straw waste, mud, etc. may adhere to the upper part of the reference mark M. As a result, it may become impossible to determine the position X of the mark M.

Therefore, the arithmetic control unit 72 calculates the bright area QB and the reference mark M.
After determining the position X, it is determined whether or not the value of The size S' is subtracted to calculate the area S of the portion where the grain culm is present in the imaging field of view A, and then this is divided by the number m of pixels of the CCD 60 arranged in the progressive direction of the grain culm. Calculate the average length l' of the culm (see Figure 6).

Now, this average length l' represents the culm length of the grain culm when the culm length sensor 6 is installed in the correct position and at the correct installation angle, but if the culm length sensor 6 is installed incorrectly, Or, if the mounting angle or position of the sensor 6 shifts due to an external force after installation, the tia@! of the culm length sensor 6 at that time. The average length l' calculated from the results does not represent the culm length of the grain culm, and if the handling depth is adjusted based on this, it will not be possible to process the remaining grains at the correct handling depth.

Therefore, after calculating the average length l', the arithmetic control unit 72 subtracts it from the previously determined position X of the reference mark M to calculate the distance l from the tip of the grain culm to the reference mark M. do. As mentioned above, the reference mark M is provided at a predetermined position on the machine body, and the relative position of the mark M with respect to the vertical conveyance chain 10 does not change. l represents the average value of the culm length of the grain culms conveyed by the vertical conveyance chain 10, and is small when the culm length of the grain culm is long, and conversely becomes large when it is short.

If the position X of the reference mark M cannot be determined correctly,
Using the area B as is as the surface gs of the grain culm, calculate the average length l' of the grain culm using the same procedure, and subtract this from the initial position X' of the reference mark M, which was previously stored in the memory. Then, the distance l is calculated.

After calculating the value of l as described above, the arithmetic control unit 72 outputs a control signal of a level corresponding to the magnitude of l to the handling depth control unit 8, and the handling depth control unit 8 receives this control signal. As described above, the drive motor 13 is operated to rotate forward or reverse based on When the value of is small, that is, when the culm length is long, the vertical conveyance chains 10 are tilted to the shallow handling side, and the grain culms conveyed by the chains 10 are transferred to the tax grain section 2 according to their culm length. The remaining grains will be processed at the appropriate handling depth according to the amount of grain.

Note that the mounting position of the culm length sensor 6 is not limited to the front side of the grain mulch section 2 shown in this embodiment, but may be mounted at any position as long as it is possible to capture an image within the imaging field of view A.

Further, in this example, a two-dimensional image sensor was used as the culm length sensor 6, but a one-dimensional image sensor was installed perpendicular to the 1M feeding direction of the grain culm, and the grain culm was imaged with the sensor. However, the handling depth can be adjusted in the same way.

〔effect〕

As detailed above (in the collection TM18 according to the present invention,
An image sensor is used as the culm length sensor, and the sensor images the grain culm, and the length of the grain culm is detected based on the imaging results, so it is possible to detect the grain culm without coming into contact with it. Yes, there is no risk of false detection due to entanglement with straw waste, etc.

Furthermore, when detecting the culm length, the length of the grain culm is detected based on the distance from the optical mark to the grain culm, which is imaged with the grain culm by the culm length sensor. Even if the sensor is installed incorrectly or if it deviates from the initial installation position, the correct culm length can be determined.
★It has excellent effects such as being able to always adjust the handling depth appropriately.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a harvester according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of a vertical ILI feed chain drive mechanism, and FIG. 3 is a harvesting machine. A schematic plan view of the front part of the machine, FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the handling depth control system, FIGS. 5 and 6 are schematic diagrams showing the imaging results of the image sensor,
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control contents of the arithmetic control section. 2... Threshing section 5... Reaping section 6... Image sensor 7... Image signal processing section 8... Handling depth control section 10... Vertical conveyance chain 72...
Arithmetic control unit A...Imaging field of view M...Fiducial mark Applicant Yanmar 1tJ31 Co., Ltd. Agent Patent attorney Noboru Kono 1J 2nd note 3 Figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A harvester equipped with an automatic handling depth adjustment device that detects the length of grain culms conveyed from the reaping section to the threshing section and adjusts the handling depth based on the detection results, an image sensor that images the grain culm on the conveyance route from the reaping section to the threshing section; an optical marker positioned within the imaging field of view of the image sensor; A harvesting machine characterized by comprising means for detecting the length of a grain culm based on the position of the mark.