KR101965774B1 - Apparatus and Method for Unmanned Travelling Pesticide Spraying - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an unmanned driven device for spraying pesticide, which emits infrared rays to moving lines located on farmland ground in order to spray pesticide while driving a path depending on intensity of reflected infrared rays; and to a method thereof. The unmanned driven device for spraying pesticide for spraying pesticide to crops in a farmland comprises: an infrared ray sensor unit placed on a lower part of the unmanned driven pesticide spraying device, emitting infrared rays onto the ground in a predetermined range, and receiving infrared rays reflected from the moving lines located on the ground; a voltage information generating unit generating voltage information according to the intensity of the reflected infrared rays; a driving control unit controlling the driving of the unmanned driven device for spraying pesticide according to the voltage information; a pesticide spraying control unit controlling an amount of sprayed pesticide according to the voltage information; a pesticide spraying unit spraying pesticide according to the control of the pesticide spraying control unit; and a collision sensing unit sensing impacts of the unmanned driven device for spraying pesticide.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for spraying pesticide,

The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for spraying unmanned agricultural pesticides, which emit infrared rays to a moving line located on the surface of a cultivated land and spray the pesticide while traveling along the path of the reflected infrared rays.

In recent years, aging has progressed rapidly, and rural population is insufficient and labor shortage is in short supply. This problem is rapidly recognized in the domestic and overseas as well as the problem of the lack of rural population. In Europe, the development of agricultural machinery capable of running unattended is actively being carried out to solve these problems. There are a lot of investments in the field of agricultural machinery in Korea, and some companies develop agricultural machinery with technology such as unmanned driving. Especially, SS (Speed Sprayer) is an agricultural machine used for spraying pesticides in orchards. However, there is a need to develop an unmanned SS machine because there is a problem that the sprayer exposes the pesticide to the pesticide unprotected. Until now, much research has not been conducted on the unmanned SS series, but much research has been done in the field of tractors. Most of the unmanned travel tractors use GPS system.

However, in Korea, the difference in scales between Europe and North America and cultivated areas may cause costly burdens on farmers using GPS, and there is a possibility that errors may occur by covering trees.

Korean Patent Publication 10-2017-0111343 (October 12, 2017)

Therefore, it is possible to use a line-tracking method including an infrared sensor that can save costs in comparison with the GPS method and a separate mobile line on the floor, and to perform an unattended operation A pesticide spraying device and method are needed.

An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and a method for spraying an unmanned agricultural pesticide, which emits infrared rays to a moving line located on the surface of a cultivated land according to the above-mentioned necessity and sprays the pesticide while traveling along the intensity of reflected infrared rays.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for spraying pesticide on a cultivated land,

An infrared sensor unit positioned at a lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus to emit the infra-red rays to a predetermined range of the ground, and to receive reflection infrared rays reflected from the moving line located on the ground;

A voltage information generating unit for generating voltage information according to the intensity of the reflected infrared rays;

A running control unit for controlling running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the voltage information;

An agrochemical spraying control unit for controlling an application amount of the agrochemical according to the voltage information;

An agrochemical spraying unit spraying the agrochemical under the control of the agrochemical spraying control unit; And

And a collision detection sensor unit for detecting an impact of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus.

The infrared sensor unit includes:

An infrared ray emitting module for emitting infrared rays to the ground; And

An infrared ray receiving module for receiving reflected infrared rays reflected from the moving line;

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Wherein the moving line comprises a plurality of colors,

The voltage information may be generated according to the intensity of the reflected infrared ray corresponding to the color of the moving line.

A traveling information storage unit for storing a plurality of traveling information corresponding to the voltage information; And

A pesticide application amount storage unit that stores a plurality of pesticide application amount information corresponding to the voltage information;

As shown in FIG.

The plurality of travel information may be configured to include at least one of a straight route, a curved route by right turn angle, a curved route by left turn angle, a rugged route, a ramp, and a downhill road.

The pesticide application control unit,

And stop the operation of the pesticide application unit when the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range.

The driving control unit includes:

When the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range, the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus may be controlled to return to the starting point.

And a fan for generating wind to remove foreign matter on the moving line, which is located at the lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying device and is located on a predetermined area of the range of the ground.

And an elastic tube bumper installed on the front and rear sides and on both sides to prevent damage to the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying device.

The present invention having the above-described configuration has a much better accessibility to the operator of the apparatus than the drones for spraying pesticides that have emerged in recent trends, and has less effect on wind conditions.

In addition, since the unmanned travel error is small in a narrow region using a line-tracking method other than GPS, the present invention has an economical effect because the pesticide application efficiency is very high.

1 is a schematic view of an unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the present embodiment.
2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation when the pesticide storage amount of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the present embodiment reaches a certain range.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the present embodiment when it collides with an obstacle.

In the following description of the present invention, detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may make the subject matter of the present invention rather unclear.

The embodiments according to the concept of the present invention can be variously modified and can take various forms, so that specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the specification or the application. It is to be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the embodiments according to the concepts of the invention to the specific forms of disclosure, and that the invention includes all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention. Also, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary " is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

It is to be understood that when an element is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another element, it may be directly connected or connected to the other element, . On the other hand, when an element is referred to as being "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another element, it should be understood that there are no other elements in between. Other expressions that describe the relationship between components, such as "between" and "between" or "neighboring to" and "directly adjacent to" should be interpreted as well.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. The singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this specification, the terms "comprises ", or" having ", or the like, specify that there is a stated feature, number, step, operation, , Steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof, as a matter of principle.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings showing embodiments of the present invention.

1 is a schematic view of an unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment.

Unmanned running pesticide spraying device (1) is a device for spraying pesticide on crops without maneuvering at an agricultural site without running. The unmanned traveling pesticide application device (1) includes an infrared sensor unit (10) for emitting infrared rays and receiving reflected infrared rays, a voltage information generation unit (20) for generating voltage information in accordance with the reflected infrared rays, The pesticide application unit 50 for spraying the pesticide according to the control of the driving control unit 30, the pesticide application control unit 40 and the pesticide application control unit 40, the storage unit 60, the collision detection sensor unit 70, A fan (not shown) and an elastic tube bumper (not shown).

The infrared sensor unit 10 is positioned at the lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1, and is configured to emit the infra-red rays to a predetermined area of the range and to receive the reflected infrared rays reflected from the moving line located on the ground. The infrared sensor unit 10 includes an infrared light emitting module 12 and an infrared light receiving module 14.

The infrared light emitting module 12 is configured to emit the infra-red rays to the ground, and may be configured as a photodiode. The infrared ray receiving module 14 is configured to receive reflected infrared rays reflected from the moving line. Here, the moving line is made of a plurality of colors, and can be fixed to the ground by a material such as a rubber plate or a string.

In one embodiment, the infrared sensor unit 10 may be provided at the lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 20, or at least one of the infrared sensor unit 10 and the infrared sensor unit 10 may be provided on the front side and the rear side. Therefore, when the unmanned pesticide spraying apparatus 1 reverses and travels unattended, the driving of the one or more infrared sensor units 10 driven in the forward direction in the present traveling direction is stopped without rotating 180 degrees, and the one or more infrared sensors The portion 10 can be configured to be driven.

The voltage information generating unit 20 is configured to generate voltage information according to the intensity of the reflected infrared rays. Here, the voltage information is generated according to the intensity of the reflected infrared ray corresponding to the color of the moving line.

The travel control unit 30 is configured to control the running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the voltage information. The pesticide application controlling unit 40 is configured to control the application amount of the pesticide according to the voltage information. The pesticide application unit (50) is configured to apply the pesticide under the control of the pesticide application control unit (40).

The pesticide application controlling unit 40 generates a stop signal for stopping the operation of the pesticide application unit when the total pesticide storage amount is reduced to a certain range in the pesticide pail (not shown). When the pesticide application unit 50 receives the stop signal from the pesticide application control unit 40, the pesticide application unit 50 stops the application of the pesticide. Here, when the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range, the travel control unit 30 controls the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1 to return to the starting point.

The travel control unit 30 calculates the target steering angle and the target travel speed according to the voltage information corresponding to the travel line. The travel control unit 30 calculates an error value between the real time steering angle, the real time traveling speed, the target steering angle and the target traveling speed of the real time unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1. The travel control unit 30 determines the hydraulic control amount based on the error value and transmits it to the hydraulic system (not shown) to control the running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1. [ The travel control unit 30 repeatedly controls the running of the unmanned pesticide sprayer 1 in the above procedure.

The storage unit 60 is configured to store a plurality of travel information corresponding to the voltage information and a plurality of pesticide application amounts information. The storage unit 60 includes a travel information storage unit 62 and a pesticide application amount storage unit 64.

The travel information storage unit 62 is configured to store a plurality of travel information corresponding to voltage information corresponding to a plurality of travel lines. Here, the plurality of travel information includes at least one of a straight route, a curved route by a right turn angle, a curved route by a left turn angle, a rugged route, a ramp, and a downhill road.

The traveling information storage unit 62 stores, for example, a "straight path" which is traveling information corresponding to the first voltage information according to the intensity of the first reflected infrared ray reflected on the red traveling line.

The traveling information storage unit 62 stores, for example, "right turn 30 degree (per angle) curved path" which is traveling information corresponding to the second voltage information according to the intensity of the second reflected infrared ray reflected on the yellow traveling line.

The travel information storage unit 62 stores, for example, "left turn 30 degree (per angle) curve path" which is travel information corresponding to the third voltage information according to the intensity of the third reflected infrared ray generated by reflecting on the green travel line.

The traveling information storage unit 62 stores, for example, "rugged path " which is traveling information corresponding to the fourth voltage information according to the intensity of the fourth reflected infrared ray generated by reflection on the black traveling line.

The travel information storage unit 62 stores, for example, "ramps" which are traveling information corresponding to the fifth voltage information according to the intensity of the fifth reflected infrared ray reflected on the blue traveling line.

The traveling information storage unit 62 stores, for example, "downhill" traveling information corresponding to the sixth voltage information according to the intensity of the sixth reflected infrared ray reflected on the white traveling line.

The pesticide application amount storage unit 64 is configured to store a plurality of pesticide application amount information corresponding to the voltage information. The pesticide application amount storage section 64 stores, for example, the "first pesticide application amount" which is the pesticide application amount information corresponding to the first voltage information according to the intensity of the first reflected infrared ray generated by reflection on the red movement line.

The collision detection sensor unit 70 is configured to detect an impact of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1. A plurality of the collision detection sensor units 70 may be provided, and they may be installed on the front and rear sides and both sides of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkling device 1. [

When the impact is detected by the collision detection sensor unit 70, the travel control unit 30 determines whether to brak or not to follow the impact amount. When the braking operation is performed by the drive control unit 30, the target hydraulic pressure value for braking is determined. The travel control unit 30 calculates an error value between the real time hydraulic pressure value and the target hydraulic pressure value according to the real time traveling speed of the real time unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1. The travel control unit 30 determines the hydraulic control amount in accordance with the error value and sends it to the hydraulic system (not shown) to brake the running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1. [ The travel control unit (30) repeatedly controls whether or not to brak down when the impact of the unmanned pesticide sprinkling device (1) occurs in the above procedure.

The fan (not shown) is configured to generate wind to remove foreign matter on the moving line, which is located at the lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprayer 1 and is located on a predetermined area coverage area.

An elastic tube bumper (not shown) is provided on the front and rear sides and on both sides to prevent damage to the unmanned traveling pesticide sprayer 1.

2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment.

The infrared light emitting module 12 emits the emitted infrared light to the ground surface of the cultivated land, and the infrared light receiving module 14 receives the reflected infrared light reflected from the moving line provided on the ground (S210, S220).

The voltage information generating unit 20 generates voltage information according to the intensity information of the reflected infrared rays (S230). Here, the intensity information of the reflected infrared ray differs depending on the color of the moving line provided on the ground. For example, the intensity of the first reflected infrared ray generated by reflection on the red moving line and the intensity of the second reflected infrared ray generated by reflecting on the yellow moving line are different from each other.

The travel control unit 30 and the pesticide application control unit 40 control the amount of running and pesticide application according to the voltage information (S240). For example, the travel control unit 30 controls to travel in a straight line in accordance with the "straight path" which is the traveling information corresponding to the first voltage information according to the intensity of the first reflected infrared ray reflected on the red traveling line. In addition, the pesticide application control unit 40 controls the pesticide application unit 50 to inject the "first pesticide application amount ", which is the pesticide application amount information corresponding to the first voltage information according to the intensity of the first reflected infrared ray, .

Although it is described in FIG. 2 that steps S210 to S240 are sequentially executed, it is only described as an example of the technical idea of the present embodiment. If a person skilled in the art is familiar with the present invention, It is to be understood that various changes and modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the essential characteristics thereof, or alternatively, by executing one or more of the steps S210 to S240 in parallel, But is not limited thereto.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation when the pesticide storage amount of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1 reaches a certain range according to the present embodiment.

The infrared light receiving module 14 receives the reflected infrared light reflected from the moving line provided on the ground and the voltage information generating unit 20 detects the intensity of the reflected infrared light And generates voltage information according to the information (S310, S320, S330).

The pesticide application control unit 40 controls the application amount of the pesticide according to the voltage information (S340).

The pesticide application control unit 40 confirms whether the total pesticide storage amount is reduced to reach a certain range in the pesticide pail (not shown) (S350).

The pesticide application control unit 40 generates a stop signal for stopping the operation of the pesticide application unit 50 when the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range in the pesticide pest (not shown), and the pesticide application unit 50 Receives the stoppage signal of the pesticide application from the pesticide application control unit 40 and stops the pesticide application (S360).

When the pesticide application is stopped, the travel control unit 30 controls the unmanned pesticide application device 1 to return to the starting point (S370).

The pesticide application control unit 40 returns to step S340 if the total pesticide storage amount has decreased in the pesticide pail (not shown) and has not reached a certain range.

3, it is described that steps S310 to S370 are sequentially executed. However, this is merely an example of the technical idea of the present embodiment, and it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the present embodiment It will be understood that various modifications and changes may be made to the method of the present invention without departing from the essential characteristics and by executing the steps described in FIG. 3 or by executing at least one of steps S310 to S370 in parallel. But is not limited thereto.

4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprayer 1 according to the present embodiment when it collides with an obstacle.

When the unmanned pesticide application device 1 collides with an obstacle, the collision detection sensor unit 70 senses an impact (S410). Here, a plurality of the collision detection sensor units 70 may be provided, and they may be installed on the front and rear sides and both sides of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1.

When the impact is detected by the collision detection sensor unit 70, the travel control unit 30 determines whether to brak or stop depending on the amount of impact (S420).

When the running of the unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1 is braked, the travel control unit 30 determines a target hydraulic pressure value for braking (S430).

The travel control unit 30 calculates an error value between the real-time hydraulic pressure value and the target hydraulic pressure value according to the real-time traveling speed of the real-time unmanned traveling pesticide sprinkler 1 (S440).

The travel control unit 30 determines the hydraulic control amount according to the error value and transmits the calculated hydraulic control amount to a hydraulic system (not shown) to brake the running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus 1 (S450). The travel control unit (30) repeatedly controls whether or not to brak down when the impact of the unmanned pesticide sprinkling device (1) occurs in the above procedure.

Although it is described in FIG. 4 that steps S410 to S450 are sequentially executed, it is only described by way of example of the technical idea of the present embodiment. As long as those skilled in the art are familiar with the present invention, It will be understood that various changes and modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the essential characteristics thereof, such as by changing the order described in FIG. 4 or by executing one or more of steps S410 through S450 in parallel, But is not limited thereto.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical idea of the appended claims.

1: Unmanned pesticide spraying device
10: Infrared sensor unit
12: Infrared light emitting module
14: Infrared ray receiving module
20: voltage information generating section
30:
40: Pesticide application control unit
50: Pesticide Spraying Department
60:
62: traveling information storage unit
64: Pesticide application amount storage part
70:

Claims (9)

1. An apparatus for spraying pesticides on a cultivated land, comprising:
An infrared sensor unit positioned at a lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus to emit the infra-red rays to a predetermined range of the ground, and to receive reflected infrared rays reflected from a moving line located on the ground;
A voltage information generating unit for generating voltage information according to the intensity of the reflected infrared rays;
A running control unit for controlling running of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus according to the voltage information;
An agrochemical spraying control unit for controlling an application amount of the agrochemical according to the voltage information;
An agrochemical spraying unit spraying the agrochemical under the control of the agrochemical spraying control unit; And
And a collision detection sensor unit for detecting an impact of the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus,
Wherein the moving line comprises a plurality of colors,
The voltage information is generated according to the intensity of the reflected infrared ray corresponding to the color of the moving line,
A traveling information storage unit for storing a plurality of traveling information corresponding to the voltage information; And
A pesticide application amount storage unit that stores a plurality of pesticide application amount information corresponding to the voltage information;
Further comprising the step of:
The infrared sensor according to claim 1,
An infrared ray emitting module for emitting infrared rays to the ground; And
An infrared ray receiving module for receiving reflected infrared rays reflected from the moving line;
Wherein the pesticide spraying device comprises:
delete delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the plurality of travel information includes at least one of a straight route, a curved route by a right turn angle, a curved route by a left turn angle, a rugged route, a ramp, and a downhill route.
[Claim 2] The method according to claim 1,
Wherein when the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range, the operation of the pesticide application unit is stopped.
7. The vehicle control device according to claim 6,
Wherein when the total pesticide storage amount reaches a certain range, the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying apparatus is controlled to return to the starting point.
The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising a fan located at a lower end of the unmanned traveling pesticide spreader to generate wind to remove foreign matter on the moving line located on a predetermined area of the range of padding.
The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising an elastic tube bumper installed on the front and rear sides and on both sides to prevent damage to the unmanned traveling pesticide spraying device.

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