JP7645789B2 - Cruise control system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a driving control system that controls the driving of a work vehicle equipped with a positioning device.

An example of a driving control system like the one described above is already known, as described in Patent Document 1. This driving control system controls the driving of a work vehicle (a "combine" in Patent Document 1) based on the measurement results from a positioning device (a "satellite positioning module" in Patent Document 1) and a target route (a "driving route" in Patent Document 1) along which the work vehicle (a "combine" in Patent Document 1) should travel.

JP 2019-106983 A

In the driving control system described in Patent Document 1, it is conceivable to set the position of the positioning device as a reference position for the work vehicle, and control the driving of the work vehicle so that the deviation between this reference position and the target route is small. In this case, the driving of the work vehicle can be controlled so that the positioning device moves along the target route. However, even if the positioning device is located on the target route, depending on the situation, it is conceivable that the driving position of the work vehicle may not be appropriate.

For example, when controlling the travel of a combine harvester equipped with a harvesting device that harvests planted stalks in a field, if the combine harvester's body orientation is tilted relative to the direction in which the target route extends, it is conceivable that even if the positioning device is located on the target route, the harvesting device may be located in an inappropriate position. In such a case, there is a possibility that some stalks will be left uncut.

The object of the present invention is to provide a driving control system that makes it easier to ensure that a work vehicle is in an appropriate driving position.

A feature of the present invention is a driving control system that controls the driving of a work vehicle that has a positioning device and a work device and is capable of driving while performing work using the work device, wherein the positioning device is configured to measure the position of the positioning device, and the system is equipped with a reference determination unit that determines a reference location within the work vehicle, a position calculation unit that calculates the position of the reference location based on the measurement results by the positioning device, a route generation unit that generates a target route for the work vehicle to drive, and a driving control unit that performs distance control to control the driving of the work vehicle so that the distance between the position of the reference location and the target route is a predetermined distance, and the reference determination unit changes the reference location depending on whether the work vehicle is driving for work or not .

According to this configuration, the travel of the work vehicle is controlled so that the distance between the position of the reference part and the target route is a specified distance. The reference part is then changed depending on the work situation. Therefore, if the most important part is determined as the reference part depending on the work situation, the position of the most important part can be controlled with high precision. As a result, the travel position of the work vehicle is more likely to be appropriate.

For example, if the work vehicle is a combine harvester equipped with a harvesting device that harvests planted stalks in a field, and the harvesting device is determined as the reference location when the combine harvester performs harvesting travel, the position of the harvesting device can be controlled with high precision. As a result, the travel position of the combine harvester is likely to be appropriate.

In other words, this configuration makes it possible to realize a driving control system that makes it easier to ensure that the work vehicle is in an appropriate driving position.

Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable to provide an orientation acquisition unit that acquires the vehicle orientation of the work vehicle, and the position calculation unit calculates the position of the reference part based on the measurement results by the positioning device and the vehicle orientation.

The positional relationship between the positioning device in the work vehicle and each part other than the positioning device can be checked in advance. Therefore, with this configuration, it is possible to realize a configuration in which the position of the reference part is calculated based on the positional relationship, the measurement results by the positioning device, and the vehicle orientation. This makes it easy to calculate the position of the reference part with high accuracy.

Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable that the predetermined distance is set so that the positioning device is positioned on the target route by the distance control.

In work vehicles equipped with a positioning device, the positioning device is often located in the lateral center of the vehicle. Compared to when the positioning device is located at the left or right end of the vehicle, when the positioning device is located in the lateral center of the vehicle, the position of the reference part is more likely to fall within a relatively narrow range centered on the positioning device, regardless of the part of the reference part. In other words, the distance between the positioning device and the reference part in a planar view is more likely to be relatively short.

Therefore, with this configuration, it is easier to avoid a situation where the specified distance must be set to a relatively long distance, compared to a case where the specified distance is set so that a specific part other than the positioning device is located on the target route by distance control. Therefore, it is easier to avoid a situation where the specified distance is set to a relatively long distance, which would result in large errors that may occur in distance control.

Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable that the reference determination unit is capable of determining a left end or a right end of the working device as the reference part.

With this configuration, for example, when a work vehicle is performing comprehensive work in a field, the position of the left or right end of the work device is controlled with high precision. As a result, the overlap width of the work area performed by the work device, etc., is controlled with high precision. This makes work performed by the work vehicle more efficient.

In this way, this configuration makes it possible to realize a driving control system that makes work by work vehicles more efficient.

Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable that the reference determination unit is capable of determining, as the reference portion, a central portion that is a portion located in the center position in the left-right direction of the traveling device of the work vehicle.

According to this configuration, in a work situation where the position of the traveling gear is important, a configuration can be realized in which the central part, which is the part of the traveling gear that is located in the center in the left-right direction, is determined as the reference part. This makes it possible to realize a traveling control system that makes it easier to ensure that the traveling position of the work vehicle is appropriate in a work situation where the position of the traveling gear is important.

FIG. FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a farm field at the time when the outermost circumference travel is completed. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration relating to a control unit. FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing how a combine harvester automatically travels. 11 is a plan view illustrating distance control during automatic driving along a target mowing route. FIG. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the positional relationship of each part in the combine harvester.

The embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the direction of the arrow F in the figure is "front", the direction of the arrow B is "back", the direction of the arrow L in the figure is "left", and the direction of the arrow R is "right". Additionally, the direction of the arrow U in the figure is "up" and the direction of the arrow D is "down".

[Overall configuration of the combine]
As shown in Figure 1, a standard combine harvester 1 (corresponding to the "work vehicle" of the present invention) is equipped with a harvesting section H (corresponding to the "working device" of the present invention), a traveling device 2 having left and right crawlers 11, a driving section 12, a threshing device 13, a grain tank 14, a conveying section 16, a grain discharge device 18, and a satellite positioning module 80 (corresponding to the "positioning device" of the present invention).

The traveling device 2 is provided at the bottom of the combine harvester 1. The traveling device 2 is driven by power from an engine (not shown) mounted on the combine harvester 1. The combine harvester 1 can travel using the traveling device 2.

The driving section 12, threshing device 13, and grain tank 14 are located above the traveling device 2. The driving section 12 has a driver's seat 12a. An operator can sit in the driving section 12.

The grain discharge device 18 is provided on the upper side of the grain tank 14. The satellite positioning module 80 is attached to the upper surface of the driving unit 12.

The harvesting section H is provided at the front of the combine 1. The transport section 16 is provided at the rear of the harvesting section H. The harvesting section H also includes left and right weed splitters 10, a cutting blade 15, and a reel 17.

The left and right weed dividing tools 10 are provided at the left and right ends of the front end of the harvesting section H. The left and right weed dividing tools 10 divide the planted culms in the field into those to be harvested and those not to be harvested. The planted culms to the right of the left weed dividing tool 10 and to the left of the right weed dividing tool 10 are divided as those to be harvested. The planted culms to the left of the left weed dividing tool 10 and the planted culms to the right of the right weed dividing tool 10 are divided as those not to be harvested.

The cutting blade 15 cuts the planted culms that have been divided as harvest targets by the left and right weed dividing tools 10. The reel 17 also drives and rotates around the reel axis 17b that runs along the left-right direction of the machine body, raking in the planted culms that are to be harvested. The harvested culms cut by the cutting blade 15 are sent to the conveying section 16.

With this configuration, the harvesting section H harvests grains in the field. The combine 1 is capable of harvesting travel, traveling on the traveling device 2 while cutting the planted stalks in the field with the cutting blade 15.

The harvested stalks harvested by the harvesting section H are transported to the rear of the machine by the transport section 16. This transports the harvested stalks to the threshing device 13.

The harvested stalks are threshed in the threshing device 13. The grains obtained by the threshing process are stored in the grain tank 14. The grains stored in the grain tank 14 are discharged outside the machine by the grain discharge device 18 as necessary.

As shown in FIG. 1, a communication terminal 4 is disposed in the driving unit 12. The communication terminal 4 is configured to be able to display various information. In this embodiment, the communication terminal 4 is fixed to the driving unit 12. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the communication terminal 4 may be configured to be detachable from the driving unit 12, or the communication terminal 4 may be located outside the combine harvester 1.

When the combine harvester 1 performs a harvesting operation in a farm field, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, it is configured to perform the harvesting operation by automatic driving after performing the outermost traveling operation. Note that the outermost traveling operation is the harvesting operation performed in the outermost area SA of the farm field by manual operation. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the harvesting operation performed in the outermost area SA may be performed by automatic driving.

In this embodiment, the outermost circumference run is a harvesting run that goes around the field once. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and two or more circumference runs may be performed.

The travel of the combine harvester 1 is controlled by a travel control system A (see FIG. 4). That is, the travel control system A controls the travel of the combine harvester 1 having a satellite positioning module 80. The travel control system A is described in detail below.

[Calculation of unworked area]
4, the driving control system A includes a control unit 20 and a satellite positioning module 80. The control unit 20 includes a position calculation unit 21 and an area calculation unit 22. The control unit 20 and the satellite positioning module 80 are mounted on the combine harvester 1.

The satellite positioning module 80 receives GPS signals from the artificial satellite GS (see FIG. 1) used in the GPS (Global Positioning System). As a result, the satellite positioning module 80 is configured to measure the position of the satellite positioning module 80. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the satellite positioning module 80 sends the measurement results to the position calculation unit 21.

However, the present invention is not limited to this. The satellite positioning module 80 does not have to use GPS. For example, the satellite positioning module 80 may use a GNSS other than GPS (GLONASS, Galileo, Michibiki, BeiDou, etc.).

The position calculation unit 21 calculates the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 over time based on the measurement results output by the satellite positioning module 80. As a result, the position calculation unit 21 calculates the trajectory of the combine harvester 1. The area calculation unit 22 then acquires the trajectory of the combine harvester 1 calculated by the position calculation unit 21. In particular, the area calculation unit 22 acquires the trajectory of the combine harvester 1 when the combine harvester 1 performs the above-mentioned outermost running.

More specifically, in this embodiment, the trajectory calculated by the position calculation unit 21 is the trajectory of the inner end of the field of the harvesting section H. In other words, the trajectory calculated by the position calculation unit 21 is the trajectory of the weeding tool 10 located on the inner side of the field out of the left and right weeding tools 10. Then, the area calculation unit 22 acquires this trajectory.

However, the present invention is not limited to this. The trajectory calculated by the position calculation unit 21 and the trajectory acquired by the area calculation unit 22 may be, for example, the trajectory of the satellite positioning module 80.

In FIG. 2, the trajectory of the inner end of the field of the harvesting section H when traveling on the outermost perimeter is shown by a solid arrow. Also, the trajectory of the satellite positioning module 80 when traveling on the outermost perimeter is shown by a virtual arrow. Note that, during actual traveling on the outermost perimeter, the combine 1 changes direction by repeatedly moving forward and backward at the corners of the field. In FIG. 2, only the forward trajectory is shown, and the backward trajectory is omitted.

Based on the acquired trajectory, the area calculation unit 22 calculates the unworked area UA (see Figure 3) in the field at the time of completing the outermost circumference travel.

In this embodiment, the unworked area UA is an area where the combine harvester 1 has not harvested planted stalks. The unworked area UA is also an area surrounded by the area where the combine harvester 1 has performed harvesting travel. The contour of the unworked area UA is determined by the trajectory of the inner end of the harvesting section H around the entire circumference. The contour of the unworked area UA may or may not be polygonal.

The control unit 20 and each element included in the control unit 20, such as the position calculation unit 21, may be a physical device such as a microcomputer, or may be a functional unit in software.

[Generation of target driving route]
When the combine 1 completes its outermost travel, the area calculation unit 22 shown in Fig. 4 determines a polygonal work area CA based on the acquired trajectory. As shown in Fig. 5, in this embodiment, the work area CA is a quadrangle defined by a first side C1, a second side C2, a third side C3, and a fourth side C4. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the work area CA may be, for example, a triangular shape or a pentagonal shape.

Also, as shown in FIG. 5, the work area CA includes the unworked area UA at the time of completion of the outermost circumference run. The contour of the work area CA is in contact with the contour of the unworked area UA at the time of completion of the outermost circumference run.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 20 has a route generation unit 23. Information indicating the work area CA calculated by the area calculation unit 22 is sent from the area calculation unit 22 to the route generation unit 23. The route generation unit 23 generates multiple target reaping routes LI (corresponding to the "target route" according to the present invention) (see FIG. 5) based on the information indicating the work area CA sent from the area calculation unit 22.

The multiple target mowing paths LI are paths along which the combine harvester 1 mows the area inside the outermost area SA. The path generating unit 23 generates the multiple target mowing paths LI so that the entire work area CA is covered by the multiple target mowing paths LI.

That is, the travel control system A is equipped with a route generating unit 23 that generates a target harvesting route LI along which the combine harvester 1 travels.

As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the multiple target reaping paths LI are multiple mesh lines extending vertically and horizontally.

As shown in FIG. 4, the driving control system A includes an inertial measurement device 81. The control unit 20 also includes an orientation acquisition unit 24. The inertial measurement device 81 is mounted on the combine harvester 1.

The inertial measurement unit 81 detects the angular velocity of the yaw angle of the combine harvester 1 and the acceleration in three mutually orthogonal axial directions over time. The detection results by the inertial measurement unit 81 are sent to the orientation acquisition unit 24.

The orientation acquisition unit 24 receives the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 from the position calculation unit 21. The orientation acquisition unit 24 then calculates the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1 based on the detection results from the inertial measurement device 81 and the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1.

More specifically, first, while the combine harvester 1 is traveling, the orientation acquisition unit 24 calculates the initial vehicle orientation based on the current position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 and the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 at the point where it was traveling immediately before. Next, when the combine harvester 1 travels for a certain period of time after the initial vehicle orientation is calculated, the orientation acquisition unit 24 calculates the amount of change in the vehicle orientation by integrating the angular velocity detected by the inertial measurement device 81 during the certain period of travel.

Then, the orientation acquisition unit 24 updates the calculation result of the aircraft orientation by adding the amount of change in the aircraft orientation calculated in this way to the initial aircraft orientation. After that, the amount of change in the aircraft orientation is similarly calculated at regular time intervals, and the calculation result of the aircraft orientation is sequentially updated.

With the above configuration, the orientation acquisition unit 24 calculates the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1. In this way, the orientation acquisition unit 24 acquires the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1.

That is, the driving control system A is equipped with an orientation acquisition unit 24 that acquires the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 20 has a route selection unit 25. The control unit 20 also has a travel control unit 26. The travel control unit 26 is configured to be able to control the travel of the combine harvester 1 by controlling the travel device 2.

The travel control unit 26 controls the travel of the combine harvester 1 so that the combine harvester 1 repeats the reaping travel along a target reaping route LI that has not yet been traveled among the multiple target reaping routes LI. This allows the reaping travel in the field to be performed automatically.

In more detail, the route selection unit 25 selects the target reaping route LI along which the combine harvester 1 should travel next, based on the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 received from the position calculation unit 21 and the multiple target reaping routes LI generated by the route generation unit 23. Information indicating the target reaping route LI selected by the route selection unit 25 is sent to the travel control unit 26.

The travel control unit 26 also receives the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 from the position calculation unit 21. The travel control unit 26 then controls the automatic travel of the combine harvester 1 based on the position coordinates of the combine harvester 1 received from the position calculation unit 21 and information indicating the target harvesting route LI selected by the route selection unit 25. More specifically, the travel control unit 26 controls the travel of the combine harvester 1 so that harvesting travel is performed by automatic travel along the target harvesting route LI.

In this automatic travel, as shown in FIG. 4, the route selection unit 25 sends information indicating the selected target reaping route LI to the route generation unit 23. Based on the information, the route generation unit 23 generates a target turning route TL (corresponding to the "target route" according to the present invention) that connects the end of the target reaping route LI on which the combine harvester 1 is currently traveling and the end of the target reaping route LI to be traveled next, as shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 4, information indicating the generated target turning route TL is sent from the route generation unit 23 to the travel control unit 26. As shown in FIG. 6, the travel control unit 26 controls the travel of the combine harvester 1 so that, after reaping travel along the currently traveling target reaping route LI, turning travel along the target turning route TL is performed, and then reaping travel along the next traveling target reaping route LI (i.e., the target reaping route LI selected by the route selection unit 25) is performed. That is, the route generation unit 23 generates the target turning route TL for the combine harvester 1 to travel.

[Reference part]
As shown in Fig. 4, the control unit 20 has a reference determination unit 27. The reference determination unit 27 determines a reference portion ST (see Fig. 7) from among the portions of the body of the combine harvester 1.

That is, the driving control system A is equipped with a reference determination unit 27 that determines the reference portion ST within the combine 1.

In this embodiment, the reference determination unit 27 can determine the left or right end of the harvesting section H as the reference position ST. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the reference determination unit 27 can determine the front end 10a of the left or right grass dividing tool 10 as the reference position ST. In the example shown in FIG. 7, the front end 10a of the right grass dividing tool 10 is determined as the reference position ST.

The front end 10a of the left weeding tool 10 is a specific example of the left end of the harvesting section H. The front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 is a specific example of the right end of the harvesting section H.

In this way, the reference determination unit 27 can determine the left or right end of the harvesting section H of the combine 1 as the reference section ST.

In addition, in this embodiment, the reference determination unit 27 can determine the central portion 2a (see FIG. 6) as the reference portion ST. The central portion 2a is a portion located in the center of the traveling device 2 in the left-right direction.

That is, the reference determination unit 27 can determine the central portion 2a, which is the portion located in the center position in the left-right direction of the traveling device 2 of the combine harvester 1, as the reference portion ST.

The reference determination unit 27 is configured to determine the reference part ST according to the working conditions of the combine harvester 1. The determination of the reference part ST is described in detail below.

When the combine harvester 1 is traveling automatically, as shown in FIG. 4, the travel control unit 26 sends information indicating the working status of the combine harvester 1 to the reference determination unit 27. The reference determination unit 27 determines the reference part ST based on the information. With this configuration, the reference determination unit 27 determines the reference part ST based on the working status of the combine harvester 1.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, when the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target harvesting path LI, the reference determination unit 27 determines the left or right end of the harvesting section H as the reference position ST. In this case, in this embodiment, the front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 is determined as the reference position ST.

However, the present invention is not limited to this. When the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target harvesting path LI, the reference determination unit 27 may determine the front end 10a of the left grass dividing tool 10 as the reference position ST. Also, for example, the reference determination unit 27 may determine the front end 10a of the grass dividing tool 10 located on the inside of the field out of the left and right grass dividing tools 10 as the reference position ST, or may determine the front end 10a of the grass dividing tool 10 located on the outside of the field as the reference position ST.

In addition, as shown in the enlarged view in FIG. 6, when the combine harvester 1 is turning along the target turning path TL, the reference determination unit 27 determines the central portion 2a as the reference portion ST.

With this configuration, when the combine harvester 1 starts turning along the target turning path TL after cutting along the target cutting path LI, the reference determination unit 27 changes the reference position ST from the front end portion 10a of the right dividing tool 10 to the central portion 2a. Also, when the combine harvester 1 starts cutting along the target cutting path LI after cutting along the target cutting path TL, the reference determination unit 27 changes the reference position ST from the central portion 2a to the front end portion 10a of the right dividing tool 10.

In other words, the reference determination unit 27 changes the reference part ST depending on the working conditions of the combine harvester 1.

[Distance Control]
4, the orientation acquisition unit 24 sends the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1 to the position calculation unit 21. In addition, the reference determination unit 27 sends information indicating the determined reference part ST to the position calculation unit 21. The position calculation unit 21 calculates the position of the reference part ST over time based on the information, the measurement results by the satellite positioning module 80, and the machine orientation of the combine harvester 1. The position of the reference part ST calculated by the position calculation unit 21 is a position in the field.

That is, the driving control system A includes a position calculation unit 21 that calculates the position of the reference part ST based on the measurement results by the satellite positioning module 80. The position calculation unit 21 also calculates the position of the reference part ST based on the measurement results by the satellite positioning module 80 and the aircraft orientation.

For example, in the example shown in FIG. 8, the front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 is determined as the reference position ST. In the combine harvester 1 of this embodiment, the front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 is positioned in a direction tilted to the right at a predetermined angle E from the front when viewed from the satellite positioning module 80. The distance between the satellite positioning module 80 and the front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 in a plan view is the first distance D1. The positional relationship between the satellite positioning module 80 and the front end 10a of the right weeding tool 10 is pre-stored in the position calculation unit 21. In FIG. 8, the dashed arrow passing through the satellite positioning module 80 indicates the front of the machine.

In the example shown in FIG. 8, the position calculation unit 21 calculates the position of the reference portion ST to be a position that is tilted at a predetermined angle E to the right with respect to the front of the combine harvester 1 when viewed from the position of the satellite positioning module 80 in the field, and that is a first distance D1 away from the position of the satellite positioning module 80 in the field.

As shown in FIG. 8, in the combine harvester 1 of this embodiment, the central portion 2a is located immediately behind the satellite positioning module 80. The distance between the satellite positioning module 80 and the central portion 2a in a plan view is a second distance D2. The positional relationship between the satellite positioning module 80 and the central portion 2a is pre-stored in the position calculation unit 21.

When the central portion 2a is determined as the reference portion ST, the position calculation unit 21 calculates the position of the reference portion ST to be a position that is located immediately behind the position of the satellite positioning module 80 in the field and is a second distance D2 away from the position of the satellite positioning module 80 in the field.

As shown in FIG. 4, the position of the reference part ST calculated by the position calculation unit 21 is sent to the travel control unit 26. When the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target harvesting route LI, the travel control unit 26 controls the travel of the combine harvester 1 based on the position of the reference part ST and the target harvesting route LI. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the travel control unit 26 performs distance control to control the travel of the combine harvester 1 so that the distance between the position of the reference part ST and the target harvesting route LI becomes a predetermined distance. In the example shown in FIG. 7, the predetermined distance is the harvesting distance Y.

As shown in FIG. 7, the mowing distance Y is set so that the satellite positioning module 80 is positioned on the target mowing path LI by distance control.

As shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 6, when the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target turning path TL, the travel control unit 26 controls the traveling of the combine harvester 1 based on the position of the reference part ST and the target turning path TL. At this time, the travel control unit 26 performs distance control to control the traveling of the combine harvester 1 so that the distance between the position of the reference part ST and the target turning path TL becomes a predetermined distance. In the example shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 6, the predetermined distance is 0 (zero). Note that the unit of distance here is not particularly limited, and may be 0 meters or 0 centimeters.

In other words, when the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target turning path TL, the traveling of the combine harvester 1 is controlled so that the reference portion ST moves on the target turning path TL.

In this way, the travel control system A is equipped with a travel control unit 26 that performs distance control to control the travel of the combine harvester 1 so that the distance between the position of the reference part ST and the target harvesting path LI or the target turning path TL becomes a predetermined distance.

This "predetermined distance" may be changed depending on the working conditions of the combine harvester 1 and the reference area ST, or it may be a fixed value that does not change.

According to the configuration described above, the travel of the combine harvester 1 is controlled so that the distance between the position of the reference part ST and the target harvesting path LI or the target turning path TL is a predetermined distance. The reference part ST is then changed depending on the work situation. Therefore, if the most important part is determined as the reference part ST depending on the work situation, the position of the most important part can be controlled with high precision. As a result, the travel position of the combine harvester 1 is more likely to be appropriate.

For example, when a combine harvester 1 equipped with a harvesting section H performs a harvesting run, if the front end portion 10a of the right weed splitting tool 10 in the harvesting section H is determined as the reference position ST, the position of the front end portion 10a of the right weed splitting tool 10 can be controlled with high precision. As a result, the running position of the combine harvester 1 is likely to be appropriate.

In other words, the configuration described above makes it possible to realize a driving control system A that can easily adjust the driving position of the combine harvester 1 to an appropriate position.

Other embodiments
(1) The traveling device 2 may be of a wheel type or a semi-crawler type.

(2) In the above embodiment, the target mowing route LI generated by the route generating unit 23 is a plurality of mesh lines extending vertically and horizontally. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the target mowing route LI generated by the route generating unit 23 does not have to be a plurality of mesh lines extending vertically and horizontally. For example, the target mowing route LI generated by the route generating unit 23 may be a spiral driving route. In addition, the target mowing route LI does not have to be perpendicular to another target mowing route LI. In addition, the target mowing route LI generated by the route generating unit 23 may be a plurality of parallel lines that are parallel to each other.

(3) The driving control system A may be configured to control the driving of a type of work vehicle other than the combine harvester 1. For example, the driving control system A may control the driving of a tractor or a rice transplanter. In this case, the tractor and the rice transplanter both correspond to the "work vehicle" according to the present invention. Furthermore, when the tractor performs tilling work or agricultural material spreading work (e.g., fertilizer spreading work), the tilling device and the spreading device both correspond to the "working device" according to the present invention. Furthermore, when the rice transplanter performs seedling planting work, the seedling planting device corresponds to the "working device" according to the present invention.

(4) The travel control unit 26 may be configured not to perform distance control when the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target turning path TL.

(5) The parts determined as the reference parts ST in the above embodiment are merely examples, and any part of the combine 1 may be determined as the reference part ST.

(6) The specified distance in the distance control when the combine harvester 1 is automatically traveling along the target mowing route LI does not have to be set so that the satellite positioning module 80 is positioned on the target mowing route LI by the distance control.

(7) The position calculation unit 21 may be configured not to calculate the trajectory of the inner end of the field of the harvesting section H.

The configurations disclosed in the above-mentioned embodiments (including other embodiments, the same applies below) can be applied in combination with configurations disclosed in other embodiments, so long as no contradiction occurs. Furthermore, the embodiments disclosed in this specification are merely examples, and the embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the purpose of the present invention.

The present invention can be used not only for normal combine harvesters, but also for a variety of work vehicles, such as head-feeding combine harvesters, tractors, rice transplanters, corn harvesters, potato harvesters, carrot harvesters, and construction machines.

1 Combine (work vehicle)
2 Traveling device 2a Central portion 21 Position calculation unit 23 Route generation unit 24 Orientation acquisition unit 26 Traveling control unit 27 Reference determination unit 80 Satellite positioning module (positioning device)
A Travel control system H Harvesting section (working equipment)
LI target reaping route (target route)
ST Reference part TL Target turning path (target path)

Claims (5)

A travel control system for controlling travel of a work vehicle having a positioning device and a work device and capable of work travel while performing work using the work device ,
the positioning device is configured to measure a position of the positioning device;
a reference determination unit for determining a reference portion within the work vehicle;
a position calculation unit that calculates the position of the reference portion based on a measurement result by the positioning device;
a route generating unit that generates a target route along which the work vehicle travels;
a travel control unit that performs distance control to control the travel of the work vehicle so that a distance between the position of the reference portion and the target route becomes a predetermined distance,
The reference determination unit is a driving control system that changes the reference portion depending on whether the work vehicle is performing work driving . An orientation acquisition unit for acquiring an orientation of the vehicle body of the work vehicle,
The cruise control system according to claim 1 , wherein the position calculation unit calculates the position of the reference portion based on a measurement result by the positioning device and the aircraft orientation. The driving control system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the predetermined distance is set so that the positioning device is positioned on the target route by the distance control. The travel control system according to claim 1 , wherein the reference determination unit is capable of determining a left end or a right end of the working implement as the reference part. The travel control system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the reference determination unit is capable of determining, as the reference part, a central part that is a part located in the center position in the left-right direction of the travel device of the work vehicle.

Images