Header identification in a harvesting machine

In a harvesting machine comprising:

• a harvesting vehicle mounted on ground wheels for movement across ground carrying a crop for harvesting;
• a header having a cutter bar for cutting the crop and a crop transport device for transporting the cut crop to a collection location of the header;
• a mounting assembly supporting the header on the harvesting machine;
• the mounting assembly including a float actuator operable between an inactive state in which the header is rigidly supported relative to the harvesting vehicle and an active state in which the float actuator applies a variable lifting force to the header throughout a range of floating movement of the header relative to the harvesting vehicle such that the header is partially supported by ground lifting forces from the header being engaged upon the ground in the active state;
• a computer controller on the harvesting vehicle including a memory storing programming instructions thereon and a processor for executing the programming instructions stored on the memory;
• the computer controller being in communication with the float actuator so as to be arranged to determine when the float actuator is in the active state and when the float actuator is in the inactive state;
• and
• a communication element on the header arranged to connect with the computer controller independently of the mounting assembly supporting the header on the harvesting vehicle;
• the improvement comprising:
• the computer controller being arranged to automatically identify the header when the communication element of the header is connected with the computer controller in which the communication element outputs an identification to the computer controller representative of the identity of the header;
• and
• the programming instructions being executable by the processor so as to be arranged to generate a notification to the user responsive to notification criteria stored on the computer controller being met, wherein the notification criteria comprises at least one of:
• (i) the computer controller receiving the identification from the communication element on the header while the float actuator is determined to be in the inactive state;
• or
• (ii) the computer controller determining that the communication element on the header is not connected with the computer controller while the float actuator is determined to be in the active state.