# US 12,183,025 B2 · Soil sensing target selection > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,183,025 B2 - Document ID: US12183025B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/590,438 - Filed: 2022-02-01 - Published: 2023-08-03 - Granted: 2024-12-31 - Earliest claimed: 2022-02-01 - Assignees: Deere & Company - Applicants: Deere & Company - Inventors: David Clifford; Emi E. Muranaka - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12183025B2 ## CPC - G06T 7/70: Determining position or orientation of objects or cameras (camera calibration G06T7/80) - B25J 5/00: Manipulators mounted on wheels or on carriages (B25J1/00 takes precedence; program-controlled manipulators B25J9/00) - B25J 5/007: {mounted on wheels} - B25J 19/023: {including video camera means} - G01N 33/24: Earth materials (G01N33/42 takes precedence) - G01N 33/245: {for agricultural purposes} - G06V 20/188: {Vegetation} - G06V 20/56: exterior to a vehicle by using sensors mounted on the vehicle - G06T 2207/30188: Vegetation; Agriculture - G06T 2207/30252: Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle - G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL - B25J: MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES ({manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery A61B34/70; manipulators used in cleaning hollow articles B08B9/04}; manipulators associated with rolling mills B21B39/20; manipulators associated with forging machines B21J13/10; {manipulators associated with picking-up and placing mechanisms B23P19/007}; means for holding wheels or parts thereof B60B30/00; {vehicles with ground-engaging propulsion means, e.g. walking members B62D57/02, B62D57/032; devices for picking-up and depositing articles or materials between conveyors B65G47/90, B65G47/91; manipulators with gripping or holding means for transferring packages B65H67/065}; cranes B66C; {manipulators used in the protection or supervision of pipe-line installations F17D5/00; walking equipment adapted for nuclear steam-generators F22B37/006}; manipulators specially adapted for, or associated with, nuclear reactors G21C; {apparatus used for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor H10P72/50}) - G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q) - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING ## Abstract Implementations are described herein for optimizing soil sensing spatial selection. In various implementations, object recognition processing may be performed on one or more images captured by a vision sensor carried by a vehicle as the vehicle travels through the agricultural field. Based on the object recognition processing, one or more plants depicted in the one or more images may be identified, and one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle may be determined. One or more soil sensing targets may be selected on the ground at one or more selected distances from the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle. One or more manipulators carried by the vehicle may be operated to perform soil sensing at the one or more soil sensing targets. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method implemented by one or more processors while a vehicle travels through an agricultural field, the method comprising: performing object recognition processing on one or more images captured by a vision sensor carried by the vehicle as the vehicle travels through the agricultural field; based on the object recognition processing, identifying one or more plants depicted in the one or more images; determining one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle; selecting one or more soil sensing targets on a ground of the agricultural field at one or more selected distances from the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle, wherein each of the one or more soil sensing targets corresponds to a position in the field to sense the one or more sensing targets; and responsive to the vehicle being positioned near a location of an identified plant, operating one or more manipulators carried by the vehicle to perform soil sensing of a soil sensing target by positioning the one or more manipulators of the vehicle at the position corresponding to the soil sensing target. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle are determined based at least in part on extrinsic parameters of the vision sensor relative to the vehicle. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle are determined based at least in part on depth measurements obtained by the vision sensor or by another sensor carried by the vehicle. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting is further based on one or more soil sensing constraints. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include an optimal range of distances between a soil sensing target and one or more of the identified plants. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include a location on the ground of a prior fertilizer injection. ### Claim 7 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include a location between rows of plants. ### Claim 8 (depends on 4) The method of claim 4, wherein the selecting comprises optimizing an objective function with respect to the one or more soil sensing targets, subject to the one or more soil sensing constraints. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The method of claim 8, wherein the optimizing comprises simulated annealing or linear programming. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein one or more of the manipulators comprises a robot arm. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the robot arm includes an end effector configured to extract a soil sample for subsequent lab analysis. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein the robot arm includes, as an end effector, a proximal soil sensor. ### Claim 13 A system comprising one or more processors and memory storing computer program instructions that, in response to execution of the computer program instructions by the one or more processors and while a vehicle comprising the one or more processors and computer program instructions travels through an agricultural field, cause the one or more processors to: perform object recognition processing on one or more images captured by a vision sensor carried by the vehicle as the vehicle travels through the agricultural field; based on the object recognition processing, identify one or more plants depicted in the one or more images; determine one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle; select one or more soil sensing targets on a ground of the agricultural field at one or more selected distances from the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle, wherein each of the one or more soil sensing targets corresponds to a position in the field to sense the one or more sensing targets; and responsive to the vehicle being positioned near a location of an identified plant, operate one or more manipulators carried by the vehicle to perform soil sensing of a soil sensing target by positioning the one or more manipulators of the vehicle at the position corresponding to the soil sensing target. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The system of claim 13, wherein the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle are determined based at least in part on extrinsic parameters of the vision sensor relative to the vehicle. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The system of claim 13, wherein the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle are determined based at least in part on depth measurements obtained by the vision sensor or by another sensor carried by the vehicle. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The system of claim 13, wherein the soil sensing targets are selected further based on one or more soil sensing constraints. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include an optimal range of distances between a soil sensing target and one or more of the identified plants. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include a location on the ground of a prior fertilizer injection. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more soil sensing constraints include a location between rows of plants. ### Claim 20 A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising computer program instructions that, in response to execution of the computer program instructions by one or more processors and while a vehicle comprising the one or more processors and computer program instructions travels through an agricultural field, cause the processor to: perform object recognition processing on one or more images captured by a vision sensor carried by the vehicle as the vehicle travels through the agricultural field; based on the object recognition processing, identify one or more plants depicted in the one or more images; determine one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle; select one or more soil sensing targets on a ground of the agricultural field at one or more selected distances from the one or more locations of the one or more identified plants relative to the vehicle, wherein each of the one or more soil sensing targets corresponds to a position in the field to sense the one or more sensing targets; and responsive to the vehicle being positioned near a location of an identified plant, operate one or more manipulators carried by the vehicle to perform soil sensing of a soil sensing target by positioning the one or more manipulators of the vehicle at the position corresponding to the soil sensing target.