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US 12,250,893 B2Granted
Powertrain system and management
AssigneeAgtonomy
InventorsTimothy Bucher, Steven Holmes
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An agricultural tractor may include a powertrain configured to drive one or more wheels of the agricultural tractor. In these and other embodiments, the powertrain may be configured to operate in multiple powertrain modes. The agricultural tractor may also include an image sensor configured to capture an image of an environment surrounding the agricultural tractor and a processing system. In some embodiments, the processing system may be configured to perform operations. In these and other embodiments, the operations may include determining an environmental condition surrounding the agricultural tractor based on the image and selecting one of the multiple powertrain modes based on the environmental condition.
Claims20
An agricultural tractor comprising:
- a powertrain configured to drive one or more wheels of the agricultural tractor, the powertrain configured to operate in a plurality of powertrain modes;
- an image sensor configured to capture an image of an environment surrounding the agricultural tractor;
- and
- a processing system configured to perform operations including:
- determine an environmental condition surrounding the agricultural tractor based on the image;
- obtain operational data regarding operation of the agricultural tractor, the operational data including a selection to prioritize one or more of:
- fuel consumption, operational speed, soil disruption, and soil compaction;
- and
- select one of the plurality of powertrain modes based on the environmental condition and the selection from the operational data, wherein a threshold for a value of the environmental condition used to select a first powertrain mode of the plurality of powertrain modes is adjusted based on the obtained operational data such that for a first environmental condition with a value, the first powertrain mode is selected in response to first operational data and a second powertrain mode is selected in response to second operational data.
6 more elements
An agricultural tractor comprising:
- a powertrain configured to drive one or more wheels of the agricultural tractor, the powertrain configured to operate in a plurality of powertrain modes and each of the plurality of powertrain modes includes a configuration of one or more of:
- an air pressure of the one or more wheels, a wheel-base length for one or more axles of the powertrain, and weight distribution for each of the one or more wheels;
- and
- a processing system configured to perform operations including:
- determine an environmental condition surrounding the agricultural tractor;
- select one of the plurality of powertrain modes based on the environmental condition;
- direct the powertrain to change to the selected one of the plurality of powertrain modes;
- after directing the powertrain to change, obtain an input from a user to direct the powertrain to change to a different one of the plurality of powertrain modes;
- and
- in response to obtaining the input from the user, adjust criteria for selection of the different one of the plurality of powertrain modes such that in the future the different one of the plurality of powertrain modes is selected based on the environmental condition.
7 more elements
A method to control a tractor, the method comprising:
- obtaining an image of an environment surrounding an agricultural tractor;
- determining an environmental condition surrounding the agricultural tractor based on the image;
- selecting one of a plurality of powertrain modes of the agricultural tractor based on the environmental condition;
- directing a powertrain of the agricultural tractor to change to the selected one of the plurality of powertrain modes;
- obtaining historical data that includes one or more powertrain modes selected on a plurality of previous days and condition information for each of the plurality of previous days, the condition information for a day of the plurality of previous days including one or more of:
- a weather season that includes the day, a weather pattern corresponding to the day, and an irrigation pattern corresponding to the day;
- after directing the powertrain of the agricultural tractor to change, obtaining a second image of a second environment surrounding the agricultural tractor;
- determining a second environmental condition surrounding the agricultural tractor is unable to be determined based on the second image;
- analyzing the historical data to identify a previous day of the plurality of previous days that includes condition information that corresponds to current conditions of the second environment;
- and
- in response to being unable to determine the second environmental condition based on the second image, directing the powertrain of the agricultural tractor to change to a powertrain mode of the plurality of powertrain modes used on the identified previous day.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.