# US 2016/0252384 A1 · Method of sensing volume of loose material > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2016/0252384 A1 - Document ID: US20160252384A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/152,111 - Filed: 2016-05-11 - Published: 2016-09-01 - Earliest claimed: 2014-08-28 - Assignees: Raven Industries, Inc. - Inventors: Edwin Ernest Wilson; John D. Preheim; Robert Leonard Nelson, JR. - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20160252384A1 ## CPC - G01F 22/00: Methods or apparatus for measuring volume of fluids or fluent solid material, not otherwise provided for - A01D 41/00: Combines, i.e. harvesters or mowers combined with threshing devices - A01D 41/1217: {Unloading mechanisms} - A01D 41/127: Control or measuring arrangements specially adapted for combines - B60P 1/00: Vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading, consolidating the load, or unloading (vehicles for carrying harvested crops with means for self-loading or self-unloading A01D90/00; peculiar to refuse collecting-vehicles B65F; loading or unloading vehicles by means not incorporated therein B65G) - G01S 17/42: Simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates (indirect measurement G01S17/46) - G01S 17/88: Lidar systems specially adapted for specific applications - G01F 23/292: Light {, e.g. infrared or ultraviolet} - G01F 23/2928: {using light reflected on the material surface} - G01F 23/802: {Particular electronic circuits for digital processing equipment} - G01F: MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME - A01D: HARVESTING; MOWING - B60P: VEHICLES ADAPTED FOR LOAD TRANSPORTATION OR TO TRANSPORT, TO CARRY, OR TO COMPRISE SPECIAL LOADS OR OBJECTS (vehicles with special provisions for transporting patients or disabled persons, or their personal conveyances A61G3/00) - G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES ## Abstract A system for determining a volume of loose material within a container comprises a support arm mountable above the container, an array of one or more sensors mounted to the support arm, wherein each of the one or more sensors is configured to determine a discrete distance measurement between the array and a surface of the loose material or a surface of the container, and at least one processor in communication with the array of one or more sensors, the processor configured to estimate a volume of the loose material in the container from discrete distance measurements determined by the one or more sensors of the array. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system for determining a volume of loose material within a container, the system comprising: a support arm mountable above the container; an array of one or more sensors mounted to the support arm, wherein each of the one or more sensors is configured to determine a discrete distance measurement between the array and an upper surface of the loose material or an inner surface of the container; and at least one processor in communication with the array of one or more sensors, the processor configured to estimate a volume of the loose material in the container from discrete distance measurements determined by the one or more sensors of the array. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more sensors comprises a linear distance sensor directed toward the container. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more sensors is oriented at a corresponding discrete predetermined angle relative to the container in order to determine distance measurements between the array and the upper surface of the loose material within the container or the inner surface of the container. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is configured to estimate the volume of the loose material by estimating a cross-sectional area of the loose material within the container. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to integrate the estimated cross-sectional area along a length of the container to provide the estimate of the volume of the loose material. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The system of claim 4, wherein each of the sensors is oriented in a common plane so that the array of sensors produces distance measurements in the common plane in order to estimate the cross-sectional area of the loose material in the common plane. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The system of claim 6, wherein the cross-sectional area in the common plane is estimated according to the equation: A M = 1 2  ∑ i = 0 n - 1  x i + 1 * y i - y i + 1 * x i where AM is the estimated cross-sectional area in the common plane, n is the number of sensors, xi and yi are the x and y coordinates of an end point measurement of each sensor of the array, wherein xi is calculated by the equation: xi=Di cos(θi) where Di is a distance measurement determined by each sensor of the array and θi is an angle of a sensing signal of each sensor with respect to a horizontal axis, and wherein yi is calculated by the equation: yi=Di sin(θi). ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising at least one movement device for moving the position of the support arm relative to the container. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the support arm comprises or is mounted to an unloading device for unloading the loose material into the container. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a second array of one or more second sensors, wherein the at least one processor is in communication with the second array of one or more second sensors, the second array being angled relative to the first array of linear distance sensors, wherein the processor is configured to determine an orientation of the first array and the second array relative to the container based on the angle between the first array and the second array. ### Claim 11 A method comprising the steps of: providing or receiving an array of one or more sensors configured to determine a position of a surface relative to the array; scanning a container holding a loose particulate material with the one or more sensors of the array to determine position measurements of one or more surfaces within the container; and determining an estimate of the volume of the loose particulate material in the container based on the position measurements of the one or more surfaces within the container. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein determining the estimate of the volume of the loose particulate material comprises: estimating a cross-sectional area of the loose particulate material within the container; and integrating the cross-sectional area across a length of the container. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein integrating the cross-sectional area of the loose particulate material comprises multiplying the cross-sectional area by the length of the container. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein integrating the cross-sectional area of the loose particulate material comprises scanning a plurality of cross sections of the container and determining a corresponding cross-sectional area of the loose particulate material for each of the plurality of scanned cross sections and estimating the volume using the plurality of determined cross-sectional areas. ### Claim 15 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein scanning the container comprises each of the one or more sensors determining one or more discrete distance measurements between the array and an upper surface of the loose material or an inner surface of the container, and wherein determining the estimate of the volume comprises estimating the volume of the loose material in the container from the one or more discrete distance measurements determined by the one or more sensors of the array. ### Claim 16 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein providing or receiving the array of one or more sensors comprises orienting each of the one or more sensors at a corresponding discrete predetermined angle relative to the container. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The system of claim 16, wherein providing or receiving the array of one or more sensors comprises orienting each of the one or more sensors in a common plane so that the array of sensors produces distance measurements in the common plane, and wherein determining the estimate of volume comprises estimating the cross-sectional area of the loose material in the common plane using the distance measurements in the common plane. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The method of claim 17, wherein estimating the cross-sectional area in the common plane comprises calculating an estimated cross-sectional area AM according to the equation: A M = 1 2  ∑ i = 0 n - 1  x i + 1 * y i - y i + 1 * x i where n is the number of sensors, xi and yi are the x and y coordinates of an end point measurement of each sensor of the array, wherein xi is calculated by the equation: xi=Di cos(θi) where Di is a distance measurement determined by each sensor of the array and θi is an angle of a sensing signal of each sensor with respect to a horizontal axis, and wherein yi is calculated by the equation: yi=Di sin(θi). ### Claim 19 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein scanning the container with the one or more sensors of the array comprises moving the position of the array relative to the container. ### Claim 20 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising providing or receiving a second array of one or more second sensors angled relative to the first array of linear distance sensors at a specified angle, wherein determining the estimate of the volume of the loose particulate comprises determining an orientation of the first array and the second array relative to the container based on the specified angle between the first array and the second array.