Systems and methods for determining cotton quality characteristics and classifying cotton clusters

A computer implemented method comprising:

• detecting, with one or more cotton quality characteristic sensors on-board a cotton harvester, a plurality of cotton quality characteristics and generating cotton quality characteristic sensor data indicative of the detected plurality of cotton quality characteristics;
• obtaining the cotton quality characteristic sensor data;
• determining, for each cotton cluster of a plurality of cotton clusters generated by the cotton harvester, a respective set of cotton quality metrics based on the cotton quality characteristic sensor data, wherein, for each respective set, each cotton quality metric corresponds to a different cotton quality characteristic of the plurality of cotton quality characteristics than the other cotton quality metrics of the respective set;
• and
• generating one or more control signals based on at least one respective set of cotton quality metrics.

A cotton harvester comprising:

• one or more cotton quality characteristic sensors configured to detect a plurality of cotton quality characteristics and to generate cotton quality characteristic sensor data indicative of the detected plurality of cotton quality characteristics;
• one or more processors;
• and
• memory storing computer executable instructions, executable by the one or more processors, the computer executable instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, causing the one or more processors perform steps comprising:
• obtaining the cotton quality characteristic sensor data;
• determining, for each cotton cluster, of a plurality of cotton clusters generated by the cotton harvester, a respective set of cotton quality metrics based on the cotton quality characteristic sensor data, wherein, for each respective set, each cotton quality metric corresponds to a different cotton quality characteristic of the plurality of cotton quality characteristics than the other cotton quality metrics of the respective set;
• and
• generating a control signal based on at least one respective set of cotton quality metrics.