Bulk store management during load-in of grain
AssigneeGrain Weevil Corporation
InventorsBenjamin H. Johnson, Chad E. Johnson, Zane Zents
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A robot comprises an auger-based drive system, a memory, and a processor coupled with the memory and configured to control movement of the robot, via the auger-based drive system, relative to grain in a grain bin. The processor is further configured to direct traversal, by the robot, of a landing zone portion of a surface of a pile of the grain during load-in of the grain to disperse broken grain and foreign material away from the landing zone portion. The landing zone portion is located in a center of the grain bin where the grain lands as it is augured into the grain bin during load-in. The dispersal is affected in part by rotation of augers of the auger-based drive system.
Claims20
A robot comprising:
- an auger-based drive system;
- a memory;
- and
- a processor coupled with the memory and configured to:
- control movement of the robot, via the auger-based drive system, relative to grain in a bulk store;
- and
- direct traversal, by the robot, of a landing zone portion of a surface of a pile of the grain during load-in of the grain to disperse broken grain and foreign material away from the landing zone portion, wherein the landing zone portion is located where loaded-in grain lands as it is augured into and falls on the pile in the bulk store during load-in, wherein the dispersal is effected in part by rotation of augers of the auger-based drive system, and wherein the traversal of the landing zone portion of the pile of grain is directed by the processor according to one of:
- a predetermined pattern of movement stored in the memory;
- an ad hoc autonomous fashion determined by the processor;
- and
- remote control instructions received by the robot.
A method of bulk store management during load-in of grain, the method comprising:
- receiving, at a robot, instructions to traverse a surface of pile of grain in a bulk store;
- controlling, by a processor of the robot according to the instructions, movement of the robot relative to the grain in the bulk store via an auger-based drive system;
- and
- traversing, by the robot under direction by the processor, a landing zone portion of a surface of a pile of the grain during load-in of the grain to disperse broken grain and foreign material away from the landing zone portion, wherein the landing zone portion is located where the grain lands as it is augured into and falls on the pile in the bulk store during load-in, wherein the dispersal is effected in part by rotation of augers of the auger-based drive system, and wherein the traversal of the landing zone portion of the pile of grain is directed by the processor according to one of:
- a predetermined pattern of movement stored in a memory of the robot;
- an ad hoc autonomous fashion determined by the processor;
- and
- remote control instructions received by the robot.
A non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising instructions embodied thereon which, when executed, cause a processor to perform a method of bulk store management during load-in of grain, the method comprising:
- controlling movement of a robot, via an auger-based drive system of the robot, relative to grain in a bulk store;
- and
- directing traversal, by the robot, of a landing zone portion of a surface of a pile of the grain during load-in of the grain to the bulk store to disperse broken grain and foreign material away from the landing zone portion, wherein the landing zone portion is located where loaded-in grain lands as it is augured into and falls on the pile in the bulk store during load-in, wherein the dispersal is effected in part by rotation of augers of the auger-based drive system, and wherein the traversal of the landing zone portion of the pile of grain is directed by the processor according to one of:
- a predetermined pattern of movement stored in a memory of the robot;
- an ad hoc autonomous fashion determined by the processor;
- and
- remote control instructions received by the robot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.