DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Status of the Claims
This action is in response to the Applicant’s filing on January 2, 2026. Claims 6, 13 and 18 have been cancelled. Claims 1, 3-5, 7-12, 14-17 and 19-26 are pending and examined below.
Response to Arguments
Applicant appears to argue that the rejections on obviousness are sustained with mere conclusory statements (Applicant Remarks page 8 third paragraph). However, secondary references, Brubaker, Christiansen 1-3 and Issac, each provide a teaching, suggestion, or motivation for combining elements taught by the secondary references with the primary reference, Vandike. Motivations for each combination are stated within the final paragraph of each rejection. These motivations are articulated reasonings with rational underpinnings and thus establish prima facie cases of obviousness (MPEP 2143.01(IV) and 2144(II)).
In response to applicant's argument that the examiner's conclusion of obviousness is based upon improper hindsight reasoning (Applicant Remarks page 8 third paragraph), it must be recognized that any judgment on obviousness is in a sense necessarily a reconstruction based upon hindsight reasoning. But so long as it takes into account only knowledge which was within the level of ordinary skill at the time the claimed invention was made, and does not include knowledge gleaned only from the applicant's disclosure, such a reconstruction is proper. See In re McLaughlin, 443 F.2d 1392, 170 USPQ 209 (CCPA 1971).
The previous rejections of claims 1 and 3-23 under 35 U.S.C. 103 are withdrawn in consideration of amended independent claims 1, 14 and 15. However, new rejections of claims 1, 3-5, 7-12, 14-17 and 19-23 under 35 U.S.C. 103 are set forth below.
On page 11 Applicant claims that a location of a histogram, between boundary-indicating lines, is not a matter of design choice and does directly relate to a functional benefit not gained by displaying a bar graph that represents the height of deposited crop residue in widthwise sections of a row in any location. Applicant states that “the histogram provides a way for the user to easily envisage the cross-section of the residue between the boundary indicating lines so that the user can adjust the settings of the harvester based on the histogram such that the harvester expels the residue in a uniform or non-uniform way, as desired by the user.” However, the combination of Vandike and Brubaker teaches or suggests displaying a bar graph or histogram representing the vertical thickness or height of a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue which can be interpreted as a cross-section of an area of deposited residue. Vandike states that the functional benefit of displaying crop residue parameters as a bar graph or histogram is to allow an operator to make manual adjustments to the harvester during harvesting (¶ [0017] & [0065]). Therefore, the location of the histogram within the image, between the boundary-indicating lines, is a matter of design choice and does not directly relate to the functional benefit, stated above, of displaying a bar graph that represents the height of deposited crop residue in widthwise sections of a row in any location of the image, as taught by the combination of Vandike and Brubaker.
Claim Objections
Claim 9 and 19 objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 9 reads in part, “the user operator’s cab comprises one or more controls being operatively connected that enables the user operator in modifying one or more adjustable parameters” (Emphasis added). The bolded section of the claim appears to be a typographical error and might read more clearly as “enables the user operator to modify” or some other alternative.
Claim 19 is dependent on cancelled claim 18. For the purpose of compact prosecution, examiner interprets claim 19 to be dependent on claim 16.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1, 5, 7-12, 14 and 26 are rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0015039 by Vandike et al. (herein after "Vandike"), in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0338422 by Brubaker (herein after "Brubaker") and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0394923 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 1").
Note: Text written in bold typeface is claim language from the instant application. Text written in normal typeface are comments made by the Examiner and/or passages from the prior art reference(s).
Regarding claim 1, Vandike discloses an agricultural residue depositing apparatus comprising:
a mobile harvesting machine generating agricultural residue and depositing it on a ground surface over which the mobile harvesting machine moves (Vandike ¶ [0021]: Harvester 22 comprise an agricultural machine that separates crop plants from the growing medium and that further processes the crop plants to separate the targeted portion of the crop plant, such as grain, from unwanted portions of the crop plant, such as straw, chaff or other crop residue; Vandike ¶ [0049]: Combine harvester 410 comprises a main frame 412 having wheeled structure including front and rear ground engaging wheels 414 and 415 supporting the main frame for forward movement over a field of crop to be harvested; Vandike ¶ [0058]: crop residue 53 is spread by spreader 446 in a row tailing from harvester 422 as harvester 422 traverses a field);
one or more sensors sensing the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0012]: The camera may be of various types including, but not limited to, an optical camera, a thermal imaging camera, a radar-based camera, a hyperspectral camera and a light imaging detection and radiation (LIDAR) camera. In some implementations, the camera used to capture the image of the crop residue, prior to discharge or after discharge from the harvester, is carried by the harvester itself); and
one or more processors operably connected to the one or more sensors (Vandike ¶ [0061]: Controller 450 carries out both image analysis and control operations; Fig. 6), the one or more processors additionally being operatively connected to the interface device in which the interface device generates one or more images (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 outputs control signals to a display 460 within cab 435 or at a remote operator control station; Fig. 6) based on one or more signals generated by the one or more sensors relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 may present the derived statistical values for at least one parameter of the crop residue. For example, controller 450 may present data regarding parameters such as crop residue moisture, average crop residue length, percentage of different crop residue types present in the crop residue. In some implementations, controller 450 may present the derived at each of the different locations or stages. For example, controller 450 may present on display 460 a first set of values for different crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-1, a second different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-2, a third different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-3, the fourth set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-4 and a fifth different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-5. The different values presented to the operator may indicate the state of the crop residue at different locations as it passes through and his discharge from harvester 422);
wherein the one or more processors add user interpretable augmentation to one or more of the images indicating one or more parameters relating to the agricultural residue deposited, wherein the interface device comprises a visual display visible to a user operator and that displays the one or more images relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0064]: As further shown by FIG. 6, the different values for the different parameters may be determined for individual widthwise portions of the overall trailing row of crop residue discharged from harvester of 422. These different values may be presented on display 460. In the example illustrated, controller 450 outputs signals causing display 462 present a graph having a first bar 461-1 displaying the derived values for a crop parameter for widthwise portion 453-1, a second bar 461-2 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise portion 453-2 and a third bar 461-3 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise 453-3 of the discharged row of crop residue; crop residue map 490, crop residue rows 492, and display 460/462 in Fig. 6),
.
It is noted Vandike discloses a crop residue field map that includes lines indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue deposited that can be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations (Vandike ¶ [0066]: controller 450 may utilize the derived values for the different crop residue parameters to generate a crop residue field map 490 which may be stored for subsequent use. The field map 490 may be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations; crop residue field map in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose displaying the crop residue field map or wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the visual display indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
It is further noted that Vandike discloses cameras that may capture the density of crop residue deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Vandike ¶ [0058]: images produced by camera 424-4 may be used by controller 450 to identify the density of different widthwise portions of the row as well as to identify the different constituents and different values for crop residue parameters for each of multiple widthwise portions of the row) as well as including the captured densities in the crop residue field map (Vandike ¶ [0064]: Such values may represent the density or mass for each of the different widthwise portions). Vandike further discloses representing different crop residue parameters, including density, as a bar graph, or histogram, displayed to an operator (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462; bar graph in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines, and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the interface device comprises a visual display visible to a user operator and that displays the one or more images relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10),
wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the visual display indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0056]: The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics).
It is noted that Christiansen 1 suggests displaying a sub-region, E, that indicates boundaries of an area where agricultural residue will be deposited but fails to explicitly teach boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
However, Brubaker, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the interface device comprises a visual display visible to a user operator and that displays the one or more images relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Brubaker ¶ [0045]: FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a screen 400 that may be shown on a display, such as the display 201 within the harvester 100 and/or the display 232 at the base station 230 (FIG. 2), for example. As shown, the screen 400 may include a map 401 (e.g., residue map) indicative of residue coverage of the agricultural field. For example, a first portion 402 of the map 401 may indicate a first residue density and a second portion 403 of the map 401 may indicate a second residue density. In some embodiments, the map 401 may be a modified residue map having information related to residue overlaid or combined with other information. The screen 400 also includes an image 404 of the harvester 110 traversing the agricultural field, which may be obtained by one or more aerial vehicles 120),
wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the visual display indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: In this position, the one or more sensors 121 of the aerial vehicle 120 may monitor the residue 304 as it is discharged from the residue spreader 117. In some embodiments, the one or more sensors 121 may monitor various characteristics of the residue 304 as it travels from an outlet of the residue spreader 117 to the ground and/or various characteristics of the residue mat on the ground; residue 304 in Figs. 3 and 4), and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: the controller 210 may determine various properties of the residue, including what percentage of the surface of the agricultural field is covered by residue, the average size of the residue, the width (e.g., lateral) and/or the thickness (e.g., vertical) and/or density of the residue mat, the evenness of the spread of the residue (i.e., how uniformly the residue is distributed), or the like).
Examiner interprets the combination of Vandike and Brubaker to teach or suggest wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines. Vandike discloses displaying a bar graph or histogram to an operator that represents different crop residue parameters, including density, where each bar in the graph is associated with a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue. Brubaker teaches determining a vertical thickness or density of a residue mat. Thus, the combination of Vandike and Brubaker teaches or suggests displaying a bar graph or histogram representing the vertical thickness or height of a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue which can be interpreted as a cross-section of an area of deposited residue.
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike to include the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1 and the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make these modifications in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]) and to allow an operator to control a harvester to follow certain paths with increased visibility that may increase yields and operational efficiency (Brubaker ¶ [0002]).
Regarding claim 5, Vandike discloses wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images further comprises one or more of: one or more symbols overlain on the visual display; one or more words overlain on the visual display (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462); shading of part or all of the visual display; occlusion of part or all of the visual display; patterning of part or all of the visual display; brightening or intensifying of part or all of the visual display; and colouring of part or all of the visual display (Vandike ¶ [0064]: As further shown by FIG. 6, the different values for the different parameters may be determined for individual widthwise portions of the overall trailing row of crop residue discharged from harvester of 422. These different values may be presented on display 460. In the example illustrated, controller 450 outputs signals causing display 462 present a graph having a first bar 461-1 displaying the derived values for a crop parameter for widthwise portion 453-1, a second bar 461-2 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise portion 453-2 and a third bar 461-3 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise 453-3 of the discharged row of crop residue; crop residue map 490, crop residue rows 492, and display 460/462 in Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 7, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the lines guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by the user operator.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the lines guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by the user operator (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0065]: For example, in an extension of the illustrated embodiments, the representation 200, 300 may be used to control future harvesting operations by the combine 10 on future passes of the field F. In both representations 200, 300, an area C corresponding to a region where residue material is determined to have been spread into standing crop on the currently illustrated pass of the combine 10. Accordingly, with this knowledge control over the spreader tool 22 may be possible on the next pass to prevent distribution altogether, or at least for the portion of the path of the next path corresponding to sub-region C. This may be an operator performing this task manually whilst viewing the representations 200, 300, or in some other embodiments may include active control over the spreader tool 22 itself. In this way the present invention may provide a means to control distribution on the basis of the determined global distribution to reduce areas of significant residue material build up in the field F).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1 and the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker to further include the lines to guide the deposition of residue by an operator of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Regarding claim 8, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the lines guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by the user operator, wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more of: one or more field boundary; one or more boundary of a region of unmown crop; one or more headland; one or more obstacle on the ground surface; one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired; the strength and/or direction of prevailing wind; and the influence of a field slope on the deposition of the agricultural residue.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the lines guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by the user operator (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0065]: For example, in an extension of the illustrated embodiments, the representation 200, 300 may be used to control future harvesting operations by the combine 10 on future passes of the field F. In both representations 200, 300, an area C corresponding to a region where residue material is determined to have been spread into standing crop on the currently illustrated pass of the combine 10. Accordingly, with this knowledge control over the spreader tool 22 may be possible on the next pass to prevent distribution altogether, or at least for the portion of the path of the next path corresponding to sub-region C. This may be an operator performing this task manually whilst viewing the representations 200, 300, or in some other embodiments may include active control over the spreader tool 22 itself. In this way the present invention may provide a means to control distribution on the basis of the determined global distribution to reduce areas of significant residue material build up in the field F), wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more of: one or more field boundary; one or more boundary of a region of unmown crop; one or more headland; one or more obstacle on the ground surface; one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired; the strength and/or direction of prevailing wind; and the influence of a field slope on the deposition of the agricultural residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]-[0061]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10. The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics. Based on these characteristics the sub-regions are classified and the classifications are used to generate the representations 200, 300 in the manner discussed herein. Specifically, the categories include: a region corresponding to unharvested crop, B, which may be the default category assuming that any area where the combine 10 hasn't passed is as yet unharvested; a region corresponding to harvested crop and where residue material has been spread, A; a region corresponding to standing crop (i.e. unharvested crop) but where material has been spread into, C, for example as the combine 10 passed along an adjacent row in the environment; and/or a region corresponding to an area of harvested where residue material has been spread more than once, D, D′, D″, for example as the combine 10 passes along an adjacent row in the field, F).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the lines to guide the deposition of residue by an operator of Christiansen 1 to explicitly include the lines defining edges of an area of deposited residue of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Regarding claim 9, Vandike discloses the apparatus further including a user operator's cab (Vandike ¶ [0052]: The operation of the combine is controlled from an operator's cab 435; Fig. 6), wherein the interface device is within or supported by the operator's cab (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 outputs control signals to a display 460 within cab 435 or at a remote operator control station; Fig. 6); and wherein the user operator's cab comprises one or more controls being operatively connected that enables the user operator in modifying one or more adjustable parameters relating to the deposition of the agricultural residue based on one or more of the images of the interface device (Vandike ¶ [0026]: In some implementations, control unit 50 may be part of harvester 22. Control unit 50 may adjust the operational settings of the harvester 22 itself during a subsequent harvesting season, during the same harvesting season or during the same pass of the harvester across the same field may be adjusted based upon the value of the crop residue parameter. For example, operational settings of the harvester 22 itself minutes or hours after the value for the crop residue parameter value has been derived, while harvester is traversing the same field, may be adjusted based upon the derived crop residue parameter value. Examples of such operations settings include, but are not limited to, chopper speed, chopper power, harvester speed, harvester feed rate, chopper counter knife position, header height, spreader speeds, spreader vane positions, threshing speed, cleaning speed, threshing clearance, and sieve louver positions. In some implementations, the different derived crop residue parameter values may be displayed for an operator, wherein the operator may make additional or alternative manual adjustments to the harvester itself during harvesting).
Regarding claim 10, Vandike discloses wherein the one or more adjustable parameters relating to the deposition of the agricultural residue comprises one or more of the speed of ejection of the agricultural residue from the mobile harvesting machine; the trajectory angle of ejection of the agricultural residue from the mobile harvesting machine; the height from which the agricultural residue is ejected from the mobile harvesting machine; the speed of the mobile harvesting machine; and a direction of travel of the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0026]: Examples of such operations settings include, but are not limited to, chopper speed, chopper power, harvester speed, harvester feed rate, chopper counter knife position, header height, spreader speeds, spreader vane positions, threshing speed, cleaning speed, threshing clearance, and sieve louver positions).
Regarding claim 11, Vandike discloses wherein the mobile harvesting machine comprises one or more adjustable cutters for comminuting the agricultural residue (Vandike ¶ [0021]: In some implementations, harvester may additionally include a chopper which chops the crop residue prior to his discharge) and wherein the one or more controls permits varying of the degree of comminution of the agricultural residue by adjusting the one or more adjustable cutters (Vandike ¶ [0065]: In one implementation, based on a comparison of the value against various predetermined thresholds, controller 450 may output control signals to an actuator 470 (such as a hydraulic or electric motor) so as to adjust the speed of chopper 470 or the power of chopper 470. Based upon such comparison, controller 450 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 472 (such as a hydraulic cylinder or a solenoid) to adjust the position of the chopper counter knife 445 as indicated by arrow 473, wherein the positioning affects the degree to which the residue is chopped by chopper 444).
Regarding claim 12, Vandike discloses wherein the one or more sensors comprises one or more sensors supported by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0022]: In some implementations, the camera 24 used to capture the image of the crop residue 53, prior to discharge or after discharge from the harvester, is carried by the harvester 22 itself) and/or one or more sensors supported by a further machine (Vandike ¶ [0022]: In one implementation, camera 24 capture the image of the crop after it has been discharged and spread by harvester 22. In such an implementation, camera 10 4B provided by a satellite, drone, tillage machine or other platform distinct from the harvester generating the crop residue; Vandike ¶ [0059]: The airborne sensor 455 may be in the form of a satellite, a drone, an airplane or other airborne vehicle or platform).
Regarding claim 14, Vandike discloses an agricultural residue depositing apparatus comprising:
a mobile harvesting machine generating agricultural residue and depositing the agricultural residue on a ground surface over which the mobile harvesting machine moves (Vandike ¶ [0021]: Harvester 22 comprise an agricultural machine that separates crop plants from the growing medium and that further processes the crop plants to separate the targeted portion of the crop plant, such as grain, from unwanted portions of the crop plant, such as straw, chaff or other crop residue; Vandike ¶ [0049]: Combine harvester 410 comprises a main frame 412 having wheeled structure including front and rear ground engaging wheels 414 and 415 supporting the main frame for forward movement over a field of crop to be harvested; Vandike ¶ [0058]: crop residue 53 is spread by spreader 446 in a row tailing from harvester 422 as harvester 422 traverses a field);
one or more sensors sensing agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0012]: The camera may be of various types including, but not limited to, an optical camera, a thermal imaging camera, a radar-based camera, a hyperspectral camera and a light imaging detection and radiation (LIDAR) camera. In some implementations, the camera used to capture the image of the crop residue, prior to discharge or after discharge from the harvester, is carried by the harvester itself); and
one or more processors to which the one or more sensors are operatively connected (Vandike ¶ [0061]: Controller 450 carries out both image analysis and control operations; Fig. 6), the one or more processors additionally being operatively connected to an interface device comprising a visual display being visible to a user operator such that the interface device generates one or more images (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 outputs control signals to a display 460 within cab 435 or at a remote operator control station; Fig. 6) based on one or more signals generated by the one or more sensors relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 may present the derived statistical values for at least one parameter of the crop residue. For example, controller 450 may present data regarding parameters such as crop residue moisture, average crop residue length, percentage of different crop residue types present in the crop residue. In some implementations, controller 450 may present the derived at each of the different locations or stages. For example, controller 450 may present on display 460 a first set of values for different crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-1, a second different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-2, a third different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-3, the fourth set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-4 and a fifth different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-5. The different values presented to the operator may indicate the state of the crop residue at different locations as it passes through and his discharge from harvester 422),
wherein the one or more processors add user-interpretable augmentation to one or more of the images indicating one or more parameters relating to the deposition of the agricultural residue (Vandike ¶ [0064]: As further shown by FIG. 6, the different values for the different parameters may be determined for individual widthwise portions of the overall trailing row of crop residue discharged from harvester of 422. These different values may be presented on display 460. In the example illustrated, controller 450 outputs signals causing display 462 present a graph having a first bar 461-1 displaying the derived values for a crop parameter for widthwise portion 453-1, a second bar 461-2 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise portion 453-2 and a third bar 461-3 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise 453-3 of the discharged row of crop residue; crop residue map 490, crop residue rows 492, and display 460/462 in Fig. 6),
wherein the one or more form of a graphical representation comprising a histogram (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462; bar graph in Fig. 6).
It is noted Vandike discloses a crop residue field map that includes lines indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue deposited that can be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations (Vandike ¶ [0066]: controller 450 may utilize the derived values for the different crop residue parameters to generate a crop residue field map 490 which may be stored for subsequent use. The field map 490 may be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations; crop residue field map in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose displaying the crop residue field map or wherein the user-interpretable augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
It is further noted that Vandike discloses cameras that may capture the density of crop residue deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Vandike ¶ [0058]: images produced by camera 424-4 may be used by controller 450 to identify the density of different widthwise portions of the row as well as to identify the different constituents and different values for crop residue parameters for each of multiple widthwise portions of the row) as well as including the captured densities in the crop residue field map (Vandike ¶ [0064]: Such values may represent the density or mass for each of the different widthwise portions). Vandike further discloses representing different crop residue parameters, including density, as a bar graph, or histogram, displayed to an operator (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462; bar graph in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the user-interpretable augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines, and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines, and wherein the one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the deposited residue between the boundary-indicating lines are displayed in the form of a graphical representation comprising a histogram displayed between the boundary-indicating lines.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches an interface device comprising a visual display being visible to a user operator such that the interface device generates one or more images based on one or more signals generated by the one or more sensors relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine, wherein the one or more processors add user-interpretable augmentation to one or more of the images indicating one or more parameters relating to the deposition of the agricultural residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10),
wherein the user-interpretable augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0056]: The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics).
It is noted that Christiansen 1 suggests displaying a sub-region, E, that indicates boundaries of an area where agricultural residue will be deposited but fails to explicitly teach boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
However, Brubaker, in the same field of endeavor, teaches an interface device comprising a visual display being visible to a user operator such that the interface device generates one or more images based on one or more signals generated by the one or more sensors relating to the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine, wherein the one or more processors add user-interpretable augmentation to one or more of the images indicating one or more parameters relating to the deposition of the agricultural residue (Brubaker ¶ [0045]: FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a screen 400 that may be shown on a display, such as the display 201 within the harvester 100 and/or the display 232 at the base station 230 (FIG. 2), for example. As shown, the screen 400 may include a map 401 (e.g., residue map) indicative of residue coverage of the agricultural field. For example, a first portion 402 of the map 401 may indicate a first residue density and a second portion 403 of the map 401 may indicate a second residue density. In some embodiments, the map 401 may be a modified residue map having information related to residue overlaid or combined with other information. The screen 400 also includes an image 404 of the harvester 110 traversing the agricultural field, which may be obtained by one or more aerial vehicles 120),
wherein the user-interpretable augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: In this position, the one or more sensors 121 of the aerial vehicle 120 may monitor the residue 304 as it is discharged from the residue spreader 117. In some embodiments, the one or more sensors 121 may monitor various characteristics of the residue 304 as it travels from an outlet of the residue spreader 117 to the ground and/or various characteristics of the residue mat on the ground; residue 304 in Figs. 3 and 4), and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: the controller 210 may determine various properties of the residue, including what percentage of the surface of the agricultural field is covered by residue, the average size of the residue, the width (e.g., lateral) and/or the thickness (e.g., vertical) and/or density of the residue mat, the evenness of the spread of the residue (i.e., how uniformly the residue is distributed), or the like).
Examiner interprets the combination of Vandike and Brubaker to teach or suggest wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines, and wherein the one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the deposited residue between the boundary-indicating lines are displayed in the form of a graphical representation comprising a histogram displayed between the boundary-indicating lines. Vandike discloses displaying a bar graph or histogram to an operator that represents different crop residue parameters, including density, where each bar in the graph is associated with a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue. Brubaker teaches determining a vertical thickness or density of a residue mat. Thus, the combination of Vandike and Brubaker teaches or suggests displaying a bar graph or histogram representing the vertical thickness or height of a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue which can be interpreted as a cross-section of an area of deposited residue. Further, the location of the histogram within the image, between the boundary-indicating lines, is a matter of design choice and does not directly relate to any functional benefit gained by displaying a bar graph that represents the height of deposited crop residue in widthwise sections of a row, as taught by the combination of Vandike and Brubaker.
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike to include the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1 and the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make these modifications in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]) and to allow an operator to control a harvester to follow certain paths with increased visibility that may increase yields and operational efficiency (Brubaker ¶ [0002]).
Regarding claim 26, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]-[0061]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10. The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics. Based on these characteristics the sub-regions are classified and the classifications are used to generate the representations 200, 300 in the manner discussed herein. Specifically, the categories include: a region corresponding to unharvested crop, B, which may be the default category assuming that any area where the combine 10 hasn't passed is as yet unharvested; a region corresponding to harvested crop and where residue material has been spread, A; a region corresponding to standing crop (i.e. unharvested crop) but where material has been spread into, C, for example as the combine 10 passed along an adjacent row in the environment; and/or a region corresponding to an area of harvested where residue material has been spread more than once, D, D′, D″, for example as the combine 10 passes along an adjacent row in the field, F; Christiansen 1 ¶ [0002]: Ideally, residue should be spread consistently and managed to promote uniform rapid warming and drying in the spring for earlier planting and sufficient seed germination). Examiner interprets the sub-regions of Christiansen 1 to be classified based on a desired uniform spread of residue material. Any sub-regions classified as having residue material spread more than once would indicate areas where residue spread is greater than desired.
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the lines defining edges of an area of deposited residue to guide the deposition of residue by an operator of Christiansen 1 to explicitly include sub-regions that indicate an undesirable residue spread of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Claims 3 and 4 are rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0015039 by Vandike et al. (herein after "Vandike"), in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0338422 by Brubaker (herein after "Brubaker") and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0394923 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 1"), further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2019/0350132 by Issac et al. (herein after "Issac").
Note: Text written in bold typeface is claim language from the instant application. Text written in normal typeface are comments made by the Examiner and/or passages from the prior art reference(s).
Regarding claim 3, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the one or more images comprises one or more images representing the mobile harvesting machine, the one or more images being variable in dependence on one or more variable parameters pertaining to the mobile harvesting machine.
However, Issac, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the one or more images comprises one or more images representing the mobile harvesting machine, the one or more images being variable in dependence on one or more variable parameters pertaining to the mobile harvesting machine (Issac ¶ [0040]: An example of interface 311 is shown in FIG. 4 where various parameters and data are displayed to the operator through a graphical user interface (GUI) 400. These may include a view of the map 402 with designated zones (e.g. windrow zones), inclination, current operational mode (spreading/windrow modes), and operational parameters/states for the spreader wheels, chopper, counter knives, windrow door, windrow chute, spreader wheels, spreader deflectors, etc).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1 and the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker to further include the variable images representing a harvester based on parameters pertaining to the harvester of Issac. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to allow an operator to view locally or remotely stored parameters of the control system and set appropriate parameters such as crop type, and wind speed/direction (Issac ¶ [0039]).
Regarding claim 4, Vandike fails to particularly disclose further comprising one or more parameter input devices generating one or more signals indicative of a value of one or more variable parameters pertaining to the mobile harvesting machine.
However, Issac, in the same field of endeavor, teaches further comprising one or more parameter input devices generating one or more signals indicative of a value of one or more variable parameters pertaining to the mobile harvesting machine (Issac ¶ [0040]: The operator, for example, can set these parameters (e.g. windrow door/chute angles) prior to harvesting or during harvesting. For example, the operator can use a stylus or their finger on the touchscreen to set windrow door/chute angles, etc).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the variable images representing a harvester based on parameters pertaining to the harvester of Issac to further include the input device of Issac. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to allow an operator to view locally or remotely stored parameters of the control system and set appropriate parameters such as crop type, and wind speed/direction (Issac ¶ [0039]).
Claims 15-17, 19-23 and 25 are rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0015039 by Vandike et al. (herein after "Vandike"), in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0338422 by Brubaker (herein after "Brubaker"), U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0394923 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 1") and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2024/0196793 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 2").
Note: Text written in bold typeface is claim language from the instant application. Text written in normal typeface are comments made by the Examiner and/or passages from the prior art reference(s).
Regarding claim 15, Vandike discloses a method of depositing agricultural residue, the method being executed by one or more processors (Vandike ¶ [0061]: Controller 450 carries out both image analysis and control operations; Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 outputs control signals to a display 460 within cab 435 or at a remote operator control station; Fig. 6), the method comprising:
instructing a mobile harvesting machine to move on a ground surface while depositing agricultural residue on the ground surface (Vandike ¶ [0021]: Harvester 22 comprise an agricultural machine that separates crop plants from the growing medium and that further processes the crop plants to separate the targeted portion of the crop plant, such as grain, from unwanted portions of the crop plant, such as straw, chaff or other crop residue; Vandike ¶ [0049]: Combine harvester 410 comprises a main frame 412 having wheeled structure including front and rear ground engaging wheels 414 and 415 supporting the main frame for forward movement over a field of crop to be harvested; Vandike ¶ [0058]: crop residue 53 is spread by spreader 446 in a row tailing from harvester 422 as harvester 422 traverses a field);
sensing the agricultural residue deposited by the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0012]: The camera may be of various types including, but not limited to, an optical camera, a thermal imaging camera, a radar-based camera, a hyperspectral camera and a light imaging detection and radiation (LIDAR) camera. In some implementations, the camera used to capture the image of the crop residue, prior to discharge or after discharge from the harvester, is carried by the harvester itself);
generating one or more images for a user operator based on signals derived from the sensing (Vandike ¶ [0062]: Controller 450 may present the derived statistical values for at least one parameter of the crop residue. For example, controller 450 may present data regarding parameters such as crop residue moisture, average crop residue length, percentage of different crop residue types present in the crop residue. In some implementations, controller 450 may present the derived at each of the different locations or stages. For example, controller 450 may present on display 460 a first set of values for different crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-1, a second different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-2, a third different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-3, the fourth set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-4 and a fifth different set of values for the crop residue parameters derived from images captured by camera 424-5. The different values presented to the operator may indicate the state of the crop residue at different locations as it passes through and his discharge from harvester 422);
displaying the one or more images with user-interpretable augmentation to the user operator (Vandike ¶ [0064]: As further shown by FIG. 6, the different values for the different parameters may be determined for individual widthwise portions of the overall trailing row of crop residue discharged from harvester of 422. These different values may be presented on display 460. In the example illustrated, controller 450 outputs signals causing display 462 present a graph having a first bar 461-1 displaying the derived values for a crop parameter for widthwise portion 453-1, a second bar 461-2 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise portion 453-2 and a third bar 461-3 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise 453-3 of the discharged row of crop residue; crop residue map 490, crop residue rows 492, and display 460/462 in Fig. 6); and
adjusting the movement of the mobile harvesting machine in the depositing the agricultural residue based on a deposition optimisation strategy (Vandike ¶ [0065]: based on a comparison of the value against various predetermined thresholds, controller 450 may output control signals to an actuator 470 (such as a hydraulic or electric motor) so as to adjust the speed of chopper 470 or the power of chopper 470. Based upon such comparison, controller 450 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 472 (such as a hydraulic cylinder or a solenoid) to adjust the position of the chopper counter knife 445 as indicated by arrow 473, wherein the positioning affects the degree to which the residue is chopped by chopper 444. Based upon such comparison, control unit 50 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 474 (such as a hydraulic or electric motor) to adjust the speed of spreader 446 or the positioning of its vanes. Based upon such comparison, controller 450 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 476 adjusting the header height, may output control signals to actuator 478 or actuator 480 adjusting a threshing speed, separation speed, threshing clearance or sieve louver positions. Based upon such comparison, controller 450 may additionally or alternatively output control signals adjusting the speed of harvester 422 crossing a field or the rate at which crops are fed through harvester 422 by the various augers, conveyors and components of harvester 422);
.
It is noted Vandike discloses a crop residue field map that includes lines indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue deposited that can be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations (Vandike ¶ [0066]: controller 450 may utilize the derived values for the different crop residue parameters to generate a crop residue field map 490 which may be stored for subsequent use. The field map 490 may be utilized during subsequent harvesting operations; crop residue field map in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose displaying the crop residue field map or wherein the user-interpretable augmentation comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
It is also noted that Vandike discloses cameras that may capture the density of crop residue deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Vandike ¶ [0058]: images produced by camera 424-4 may be used by controller 450 to identify the density of different widthwise portions of the row as well as to identify the different constituents and different values for crop residue parameters for each of multiple widthwise portions of the row) as well as including the captured densities in the crop residue field map (Vandike ¶ [0064]: Such values may represent the density or mass for each of the different widthwise portions). Vandike further discloses representing different crop residue parameters, including density, as a bar graph, or histogram, displayed to an operator (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462; bar graph in Fig. 6) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the user-interpretable augmentation comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines, and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines.
It is further noted that Vandike discloses adjusting the movement of a harvester in order to deposit agricultural residue based on a deposition optimisation strategy, wherein the adjusting is based on the residue parameters displayed to an operator and with control signals originating from a controller (Vandike ¶ [0065]) but Vandike fails to particularly disclose depositing the agricultural residue based on a deposition optimisation strategy comprising a match header width mode.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches generating one or more images for a user operator based on signals derived from the sensing; displaying the one or more images with user-interpretable augmentation to the user operator (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10);
wherein the user-interpretable augmentation comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0056]: The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics).
It is noted that Christiansen 1 suggests displaying a sub-region, E, that indicates boundaries of an area where agricultural residue will be deposited but fails to explicitly teach boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited.
However, Brubaker, in the same field of endeavor, teaches generating one or more images for a user operator based on signals derived from the sensing; displaying the one or more images with user-interpretable augmentation to the user operator (Brubaker ¶ [0045]: FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a screen 400 that may be shown on a display, such as the display 201 within the harvester 100 and/or the display 232 at the base station 230 (FIG. 2), for example. As shown, the screen 400 may include a map 401 (e.g., residue map) indicative of residue coverage of the agricultural field. For example, a first portion 402 of the map 401 may indicate a first residue density and a second portion 403 of the map 401 may indicate a second residue density. In some embodiments, the map 401 may be a modified residue map having information related to residue overlaid or combined with other information. The screen 400 also includes an image 404 of the harvester 110 traversing the agricultural field, which may be obtained by one or more aerial vehicles 120);
wherein the user-interpretable augmentation comprises lines overlain on the images indicating boundaries of an area and/or swath of the agricultural residue to be deposited (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: In this position, the one or more sensors 121 of the aerial vehicle 120 may monitor the residue 304 as it is discharged from the residue spreader 117. In some embodiments, the one or more sensors 121 may monitor various characteristics of the residue 304 as it travels from an outlet of the residue spreader 117 to the ground and/or various characteristics of the residue mat on the ground; residue 304 in Figs. 3 and 4), and one or more height parameters of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines (Brubaker ¶ [0044]: the controller 210 may determine various properties of the residue, including what percentage of the surface of the agricultural field is covered by residue, the average size of the residue, the width (e.g., lateral) and/or the thickness (e.g., vertical) and/or density of the residue mat, the evenness of the spread of the residue (i.e., how uniformly the residue is distributed), or the like).
Examiner interprets the combination of Vandike and Brubaker to teach or suggest wherein the augmentation added to one or more of the images comprises a cross-section of the area and/or swath of the agricultural residue that was deposited between the boundary-indicating lines. Vandike discloses displaying a bar graph or histogram to an operator that represents different crop residue parameters, including density, where each bar in the graph is associated with a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue. Brubaker teaches determining a vertical thickness or density of a residue mat. Thus, the combination of Vandike and Brubaker teaches or suggests displaying a bar graph or histogram representing the vertical thickness or height of a widthwise portion of a discharged row of crop residue which can be interpreted as a cross-section of an area of deposited residue.
Finally, Christiansen 2, in the same field of endeavor, teaches adjusting the movement of the mobile harvesting machine in the depositing the agricultural residue based on a deposition optimisation strategy comprising a match header width mode, wherein the adjusting is executed based on a review of the displayed one or more images by the user operator and with control commands implemented by the one or more processors (Christiansen 2 ¶ [0038]: The user interface may be used to display or otherwise indicate the location of a virtual boundary with respect to the determined residue distribution. For example, the user interface may be used to visually indicate a boundary corresponding to the width of a header coupled to the machine—e.g. this may include one or two lines on the representation indicative of a width of the header with respect to the observed distribution. It may be advantageous to adjust operation of the machine or one or more components thereof to ensure the residue distribution is substantially contained (e.g. does not extend beyond) the width of the header).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike to include the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the optimization strategy for containing crop residue distribution within the width of the header of Christiansen 2. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make these modifications in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]), to allow an operator to control a harvester to follow certain paths with increased visibility that may increase yields and operational efficiency (Brubaker ¶ [0002]) and to monitor and optionally control the distribution of material from an agricultural machine more effectively and efficiently (Christiansen 2 ¶ [0005]).
Regarding claim 16, Vandike discloses including supporting one or more of the sensors on the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0022]: In some implementations, the camera 24 used to capture the image of the crop residue 53, prior to discharge or after discharge from the harvester, is carried by the harvester 22 itself) and/or on an additional vehicle that is moveable independently of the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0022]: In one implementation, camera 24 capture the image of the crop after it has been discharged and spread by harvester 22. In such an implementation, camera 10 4B provided by a satellite, drone, tillage machine or other platform distinct from the harvester generating the crop residue; Vandike ¶ [0059]: The airborne sensor 455 may be in the form of a satellite, a drone, an airplane or other airborne vehicle or platform).
Regarding claim 17, Vandike discloses the method further comprises augmenting the one or more images by: including one or more symbols overlain on the visual display; including one or more words overlain on the visual display (Vandike ¶ [0064]: The different parameters represented by the example bar graph may be reflected by an appropriate legend 462);
shading of part or all of the visual display; occlusion of part or all of the visual display; patterning of part or all of the visual display; brightening or intensifying of part or all of the visual display; or colouring of part or all of the visual display (Vandike ¶ [0064]: As further shown by FIG. 6, the different values for the different parameters may be determined for individual widthwise portions of the overall trailing row of crop residue discharged from harvester of 422. These different values may be presented on display 460. In the example illustrated, controller 450 outputs signals causing display 462 present a graph having a first bar 461-1 displaying the derived values for a crop parameter for widthwise portion 453-1, a second bar 461-2 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise portion 453-2 and a third bar 461-3 displaying derived values for the crop residue parameter for widthwise 453-3 of the discharged row of crop residue; crop residue map 490, crop residue rows 492, and display 460/462 in Fig. 6).
Regarding claim 19, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the method further comprises using the lines to guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by user operator, wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more of: one or more field boundary; one or more boundary of a region of unharvested crop; one or more headland; one or more obstacles on the ground surface; one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired; a strength and/or direction of prevailing wind; and an influence of a field slope on the deposition of residue.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the method further comprises using the lines to guide the deposition of the agricultural residue resulting from control of the mobile harvesting machine by user operator (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0065]: For example, in an extension of the illustrated embodiments, the representation 200, 300 may be used to control future harvesting operations by the combine 10 on future passes of the field F. In both representations 200, 300, an area C corresponding to a region where residue material is determined to have been spread into standing crop on the currently illustrated pass of the combine 10. Accordingly, with this knowledge control over the spreader tool 22 may be possible on the next pass to prevent distribution altogether, or at least for the portion of the path of the next path corresponding to sub-region C. This may be an operator performing this task manually whilst viewing the representations 200, 300, or in some other embodiments may include active control over the spreader tool 22 itself. In this way the present invention may provide a means to control distribution on the basis of the determined global distribution to reduce areas of significant residue material build up in the field F), wherein the one or more lines further indicate one or more of: one or more field boundary; one or more boundary of a region of unharvested crop; one or more headland; one or more obstacles on the ground surface; one or more regions in which residue coverage is less or greater than desired; a strength and/or direction of prevailing wind; and an influence of a field slope on the deposition of residue (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0055]-[0061]: Specifically, FIGS. 3A and 3B show representations 200, 300 of the mapped global distribution of residue material within an environment, here a field F, formed using the present invention. The representations 200, 300 may be shown as an image on a user interface, e.g. display 32 in the operator cab of the combine 10. The representations include multiple different sub-regions which are each classified in dependence on the local material distribution determined in the manner discussed herein, and their position with respect to a representation of the combine 10. The sub-regions A, B, C, D, E are delineated by bounding boxes and as such comprise polygonal sub-regions corresponding to locations in the field F having determined residue spread characteristics. Based on these characteristics the sub-regions are classified and the classifications are used to generate the representations 200, 300 in the manner discussed herein. Specifically, the categories include: a region corresponding to unharvested crop, B, which may be the default category assuming that any area where the combine 10 hasn't passed is as yet unharvested; a region corresponding to harvested crop and where residue material has been spread, A; a region corresponding to standing crop (i.e. unharvested crop) but where material has been spread into, C, for example as the combine 10 passed along an adjacent row in the environment; and/or a region corresponding to an area of harvested where residue material has been spread more than once, D, D′, D″, for example as the combine 10 passes along an adjacent row in the field, F).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the optimization strategy for containing crop residue distribution within the width of the header of Christiansen 2 to further include the lines defining edges of an area of deposited residue of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make these modifications in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Regarding claim 20, Vandike discloses further comprising adjusting one or more parameters of deposition of residue in dependence on the control commands, the one or more parameters being or including one or more of a speed of ejection of residue from the mobile harvesting machine; a trajectory angle of ejection of the residue from the mobile harvesting machine; a height from which the residue is ejected from the mobile harvesting machine; a speed of the mobile harvesting machine; and a direction of travel of the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0026]: Examples of such operations settings include, but are not limited to, chopper speed, chopper power, harvester speed, harvester feed rate, chopper counter knife position, header height, spreader speeds, spreader vane positions, threshing speed, cleaning speed, threshing clearance, and sieve louver positions).
Regarding claim 21, Vandike discloses wherein the mobile harvesting machine comprises one or more adjustable cutters for comminuting the residue (Vandike ¶ [0021]: In some implementations, harvester may additionally include a chopper which chops the crop residue prior to his discharge), and wherein the method comprises varying of a degree of comminution of the residue by adjusting the cutter (Vandike ¶ [0065]: In one implementation, based on a comparison of the value against various predetermined thresholds, controller 450 may output control signals to an actuator 470 (such as a hydraulic or electric motor) so as to adjust the speed of chopper 470 or the power of chopper 470. Based upon such comparison, controller 450 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 472 (such as a hydraulic cylinder or a solenoid) to adjust the position of the chopper counter knife 445 as indicated by arrow 473, wherein the positioning affects the degree to which the residue is chopped by chopper 444).
Regarding claim 22, Vandike fails to particularly disclose further comprising the step of carrying out at least first and second residue-spreading passes along a field or part of a field and, in a pass other than the first pass, causing residue spreading that.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches further comprising the step of carrying out at least first and second residue-spreading passes along a field or part of a field and, in a pass other than the first pass, causing residue spreading that(Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]-[0065]: As show, sub-regions within the representations 200, 300 are distinguished from one another using colour and pattern coding. In this manner, a representation 200, 300 is produced which an operator may view and quickly determine areas within the field F where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material. This can be used to inform later harvesting operations, e.g. control over the speed and operation of further machines when operating in those areas, or indeed in some instances to perform a corrective action to make the distribution more uniform in those areas. For example, in an extension of the illustrated embodiments, the representation 200, 300 may be used to control future harvesting operations by the combine 10 on future passes of the field F. In both representations 200, 300, an area C corresponding to a region where residue material is determined to have been spread into standing crop on the currently illustrated pass of the combine 10. Accordingly, with this knowledge control over the spreader tool 22 may be possible on the next pass to prevent distribution altogether, or at least for the portion of the path of the next path corresponding to sub-region C. This may be an operator performing this task manually whilst viewing the representations 200, 300, or in some other embodiments may include active control over the spreader tool 22 itself. In this way the present invention may provide a means to control distribution on the basis of the determined global distribution to reduce areas of significant residue material build up in the field F).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker and the optimization strategy for containing crop residue distribution within the width of the header of Christiansen 2 to further include the corrective second residue-spreading pass of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Regarding claim 23, Vandike fails to particularly disclose further comprising operating an algorithm to determine one or more parameters of spreading that compensates for deficient spreading of residue in the first pass.
However, Christiansen 1, in the same field of endeavor, teaches further comprising operating an algorithm to determine one or more parameters of spreading that compensates for deficient spreading of residue in the first pass (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]-[0065]: As show, sub-regions within the representations 200, 300 are distinguished from one another using colour and pattern coding. In this manner, a representation 200, 300 is produced which an operator may view and quickly determine areas within the field F where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material. This can be used to inform later harvesting operations, e.g. control over the speed and operation of further machines when operating in those areas, or indeed in some instances to perform a corrective action to make the distribution more uniform in those areas. For example, in an extension of the illustrated embodiments, the representation 200, 300 may be used to control future harvesting operations by the combine 10 on future passes of the field F. In both representations 200, 300, an area C corresponding to a region where residue material is determined to have been spread into standing crop on the currently illustrated pass of the combine 10. Accordingly, with this knowledge control over the spreader tool 22 may be possible on the next pass to prevent distribution altogether, or at least for the portion of the path of the next path corresponding to sub-region C. This may be an operator performing this task manually whilst viewing the representations 200, 300, or in some other embodiments may include active control over the spreader tool 22 itself. In this way the present invention may provide a means to control distribution on the basis of the determined global distribution to reduce areas of significant residue material build up in the field F). Examiner interprets the active spreader control of Christiansen 1 to utilize a computer executing a program which implements an algorithm, or set of steps to achieve a specific task, for automatically adjusting spreader parameters in order to perform corrective actions leading to a uniform distribution of crop residue.
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1, the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker, the optimization strategy for containing crop residue distribution within the width of the header of Christiansen 2 and the corrective second residue-spreading pass of Christiansen 1 to explicitly include the active spreader control that allows for a more uniform residue distribution of Christiansen 1. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to produce a visual representation which an operator can view to quickly determine areas within a field where there is potentially significant build-up of residue material (Christiansen 1 ¶ [0064]).
Regarding claim 25, Vandike discloses further comprising adjusting two parameters of deposition of residue in dependence on the control commands, the two parameters being or including a speed of ejection of residue from the mobile harvesting machine and a trajectory angle of ejection of the residue from the mobile harvesting machine (Vandike ¶ [0065]: control unit 50 may additionally or alternatively output control signals to actuator 474 (such as a hydraulic or electric motor) to adjust the speed of spreader 446 or the positioning of its vanes).
Claim 24 is rejected under 35 103 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0015039 by Vandike et al. (herein after "Vandike"), in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0338422 by Brubaker (herein after "Brubaker") and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0394923 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 1"), further in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0369553 by Christiansen et al. (herein after "Christiansen 3").
Note: Text written in bold typeface is claim language from the instant application. Text written in normal typeface are comments made by the Examiner and/or passages from the prior art reference(s).
Regarding claim 24, Vandike fails to particularly disclose wherein the one or more processors filter the one or more of the images to remove sunlight wavelengths and/or signal noise associated with dust generated by the mobile harvesting machine.
However, Christiansen 3, in the same field of endeavor, teaches wherein the one or more processors filter the one or more of the images to remove sunlight wavelengths and/or signal noise associated with dust generated by the mobile harvesting machine (Christiansen 3 ¶ [0067]: a haze removal transformation may be applied to the image data. Advantageously, this may filter out dust and other small particles present within the image data which may otherwise obscure the residue material pieces, and suppress stray background light in the image).
Therefore, given the teachings as a whole, it would have been prima facie obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the crop residue monitoring system and method of Vandike modified by the display with overlaid lines indicating boundaries of an area of the agricultural residue deposited of Christiansen 1 and the display with boundaries indicating an area where agricultural residue will be deposited including a vertical thickness of a residue mat of Brubaker to further include the haze removal transformation filter to remove background light and dust from image data of Christiansen 3. A person of ordinary skill in the art would be motivated to make this modification in order to more efficiently and effectively monitor and control the distribution of material from an agricultural machine (Christiansen 3 ¶ [0005]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to the applicant’s disclosure:
US 8463510 by Knapp discloses a system for determining a position of an adjustable spreader so that a crop residue spray pattern returns all the crop residue to the current harvest portion of a field (Abstract).
US 20210400870 by Sunil et al. discloses a method of measuring and calculating a location where crop residue is expected to land. This information is used to generate a residual map that can be displayed to an operator and color-coded based on residue properties (Sunil ¶ [0030]; Fig. 2).
US 10820478 by Ferrari et al. discloses superimposing a reference object over a portion of a displayed image that includes surface conditions such as residue coverage (Ferrari col. 11 line 41; col 6 line 26).
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/N.P.L./Examiner, Art Unit 3666
/ANNE MARIE ANTONUCCI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3666