since RTK position is working can a row control feature be developed to use position location to turn on and off row crop planting units a few inches away from already planted seeds. by turning on and off electric drives or clutches such as a sure stop?
I’m not sure about “a few inches” but that’s what section control is for.
Section control works on time, not position
0.2 seconds doesn’t sound like much except at 5 mph equals 17.6 inches. Positive value which doesn’t stop planter fast enough and if you idle down would stop in 9 inches at half speed. Location would always stop at 20 inches before row, Precision does this now why can’t agopen do same thing when connected to rtk gps system. I have a section control operating is to unpedictable. It is designed for spraying which is great for spraying.
When I took programing key punch cards were used. I was hoping a younger person would be a better programer.
I might be wrong but I thought the section control could be turned off when it reaches an already applied area. Ex. Plant headlands first, map logs this as applied area so once you reach this part of the field on your back and forth passes it would turn off sections as the implement crosses the already planted headland line.
It can and works well, using the simulator will show the overlap. The overlap is the problem with corn, not as much as a problem with soybeans. Point rows are the issue when the corn population is doubled production is cut to at least half and the row disappears. Seed corn is sold by seed count and with 3 corn kernels per penny; the cost also adds up faster than you would think. With waterways and terraces, the point rows just really add up fast. On 80 acres in our rolling hills, this can cost $200 to $500 extra in seed cost.
This is an example of the issue, imagine a 6 row planter coming to a headland at a 45 degree angle, planting seeds a 6" spacing and 18" overlap. One side of the planter will be 16.5 feet into the end rows or 33 seeds of corn row which cuts yield with 11 cents of seed. The next row is less down to the last row which is 1.5 feet into the end rows which costs 1 cent, for an average cost of 66 cents per turn around point. With an average of 2 waterways and 2 turn around per row this is $2.64 per row. The major companies that sell this equipment say around 3,000 acres will pay for the equipment, cost from them around $10,000 or $3.33 per acre. Do not forget to include the actual device on the planter, Row shutoffs, used are $200 or so per row.
I am positive that Agopen can provide this feature, I am not a good programmer. The section control should be able to be modified for location on/off function.
I thought AOG accounted for your ground speed but I may be wrong as I have not used any section control schemes yet. I always was under the impression your could hook each row shut of to a relay that is controlled via a nano. Lets say you build a tool/implement in AOG that is 12 sections at 30 in spacing. As you came across your already applied headland at a 45 degree angle would AOG not shut off each section as it hits the already planted line ? Essentially giving you individual row/sectional control of a planter. I may have the theory wrong but I was under the impression this is how AOG worked because your applied area is essentially mapped out via GPS. You might have to adjust your on delay and off delay timing to get the accuracy you want.
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Quite confusing when you talk about section control working on time instead of position. Where do you think the start time refers to?
For the headland you have a lot of control. You can define the headland narrower or wider than the tool if needed. If you don’t want to define headland everywhere (reasonable e.g. in case of a lot of terraces etc.), you would be limited to coverage based triggers but it should still be pretty accurate.
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I recommend you look at section control setup on off by seconds; not inches.
Do you plant corn or milo or cotton or soybeans?
I have a section control operating it is as you indicate; however the row units do not shut off until 3 to 4 rows in because of the speed of the tractor. The minimum time is 2 seconds. do the math how far a tractor travels at 5 mile and hour in 2 seconds.
Ah I thought we could take delay down 0 I didnt know that was not possible
Me neither. If hobfarmer wanted the range down to zero, the request could have been formulated differently.
If not capable of modifying the code, perhaps one could drive a bit slower when approaching the headland?
I’ll explain why you use a time and not a distance: from the moment when the software commands the section to be switched off to when the section really stops (the last grain that comes off the disc, runs through the tube and reaches the ground) it passes some time; this time is more or less constant, let’s assume 2 seconds, but what varies is the forward speed, let’s give an example, at 5 km / h in 2 seconds you travel about 27,5 cm, at 8 about 45cm, this means that if are going at 5km/h and you command turning off 26 cm before crossing the headland, all is good, but when you arrive slightly faster, the last grain will be laid further (5.5km/h are 31cm, if you arrive slower it will be laid earlier(4.5 km/h are 25cm)
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The section control for the maize seeder works very accurately! Just set.
The cut-off time and the cut-in time are set. The moment of actual start / stop is automatically adjusted depending on the driving speed, look at the 2 lines, green and red on the rear of the tractor and how their distance changes with speed. The important parameter that needs to be selected is% cowerage set in the sections tab. After precise positioning, the sections will turn off / on perfectly at the edge of the transverse row or wedge. It works very well, field proven!
And of course, you have to choose the right length of the hitch …
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zero time would work ok. The actual location is better.
Driving slower is not practical, Zero time would stop on the planted row which is better than planting several feet into end rows. Location is the desired method.
Good reasoning with coasting drives, the drives I plan to use are designed for a hard stop when signaled. The seed tubes are about 16 inches long. With seed spacing at 6.5 inches, or 16.5 cm the odds of seeds dropping for an additional 12 inches does not happen enough to matter. The seed meters turn with some resistance which also makes the stop as soon as force is removed. Really need a location to stop meters.
I am not sure I fully understand what you are describing. Please explain in more detail. When you are speaking of Maize are you meaning Ear Corn or Milo ? I am trying to have the individual row units turn on and off.
AoG is setup to do exactly what you want. Each row is a section, set your seed drop time for start and stop, then depending on your speed, AoG with “look” ahead X meters, as long as your speed is steady at the headland it can turn off/on your rows to start and stop at the headland.
I have been working with the program for the last hour and I agree the section control will do what I need. Needed to run some numbers to figure out what was happening. Added a field board and waterways. unit starts and shuts off as needed, What was throwing me off was the shaded areas when crossing over planted areas inside borders and headlands. Thank you