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EP-4262345-B1 - A METHOD OF CALIBRATING A METER MODULE COMPRISING AN AUGER

EP4262345B1EP 4262345 B1EP4262345 B1EP 4262345B1EP-4262345-B1

Inventors

  • PLATTNER, CHAD E.

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20211117

Claims (8)

  1. A method of calibrating a metering system (100) for an air cart (10), the metering system (100) including a metering bank (110) comprising a plurality of meter modules (200), wherein each individual meter module (200) is slidably removable from the metering bank (110) and comprises: an auger (210) in communication with a product, the auger (210) is driven by an electric motor (216), and an actuator (270) coupled to a capture structure (266), the electric motor (216) and actuator (270) in signal communication with a controller (510), the method comprising: (a) for each of the plurality of meter modules (200): (i) actuating the electric motor (216) to drive the auger (210) until the auger (210) is fully loaded with the product from a product supply; (ii) stopping rotation of the fully loaded auger (210); (iii) discharging a metered quantity of the product from the fully loaded auger (210) by actuating the electric motor (216) to drive the fully loaded auger (210) at a predetermined rotational speed for a predetermined number of auger revolutions; (iv) capturing the discharged metered quantity of the product with the capture structure (266), the capture structure (266) instrumented with a load cell (274), the load cell (274) generating a signal magnitude in proportion to a mass of the discharged metered quantity of the product captured by the capture structure (266); (b) the controller (510): (i) receiving the generated signal magnitude of each of the plurality of meter modules (200), and correlates each of the generated signal magnitudes; (ii) calculating a mass per auger revolution (MPR) value for each of the plurality of meter modules (200) by dividing the derived mass value by the designated number of auger revolutions of each of the plurality of meter modules; (iii) storing in memory the MPR value of each of the plurality of meter modules (200); (iv) summing the stored MPR value of each of the plurality of meter modules (200); (v) calculating a derived application rate of the metering bank (110) based on the sum of the MPR values of each of the plurality of meter modules (200); (vi) comparing the derived application rate of the metering bank (110) to a desired application rate; (vii) determining if the derived application rate of the metering bank (110) matches the desired application rate; (viii) if the derived application rate of the metering bank does not match the desired application rate, calculating a derived auger speed based on the sum of the MPR values and the desired application rate; (ix) adjusting the rotational speed of the electric motor (216) for each of the plurality of meter modules (200) based on the derived auger speed.
  2. The method of claim 1, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), the controller (510) generates a load auger command signal to cause the electric motor (216) to actuate to drive the auger (210) pursuant to step (a)(i).
  3. The method of claim 2, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), the load auger command signal actuates the actuator (270) to move the capture structure (266) to a dump position, whereby in the dump position the product metered by the auger (210) is discharged through a bottom opening (208) in the meter module (200).
  4. The method of claim 3, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), the controller (510) generates a stop auger command signal to cause the electric motor (216) to stop driving the auger (210) pursuant to step (a)(ii) after a predetermined time period or a predetermined number of revolutions of the auger (210).
  5. The method of claim 4, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), after the stop auger command signal, the controller (510) generates a capture command signal, the capture command signal actuating the actuator (270) to cause the capture structure (266) to move to a capture position to capture the discharged metered quantity of the product pursuant to step (a)(iii).
  6. The method of claim 5, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), upon the capture structure (266) moving to the capture position, the controller (510) generating a drive auger command signal causing the electric motor (216) to drive the auger (210) at the predetermined rotational speed for the predetermined number of auger revolutions to discharge the metered quantity of the product pursuant to step (a)(iii).
  7. The method of claim 1, wherein, for each of the individual meter modules (200), at any time after the controller (510) receives the generated signal magnitude, the controller (510) generates a dump command signal, the dump command signal actuating the actuator (270) coupled to the capture structure (266) to cause the capture structure (266) to move to the dump position, whereby in the dump position the product captured in the capture structure (266) is discharged through the bottom opening (208).
  8. The method of claim 7, further comprising, for each of the individual meter modules (200): after the product is discharged from the capture structure (266), repeating steps (a) through (b)(ix) until the derived application rate approximates the desired application rate.

Description

BACKGROUND Air commodity carts, also commonly referred to as air carts or simply carts, are used to supply seed and fertilizer to air seeders, planters, strip tillers and other applicator implements towed behind or forward of the air cart. Air carts have a wheeled frame which supports one or more large tanks or hoppers. Each tank typically holds one type of product (e.g., a seed type or seed variety, nitrogen, phosphorous, potash, etc.) which is metered by a metering system below the tanks into air tubes. A separate metering system is typically disposed below each tank on the air cart so that each metering system meters out one type of product from each tank. An air stream through the air tubes is produced by a blower or fan typically supported on the air cart. The air stream carries the metered product through the air tubes and into distribution lines which deliver the product to the row units of the applicator implement. The metering system for most air carts is constructed as one long assembly extending across the width of the air cart. The metering mechanism for most commercially available metering systems utilize long fluted metering rolls that extend through the meter assembly housing and rotate about an axis that is perpendicular to the forward direction of travel of the air cart. Different fluted metering rolls are typically needed for different types of seed and fertilizer depending on the seed size or granular size and the application rate at which the product is to be applied. It is not uncommon for air carts to require four or more different fluted metering rolls to accommodate all seed and granular sizes and application rates. These fluted metering rolls are expensive. Additionally, due to the corrosive nature of fertilizer, the life of most commercially available metering systems is typically around five years, and during that five year life, one or more of the components of the metering system will need repair or replacement. Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a metering system that is modular so that the entire metering system for each tank does not need to be replaced if one area of the metering system becomes corroded or fails. A modular metering system would allow the repair or replacement of the single module instead of the entire metering system for the associated tank. It would also be desirable to provide a metering system that requires only one or two metering mechanisms for metering all types of seeds and granular sizes rather than requiring four or more metering mechanisms. It would also be desirable to utilize a metering mechanism within the metering system that is less expensive to produce and is therefore less expensive to repair and replace. There is also a need for a metering system that is easier and more efficient to calibrate. Most commercially available metering systems are slow and labor intensive to calibrate. For example a common method of calibrating commercially available metering systems on air carts involves the following steps: (1) manually opening the meter assembly to expose the meter rolls; (2) physically attaching collection bag below the open meter assembly; (3) manually rotating the meter rolls several turns (e.g., 10 to 15 turns) to discharge a large quantity of product (which may exceed 9.1 kg (20 pounds) of product) into the collection bags; (4) physically removing the filled collection bags from the meter assembly; (5) carrying the filled collection bags to a scale disposed on the air cart; (6) physically lifting and attaching the collection bags onto the scale; (7) manually reading the scale; (8) manually looking up on a printed chart the weight of the collected sample for the applicable product, and then cross-referencing the desired application rate and the desired ground speed to determine the proper meter speed setting to achieve the desired application rate; (9) climbing into the cab of the tractor to adjust the controller to the proper meter speed setting based on the chart; (10) climbing out of the tractor; (11) physically lifting and detaching the filled collection bags from the scale; (12) climbing up onto the air cart with the filled collection bags; (13) removing the tank lid; (14) lifting the filled bags and dumping the collected product sample back into the tank; (15) closing the tank lid; (16) climbing back down from the air cart with the empty collection bags; and (17) then finally climbing back into the tractor to begin field application operations with the proper calibration. Accordingly, there is a need for a more efficient means of calibrating a metering system to achieve a desired application rate. US 2019/082586 A1 discloses a metering system that includes a plurality of metering elements that are independently controllable. A calibration method includes generating calibration factors for the individual metering elements. A method includes operating the metering elements according to the respective calibration factor. DE 1