Measuring spatial variability in soil characteristics
US6497153B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 28, 2000 |
| Grant date | Dec 24, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 28, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N33/245
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
The present invention provides systems and methods for measuring a load force associated with pulling a farm implement through soil that is used to generate a spatially variable map that represents the spatial variability of the physical characteristics of the soil. An instrumented hitch pin configured to measure a load force is provided that measures the load force generated by a farm implement when the farm implement is connected with a tractor and pulled through or across soil. Each time a load force is measured, a global positioning system identifies the location of the measurement. This data is stored and analyzed to generate a spatially variable map of the soil. This map is representative of the physical characteristics of the soil, which are inferred from the magnitude of the load force.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.