A working vehicle includes a traveling vehicle to travel on a scheduled traveling route and including a connector to which a towed vehicle is connected, and an autonomous traveling controller to control autonomous traveling of the traveling vehicle based on the scheduled traveling route and a relative angle between the connector of the traveling vehicle and the towed vehicle connected to the connector.

A farm machine includes a towing vehicle carrying at its front a pair of laterally extending and foldable arms supported by caster wheels and extending laterally away from the towing vehicle. Each of the longitudinally extending foldable arms carry a series of planting assemblies that include a cutting assembly for chopping crop residue, a trench forming assembly for forming seed trenches, a seed sowing assembly for sowing seed in the trench, and a packer assembly for tamping down the seeded trench. A steerable towed vehicle carries seed and fertilizer and is towed by the towing vehicle. A laterally extending arm supports additional planting assemblies that extend substantially the width of the towing vehicle.

A line acquisition system generates a curvature profile based on initial vehicle states (starting position, heading, curvature and speed), vehicle steering capabilities (calibrated vehicle curvature and curvature rate limits), and initial vehicle position errors relative to the destination path. The curvature profile describes changes in vehicle curvature over a path distance from a current position to a destination path. The line acquisition system constructs an acquisition path from a combination of clothoid, circular arc, and straight lines corresponding with different segments of the curvature profile. The acquisition path can be displayed on a user interface allowing a vehicle operator to observe, prior to automatic steering engagement, the path the vehicle would take from a current state to the destination path.

A method and system is disclosed for automatic detection of implement working width of an implement on a vehicle. The method includes tracking location of the vehicle; determining if the vehicle is making substantially parallel passes; if the vehicle is making substantially parallel passes the method also includes determining distances between consecutive passes; and calculating a calculated implement working width based on the distances between consecutive passes. A location sensor attached to the vehicle can be used for tracking the vehicle. Determining if the vehicle is making parallel passes can include grouping the location sensor readings into pass lines that each include sensor readings defining a single pass line; and determining if a current pass line is parallel to a prior pass line. Vehicle heading can be used for determining if pass lines are substantially parallel. Known implement working widths can be used to verify calculated implement working widths.

A working vehicle includes a traveling vehicle connectible to a working device, a position detector to detect a position of the traveling vehicle, an autonomous traveling controller configured or programmed to perform autonomous steering of the traveling vehicle based on a scheduled traveling route and the position of the traveling vehicle detected by the position detector and to control a traveling speed of the traveling vehicle corresponding to the scheduled traveling route, and a distance detector to detect a detected distance between the working device and a worker who works behind the working device. The autonomous traveling controller is configured or programmed to change the traveling speed based on the detected distance.

Steered caster wheel systems that include a disengagement system to enable a caster wheel steering mode and non-caster wheel steering mode are disclosed. In some embodiments, the caster wheels are mounted to a subframe that may be independently suspended from the chassis of a vehicle such as a self-propelled vehicle.

Self-propelled vehicles that include swiveling caster wheels and independent drive wheels are disclosed. The self-propelled vehicles are selectively steered in a caster wheel steering mode or a drive wheel steering mode. The vehicle includes a differential system that may include a differential valve that allows hydraulic fluid to be transferred between the left and right drive systems. The differential system may be operable during the caster wheel steering mode such as when the vehicle is driven for transport between sites.

A method is provided for transverse displacement of a front mower or a rear mower of an agricultural vehicle along a transverse direction running transversely to a longitudinal axis of the vehicle. The method includes defining the transverse displacement as a function of a determined steering angle of the vehicle. During cornering of the vehicle, the method also includes generating an overlap between a mowing area of the front mower and a mowing area of the rear mower along the transverse direction.

An implement operating apparatus has a U-shaped drive frame supported on drive wheels, each pivotally mounted about a vertical wheel pivot axis. A steering control selectively pivots each drive wheel. A power source is connected through a drive control to rotate the drive wheels in either direction. First and second implements are configured to perform implement operations and to rest on the ground and when the drive frame is maneuvered to an implement loading position with respect to each implement, the implement is connectable to the drive frame and movable to an operating position supported by the drive frame. When the implement is in the operating position, the steering and drive controls are operative to move and steer the drive frame and implement along a first travel path or a second travel path oriented generally perpendicular to the first travel path.

A line acquisition system predicts and displays an acquisition path to reduce the uncertainty surrounding the path taken by a vehicle when acquiring a destination path. The line acquisition system calculates the drivable acquisition path based on the current states of the vehicle, such as position, speed, heading, and curvature. The line acquisition system continually updates and displays the acquisition path as the vehicle is manually steered by the user. When the user engages a steering controller, the last calculated acquisition path is used to automatically steer the vehicle onto the destination path. Displaying the acquisition path allows the user to observe, prior to automatic steering engagement, the path the vehicle would take from its current state to the destination. The user can then decide whether the predicted acquisition path will interfere with terrain or obstacles that the user wishes to avoid.