An agricultural harvester includes one or more actuators configured to move a crop unloading tube of the harvester relative to a frame of the harvester. Additionally, the agricultural harvester includes a sensor configured to capture data indicative of a presence of the crop receiving vehicle within a crop unloading zone of the agricultural harvester. Moreover, the agricultural harvester includes a computing system communicatively coupled to the sensor. As such, the computing system configured to determine when the crop receiving vehicle is present within the crop unloading zone based on the data captured by the sensor. In addition, when it is determined that the crop receiving vehicle is present within crop unloading zone, the computing system is configured to control an operation of the one or more actuators such that the crop unloading tube is moved relative to the frame from a current position to a predetermined crop unloading position.

An agricultural harvester has a frame and a spout that is mounted to the frame. A target landing point indicates a position in a receiving vehicle where material is intended to land. A control system detects an actual landing point and automatically controls the spout based on a difference between the actual landing point and the target landing point.

A harvester monitoring system configured to determine one or more parameters associated with harvested items, the system comprising: a camera module having a field of view and configured to generate image data associated with the harvested items; a mounting bracket configured to secure the camera module to a harvester such that a conveyor of the harvester is within the field of view of the camera module; a location sub-system configured to determine and output location data representative of a geographical location of the harvester monitoring system; and a processing unit configured to receive the image data and the location data, to determine one or more parameters associated with the harvested items, and to record the one or more parameters in association with the location data on a computer readable medium.

A detector detects an overall fill level of a receiving vehicle. A mobile device on the receiving vehicle includes a mobile application that receives and displays the overall fill level of the receiving vehicle. The overall fill level can be overlaid on a geographic map that shows locations of multiple receiving vehicles, in which case an overall fill level indicator for each receiving vehicle is displayed on the geographic map as well.

A forage harvester includes a shear bar and a panel that directs the crop material downstream of the shear bar. A processing component is disposed downstream of the panel. An impact sensor is coupled to the shear bar and operable to detect data related to a magnitude of a force applied to the shear bar. The panel is moveable from a first position to a second position. The first position of the panel forms a channel for directing the crop material in the direction of crop processing along a first path toward the processing component. The second position of the panel alters the channel to direct the crop material along an alternative path not including the processing component. In response to a sufficiently high impact force applied to the shear bar by debris moving with the crop material, the panel is moved from the first position to the second position.

A fill control system on a harvester detects that a receiving vehicle is to be repositioned relative to the harvester. The fill control system generates a signal indicative of how the receiving vehicle is to be repositioned relative to the harvester. The harvester sends the signal to a mobile device that is remote from the harvester. A mobile device receives an indication from a fill control system on a harvester that indicates how a receiving vehicle is to be repositioned relative to the harvester. The mobile device controls a user interface mechanism to generate an output indicating how the receiving vehicle is to be repositioned relative to the harvester.

A harvesting machine for harvesting a crop and discharging the harvested crop to an offboard container, such as a wagon or a truck, or the ground. The harvesting machine includes a power system to provide power, a crop harvester powered by the power system, and a crop discharging system to discharge crop from an onboard storage container to the offboard location, typically a container. During a harvesting operation, the harvesting machine operates at a nominal maximum power, typically a current power consumption. The nominal maximum power is reduced in anticipation of a predicted power used for discharging the harvested crop from the onboard storage container. The current power consumption for harvesting is adjusted and allocated by the predicted power to make available power for the crop discharging system. Once crop is discharged using the discharging power, the harvesting machine returns to the nominal maximum power.

A vehicle automated unloading system may include a fill model and an unloading controller. The fill model is a model of a fill characteristic of a container as a function of variables comprising material unloading times, material unloading rates and material unloading locations. The unloading controller is to (a) determine a current model-based fill characteristic of the container using the dynamic fill model and (b) output control signals to adjust at least one of a material unloading time, a material unloading rate and a material unloading location based upon the current model-based fill characteristic of the container.

Described herein are technologies that use LIDAR and computer vision to detect locations of receiving vehicles grouped together relative to a forage harvester and detect fill levels of crop material within each receiving vehicle and path and landing position of material expelled from the harvester into a bin of a receiving vehicle of the group. Such information is used as feedback for operating the harvester or one or more self-propelled vehicles moving the receiving vehicles. Some embodiments detect ground level in front of the harvester or the receiving vehicles and use such information as feedback. Some embodiments include a link to communicate the feedback to a GUI for user visualization of the feedback and semi-automated operations. For example, readings from LIDAR and a camera of the harvester detect a position and a crop material fill level for each receiving vehicle in the group, and the GUI outputs the information.

Described herein are technologies that use LIDAR and computer vision to detect a location of a receiving vehicle relative to a forage harvester, fill levels of crop material within the receiving vehicle, and path and landing position of material expelled from the forage harvester and received by a bin of the receiving vehicle. The technologies use such information as feedback for operating the harvester or the receiving vehicle. Some embodiments detect ground level in front of the harvester or the receiving vehicle, and such information is used as feedback too. Some embodiments include a link to communicate the feedback to a GUI for user visualization of the feedback and semi-automated operations of the harvester or the receiving vehicle. For example, readings from LIDAR and a camera of the harvester detect a topography of the material deposited in the bin of the receiving vehicle, and a GUI outputs the topography.