An object of the present invention is to provide an agricultural work apparatus, an agricultural work management system, and a program capable of appropriately managing agricultural work information and smoothly implementing agricultural work and business in the future by making use of agricultural work information. An agricultural work apparatus may include: a first image-capturing device; an agricultural work determination unit that determines, on the basis of first image information obtained by capturing an image of a target of agricultural work through the first image-capturing device, whether or not to execute the agricultural work on the target; an agricultural work execution unit that executes the agricultural work; an agricultural work information generation unit that generates agricultural work information including a result of the agricultural work; a measurement unit that measures a position of the target; and an agricultural work information management unit that manages the agricultural work information and positional information.

The present invention is in the field of a multiple carrier-gondola machine comprising modules for transferring objects, a machine for transferring objects comprising at least one module (100), which may be used for various applications. An example of such an application is harvesting of vegetables, such as for harvesting of asparagus.

An asparagus harvester includes a chassis movable over a bed of growing asparagus. Spears above a selected height are severed at the ground by a severing assembly. A conveyor receives from a pick-up apparatus and conveys away asparagus spears severed by the severing assembly. The severing assembly includes a severing blade carried by a plunger mounted in a pneumatic cylinder. Conduits couple the pneumatic cylinder to a source of air under pressure through a valve unit operable for actuating the pneumatic cylinder to repeatedly fire and withdraw the plunger for repeatedly moving the severing blade back-and-forth along a stroke path between a raised set position and a lowered severing position proximate to the ground. A heater mounted proximate to the valve unit is configured to sufficiently heat the valve unit to enable the valve unit to operate in the presence of an ambient temperature sufficiently low to impair its operation.

A harvester (1) comprises a gantry (24) and a harvesting tool (22) with a cutter unit (52). The gantry (24) allows the cutter unit (52) to move so that the cutter unit (52) can approach and cut an individual crop from any direction in the horizontal plane. In this way, the direction of approaching and cutting can be selected so as to avoid damaging the surrounding crops.

An asparagus harvester includes a chassis movable over a bed of growing asparagus. Spears above a selected height are severed at the ground by a severing assembly. A conveyor receives from a pick-up apparatus and conveys away the severed asparagus spears to bin. In one embodiment, counter-rotating rollers of the pick-up apparatus have interfering members configured to disable the severed asparagus spears when being engaged and lifted by and between them from passing outwardly from between their trailing ends. In another embodiment, a partition in the bin cooperates with it to define a confined volume open to receive severed asparagus spears from the conveyor. A drive assembly actuates to displace the bin relative to the partition to increase the confined volume to enable it to accept more severed asparagus spears each time a sensor senses severed asparagus spears at a fill level of the confined volume.

An asparagus harvester includes a chassis movable over a bed of growing asparagus. Spears above a selected height are severed at the ground by a severing assembly. A conveyor receives from a pick-up apparatus and conveys away asparagus spears severed by the severing assembly. The severing assembly includes a severing blade carried by a plunger mounted in a pneumatic cylinder. Conduits couple the pneumatic cylinder to a source of air under pressure through a valve unit operable for actuating the pneumatic cylinder to repeatedly fire and withdraw the plunger for repeatedly moving the severing blade back-and-forth along a stroke path between a raised set position and a lowered severing position proximate to the ground. A heater mounted proximate to the valve unit is configured to sufficiently heat the valve unit to enable the valve unit to operate in the presence of an ambient temperature sufficiently low to impair its operation.

An object of the present invention is to provide an agricultural work apparatus, an agricultural work management system, and a program capable of appropriately managing agricultural work information and smoothly implementing agricultural work and business in the future by making use of agricultural work information. An agricultural work apparatus may include: a first image-capturing device; an agricultural work determination unit that determines, on the basis of first image information obtained by capturing an image of a target of agricultural work through the first image-capturing device, whether or not to execute the agricultural work on the target; an agricultural work execution unit that executes the agricultural work; an agricultural work information generation unit that generates agricultural work information including a result of the agricultural work; a measurement unit that measures a position of the target; and an agricultural work information management unit that manages the agricultural work information and positional information.

An asparagus harvester includes a chassis movable over a bed of growing asparagus. Spears above a selected height are severed at the ground by a severing assembly. A conveyor receives from a pick-up apparatus and conveys away asparagus spears severed by the severing assembly. The severing assembly includes a severing blade carried by a plunger mounted in a pneumatic cylinder. Conduits couple the pneumatic cylinder to a source of air under pressure through a valve unit operable for actuating the pneumatic cylinder to repeatedly fire and withdraw the plunger for repeatedly moving the severing blade back-and-forth along a stroke path between a raised set position and a lowered severing position proximate to the ground. A heater mounted proximate to the valve unit is configured to sufficiently heat the valve unit to enable the valve unit to operate in the presence of an ambient temperature sufficiently low to impair its operation.

A device for harvesting asparagus growing from a asparagus field that includes a frame displaceable over the asparagus field by a drive means in which frame is at least provided with cutting means for cutting the asparagus to be harvested close to the surface of the field, and stabilizing means for stabilizing the asparagus relative to the cutting means.

A crop management apparatus for selectively severing plant items from a plurality of plants. The apparatus comprises: a sensor unit for sensing aspects of the plurality of plants and generating data indicative thereof; a control unit for processing the data to determine a location of a target plant item suitable for severing; a cutter unit comprising at least one selectively deployable cutter for severing the target plant item from its respective plant; and a prime mover for moving the sensor unit and the at least one selectively deployable cutter across the plurality of plants. The control unit outputs a control signal to deploy the at least one selectively deployable cutter at least in part based on the determined location of the target plant item. When the at least one selectively deployable cutter is in a deployed state, severance of the target plant item occurs at least in part based on movement of the prime mover.