DEVICE AND METHOD FOR REMOVING OR KILLING WEEDS

Abstract

A device for removing or killing weeds, comprising a first image capturing apparatus for capturing a first ground image, a data processing unit connected thereto and an agricultural machine controlled by the data processing unit, which is designed for the targeted removal or killing of weeds, wherein the data processing apparatus is configured to receive the first ground image from the first image capturing apparatus, to receive manually determined position data from at least one connected terminal, which indicate the position of weeds and/or crops and/or ground structures, e.g. rows of plants, which have been detected in the first ground image by one or more users, and, on the basis of the position data, to control the agricultural machine in such a way that it removes or kills the weeds in a targeted manner.

Claims

1. A device for removing or killing weeds, comprising a first image capturing apparatus for capturing a first ground image, a data processing unit connected thereto and an agricultural machine controlled by the data processing unit, which is designed for the targeted removal or killing of weeds, characterized in that the data processing unit is configured to receive the first ground image from the first image capturing apparatus, transmit the first ground image to a plurality of connected terminals either directly or via a communication means, receive manually determined position data from at least one connected terminal, which indicate the position of weeds and/or crops and/or ground structures, e.g. rows of plants, which have been detected in the first ground image by one or more users, on the basis of the position data, control the agricultural machine in such a way that it removes or kills the weeds in a targeted manner.

2. (canceled)

3. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the data processing unit is configured to transmit the first ground image to a server via a communication means and to receive the position data from the server.

4. The device according to claim 3, characterized in that a second image capturing apparatus, which is connected to the data processing unit, is provided for capturing a second ground image, wherein the data processing unit is configured to receive the second ground image from the second image capturing apparatus and to superimpose it on the first ground image for determining a displacement vector, correct the position data by the displacement vector in order to obtain corrected position data, and control the agricultural machine with the corrected position data.

5. The device according to claim 4, characterized in that the second image capturing apparatus is located in close proximity to the agricultural machine, preferably at a distance of below 1 m and is particularly preferably mounted on or part of the agricultural machine.

6. The device according to one of claim 1, characterized in that the first image capturing apparatus and the agricultural machine are arranged on a carrier device with a coupling device for the connection to a moveable implement.

7. The device according to claim 4, characterized in that the second image capturing apparatus and the agricultural machine are arranged on a carrier device with a coupling device for the connection to a moveable implement.

8. The device according to claim 4, characterized in that the distance from the first image capturing apparatus to the second image capturing apparatus is more than 3 m, preferably more than 5 m, particularly preferably more than 7 m.

9. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the agricultural machine is a weeding tool designed for the targeted soil cultivation, a weed sprayer designed for the targeted soil cultivation or a weed burner designed for the targeted soil cultivation.

10. A moveable implement, preferably an autonomously movable implement, comprising a device for removing or killing weeds according to claim 1.

11. The movable implement according to claim 10, characterized in that the device for removing or killing weeds is arranged on the implement in such a way that the first image capturing apparatus a. is directed towards the ground in an angle of about 90° to the direction of travel in order to detect weeds and/or crops or b. is directed straight ahead in an angle of preferably between about 5° and about 45° to the direction of travel in order to detect ground structures such as rows of plants.

12. The movable implement according to claim 10, characterized in that the first image capturing apparatus is located in front of the second image capturing apparatus in the direction of travel of the implement.

13. The movable implement according to claim 10, characterized in that the first image capturing apparatus is arranged in front of the implement in the direction of travel and in that the second image capturing apparatus is arranged behind the implement in the direction of travel.

14. The movable implement according to claim 10, characterized in that, in operation, the maximum travelling speed of the implement is below 15 km/h, preferably below 10 km/h, and particularly preferably below 5 km/h.

15. A method for removing or killing weeds with an agricultural machine, which is controlled by a data processing unit and is designed for the targeted removal or killing of weeds, comprising the following steps: a. a first image capturing apparatus, which is connected to the data processing unit, capturing a first ground image, b. transmitting the first ground image to a plurality of connected terminals, c. the data processing unit receiving manually determined position data from at least one connected terminal, which indicate the position of weeds and/or crops and/or ground structures, e.g. rows of plants, which have been detected in the first ground image by one or more users, d. the data processing unit controlling the agricultural machine on the basis of the position data for removing or killing weeds in a targeted manner.

16. (canceled)

17. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that the data processing unit transmits the first ground image to a server via a communication means and receives the position data from the server.

18. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that the data processing unit receives a second ground image from a second image capturing apparatus and superimposes it on the first ground image for determining a displacement vector, corrects the position data by the displacement vector for determining corrected position data, and controls the agricultural machine with the corrected position data.

19. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that the server transmits the first ground images to a plurality of connected terminals, receives position data from at least one of the terminals and forwards these position data to the data processing unit.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that the server receives position data from multiple terminals, subjects this plurality of position data to a statistical analysis, for example a determination of the average value and the standard deviation of the position data, and forwards the result of the statistical analysis to the data processing unit.

21. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that it comprises computer-readable instructions, which cause a data processing unit to perform a method according to claim 15.

Description

[0034] In the following, the invention is explained in more detail on the basis of exemplary embodiments. In the figures:

[0035] FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a first embodiment of a device according to the invention;

[0036] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a second embodiment of a device according to the invention;

[0037] FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of the superposition and combination of the captured images.

[0038] FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a first embodiment of a device according to the invention. The device comprises a carrier device 7 with a first image capturing apparatus 1 in the form of a camera and a second image capturing apparatus 1′ in the form of a camera. The two cameras are arranged on the carrier device 7 along the direction of travel 15 of an implement 9, for example a tractor, here at a distance of about 4 m, and are directed downwards so that they can capture the vegetation on the ground.

[0039] The carrier device 7 is attached to the rear of the implement 9 via a coupling device 8. In this exemplary embodiment, both cameras 1, 1′ are arranged behind the implement 9 in the direction of travel 15. The first image capturing apparatus 1 is arranged in front of the second image capturing apparatus 1′ in the direction of travel 15.

[0040] An agricultural machine 4, which is designed for the targeted removal or killing of weeds, is located in close proximity to the second image capturing apparatus 1′, i.e. at a distance of less than 0.5 m. In the present exemplary embodiment, it is an automatic weeding tool. It is controlled by a data processing unit 3 with x and y coordinates and automatically removes those plants located at this coordinate in an image captured by the second image capturing apparatus 1′. To this end, the agricultural machine 4 is connected to the data processing unit 3 via a data interface, either wirelessly or by wires.

[0041] In operation, the implement 9 moves along the direction of travel 9 with low speed, in the present exemplary embodiment with about 5 km/h. During the travel, the first image capturing apparatus 1 continuously captures first ground images 2 and transmits them to the data processing unit 3. In this exemplary embodiment, the schematically shown ground region covered by the cameras has a width of about 2.5 m and a length of about 3 m.

[0042] Via a communication means 5, e.g. a WLAN or LTE router, the data processing unit 3 transmits the first ground images 2 to a remote server 6 on the internet.

[0043] The server 6 distributes the first ground images 2 among a plurality of terminals 10, which are also on the internet. The terminals 10 may already have established a connection to the server 6 in advance and may be continuously connected to the server 6.

[0044] On the terminals 10, the ground images 2 are shown to human users. These users are persons with knowledge about crops and weeds, who can thus differentiate between crops and weeds in the ground images 2. For displaying the ground images 2, an x/y grid may be superimposed on them so that the users may simply indicate, in which of the grid blocks there are weeds. The users select those blocks in which there are weeds; these x and y coordinates are transmitted back from the terminals 10 to the server 6 as position data 13. It is not necessary for all terminals 10 to transmit back position data 13; however, what is important is that an answer is received within a short amount of time. The server 6 transmits the position data 13 back to the data processing unit 3.

[0045] Alternatively, it may be provided that the ground images 2 are displayed without a specific grid. In this case, the users determine the position data 13 via appropriate input devices, e.g. a mouse or a touch screen, which are then transmitted from the terminals 10 to the server 6.

[0046] In the present example, the implement 9 moves with a speed of 5 km/h in the direction of travel 15. The distance between the first image capturing apparatus 1 and the second image capturing apparatus is about 4 m. As a result, the second image capturing apparatus 1′ reaches the location of the first ground image after about 3 seconds. This time is what it takes to obtain feedback from at least one of the terminals 10 regarding the position data 13 of weeds.

[0047] The data processing unit 3 receives the position data 13 transmitted by the server 6. If multiple position data sets 13 from different terminals are received, the data processing unit 3 calculates an average value therefrom.

[0048] In order to determine the actual position of the implement 4 relative to the ground, the data processing unit 3 now receives a second ground image 2′ from the second image capturing apparatus 1′. Now, the data processing unit 3 superimposes the second ground image 2′ on the first ground image 2 and determines a displacement vector 14 therefrom.

[0049] FIG. 2 shows the determination of the displacement vector 14 from the two ground images 2, 2′. The left area shows the first ground image 2 at time to, in which two weeds 12 and one crop 11 were identified. One of the identified weeds 12 is located at position x.sub.0, y.sub.0. The implement 9 moves further in the direction of travel 15 and a few seconds later, at time t.sub.0+Δt, the second ground image 2′ is captured. However, the second ground image 2′ is typically not identical to the first ground image 2 so that it would not be correct to remove the plant at position x.sub.0, y.sub.0. Therefore, the data processing unit 3 superimposes the two images by using conventional image processing libraries and determines an overlapping area 16, in which the images are identical. The displacement vector 14 is identified as the distance Δy, by which the two ground images 2, 2′ are displaced relative to one another in the direction of travel 15.

[0050] Subsequently, the data processing unit corrects the position data 13 by the displacement vector 14. In other words: The x and y coordinates of the detected weed 12 are reduced by the displacement vector 14 in order to obtain corrected position data 13′. Now, the data processing unit 3 controls the agricultural machine 4 with the corrected position data 13′ in such a way that it removes or chemically kills the detected weeds 12 at position (x.sub.0′,y.sub.0′)=(x.sub.0, y.sub.0−Δy). Of course, this method is not limited to one-dimensional displacement vectors 14.

[0051] FIG. 3 shows a further schematic view of an embodiment of a device according to the invention. Again, the device comprises a carrier device 7; however, only the second image capturing apparatus 1′ in the form of a camera is arranged on it.

[0052] The first image capturing apparatus 1 is not arranged on the carrier device 7, but on a second coupling device 8 at the front of the implement 9. This is advantageous in that the entire length of the implement 9 can be taken advantage of in order to provide as much time as possible for the detection of the weeds. As a result, the carrier device 7 in this embodiment may be shorter in design or the implement 9 may be moved at an elevated speed. The further features of this exemplary embodiment correspond to those of the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 1.

[0053] In a further embodiment, the implement may be equipped with only a single image capturing apparatus 1 in the form of a camera. In this embodiment, the implement stops, captures an image of the ground and waits for the feedback with the position data from the terminals before the agricultural machine cultivates the soil at the corresponding position data. Subsequently, the implement moves a defined distance and the next image is captured. This implementation is particularly useful if the implement is an autonomously movable vehicle, for example a robot.

[0054] However, the invention is not limited to the illustrated exemplary embodiments, but rather comprises all devices and methods in the context of the following patent claims.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0055] 1, 1′ Image capturing apparatus [0056] 2, 2′ Ground image [0057] 3 Data processing unit [0058] 4 Agricultural machine [0059] 5 Communication means [0060] 6 Server [0061] 7 Carrier device [0062] 8 Coupling device [0063] 9 Movable implement [0064] 10 Terminal [0065] 11 Crop [0066] 12 Weeds [0067] 13, 13′ Position data [0068] 14 Displacement vector [0069] 15 Direction of travel [0070] 16 Overlapping area