Progress 09/01/18 to 04/30/19

Outputs
Target Audience:This report, and the work described herein, is meant to informthose people who are stakholders in the farming/growing industry. That includes but is not limited to small farm growers, industrial farming operations, agriculture researchers, equipment manufacturers anddealers, and those interested in the development of sustainable and optimal farming practices. Changes/Problems:During phase I activities, GS Engineering investigated the feasibility of the development and commercialization of a self-propelled grain cart that would suit the needs of today's farmer. It was determined that, as mentioned in the above sections, the direction of farming today necessitates the development of new equipment to help growers increase crop yields and profitability. However, the phase I research also revealed that a single-purpose, self-propelled grain cart would only be able to provide a return on investment if several key features that are value adders to the grower were taken out. It was determined that a paradigm shift was required in the way this problem was approached. Instead of starting from a grain cart and adding just enough functionality to make a self-propelled grain cart, the design should start from the standpoint of a tractor and the capability of a grain cart be added. GS Engineering proposes that the Next Generation Tractor (NGT) be a modular platform for several implements one of which is a grain cart. This means that the NGT can be used to complete all the same tasks as a standard tractor, but with the added benefit of the modularity to function as a grain cart, manure spreader, sprayer etc. The NGT addresses the issue of varying track widths by combining many separate vehicles into a single platform. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This funding opportunity served not only to support research into the aforementioned topic, but has been an excellent professional development mechanism. It represents an opportunity to exerciseskills in project management, engineering decision analysis, and vehicle architecture. GS Engineering was also able to develop askillset in autonomous vehicle systems design. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?GS Engineering has worked with the Corn Growers Association of Michigan throughout the project, and received a letter outlining their support of the next generation tractor. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? As stated above, an increasing demandfor growngoodsas the globalpopulation increases has put a large emphasis on technologies thatimprovecrop yields. To answer this demand, GS Engineering set out to investigate the need for a vehicle that is specifically designed for the next generation of farming, which is compatible with promising new farming techniques that provide vastly improved yields such as no-till and controlled traffic farming (CTF) practices. Through this investigation, GS Engineering determined that such a vehicle would not only be compatible with these practices, but enable their optimization. For instance, the proposed vehicle will enable CTF to achieve tramline spacing of up to 120 feet, meaning that a large portion of the field will be left un-compacted. This increase in the un-compactedpercentage of arable land will provide a 15% increase in crop yield over time. The technical objectives for this phase I effort were to: 1. Define and document the Key Performance Parameters (KPPs) for self-propelled grain cart. 2. Identify, define, and document candidate technologies and components for self-propelled grain cart. 3. Down-select technologies/ systems and integrate into a single vehicle concept with sufficient fidelity to define each of the KPPs identified with an associated cost. 4. Develop a computational model based onresearch data on CTF techniques to quantify the increased productivity due to the use of the self-propelled grain cart for a given operation as well as the payback period for the required investment. In order to satisfy the above technical objectives, the following tasks were completed: A diagram containing the main functions that next generation tractor will need to carry out (functional block diagram) was created. The block diagram breaks the vehicle down into its main systems (engine, electrical, chassis, grain bin etc.), each of which is broken down into constituent sub systems. In an effort to capture a comprehensive list of requirements for the next generation tractor, a use case analysis was conducted. Use cases are mapped to related requirements and each use case is broken down on the basis of it related sub-system, which helps to ensure that a comprehensive list of requirements is created. In completing this use case study, GS Engineering was able to generate many previously overlooked requirements, several of which pertain to the safety of the end user. In order to translate the voice of the customer into engineering requirements a QFD or 'house of quality' analysis was conducted.This tool takes the needs of the customer as well as engineering requirements as inputs. Each of these customer requirements is assigned a weighting based on importance from which the relative importance is calculated.The relationship between each customer and functional requirement is then evaluated based on the impact on has on the other. Each of the engineering functional requirements were also compared against one another to determine the impact of an improvement in any of the given requirements. GS Engineeringdetermined the following KPPs as a result of development of the block diagram, use case and QFD analysis tools, satisfying objective 1 above. 1. Track width to match existing tramlines 2. Cost/ROI 3. Minimize Ground pressure 4. Non rut-forming mobility 5. Future proof (drive by wire, autonomy acceptance) 6. Modularity 7. Grain capacity 8. Gradability 9. Speed 10. Time to Unload Several driveline architectures were evaluated during the phase I work, including a baseline architecture utilizing a traditional transmission coupled with COTS rigid axles through a driveshaft and a diesel-electric drivetrain with electric wheel-end drives. There are several clear benefits to the diesel-electric drivetrain. Firstly, alleviating the mechanical link between the wheels and the engine allows the engine to be mounted such that it suites the overall vehicle purpose instead of designing a vehicle around the packaging of its prime mover. This flexible connection between the engine and the wheel-ends also allows the development of an adjustable track width frame. In a traditional drivetrain, the engine is required to do work to move the vehicle across a range of engine speeds. Because engines typically provide their maximum power/torque at a different RPM than that of their most efficient operation, a tradeoff must be made between number of gear ratios in the transmission, efficiency and power. The electric drive paired with diesel generator promotes the ability to run the engine at a constant RPM, thus the engine can be specifically tuned to operate at peak efficiency. This decreases both carbon emissions and fuel consumption rates. Another major benefit to a diesel-generator configuration is the potential to have mobile power To formally decide between the two aforementioned driveline architectures, GS Engineering conducted a decision matrix exercise.This matrix takes several criteria as inputs, some of which correspond to design objectives, and an importance rating that provides information about the weight each criterion has on the decision. Each concept is then given a score between 1 and 10, where a 10 implies that a given concept lends itself well to that particular criteria. Multiplying the score given by the calculated weighting percentage and summing each of these totals yields a final score. Based on the criteria chosen and the weighting used, it was determined that GS engineering should continue with development of a diesel-electric drivetrain with CAMSO conversion tracks. A major distinguishing factor for the Next Generation Tractor is the aforementioneddiesel electric drivetrain which enables all future autonomy integration. GS Engineering has identified a supplier for the E-Drive componentry, Autonomous Tractor Corporation (ATC).The kit that ATC provides consists of three main features; a generator, 4 wheel-end hub drive units, and an electronic drivetrain. The generator connects directly to the diesel power plant and is run continuously to produce power which it sends to the wheel end drive units. The drive units are a design unique to ATC as well and contain not only the main drive motor for the vehicle, but also have integral steering, braking, and suspension. The third part of the ATC kit is an electronic transmission, which controls the system thrust, steering, braking, and suspension. This system is by-virtue 'drive by wire,' and will provide the electrical hooks that will be required for future autonomy. Among the first calculations done under the phase 1 contract were pertaining to sizing the prime mover. This involved determining the forces acting on the vehicle during operation, which were found to be sinkage resistance (compaction) and acceleration due to gravity when climbing a grade. Air resistance was assumed to be negligible at the relatively slow working speeds of the next generation tractor. Based on these calculations and additional engineering judgement, a power requirement of 350 hp was determined. In order to satisfy objective 3, past experience was leveraged to develop a costed bill of materials which represents a production-level Next Generation Tractor. The goal of this exercise was to capture every cost associated with the construction of the NGT and establish the feasibility of a 3 year ROI for the machine. Phase I work did show that a 3 year ROI to the farmer was possible based on the estimated total machine cost, which is estimated at around $300,000 including manufacturing costs. GS Engineering also investigated some of the autonomous features, and developed the following requirements for the leader-follower system: 1. Localize itself laterally relative to a harvester 2. Localize itself longitudinally relative to a harvester 3. Be unaffected by the harvester's 'chaff' 4. Have a reasonable range of operation 5. Be unaffected by Inclement weather

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