{
  "patent_number": "US 8296052",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Farm Vehicles Plant Evenly in Odd-Shaped Fields",
  "original_title": "Method for avoiding point rows for quadrilateral fields using autoguidance",
  "summary": "This patent describes a smart system for farm vehicles that plans planting paths in fields with non-parallel sides, automatically turning off parts of the planter to avoid wasting seeds by replanting.",
  "what_it_does": "The patent details a method for a \"work vehicle\" (like a tractor) to plant crops in a field that isn't a perfect rectangle, specifically one with \"divergent\" side boundaries. A computer in the vehicle's \"control system\" calculates a \"swath pattern\" (the path the vehicle will take) by determining the number of \"swaths\" (rows) and their widths (Claim 1). Crucially, it adjusts the width of \"side by side individual swaths\" by \"disabling one or more individual rows of an implement\" (the planting tool) to prevent \"re-planting of a portion of an overlapped adjacent swath\" (Claim 1). For example, if a field narrows, the system can turn off some planter sections to ensure seeds are only placed in unplanted areas.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover fields that are not described as having at least four boundaries, including two \"divergently\" extending side boundaries.",
    "Does not cover systems that adjust swath width without \"disabling individual output controllable rows\" of the implement.",
    "Does not cover manual guidance systems where an operator entirely controls the vehicle's path and implement row activation.",
    "Does not cover swath patterns where the \"centerlines of the side by side swaths\" do not \"diverge uniformly\" between the end boundaries.",
    "Does not cover methods that do not calculate swath width as a function of \"overlap of existing planted areas.\""
  ],
  "filed": "2009-04-08",
  "granted": "2012-10-23",
  "expires": "2029-04-08",
  "status": "active",
  "holder": "CNH Amercia",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/cnh-amercia",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Peter J. Dix",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/peter-j-dix"
    },
    {
      "name": "Keith Wendte",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/keith-wendte"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 9,
  "tags": [
    "agriculture",
    "software",
    "automotive",
    "automation",
    "telecommunications"
  ],
  "abstract": "A method for generating a swath pattern avoiding point rows for a work vehicle to be driven in a region of a field, which region can be described as having a first side boundary and an opposite second side boundary extending divergently between a first and an opposite second end boundary, the method generating a swath pattern including side by side swaths having centerlines that diverge uniformly between the end boundaries, the method also generating a plurality of swath patterns including options for disabling one or more individual rows of an implement for selection by an operator.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8296052/method-for-avoiding-point-rows-for-quadrilateral-fields-using-autoguidance",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8296052/method-for-avoiding-point-rows-for-quadrilateral-fields-using-autoguidance/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US8296052",
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