US5635911A — Apparatus and method for monitoring an article di…

Claim 1

Independent Claim 168 words

A signal generating and processing device comprising: a sensor adjacent an article path which generates a sensor signal in accordance with physical characteristics of articles passing along said article path; a signal conditioning circuit connected to said sensor which receives said sensor signal and generates a conditioned sensor signal having a magnitude proportional to said sensor signal; a logic unit electrically connected to said conditioning circuit which receives said conditioned signal and generates a count signal representative of the magnitude of said amplified signal, a duration signal representative of the amount of time that said count signal exceeded at least one predetermined threshold, and an area signal at least approximating the integral of said count signal over the time corresponding to said duration signal; and a number signal generating module within said logic unit which receives said duration signal and said area signal and generates a number signal representative of a number of articles which passed along said article path during the time represented by said duration signal.

Claim 2

Dependent Claim 168 words

A signal generating and processing device comprising: a sensor adjacent an article path which generates a sensor signal in accordance with physical characteristics of articles passing along said article path; a signal conditioning circuit connected to said sensor which receives said sensor signal and generates a conditioned sensor signal having a magnitude proportional to said sensor signal; a logic unit electrically connected to said conditioning circuit which receives said conditioned signal and generates a count signal representative of the magnitude of said amplified signal, a duration signal representative of the amount of time that said count signal exceeded at least one predetermined threshold, and an area signal at least approximating the integral of said count signal over the time corresponding to said duration signal; and a number signal generating module within said logic unit which receives said duration signal and said area signal and generates a number signal representative of a number of articles which passed along said article path during the time represented by said duration signal.

Claim 3

Dependent Claim 30 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said number generating module generates said number signal by reproducing a single data signal stored in a multi-dimensional array.

Claim 4

Dependent Claim 33 words

A number generating module according to claim 2 wherein said number generating module generates a normalized duration signal representative of said duration signal and a normalized area signal representative of said area signal.

Claim 5

Dependent Claim 37 words

A number generating module according to claim 3 wherein said multi-dimensional array is a two dimensional array with said number signal stored in a memory location indicated by said normalized duration signal and said normalized area signal.

Claim 6

Dependent Claim 63 words

A number generating module according to claim 4 wherein said number generating module generates a nominal duration signal and a typical area signal and, generates said normalized duration signal by dividing said duration signal by said nominal duration signal and rounding the quotient and generates said normalized area signal by dividing said area signal by said typical area signal and rounding the quotient.

Claim 7

Dependent Claim 30 words

A number generating module according to claim 5 wherein said nominal duration signal and said typical area signal are updated over time depending on said physical characteristics of said articles.

Claim 8

Dependent Claim 60 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said logic unit generates at least one feedback signal and said conditioning circuit receives at least one of said feedback signals generated by said logic unit, and generates said conditioning signal by inverting and amplifying said sensor signal by an amount which is a function of said feedback signal.

Claim 9

Dependent Claim 45 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said logic unit is a microprocessor including a universal asynchronous receiver and transmitter, a plurality of input ports, a plurality of output ports, an analog to digital convertor, a memory, and an arithmetic unit.

Claim 10

Dependent Claim 15 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said articles are seeds.

Claim 11

Dependent Claim 21 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said sensor signal and said conditioned signal are analog signals.

Claim 12

Dependent Claim 23 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 1 wherein said sensor is comprised of at least one LED and one photosensor.

Claim 13

Dependent Claim 24 words

A signal generating and processing device according to claim 11 wherein said logic unit may control the operation of said at least one LED.

Claim 14

Dependent Claim 189 words

An article counting system for counting a total number of articles comprising: (a) a plurality of separate article counting devices, each of which contains (1) an article path, (2) a sensor adjacent an article path which produces sensor signals in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along said article path, (3) a circuit for conditioning said sensor signals, (4) a sensor signal generating and processing unit which receives said sensor signals and generates a count signal corresponding to the number of articles passing in said article path, (5) at least one memory area capable of storing electrical signals, (6) an accumulator which receives said count signal and generates an accumulated count signal corresponding to the sum of the count signals for a predetermined time, and (7) a communication controller which receives said accumulated count signal after said predetermined time and generates an output count signal; (b) a master unit which receives each output count signal from each article counting device and accumulates a total count signal, and (c) a communication network which electrically connects each article counting device to each other and to said master unit.

Claim 15

Dependent Claim 189 words

An article counting system for counting a total number of articles comprising: (a) a plurality of separate article counting devices, each of which contains (1) an article path, (2) a sensor adjacent an article path which produces sensor signals in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along said article path, (3) a circuit for conditioning said sensor signals, (4) a sensor signal generating and processing unit which receives said sensor signals and generates a count signal corresponding to the number of articles passing in said article path, (5) at least one memory area capable of storing electrical signals, (6) an accumulator which receives said count signal and generates an accumulated count signal corresponding to the sum of the count signals for a predetermined time, and (7) a communication controller which receives said accumulated count signal after said predetermined time and generates an output count signal; (b) a master unit which receives each output count signal from each article counting device and accumulates a total count signal, and (c) a communication network which electrically connects each article counting device to each other and to said master unit.

Claim 16

Dependent Claim 39 words

An article counting system according to claim 13 wherein said sensor signal generating and processing unit of said article counting device also generates signals representative of the number of missed articles and the number of articles per article event.

Claim 17

Dependent Claim 31 words

An article counting system according to claim 13 wherein said master unit includes a visual display device for displaying a variety of symbols representative of information collected by said counting system.

Claim 18

Dependent Claim 14 words

An article counting system according to claim 15 wherein said symbol is a number.

Claim 19

Dependent Claim 25 words

An article counting system according to claim 13 wherein said communication network includes a power supply line, a ground line and a common information bus.

Claim 20

Dependent Claim 24 words

An article counting system according to claim 17 wherein said master unit and each of said article counting devices has a control line output.

Claim 21

Dependent Claim 20 words

An article counting system according to claim 18 wherein each of said article counting devices has a control line input.

Claim 22

Dependent Claim 68 words

An article counting system according to claim 19 wherein said communication network further connects said master unit and each of said article counting devices to each other by electrically connecting said control line output of said master unit or of a preceding article counting device to a control line input of a subsequent article counting device or to an electrical ground if no subsequent article counting devices exist.

Claim 23

Dependent Claim 31 words

An article counting system according to claim 20 wherein said master unit transmits data signals to each of said article counting devices at the same time on said common information bus.

Claim 24

Dependent Claim 30 words

An article counting system according to claim 21 wherein said data signals comprise discrete data packets of information, each of said data packets including at least one discrete data element.

Claim 25

Dependent Claim 28 words

An article counting system according to claim 22 wherein said data element comprises a start bit, a stop bit, eight data bits, and a further control data bit.

Claim 26

Dependent Claim 36 words

An article counting system according to claim 23 wherein said master unit generates address signals and transmits said address signals as a portion of a data element within an information packet transmitted on said information bus.

Claim 27

Dependent Claim 41 words

An article counting system according to claim 24 wherein each of said article counting devices is capable of receiving a unique address signal and storing said address signal in said memory when said control line input is receiving a predetermined signal.

Claim 28

Independent Claim 146 words

An apparatus for counting articles passing along an article path comprising: a sensor adjacent the article path for generating a signal in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along the article path, said signal progressing from a quiescent level through a first threshold level to a peak level and back through a second threshold level to said quiescent level as said at least one article passes said sensor; means receiving said signal for measuring the duration of time between the time that said first threshold level is reached and the time that said second threshold level is reached; means receiving said signal for approximately integrating said signal over said duration thereby generating an area measurement; and output means responsive to said duration and said area measurement for producing an output signal representative of the number of articles passing said sensor during said duration.

Claim 29

Independent Claim 146 words

An apparatus for counting articles passing along an article path comprising: a sensor adjacent the article path for generating a signal in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along the article path, said signal progressing from a quiescent level through a first threshold level to a peak level and back through a second threshold level to said quiescent level as said at least one article passes said sensor; means receiving said signal for measuring the duration of time between the time that said first threshold level is reached and the time that said second threshold level is reached; means receiving said signal for approximately integrating said signal over said duration thereby generating an area measurement; and output means responsive to said duration and said area measurement for producing an output signal representative of the number of articles passing said sensor during said duration.

Claim 30

Dependent Claim 123 words

A planter monitoring system comprising a master unit, a plurality of signal units and a network bus interconnecting the master unit and signal units, each of the signal units including a sensor disposed adjacent a seed path for generating a signal in accordance with the passage of seeds along the path and a processor receiving said signal and generating therefrom a count value corresponding to a number of seeds having passed along the path, the master unit receiving via the network bus the count value from at least one of the signal units and generating output display information corresponding to seed passage, the network bus comprising a differential pair of information lines connected in common to each signal unit and the master unit.

Claim 31

Dependent Claim 123 words

A planter monitoring system comprising a master unit, a plurality of signal units and a network bus interconnecting the master unit and signal units, each of the signal units including a sensor disposed adjacent a seed path for generating a signal in accordance with the passage of seeds along the path and a processor receiving said signal and generating therefrom a count value corresponding to a number of seeds having passed along the path, the master unit receiving via the network bus the count value from at least one of the signal units and generating output display information corresponding to seed passage, the network bus comprising a differential pair of information lines connected in common to each signal unit and the master unit.

Claim 32

Independent Claim 117 words

A method of counting articles passing along an article path comprising: generating a signal in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along the article path, said signal progressing from a quiescent level through a first threshold level to a peak level and back through a second threshold level to said quiescent level as said at least one article passes a point along the article path; measuring the duration of time between the time that said first threshold level is reached and the time that said second threshold level is reached; approximately integrating said signal over said duration thereby generating an area measurement; and, generating an article count from said duration and said area measurement.

Claim 33

Independent Claim 117 words

A method of counting articles passing along an article path comprising: generating a signal in accordance with characteristics of at least one article passing along the article path, said signal progressing from a quiescent level through a first threshold level to a peak level and back through a second threshold level to said quiescent level as said at least one article passes a point along the article path; measuring the duration of time between the time that said first threshold level is reached and the time that said second threshold level is reached; approximately integrating said signal over said duration thereby generating an area measurement; and, generating an article count from said duration and said area measurement.

Claim 34

Dependent Claim 54 words

The method of claim 28 wherein said step of generating an article count comprises rounding said duration and said area measurement and applying said rounded duration and said rounded area measurement as indices to a two dimensional array, the array containing predetermined article count values corresponding to varying combinations of durations and area measurements.

Claim 35

Dependent Claim 78 words

The method of claim 29 wherein said step of generating an article count comprises assigning a percent membership value of said duration within each of a predetermined number of discrete duration categories, assigning a percent membership value of said area measurement within each of a predetermined number of discrete area categories, and, based on said percent membership values and a predetermined correlation between said duration categories, said area categories and article count values, determining therefrom said article count.

Annuity Stage	Window Opens	Payment Deadline	Surcharge Period Until	Estimated Fee	Status
3.5 Years (Year 4)	2000-06-02	2000-12-02	2001-06-03	$2000.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8)	2004-06-02	2004-12-02	2005-06-03	$3760.00	Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12)	2008-06-02	2008-12-02	2009-06-03	$7700.00	Window Closed / Lapsed

Apparatus and method for monitoring an article dispensing device such as a seed planter and the like

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