An object-oriented model for simulating agricultural in-field machinery activities

Field operations planning is essential for the operational efficiency in terms of time and cost, especially in complex operations involving capacity constraints and cooperating units. In order to deal with such type of planning problems an object-oriented simulation model which simulates in detail in-field machine activities during the execution phase, was developed and applied. The developed simulation model regards the material input operations with capacity constraints, where a quantity of a "commodity" is transported by the machine and is distributed in the field area. The case of the organic fertilizing application was used as the basis for the description of the object oriented model involving the description of all related programming entities (i.e., classes, attributes, and methods). Combined state and activity diagrams were provided as the basic elements of the simulation model. It was shown that the simulation model provides all the key operational parameters necessary for the evaluation of a selected scenario. This makes it feasible the use of the simulation model as an integral part of a decision support system for advising farmers about in-field operational decisions (e.g., traffic system, driving direction, refilling position) and machinery dimensioning (e.g., tank capacity, operating width, etc.). (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.