Patent abstracts

Citation

(2005), "Patent abstracts", Sensor Review, Vol. 25 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2005.08725cad.007

Patent abstracts

Applicant: NDSU Res Foundation [US]Patent number: US6845326Publication date: 18 January 2005Title: Optical sensor for analyzing a stream of an agricultural product to determineits constituents

Keywords: Sensors, Agriculture, Food manufacturing processes, Patents

An optical sensor for use in measuring constituents of an agricultural product.

An optical sensing window passes a stream of the agricultural product, and a radiation source irradiates the stream as it passes through the optical sensing window. A receiver receives radiation transmitted through the stream and converts it into a corresponding electrical signal using a spectrometer. The electrical signal is digitized to produce a series of data points corresponding to particular wavelengths. A processor normalizes the data points using a reference value in order to generate processed data points that can be used to predict a constituent content of the agricultural product.

Applicant: Gramm Richard [US]Patent number: CA2476329Publication date: 5 February 2005Title: Height sensor arrangement for agricultural applications

A sensor for detecting the height above the soil of harvesting machinery such as a combine header includes an elongated, curved, flexible arm attached at one end to a rotation sensor mounted to the harvester. The sensor arm is concave in an upward direction and includes and outer sheath such as of plastic and an inner metal rod for increased strength to resist breakage such as during turns and when traversing irregular terrain. The arm is positioned forward of, or immediately adjacent to, the lowest part of the harvester which includes a cutter assembly for cutting and separating the crop. As the harvester encounters upraised portions of the soil, the arm's point of contact with the soil moves forward along the arm to provide an increasingly early warning of upraised soil to facilitate early height adjustment and the avoidance of soil contact and possible damage to the harvester.

Applicant: Landmaschinen Wienhoff GMBH [DE]Patent number: DE10323377Title: Liquid manure spreader, comprising electronically controlled pump for distribution in relation to speed of agricultural vehicle

The manure container is fitted with an electronically controlled pump receiving information about the speed of the vehicle from sensor elements located at the wheels or the tires. The data are transmitted to a control unit storing information about the required amount of manure to be spread on a particular area and the appropriate performance of the pump. The speed of the transmission unit is automatically adjusted infinitely acting on the output shaft of the pump and regulating the amount of released manure.

Applicant: Univ Cranfield [GB]Patent number: CA2492648Publication date: 22 January 2004Title: Porous molecularly imprinted polymer membranes

Highly porous substance-selective polymeric membranes are produced by co-polymerisation of functional monomers and cross-linker in the presence of template, plasticiser (non-extractable component), and pore- forming component (extractable component). Extraction of the template and porogen molecules leads to the formation of small (<100nm) and large (>500nm) pores, including small pores having a shape and arrangement of functional groups complementary to the template molecule. The membranes possess enhanced affinity towards the template and its analogues and also have high flexibility and porosity. Such membranes can be used in analytical chemistry (as sensor elements and for solid-phase extraction materials) for applications in pharmacology, medicine, the food industry, water purification and environmental clean up.