Real-Time Calibrated Cotton Yield Monitor

A calibrated cotton yield monitor has been developed based a combination of four major components: (1) mass-flow sensors from prior research by Sui and Thomasson, (2) a based calibration system from prior research by Pelletier and Wanjura, (3) a GPS receiver, and (4) a new data-acquisition system that combines inputs from the other three components.  The mass-flow sensors are based on optical reflectance of seed cotton flowing through duct between the stripper header and collection basket.  The calibration system is based on measuring the weight of the collection basket at a precise angle of tilt during the process of dumping the basket into a boll buggy or module builder.  The system has been installed on a stripper harvester and tested during the harvest of a field in the Lubbock, Texas, area in 2018.  The report will cover the development of the sensor, the data collected, and the benefit of data calibration in the production of yield maps.