Title:
An Innovative GPS System for the Improvement of Work Time Study in the Agroenergy Sector
Author(s):
Pari, L., Alfano, V., Scarfone, A., Mattei, P., Del Giudice, A., Santangelo, E.
Document(s):
Paper
Abstract:
The purpose is to test the reliability of an innovative GPS system aimed at work time measurement of machines involved into bioenergy sector. The GPS system, developed by CREA-ING with the Company Arvatec srl, consists of a GPS receiver, a touch screen vehicular PC and a dedicated software, named Arvaciosta. The geographic positions, the speed and route, are acquired each second. Data analysis by means of Arvaciosta software, allows to determine field size, time consumption, turning and idle time, machine efficiency, effective and productive working time. Being the barley a biomass source for both first and second generation ethanol production, the harvesting of about 12 hectares was monitored at CREA-ING fields. Work time study was performed both with the GPS system and with manual measurements by researchers. The harvested area was subdivided in several plots and the results obtained with the two approaches were compared. The proposed GPS system, specifically developed for work time study according to CIOSTA methodology, avoids in field time-consuming and offers accurate measures including fields extensions. The results obtained with the proposed GPS system fit well with those acquired manually. The advantages can be summarized as follow. The GPS system offers the possibility to extend a continuous monitoring to entire harvesting campaigns in the long period. In this way, a more realistic view of the relations between machine performances and field characteristics may be achieved. Such kind of knowledge can be exploited for a better choose of the machines in relations to the fields characteristics. The georeferenced data can be managed by GIS software and utilized to improve the harvesting efficiency, especially for perennial crops with repeated working pattern each year.
Keywords:
biomass, field efficiency, precision farming, GPS
Topic:
Biomass Resources
Subtopic:
Biomass Potentials and Biomass Mobilisation
Event:
25th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
1DV.1.15
Pages:
156 - 158
ISBN:
978-88-89407-17-2
Paper DOI:
10.5071/25thEUBCE2017-1DV.1.15
Price:
FREE
