Impact of sampling interval on GIS data based productivity calculations and optimal configuration and lead time of corn stover biomass harvesting teams

Analyzing GIS data collected from an agricultural machine is an invaluable tool in machine development, as well as fleet management. This data provides knowledge about machine performance characteristics that helps producers and managers make informed decisions to improve machine productivity. The frequency at which this data is collected, called the sampling interval, can have a significant impact on the machine productivity calculations. This study looks specifically at this impact and how increasing the sampling interval influences those productivity calculations. If the sampling interval can be increased without significantly changing the outcome of the productivity calculations, it would be advantageous to do so because it would decrease the amount of data generated and shorten data processing times. Currently data is collected at one hertz or once per second. Alternative sampling intervals of 2, 5, 10, 15, 30, and 60 seconds were tested in this study. 15 seconds was found to be the longest interval that did not significantly impact the results of the productivity calculations. The 15 second interval provides a 93% decrease in data which will significantly reduce data storage requirements and data processing time. As new telematics data collection systems enter the market place, reducing the amount of data means more reliable remote data transfer from these devices.