Cereal harvesting — A mathematical model

Abstract

An examination is made of the conventional cereal harvesting system with the aid of a mathematical model. The requirements of such a model are defined and available data reviewed. Grain moisture content is calculated from historic meteorological data on an hourly basis. The algorithms used within the model and the capabilities of the computer program, written in Fortran IV to run in an interactive environment, are discussed. The model allows examination of many of the major variables affecting the total cost of cereal harvesting, but the results discussed are restricted to an investigation of the effect of machine loss on the total cost of harvesting with three sizes of combine harvester: small, medium and large capacities. The results show that timeliness losses are a major component of the total cost and demonstrate that, because of the magnitude of these losses, large combine harvesters can be economically justified for harvesting relatively small acreages of cereals.