US Patent 11930737 Self-propelled windrower with yield monitoring based on merger load

A merger system for an agricultural vehicle includes: at least one frame mount configured to couple to a chassis; a movable merger frame coupled to the at least one frame mount; a conveyor supported by the merger frame and configured to convey crop material; at least one load sensor associated with the at least one frame mount and configured to output load signals corresponding to a mass of the merger frame; and a controller operatively coupled to the at least one load sensor. The controller is configured to: determine a mass of crop material conveyed by the conveyor based at least partially on the mass of the merger frame; determine a crop yield based at least partially on the determined mass of crop material; and output a yield signal corresponding to the determined crop yield.