The John Deere self-driving tractor offers innovative farming solutions
With the increasing pressures on farmers to achieve food security amidst fluctuating weather conditions, there is a need for innovative farm equipment in the agricultural sector. John Deere is combining their extensive experience in the agricultural industry with advanced technology to develop a self-driving tractor. While the current models still require an operator to sit inside their cab, they perform an array of tasks autonomously. These innovative machines are built to boost the productivity of any farm.
Photo Source -www.deere.com
Autonomous navigation
John Deere developed their first autonomous navigation system over 20 years ago. The focus was to build a tractor that could travel across the field and turn without input from a driver. With rapid advancements in technology, the latest models offer farmers so much more than their original counterparts. Since then the company has manufactured innovative tractors that are able to duplicate the role of the farmer, which improves the quality of performance that these machines offer. These self-driving tractors are equipped with advanced technology that enables them to sense all the information that they need in order to complete a range of farming tasks. These machines are well-suited to soil preparation as well as to planting and harvesting crops. GPS, as well as a range of location tracking sensors, are key components of these tractors. Other vital technology includes image sensors and telematics.
Photo Source -www.deere.com
Hazards to consider
While there have been huge advancements to boost the efficiency and convenience of using John Deere machines, all of their tractors still require an operator to be inside the cab when they are completing tasks. The journey towards building a self-driving tractor that operates entirely on its own still has some challenges. The complexity of driving makes it difficult to create a tractor that can operate completely on its own. The risk of colliding with other farm equipment is another obstacle on the path to complete autonomy. Another hazard to consider in the development of a self-driving tractor is dust as well as weather conditions. Bad weather decreases the precision of the sensors and alters what is required of the machines.
Photo Source -www.deere.com
John Deere S700 combines
An exciting offering from John Deere is their innovative S700 combines. These machines boast autonomous features, which enable them to change their harvesting equipment independently according to the crops they’re working with. However, this machine still requires an operator to watch that everything is happening correctly on a camera inside the combine’s cab. The intelligent technology these combines are equipped with enhances their productivity and improves data collection for better farm management. Models in this range include the S760, S770, S780 and S790.
Investing in a self-driving tractor and other autonomous farm equipment has numerous benefits for farmers. The agricultural sector requires innovative solutions to cope with small margins and unstable crop prices. Farmer’s expenses include investing in farm equipment as well as fuel and fertilisers. Increased precision and optimised operations are key to succeed in the agricultural sector. A self-driving tractor is designed for efficiency and the data that these tractors collect can also be used to optimise the use of fertiliser and pesticides, which plays a role in reduced running costs.
Photo Source -www.deere.com
Now that you know more about the John Deere self-driving tractor, you can browse through an array of innovative farm equipment on AgriMag.
