Reading Time: 3 minutes Only a handful of its new autonomous tractors will hit fields this year, but John Deere is portraying the self-driving machines as the future of farming. Feeding a growing population and dealing with labour shortages are two key reasons — but farmers themselves may be an even bigger factor in propelling the adoption of autonomous […] Read more
Deere predicts driverless equipment heralds a new future
Farm equipment giant will sell a few autonomous tractors this year and then begin scaling up
DOT earns passing grades at college, but not straight A’s
Fuel and labour are issues but the driverless implement shows plenty of potential in Olds College trials
Reading Time: 4 minutes Is the DOT ready for a full-time job on your operation? It might be too early to say, but researchers know the self-propelled, driverless tractor-minus-the-tractor finishes what it starts. “Every mission we started with DOT we were able to finish with DOT,” said Joy Agnew with Olds College. “There was never a catastrophic failure or […] Read more
Sectional control minimizes, but doesn’t eliminate overlap
The theoretical savings are great but overlap still happens, and size of both seed and sections matters
Reading Time: 4 minutes Unless you farm some magical piece of land where there are no stone piles, hills, water bodies or other obstacles to get around, you will always have some overlap. That extra seed or fertilizer can cost you big bucks over time — which is why stories about sectional control technology often focus on the potential […] Read more
GRO to retire 26-year-old combine
Reading Time: < 1 minute Gateway Research Organization can now retire its 26-year-old plot-sized combine after receiving $293,000 from the Western Grains Research Foundation for the purchase of a new one. “The new combine will not only improve our efficiency in research data collection but will also be a step up for employee safety standards,” said Sandeep Nain, general manager […] Read more
Be seen and be safe when moving farm equipment on roads
Do everything you can to be visible, and consider taking extra measures, says expert
Reading Time: 3 minutes Think there’s no way a massive piece of farm machinery travelling down a highway can be completely unseen? Consider this story. On the morning of Jan. 4 of this year, a 72-year-old man died when a semi-trailer hit the tractor he was driving on a two-lane highway in southern Manitoba. The driver of the semi […] Read more
Cervus to fold two dealerships into one
Reading Time: < 1 minute Cervus Equipment is building a new facility near Penhold that will combine operations from its Red Deer and Olds John Deere dealership locations. The new 44,000-square-foot facility at the junction of Highway 2 and Highway 42 is expected to open in early 2022. Travel charges for field service technicians will be charged at the same […] Read more
Do farmers have the right to repair their own equipment?
Interest groups debate the ‘right to repair’ versus ‘right to modify’ with producers stuck in the middle
Reading Time: 5 minutes It’s a story that’s becoming more and more common. You’re smack dab in the middle of harvest and an error code appears on your combine’s monitor. A call to the dealership results in a long wait for a technician to come out, with anxiety rising with every passing hour because priceless harvesting time is being […] Read more
Remote diagnostics blocked by poor internet on farms
Reading Time: < 1 minute Waiting for a dealership tech or mechanic to come to your farm to fix a problem is frustrating for farmers — but also for those who work on equipment. As with home computers or computer-controlled industrial machines, technicians can remotely access the onboard computers on farm equipment. But only if there’s broadband internet. “So on […] Read more
Connectivity ‘grey’ under new trade agreement
Reading Time: < 1 minute Some producers are concerned that a farm equipment industry push against modification may spell the end of connectivity — in other words, the ability of third-party manufacturers to produce tools which adapt farm vehicles for specialized uses. An example would be a combine header specifically designed for pulse crops. But abolishing connectivity is not on […] Read more
Go grab a coffee, the robots have got this
Future of Farming: Hook sensors, cameras, algorithms, and self-driving machines together, and farming becomes a new ball game
Reading Time: 5 minutes Just picture it: You’ve been watching your crop get rained on all week from your kitchen window, and it’s about time to do some crop scouting to see if you need to spray. But your farm is way ahead of you. Soil sensors have been monitoring moisture levels, and they’ve already called for reinforcements. A […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
