Autonomous transport of arable crops can help save labour and protect the soil
Will autonomous unmanned transport combinations start to play a significant role in the harvesting and hauling of arable and open-field vegetable crops? For instance, because it is hard to find drivers for tractors with trailers? Or to reduce soil pressure and avoid structural damage by deploying multiple light autonomous transport vehicles?
There are more than enough reasons why harvesters have become as large and powerful as they are today. But the primary driver behind this development has always been one thing: capacity. The capacity to get mown and lifted crops off the land as quickly as possible — because acreage is increasing, the number of workable days is not, and the labour shortage is becoming ever more pressing.
Haulage combinations have grown at the same pace, and since boosting capacity is not feasible in width or height, increasing length remains the main option. But this heightens the risk of soil compaction and structural damage, even during dry periods. Could autonomous unmanned transport combinations mark a turning point by saving labour while also reducing soil pressure and compaction?
Not yet autonomous
Reducing soil compaction does not necessarily require sacrificing capacity. For example, by using controlled traffic farming. This was already explored by several Dutch arable farmers in a project running from 2005 through 2022, which addressed autonomy, transport logistics and soil pressure reduction. In the so-called HWodKa project, there was extensive focus on autonomous carriers with interchangeable modules, including for field transport, whether or not combined with an overloading station. Looking back, the foundation concludes that the ideas were ahead of their time, although some elements are now in use — such as tyre pressure control systems on trailers, and the use of fixed or spray tracks for crop haulage.
The need for autonomy still exists during wet seasons, but the logistics and technology are complex and (too) expensive. Decoupling field and transport logistics is not always attractive when fields are close to the farm. And sometimes you want to avoid multiple transfers to reduce damage to sensitive crops like potatoes and onions. Overload trailers are now increasingly used during sugar beet harvests.
Leader–follower principle
The American manufacturer Kinze Manufacturing was, as far as known, the first to let an unmanned tractor with an overload trailer autonomously follow and be directed by a combine harvester during unloading. That was back in 2011. However, after 2015 no further updates about the system were published, and Kinze did not respond to Future Farming’s questions.
Since then, systems like this — mainly developed to address labour shortages — have been introduced to the market by Ag Leader (CartACE), John Deere (Machine Sync), PTx Trimble (OutRun), and Raven (Cart Automation). John Deere launched its proprietary system in 2012. Ag Leader CartACE has been available worldwide since 2020 for combines with Ag Leader yield monitoring and tractors with Ag Leader steering systems. Starting this year, PTx Trimble is delivering its OutRun system in Australia and the US, suitable for combines and Fendt 900 Vario and John Deere 8R tractors. More applications, models and regions will follow.
Raven introduced Cart Automation in 2020, based on AutoCart developed by the company Smart Ag, which it acquired. Raven reports that the system is now also available in Western Europe and is particularly in demand among (German) maize growers for biogas production, who are unable to find drivers for their haulage combinations.
Within the National Fieldlab for Precision Agriculture (NPPL) project, a research proposal is currently under development to adapt such systems to Dutch conditions (see box). Meanwhile, the AEF (Agricultural Industry Electronics Foundation), known for the Isobus standard, is working on guidelines and standards for brand-independent M2M (machine-to-machine) communication of this kind.
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