‘Most manufacturers
prefer to do things their own way’
Profile
Precision Makers develops autonomous technology for tractors (X-pert conver- sion kits) and golf course mowers. The company also still develops and builds the Greenbot cab-less robotic tractor. In 2019, it closed a deal with John Deere
to continue developing this technology exclusively for them. John Deere demon- strated the first autonomous golf course mowers to the public in February 2019. There may well be more autonomous John Deere machines to come, but nothing
same is true with self-propelled golf course mowers and agricul- tural tractors. It must also be said that we are experiencing a glob- al problem of motivating people to enter agricultural employ- ment. That will only accelerate the acceptance of robots.”
Five questions about robot tractors of the future 1: With or without a cab? “Ultimately without.”
2: Small or large? “Small. It makes practically no sense to make very large machines self-propelled. They have so much capacity that work becomes subordinate to it and you need a driver again. We believe that small machines are the most likely to be successful, because soil structure in particular will determine the machine size.”
3: Farmer or agricultural contractor? “Hmm, good question. For very repetitive work, such as in live- stock farming, the farmer will ultimately want to purchase this technology himself. But for harvesting work, I still believe in a
is being said in that regard. Precision Makers is a part of Dutch Power Company (DPC), which includes companies such as Herder, Roberine, Votex and Conver. DPC was taken over by the US company Alamo Group Inc. in February 2019.
type of service-provision environment. So yes, a form of robotic contractors will emerge.”
4: Diesel or electric? “I still see plenty of challenges when it comes to powering everything with electricity. I am most confident in hydrogen as an energy source.”
5: Tractor or self-propelled? “We believe that we will all get small self-propelled tractors for specific activities. We discovered that during development of the X-pert conversion kits. Every tool requires specific programming, not forgetting its own safety system. You could not attach a seed drill on the back, followed by a plough or a sprayer and expect it to work. And if the farmer then buys a new or a different machine, you need to check once again how everything interacts and antic- ipates. Combining all of this into a single programme is not possi- ble, which is why you get a small self-propelled vehicle for each cultivation method, each with its own specialism. That is where we are heading: small, autonomous self-propelled vehicles.”
▶ FUTURE FARMING | 27 August 2019 15
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