The size of wheeled tractors is near it’s maximum. For work not requiring lots of horsepower, swarm technology will be a serious alternative.
Conceptual shift Professor Thomas Herlitzius agrees that a tractor remains the only option for applica- tions requiring traction. He is involved in Feld- schwarm, another development project. He is convinced that a conceptual shift from large machinery to swarm technology is on the cards. As machines increase in productivity, they are also becoming heavier. But utilisation is falling, with machines clocking up fewer op- erating hours in a year. Tractor manufacturers must therefore reduce weight and increase power density, which pushes tractor prices up further still. Prof Herlitzius believes a shift to swarm technology is inevitable and thinks this could happen even before 2030. The farmer, Mr Pfannstiel-Wolf, is clearly less confident of this. His view is that although this might be possible in parts of the world, where plots are sufficiently large, this is not the case in the west of Germany. He draws a comparison with two robot vacuums he has been using in his home for the past year.
“Watching them negotiate the legs of tables and chairs, I can’t even begin to think about
A 15-tonne battery
Are all-electric drives possible? For small trac- tors, Dr Heribert Reiter at Agco believes they are the way forward. A 200-series Fendt (with an output of 70 horsepower) requires a bat- tery with a 100 kWh charge to operate at 50% engine load for 4 hours. This translates to a battery with a volume of 0.3 m3
and a weight
of 600 kg. This has prompted Fendt to devel- op the E100, a 200-series tractor with an elec- tric drive. It believes there is a niche market for these, e.g. at waste collection sites. However, wherever true pulling power is re- quired, battery-powered tractors will still fall short. As an indication, a 1000-series Fendt (517 horsepower) operating fully electrically at 50% engine load for 12 hours would re- quire a battery with a volume of 5 m3
weigh-
Battery power is an option for smaller trac- tors like this Fendt E100. Big tractors would require too large batteries.
ing 15 tonnes. Combustion engines will therefore continue to be the default for now, as Reiter concludes. Key challenges develop- ing electric tractors will be to keep cost down and significantly increase energy density.
▶ FUTURE FARMING | 24 May 2019 39
operating 20 robots around a crowded area such as Düsseldorf.”
PHOTO: BAS VAN HATTUM
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