Precision Pays

Ag Leader expands on its mobile SMS software platform to make it work on larger-screen portable PC devices for field data capture.

SMS Mobile PC is the latest way to utilize SMS Mobile software. This newest SMS software product enables the support of SMS Mobile for portable PC devices, including netbooks, tablets and laptop computers; the product can be utilized on any device running a Windows operating system – XP, Vista, or Windows 7.

SMS Mobile PC offers another way for growers to collect information in the field that can flow between their mobile device and their SMS desktop software. Utilizing SMS Mobile on a netbook, tablet or laptop gives users the ability to see more information on one screen.

“SMS Mobile PC puts SMS Mobile on a larger screen so you can adjust the size of windows and their location on the screen to match the way you want to work,” says Corey Weddle, Director of Software Solutions. “The new portable PC device support allows for higher screen resolution, larger buttons, faster processing and more memory than the traditional SMS Mobile PDA version.”

SMS Mobile PC provides five field operations in which a user can record data: Boundary, Soil Sampling, Crop Scouting, Coverage Logging and General Logging. Ag Leader Technology offers industry leading customer support, and all SMS products are backed by our software-dedicated support team.

Long known as the pioneer of the yield monitor, Ag Leader continues to gives farmers greater features as they roll out new hybrid/variety maps for its INTEGRA display. Now farmers can see hybrid and variety results in real time during harvest.

“For a long time growers have used our yield monitor to compare varieties at harvest. However, the field had to be harvested with the same display that planted the field to see the variety map in real time,” says New Business Development Manager, Roger Zielke. “I’m happy to say this added feature gives our customers a solution, regardless of their planting display. SMS-compatible data can be read into the software to create a reference file. That file is then loaded on to the INTEGRA display to show the variety map at harvest.”

Using SMS software to generate variety maps helps farming operations with multiple precision ag displays or mixed fleets of precision ag equipment in the operation.

“We take great pride in the number of precision ag products SMS can read and manage data from. Now we can integrate variety map data from multiple collection devices and make those maps available on the INTEGRA display to use in harvest operations,” says Corey Weddle, Director of Software Solutions. “Users with the following precision ag equipment brands can take advantage of this feature: Ag Leader, AGCO ISO-based displays, Case IH, DICKEY-john, Flexicoil, John Deere, KINZE, Mid-Tech, New Holland, Raven, RDS, Trimble and any ISO11783 display using the XML file format. That’s an extensive list; we’re excited to facilitate this data exchange among multiple brands in order to help growers get the most benefit from their precision ag equipment.”

This new feature is available in the recent INTEGRA firmware release, Version 1.5; SMS Basic or SMS Advanced Version 10.0 (released in May) is required to export hybrid/variety reference maps to the INTEGRA display. The update is available for existing INTEGRA owners to download at www.agleader.com, under “Customer Support”.

Given the cost of inputs, the drip, drip, drip of nozzles after you shut them off can be costly. Just ask Arkansas custom applicator Bill French.

“When I used to shut the boom off, the nozzles didn’t shut off immediately,” French said, who custom sprays about 50,000 acres of rice and soybeans in northeast Arkansas. “There was still product coming out of the tips, and that’s just wasting money.”

To overcome the frustrating problem of continued spraying after the boom has been switched off, French started using TeeJet Technologies’ Flow Back valves.

“The shut off time when the nozzles actually quit spraying went from 5 to 8 seconds to about 1 second when we started using the Flow Back valves,” he said. “This reduces chemical waste tremendously and saves our customers a lot of cost. There is no doubt it saves chemical.”

Sprayers with standard valves trap pressure in the boom when they are switched off. As a result, the boom continues spraying for several seconds before completely shutting off. The technology behind Flow Back valves includes an extra passage that allows boom pressure to be dissipated immediately – this passage allows spray solution to return to the tank to relieve that pressure, and is the key to fast shut off at the boom.  The boom remains full of liquid and spraying resumes immediately when the valves are switched back on.

“Due to the rapid shut off of spray tips when the boom sections are shut off, Flow Back valves eliminate product waste and improve sprayer accuracy by reducing skips, overlaps and re-sprays,” said Pat Maney, wet products business manager with TeeJet Technologies. “Applicators can spray to the end of the row while minimizing the overlap that can occur in the end rows.” Without Flow Back valves, operators must try to compensate for shut off delays of five to 10 seconds or more, which can lead to over application or costly re-sprays.

Flow Back valves are compatible with all levels of sprayer control systems, from simple to sophisticated, and require no special wiring or plumbing. They also are an excellent companion to automatic boom section control systems. The compact, electrically-actuated Flow Back valves are available in three product platforms – 430 FB, 450 FB and 460 FB ‑ each rated for different pressures and flows.

For farmers who deal with the planting and spraying challenges of farming on contours, terraces and hills, there’s a new guidance pattern from Ag Leader Technology that offers help.

Called SmartPath, this new ‘drive and guide’ pattern is designed for fields beyond the straight and flat, and it doesn’t require the traditional set-up using beginning and end points.

“If you have farmed contoured fields, you know there is no sequential pattern that is followed; it’s much more random. With SmartPath, once you drive the first pass, all subsequent passes are GPS-guided to follow the previous path,” says Matt Leinen, product manager with Ag Leader. “This pattern will make planter row shutoff or sprayer boom shutoff technology very effective, especially when dealing with the convergence of many point rows.”

While this type of pattern isn’t unique in the industry, Leinen says their technology is designed to follow the best path. “The challenge with this type of pattern is the convergence of numerous paths which come together that are unevenly spaced. We designed the SmartPath to select the right path.”

This pattern is available with any of Ag Leader’s manual guidance, assisted steering or automated steering products, including the INTEGRA and EDGE displays, as well as the OnTrac2 and ParaDyme steering systems.

SmartPath is joining a family of guidance patterns available with Ag Leader’s guidance and steering, including Straight AB, A+, Identical Curve, Adaptive Curve and Pivot. It is available in the following firmware releases: Version 1.5 of the INTEGRA display and Version 3.5 of the EDGE display. Updates can be downloaded from www.agleader.com, under ‘Customer Support’. http://www.agleader.com/customer-support/

Visit these links for more information.
SmartPath http://www.agleader.com/media-center/
Steering products http://www.agleader.com/products/steering/

“Right time, right place, right rate are the key elements of precision agriculture,” said Phil Howard, Southern States manager of precision agriculture, in it’s third quarter 2010 newsletter. Precision agriculture allows farmers to make better informed management decisions and improve input allocation, thus improving efficiency, lowering production costs and increasing profits.

Over 580,000 acres are in the Southern States precision agriculture program. Howard believes that this number will continue to increase. “Precision agriculture tools will help producers maximize yields and protect the environment, and that’s good for the future of agriculture.

Another component of precision agriculture is called Variable Rate Technologies (VRT). VRT involves applicators that can automatically change their application rates in response to their relative position. VRT systems are available for applying a variety of materials including granular and liquid fertilizers, pesticides, seed and irrigation water. VRT applicators consist of a controller that adjusts the substance flow rate, a positioning system, and a map which details the preferred application rates for an individual field.

VRT controllers are comparable to those used on many sprayers, spreaders and other agricultural equipment. On conventional machines, the operator controls the application rate by selecting the desired rate from the console panel in the cab. By integrating GPS and geographic information system (GIS) databases into the system, application rate changes can be made automatically as the vehicle crosses the field.

Southern States has made a substantial investment in precision agriculture equipment, Howard said. Providing information and services to the producer through precision agriculture will maximize his potential for production and will provide the most economical return.

Southern States offers precision agriculture services in 31 locations with a goal of expanding services to all major crop production areas within the next two years. Precision agriculture services offered include geo-referencing field boundaries and site-specific soil testing, electronic site specific nutrient fertility recommendations by field and electronic variable rate nutrient application maps utilized to variably apply the site-specific fertilizer or lime recommendations

Custom variable rate nutrient fertilizer and lime application with dry and liquid applicators is also available. Southern States can also develop a recommended electronic variable rate crops seeding map to be utilized by the producer to plant crops by field location.

The economic factor driving precision agriculture is the savings realized when crop inputs are applied only when needed and where needed. But another important benefit to consider is that by utilizing such site-specific nutrient management, precision agriculture also reduces excess run-off and improves the environmental sustainability of crop production.

The new John Deere SeedStar XP monitoring system allows producers to monitor and adjust a wide variety of planting operations on-the-go for optimal seed placement and increased productivity.

“Everything that customers said they wanted in a fully integrated monitoring system for planting operations went into the SeedStar XP system,” says Chris Savener, project manager, planters, for John Deere Seeding.

“This includes an easy-to-read, at-a-glance screen with seed skip information and data on row-unit ride dynamics, which are critical to monitoring and maintaining overall planter performance at the row-unit level. Ultimately, the SeedStar XP monitoring system helps ensure that every seed is planted to the correct depth and spacing within the seed furrow across the entire field. Tests show that the system helps producers save planting time and seed while maximizing yields.”

The GreenStar 2 compatible SeedStar XP system features a user-friendly, full-color planting monitor, or it can be integrated with a producer’s existing GreenStar 2 display to eliminate clutter in the cab. The system is supported by a series of row-unit sensor nodes and downforce sensors configured to the specific model of planter. In addition to the features of the original SeedStar 2 monitoring system, the SeedStar XP system includes these enhancements:

• Seed singulation and seed spacing monitoring
• Row-unit downforce monitoring and adjustment
• Row-unit ride quality monitoring
• Overall row-unit and planter performance monitoring
• Split-screen applications for planting and guidance (AutoTrac)

The SeedStar XP system is available on select model year 2011 John Deere planters, including the 1770NT, 1770NT CCS™, 1790 and DB Series planters, and is fully integrated and compatible with other Ag Management System products used for planting, such as Swath Control Pro for planters, GreenStar AutoTrac assisted steering and Apex farm management software.
For more information on the John Deere SeedStar XP monitoring system, see your local John Deere dealer or visit www.JohnDeere.com.

TeeJet launched its Matrix Guidance System with RealView Guidance Over Video earlier this year, and now it offers a software update, v1.04. The features being released are fully tested and bring significant improvement to the performance of this product.

Updates include:

• Improved touch screen response
• Split Screen option is available in RealView Guidance mode on the Matrix 570G
• Improved touch screen calibration for the Matrix 570G
• Up to eight cameras can be used on the Matrix 570G (with the 8-Channel VSM)
• Updated translations to all languages except Swedish & Italian

Matrix v1.04 Software Update – software and instructions for updating your product.

TeeJet Technologies introduced the only system available offering guidance and live video to be displayed simultaneously, which helps improve accuracy and efficiency in field operations. Matrix Guidance System with RealView Guidance Over Video is an affordable system that allows growers to monitor what’s ahead or difficult to see machine parts or operations while at the same time viewing guidance information.

“The Matrix Guidance System offers growers exclusive features at an unbeatable price,” said Rich Gould, vice president and guidance business manager at TeeJet Technologies. “By combining guidance with live video instead of a virtual image, the operator now has access to more and better information to help make GPS guidance more intuitive to use.”

Matrix not only has the benefit of guidance over video, it can also be economically upgraded with automatic boom section control for use with sprayers and spreaders. Automatic boom section control helps minimize costly chemical consumption by automatically switching off sprayer boom sections when they enter a previously applied area.

Matrix is the interface for the FieldPilot® Assisted Steering System from TeeJet Technologies. Assisted steering helps improve accuracy, decrease input costs and reduce driver fatigue and stress. All of these benefits can improve operation productivity.

FieldPilot with Matrix Guidance can also easily be installed on older tractors. “There is a perception out there that you have to have a newer tractor to take advantage of precision ag benefits,” Gould said. “We have more than 65 custom installation kits for 275 different vehicles, new and old. It’s a great way for growers to add assisted steering capabilities without a costly investment.”

Northern Illinois corn and soybean grower Todd Glendenning says he saved an estimated $1,200 per day during spring planting with his Trimble guidance and row control system, according to a story in the June issue of Trimble’s StraightTalk newsletter.

“After planting with RTK and implement guidance, I would
never want to plant any other way,” says Glendenning. “I used
to spend a lot of time looking back, and trying to compensate for the planter sliding down sidehills, but now I don’t have to.”

Glendenning also added Tru Count air clutches to all 24 planter row units. “We have countless acres of point rows and waterways, so we used to have a lot of overlap and wasted seed. With all the multiple-trait seed we plant, seed costs are around $125 per acre. I’d estimate we saved $1,200 in seed costs per day this spring. And since we aren’t overlapping in the headlands, the plants won’t be overcrowded and lodging. That should improve yield.”

Tillage is another benefit Glendenning sees from his Trimble
equipment. “We’ve found WAAS is just not accurate enough
for doing skip rows on 200-acre fields; by the end of the field
you can end up being off by six to seven feet. But if we pair an
EZ-Guide® 500 system with the Ag3000 modem in our tillage
tractor, we can till very efficiently.”

To learn more, check out the June issue.

It’s nice to see more ISOBUS compliant electronics on equipment, such as with the new Case IH Precision Air 3580 air cart. All systems can be controlled and monitored from the cab thanks to ISO 11783 compliant electronics–such as the Case IH AFS Pro 600 or AFS 300 display.

Engineered for large acreage small grain growers who need to cover thousands of acres in a short planting window, the Precision Air 3580 has a three-compartment tank with a total capacity of 580 U.S. bushels.

The three tank compartments hold 135 bushels, 183 bushels and 262 bushels respectively, providing growers with more seeding and fertilizer options and higher capacities in one pass. Tanks are made of steel, with tough, powder coat paint inside and out for a harder finish, better rust protection and longer wear.

“Our broadacre customers are asking us for larger drills and carts with more capacity, so they can run longer between stops,” says Gord Engel, Case IH seeding product manager. “The less time farmers spend re-filling seed and fertilizer tanks, the more acreage they cover during the prime planting window, and the more they reduce seeding costs.

“Whether you’re growing wheat, barley, rye, oats, canola or pulse crops, the further north you go, the smaller the planting window gets,” Engel adds. “Planting at the right time helps maximize yields. With the Precision Air 3580, growers cover more acres per hour, per day, per week and per season.”

To learn more, visit this link.

WiFi in your tractor cab? The AutoFarm ParaDyme GPS system is the first to offer remote loading of software. And it can remotely connect to your dealer for help.

“AutoFarm is the only GPS steering provider currently offering this capability,” says John Bressler, Sr. Marketing Manager, AutoFarm. “The ParaDyme looks like a WiFi ‘hotspot’ to the user’s PC and once connected the software is quickly and easily uploaded.”

The WiFi connectivity to upload software, now enabled on version 1.2 of the ParaDyme Software allows users to remotely load software without the customary auxiliary cables or USB devices.

The ParaDyme System is the industry’s first single system solution to all facets of precision farming: planter control, application control, yield monitoring, data logging and management, plus hands-free GPS steering via WAAS, EGNOS, OmniSTAR HP/XP, and RTK. It is also GLONASS ready. With its unique factory-integrated wireless, ParaDyme offers a Remote Real-Time Service connection to the dealer in addition to optional RTK ReadyConnect that provides RTK correction without a base station. The newly enabled WiFi function is another expansion of an already feature-packed solution to virtually everything precision ag.

For more information on the AutoFarm ParaDyme system and WiFi capability, Remote Service, etc., visit www.gpsfarm.com.

Tomorrow, May 21, the first of 12 ‘next generation’ GPS satellites will head into space.

Boeing announced that the first of 12 Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF navigation spacecraft that the company is building for the U.S. Air Force has successfully completed prelaunch testing. The satellite, GPS IIF-1, is scheduled for a May 20 launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

GPS is a space-based, worldwide navigation system providing users with highly accurate, three-dimensional position, navigation and timing information 24 hours a day in all weather conditions. The 12 GPS IIF satellites feature stronger and more precise signals that will enhance the services that support U.S. warfighters, their allies, and civilian GPS users around the world.

“These next-generation satellites provide improved accuracy through advanced atomic clocks; a more jam-resistant military signal and a longer design life than earlier GPS satellites; and a new civil signal that benefits aviation safety and search-and-rescue efforts,” said Craig Cooning, vice president and general manager, Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems. “GPS IIF is the culmination of our deep experience with 39 successful satellites from previous missions, representing more than 30 years of teamwork with the Air Force.”

“GPS is used by nearly a billion people worldwide for everything from farming and aviation to public safety, disaster relief and recreation, not to mention its military purpose of providing precision navigation and timing to combat forces,” said Air Force Col. David Madden, GPS Wing Commander. “GPS IIF will increase the signal power, precision and capacity of the system, and form the core of the GPS constellation for years to come.”

As the first spacecraft in the GPS IIF series, GPS IIF-1 underwent stringent and comprehensive testing following shipment to the launch site in February. Tests included verification of key satellite functions as well as end-to-end system testing to verify operations between the satellite and the Boeing-built ground control segment at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado. Commands were sent from Schriever to GPS IIF-1 at Cape Canaveral to turn on payloads, reprogram processors, and verify interoperability with user receivers and equipment, both civil and military.

In April, the Air Force and Boeing team completed a comprehensive series of prelaunch exercises. These included a mission dress rehearsal and two integrated crew exercises that involved all GPS IIF launch and missions operations crews, from controllers at Schriever to space vehicle engineers and range radar operators at Cape Canaveral to tracking stations around the world.

The maker of Apache sprayers, Equipment Technologies, just announced the addition of SpraySmarter.com to its business.

SpraySmarter.com is an online culmination of years of sprayer manufacturing and customer support expertise. The site offers brands like Hypro, TeeJet, Banjo and Raven precision-ag products combined with an intuitive shopping experience and an array of application-focused tools intended to supplement the visitor’s spraying knowledge including tip selection calculators, video tutorials, a spray-focused forum and more. Matt Hays, CEO of Equipment Technologies and SpraySmarter.com, explains, “Our goal with SpraySmarter.com is to transfer the vast spraying expertise of ET to an online shopping experience that doesn’t simply sell sprayer parts; it gives the user an experience that is as close to the traditional parts counter as possible.” Hays adds, “The tools on our site act as an aid in the online buying process, provide a place for applicators to collaborate online and really position SpraySmarter.com as a destination.”

ET boasts a same-day fulfillment rate of 98% on all parts orders and many of those orders come from the thousands of calls received by ET sprayer support specialists. Kevin Covey, parts and service manager for Equipment Technologies and SpraySmarter.com, commented, “Through the volume of calls we receive and our just-in-time inventory philosophy, we have taken the traditional manufacturer support model and turned it into a true competitive advantage.” Covey adds, “We are constantly in touch with applicators; we know it is time to take our competitive advantage to the internet – it’s just a natural progression.”

www.ETsprayers.com

www.SpraySmarter.com

Claimed to work better than any current home networking solution, the roof-mounted Ayrstone AyrMesh wireless network can make your whole farmstead wireless, as reported this week in Ag Weekly Online.

Bill Moffitt wants to offer farmers and ranchers the ability to open up a laptop computer anywhere on their homestead and have Internet connectivity.

Recently Moffitt, the founder and president of Ayrstone Productivity, LLC, announced that an affordable system is now available.

The Ayrstone AyrMesh wireless network makes it possible to conduct Internet-based tasks within visual range of an AyrMesh Hub in the office or in the yard.

Priced at $249, the AyrMesh Hub is about the size and weight of a small transistor radio and designed for indoor or outdoor mounting.

It’s 40 times as powerful as the Wireless Local Area Network (Wi-Fi) routers usually found in homes. Moffit says the AyrMesh Hub is as powerful a Wi-Fi device as allowed in the United States.

“The networking solutions that have been available for agriculture have tended to be very expensive and difficult to put into place,” Moffitt said. “We wanted to offer a network originating in the homestead that builds a wireless network that people can afford and use easily.”

To learn more about the history and how this system works, read the story.

Aerial Imagery provider FalconScan is working with AgJunction to offer standardized work order and data delivery services to growers and ag service providers.

Under a new agreement, FalconScan will harness the power of the AgJunction hardware and software platform to make it easier for customers to order and receive the company’s aerial imagery acquisition services.

Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Herron stated, “We are pleased to be teaming up with AgJunction. We believe that their services will streamline the ability of growers and service providers to place orders for FalconScan’s aerial imagery services and receive data back in a timely fashion. We strive to deliver finished data to customers within a week or less from the time they place an order, and AgJunction will help us make that possible.”

Jeff Dearborn, Managing Director of AgJunction at GVM Inc., said, “We are proud that FalconScan chose AgJunction as its provider of data management services. It is one more indication that AgJunction is becoming the go-to information technology platform for growers and service providers in the agricultural industry. With FalconScan’s help, we look forward to strong growth for our platform in 2010 and beyond.”

Headquartered in Glen Burnie, Maryland, FalconScan, LLC combines state-of-the-art remote sensing science and commercial-off-the-shelf technology to rapidly deliver high-resolution ortho photos, NDVIs, and field maps. The company’s proprietary solutions help growers efficiently manage crops, reduce inputs, and save money. FalconScan images can be used to support field scouting, develop prescription maps, and control variable rate technology.

A division of GVM Inc. (www.gvminc.com), AgJunction offers an information technology platform of hardware and data management software that is specifically designed for the agriculture industry. This flexible, web-based system allows users to manage moving and stationary equipment, and to manage field data work orders. In addition, it provides a comprehensive reporting system.

Ag Leader’s popular EDGE display can now be used to control two product applications simultaneously.

Chemical Injection
Dual product control in the EDGE display will support sprayer control of a liquid carrier and a single injection pump. Like other Ag Leader products, the EDGE display’s DirectCommand system now interfaces to the Raven Sidekick chemical injection pump for complete control over chemical injection applications. The EDGE display and CAN module will replace the Sidekick Console, directly connecting to the injection pump. Automated prime and calibration routines as well as advanced sensor diagnostics are part of the new functionality. This addition can be used for herbicide, fungicide, and insecticide as well as nitrogen stabilizer injection application.

Granular Fertilizer Application
Dual product control also means two channels of granular product control in the EDGE display. Operators have the ability to apply two products simultaneously at varying rates, either manually or using a prescription. The most common applications of this feature will be in spinner spreader and strip-till operations.

“We continually strive to provide practical solutions to enhance user-experience and productivity,” says John Howard, Product Manager for Ag Leader. “The addition of dual product application control combined with existing EDGE display functionality provides an economical solution with the tools to achieve this.”

Additional functionality of the EDGE display includes SeedCommand, DirectCommand, yield monitoring, guidance and steering capabilities. In addition, the EDGE display is plug compatible with Ag Leader’s INTEGRA and InSight displays; this gives users who wish to upgrade in the future a seamless transition.