Winner of a New Machinery Award at the 2002 Royal Smithfield Show, John Deere's GreenStar AutoTrac assisted steering system is now available for the company's 8020 Series wheeled tractors and their predecessors, as well as tracked models. The new system can be seen for the first time at Cereals 2003 in June.
This accurate headland to headland, straight line system greatly reduces the amount of time the tractor driver needs to spend steering the tractor, so increasing productivity and reducing fatigue. Based on John Deere's original Parallel Tracking system, AutoTrac uses three common GreenStar components, the in-cab display unit, mobile processor and StarFire position receiver, to automatically steer the tractor down the field.
The system employs satellite technology for differential correction, without the need for a local base station. It has an unlimited coverage area because of the worldwide StarFire network, and is very simple to use. After setting an initial pass, with spacings adjusted to the working width of the implement being used, the operator simply presses a button on the tractor's CommandARM control panel and AutoTrac will steer the tractor.
The operator must still turn at the end of each pass and around any obstacles in the field, but the effort needed to steer the tractor in a straight line is virtually eliminated. Turning the steering wheel 10 degrees in either direction returns full control to the driver, and the system will operate at any speed between 1.5 and 20kph.
Apart from increased comfort for the operator, and more accurate passes with less under and overlapping, especially at night and in low visibility, other benefits include reduced compaction and more efficient use of inputs such as fertiliser and pesticides.
AutoTrac also helps to maximise tillage operations by utilising the full width of the implement more effectively, which also reduces fuel consumption and allows faster field speeds.
Further improvements have been made to Parallel Tracking and AutoTrac to increase the versatility of both systems. After entering the grid coordinates of any location, the new 'return to marker' function will guide the tractor driver back to that exact point – a particularly useful feature when working at night, for example.
Up to 250 fields can now be stored when using a PC data card, instead of only five without, and there is a new implement offset setting to allow for implements which do not follow the centre line of the tractor, eg ploughs and mower conditioners.
The system's 'contour' mode is now known as 'curved track', in which mode the driver can choose between normal and aerial views. With the drive view and aerial view displayed together on the same screen, following a curved path is now easier, more accurate and more predictable, and the aerial view also allows the driver to zoom in and out using the numeric key pad.
In due course AutoTrac will be available on other John Deere self-propelled machines, such as combines and self-propelled forage harvesters.
