John Deere bringing self-driving technology to tractors
Robotics will ‘remove operator from the cab’
The John Deere logo is seen on a tractor. The Moline, Ill.-based company is partnering with Bear Flag Robotics to bring self-driving technology to tractors. (Bloomberg)
MOLINE, Ill. — John Deere will incorporate more autonomous technology into its machines with the help of Bear Flag Robotics, the company’s most recent acquisition.
Bear Flag, a startup originally part of Deere’s Startup Collaborator program, will help Deere move into the self-driving technology market.
The $250 million deal will deliver customized technology to help farmers create more profitable operations.
“We want to help farmers grow more with less,” said Deanna Kovar, Deere’s vice president of production and precision ag production systems.
The new self-driving technology will help farmers improve their operations without hiring new labor, which has been steadily decreasing over the past few years.
The technology can be fitted on top of existing tractors and will use sensors, radar and a cloud computer system to enable farmers to monitor a tractor's progress from outside the cab.
The new technology gives the machines “situational awareness,” according to Dan Leibfried, Deere’s director of automation and autonomy.
The technology “has changed the game of agriculture and improved the livelihoods of farmers who were using it,” Leibfried said. “With autonomy, we are talking about removing the operator from the cab so they can do other things on the farm.”
Bear Flag will remain headquartered in Silicon Valley while working with Deere.
Farmers in California and Arizona are already using Bear Flag’s technology on a limited amount of commercial vehicles.
The technology is designed for use on all size farms and a large variety of crops.
Leibfried said he spent the past few days meeting 30 Bear Flag employees.
“They are all in, and we need people who are all in to solve these problems,” Leibfried said. “The sky’s the limit.”
Leibfried and Kovar did not release information on the cost of the new technology and when it will be available to consumers.
But Kovar said the company is “considering the best approach to get this in as many hands as fast as possible.”
An autonomous product that is available to consumers today is the See & Spray. Created through a partnership between Blue River Technology and Deere, it identifies weeds from plants and then sprays them.
Kovar said the two autonomous technology partnerships have her looking forward to the future.
“It excited me to know that (John Deere) might be 185 years old," she said, "but we are always changing and evolving."
Gloss