GPS and Agriculture FRS 142 Casey McComsey

Traditional Thought FARMER + TECHNOLOGY = …

Traditional Thought (cont’d) Utter Confusion

A Brave New World Yesterday’s Farmers –Plow Fields With Mules –Rely on Posts and Outdated Maps –Work Sun-up to Sun-down Today’s Farmers –Flip on Autopilot and Take in the Scenery –Have Real-time Maps on an LCD Screen –Work 24 Hours a Day if need be

GPS Applications Field preparation, Planting and Cultivation Fertilizing and Crop Protection Mapping, Scouting, and Sampling Harvesting Planning and Analysis

Enter GPS…yee haw

The 3 P’s—Prep, Plan, Cultivate Increase productivity  driving straight, centimeter- accurate swaths Save Time  driving faster and more accurately, even in reduced light Precision Planting of Seeds

The 3 P’s (cont’d) Multi-tasking  laying drip tape as you create a crop bed Create and Maintain Detailed Records Overall Best Utilization

Fertilization & Crop Protection Optimization Less fertilizer or protectant material and apply it only where it's needed. More Efficient than the Old Method 

Mapping, Scouting, and Sampling All About Data and Details Optimize Water Management Scout Crops and Collect Map Data

Mapping, Scouting, and Sampling (cont’d) Map and navigate around field boundaries, point, line, or area features Map hard-to-reach features from a vehicle or airplane Accurately scout crops and navigate to weeds, pests and diseased areas

Harvesting Monitor the quality of harvesting operations Minimize fuel and other costs with more accurate driving Maintain detailed records of harvest operations Create yield maps

Planning and Analysis Easy to use software packages Eliminate a lot of guess-work Accessible when it’s needed—on location

RTK Technology Real-Time Kinematic Pioneered by Trimble in 1992 Sub-meter DGPS Accuracy Not Enough RTK offers centimeter level accuracy Currently also used for mining, survey, and construction applications.

RTK II—What is Needed? Base Station on Known Surveyed Point 1 or More Mobile Receivers w/in 10 km Range UHF, VHF, or Spread Spectrum Radio Link Radios Work Best w/Line of Sight Visibility

RTK II—What is Needed?

RTK III—How does it work? Base station transmits corrections via radio to the mobile receivers in the field RTK base stations transmit data once per second Data in format called CMR (Compact Measurement Record) Dual frequency data format  transmits data in a more compact and robust way than other formats

RTK IV Track the Second Carrier Phase Signal This Signal Allows for Trimble RTK to lock into Higher Accuracy Also Initializes More Quickly

RTK vs. DGPS RTK Requires 5 Satellites to Initialize, Can Work w/4 – DGPS 3, works well w/4 RTK Requires a Dual Frequency Receiver RTK needs one minute to initialize/DGPS immediately Accuracy of cm’s in 3 dimensions—RTK Sub-meter accuracy in horizontal position only— DGPS RTK must have own base station in 10 km range DGPS can use base station, correction service provider, or free radio beacons

Trimble GPS Products AgGPS 252 Receiver AgGPS EZ-Guide Plus Lightbar Guidance System ApGPS EZ-Map Software AgGPS Autopilot

AgGPS 252 Receiver 12 Channel GPS Engine RTK Highly Portable 5 lb Design

AgGPS EZ-Guide Plus Lightbar Guiding System LCD Screen Eliminates Weather Concerns/Low- Light Worries

ApGPS EZ-Map Software Runs on Handheld PCs and PDAs Mapping Software Helps at All Stages of Production Great Way to Show Proof of Work to Customers/Investors

AgGPS Autopilot Steering Assistant Must Have Driver Present However Connects to Tractor’s Hyrdaulic Power Steering System

Testimonials “We use the AgGPS PSO for straight guidance, headlands, and A/B lines. Our efficiency before and after getting our PSO is night and day, literally. Optimally, with the PSO we can do 1200 acres a day.” Darryl and Kyle Cochrane Cochrane Spraying, Canada “With GPS, we are quicker and have increased our work-load within an 8-hour workday. The GPS swathing system lets me do more work per day than I was doing before.” Tommy Barham JT Barham Farming

That’s all folks.