John Deere unveils autonomous tractor

Deere & Company, Moline, Illinois, exhibited its autonomous tractor ready for large-scale production during CES 2022 Jan. 5-8 in Las Vegas. The new tractor will be available to farmers later this year.

Deere & Co.’s autonomous tractor features six pairs of stereo cameras, providing 360-degree obstacle detection and calculation of distance. Images captured by the cameras go through a neural network that process each pixel and decide if the machine continues to move or stops, dependent on if an obstacle is detected. The tractor also constantly checks its position relative to a geofence to make sure it’s operating where it should, within less than an inch of accuracy.

To operate the tractor, farmers need to place the machine in a field and configure it for autonomous operation. The John Deere Operations Center Mobile app can be used to start the machine and monitor its status.

Through the app, farmers can access live video, images, data and metrics, and they can also change the machine’s speed, depth and additional features. Notifications will be sent through the app if the machine experiences issues, where a farmer can adjust settings to optimize the machine’s performance.

According to a news release, the autonomous tractor was devised to help feed the world as the global population and food demand rise.