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Applying chemicals to arable or grassland crops has many variables — differing chemical formats and target volumes, and forward speeds that vary with undulating terrain.
The latest innovation from John Deere — its ExactApply spray nozzle — is said to increase flexibility and improve accuracy.
It has six nozzles mounted on a rotating turret, working with two electronically operated liquid control valves. The system can manually switch between two nozzles and independently adjust spray pressure and flow rates.
Flow rate is controlled by pulse wave modulation that enables a much wider range of spraying speeds and application rates, with speed from 10 to 30km/h at a constant pressure, or application rates of 100 to 300 litres/ha at constant forward speeds.
Interestingly, the system can also adjust flow and pressure to create a droplet size that is resistant to drift, which will prove useful in sensitive areas or changing weather.
Greater accuracy is achieved by adjusting flow rates to individual nozzles across the boom; this means greater flow is delivered to the end of the boom that is travelling faster on the outside of a curve, while a reduced flow is delivered to nozzles at the inside of the radius.
For long working days during ideal conditions, each nozzle is equipped with LED lighting for night-time spraying and a blockage detection system that advises operators of any interruption of liquid flows.
While tractors combines and machinery for agriculture and construction is still its key business, John Deere appears to be taking opportunities in the hightech sector via acquisition, with the recent purchase of Sentera, a Minnesota-based company that specialises in equipment for capturing and interpreting aerial images.
John Deere have recently announced upgrades to its round baler offerings, with all models of this latest generation equipped with advanced ISOBUS capabilities, allowing them to be fully integrated into the John Deere Operations Center.
With agriculture in New Zealand coming out of the doldrums over the last few months and the recent announcement of a 20% tax write-off for capital purchases, it likely that farmers will be spending on tractors.
Recent results from its 2024 financial year has seen global farm machinery player John Deere record a significant slump in the profits of its agricultural division over the last year, with a 64% drop in the last quarter of the year, compared to that of 2023.
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