From DTN Progressive Farmer, May 27:
Deere Building Autonomous System
John Deere has purchased visioning technology properties from AI-startup Light. Light was founded in 2013 and its computer visioning platform is to become an important piece in Deere's expanding fleet of autonomous vehicles.
Currently, Deere is producing the 8R autonomous tractor/TruSet-enabled chisel plow system. It operates with six pairs of stereo cameras -- the eyes -- mounted front and back on the machine, which allow the tractor to perform driverless duties within defined field boundaries. The cameras are the basic sensor that allow the tractor to see what's happening.
Deere has plans for much more. In its Leaps Unlocked Analyst Day on May 26 in Des Moines, Iowa, Deere revealed plans to produce by 2030 the machinery/technology pieces of what will become a complete, full-season-capable autonomous cropping package. That includes spring and fall tillage, planting, spraying and harvesting systems.
Although Deere was vague on the exact autonomous configurations it will produce, one presenter did point to a need for autonomous grain carts and autonomous spraying systems fitted with See & Spray, the technology that allows a Deere sprayer to treat growing crops for individual weeds. The autonomous package, or packages may be configured for corn and soybeans, but also for high value crops, such as grapes, fruits and nuts.
Deere isn't saying much about the intellectual properties acquisition from Light (it did not purchase Light), only that the technology will help "make perception better." There are a couple of published technology pieces with more detail.
The Robot Report said Deere will add Light's Clarity platform to its autonomous tractors....
....MUCH MORE
