John Deere innovations extend beyond DLG Medals

Apart from the products and solutions awarded gold and silver medals by the DLG jury, John Deere displayed numerous other innovative products, components and concepts at this year’s Agritechnica event (10-14 November), which are designed to help farmers and contractors enhance the productivity of their equipment.

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“The large number of John Deere innovations is a result of the company’s continuing high investment into research and development,” said Chris Wigger, John Deere’s Region 2 Vice President Sales & Marketing. “We are particularly proud that all John Deere’s product platforms and Technology Innovation Centres have collaborated to develop a suite of new solutions, together with our industry partners and service providers.”

New John Deere FarmSight solutions

MyJobsManager - MyJobsManager is the basis for a suite of mobile apps (iOS & Android) designed to simplify and automate the entire job and data management of the digital and mobile office. MyJobsManager provides a real-time overview of operators and their machines (regardless of make & model), enabling the whole of the farm or contractor business to be optimised. Pre-defining job details from the office saves operators up to 50 per cent set-up time in the field, reduces errors and increases uptime, thus generating cost savings.

MyLogistics - MyLogistics is a mobile app solution (iOS & Android) designed to optimise the operational logistics of interacting machines (regardless of make & model), eg during forage harvesting, manure spreading etc. MyLogistics enables dedicated harvest planning, intelligent machine routing, efficient navigation and prompt arrival. The system gives the user a real-time overview of the work in progress and is fully integrated with MyJobsManager in the Operations Centre.

New CropCare solutions

Ultra-Lightweight Carbon Fibre Boom - John Deere’s ultra-lightweight high-performance sprayer boom for self-propelled sprayers uses an innovative carbon fibre design. The boom is designed to withstand the high dynamic loads inherent at high application speeds of 20-30kph, even with wide boom widths. The carbon fibre material is around 5.5 times stronger than steel, while considerably lighter than either steel or aluminium spray booms. In addition, the entire structure is able to flex, which relieves the boom structure from stress. By contrast, stress in metal booms can create fractures.

New Crop Harvesting solutions

DynaFlo Plus - The DynaFlo Plus cleaning system on W and T-Series combines from Zweibrücken represents a new generation of cleaning shoe, which for the first time is made of specially selected materials (aluminium, steel and cast iron). The system features an enlarged (by 41 per cent) sieve surface that helps to reduce oscillation. The use of aluminium has enabled engineers to increase the shoe size, while retaining the weight of the previous design. With a sieve area of more than 6m2, the cleaning shoe is among the largest in its class. To make the shoe easily adjustable, the fan has also been redesigned for 30 per cent greater air volume, with inlets providing even air intake and distribution.

Quick Engage Booster Bar - By engaging the newly designed, quickly adjustable booster bar on W and T-Series combines, operators can increase machine output by up to 10 per cent for small grains and make the adjustment within just three minutes. Unlike most competitive machines, the tilting mechanism and positioning of the bar in front of the concave facilitate the installation and activation of this performance enhancing feature.

Harvest Analytics - For the first time ever, Harvest Analytics offers superior intelligence that combines the operator’s actions across several performance criteria into one overall performance score. In addition, the operator can benchmark his current performance scores (overall performance, productivity, power use, fuel efficiency and grain losses) against his previous performance over the last 50 hours. In addition, the operator can compare how he is doing with other machines in the fleet or within his dealer’s geographic sales area.

New Hay & Forage solutions

John Deere Stone Detection - John Deere Stone Detection is a new feature on self-propelled forage harvesters that helps to prevent damage from stones and foreign objects at an early stage. In operation, the system uses two sensors applying different technologies, ie vibration analysis and acceleration measurement. These smart sensors detect a foreign object and stop the feeding system within the first 80 milliseconds, thus protecting the forage harvester drum from potential damage.

SPFH Fast Stop Partner: Bosch Rexroth AG - The Fast Stop feature for self-propelled forage harvesters protects the cutterhead and crop flow components from damage caused by the entry of foreign objects. Unlike mechanical systems, this new design operates completely hydraulically and so is free from wear. A hydraulic pump returns from maximum angle to zero within 40 milliseconds, while hydrostatically bringing the 3500rpm feedrolls to a standstill after approximately 4.3 revolutions.

New Tractor-related solutions

Intelligent 3rd Axle Drive by John Deere Smart Power Generator Partner: Fliegl Fliegl product: ‘Smart Control Drive’ - Intelligent 3rd axle drive supports the electrical propulsion of an implement or trailer axle. The concept uses the John Deere Smart Power Generator, a pto-driven generator, to provide up to 100kW of electrical power, and is fully integrated into the tractor’s drivetrain system. As a result, the tractor/trailer combination achieves the same level of traction performance normally provided by a self-propelled or multi-axle vehicle.

Front Loader Efficiency Package - John Deere’s front loader efficiency package for 6R Series tractors includes two significant innovations. To avoid losing material during operation, the ‘electronic self-levelling to horizon’ (ESL+) feature helps to keep the loader attachment in a horizontal position at all times. In addition, the ‘dynamic weighing system’ (DWS) measures the material weight irrespective of the front loader’s balance point, without interrupting the loading process. This makes recalibration unnecessary when changing attachments.

X950R Bagger Empty Assist - The X950R rear-discharge commercial lawn tractor is now available with a newly designed Bagger Empty Assist system. A filling level indicator tells the operator how much material has already been collected in the bagger, and helps to determine the best possible moment for it to be emptied. Bagger empty assist uses an ultrasound sensor in the bag and a digital display on the tractor’s instrument panel to indicate the filling level.