Auto-steer has been a reality for 20 years, but now field work can be done without having someone in the cab of the tractor. True North Equipment Sales Manager Joe Breidenbach says the new John Deere technology is a combination of autonomy and automation. “We’ve been working toward automating tasks in our machines for some time now,” said Breidenbach. “It’s no different than seeing adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping technology with your vehicle and right through to the self driving capability that Tesla and GM are developing. We’re at a place where industry is ready for this and people are becoming more ready for this.” True North Equipment co-owner John Onken describes Deere’s new autonomous tractor as a game changer. “In fact, it changes the scale of the farm, the capability on the farm, the efficiency of the farm and even succession.” Deere’s autonomous tractor will be released on a limited basis later this year. “There will be fall release of exposure units and I think it will be limited. Our expectation is we’ll have the ability to work with it and see it here in this region.”
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