THE future of high-value orchard and vineyard crop-spraying technology has been showcased by John Deere, with the unveiling of the semi-autonomous GUSS sprayer at Hort Connections in Adelaide.
Using GUSS technology, multiple machines can be remotely monitored by a single operator and use a sophisticated combination of GPS and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) technology, vehicle sensors, and software, to move and navigate through high value crops.
In April last year, John Deere announced a joint venture with California-based GUSS Automation to accelerate the development and distribution of its technology and meet the needs of orchard and vineyard producers worldwide – a technology which will be coming to a Haeusler’s branch near you.
John Deere production systems manager, Stephanie Gersekowski, said the eye-catching, silver GUSS sprayer captured plenty of attention over the course of the Hort Connections event.
“This really is the future of spraying in the high-value crop sector, and we were delighted to have a unit on site at the John Deere activation to allow producers to see it up close and understand the capacity this technology has to transform treatment application,” Stephanie says.
“Traditionally, using GPS guidance under orchards and vineyard canopies has been challenging, but GUSS has overcome this issue by developing several additional technologies, including vehicle sensors and software to supplement GPS and guide GUSS safely and efficiently through crops,” she says.
Stephanie was joined at the exhibit by GUSS chief operations officer and co-founder, Gary Thompson.
“GUSS stands for Global Unmanned Spray System. It goes through the fields with no driver, spraying the inputs onto the crops they need,” Gary added.
“GUSS also just launched Herbicide GUSS, which uses up to nine sensors to spot-spray weeds, meeting needs for in-row hygiene while providing significant cost savings to the grower,” he says.
“The whole concept is to have one person supervising the vehicles from the safety of a ute and monitoring anywhere from one to eight of these machines at a time.
“It’s a very efficient solution to address labour challenges where lack of workforce is an issue, and we are very excited about bringing this machine to more parts of Australia.
“Being fully robotic and controlled by a computer, the precision that it sprays with is also just phenomenal. It does the correct speed at all times and sprays the correct amount of product, turning on and off when it is supposed to.
“It doesn’t double-spray a row by accident, it doesn’t skip a row – it is just very precise, so it’s better for crops, better for the environment and an all-around great machine that is really going to help growers with a lot of their challenges.”
US-based John Deere GUSS business integration manager Sean Sundberg, who was at the John Deere activation meeting Australian horticulture producers, says the GUSS joint venture is a great example of what can be achieved when two companies with a shared vision for farming come together.
“The focus John Deere is placing on the high value crop sector is second-to-none and we are here to stay,” Sean says.
“GUSS has now been around for multiple years, and we are coming in and embracing the technology and helping them move faster.”
“We’re using John Deere dealers exclusively to start increasing our retail footprint with GUSS in high-value crop markets around the world.
“From my perspective, with John Deere working hand-in-hand with GUSS, there is nothing we can’t solve to address what growers are asking for in terms of labour, precision ag technology and chemical application.”
For more information , go to www.deere.com.au/en/tractors/specialty-tractors/
