Futuristic tractor saves farmers money

A farm tractor that can “see” what it’s doing with infrared cameras while communicating with satellites and computers may seem like something from the future, but the technology is being tested right now at New Mexico State University.

“I think this is going to be the next advancement in agriculture technology,” said Tracey Carrillo, a senior research specialist at NMSU’s Agriculture Experiment Station. Carrillo is part of a team researching the prototype Spider tractor.

Conventionally, if crops need a fertilizer like nitrogen, or any other application, farmers have to apply a uniform amount over the entire area, blanketing the whole field whether every plant needs it or not.

The Spider knows to treat only the plants in need. Infrared sensors on the tractor measure light reflecting off the plants and tell a computer their condition. If a plant’s leaves are too yellow, it needs more nitrogen. If the leaves are green, the plant is fine. The Spider’s computer then takes the information and sends a signal to the variable rate controller to adjust the application rate of granular nitrogen fertilizer.

A global positioning system (GPS) on the tractor uses satellites to plot what the infrared sensors “see” every two feet. Later, the information can be mapped and a farmer can see which parts of his field are stressed and which parts are healthy. This also lets the farmer know if issues such as soil quality, insect damage or disease need to be addressed.

Carrillo believes by targeting only plants in need of treatment, the delivery system could cut the use of nitrogen on crops by half. “That translates into direct and indirect savings for the farmer,” he said.

This system can be used on a variety of row crops. Carrillo hopes to implement this machine on cotton, chile and onions, for both traditional and organic farms.

Carrillo attributes the success of the project to all team members – Joe Ellington, Jeff Drake, Jill McCauley and Savannah Walsh.