Market developments and buying tips for autonomous retrofit kits
If you want to convert an existing tractor into an autonomous tractor, you can turn to an autonomous retrofit kit. A brand independent conversion kit that enables unmanned operations with your existing tractor or fleet of tractors. Here’s what to consider if you’re interested.
In some countries and regions, more than 95 per cent of growers use autosteer technology to help them grow crops and products of the best quality. Technology that also helps save on inputs and farm as (cost) efficient and sustainable as possible. And with 26 universal autosteer retrofit systems currently on offer worldwide, farmers have plenty of independent brands and types to choose from.
Clear market, limited number of options
So what are your options if you are looking for the next step and decide to promote your tractor(s) from autosteer to autonomous or unmanned? Then the number of commercially available brand independent systems is about half of the number of universal autosteer retrofit kits on offer. While you might expect (some of) the same players who opened up the market for brand independent autosteer retrofit systems such as Ag Leader, (PTx) Trimble, Raven and Topcon, reality is different. None of these are currently offering autonomous retrofit kits commercially. That is, a kit to let a tractor (or other vehicle) run fully autonomous without following a combine harvester (or other vehicle) leading/guiding it.
Risk of failure and liability
When Future Farming asked them why not, the answer is always similar: “With autosteer and automated headland management in place, it technically is no problem at all. Sometimes it literally is just a matter of bypassing the switch underneath the tractor seat. But the risk of failure if something goes wrong and the liability that comes with it, are too big for large stock exchange listed companies. Moreover, the market potential still is too small for the large numbers we require for a market introduction. For smaller specialists, these kinds of arguments are less strong.”
Autonomous retrofit kits catalogue
And thus, it’s again (new) specialists who open up the market. 7 of these are currently listed and freshly updated in the Future Farming autonomous retrofit kits catalogue: Agreenculture (French), Bluewhite (Israeli), Braun Maschinenbau (German), GOtrack (Polish), GPX Solutions (Dutch), Sabanto (American) and ThornTek (Australian). No feedback was unfortunately given by FarmX, Fieldin, Kingman Ag, Mojow and Polymath Robotics while Agtonomy emphasises that their technology is factory fitted instead of retrofitted.
Where are we heading?
So what technological features and developments currently characterise the progress of autonomous retrofit kits? Adi Schechter, Bluewhite’s marketing director says that obstacle detection evolves towards sensor fusion for enhanced safety and task execution is getting smarter thanks to the integration of AI-driven implement control for precision spraying and mowing. And cloud-based fleet management allowing remote mission planning, tracking and optimisation. Jay Katupitiya from ThornTek sees that autonomous retrofit kits provide the ability to gather data and use them to make informed decisions using AI for other operations that are not directly related to the autonomous operation.
Sara Gillum from Sabanto adds that retrofit autonomy appeals to farmers with diverse field operations requiring different tractor uses and implements. “Farmers with repetitive field operations benefit the most”, she says. “As autonomy eliminates the need for an operator in the driver’s seat most of the time, it addresses the growing labour shortage in agriculture while improving efficiency and reducing labour costs. This way, the technology enables farmers to scale operations more quickly than traditional methods.”
Adi Schechter: “Our technology is primarily adopted by vineyard and orchard growers in high-value specialty crops including almonds, grapes, citrus, pistachios, cherries and apples. These growers typically face labour shortages and operational inefficiencies that autonomy can address. It helps optimise fuel, chemical and equipment use and helps reduce human exposure to hazardous conditions.”
Jay Katupitiya: “We see vineyard and livestock owners being particularly interested because of the potential to address labour shortages, consistent and speedy operations and the tediousness of certain tasks.”
Choose the best fit with these insider tips
So what are the insider tips if you consider investing in a brand independent autonomous retrofit kit for your farm? Adi Schechter, Bluewhite: “My advice firstly is to ensure connectivity, power and fleet compatibility and to choose a system that integrates with existing implements. Also, prioritise safety and support and invest in a provider with proven safety features and a reliable service. Begin with one or two units to evaluate the ROI and ease of use.”
Joanne de Ruiter from GPX Solutions also emphasises the importance of safety features a system comes with. Sara Gillum, Sabanto: “Farmers should consider that autonomy eliminates the need for an operator in the driver’s seat most of the time. We see that many users opt for open-station tractors which are more affordable than cab tractors.”
Jay Katupitiya, ThornTek concludes: “The precision, reliability and service support levels have substantially increased and the costs are manageable. If you are not interested yet in a purchase, then try them out with those who use them as service providers. This is a risk-free way to learn about this technology.”
