Basics of Precision Farming Technology
How Traditional Farming is Being Replaced by New Technologies
Jan 26, 2009
(To learn how precision technology is helping farmers see: "Benefits of Precision Farming Technology: Reducing the Environmental Impact")
Bill Butler is a sixth generation farmer from Lee County, Illinois. Every year, he manages over 1300 acres of corn and soybeans, tilling, fertilizing, and harvesting. But he's not the average farmer. In a Corn and Soybean Digest article on February 1, 2008, Butler indicates his favorite farmhand tools include the Panorama database, GPS mapping, Farm Site software, and an AgLeader PF3000 Pro yield monitor instead of the old pitchfork and plow.
Butler is a part of an agricultural revolution, one that places focus on precision technologies that may one day ease a global food crisis. From its beginnings, precision technology technology has helped farmers produce more food through a combination of GPS satellite and computer technology by allowing farmers to virtually access their fields via their desktop computers.
The Procedure
Mr. Jalopy, editor of the revolutionary MAKE magazine, on September 9, 2008 explains that farmers rely on digital spikes to give each plant or tree on their farm its own unique internet coding address. The spikes monitor nutrients and soil moisture levels, reporting back to satellites 11,000 miles overhead.
Through GPS technology, the satellites can identify and log the location of the digital address. The farmer can link their computer to the satellite system in order to download the data collect from their fields. With this data, carefully designed computer programs can create detailed maps of areas of need, track basic farm activities, and even automatically activate irrigation and fertilizer dispenser systems.
Automated Machinery
Furthermore, according to Trimble online, one of the largest manufacturers of precision technology supplies, the computer software can store and deploy identification numbers for autopilot systems. Farmers may upgrade their old combines, tractors, and harvesters with autopilot or purchase new machinery already configured for precision technology.
In Science Direct, January 8, 2008 one article explains that through a combination of laser scanners and GPS technology, farm machines can literally drive themselves around a field, performing basic farm activities such as planting and harvesting with incredible results.
The Results
When mowing a lawn, individuals often overlap their rows in order to prevent missed hedges. In the farming world, time is money. Farmers cannot afford to miss sections of their harvest and spend extra time redoing sections of their fields.
Traditionally, in order to prevent this, farmers have made a significant overlap in their rows to avoid the risk of missing parts of their harvest. In the October 10, 2008 update on customer testimonials for Putyourfarmonthemap.com, customers reported their precision technology machines were so precise that they could turn on a dime, keeping irrigation and planting rows in straight, even lines. Precision technology even reduced the harvesting overlap from 30 inches to just 1 inch, an incredible time- and harvest-saver for farmers!
With a food crisis pressing the global community for more food, it has become imperative that farmers analyze and dissect the procedures that produce food. And while Bill Butler's routine on the computer is far different from that of his ancestors, his is riding the new wave of agricultural production.
To learn how precision machinery is changing the face of farming see "Implications of Farming Technologies: How Small Farmers Are Losing Their Jobs"
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