A field scanning system capable of altering crop input rates to suit what it sees is now available through Huntingdon-based precision farming specialist AS Communications.
The PerPlant hardware bolts to the roof of a tractor or sprayer, with its cameras and sensors trained on the field to collect pictures and biomass measurements as it passes.
See also: SoilEssentials’ Skai spot-sprayer cuts chemical use in pastures
Lightning-quick on-board software then opens nozzles or adjusts application rate accordingly.
This can be used to patch spray weeds, for which it has a resolution of 1sq m on machines equipped with pulse-width modulation.
Unwanted greenery can be detected and dealt with across a 36m boom when working on stubble but, due to the central mounting point of the cameras, only 18m in a growing crop.
Switch to fertiliser or plant growth regulator, and it will automatically vary the dose based on live biomass data without growers having to upload a prescription map beforehand.
The system will record what has been applied and save it to the cloud for documentation and end-of-season interrogation.
© ASC PerPlant
It can also measure normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) that gives insights into plant health, density and greenness to steer fungicide rates.
And, as it is constantly scanning the field, weed pressure identified during a fertiliser or fungicide pass can be used to calculate the volume required for a subsequent herbicide spray.
The isobus-compatible PerPlant package costs £14,995, including installation and one year’s cloud analytics.
According to AS Communications, buyers could see a return on investment within the first 12 months through higher yields and reduced inputs.
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