This machine can drive itself across the land, without a driver
It will take some time before cars can drive completely independently on public roads. The real world turns out to be difficult to predict and besides the technology, the regulations are not quite ready for it yet. On agricultural fields you have to deal less with difficult things such as pedestrians, road works or other road users. That’s why John Deere has already succeeded in making a tractor that can bump across the fields on its own. The self-propelled tractor is still for sale this year.
Officially, the self-propelled tractor is called the John Deere 8R. All the farmer has to do is place the tractor on the land with a plow behind it, for example. The tractor uses GPS and six stereo cameras to generate a 360-degree view. The tractor uses these images to analyze whether, for example, there are obstacles that require it to brake. The farmer can remotely adjust the speed and control things like the depth of the plow via his phone.
Self-driving tractor must feed the world
In addition to making the farmer’s life easier, John Deere has another reason to come up with a self-propelled tractor. According to the brand, there will be about 10 billion people on Earth by 2050 and the demand for food will have increased by 50 percent. Tractors like these are supposed to help farmers keep production going all day and produce enough food.
