The O3M Smart Sensor offers farmers a precision guidance tool that provides recommendations and an “extra set of eyes” for farm equipment
Technology is changing agriculture in ways that would have seemed unfathomable even less than a generation ago.
A good example of how this is occurring is with the O3M Smart Sensor from ifm efector.
It is defined by the manufacturer as a “photo-electric 3D sensor which measures the distance between the sensor and the nearest surface point by point using the time-of-flight principle.”
In practical terms, it is a tool for precision guidance that is not exclusively used by the agricultural sector but which definitely comes into its own on farms.
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The O3M Smart Sensor is an extra set of eyes
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One instance of its use is in vineyards, where its line guidance helps to increase efficiency when picking grapes, according to ifm efector’s national technical sales manager Dan Buzatu.
“People need to be more efficient by harvesting more grapes from the same piece of land to a much lower cost,” he says.
“If the tractor you are using is to steer properly and not miss any grapes, that means more wine.
“This sensor is your extra set of eyes. It is the same as a motor vehicle, it doesn’t mean you don’t have to look but it is an extra set of eyes and suddenly the vehicle brakes for you, for example. It’s the same with this particular sensor and the feedback has been unbelievable.”
The O3M sensor has existed in Australia since 2015 and its use continues to expand.
It has “a highly developed algorithm” to determine the ideal path for a tractor to follow and provides steering recommendations to the tractor’s control system. Buzatu says the technology can also be integrated into existing machines if required.
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Dan Buzatu (presenting)
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While vineyard use is one example of where growers can benefit from the O3M sensor, precision is just as important on a bigger scale in broadacre farming. For example, Buzatu says the sensor helps farmers with windrow following.
“After the farmer harvests the wheat, for example, the waste is a windrow left in the back. This particular sensor with another vehicle, which comes and gets the hay for example, or whatever is in the back of a tractor. The sensor sits in front of the tractor and gives 3D vision, which follows the windrow,” he says.
More than 1,000 individual measurements are taken to ensure the tractor moves in a straight line, increasing efficiency during narrow harvest windows.
Another benefit of the O3M sensor, Buzatu says, is the ability to remove human error when steering, taking away any concentration issues caused by the farmer being tired late into a long day, or feeling worse for wear even when the day starts.
“This sensor doesn’t sleep, it never gets sick, it doesn’t get fatigue and even if the farmer has had a big night before, it still works fine the next day,” he says.
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In broadacre farming, the sensor gives 3D vision of the windrow, ensuring the tractor moves in a straight line
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