The tool allows operators to adjust tillage equipment from the tractor cab
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A new tool will give farmers the ability to manage tillage implements from the tractor cab.
Sunflower, AGCO’s seeding and tillage equipment brand, recently launched its Till Control tool. It’s an ISOBUS system that lets farmers control the depth of a tillage implement as well as adjust some of its components.
“If an implement has a hydraulically controlled attachment, (Till Control) can change the physical operating depth of that attachment and the amount of downforce it puts on the attachment,” Larry Kuster, senior product marketing specialist with AGCO, said to Farms.com.
“Hydraulic cylinders tend to build up pressure and tend to get out of phase,” he said. “If that happens, the wing section on an implement might operate at a different depth than another section. This system can monitor those cylinders and alert the operator, who can make the proper adjustments right from the cab.”
The system is available on the SF6830 high-speed rotary finisher, the SF1436 Series of disc harrows and the SF6631 Series of vertical tillage tools. It will be made available on more equipment in the future, Kuster said.
The Till Control system is also equipped with an implement recognition feature.
The system will display the tillage tool’s name, type and working width. It can notify operators of upcoming maintenance and display implement errors. Farmers can also use the system to track hours and acres.
The system also equips implements with a lighting package for better visibility during nighttime operations.
Sunflower’s goal with the Till Control system is to help farmers prepare the best seedbed possible.
Creating an even seedbed with a good soil profile can help farmers get their crops off to a good start, Kuster said.
“We don’t want to have clods, because that means we have air pockets in the seedbed,” he said. “If we have air pockets, there’s a good chance we won’t have seed to soil contact and won’t have an even transfer of moisture. If we don’t have those things, we won’t have uniform germination or uniform emergence.”
AGCO is already testing the next phase of its Till Control system.
The company’s goal is to equip the tool with the capability to respond to changing field conditions, Kuster said.
Sunflower 6830 Series rotary finisher/Sunflower photo