Might be handy for bush-hogging when the ground is full of yellow jacket nests. https://www.monarchtractor.com/
Electric driver-less tractor.
- Thread starter Warren Allison
- Start date
Help Support CattleToday:
OP
OP
Two things I hate is cutting grass and washing cars. I;d rather cut 100 acres of hay than mow a 1 acre yard. My dad loved cutting grass and washing cars more than his wife and kids, and I never could do either one good enough to suit him. He DETAILED his car and truck once a week, 52 weeks a year, He had about 7 acres , and we fenced in about 5 when I got my first pony, The same day I moved out after college, and took my horses with me, he tore down the fence so he could cut the whole 7 acres! I hire my grass cut, and if a vehicle gets washed, it is through a car wash! My motorcycle gets washed when someone is having a bikini bike wash for charity!
Ouachita
Well-known member
I feel that I've lead a sheltered life. I've never been through a drive-thru car wash. I think I'll take my wife on a date night and check that one off the bucket list.
Caustic Burno
Well-known member
I highly doubt I purchase that tractor.
coachg
Well-known member
GPS or not ; I don't have any perfect places to bush hog ! That poor tractor 
wouldn't last a day !
wouldn't last a day !
greybeard
Well-known member
I know a guy that has 2 battery powered gps lawn mowers cutting 2 1/2 acres of yard, that includes lots of trees and ornamental bushes. He loves 'em. Works kinda like a BIG Roomba vac cleaner works. He loves em. Somehow or another, they 'learn where all he obstacles are and cuts as close as they can but I bet they weren't cheap.
Big high$$ golf courses probably use something of that nature but I can't see me ever doing it.
Big high$$ golf courses probably use something of that nature but I can't see me ever doing it.
Have a friend that row crops several thousand acres. He has tractors that operate off gps that he uses to plant 100's of acres/ no tractor driver needed. Was telling how precise the rows of 40 acre fields come out using his gps. He farms close to the Arkansas river. Some of his fellow farmers was teasing him about the gps was going to mess up on him at some point and he was going to find one of his tractors in the bottom of the Arkansas river. These are big tractors, the type that has duel wheels on the front and back of the tractor.
Dsth
Well-known member
my work place has been doing testing on electric tractors. the most likely use is expected to be in orchard applications as seen in the video. battery supplier said battery is designed to last 12 hours. we get 45 minutes. less if you use more power for PTO or hilly conditions. larger tractors that use tillage equipment in large acreage fields will need a replacement battery(s) scattered throughout the field and an install machine to lift installed battery out and install charged battery. not a fast process. battery cost is expected to be upwards of $40,000. unknow expected cost of battery changer in field or how long it takes to recharge. no knowledgeable estimates on battery life since all farming practices are different. driverless tractors so far need so much safety cameras and software to prevent human injury or death that we are lucky to get 5 minutes of continuous work. TechKnowledge has a long way to go before electric driverless operator tractors became common.
Well I know where you can go and watch them planting 100's of acres and has been all summer. I am talking big row crop tractor's at that. Don't know the exact specs of these tractors but I would guess they are well 200 hp +
These are planting corn, soybeans crops like that.
4hfarms
Well-known member
Electric isn't for me. I rode a Harley for years... wind in my hair (back when I still had it) and the hum of the engine is all I need for hours of fun.
Silver
Well-known member
And they are autonomous and electric? I think something is fishy here.
? I don't know what is fishy about ? Why should
Why should it be fishy ?
Silver
Well-known member
Because big electric tractors are not commercially available. And autonomous tractors are a work in progress. All the big guys are using auto steer gps systems. Heck, I use gps in my tractor. But you can't get out and watch it work.
There was company called Embark had semi drive 2400 miles across the U.S from California to Florida using some kind of GPS guidance and electronics installed for the truck to make the trip on its own around 2018. And it was considered autonomous. I am not saying the truck or the tractor powered with electric motors and not saying they are not. Just saying they are considered autonomous.
The semi had a driver on board in case something went wrong but didn't have to intervene during the trip.
My friend who is using his tractor to plant with
Is Autonomous like the semi. I haven't seen it for myself but plan on seeing it. Have friends who I know that have seen it at work.
The semi had a driver on board in case something went wrong but didn't have to intervene during the trip.
My friend who is using his tractor to plant with
Is Autonomous like the semi. I haven't seen it for myself but plan on seeing it. Have friends who I know that have seen it at work.
I didn't mean the tractors were powered with electric motors but are operated with GPS and electronics to operate the planters. Which I would consider that a pretty significant accomplishment and it is considered or called autonomous.
I was told the tractor that is planting doesn't have a operator on the tractor.
Silver
Well-known member
I have the gps to steer the tractor. It is capable of controlling lots of things. I still need to be in the tractor. I know of no big time farmers whose tractors are running around out there without a human in the cab. The day is coming. But if you see any big tractors working without a human in the cab I'd sure like to know more, and see some pictures.
