In Iowa, Smart Ag has developed the first cloud-based platform for driverless tractors, called AutoCart. Colin Hurd, the founder and CEO of Smart Ag, said the innovative technology will allow farmers to automate their existing equipment and maximize its efficiency and capacity – regardless of manufacturer.
“We believe agriculture is best when farmers have choices,” Hurd said. “The best way to improve our customers’ operational capacity is to enable them to use automation and driverless technology on their farms.”
AutoCart is a plug-and-play system that automates existing grain cart tractors and is compatible with any brand or combination of brands. The system allows a combine operator to set staging and unloading locations in a field, adjust speed, monitor location and command the grain cart to sync precisely to the speed and direction of the combine. After it is loaded, the AutoCart automatically returns to an unloading point elsewhere in the field.