In response to concerns raised by producers, Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI) is taking steps to ensure precision agriculture technology can be used to its fullest advantage regardless of the make or age of machinery.
David Yee, PAMI vice president of Saskatchewan operations, told an audience at CropConnect 2018 conference that technology like GPS, sensors and telemetry can make farming efficient and precise, but only if that technology is integrated in the equipment a producer owns — tractors, air drills, sprayers, combines and even on-farm storage bins. “There are real tensions that are occurring right now,” he said, “real difficulties getting one machine to talk to another machine.”
The solution may be open-source software that can manage the technology regardless of the age or brand of machinery. Producers should not have to purchase a new tractor to make effective use of a technologically advanced sprayer, he said. “We need to remove obsolescence and make legacy machinery valid in the current farming cycle.”
Yee also spoke about the connectivity within a particular piece of farming machinery - from the software, to the firmware, and to the hardware.
“We hear from frustrated farmers who are experiencing a sensor or software failure on one small component in their tractor or combine that leads to a complete shut-down, leaving the farmer with compromised productivity,” said Yee.
These issues are priorities for PAMI, and the organization is well positioned to take them on, Yee said. The organization’s unique blend of knowledge and skills—it employs experts in virtually every engineering discipline, design, software development and fabrication—“and with more than 40 years of really listening to our customers, we’re willing to take on the impossible projects.”
Yee said other stakeholders, including educational institutions, governments and vendors, are also looking for a solution. PAMI has connected with them, Yee said, “to create an atmosphere for dialogue (because) we want to be part of the growth of a technical cluster here in Western Canada.”
Fully integrated precision technology, which could eventually incorporate other tools like drones and autonomous vehicles, has the potential for applications in other industrial and production sectors. “We’re here to support every farmer and PAMI wants to move the needle for society in general.”
