Precision Planting Reveal & SmartDepth Systems For Row Crop Planters Garner More AE50 Awards For AGCO

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Planting Precision recently won not one but two AE50 Awards for its Reveal and SmartDepth precision ag products for row crop planters. The Reveal (shown above) is a frame-mounted floating residue management system. (Photo courtesy of AGCO.)

AGCO’s Precision Planting brand has won AE50 Awards for 2022 for both its Reveal and SmartDepth precision ag products. Both are for use with row crop planters. The all-new Reveal is a frame-mounted floating residue management system that gives operators an alternative to the row unit-mounted approach of traditional row cleaners. The SmartDepth is a depth calibration and control system that allows in-cab adjustments to planting depth. When paired with Precision Planting’s SmartFirmer seed-firmer sensor, which measures the amount of moisture available to seed, SmartDepth can automatically control planting depth to a specified soil moisture target.

The AE50 Awards

AE50 Awards are awarded yearly to 50 machines, systems, components, software products, or services that introduce advanced technology to the marketplace. The award program is sponsored by Resource, the membership publication of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). An expert panel of engineers select the winners based on innovation, engineering advancement, and market impact. Winners for 2022 will be honored in February at the ASABE’s Agricultural Equipment Technology Conference (AETC). The top 10 AE50 winners are also eligible to win a Davidson Prize, named for the father of modern agricultural engineering, J.B. Davidson.

Reveal

Precision Planting says it’s vital to keep residue out of the seed trench in order to promote consistent germination and emergence. Row cleaners help remove surface residue, ideally without impacting row unit operations. Traditional row cleaners, however, can bounce across the soil surface and miss some residue. The Reveal’s frame-mounted design eliminates such negative impacts, the company says.

The Reveal is applicable for bean, canola, corn, cotton, peanut, sugar beet, and sunflower planting. It uses a trailing, internal gauge wheel to control the depth of cleaning tines, allowing them to run on cleaned dirt rather than on top of residue. The Reveal also uses two airbags to adjust the row cleaner’s contact with the ground. One airbag provides down pressure, and the other lift pressure. To adjust cleaning tine depth, Reveal provides an adjustment handle for deeper or shallower engagement.

SmartDepth

Other than canola, SmartDepth is suitable for the same crop types as the Reveal. Precision Planting says that while getting seed into moisture is key, there are tradeoffs to placing seed either too deep or too shallow. Additionally, setting a planter to a consistent depth still often allows for variation up to half an inch (1.3 centimeters) across the width of the planter for various reasons. SmartDepth uses a pre-planting calibration process to ensure a consistent depth and to eliminate row-to-row variability.

Instead of using a factory-standard T-handle to adjust depth, SmartDepth uses an electronic actuator connected to the row unit’s depth adjustment mechanism. Growers can make on-the-fly depth adjustments from the cab either manually or by setting SmartFirmer in-furrow moisture targets using a Precision Planting 20|20 display for automatic depth adjustment.

Source: AGCO