The Fendt GuideConnect system, in which two tractors work as a single unit and the follower machine can follow the lead tractor without a driver, earned the gold medal. Silver awards went to the Fendt Cargo Profi front loader, as well as the comfortable front lift mechanism’s load control.
From more than 300 new products submitted, the “Agritechnica” agricultural exhibition’s independent innovation panel of experts selected two gold and 39 silver medal winners. The gold medal was awarded to products whose manufacturers implemented fundamentally new functions in their design concept, or significantly improved already known technology. The decisive factor here was the new products’ significance for practical application, their advantages in terms of real working conditions on an agricultural enterprise, improved environmental friendliness and energy savings, as well as their impact on simplifying and improving work safety.
The Fendt GuideConnect system more than met these criteria, earning it the gold medal at the “Agritechnica” exhibition. “For the first time, farmers are offered a system in which a driverless follower tractor follows the lead tractor in fully automatic mode. Both machines exchange data via radio link and are controlled using a high-precision GPS positioning system. The lead tractor’s driver monitors both machines and can take full manual control of the follower machine at any time. Thanks to the two tractors working simultaneously, the driver’s productivity increases significantly. Two smaller tractors allow for more flexible use, unlike one large machine with comparable output, and also reduce the load on the soil,” the jury’s conclusion states.
The silver medal is awarded to products whose optimisation can be expected to significantly improve an implement’s function or work process. Here, Fendt managed to win over the “Agritechnica” exhibition’s jury twice and have its products honoured. Fendt’s engineers will receive their first silver award at the “Agritechnica-2011” exhibition for the automatic Fendt Cargo Profi front loader, and the second for the front lift mechanism’s load control. The jury’s reasoning in the case of the Fendt Cargo Profi was as follows: “Additional sensor control elements significantly expand the front loader’s range of functions, and add new ones: two end positions can be set for the boom and the working attachment, which are then automatically observed, letting the implement’s working zone be restricted (a memory function). Data from the integrated weighing system and the tilt sensor is logged. What’s more, the implement features a shake function, speed-dependent suspension damping, and oscillation damping when the boom reaches its end position. Control of the implement is fully integrated into the tractor’s terminal.” The jury awarded the comfortable front lift mechanism’s load control a silver medal with the following reasoning: “The driver can adjust the ground-contact pressure of surface-following implements (such as a mulcher, mower head, or snow blower) – from their seat, while driving, and via the terminal. The front lift mechanism’s position sensor detects unevenness in active mode and automatically adjusts the load. Under constant pressure on the support, the implement follows the changing field terrain.”
