Wedoany.com Report-Mar 13, John Deere is closing in on building its entire tillage line with capabilities to conduct autonomous field operations drawn by tractors made autonomy ready with Deere's newest next-generation perception system.
Deere's autonomous tractor perception system includes 16 cameras mounted to the tractor cab roof. The cameras create a 360-degree view around the tractor and attached tillage tool.
Deere's next-generation perception system is an autonomy precision upgrade kit for select tractor models. Autonomy precision upgrades are available for model year 2022 and newer 9R and 9RX tractors and model year 2020.5 and newer 8R and 8RX tractors.
Select model year 2025 John Deere tractors are autonomy ready from the factory.
"(Tillage) is the first production step that we're bringing autonomy to on the large ag side of business," Michael Porter, go-to-market manager for large tractors and tillage at John Deere, told DTN/Progressive Farmer. "Pretty much every few months, we're rolling out either an update to an existing (tillage tool) to include (an) autonomy-ready (kit), or with a new tool autonomy ready from the factory. The goal is to get all our John Deere tillage tools autonomy capable. We're down to just a couple left that aren't."
To make tillage tools autonomy ready, Deere is offering precision upgrade kits for 2017, and newer Deere tillage implements. The kits include lighting, a StarFire receiver mast and harnessing. Autonomy-ready solutions are being factory installed for select market year 2025 tillage tools.
Autonomy-ready tillage tools already part of Deere's stable include the coulter chisel (CC series), 2430 chisel plow, five-section 2230 field cultivators and the 2660VT.
Deere's autonomous tractor perception system includes 16 cameras mounted to the tractor cab roof. The cameras create a 360-degree view around the tractor and the attached tillage tool.
"You have the ability to remote view into these cameras and actually watch tillage happening while maybe sitting at home or somewhere else," said Porter. "We're really focused on getting autonomous tillage right. And then the good news is, as we learn from tillage, we can apply that to future production steps in autonomy."
Deere's autonomy solutions for select tractors have been incorporated into its existing precision technologies that farmers already use, including AutoPath, AutoTrac Turn Automation, AutoTrac Implement Guidance and John Deere Operations Center Mobile.
Deere's autonomous-capable tractors also have another new tillage tool to pull. In January, Deere added a new high-speed disk (HSD) line to its lineup of autonomous ready tillage tools. HSD made its first public appearance last week in front of more than 11,000 farmers at the 2025 Commodity Classic in Denver.
The HSD line replaces Deere's three-section 2680H high-performance disks and is autonomous ready from the factory.
"We heard from customers that they had loved the field finish of the 2680H, but they wanted something for heavier residue," Porter said.
The HSD line comes autonomy ready in the base package from the factory: receiver mast, harnessing, lighting package and TruSet (improves tillage depth accuracy). Customers will have to add a universal StarFire 7500 receiver to hook HSD to an autonomous tractor to achieve autonomous tillage.
HSD is a dual-season tool available in widths ranging from 25 feet to 45 feet. Four options -- HSD25, HSD29, HSD32 and HSD35 -- fold up for road transport to a narrow 13 feet.
