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Technology overcomes line-of-sight issuesBy Doug Rich 
When Dusty LeBrun of Sioux Falls, S.D., headed out to plant corn last spring, he had the latest precision ag technology along for the ride. The technology is a unique convergence of two existing technologies-Real Time Kinematic global positioning system and cellular technology. Farmers have been using GPS guidance systems to precisely plant and spray crops for several years. It is available day and night and reduces overlap, which saves seed and chemical expenses and minimizes operator fatigue. The system works well as long as there is an unobstructed line of sight to the base station or repeater tower and as long as the operator is within about six miles of the base station or repeater tower. Line of sight Now GPS correction signals can be delivered anywhere there is cell phone coverage, and line of sight is no longer a concern. Plus the range of this signal is nearly 30 miles from the base station. Several companies including Raven Industries, Trimble, and AgLeader are offering this new technology this year. The system begins with a GPS antenna that is connected to a base station, which is plugged into the Internet. The base station communicates with a server that distributes the GPS signal to cell phone towers in the area. The farmer has a wireless modem mounted in his tractor that receives the signal and translates the signal for his existing GPS system. "Individuals no longer need to purchase a base station to receive an RTK signal on their farm," Kevin Covey, product manager with Equipment Technologies, said. "By using the cellular technology with this application we are able to take a single base station and broadcast that RTK signal out to a 30-mile radius without any line-of-sight interruptions." Data transfer The bonus feature with this system is an ethernet port on the back of the modem that gives farmers access to high-speed Internet anywhere at anytime from the cab of their tractor. With the right controller in the cab the producer now has Internet access in the tractor, sprayer, or combine and can transmit data back to his home base. For example, let's says a producer has just finished spraying a field and he wants to download the as-applied map and send it to his home base. He can do that now through the wireless modem in the cab of his tractor or sprayer. A producer can collect and log this data, send it wirelessly back to a secured website, and later log onto that site to retrieve the data. The system also can be accessed remotely by a service technician, which saves downtime and the expense of bringing a technician out to the farm. "We can remotely access the field computer that is plugged into this modem," said Ryan Molitor, product manager at Raven Industries. "If a farmer calls in and has a question, rather than sending out a technician to look at the machine we can remotely access the computer and diagnose what is happening. It puts their mind at ease knowing they can call someone that can log in and they don't have to shut down and wait for a technician to come out." In addition to a wireless modem the producer must have access to the signal from a base station. Dealerships that sell the modems are busy setting up networks with base stations in their territories. LeBrun has access to a base station set up by C & R Supply in Sioux Falls where he bought his Slingshot RTK wireless modem manufactured by Raven Industries. Equipment Technologies, which manufactures Apache sprayers, is making this technology available in its 2011 models and is setting up a network in Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. CORS States like Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Nebraska have state-owned cellular GPS networks, called Continuously Operating Reference Stations, already set up that are available to the public. Sometimes these are free to the public and sometimes there is a charge, but there are limitations to these state-owned and operated networks. The CORS networks are limited to the number of users that can be on at one time. States build these networks for road construction crews, survey mapping, and vehicle tracking. Private networks run by dealerships or equipment manufactures don't have these limitations. What does that mean for the producer? "Let's say it is May 15 and he wants to go out and plant at 9 a.m. in the morning, but all of a sudden the CORS network is full in his area because there are a 1,000 road crews out working that day," Covey said. "He will not have access to that network because it is full." This new technology is not free but is relatively inexpensive compared to other GPS systems. A wireless modem will cost around $2,000, a subscription to a private network equipped with a base station will cost $1,500 annually, and for data transfer the producer will need to activate a data plan with his cell phone provider that will increase their monthly cell phone bill. This cost will vary according to their individual cell phone plan. The wireless modems work with nearly all existing GPS receivers and most cell phone providers. The benefits of merging these two technologies includes no line-of-sight limitations as with radio signals; access to high-speed Internet from the cab; data transfer to your home base; remote access for technical assistance; and base stations that can broadcast the GPS signal as far 30 miles. LeBrun said the base station they receive a signal from is nearly 20 miles from their farm, but last spring they ran their planter day and night and never lost the signal. "We have our system mounted in our tractor that we use for planting and spraying," LeBrun said. "Our old system would take 30 to 40 minutes to start up even though we parked the tractor in the shed every night. A lot of times we would lose signal or it would not be accurate. This one starts up within two minutes after we pull out of the shed and it is always accurate." Precision agriculture is now more available, more precise and more efficient than ever. Doug Rich can be reached by phone at 785-749-5304 or by email at richhpj@aol.com.
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