The tractor of the future? Here is its identikit

A jury judges of course, and also assesses and analyses. This is the work being undertaken by the 26 journalists who are experts in agricultural mechanisation and who will have to assign the Tractor of the Year (TotY) award to the best European tractor.

All the details and innovations provided by the main European vehicle manufacturers are being studied and the jury's analysis is forming the identikit of the perfect tractor: a vehicle which, given its characteristics, might be imagined as some way off, but which, on the contrary, many operators have already turned into a reality.

Data connectivity and digitalization

Connectivity means the possibility of transferring significant quantities of data quickly and in a standard way; better control over the data will mean a better outcome and of course higher efficiency. Today, thanks to the growth in digital technologies, we have access to data which brings together environmental, climatic, and land-related factors. This allows farmers to intervene in a targeted way, making work processes more effective, complying with the due timeframes. The software systems installed on machines in the field return data with which it is possible to track and certify produce from the field through to the processing industry.

Connectivity will be a valuable support also for the technical management of machines, forecasting their wear and tear for example and so planning the necessary maintenance, and hence a cost-saving process.

Safety

There is also a focus on safety as well as on comfort for the driver, through details which are essential for people working in difficult environments. These details are connected to digital mapping of the environment, climate, and type of terrain. Data on which the perfect machine will have to be capable of providing a response in real time, to protect the well-being of the driver.

So, a simple unforeseen summer storm can be anticipated by the direct satellite connection to the cabin, thus changing the work schedule. In the same way climate change, through digital information, will show us other useful information, such as the need to change the pressure in the tires for example, enabling ideal adaptation to changes in terrain. Finally, all the necessary information must be available inside the cabin, so everything is kept under control, and making it very easy to use.

Sustainability

At a rate dictated by environmental change, among new generation tractors we can find electric vehicles, tractors powered by alternative energy sources, solar or hydrogen.

Farmers must keep an eye on total costs in managing their cost-effectiveness, in terms of efficiency, consumption, and environmental impact. All stages which, if controlled through the technology, can be planned, and hence offer a better vision in terms of general sustainability.

Autonomous driving

Tractors will not only be connected in order to transfer data, they will be connected to remote consoles also to be able to work autonomously. Artificial intelligence will collect agronomic data from the sensors positioned directly in the field for example and the tractors can even have no cabin as there will be no driver. The next innovation we will see are engines which alternate hybrid and electric systems and semi-automatic tractors, which can even be controlled from a smartphone. The self-driving tractor will incidentally be available in the field before any other conventional vehicle on the road.

And the tires?

In this scenario the tire industry is operating very flexibly thanks to its research, since the tire is one of the fundamental components for vehicle performance, in global terms of environmental and economic sustainability.

The dialogue between the tires and the machines is therefore a crucial point; an example of integration for the new generations of working vehicles are the sensors mounted on the tire which can communicate to the vehicle the consumption of the tread or the compactness of the soil, in order to vary the tire pressure and so avoid wear and tear.

BKT, thanks to its complete willingness to dialogue with its end users and with operators themselves, is now facing up to the change, reassured by its own experience but also with an openness to innovation, and is engaged in and proactive towards the best solutions.

Being sponsor of an event such as TOTY, where the most brilliant ideas in the sector of agricultural mechanisation come together, is certainly the richest experience of 2020.