Wildlife sensor automatically lifts mower to avoid young deer

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Where rabbits and many other wildlife will run when a tractor approaches, baby deer will instinctively hide in tall grass.

And that can be a problem when harvesting forages in areas with high deer populations, especially during first cut in spring.

Austrian-based company Pöttinger has come up with a solution, for which it received a silver innovation award at Agritechnica this year.

The mower-mounted Sensosafe system consists of an optical infrared sensor bar with LED lights mounted roughly 1.5 metres ahead of the cutting bar. The sensor detects colour spectrums, and when an animal such as a fawn is detected, it sends a signal to the hydraulics to quickly lift the mower header, leaving the animal unscathed, the forage uncontaminated, and the operator relieved.

RealAgriculture’s Kelvin Heppner had a chance to speak with Thomas Keplinger of Pöttinger at Agritechnica in Hanover, Germany. In the following video, Keplinger explains the dangers of harvesting wildlife by mistake. The company plans to equip a few machines in 2018, and go to the market the following year.

Find more from Agritechnica ’17 here.

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