After identifying a need for aerial spraying services on large farms, an Ontario-based start-up has developed a fully-automated unmanned aerial vehicle for the Canadian market. “Typically most drones you see out there for aerial spraying are fairly small capacity… and for North American farms…it’s just not going to cut it,” says Meng Wei, CEO and… Read More

John Deere is expanding its 4-Series sprayers to increase the power, traction and capacity of 2020 models. Last week at the Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Illinois, the company rolled out the 1,600-gallon (6,057 litre) capacity R4060 sprayer with the new CommandDrive powertrain; R4045 sprayers will also come standard with the powertrain beginning in 2020…. Read More

On-the-go weed identification and custom application combine in concept to form the Xarvio Smart Sprayer, a prototype rolling out in field trials this year in both the U.S. and Europe. Warren Bills, commercialization manager with Xarvio, showcased the spray-boom technology at the recent Ag in Motion farm show, near Saskatoon. Bills says that the idea… Read More

American-based Raven Industries has long been known for its contributions to precision agriculture, from cloud-based data management to guidance and steering applications. The company has also worked on spray application, recently unveiling its Autoboom XRT boom height control with simultaneous ground and canopy detection. “We’ve been in the boom height control business for 14 to… Read More

While pulse width modulation (PWM) offers much to pesticide application – variable rates, individual nozzle control – it’s not without its challenges, namely “gumming up.” “It has a moving part – it’s called a poppet,” explains Tom Wolf of Sprayers 101, on RealAg Radio. “It looks like a little piston moving inside a cylinder. So… Read More

Two years ago our Exploding Spray Myths team raced against time to show sprayer operators that more air is not better when it comes to efficiently operating airblast sprayers. In this new episode, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affair’s Jason Deveau and Tom Wolf, of AgriMetrix, return to the orchard to show growers how to… Read More