RESEARCH & EVENTS
Left : See the GOtrack system in operation in the ABA ' s ACE Orchard update video .
Continued from page 25 “ So GOtrack is the only commercial system in the market and it is designed to be retrofitted for any model of tractor . All main commercial brands can make kits for .” Mr Clifford said the technology would provide numerous benefits to almond growers . “ It is a cost-saving measure for sure especially in terms of not having to have a worker in the tractor ,” he said . “ But if we think about things like safety aspects , such as driver fatigue and safety from the respect that arguably it can work 24 hours a day without any safety issues . “ It can operate up and down the fields for an 18-hour day , aside from fuelling and servicing it .” The technology can be operated – including starting and stopping the vehicle , increasing and decreasing speed and changing its operating perimeters – and monitored via a phone app . “ Any alerts where the alert system is activated whether it ’ s an obstruction or from any high temperate or oil alerts , it will be sent to your phone by text alert or the app ,” Mr Clifford said . “ It ’ s remotely monitored and at any time you can look at the app and see where the tractor is on the block within the perimeters . “ If it ’ s spraying then you can see the liquid left in the tank , what rate it ’ s spraying at etc . what it ’ s sprayed , what it hasn ’ t sprayed , so you can see that all on the app as it goes along .” Mr Clifford said interest in the technology among growers from numerous industries had been high . “ There is a high level of interest due to the availability of staff , and a lot of staff are not wanting to spend so much time in the tractor so wanting to reduce that time ,” he said . “ And those difficult times of operating like in the middle of the night are not so desirable anymore . “ Trying to find staff to work those hours and sit in tractors going up and down rows is getting harder and
Left : A tractor fitted with the GOtrack system at work in the ABA ' s ACE Orchard .
harder , and that ’ s aside from the cost side of it .” Mr Clifford said the autonomous technology can form part of an orchard ’ s operations . “ It might not be that the entire farm is run on autonomous but it ’ s supporting operations ,” he said . “ You might have one conventional sprayer and one autonomous sprayer . And obviously on larger farms there would be more units operating . “ All the units are on a subscription basis so it is quite affordable for small-scale operations so there isn ’ t a big upfront cost .” AME Group will continue to work with the ABA for the remainder of the autonomous tractor trial .
26 In A Nutshell - Autumn 2023 Vol 24 Issue 1