This feature was initially published by CropLife Magazine.
Raven’s Ben Voss talks with Larry Aylward of Meister Media Worldwide’s Custom Media division about the impact the company’s acquisition of Augmenta will have on its precision ag offerings.
Ben Voss knows the daily challenges farmers face — and the technology they could use to solve them — very well. Voss, Raven’s Director of Sales for North America and Australia, grew up on a family grain and cattle farm that he now owns in northwest Saskatchewan.
From a farmer’s perspective, Voss is convinced his peers will be impressed and will embrace the innovative new spraying technology Raven has added to its precision agriculture toolbox. Raven’s parent company, CNH Industrial, recently acquired Augmenta in March 2023, a start-up company based in Athens, Greece. Augmenta is an ag-tech start-up established in 2016, focused on enhancing sustainability in agriculture utilizing Artificial Intelligence.
Augmenta’s demonstrated technological capabilities include a comprehensive variable rate application (VRA) solution that uses real-time sensors to process field conditions and automatically apply the optimal amount of nitrogen, plant growth regulator, harvest aid, and pesticide based on the real-time data it collects. This addition to Raven’s tech stack augments its long history of application control expertise. For example, integrating the industry-leading Hawkeye® 2 nozzle control system with Augmenta’s solution will allow customers to unlock Sense & Act functionalities with simple plug-and-play hardware and interfaces.
Raven says the acquisition significantly expands its comprehensive automated technologies by adding Sense & Act capabilities for a variety of variable rate crop protection and efficacy applications. Voss believes farmers will benefit substantially from the technology. It streamlines the VRA process, saving time and money by scanning, prescribing, and applying products based on real-time crop needs.
Augmenta has patented and developed products utilizing camera vision and artificial intelligence capabilities that are more sensitive than the human eye to automatically control precise application rates, based on factors like canopy health. This technology embodies sustainability by saving inputs to reduce negative environmental impact and costs, all while maximizing nutrient effectiveness to increase yields – the right fertilizer at the right rate at the right time and in the right place. Cost savings are visible in real time on a web-based analytics and monitoring platform.
Accurate and Affordable
Raven and Augmenta share a similar vision: They want to help growers maximize their yields and return on investment by transforming agriculture through automation and autonomy. Raven has been building a portfolio of products for decades to fulfill that mission, and Augmenta’s product portfolio is a perfect addition, Voss says.
“It fits in well at Raven because it contributes to two of our core differentiators: our customer-centric mindset and our innovation,” Voss says of Augmenta, noting that grower interest in individual nozzle control technology is growing in the U.S. Raven’s Hawkeye® 2 solution is optimized for this application when paired with a perception technology like Augmenta’s.
A disruptive technology to the market, Augmenta features an easy-to-install single-unit six-camera module mounted to the top of a cab. Competing technology features several camera units precisely mounted across sprayer booms.
“The physical hardware that comes with high precision Sense & Act solutions is more expensive,” Voss notes. “Because Augmenta’s technology is a single roof-mounted unit, there aren’t as many expenses associated with it.”
Because it is less expensive and more economical, more farmers are gaining interest in the technology.
“The market is hot for this, and the cost of Augmenta’s technology is definitely an advantage,” Voss says. “It will give farmers a great opportunity to work with camera technology on their sprayer and spreader systems without making the huge investment they think have to make.”
Voss mentioned that, not only will farmers experience the benefits of the technology, but they will also see immediate savings that could pay for the product in as little as a year.
While Raven is excited how the technology will play out over the next several years, Voss expects Augmenta technologies to be quickly adopted for use in pre-harvest desiccation of specialty crops and cereals. “The best thing about this system is you can buy it with the purpose of doing pre-harvest desiccation but then also use it for topdressing nitrogen,” he adds.
Voss notes that topdressing nitrogen has become more popular as a variable rate application. Because of this, farmers are looking for more accuracy, he adds. While prescription maps can help, they aren’t always the answer because they can quickly become outdated. This is where sensor technology can make a difference, he says.
‘Better and Better at Farming’
Voss stops short of calling Augmenta’s technology “silver bullet” technology in that it’s not the be-all end-all solution. While he knows it will make a tremendous difference, it will do so as part of an “increment” of technology, he adds.
“Every increment of information is helping us get better and better at farming,” Voss says. “It’s the combination of everything together that helps make us better farmers. The more vantage points and angles we can get to look at our crops, the better we will be making decisions on growing the best crops possible.”
Augmenta’s technology is also easier to install and operate than other systems. No complex calibration is needed before operation. It will feature ISOBUS compatibility, which means the perception/Sense & Act capabilities can “plug and play” with other Raven autonomous technologies. For instance, Voss says Augmenta technology will improve the performance of Raven’s Hawkeye 2 Nozzle Control, which already offers extreme accuracy (250% more accurate droplet coverage out of the tip than comparable systems). “Hawkeye 2 is meant to be controlled by a sensor to tell it what to do,” Voss adds.
Voss says Raven and CNH will also gain from integrating Augmenta’s team members, who will bring impressive technical skills to the company. “They will boost our innovation and bring enthusiasm and energy to the mix to help us become more successful,” he adds. Augmenta has offices in Greece and the U.S.
Contact Raven sales at atdsales@ravenind.com to learn more about Sense & Act technologies today.