Effectiveness of the Use of Automatic Driving Systems in Technological Processes of Crop Cultivation in the Northern Region of Kazakhstan

Abstract

This study aims to identify the influencing factors and assess the efficiency of implementing automatic driving systems in the key processes of cultivating agricultural crops in the zonal conditions of the region. The research methods included field testing of machine-tractor units equipped with automatic driving systems during the main technological processes of crop cultivation, considering factors such as the specified precision of the automatic driving system, the constructive working width of the machine, the speed of the unit, the operator's qualification, and the soil conditions. It was found that the use of automatic driving systems leads to a reduction in overlap values between adjacent passes of the unit by 3 to 20 times compared to driving without the systems. Moreover, technological and technical indicators showed enhancements ranging from 2.0% to 3.8% during sowing, 4.7% to 6.1% during main tillage, 4.6% to 22.1% during chemical treatment of crops, and 3.4% to 9.9% during crop harvesting. Additionally, it was observed that driving accuracy decreases with increasing speed and low qualification of the operator. The influence of the constructive working width requires further investigation. The impact of soil and climatic conditions on the effectiveness of using automatic driving systems was not established in our current research.

Keywords

• precision agriculture
• comparative tests
• automatic driving system
• technological processes
• sowing
• chemical weeding
• grain harvesting
• deep soil tillage