September 9, 2015

Agricultural equipment manufacturer, AGCO Corp., is entering into the promising drone space, and has entered into a strategic partnership with Boulder-based Agribotix LLC to launch an integrated, drone-driven agricultural intelligence and data solutions system.

Colorado-based Agribotix supplies actionable intelligence and data to increase yields and profits through the use of drone technology, and will provide the platform service that will be used in the integrated system developed under the partnership between the two companies.

Under the terms of the agreement, Agribotix will provide its FarmLens cloud-based platform, while AGCO will provide its SOLO AGCO quadcopter drone, to be used together to provide farmers with an efficient, reliable method of collecting and analyzing field data that can be applied to production and efficiency improvements.

Prior to February 2015, the use of drones for agricultural applications was restricted by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), however this past winter, the FAA announced new regulations allowing the autonomous use of drones for commercial purposes, opening up the space for potential investment and growth.

The SOLO AGCO drone will be able to capture near infrared images and RGB, and will enable users to record field data gathered from up to 60 acres in a single flight. The data will then be uploaded to the FarmLens platform to produce high-resolution field reports identifying concerns that could affect output, and could help farmers streamline their production practices and save money through the optimized use of inputs.