Despite Agritechnica not going ahead the business of the DLG (German Agricultural Society) continues apace and it recently awarded a silver medal for innovation to Amazone for its Directinject system.
The manufacturer believes that flexibility in the selection of plant protection agents in the field will become increasingly important due to environmental pressures, and its latest product will help reduce pesticide use.
This idea ties in with the general move towards selective or spot spraying, and the company has already invested in such systems. This latest development would appear in addition to its work with BASF and Bosch on targetted application announced back in May 2021.
Bigger booms mean less precision
The understandable desire to enable flexibility contrasts with the ever increasing size and capacity of sprayers which allow higher work rates and greater efficiencies.
Wider booms can reduce precision
Wider boom widths will tend to decrease the precision to which chemicals can be applied to problem areas of fields. Section control would be suggested as one answer and the system does in fact, mirror that ability.
However, what Directinject also offers is the ability to introduce specific pesticides into the spray while a completely different agent is being given in a blanket application.
Supplementary tank
The new item consists of an additional 50L tank with its own metering system, which is integrated into the storage compartment of the UX 01 Super single axle trailed sprayer.
This means that the tank is easily accessible from the ground and can be filled safely. The integration of these components into the storage compartment is said to provide optimum protection for all the equipment.
The tank for the neat pesticide is situated in the storage compartment of the sprayer
Amazone claim that the major advantage of the technology is that DirectInject can work with undiluted plant protection products. A mechanical agitator ensures that even those which tend to separate, will remain homogeneous
Presently, the system appears to offer only manual control, although it would be ripe for integrating into a field mapping or other data management tool.
Neat product added by Directinject
For the time being, if the sprayer operator notices, for instance, a patch of unwanted weeds that need to be eliminated, he can activate the system from the cab via a control panel.
The supplementary product from the smaller tank is then added to the spray mix, coming from the main spray tank via several injection points placed along the boom.
Circulation of the main spray is stopped when the direct feed system is activated. This ensures that the solution in the main tank is not mixed with the product from the DirectInject tank.
The entire system can be cleaned automatically and remotely from the tractor cab after application, and any unused product returned to its packaging for later use.
