GS ENGINEERING INC — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase I: 8.13

Description

Autonomous Vehicle Regulation:The time is ripe for introducing Autonomous Vehicles (AV) to the agricultural market. Michigan is the nation's leader in AV regulations, having passed 5 laws regulating AV operation in 2015 and 2016. On December 9, 2016 Governor Snyder signed into law PA 332 which allows for autonomous operation on any Michigan public road at any time and for any purpose without a person in the vehicle (requires specific safety equipment though). The only requirement is to notify MDOT, not to seek approval. This is in contrast to other states which allow for testing on limited roads or sectors, R&D, and other operations with a person in the vehicle. A current discussion is on-going between MI and CA to agree to a combined set of laws which would then be a templet for other states' or Federal laws. (Presentation by Dr. Kirk Steudle, Director of Michigan DOT at Autonomous Vehicle Conference at MTU, April 2017). Currently California requires a person in the vehicle even if it is operation autonomously.Therefore today, an agricultural AV can be legally operated on any MI road (and off road) at any time without a person in the vehicle (with required specific safety equipment).Compaction Yield Reduction:This compaction discussion practically addresses no-till agriculture practices. If deep tillage is performed after harvest, the soil compaction is a non-issue except for planting in wet soil. Compacted soils result in restricted root growth, poor root zone aeration, less oxygen in the root zone, and more losses of nitrogen from denitrifications (Hakansson and Reeder, 1994). The Ohio State USDA research program conducted by Randall Reeder since 2002 uses a single axle grain cart at half-full for a 10,000 pound load and full cart for a 20,000 pound load. Plots of corn planted in no-till, fall subsoil tillage, and a cover crop were subjected to the 10,000 pound and 20,000 pound grain cart compaction. Corn yields averaged from 2003-2009 showed a yield reduction of 15% on subsoiled plots and a 9% reduction on no-till plots with the 20,000 pound cart compaction load. The corn yield averages from 2010-2013 resulted in a 12.7% reduction on subsoiled plots and an 8.5% reduction on no-till. The 10,000 pound load compaction resulted in a negligible change in crop yield. The simple conclusion is the heavier cart load decreased the yield on both plots due to soil compaction, while the lighter load did not significantly affect the yield.For the top corn farms producing greater than 225 bu/acre, the primary factors they have control of and concentrate on are seed quality, soil condition, and compaction (Poet magazine Spring 2016). For compaction, great dedication is placed on no-till, controlled traffic lanes, and planting / harvest time compaction management.Both academic research and actual farming results demonstrate a reduction of deep soil compaction increases crop yield for both corn and soybeans. The real question for each individual farmer is the percent yield increase worth the extra time and effort. I believe the general answer to this question is a resounding YES as evidenced by early technology adoption of tractor automated steering and guidance control systems. Today's younger progressive farmers adopt technology quickly when the ROI numbers demonstrate the improvement and reduce traditional costs.Commercial FeasibilityAs all of agriculture is a science now, harvesting is also a science. The optimum revenue is to harvest when the corn is mature and at the lowest moisture content. If the moisture content increases, additional drying costs are incurred. Therefore harvest is primarily dictated by moisture content and the window before the next rain occurrence. Harvesting is 24 hours per day at this time, and manpower is limited during this peak time.The nationwide 2016 corn harvest was 15.2B bushels resulting in an average yield of 175.3 Bu/Acre. For Michigan, 2.31 M bushels were harvested at an average of 1