Yield monitors use GPS, GIS, a computer, and sensor technologies to accurately measure the amount of crop harvested at a specific location and time. Yield monitors are installed on harvesting equipment and are used on a variety of crops including corn, wheat, soybeans, sugar beets, potatoes, and cotton. In addition to measuring yield, these systems allow for the recording of crop moisture, elevation, variety, and a number of other harvest variables. Yield monitors use sensors to measure the crops’ mass or volume and are found to be accurate to +/- 3% of actual harvested amounts, but require routine calibration to maintain accuracy. The volume or mass measurements are recorded in the on-board computer to produce indirect yield measurements. GPS provides the field location for each measurement. The location and yield data are recorded onto a storage device and transferred to a desktop AgGIS package for processing, viewing, and analysis. Maps depicting yield variations across fields can be developed and used to provide farm management decisions to improve crop productivity.
Just a refresher to remind everyone to check their yield monitoring system before harvest begins to ensure proper operation. A few quick items to remember:
1) Make sure your data card has been downloaded and all... more
Last week I received a troubleshooting call for a John Deere yield monitor. The monitor (original brown box) reported an error message about the can bus system. Running the page layout setup did temporarily stop... more
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