Deere & Company announced this week that it has entered into an agreement with SpaceX to provide cutting-edge satellite communications (SATCOM) service to farmers.
Deere says it plans to use the Starlink network to provide a solution that will allow farmers facing rural connectivity challenges to leverage precision agriculture technologies fully.
This partnership, an industry first, will enable John Deere customers to be more productive, profitable, and sustainable as they continue providing food, fuel, and fiber for their communities and a growing global population.
“The value of connectivity to farmers is broader than any single task or action. Connectivity unlocks vast opportunities that were previously limited or unavailable,” said Aaron Wetzel, Vice President of Production and Precision Ag Production Systems at John Deere. “For example, throughout the year, farmers must complete tasks within extremely short windows of time. This requires executing incredibly precise production steps while coordinating between machines and managing machine performance. Each of these areas are enhanced through connectivity, making the entire operation more efficient, effective, and profitable.”
The SATCOM approach aims to connect new and existing machines through satellite internet service and ruggedized satellite terminals. This will fully enable technologies such as autonomy, real-time data sharing, remote diagnostics, enhanced self-repair solutions, and machine-to-machine communication, all of which help farmers work more efficiently while minimizing downtime.
“John Deere has led the agriculture equipment industry for more than two decades with satellite-based precision guidance technology,” said Jahmy Hindman, Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer at John Deere. “Now, we are bringing satellite communications service to the farm at scale so farmers with cellular coverage challenges can maximize the value of connectivity to their operations. The SATCOM solution unlocks the John Deere tech stack so every farmer can fully utilize their current precision agriculture technology in addition to the new innovative solutions they will deploy in the future. We initiated this process with a fierce focus on delivering value to our customers, and this partnership ensures we have a solution that meets their needs today and in the future.”
John Deere’s SATCOM will leverage SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet constellation. To activate this solution, John Deere dealers will install a ruggedized Starlink terminal on compatible machines and a 4G LTE JDLink modem to connect the machine to the John Deere Operations Center.
SATCOM will initially be available through a limited release in the United States and Brazil starting in the second half of 2024.