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When corn silage harvest starts, there’s a lot riding on every pass through the field. Getting acres covered efficiently matters, but so does producing consistently processed forage that will become feed for the months ahead.
In this episode of Leap Forward with Riesterer & Schnell, Beau, Trevor and Todd take the podcast to the field in Northeast Wisconsin, where the all-new John Deere F9 forage harvester is hard at work chopping corn silage.
The conversation takes a closer look at how the F9 combines more power, automation, crop processing and precision technology to help operators stay productive while keeping forage quality at the center of harvest.
The F9 isn't simply an update to the previous generation. It is a new machine from the ground up, with changes designed around performance, accessibility, technology and the operator.
The new cab features an integrated G5 display in the CommandCenter along with a new joystick. Lowered frame rails accommodate the new kernel processor system while making it easier to access the area when installing or removing the kernel processor, accessing the accelerator or making adjustments. A larger cooling package also helps support the machine during warm harvest conditions.
Strong low-end torque helps the F9 respond as crop conditions and loads change throughout the field, keeping the machine moving through those variations.
During a long harvest day, maintaining productivity isn't just about how hard an operator can push a machine for a few passes. It's about maintaining that performance hour after hour.
Ground Speed Automation helps do that by allowing the operator to set a target RPM and maximum ground speed. Once engaged, the F9 controls engine RPM and ground speed as it moves through the crop.
Even for experienced operators, the technology can reduce the amount of constant input required to keep the machine operating productively. That becomes increasingly valuable over 12- or 15-hour harvest days when both the machine and operator need to maintain performance.
AutoPath takes information collected during planting and puts it to work during harvest.
Receiver data from the tractor and planter can be used to map the corn rows and bring that information into John Deere Operations Center. Before harvest begins, crop, variety and AutoPath row information can then be sent to the forage harvester.
Once the operator identifies the size of the head on the machine, AutoPath uses the mapped rows to generate guidance through the field. This allows the machine to be proactive with its steering movements and helps it navigate headlands, bends and even 90-degree turns smoothly.
AutoPath can also help with splitting a field based on the width of the head. Instead of guessing where to make a split, operators can maintain full passes and reduce the likelihood of ending up with undesirable three- or four-row passes. The result is a smoother harvest pattern designed to keep the head full and the forage harvester productive.
The F9 brings several automated functions together through ProTouch Harvest.
With one button, the operator can lower the head and have AutoTrac, Active Fill and Ground Speed Automation engage according to preset timing. Instead of managing those functions individually when entering the crop, the operator can bring them together into one sequence.
Combined with Active Fill, this automation helps take more repetitive tasks off the operator and allows several F9 technologies to work together during harvest.
Keeping the crop moving means coordinating more than just the chopper. The tractors and wagons hauling alongside it also play an important role in the efficiency of the operation.
With Machine Sync, a tractor and wagon approaching the F9 can engage AutoTrac Resume and lock onto the chopper. From there, the chopper operator can use controls on the joystick to move the tractor forward or backward as needed.
Combining Machine Sync with Ground Speed Automation and Active Fill reduces the amount of coordination operators need to manage manually while helping the different parts of the harvest operation work together.
More power and capacity are only part of the equation. What comes out of the spout matters just as much.
The F9 1000 featured in the field uses the 12-inch XStream 305 kernel processor with a 50% differential and ECS controls to provide crop processing while opening up the fiber. At the same time, 40- and 48-knife cutterhead drum options help maintain a consistent length of cut with crisp, uniform pieces of feed.
That brings the focus back to one of the most important goals of forage harvest: consistency.
Consistency in the feed. Consistency in moisture. Consistency in length of cut. And thorough kernel processing to help make starch available to the cow.
The F9 is designed to put more feed through the machine while maintaining that focus on high-quality, consistently processed forage.
Feed quality isn't limited to what an operator can see coming out of the spout. Technology provides another layer of information while the crop is being harvested.
With HarvestLab, dairies can monitor measurements including moisture, starch, protein and digestibility. Feed managers and others involved with nutrition can use that information to see what's happening with the crop while harvest is underway.
John Deere Operations Center and Equipment Mobile extend the connection beyond feed information. Connected equipment can be monitored throughout the operation, providing access to machine locations, maintenance information and parts information from the field.
Together, these tools connect what's happening with the machine to what's happening with the crop, keeping productivity and feed quality at the center of the harvest operation.
Productivity still depends on the person sitting in the cab.
The new F9 cab includes an integrated G5 display, new controls and updates focused on operator comfort. The seat offers heating, cooling and massage functions, along with a swivel feature.
When those comfort improvements are combined with technology that can automate steering, ground speed, filling and other repetitive functions, the operator has less to manage manually during long days in the field.
The all-new John Deere F9 brings together power, crop processing, automation and connected technology, but the real measure of the machine is what it can accomplish in the field and the quality of the feed coming out of it.
Watch this episode of Leap Forward with Riesterer & Schnell as Beau, Trevor and Todd take the conversation to the cornfield with an F9 1000 chopping corn silage in Northeast Wisconsin.
See the F9 in action and learn more about how its new technology is helping operators focus on productivity, consistency and feed quality.
