The planters are available in 12/23-row and 16/31-row configurations that will work on both 15- and 30-inch row spacings. The pivot fold gives them a narrow width for road transport.

“Our 5670 model planters are new from hitch pin to closing wheels,” Kinze Manufacturing president Susanne Veatch says in a press release.

“Building on the proven design of our 5900 and 5700 model planters, the 5670 is packed with standard features that boost productivity in diverse planting environments, along with expanded controls and conveniences for the operator.”

The new planters use Kinze’s new 5000 Series electric-drive pull-and-push row units and have various residue control, closing wheel and seed handling options to choose from.

The row units bolt to an “all-new” frame with 24 inches (60 cm) of toolbar clearance and 12 inches (30 cm) of row unit travel. The frame has an adjustable, active hydraulic weight transfer and up to 30 degrees of wing flex. The planters can exert up to 650 pounds (295 kilograms) of downforce to penetrate tough soil conditions.

The 5670s can be equipped with bulk-fill hoppers and onboard fertilizer tanks at the same time. A Blue Vantage display-controlled onboard 300-gallon fertilizer system uses a diaphragm-style pump with delivery rates of 2 to 25 g.p.m. (7.5 to 95 l/hr). Optional factory-installed plumbing can connect to saddle tanks or a nurse tank, and an automatic tank levelling system maintains equal fertilizer levels in both onboard tanks while planting on hillsides.

The vacuum-electric seed meters can handle working speeds of up to eight m.p.h. (13 km/h).

Maintenance requirements are reduced due to fewer grease zerks, easier adjustments than on previous Kinze models, and longer-life components.

Under license

As for digital features, Kinze in March announced a new agreement with John Deere after a legal dispute over digital access ended last fall. Kinze and Ag Leader equipment users can now integrate their data with Deere’s telematics and send it to the John Deere Operations Centre.

“As part of the agreement, farmers operating Kinze and Ag Leader planting and display products will now have the option to seamlessly integrate their agronomic data into the John Deere Operations Center,” Deere said in a separate statement.

“The companies have also agreed to resolve all outstanding litigation through an arrangement where John Deere will license planting technology to Kinze and Ag Leader, ensuring their customers continue to have access to the True Speed and SureSpeed technologies.”

“At John Deere, we’re proud of the equipment and technology solutions we develop for farmers,” Aaron Wetzel, vice-president of production and precision agriculture production systems, says. “But we also know our customers have choices when they make equipment purchase decisions. We put our customers first with this agreement, which will result in a more seamless integration of Kinze planting solutions with John Deere equipment and our technology stack.

“We remain committed to helping all of our customers, including those with mixed fleets, be more productive, profitable, and sustainable in their operations.”

Kinze and Deere also said they are pursuing even more “collaboration” opportunities and expect to announce what those are in the future.

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“The 3505 pivot fold planter is the newest addition to Kinze’s True Speed high-speed planter lineup,” says Kinze president, Susanne Veatch. “It is simple to operate, high performing and offered with or without split eight-row and six-row, 30-inch configurations.”

High-speed ability

Kinze claims the True Speed technology, which uses a high-speed meter and seed tube with Kevlar reinforced belt, will allow the 3505 to accurately place seeds at speeds of up to 12 miles per hour (19 kilometres per hour). That high-speed ability could allow growers to double the number of acres they can cover in a typical day compared with many conventional planters. And the company says the 3505 can do that without compromising singulation accuracy or seed spacing.

The brand’s True Rate vacuum meter is the other meter option on the 3505s, but it won’t allow for working speeds quite as fast as the True Speed meter. The company says the True Rate vacuum meter is 99 per cent accurate at speeds up to eight miles per hour depending on field conditions. To help prevent seed bounce in the trench, the meter drops seeds at zero velocity no matter what ground speed the planter is operating at.

Three click setup

Eight-row units are available with the brand’s Blue Drive electric drive, which can work reliably from three to 12 miles per hour. It uses a proprietary software that is not ISOBUS compatible, so it won’t play nicely with a standard tractor monitor. It will need to work together with Kinze’s Blue Vantage display monitor, which is compatible with shared coverage data and up to four planter-mounted cameras. The monitor is a “ruggedized” touch screen tablet, using what the company calls a simple “three click setup” to start planting.

The 3505s also offer the True Depth hydraulic down force system the company claims helps improve the planter’s performance in rocky fields or at higher planting speeds.

The planters have a bulk fill seed capacity of 50 bushels, and there are on-board fertilizer options for up to 300 gallons (1,135 litres) of liquid or 2,200 pounds (997 kilograms) of dry fertilizer. The 3505 models use the brand’s 05 series row units, which have seen some recent upgrades. And they allow the planter to handle 11 crop types, including soybeans, corn, wheat and sunflowers. Kinze says the upgraded row units also offer improved durability with longer wear life built into some components.

The planter has a narrow-fold design for road transport with a lift and pivot fold double frame design.

Kinze also announced in 2023 it will offer Yetter 2940 Air Adjust series row cleaners on its 4905 and 4705 Blue Drive planters. They come factory installed and are controlled by the company’s Blue Vantage display. Using the dedicated row cleaner display screen, operators can change row air settings and operating depth from the tractor cab.

The parallel linkage row cleaner and coulter and row cleaner combo are both equipped with air bags to more precisely follow ground contours and clear a path for the seedbed. They use a hydraulically driven air compressor and SharkTooth row cleaner wheels.

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“The 16-row configuration was originally planned for 2022, but testing went so well, we’re pleased that we are able to move up our timeline and make this model available to farmers next season,” said Kinze president Susanne Veatch.

The True Speed system, developed by Kinze, consists of a high-speed electric meter and seed delivery tube enabling corn and soybean farmers to plant at speeds up to 12 miles per hour (just over 19 kilometres per hour), while maintaining precise singulation and seed spacing.

“Both configurations enable farmers to double the number of acres they plant in a typical day or cover the same acres in a more timely fashion,” Veatch said. “The technology also supports operations trying to expand because farmers can plant more acres with the same size planter.”

The 4905 True Speed system’s variable speed capacity makes it extremely versatile, says Eric Broadbent, Kinze’s director of North America sales.

Highly accurate

“These models are the first that take us in excess of eight miles per hour. But, this solution is not just about speed. We wanted a solution that could plant from three to 12 miles per hour without compromising seed singulation or accurate placement. No matter what field (an operator is working in), what conditions, what speed they want, this planter delivers high accuracy.”

That accuracy is possible because, unlike planters that rely on gravity, 4905 True Speed planters are in precise control of the seed from the moment of pick-up right into the trench. These planters also include the lowest belted seed release point in the industry.

Both 4905 configurations feature Kinze’s easy-to-use Blue Vantage user interface and planter control system and Blue Drive electric drive.

“Industry sees Blue Vantage as the easiest-to-control display on the market,” says Broadbent. “I like technology, but I want it to be intuitive, easy to use, get-in-and-go. That’s what Blue Vantage offers.”

The machine is designed for maintenance simplicity. The meter and seed delivery tube is built to be disassembled using nothing more than a screwdriver. Customers also save at the maintenance end, when parts do wear out, he adds.

“We really looked all through the planter and tried to minimize the amount of repair that could be required and the cost of repair. For example, in our meter where the seed disc brings the seed around, we have a 2.5- to three-inch diameter brush wheel. A customer should expect to see about 500 row acres on that wheel and replacement costs about forty dollars.”

Broadbent says customer feedback to date on the new models has been very positive.

“The feedback we’ve received so far is customers are just amazed by the simplicity of the system coupled with the accuracy we’ve built in.”

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The 4700 uses the brand’s Blue Vintage display and Blue Drive electric drive system along with True Depth active hydraulic down force. It gets a 120-bushel bulk seed tank capacity with hydraulic weight transfer to maintain seeding depth control. An optional 600-gallon (2,271 litre) liquid fertilizer tank is also available.

A 36-row 4700 planter model will be available from dealers in time for spring of 2020. It will use Kinze 4000 series cast row units. In the future, the 4700 planter will be offered in 24-row 20-inch and 24-row 30-inch configurations.

“The 4700 brings technological innovations and enhancements to the narrow row market,” said Susanne Veatch, Kinze’s president. “Dealers and customers have been asking for a new narrow machine, and we are extremely excited to be able to share the 4700 with them.”

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The 4900 Multi-Hybrid uses two individual meters on each row unit which draw seed from one of two separate seed tanks on the planter frame. Which meter spins, and therefore which hybrid gets seeded, depends on the system receiving instructions from a prescription map. When the planter moves across a map boundary that requires a change in seed, one meter stops and the other starts. The company claims that process happens with little or no disruption to seed spacing.

The idea behind the 4900 is that because soil and growing conditions vary across most fields, some hybrids do better in places than others. So the planter is able to switch back and forth between two, placing the type best suited for the field conditions where it has an agronomic advantage.

According to Kinze, the six drills that underwent field trials in 2014 performed well. “There were virtually no gaps or overlap when switching from one hybrid to the other,” the company said in a recent press release. In its promotion of the technology, Kinze reports those field trials showed an average yield improvement of more than nine bushels per acre.

Kinze uses Raven technology to control the dual metering system on the 4900, and the meters are driven by 24-volt electric motors, which allows for instant start-stop performance. Electric drive also allows for row-by-row control, enabling features like turn compensation.

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Placing an electric motor on each meter ensures smooth, even rotation without those potential interruptions from mechanical linkages. And with a separately controlled drive mechanism on each meter, there are all kinds of opportunities for specialized features like turn compensation.

In February, Kinze announced it would add an electric drive option to its popular model 3660 planter. 12- and 16-row versions with electric drive will be available in time for the 2016 seeding season.

“The electric drive eliminates the need for clutches and offers greater maintenance simplicity (no drive shafts, chains, bearings, sprockets, etc.),” reads a company press release. “The new meter allows for turning compensation and row-by-row variable rate planting, and will utilize heavy-duty, high torque 24-volt meter motors that are fully sealed against dust and moisture.”

These planters will use the company’s 4000 Series vacuum metering system. And the electric drive system can be controlled from any ISOBUS compatible in-cab monitor. If you order a monitor with the planter, you’ll get Raven’s Viper 4.

“Kinze continues to offer the Raven Viper 4 monitor with a format specifically designed for ISOBUS that allows continuous viewing of critical planter functions, including the coverage map,” adds the company press release. “The customizable LED touchscreen with ‘touch and move’ widgets display information in an easy-to-use format. The monitor contains 30 GB of internal storage and is Slingshot ready.”

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Here’s how their press release describes it: “Multi-hybrid technology provides farmers with the ability to change the seed hybrid they are planting automatically as the planter moves through the field. Instead of selecting an average seed variety for use across an entire field, seed hybrids can be selected and automatically planted to suit different field management zones.”

For example, in parts of a field with high productivity soil a higher performing seed variety can be used, whereas a “workhorse” seed variety can be used in less productive areas. Or in fields with poor drainage, a variety that can handle moisture can be planted in the lower areas, with a more productive variety used in field locations with a higher elevation.

“The electric multi-hybrid planter will allow farmers to maximize yield in every part of their field, and not have to make compromises,” said Rhett Schildroth, senior product manager at Kinze Manufacturing. “The yield gains in our trials varied from two bushels per acre to more than 10 bushels per acre by utilizing multi-hybrid planting. And unlike other crop practices that seem to have good results one year and negative results the next, every trial we’ve conducted with multi-hybrid planting has resulted in a yield increase.”

The multi-hybrid concept planter uses new row units, each equipped with its own pair of seed metres. Both meters drop their hybrids into a common, single seed tube. The row unit gauge wheels, openers, and closing wheels are identical to a standard Kinze 4000 Series row unit.

The concept planter also uses electric drive to improve accuracy and to accommodate the new technology.

“This (planter design) was only possible by using the new electric drive option on the Kinze 4000 Series meters. By eliminating the drive chain and clutch, we were able to orient the meters close together so that they feed a single seed tube,” said Schildroth. “It is a very elegant way to add the multi-hybrid planting capability.”

Kinze has built a few prototypes for the 2014 seeding season and will be partnering with some farmers for further field trials across the U.S. Midwest. Expect to hear more from the company later in 2014, after that round of field trials concludes.

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Kinze also announced it was developing the same autonomous system to work in tractors pulling planters in row-crop fields. The grain cart project, however, has been the one the company seems to be focusing on the most. In its most recent announcement, Kinze updated the industry on its current stage of development.

During the 2013 growing season, systems had been leased to three U.S. farmers who were the first to use them without direct supervision from the company’s engineers. These farmers were part of what was actually an initial real-world evaluation of the system and an early prelude to full commercial release.

“…This year Kinze representatives were not in the field overseeing operation of the system, which allowed the farmers to use the technology independently,” reads the company’s press release.

Apparently, the farmers who used it were suitably impressed.

“Because the technology was brand new last year, we took every precaution to make sure it ran properly,” said Rhett Schildroth, senior product manager at Kinze. “We made several minor improvements, and this year the farmers ran the technology by themselves. We’re now getting very positive feedback. The system just works. The farmers keep asking when they can buy it.”

Although the company has still not yet given any firm date for a full commercial release of the system, it says the 2013 limited release provided an opportunity for the farmers who participated to test the four recent improvements.

The range of wireless vehicle-to-vehicle communications the system is capable of was widened. Kinze also increased the range of diagnostic information available to the operator. The speed of vehicle route planning was improved, and a “go to here” feature was added, allowing the tractor and cart to be sent to a strategic location in the field to await further instructions.

“The “go to here” featurereally opens up the field,” said Kent Armstrong, a farmer from Cameron, Illinois, who was one of those leasing the system last year. “After the corn is unloaded into the semi, I instruct the tractor to drive to the best place in the field to wait until I’m ready. It helps the tractor get to the combine for unloading in the most efficient way possible and opens up the field for combining.”

For 2014 Kinze plans to expand the number of autonomous systems working in fields by leasing the system to a larger group of farmers in Illinois and Iowa. So far, however, they haven’t provided any more details.

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