This drive system is fundamentally similar to a Prius. Now farmers might not like that and JD will spin it differently but its really a smart and efficient drivetrain. In the order of 93% efficient which is much better than conventional transmissions. The next logical thing is to use electric hub motors like Nexat does per drive axle and use a series electric drive. More power can be used and the engine decoupled from the load. A bit like Edison is doing with vocational trucks. Tractors need ballast for traction, batteries can be used for both weight and power smoothing. Electric planters and other implements are possible. It would also be possible to use serial battery electric tractors to power the grid when they are not being used for their primary purpose. JD could network tractors as a virtual power plant. This is being done with EV school-busses. It would give farmers a new revenue stream selling power. As farmers always have land that is under utilized, solar could be incorporated into this virtual power plant system. When the tractors are working there is generally solar power available. When the tractors are parked in the shed they could be making money or offsetting the cost of the tractor for the farmer. Running a diesel in a serial drive mode would make it possible to use natural gas or LNG for an alternate fuel. Most diesels can also be run on natural gas. With dual fuel they would be ideal for grid peaker generators. 1000 tractors at 400 hp each with 1 mw/h LFP batteries each tied to the grid is equivalent to a giant power-plant. That would be four hours of 500 MW/hour. Thats 2 Gwh with only 1000 tractors. And 250mW/h sustained to the grid. Waste heat could also go to distributed heating or to factories for process heat, or heat for drying grain. John Deere should get on the power grid with farmers. Tractors are mobile so they can be hooked up where the load is required. Lets innovate and save fuel. Be proactive, having farmers step in to power a town or city would be such a good thing for everyone and the bottom line.
What's unbelievable? Looks totally believable. Someone took a regular wheel tractor, removed the front axle and rear wheels, and installed track frames and sprockets on the rear axle
I can hear the old people. "Look at all those small parts. It's going to break all the time. Too many electrical components are just going to fail constantly." I say bring on the future of farming and leave the fossils of all kinds in the dirt.
The NEXAT project represents a significant leap in agricultural technology, pointing towards the future of farming. It's exciting to see such innovation in action. I'm curious about the specific ways NEXAT is transforming traditional farming practices. What are the most groundbreaking features of this next-generation technology, and how do they address current agricultural challenges? Also, how does NEXAT integrate sustainability and efficiency into its design and function? It’s fascinating to witness the cutting-edge advancements shaping the future of agriculture!
I'm interested in the rotary unions. Can you buy those separately? Does the blue spin independently from the black (which I assume is fixed to the axle?)
This company should be taken back by Canada from its present Russian owners. The Russians didn’t develop this brand or technology. And the profits and taxes go back to Russia, and taxes to the Russian state that is currently slaughtering Ukrainians.
