Precise processing and steering – the demands placed on modern and efficient production in agriculture pose ever greater challenges for both agricultural engineering manufacturers and individual farmers. The aim is to work more precisely and increase the area output at the same time. This is the basis for more efficient work in sowing, fertilisation, crop protection and harvesting, thus enabling an increase in yields.
To support these goals, LACOS specialises in the development of solution-oriented software for agricultural engineering.
Our LC: NAVGUIDE product range reflects the principle of innovative, effective and sustainable field processing in its entire functional range.
Our parallel driving solution provides you with a comprehensive application for precise cultivation of the soil. This guarantees that your agricultural vehicles drive parallel tracks over the fields. A D-GPS receiver in A/B, A+, headland and contour mode guarantees full functionality of the application even in poor visibility and fog. This allows work to be carried out in the field at any time of day or night.
The use of the parallel drive system reduces the overlaps and gaps that are common in soil cultivation. The driver is reliably guided over the field by the display of steering instructions and parallel guide lines, even on headlands. If tracks overlap in spite of the lanes, the driver can always check and counteract it if necessary.
Storing field data such as boundaries, tracks and obstacles is an important functionality of parallel driving. With the help of data storage, timely warnings are given to the driver before reaching obstacles or the field boundary. Collisions or border crossings can be avoided in this way.
If a work process has to be interrupted, it can be saved and resumed at any time. In addition, it is also possible to export the work results obtained after finishing a field and then process them further.
Advantages of parallel driving:
In addition, LACOS offers useful technical features that can be used together with the basic module. These are part width control, headland management, automatic steering or the use of an application map.
As an extension to parallel driving, not only does the automatic steering system optimally guide the machinery in lanes over the field to be processed, but also controls it. This type of vehicle guidance is suitable for all phases of field work, from growing a crop to maintenance work and harvesting.
Our technical development provides the optimum basis in order to make use of all the advantages of parallel driving and to actively intervene in the steering hydraulics of the vehicle. The result is efficient and resource-saving work processes. At the same time, the working width of the machinery is fully utilised and each track is driven just as precisely as the previous one. This reduces overlaps in the individual lanes to an absolute minimum and increases economic efficiency as a result.
Implementation simply requires an additional steering system consisting of a steering computer, a high-precision RTK-based GPS receiver and a link between the systems and the steering mechanism of the vehicle. Installation can be carried out quickly and easily on site.
Advantages of automatic steering:
LACOS part width section control allows part width sections or working widths of your mounted equipment to be switched on and off automatically. This process is controlled by GPS data that, in combination with vehicle information, determines decision values and provides them for direct processing in the field. This makes it possible to work on surfaces specific to a particular area without any effort in preparation.
In detail, the entire attachment, individual machinery part widths as well as individual nozzles can be controlled and switched on and off on this basis in case of partial or complete entry into previously worked areas. The important factor here is that the system can be used independently of the manufacturer and the machinery type.
For example, this system can control field sprayers, seed drills, fertiliser spreaders or precision seed drills.
Advantages of part width section control:
In addition to parallel travel and part width section switching, your work processes can be further optimised by using application maps or setpoint maps. These visualise the high-quality and low-quality yield zones of a field and thus form a reliable basis for improved fertiliser and crop protection management.
The setpoint maps determine and analyse the current state of the cultivated crop on the basis of various indicators, e.g. on the basis of nitrogen sensors or soil samples. The collected information is evaluated and provides information on the setpoint quantities specific to the area to be spread by the machinery. In this way, you can avoid over-fertilisation of part areas and safeguard important, cost-intensive operating resources among other things.
This helps increase your yields by specifically addressing any under-supplying or over-supplying of crops.
Advantages of application maps:
The philosophy of LACOS is characterised by innovation, sustainability, customer satisfaction and employee safety. The commitment to implement these guiding principles and integrate them into the company's day-to-day operations has been confirmed by the wide range of awards and certificates that we have received.
In 2007 and 2011, LACOS won a silver medal at "Agritechnica" – the world's leading trade fair for agricultural technology – thanks to its innovative ideas.
The recruitment and securing of skilled workers are important management pillars at LACOS. Internal structures, processes and measures are always interpreted in terms of reconciling work and family life.
From the idea to the finished product – all development steps for the company's proprietary software products are carried out exclusively at the two German company locations.
After LACOS had been announced as one the finalists for the Grand Prize for Medium-Sized Businesses in 2016, the company was one of 30 companies in 2017 to be awarded the Medium-Sized Business Prize.
The health and well-being of employees is an important asset for LACOS. Internal health management uses various measures to make work, organisation, structures and processes healthy.
LACOS was once awarded the “Innovative through Research” seal for 2018/2019 by the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft e.V., the German donors' association for the promotion of humanities and sciences.