The GrainSense Flow Analyzer – know the quality of your crop
GrainSense has introduced a new, cutting-edge solution to analyze grains in a flowing environment, such as a combine harvester or a grain facility, to get data on the quality of the crop, e.g. protein, oil and moisture content. This solution provides all new possibilities for farmers and the grain industry to make informed decisions based on real-time data.
The Flow Analyzer has two clearly different installation sites, the combine harvester and grain handling facilities. When the analyzer is installed on a combine harvester, the grain is analyzed as it flows during harvesting. In addition to getting information on the protein and oil content of the grain, the system can also produce maps of the field on how different parts of the area have performed. The heat maps can be viewed in the dashboard of the GrainSense cloud service to get more intelligence in what really is happening on the field, so that farmers can tailor their crop inputs, fertilizer, fungicide, etc.
Another installation site for the Flow Analyzer is grain handling facilities, e.g. dryers and silos, where the grain is processed or stored. In a silo, it is possible to record moisture and quality content e.g. when unloading the batch. In a grain dryer, users are able to monitor and optimize the grain drying procedure continuously and remotely. There’s no need to make manual measurements with a moisture meter. The system communicates when desired moisture level is reached, or for example, if the burner should be turned down or the speed of the flow should be increased. This leads to savings in energy use as well as avoiding over drying the grain. At the same time, the users receive the information of the protein, oil and carbohydrate content of the batch.
There’s also an optional camera feature for the GrainSense Flow Analyzer, for visual quality inspection. Artificial intelligence in the system recognizes broken and green kernels from wheat and barley, and additional parameters are coming later on.
Data-driven decision making
Farmers have many critical decisions they need to make from season to season, where reliable data is valuable in ensuring the best possible outcome. The choice of the variety or species of grain that is planted and cultivated can be based on farmer’s own experiences and proven data from previous years. The GrainSense Flow Analyzer gathers very accurate data on how the grain variety has performed at each specific field and its sections. Another thing the mapped harvest data can help farmers with, is analyzing what effect fungicide has had on the grain quality, if it has had a return on investment.
All this data helps in planning for future years. With the maps, it's possible to see how the field performs for example protein wise – which areas have high and which areas have low protein content. After a few years, as more data has accumulated, the farmer can see if the same result is repeating every year. Conclusions can be found if it's because of the characteristics of the soil and the field itself, and based on that informed decisions can be made how to improve the lower performing areas or concentrate on the good areas.
Find your key selling points by analyzing your product
With the GrainSense Flow Analyzer, farmers are empowered with the quality data of their grains. It enables them to be more aware of what they're producing, not just the bushels, but actually what's in those bushels. It helps them to make better informed decisions pertaining the right use of the grains they’re growing, or what they have in storage. Whether the batch is best suited for e.g. a bakery mill or animal feeding. The data is also valuable in segregation and blending, to mix in different batches to get certain threshold levels to meet buyers’ requirements.
These are important parameters to know concerning e.g. pricing. One farmer from our test farms told positive greetings that his barley batch was priced based on a higher moisture content than it actually was. By showing and proving lower moisture levels from the GrainSense Flow data, payment for him was adjusted accordingly.
This new solution has received very positive feedback from customers, and there’s excitement on the possibilities it provides farmers and grain processers.
“Quality and moisture level monitoring in real-time and anywhere is something new for me. I would buy this device.”
- Tyrnävä farmer -
Want to discuss how this solution could help your agribusiness? Contact our sales or come meet us at Agricultural Machinery Trade Fair in Helsinki this week (October 13-15, 2022)!