Ericsson and John Deere enter into partnership to drive innovation in agriculture with 5G

Ericsson and John Deere have just signed a collaboration agreement for research and development of new applications using 5G technology, driving new revenues in Agribusiness. The agreement will allow the companies to jointly develop solutions focused on the fifth generation of mobile connectivity and the Internet of Things, which help to identify and solve real problems in the sector, helping to make it increasingly connected.

To this end, the R&D&I centers of both companies will be used as innovation hubs where technologies aimed at agribusiness that make up the IoT Mobile (IoT-M) ecosystem will be applied, such as Narrow Band IoT (NB-loT) and Cat- M1. All this on development platforms and connectivity infrastructure based on the 3GPP standard.

At this first stage, the proofs of concepts will be developed jointly at the John Deere Central Office for Latin America, in Indaiatuba (SP), and at the John Deere Agriculture and Precision and Innovation Center (CAPI), located in Campinas, where they will be installed 5G equipment. The agreement also consists of equipping John Deere factories with fifth generation equipment to contribute to the journey of digital transformation and immersion in agriculture 5.0.

5G will bring greater spectrum usage efficiency and lower energy consumption compared to technologies linked to agriculture, such as 3G and 4G LTE. According to the Ericsson 5G Business Potential study, this sector has the accumulated potential to capture R$49 billion by 2030, with R$10 billion in additional revenue driven by 5G.

"It is essential to understand agribusiness as a complex and plural value chain, which goes from the field to the table, to ports and cars, and which employs millions of Brazilians, contributing almost 1/4 of the Country's Gross Domestic Product. The development of The entire agribusiness ecosystem using 5G can make Brazil much more productive than it already is. Global demand for plant inputs, food and protein will double by 2050 and Brazil is the only country with sufficient area and favorable conditions to increase the food supply on scale, in addition to the enormous space for productivity gains at different stages of the chain, thus becoming the largest exporter of agricultural products of the new decade. Certainly, 5G technology will play a fundamental role in this new cycle of innovation. And we are very happy to be able to move forward in this direction in partnership with John Deere", said Murilo Barbosa, Vice President of Business at Ericsson for the Southern Cone of Latin America. According to him, "we want to combine our knowledge and experiences to bring innovations that allow for cost reduction and increased efficiency, contributing to further leveraging the competitiveness of the sector and, consequently, helping the country in its economic recovery".

Working to advance technology and connectivity in agribusiness, John Deere invests US$4 million per day in research and development and, in recent years, has presented important advances so that producers can extract the full productive potential of their operations. The company is moving towards synchronizing the management of field equipment, with data in the cloud and "total connection" inserted into the company's ecosystem. "We are democratizing the use of connectivity in rural areas, and with solutions at no cost to the farmer, who from now on will produce in an increasingly efficient and environmentally sustainable way. Connectivity unlocks all the potential and innovation available in the field, also benefiting other sectors of society, from telemedicine and distance education, for example. Not to mention that technology still attracts more and more young people back to the countryside, promoting job creation and entrepreneurship", analyzes Rodrigo Bonato, director of the Smart Solutions Group (ISG) of John Deere for Latin America.