A system from Fendt which allows one tractor driver to operate two tractors at the same time could be on sale next year.

The German tractor giant has unveiled a system called GuideConnect which involves the tractors being connected via wireless control and guided by ultra-precise GPS (ie with +/- 2cm accuracy) to form one working unit.

The key thing is that the second vehicle is unmanned and performs the same task as the first one.

Moreover the two tractors can be separated at any time and used independently.

The driver first uses the Fendt’s in-cab monitor to decide which of the two vehicles is the guiding tractor and which is the ‘slave’ one.

It also sets the distance and degree of offset between them, with the information passing wirelessly from one to the other.

When it arrives at the headland, the slave tractor stops and waits until the lead tractor has completed the turn and then follows its path.

Implements are automatically raised to the right position and then lowered into work via the tractor’s existing headland management system.

Meanwhile information on things like low fuel level or overheating is automatically transmitted to the guiding tractor.

The company says it foresees the technology mainly being used for straightforward tasks like cultivation to start with.

Safety is the single biggest issue with a system like this, however Fendt points out that the slave tractor will automatically stop if the GPS signal is lost or if the distance between the two tractors exceeds a pre-set limit.

At the same time, sensor technology is now at a stage where proximity sensors could detect if anyone got within 10m of the tractor.

The company says that a commercial system could be on sale as early as next year.

However health and safety organisations in each country will need to be satisfied that there is no danger to farm staff or members of the public.

More information on the system will be available at the giant Agritechnica show in Hanover, Germany in November.