John Deere announced its acquisition of autonomous orchard sprayer GUSS Automation. Founded in 2018 and standing for Global Unmanned Spray System, GUSS expects its machines to act as a solution to the agricultural labor shortage.
The machines apply fungicides, fertilizers and pesticides to pistachio, almond, citrus and fruit trees. According to the company, one operator can remotely monitor up to eight sprayers simultaneously from their vehicle.
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The deal comes about three years after GUSS and John Deere formed a joint venture. In February 2024, the partnership also revealed the Electric GUSS at the World Ag Expo. The machine can reportedly operate for 10 to 12 hours while spraying at full capacity and features a weed detection system that identifies chlorophyll and sprays only where it finds weeds.
Electrek reported that John Deere dealers will continue to sell and service the sprayers. However, GUSS will keep its name, employees, branding and an independent manufacturing plant in Kingsburg, California. The sprayers already feature John Deere engines.
The companyās other models include the GUSS, Mini GUSS and Herbicide GUSS, which measure up to 24 feet long, more than six feet tall and over eight feet wide. The GUSSā 90-gallon fuel cell capacity enables a runtime of about 13 to 14 hours.
GUSSā technology uses a combination of proprietary software, LiDAR, GPS and vehicle sensors to navigate through orchards without an onboard operator.
The company has reportedly deployed over 250 machines worldwide.
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