Deere Unveils Mastless Grade Control Motor Graders

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Without the usual masts and dangling wires, you’d never know this G-Series motor grader was equipped with Topcon’s sophisticated SmartGrade technology. (Photo courtesy of Deere & Company.)

Moline, Illinois,-based John Deere is making it easier than ever for G-Series motor grader buyers (and existing owners) to adopt Deere’s SmartGrade technology, taking some of the stress out of road building.

A Finished Grade, Faster

Deere’s SmartGrade technology consists of a fully integrated, mastless 3D grade control system powered by Topcon. A motor grader equipped with SmartGrade is capable of automating or assisting the operator with many common motor grader functions, from site clearing to creating the final grade.

Customers can get SmartGrade, complete with position sensing, installed on G-Series motor graders from the factory, or as an aftermarket “field kit” add-on. Unlike third-party 3D grade control technologies, SmartGrade doesn’t rely on external masts and cables dangling between the sensors and the cab, which are vulnerable to theft, tampering, and damage. Another benefit of the system’s complete integration is that the operator won’t need to install or set up the system on a daily basis, improving machine utilization and overall productivity.

Shortcut To Better Productivity

With SmartGrade’s in-cab grade system interface, the operator can easily perform tricky or high-precision functions, such as adjusting blade pitch, circle side-shift, circle rotate, and more to achieve a desired result, all without leaving the grade.

As its name suggests, SmartGrade’s Automation Suite effectively automates tasks that used to require significant manual control from a highly skilled operator. Another feature that motor grader operators will appreciate is Machine preset, which combines multiple functions into a single button press, such as, Return-to-Straight, Auto-Shift, lights, and more.

G-Series motor graders shipping with SmartGrade also include pre-delivery and follow-up inspections, five years of JDLink telematics, machine health prognostics, remote diagnostics, and more.

Source: Deere & Company

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