Sensor-Controlled Hooded Sprayer for Row Crops'

Methods were developed and evaluated that utilize state of the art weed-sensing technology in row-crop production systems. Spectral differences in green living plants and bare soil allowed 'real-time' weed detection, with intermittent spraying of herbicide only where weeds were present. Sensor units were mounted in 0.7-m-wide hooded sprayers providing sensors with an unobstructed view of the area between soybean rows. Single hood and commercial-size eight-row systems were evaluated, and savings in glyphosate spray solution applied using sensors ranged from 63 to 85%, compared to conventional hooded spray systems with continuous application. Weed control by the sensor-controlled spray system was equal to the conventional system. This technology can signifi- cantly reduce herbicide usage and decrease production cost without reducing weed control. Nomenclature: Glyphosate, N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine; soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr. 'Deltap- ine 3588.' Additional index words: Application technology, intermittent spraying, optoelectronic, selective applicator, spectral reflectance, spot spraying, Sorghum halepense, Ipomoea hederacea, Ipomoea la- cunosa, Sida spinosa, Cyperus rotundus, CYPRO, IPOHE, IPOLA, SIDSP, SORHA. Abbreviations: CRADA, Cooperative Research and Development Agreement; EPROM, Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory; FOV, field of view; WAT, weeks after treatment.