Mediaboss Marketing

By Margy Eckelkamp and Katie Humphreys

Machinery has amplified the workload farmers can accomplish, and technology has delivered greater efficiencies. Now, autonomy is poised to introduce new levels of productivity and fun.

Different than its technology cousins of guidance and GPS-enabled controls, autonomy relocates the operator to anywhere but the cab.

True autonomy is taking off the training wheels, says Steve Cubbage, vice president of services for Farmobile. It doesnt require human babysitting. Good autonomy is prefaced on good data and lots of it.

As machines are making decisions on the fly, companies seek to enable them to provide the quality and consistency expected by the farmer.

We could see mainstream adoption in five to 10 years. It might surprise us depending on how far we advance artificial intelligence (AI), data collection, etc., Cubbage says. Dont say it cant happen in a short time, because it can. Autosteer was a great example of quick and unexpected acceptance.

Learn more about the robots emerging on the horizon.

The NEXAT is an autonomous machine, ranging from 20' to 80', that can be used for tillage, planting, spraying and harvesting. The interchangeable implements are mounted between four electrically driven tracks.Source: NEXAT

The idea and philosophy behind the NEXAT is to enable a holistic crop production system where 95% of the cultivated area is free of soil compaction, says Lothar Fli, who works in marketing for NEXAT. This system offers the best setup for carbon farming in combination with the possibility for regenerative agriculture and optimal yield potential.

The NEXAT system carries the modules, rather than pulls them, as Fli describes, which allowed the company to develop a simpler and lighter machine that delivers 50% more power with 40% less weight. In operation, weight is transferred onto the carrier vehicle and large tracks and optimized so it becomes a self-propelled machine.

This enables the implements to be guided more accurately and with less slip, reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions more than 30%, he says. Because the NEXAT carries the implement, theres not an extra chassis with extra wheels. The setup creates the best precision at a high working width that reduces soil compaction on the growing areas.

In the field, the machine is driven horizontally but rotates 90 for road travel. Two independent 545-hp diesel engines supply power. The cab, which can rotate 270, is the basis for fully automated operation but enables manual guidance.

The tillage and planting modules came from Vderstad, a Swedish company. The CrossCutter disks for tillage and Tempo planter components are no different than whats found on traditional Vderstad implements.

The crop protection modules, which work like a conventional self-propelled sprayer, come from the German company Dammann. The sprayer has a 230' boom, with ground clearance up to 6.5', and a 6,340-gal. tank.

The NexCo combine harvester module achieves grain throughputs of 130 to 200 tons per hour.

A 19' long axial rotor is mounted transverse to the direction of travel and the flow of harvested material is introduced centrally into the rotor and at an angle to achieve energy efficiency. The rotor divides it into two material flows, which according to NEXAT, enables roughly twice the threshing performance of conventional machines. Two choppers provide uniform straw and chaff distribution, even with a 50' cutting width.

The grain hopper holds 1,020 bu. and can be unloaded in a minute. See the NEXAT system in action.

At the Consumer Electronics Show, John Deere introduced its full autonomy solution for tractors, which will be available to farmers later in 2022.Its tractors are outfitted with:

Farmers can control machines remotely via the JD Operations Center app on a phone, tablet or computer.

Unlike autonomous cars, tractors need to do more than just be a shuttle from point A to point B, says Deanna Kovar, product strategy at John Deere.

When tractors are going through the field, they have to follow a very precise path and do very specific jobs, she says. An autonomous 8R tractor is one giant robot. Within 1" of accuracy, it is able to perform its job without human intervention.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are key technologies to John Deeres vision for the future, says Jahmy Hindman, John Deeres chief technology officer. In the past five years the company has acquired two Silicon Valley technology startups: Blue River Technology and Bear Flag Robotics.

This specific autonomy product has been in development for at least three years as the John Deere team collected images for its machine learning library. Users have access to live video and images via the app.

The real-time delivery of performance information is critical, John Deere highlights, to building the trust of the systems performance.

For example, Willy Pell, John Deere senior director of autonomous systems, explains even if the tractor encounters an anomaly or an undetectable object, safety measures will stop the machine.

While the initial introduction of the fully autonomous tractor showed a tillage application, Jorge Heraud, John Deere vice president of automation and autonomy, shares three other examples of how the company is bringing forward new solutions:

See the John Deere autonomous tractor launch.

New Holland has developed the first chopped material distribution system with direct measurement technology: the OptiSpread Automation System. 2D radar sensors mounted on both sides of the combine measure the speed and throw of the chopped material. If the distribution pattern no longer corresponds to the nominal distribution pattern over the entire working width, the rotational speed of the hydraulically driven feed rotors increases or decreases until the distribution pattern once again matches. The technology registers irregular chopped material distribution, even with a tailwind or headwind, and produces a distribution map.

The system received a Agritechnica silver innovation award.Source: CNH

As part of Vermeers 50th anniversary celebration in 2021, a field demonstration was held at its Pella, Iowa, headquarters to unveil their autonomous bale mover. The BaleHawk navigates through a field via onboard sensors to locate bales, pick them up and move them to a predetermined location.

With the capacity to load three bales at a time, the BaleHawk was successfully tested with bales weighing up to 1,300 lb. The empty weight of the vehicle is less than 3 tons. Vermeer sees the lightweight concept as a solution to reduce compaction.

See the Vermeer Bale Hawk in action.Source: Vermeer

In April 2021, Philipp Horsch, with German farm machinery manufacturer Horsch Machinen, tweeted about its Robo autonomous planter. He said the machine was likely to be released for sale in about two years, depending on efforts to change current regulations, which state for fully autonomous vehicle use in Germany, a person must stay within 2,000' to watch the machine.

The Horsch Robo is equipped with a Trimble navigation system and fitted with a large seed hopper. See the system in action.Source: Horsch

Katie Humphreys wears the hat of content manager for the Producer Media group. Along with writing and editing, she helps lead the content team and Test Plot efforts.

Margy Eckelkamp, The Scoop Editor and Machinery Pete director of content development, has reported on machinery and technology since 2006.

Read this article:
Autonomy in Action: These Machines Bring Imagination to Life - Agweb Powered by Farm Journal

Chess.com is thrilled to announce the Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship, our most elite event ever. The first "RCC" debuts with a prize fund of $650,000. This 25-week extravaganza begins on February 12 and culminates in a dramatic finale on August 28. Only the best of the best will be playing: the top 100 in the world, the top 10 women, and the top 10 juniors will have a seat at the table.

With only the strongest players comprising the field and the slower time control, fans can expect nothing but high-quality chess. Many top GMs like Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Levon Aronian, and more are expected to participate in this event regularly.

Participants will also be allowed to stream this event, under controlled (chat disabled, along with other stringent Fair Play requirements) circumstances. This will provide a unique opportunity to offer viewers rare insights into high-level play, especially thanks to the rapid time format. 10+0 is the most popular time control on Chess.com but is rarely used in top-level events. In this format, players will have more time to strategize their way to victory.

Who doesnt want to hear Nakamura discuss his thought process in a 10-minute game against the worlds best players? Speaking of Nakamura, here is what he had to say about the Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship: "Im hyped to play in this event constructed by Chess.com in a way that seems to meet many of the top 100 chess players needs. Its got a flexible schedule, zero commitment, and yet seems to be a surefire hit with both the top players and the fans. With no additional demands being made by Chess.com on the participants time, it really is an ideal fit for so many schedules."

Im hyped to play in this event ... a surefire hit with both the top players and the fans.

- Hikaru Nakamura

Junior players made big waves in 2021, and we are happy to provide a special opportunity for them to play against the best players in the world. Recently-crowned World Rapid Champion, GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov, and other top junior players will have a chance to shine against the world's elite on a more frequent basis. We look forward to more juniors entering the top 100 in 2022 and qualifying for the event.

The mixture of top-100 players, the best juniors, and the top female players in the world will create some truly exciting match-ups and provide incredible opportunities for the next generation to continue to hone their skills.

The $650,000 prize fund is the biggest that Chess.com has ever offered, and it will be distributed throughout the entirety of the event. The first 25 weeks of the event have $500,000 allocated, which equates to $20,000 on the line per week. The finals have a $150,000 prize fund as well as the title of 2022 Chess.com Rapid Champion.

Chess.com's CEO Erik is thrilled for Chess.com to be able to offer this event:

"As a fan, I cannot wait to see who becomes the first Chess.com Rapid Champion! As a Chess.com team member, I feel proud to be able to offer an opportunity to compete in online chess in a format they enjoy and with conditions they appreciate."

Who are you excited to see in the 2022 Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more:
Announcing The Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship With $650,000 In Prizes - Chess.com

With chess back in this years Hangzhou Asian Games, in China, India has begun its preparations by short-listing 20 probables 10 men and 10 women with an eye on winning maximum out of the 12 medals across four events.

As per the players international ratings, the All India Chess Federation (AICF) has prepared the probables list headed by Vidit Gujrathi (men) and K. Humpy (women).

Viswanathan Anand, the mentor of the squad, will hold an online training session for the team members from February 3 to 10.

The individual events for men and women under rapid time control will be from September 11 to 14. The team event, across four boards separately for men and women, under standard time control will be from September 16 to 24.

The probables:

Men: Vidit Gujarathi, P Harikrishna, Nihal Sarin, S. L. Narayanan, K. Sasikiran, B Adhiban, M. Karthikeyan, Arjun Erigaisi, Abhijeet Gupta and Surya Shekhar Ganguly.

Women: K Humpy, D Harika, R. Vaishali, Tania Sachdev, Bhakti Kulkarni, Vantika Agrawal, Mary Ann Gomes, Soumya Swaminathan, Eesha Karavade and Divya Deshmukh.

Read the original here:
Chess | Vidit, Humpy to lead at Hangzhou Asian Games - The Hindu

Have you ever wondered who is the richest female Grand Master in the world? (Sorry, Beth Harmon is not the right answer) We are talking about real-life female chess Grand Masters. Alike any other sport, in chess as well, male players get the maximum attention from fans, and as incredible as female chess players the world has ever witnessed, only a few people know them as they know their male contemporaries.

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The Hungarian Grand Master and the greatest female chess player of all time, Judit Polgar, is the worlds richest female chess player. She was the World No. 1 female chess player from 1989 to her retirement in 2014. The 45-year-old Grand Master has a net worth of $1 million. On the list of the worlds richest chess players, she is on number 5, which makes her even richer than many current male players.

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Most of her income comes from being a player, and in June 2015, she was elected as the captain and head coach of the national Hungarian mens team.

In 1991, when she was 15, she broke the record of Bobby fisher and became the youngest Grand Master ever. She is the only woman to cross 2700 Elo rating and since the age of 12, she has been the best female player in the world. Even after 8 years of her retirement from international chess, her records remain unsurpassed.

She has defeated most of the world champions during her career and she is undisputedly the best female chess player the world has ever seen. The list of her ruins includes Garry Kasparov, Magnus Carlsen, Anatoly Karpov, Viswanathan Anand, Boris Spassky, Vladimir Kramnik, Ruslan Ponomariov, and Veselin Topalov.

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She has had an amazing career, and her contribution to chess is unforgettable. Many Grand Masters agree her games were entertaining, and a treat to watch. In 2016, she gave a speech on TED about her career and what shaped her into one of the worlds greatest chess players.

Judit Polgar is the real-life Beth Harmon, the one we should all know about. She is indeed the worlds richest female chess player, but more than that, she is a role model for every chess fan out there.

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Here are some of the most amazing games she played against the male world champions.

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Who is the Richest Female Chess Grandmaster? - EssentiallySports

On one level, chess seems like a simple game: 64 individual black or white squares, 16 pieces per side, and two competitors striving for conquest.

Dig a little deeper though, and the game offers incredibly complex possibilities, posing challenges to chess theorists and mathematicians that can go unsolved for decades or even centuries.

In July 2021, one such challenge was finally solved at least, up to a point. Mathematician Michael Simkin, from Harvard University in Massachusetts, put his mind to the n-queens problem that has been puzzling experts since it was first imagined in the 1840s.

If you know your chess, you know that the queen is the most powerful piece on the board, able to move any number of squares in any direction. The n-queens problem asks this: With a certain number of queens (n), how many arrangements are possible where the queens are far enough apart so none of them can take any of the others?

For eight queens on a standard 8 x 8 board, the answer is 92, although most of these are rotated or reflected variants of just 12 fundamental solutions.

But what about 1,000 queens on a board that's 1,000 x 1,000 squares? What about a million queens? Simkin's approximate solution to the problem is (0.143n)n the number of queens multiplied by 0.143, raised to the power of n.

What you're left with is not the precise answer, but it's as close as it's possible to get right now. With a million queens, the figure comes out as a number with five million digits after it so we won't reproduce it for you here.

It took almost five years for Simkin to come up with the equation, with a variety of approaches and techniques used, and a few barriers on the way to a solution. Ultimately the mathematician was able to calculate the lower bounds and the upper bounds of possible solutions using different methods, finding that they almost matched.

"If you were to tell me I want you to put your queens in such-and-such way on the board, then I would be able to analyze the algorithm and tell you how many solutions there are that match this constraint," says Simkin.

"In formal terms, it reduces the problem to an optimization problem."

Early on, Simkin and colleague Zur Luria at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich collaborated on a variation of the n-queens problem known as the torodial or modular problem. In this one, the diagonals wrap around the board, so a queen could move diagonally off the right edge of a board and reappear on the left, for example.

This grants each queen symmetry of attack, but it isn't how a normal chessboard works: a queen in the corner of the board doesn't have as many angles of attack as one in the center.

Ultimately, the pair's work on the toroidal problem stalled (although they published some results), but Simkin ended up adapting some of the fruits of that labor into his final solution.

As the boards get bigger and the number of queens increases, the research shows that in most allowable configurations the queens tend to congregate along the sides of the board, with fewer queens in the middle, where they are exposed to attack. This knowledge enables a more weighted approach.

In theory, a more precise answer to the n-queen puzzle should be possible but Simkin has got us closer than ever before, and he's happy to pass the challenge on to someone else to study further.

"I think that I may personally be done with the n-queens problem for a while, not because there isn't anything more to do with it but just because I've been dreaming about chess and I'm ready to move on with my life," says Simkin.

Simkin's paper on the solution is available on the preprint server arXiv.

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A Harvard Mathematician Has Basically Solved an Epic, 150-Year-Old Chess Problem - ScienceAlert