Croplands Equipment released a redesigned version of its Robot Ready Pinto alongside three additional platforms spanning broadacre, retrofit, and tree crop applications, marking the most aggressive product expansion in the Australian company's precision spraying division since it acquired the WEED-IT brand. The Series 2 Pinto adds enhanced sensor arrays and processing power designed to support fully autonomous operation, though the company has not committed to a timeline for removing the operator entirely. Meanwhile, the new orchard system addresses a segment where optical spot spraying has historically struggled due to canopy density and irregular plant spacing.
Croplands positions the technology as a direct response to regulatory tightening around glyphosate and other broad-spectrum herbicides, particularly in European and Australian markets where residue limits continue to fall. WEED-IT systems use optical sensors to distinguish green plant matter from soil or stubble, triggering individual nozzles only when vegetation passes beneath. The company claims application rates drop 70 to 90 percent compared to blanket spraying, though actual savings vary widely based on weed pressure, crop stage, and ground speed. Field trials conducted in Western Australia during the 2025 growing season showed herbicide reductions averaging 82 percent across wheat and barley operations, with no statistically significant difference in weed escape compared to conventional broadcast methods.
The orchard platform represents a technical departure for WEED-IT, which built its reputation in row crops where plants grow in predictable lines and canopy architecture remains relatively uniform. Tree crops introduce variables the existing sensor suite was not designed to handle: overlapping branches, variable tree height, and three-dimensional spray zones that shift with wind and tractor speed. Croplands engineers redesigned the nozzle placement and camera positioning to account for vertical spray patterns, adding side-mounted sensors that map tree structure in real time. Early adopters in Australian almond and apple orchards report the system performs reliably at speeds up to 8 kilometers per hour, though accuracy degrades noticeably above that threshold as the processor struggles to keep pace with incoming image data.
The broader product push reflects mounting competition in the optical spot spraying category, where John Deere subsidiary Blue River Technology has held a dominant position since the 2017 acquisition. See & Spray systems now ship as factory options on Deere's 400 and 600 Series sprayers, giving the platform immediate scale advantages that independents like Croplands cannot match. By expanding into retrofit kits and specialty crops, Croplands aims to capture segments where Deere has limited presence: older equipment fleets, niche crops, and geographies where Deere dealer networks remain sparse. The retrofit package supports sprayers from Case IH, Hardi, and Croplands' own legacy boom models, requiring roughly 12 hours of installation and a recalibration process that dealers can perform on-site. Pricing for the retrofit kit starts at AU$47,000, approximately 40 percent less than the cost of replacing an entire sprayer with a factory-equipped model.
What to Watch: Croplands has not disclosed production volumes for the Series 2 Pinto or the orchard system, making it difficult to assess commercial traction beyond initial field trials. Watch for third-party validation studies from universities or agronomic consultancies, particularly data comparing WEED-IT performance against See & Spray in head-to-head trials. European equipment manufacturers including Lemken and Kuhn have announced plans to integrate precision spraying into their 2027 product lines, suggesting the competitive landscape will intensify rapidly. Finally, track whether Croplands pursues partnerships with autonomous tractor developers, as the Robot Ready designation implies an integration strategy the company has not yet made explicit.
