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(August 23, 2007) —
From the worldwide leader in cotton harvesting equipment comes the next revolution in cotton production: the John Deere 7760 Cotton Picker with on-board module-building technology. By forming, wrapping, and carrying the module on-board, the 7760 allows a virtual non-stop harvest. How does it work?
Watch video of the 7760 Cotton Picker at work in the field.
As the picker moves into the field and begins harvesting, picked cotton is moved to an accumulator, in much the same way cotton would move to the basket of a traditional picker. Once the accumulator is full, raw cotton is automatically 'dumped' into the round module chamber. There, belts form a round module of raw cotton. Once this module reaches a pre-determined diameter (either the default setting, or of the operator's choice), the bale is wrapped in three layers of protective covering, then ejected onto a retractable handling gate at the rear of the machine. The wrapped round module can then be dropped in place or carried on the handling gate to the next end row...all while the 7760 continues to harvest and accumulate raw cotton to form the next module.
"Once we take the traditional module from the cotton harvesting scheme," says Jamie Flood, Product Marketing Manager, John Deere Des Moines Works, "we can also remove equipment like the module builder, the boll buggy, the tractors required for both...not to mention the associated fuel and labor costs."
The only special piece of equipment a producer may need is the tractor-mounted Frontier CM 1100 Round Module Handler for staging the modules and lifting them onto a flatbed trailer.
"Familiar equipment like the module truck can still be used," says Flood. "Four round modules can be loaded into a standard module truck, with only slight modifications to the conveyor chain."
Flood also points to benefits such as reduced waste and improved quality preservation, all due to the fact that the round modules from the 7760 are wrapped 360 degrees with a special protective covering...no more loss during transport, or from water wicking up from the ground.
"As big a step as the original module concept was for cotton production, the 7760 Cotton Picker gives growers something they've never had before…a non-stop harvest."
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