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Copyright of Landtechnik is the property of Kuratorium fur Technik & Bauwesen in der Landwirtschaft and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the FCTRAC project, a fuel cell electric tractor is developed based on the existing diesel vehicle STEYR 4130 Expert CVT. After the FCTRAC project is presented, the paper introduces the developed fuel cell electric powertrain architecture designed to deliver comparable working performance to the donor vehicle. The description of the thermal system focuses on the challenging heat dissipation of the fuel cell stack. The design of the 700-bar hydrogen storage system is discussed, considering vehicle framework conditions. Finally, the paper addresses the test bench validation of the FCTRAC powertrain. It confirms the simulative development approach and demonstrates operation comparable to the donor vehicle with 95 kW constant load at 35 °C ambient temperature without derating.

Copyright of Journal of Cultivated Plants / Journal für Kulturpflanzen is the property of Verlag Eugen Ulmer and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper has two main goals: frist, to describe the role of natural space in the creation of anthropological prototypes and in establishing universal biases by using semiotics’ theoretical framework; second, to argue that the cognitive behavior of humanity depends on a universal way of interacting with nature, instead of being limited to social stereotypes. Landscapes are frames for cultural constructions and anthropological behavior, collective and individual. In this sense, landscapes favor the construction of cultural archetypes and, by analogy, can be translated into a symbolic language. That language facilitates complex expression, explains nature and, at the same time, reveals everyday phenomena in a crystalized and invariable manner. Each visible component of a landscape is potentially a driver for the construction of meaning, i.e., the empirical experience with weather, terrain, fauna, and flora generates signs of meaning that is later reflected in the cultural matrix of a culture. In that sense, agricultural context is the main source for abstract language in sedentary cultures from Mediterranean and Mesopotamian regions. The methodology applied in this paper is directed to listen to the silent voices of the past through the analysis of unrelated textual sources, Sumerian and Roman, as the Sumerian text Inana B or Vergil’s Georgics. It is used to ‘break down’ the symbolic language of those texts into ‘signs of meaning’, and from this process, describe the original landscape that inspired it. We argue through anthropological/linguistic evidences that two unrelated cultural contexts in space and time can share cultural features. Such parallel characteristics result from similar anthropological experiences in the natural rural world and from the impact of economic activities in the daily life of ancient people.

As in the transport sector, it is also necessary to investigate alternatives to fossil diesel fuel in the agricultural sector. In addition to technical feasibility, ecological viability and social acceptance, economic viability is ultimately decisive in determining whether an alternative energy source is competitive. Against this background, in this paper, a cost calculation model is described to analyze the competitiveness of different future technologies and applied on the case of future electrical energy supply concepts. The model is applied to compare a continuous energy supply system via a wide-span system (WSS) with a discontinuous battery swapping system (BSS) on the example of tillage. The results show that on area sizes of more than 100 ha, a continuous energy supply for agricultural machinery with a WSS is competitive to a discontinuous BSS.

In China, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are increasingly used for broadcast application of agricultural inputs such as pesticides, fertilizers, and seeds. UAVs have the potential for site-specific precision agriculture, facilitating precise management of fertilization, plant protection, and irrigation to reduce environmental footprint of farming. There has been research on the use of UAVs in agriculture, but less is known about UAV-based precision agriculture, particularly pattern management. To close these research gaps, this paper conducted structured in-depth interviews with 18 experts from various fields related to UAVs in Chinese agriculture to study the status quo, drivers, and barriers of adopting UAVs, focusing on UAV-based precision agriculture, particularly pattern management. The results show that the adoption of UAVs in China is influenced by farmers’ production characteristics, farmers’ perceptions about UAVs, and social factors. UAV-based precision agriculture is at the initial stage in China, and the promotion of this approach still needs to overcome technical barriers such as improving the accuracy of crop measurements, developing real-time UAV positioning systems, and enhancing the response time of variable-rate spraying systems, as well as socio-economic barriers like farmers’ limited UAV-related knowledge, small farm sizes, and lack of technical assistance.

Sustainable agriculture demands alternatives to fossil fuels. The FCTRAC project adopts a circular economy approach, focusing on zero-emission solutions. A fuel-cell-powered electric tractor with 95 kW, derived from a diesel model (STEYR 4130 Expert CVT) was developed. It integrates key components such as a 700 bar compressed hydrogen storage system, fuel cell, electric drive, and high-voltage battery. Leveraging existing driveline technology minimizes costs and development risks of the project. The vehicle achieves comparable performance, optimal visibility, as well as single type approval for on-road usage. This paper details the vehicle architecture, design, and key integration challenges, advancing the development of zero-emission agricultural machinery.

Copyright of Bodenkultur: Journal for Land Management, Food & Environment is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Thanks to their multifunctionality, mobility and high data processing capacity, smartphones and their mobile applications have become a permanent companion for farmers in everyday life. This paper systematically analyses the mobile applications for agriculture available on the German market. The status quo (n = 1,214 apps) was recorded, systematically structured and descriptively evaluated based on the qualitative content analysis according to MAYRING (2015). A comparison of these results with the study by HOFFMANN et al. (2014) shows that the market offer for mobile apps is extremely dynamic. There are significantly more apps available for crop production (46.9%; n = 569) than for livestock farming (28.6%; n = 347). A vast majority (41.4%; n = 503) is used to provide information. The app ratings suggest that the majority of users are satisfied with the mobile apps available for agriculture.

Manual yield estimation usually requires a lot of work and is expensive. With the help of modern image recognition systems, it is already possible to create yield forecasts to determine area-related yield capacity and fruit size distribution. This makes it possible to apply cultivation measures in a more targeted way and to optimize storage and logistics. Therefore, in this paper, five different commercially available systems were tested for their precision and practicality with different varieties and at different locatins. For this purpose, the data obtained were compared with manually determined data and the deviation was calculated. It was found that there were large differences between the various systems, although some systems already showed sufficient accuracy. Most of the systems, however, had too much deviation and the time required to collect the data was often higher than that required for manual measurement.

Copyright of Julius-Kühn-Archiv is the property of Julius Kuehn Institut and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

El caserío, entendido como un paisaje formado por unidades domésticas autónomas distribuidas de manera dispersa, constituye el principal modelo de ocupación del espacio rural en la vertiente atlántica del País Vasco. En las últimas décadas, el estudio arqueológico de muchos caseríos ha permitido definir series tipo-cronológicas de gran detalle para este tipo de edificios. El presente trabajo propone abordar el estudio de los paisajes culturales articulados por el caserío, integrando el estudio de las trazas materiales de los usos agrarios del pasado, como el acondicionamiento de espacios productivos específicos o determinadas prácticas de gestión, con la evolución de las formas arquitectónicas. El análisis se centra en el ejemplo de Zizurkil (Gipuzkoa). Junto con la recopilación de fuentes documentales y orales y el estudio de los elementos arquitectónicos, se ha implementado una metodología geoarqueológica basada en el análisis de diversos parámetros físico-químicos de los suelos de cultivo, con el fin de establecer estratigrafías de alta resolución. Los resultados obtenidos permiten distinguir tres fases en la evolución de este paisaje: un momento de (re)configuración de su estructura básica en los siglos XIV-XIV; una importante intensificación en los siglos XVII-XIX, de la mano de la revolución agraria que siguió a la introducción de cultivos americanos; y una rápida degradación desde mediados del siglo XX. ABSTRACT: The Atlantic sector of the Basque Country is characterised by a particular settlement pattern known as baserria, consisting of dispersed, individual farmsteads with autonomous landholdings. Over the last few decades, the architecture of these farmsteads has been studied from an archaeological point of view, resulting in detailed typo-chronological series on the evolution of aspects like constructive materials and techniques or the functional division of the domestic and productive spaces. In this paper, we propose widening this analytical framework by adopting a landscape-based approach that considers not only the architecture of domestic units, but also the material traces of past social practices in the surrounding agricultural areas (e.g., the creation of specific productive spaces or the imprints of specific management practices, like manuring or liming). To this scope, we propose an intensive local study based on the village of Zizurkil (Gipuzkoa, Basque Country). We have applied a transdisciplinary methodology based on the combined analysis of documentary and oral sources, architectural features present in the local landscape, and geoarchaeological core sampling. Sampled soil records have been analysed using different physical and chemical proxies (XRD, XRF, and LOI, along with radiocarbon dating) to define a high-resolution stratigraphic characterisation. Our results show three main phases in the evolution of the local rural landscape: 1) a moment of (re)configuration that originated the backbone of the ‘traditional’ landscape between the 14th and 16th centuries; 2) a significant intensification linked to the introduction of American crops, such as maize, between the 17th-19th centuries; and 3) a rapid degradation since the mid-20th century.

Copyright of GAIA: Ecological Perspectives for Science & Society is the property of Oekom Verlag GmbH and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)