Kinze News

WILLIAMSBURG, Iowa (Aug. 10, 2011) – Kinze® Manufacturing, Inc. gave the
agriculture industry a glimpse into the future today with the unveiling of its precision planting
technology – an autonomous planter that operates without an operator in the tractor cab. The
Kinze Autonomy Project, the first of its kind in row crop production worldwide, utilizes
autonomous agricultural equipment to complete many tasks on the farm with minimal direct
human input.

“We are proud to offer the first truly autonomous row crop solution on this scale in the
world,” said Susanne Kinzenbaw Veatch, vice president and chief marketing officer at Kinze.
“Knowing how important it is to get crops into the ground during the short planting window,
we’re excited to offer this system to help growers be productive and make the most of their
harvest.”

The Kinze Autonomy Project is designed to reduce the need for skilled operators by
taking the human element out of the tractor cab. Kinze plans to market this technology to help
growers increase their productivity by allowing them to focus their time and attention elsewhere
while performing cursory monitoring of the Kinze autonomous equipment.

To begin, the grower loads a field map into the global positioning system including field
boundaries and any predesigned non-field areas such as waterways. After the grower takes the
New System Enables Growers to Plant Fields without a Tractor Operator/page 2
tractor to the field and identifies which field it is positioned in, the system generates the most
efficient method to plant the field. At that point, the system then positions the tractor and planter
at a designated starting point and begins planting until it encounters an obstacle. Grower
intervention is required to maneuver around unplanned obstacles.

As a project more than two years in the making, Kinze performed extensive obstacle
detection testing to ensure the accuracy and safety of the autonomous equipment. Beginning in a
laboratory environment and then in the field, Kinze engineers simulated real-world scenarios to
ensure the equipment would detect objects often encountered in the field, such as fence posts,
stand pipes, farm animals and other vehicles.

The technology was originally developed in a laboratory setting using computer
simulation. Kinze engineers partnered with Jaybridge Robotics, a firm in Cambridge, Mass., to
bring that technology from the lab to the field, and to test and refine the work. In addition to
planting, the Kinze Autonomy Project could be used to do a variety of other tasks, including
nourishing, maintaining and harvesting crops.

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About Kinze Manufacturing

Founded more than 45 years ago on the premise of innovation, Kinze Manufacturing, Inc.,
markets its planters and grain carts globally and is known for a number of industry “firsts.”
Kinze operates with core values of integrity, customer focus, excellence, innovation and mutual
respect. Kinze Manufacturing is the recognized technology leader and innovator of planters for
row-crop production and grain auger carts. Kinze employees spend their nights and weekends
farming, putting them in a unique position to be both manufacturers and customers of the
planters and grain carts they build. For more information, visit the Kinze Manufacturing website
at http://www.kinze.com

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About Jaybridge Robotics

Jaybridge Robotics provides domain expertise, consultation, software and systems integration for
autonomous vehicle design and development. The company works closely with their clients'
engineering teams to fully transform their products into robust autonomous systems capable of
reliably executing workflows even in harsh, real-world conditions. Jaybridge's state of the art
capabilities include software, tools and expertise for vehicle motion, navigation, perception,
control, precision visualization and intuitive human-robot interfaces. Founded by graduates of
MIT and Carnegie Mellon University, Jaybridge applies exclusive, field-proven algorithms and
open software to solve complex robotics challenges.