Trimble's RainWave Solution Now Maps Rainfall Amounts within Entire Fields

With a Precise Contour Map of Rainfall Information, Farmers Can Make Better Decisions on Irrigation Planning, Resource Deployment and Material Applications

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Trimble

Aug 26, 2014, 06:31 ET

BOONE, Iowa, Aug. 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) today announced a significant advancement in its RainWave® precipitation monitoring solution that maps precise rainfall amounts within an entire field or farm. Using the new RainWave Contour Map functionality in Trimble's Connected Farm™ Web-based management solution enables the farmer or trusted advisor to make better management decisions for irrigation planning, resource deployment, and timing of applications for nutrient and pest management.

The announcement was made at the Farm Progress Show.

Unlike physical gauges that measure rain at a single point or services that average rainfall amounts across fields (mile-by-mile grids), the new RainWave Contour Map allows farmers to visualize and measure variations in rainfall amounts within the field. RainWave closely complements Trimble's Irrigate-IQ™ precision irrigation solution, which is now available in North America. Farmers can use the detailed RainWave rainfall data to direct their decisions and create a highly targeted irrigation application schedule with Irrigate-IQ. The Irrigate-IQ solution uses GPS to remotely control irrigators, create irrigation plans, perform variable rate irrigation down to the individual nozzle, and receive reports, resulting in reduced trips to the field.

Using the RainWave Contour Map, farmers can optimize water use by not running irrigators in areas that have received adequate rainfall. Further benefits include time and fuel savings since physically checking rain gauge locations is eliminated. In addition, the rainfall data can guide farmers' decisions regarding the day's planned activities and whether those activities are feasible or not based on field conditions.

Farmers can access the color-coded rainfall contour maps on demand via personal computer, tablet or smartphone via the new Connected Farm Field Website. Connected Farm also provides farmers with access to additional key information impacting daily operations including weather forecasts, commodity tracking, field operation maps, fleet management, crop health maps, and irrigation monitoring and control.

"Trimble's new RainWave Contour Map provides farmers with a much higher level of rainfall data they can use to make better decisions about irrigation or other farm management tasks," said David Fitzpatrick, Water Solutions business area director of Trimble's Agriculture Division. "Rainfall can vary dramatically across a field, so by providing farmers with a visual rainfall contour of their entire field, including low and high spots, they can use that information to set up a very specific irrigation and work schedule based on the latest, and most detailed, rainfall data—ultimately leading to savings in water and time."

The new RainWave Contour Map is currently available as an annual subscription service in North America. To learn more, visit http://www.trimble.com/Agriculture/rainwave.aspx or contact a local Trimble reseller at: www.trimble.com/locator. The Connected Farm dashboard is a free Web portal available worldwide. To set up a Connected Farm account, visit: www.connectedfarm.com.

About Trimble's Agriculture Division

Trimble Agriculture solutions enable customers to maximize efficiency and reduce chemical and fertilizer inputs while also protecting natural resources and the environment. Trimble's precision agriculture solutions cover all seasons, crops, terrains, and farm sizes, and its brand-agnostic strategy allows farmers to use Trimble products on most vehicles in their fleet—regardless of manufacturer. To enable better decision making, Trimble offers the Connected Farm solution which allows farmers to collect, share, and manage information across their farm in real time. To optimize water use, Trimble provides water solutions for irrigation, drainage, and land leveling. Trimble's product suite includes vehicle and implement guidance and steering, as well as a portfolio of correction options that are the most versatile of their kind in the industry. Additional solutions include an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) for aerial imaging and mapping; application control for seed, liquid, and granular products; a harvest solution; and farm management software. For more information on Trimble Agriculture, visit: www.trimble.com/agriculture.

About Trimble

Trimble applies technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government significantly more productive. Solutions are focused on applications requiring position or location—including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. In addition to utilizing positioning technologies, such as GPS, lasers and optics, Trimble solutions may include software content specific to the needs of the user. Wireless technologies are utilized to deliver the solution to the user and to ensure a tight coupling of the field and the back office. Founded in 1978, Trimble is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif.

For more information, visit: www.trimble.com.

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SOURCE Trimble