LS Mtron develops South Korea's first tractor platooning technology, letting one operator run two machines

LS Mtron announced Monday that it has developed South Korea's first tractor platooning technology, allowing a single operator to run two tractors simultaneously.

The system lets an operator aboard one tractor monitor the position and work status of a second tractor in real time while both machines carry out autonomous tasks in coordination.

The manned tractor leads and directs the operation, sharing route and task data with the unmanned unit so the two work in tandem. LS Mtron has completed field validation of the technology on its MT9 and MT7 autonomous tractor models.

Field measurements confirmed the efficiency gains. A rotary leveling job covering 1,980 square meters that previously took 8 minutes and 51 seconds was completed in 5 minutes and 15 seconds with platooning — a reduction of about 40 percent. Efficiency improves further as more tractors are added.

The system operates in two modes depending on the task at hand.

In serial mode, two different jobs are handled in a single pass. The lead tractor performs raking to gather rice straw while the trailing tractor follows at a set distance and simultaneously runs a baler to compress it. Work that previously required one person to make two passes — or two people working at once — can now be completed in a single run, cutting both time and labor costs.

Parallel mode is designed for large-area jobs where timing is critical, such as seeding or harvesting. The two tractors travel side by side, sharing their positions in real time and dividing the workload through a sequential-turn algorithm to secure the optimal window for fieldwork.

Because platooning requires two or more tractors to interact rather than a single machine operating alone, it demands a high level of positional accuracy. LS Mtron applied RTK-GNSS, a high-precision positioning system that achieves an error margin of within 2 centimeters when stationary and no more than 7 centimeters during operation — the tightest tolerances in the domestic market. Combined with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) direct communication and a proprietary algorithm, the two tractors continuously adjust their speed and spacing in real time.

Platooning is considered a foundational technology on the path toward fully unmanned farming, where multiple driverless agricultural machines operate simultaneously. LS Mtron developed the technology to help farms struggling to secure workers as rural aging and labor shortages worsen.

"The technology we accumulated since commercializing our autonomous tractor in 2021 has led us to this platooning breakthrough," President Shin Jae-ho said. "We will continue to introduce new technologies and open the era of unmanned farming."