Deere & Company

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION APPLICATION FOR SPECIAL TEMPORARY AUTHORITY

Applicant Name

Name of Applicant:

Deere & Company

Address

Attention:	Dr. Peter Williams
Street Address:	20780 Madrona Ave.
P.O. Box:
City:	Torrance
State:	CA
Zip Code:	90503
Country:	United States
E-Mail Address:	[email protected]

Best Contact

Give the following information of person who can best handle inquiries pertaining to this application:   Last Name: Greenwald First Name: Eliot Title: Counsel to Deere & Company Phone Number: 202-373-6009

Explanation

Please explain in the area below why an STA is necessary: The proposed receive-only testing, which will utilize a carrier radiating from the Inmarsat IIIF4 geostationary satellite located at 142 degrees west longitude in the L-band at 1535.15 MHz, necessitates an STA to ensure that Deere & Company (Deere) can immediately review potential software and hardware upgrades to the StarFire Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) which provides the precise positioning sensor for the GreenStar precision farming system described below, and subsequently make such upgrades and performance improvements expeditiously available to the American agricultural industry.

Purpose of Operation

Please explain the purpose of operation:

Since 2001, Deere has been equipping domestic agricultural equipment with its GreenStar precision farming system. The GreenStar system employs receive-only vehicle mounted StarFire mobile earth stations, which are currently licensed pursuant to IBFS File No. SES-LIC-20010112-00051. These antennas receive L-band signals from the Inmarsat geostationary satellite at 98 degrees west longitude, and provide correctional data which enhances the information the GreenStar system receives simultaneously from Global Positioning Satellites (“GPS”). This system enables the operators of domestic farming equipment to pinpoint their location to within twenty (20) centimeters (+ 1σ). This precise positioning capability developed originally to assist farmers in comparing the crop yields from various fields to determine, among other things, the amount of fertilizer and seed appropriate for a particular field and crop has now found additional important uses to improve farming efficiency. The GreenStar system now enables farmers to manually record observations such as weed patches, crop appearance, and other field variables with remarkable precision. Furthermore, when coupled to the vehicle steering system through the Deere AutoTrack system it aids the operator to steer a more precise path when making repeated passes over the same track thus greatly reducing crop and soil damage. The proposed testing will use the Inmarsat IIIF4 positioned at 142 degrees west longitude to aid Deere in evaluating routine modifications and improvements to the GreenStar system, which has now been in field operation for approximately five (5) years. The planned testing is receive-only. The GreenStar terminals integrated into agricultural equipment are not equipped to transmit RF carriers. Furthermore, the proposed downlink transmissions for the above mentioned testing will be at 1535.15 MHz, within the same band currently authorized for the antennas in the GreenStar system under SES-LIC-20010112-00051. Please also note that the proposed modifications and improvements to the receive-only GreenStar system will affect software and hardware unrelated to the RF equipment, which will carry forward unaltered from the already licensed system. Thus, the grant of this STA poses no interference threat to other licensed occupants of the L-band or any other licensed band.

Information

Callsign:
Class of Station:	MO
Nature of Service:	Experimental

Requested Period of Operation

Operation Start Date:	06/20/2006
Operation End Date:	11/30/2006

Manufacturer

List below transmitting equipment to be installed (if experimental, so state) if additional rows are required, please submit equipment list as an exhibit:
Manufacturer	Model Number	No. Of Units	Experimental
No transmitting equipment involved			No

Certification

Neither the applicant nor any other party to the application is subject to a denial of Federal benefits that includes FCC benefits pursuant to Section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, 21 U.S.C. Section 862, because of a conviction for possession or distribution of a controlled substance. The applicant hereby waives any claim to the use of any particular frequency or electromagnetic spectrum as against the regulatory power of the United States because of the prvious use of the same, whether by license or otherwise, and requests authorization in accordance with this application. (See Section 304 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.) The applicant acknowledges that all statements made in this application and attached exhibits are considered material representations, and that all the exhibits part hereof and are incorporated herein as if set out in full in this application; undersigned certifies that all statements in this application are true, complete and correct to the best of his/her knowledge and belief and are made in good faith. Applicant certifies that construction of the station would NOT be an action which is likely to have a significant environmental effect. See the Commission's Rules, 47 CFR1.1301-1.1319.

Signature of Applicant (Authorized person filing form):	Dr. Peter Williams
Title of Applicant (if any):	Director, Advanced Programs
Date:	2006-06-14 00:00:00.0

Station Location

	City	State	Latitude	Longitude	Mobile	Radius of Operation
			North	West	The receive-only antennas proposed for this test will be mounted on agricultural equipment in Torrance, CA, and Des Moines, IA.

Datum:  NAD 83 Is a directional antenna (other than radar) used?   No Exhibit submitted:   No (a) Width of beam in degrees at the half-power point:   (b) Orientation in horizontal plane:   (c) Orientation in vertical plane:   Will the antenna extend more than 6 meters above the ground, or if mounted on an existing building, will it extend more than 6 meters above the building, or will the proposed antenna be mounted on an existing structure other than a building?   No (a) Overall height above ground to tip of antenna in meters:   (b) Elevation of ground at antenna site above mean sea level in meters:   (c) Distance to nearest aircraft landing area in kilometers:   (d) List any natural formations of existing man-made structures (hills, trees, water tanks, towers, etc.) which, in the opinion of the applicant, would tend to shield the antenna from aircraft:

Action	Frequency	Station Class	Output Power/ERP	Mean Peak	Frequency Tolerance (+/-)	Emission Designator	Modulating Signal
New	1535.14875000-1535.15125000 kHz	MO	N/A N/A			2K50D1D	BPSK

16897