ZHENGZHOU — China's first hydrogen fuel-cell electric tractor was launched on June 16 by the National Institute of Agro-machinery Innovation and Creation (CHIAIC) in Luoyang in the central province of Henan.

Sporting a futuristic appearance, the new model ET504-H tractor adopts 5G mobile communication technology, has a self-driving mode, and can be remotely controlled.

It was co-developed by CHIAIC and the Luoyang advanced manufacturing industry R&D base of Tsinghua University's Tianjin Research Institute for Advanced Equipment.

The tractor has a main permanent-magnet, synchronous mid-motor, and independent electric lifting and steering motors. The hydrogen fuel cell operates when the vehicle is underloaded, while under heavy load, the lithium battery will add further power supply.

With 5G technology, ET504-H is able to monitor the real-time running status of the vehicle as well as the surrounding working environment, which will effectively improve the reliability of the operation.

It is of great importance that a new generation of green, smart agricultural machinery equipment will help promote the development of intelligent agriculture, said Zhao Chunjiang, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of CHIAIC.