Agri-watch is a new immobiliser for agricultural vehicles and plant that has been developed by two Cheshire brothers in the hope of cutting rural crime.
eter and Mark Heler, who run Heler Electricals, at Audley, created the system after one of their own tractors was stolen. It took two years to produce, but has just been awarded Thatcham P2 approval for use in plant and agricultural machinery meaning that it attracts significant discounts from insurance companies.
The Agri-watch immobiliser works via a transponder chip integrated into the vehicle’s key rather than a keypad, meaning it’s much easier to use. The chip is recognised by a deactivation coil that’s installed near to the ignition and allows the vehicle to be started.
Costing about £350 fitted, the Agri-watch immobiliser works by isolating three separate circuits vital for the vehicle to run. These circuits remain broken until the transponder key and its unique code comes range of the deactivation coil. The system means that there’s no need to replace the ignition block; instead keys containing the transponder chips will be cut to fit the existing ignition.
Each vehicle fitted with the Agri-watch system can be programmed to recognise up to nine different keys, and a single key can be programmed to work on an unlimited number of vehicles. This is ideal where you have multiple operators and multiple vehicles of the same brand as each driver can have their own key.
For more information visit: www.helerelectricals.co.uk.
