This farm robot might take away jobs, but it also destroys weeds with less herbicides. As Ben Schiller from Fast Company's CoExist posits, "maybe the way to chemical-free foods is through more automation." From Bosch-owned startup Deepfield Robots, the extremely efficient BoniRob is an automated weeding machine that eliminates two weeds every second.
Satellite positioning and lidar measurements let the compact car-sized farm robot know where it is in a field. With 80% accuracy, it pushes the weeds deep into the ground. The machine would go over the same field repeatedly, so even if it missed the weed the first time around, it would probably recognize it the next time. In addition to weeding, the robot in the future could do field research.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Automated Weeding
- The trend of using farm robots to eliminate weeds without herbicides is disrupting traditional farming practices.
- Chemical-free Agriculture
- The trend of using automation to eliminate the need for herbicides is disrupting the agriculture industry by providing a more environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional farming practices.
- Precision Farming
- The trend of using automated machines with satellite positioning and lidar measurements is disrupting the farming industry by providing more accurate and efficient farming practices.
Where This Applies
- Agriculture
- The agriculture industry can harness automated weeding machines to significantly reduce the use of herbicides and improve farming productivity.
- Robotics
- The robotics industry can develop more efficient and accurate farm robots, which can help farmers increase productivity while reducing costs and the use of herbicides.
- Environmental Technology
- The environmental technology industry can leverage automated weeding machines to provide an eco-friendly solution to traditional farming practices by reducing the use of herbicides and promoting sustainable agriculture.
