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Mother plucker: Steel fingers guided by AI pluck weeds rapidly and autonomously
Ekobot AB Introduces Autonomous Weeding Robot
Swedish company Ekobot AB has developed a wheeled robot that uses AI technology to autonomously recognize and pluck weeds from the ground. This innovation aims to provide a more efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to herbicides, which can have detrimental effects on people, animals, and the environment.
The four-wheeled Ekobot WEAI robot is battery-powered and can operate for long periods of time on a single charge. It is designed for weeding fields that cultivate vegetables such as onions, beetroots, and carrots. With a top speed of 5 km/h, the robot can cover approximately 10 hectares in a day. It is equipped with GPS RTK navigation, safety sensors, and vision systems to ensure it avoids collisions with objects or people.
AI-Powered Weed Recognition System
To identify the weeds that need to be plucked, the Ekobot uses an AI-powered machine vision system. This system has been trained to identify different types of weeds as the robot moves above the farm field. Once the weeds are detected, the robot quickly digs up and removes them using a series of metal fingers. According to Ekobot, its weed-plucking robot has allowed farmers to reduce herbicide use by 70% in trials. The accuracy of the weed recognition system prevents the robot from mistakenly damaging crops during the weeding process.
5G Integration and Sustainable Farming
Ekobot has collaborated with Swedish telecom company Telia to integrate 5G technology into the robot. This allows the robot to communicate remotely with a central server, enabling the sharing of learning data collected from farm fields. The first "5G onions" grown using this weeding method have been successfully cultivated and are now available. These 5G onions have a longer shelf life and are more sustainable, as the efficient weeding process and reduced use of pesticides allow the onions to receive more sunlight and nutrients, resulting in better taste and quality.
Telia plans to expand the availability of the Ekobot system to more countries, including the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, and several EU countries, the United Kingdom, and the United States by 2030. Combined with other sustainable farming practices such as laser pest control, AI technology has the potential to revolutionize the agriculture industry and make it more environmentally friendly.
