The Rise of the Robots in Farming

Agriculture Technology or “AgTech” is an industry very much on the rise in recent years. AgTech is the use of technologies within the field of agriculture/farming. AgTech is revolutionising the way farming is done and can be incredibly useful in improving the speed, quality and efficiency of farming. 

With an ever-increasing population and consequently an ever-increasing demand for food supply it is critical that we figure out how to increase food growth as quickly as possible. Right now, artificial intelligence, big data, sensors and robotics are being used by innovative start-ups and organisations across the globe to boost global food supplies.

It might not come as a surprise that one of the main countries embracing agricultural technology is Germany – the powerhouse of Europe. Some of Germany’s greatest innovations can be found on our farms… From cutting-edge autonomous driving tractors to drones monitoring crop yields, Germany is paving the way of AgTech. 

Agriculture can certainly benefit from the developments in the automotive industry, but AgTech has a big advantage - there’s no other vehicles or people on the field! This of course makes autonomous driving easier and safer than it is on public roads. Autonomous tractors and harvesters allows farmers to concentrate on other tasks and improve productivity while the vehicle autonomously ploughs, monitors or fertilises the field.

APPLICATIONS

Research has suggested that an average of circa 25% of greenhouse gases on the planet are caused by agriculture (Vermeulen, Campbell & Ingram, 2012). Therefore, improving this carbon footprint is vitally important. Thankfully some aspects of AgTech have been shown to reduce the output of greenhouse gases that are greatly damaging our environment. AgTech also allows farmers to reduce the need for as much other resources such as land and water. 

There are several examples of how AgTech is being used to improve farming:

Measuring 

-      Smart robots and drones are being produced with precise sensors to measure the health, growth and productivity of plants.

Weed/Plant Picking

-      Autonomous driving vehicles have been made to monitor crops and pick out weeds or alternatively pick out fresh fruit/vegetables.

-      One such company is Na?o Technologies (a French company) who have developed three different sized robots who can remove weeds from crops. 

-      “These robots provide a solution to tackle farmworker shortages, reduce the strenuous physical workload of hand weeding, and limit the use of chemical weed killers”.

Water Management

-      Systems have been designed to increase watering efficiency through smart monitoring. Smart reporting can inform farmers of the ideal water measurements needed in real-time to ensure healthy crops/plants and save water usage. 

Soil Analysis

-      Similarly to water management systems, hardware and software is being used to measure soil moisture, quality and temperature to help farmers save water.

Planting Seeds

-      There are a number of machines being produced that are able to plant seeds in a quicker and more efficient way in comparison to traditional farming methods. 

-      Drones are being used to fire seed missiles across fields, planting hundreds of potential plants in a matter of minutes.

-      Autonomous robots are also used to spread seeds too – the robot navigates the land in pre-prepared paths and uses ultrasonic sensors to detect the end of the field. The mobile robot is capable of sowing seeds autonomously in evenly spaced rows. 

Spread Fertiliser

-      Similar to above, robots and drones can also be used to spread fertiliser. 

-      Artificial intelligence can be used with plant-recognition technology that establishes the precise amount of fertiliser to spray on each individual plant accordingly. This means that generic (and potentially wasteful) holistic surface treatments are no longer necessary.

Pest Control 

-      Some companies are using artificial intelligence for pest control to increase yields without having to use chemical pesticides. 

-      Although, robots can also be used to spray weeds and plants with chemical treatments too.

-      Furthermore, some robots and drones are fitted with cameras to inspect crops and can provide real-time information on whether plants are damaged etc. 

Milking Systems

-      Cattle farming is mostly automatic these days with feeding machines and robots used for milking.

Vertical Farming

-      Indoor or Vertical farming uses LED lighting, sensors, and automation to effectively stack farming plots on top of one another indoors.

-      This maximises every square foot for output and minimises the need for hands-on labour.

-      Vertical farms also use up to 70% less water than traditional farms.

-      On top of this, vertical farming can control variables such as light, humidity, and water to precisely grow and maintain all year-round, increasing food production with far more reliable harvests.

Livestock Technology

-      Livestock technology can enhance or improve the productivity, welfare, or management of animals and livestock. 

-      The concept of the ‘connected cow’ is a result of more and more dairy herds being fitted with sensors to monitor health and increase productivity. 

-      By putting individual sensors on cattle, farmers can keep track of their daily activity and be alerted if any health-related issues arise, while providing data-driven insights for the entire herd. 

-      The welfare of livestock is protected by detecting sick animals a lot quicker and more accurately than with the naked eye.

Sustainable Food

-      You may have seen in recent news that there are companies who are creating sustainable foods. 3D printed steaks anyone?

-      That’s right – some companies are quite literally "printing" steaks, which are made out of soy and pea proteins, coconut fat and sunflower oil, natural colours and flavours. This can provide us a much needed more sustainable food supply system.

-      Take a look at the link below!

Plant IoT

-      The internet of Things (IoT) and agriculture are coming together to increase crop productions. 

-      An example of a company doing this is Phytech. They have created smart devices in fields that send simple colour-coded alerts to smartphones with recommendations and warnings which make life a lot easier for farmers to increase crop yields. 

THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND AGTECH

As explained above, it is clear that digital technologies in agriculture gather a huge amount of data so that they can monitor everything from soil moisture to plant health to temperature. To gain this information farmers are utilising multiple aspects of technology to get a holistic picture. 

Cameras are excellent for farmers to use to give them an overview of their fields. Drones and satellites fitted with cameras can provide images in real-time so that farmers can gather information more accurately and a lot faster than by relying on the naked eye alone. Cameras are also used by autonomous tractors/vehicles to see their environment too. Cameras are placed on every side (front, rear, left and right) to put together a 360-degree view of their surroundings.

Yet, to run successfully these autonomous vehicles cannot rely on cameras alone. Cameras are limited in low visibility (e.g. darkness, fog, rain) and they also do not give an accurate representation of how far away objects are from them. Therefore, other sensors are needed too. Radar sensors work by transmitting radio waves which hit other objects and return to the sensor – this provides the sensor with information in regards to the speed and location of the other object. Furthermore, LiDAR sensors send out invisible laser beams which are used to create a 3D representation of the environment in real-time. LiDAR sensors definitely provide the most in-depth and detailed information, however are incredibly expensive in comparison to Radar and Camera sensors. 

Other drones and robots in AgTech rely on GPS and navigational algorithms to carry out tasks in exact locations e.g. running in straight rows for accurate planting. GPS was one of the first technologies used for things like precision farming. Yet, a more accurate solution is GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) technology. Satellites provide autonomous geo-spatial positioning with the use of small electronic receivers transmitting signals. Precision GNSS enables accurate mapping and system control of various farming activities such as autonomous driving. In fact, more than 80% of automated tractors utilise GNSS technology. 

Overall, farmers have been utilising the help of artificial intelligence, GPS/GNSS, image recognition, wireless communication, cameras, LiDAR and radar technology to operate with some level of autonomy and increase efficiency in agriculture. As a result of the precise control that autonomous tractors and farm equipment can allow, farmers are now able to continue working well into the evening. Even when it’s too dark or foggy, the sensors in place can deliver straight rows and accurate planting, which is especially important during the critical spring months. Farmers can therefore greatly benefit from this and have more flexibility in managing time-sensitive growing tasks and reducing some of the stress that comes with that. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Agricultural technology doesn’t come without some resistance from traditional farmers who fear the AgTech revolution will make their jobs become redundant. These farmers also often have a lack of awareness in relation to these technologies and are reluctant to adopt these new ways of working. The other argument from farmers is of course the cost. Smaller farms might only need a couple of robots, however larger farms could require hundreds. Therefore, keeping costs reasonable is realistically the biggest issue with agricultural technology at the moment. Yet like all technology, researchers will find new ways to reduce costs and outgoings moving forward. 

Experts predict that the AgTech market is going to continue to grow and it is becoming more and more evident that this technology is most definitely necessary to improve the efficiency of farming and to keep up with the ever-increasing demand for food.  The AgTech market is predicted to grow at around 18% each year from 2020 – 2025. 

Fundamental issues like poor soil quality, water shortage, low quality seeds and climate change have crippled the agriculture sector. Only AgTech companies can fill this gap quickly and efficiently with the help of cutting edge technologies like LiDAR, Radar, Artificial Intelligence, data analytics and IoT devices. It’s super interesting to see the great work being done already and I have no doubt that these new interventions will lead to a positive overall digital agriculture transformation.