Laser Weeding is a relatively new entry in agricultural automation. Carbon Robotics, the makers, expect to get their devices into 17 states this year, plus Canada. Their weeders use AI to guide lasers to kill weeds “with thermal energy” as the website puts it. Burning up the weeds is more environmentally friendly than using chemicals to control weeds. It’s definitely a job that falls into the “dangerous, dirty, and dull” category where automation is the solution to human hardship. And it offers precision weeding in large-scale crops.
Automation in agriculture
Agriculture is an area where automation makes a lot of sense. The average framer, like the average machinist, is in his 50s, and the younger generation is not stepping up to taker over. Weeding crops is very hard work, and the labor shortage in agriculture has been made worse by tougher immigration measures. This is not an area where people fear to have their jobs taken over by robots.
It’s also not a job that is harder for robots because of the delicacy of the objects or their variability, like picking fruit or shearing sheep. Weed control is ripe for automation.
Carbon Robotics has just brought in some serious investments to help with sales. Their Laserweeders are autonomous vehicles that can weed and thin crops day or night, zapping 200,000 weeds an hour without herbicides or human involvement. It can be controlled from abnormal iPad and can cover two acres an hour with row widths adjustable from 60 to 84 inches.
Back at the factory
Rexroth motion control systems are used in agricultural automation as in other areas. If you have Rexroth servos or drive and control systems in your facility, we can help with their service and support. Call now for immediate assistance.
Image courtesy of Pixabay