Science & Technology

Solar-powered Seed-n-Weed robot with simplicity on its side

A fully autonomous, solarpowered robot capable of precision drilling and weeding is set to join the OPICO line up.

Offering pesticide-free weed control with zero fuel bills, the FarmDroid is the brainchild of two Danish farmers and takes a really simple approach to how it works.

The FarmDroid uses ultraaccurate GPS to record exactly where it places each seed. Then on each subsequent weeding pass it has no need to identify what’s a weed and what’s not – it simply knows where the crop plants should be and works around them, hoes shares running between each row and blades slicing off anything between each crop plant, in the row.

This approach means that unlike other similar machines, it doesn’t need to employ banks of high-definition cameras and complex computers to identify and target weeds. It also means the machine can start the weeding process before the crop has emerged because camera recognition is not required.

Its simplicity is just one of a number of features that set the machine apart from anything else on the market.

Being solar-powered, FarmDroid owners don’t have any fuel bills for the machine. Not only does this have a clear impact on the bottom line with today’s increasingly volatile energy markets, it’s also environmentally friendly. In a future where food retailers are progressively looking to be perceived as ‘green’ with carbon audits becoming more and more common, the FarmDroid can help provide one step towards energy self-sufficiency (and herbicide-free crop production).

With in-row and inter-row action it eliminates weeds both between the rows and between the crop plants. Capable of working right to up within 5mm of each seedling between the rows and 20mm in the row, the FarmDroid’s shares mean it does the complete job so there is no need for hand-rogueing problem weeds like fat-hen (saving c.£250/ha).

Weighing just 800kg, FarmDroid has the lightest footprint possible - good for soil health and the bottom line - headlands aren’t run down with the result that yields are maintained across the entire cropped area.

New sensor-to-satellite technology from Wyld delivers global connectivity for smart agriculture

Wyld Networks has announced the availability of its new range of low-power, sensor-to-satellite terminals and modules that make it possible to connect agricultural sensors anywhere in the world, where there is no alternative coverage. The Wyld devices can transfer data directly to terrestrial networks or through Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites as a result of partnership with Eutelsat. With 100 percent global coverage, the new Wyld Connect solutions are ideal for applications in remote areas such as measuring soil moisture levels, tracking livestock or monitoring greenhouse temperature changes to adjust ventilation and irrigation. The full sensor-to-satellite service will be available in the second half of 2022.

The Wyld Connect terminal can connect directly to existing agricultural sensors, while the small modules can be fully integrated into new IoT sensors as an embedded solution. By using the LoRaWAN®, low power wide area network technology, smart farming IoT applications can be deployed globally using terrestrial or satellite connectivity at very low cost. Sensors can be powered by batteries with a lifetime of up to ten years. Data is delivered through Wyld’s cloud-based Fusion platform, which also allows IoT sensors to be registered, configured, authenticated and managed remotely.

“With a growing world population driving demand for food year-on-year, agriculture is under pressure to work more efficiently, productively and intelligently, amid the complex