A company based in Seattle, United States, just released its latest farming robot that can effectively and autonomously identify and destroy weeds in fields without polluting the water and the soil.
“This is one of the most innovative and valuable technologies that I’ve seen as a farmer,” says James Johnson of New Mexico’s Carzalia Farm. “I expect the robots to go mainstream because of how effectively they address some of farming’s most critical issues, including the overuse of chemicals, process efficiency, and labor.”
The Autonomous Weeder, created by Carbon Robotics, first uses its 12 cameras to scan the ground. Once the AI-powered computer identifies weeds, it zaps them with a high-power carbon dioxide laser. The third-generation weeder can eliminate up to 100,000 weed plants per hour, and scan 15 to 20 acres of crops in a day. On average, a manual laborer can scan one acre a day. The farming industry already having problems with labor shortages and weed control, the robot kills two birds with one stone.
