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href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160505041730/mailto:/?subject=Growbots%20promise%20to%20transform%20Australian%20agriculture&body=Here%20is%20something%20from%20Nikkei%20Asian%20Review%20that%20might%20interest%20you%3A%0D%0AGrowbots%20promise%20to%20transform%20Australian%20agriculture%0D%0Ahttp://s.nikkei.com/237LrYT">Mail</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="article-box"> <div class="detail"> <div class="feature-article"> <div class="date-area">April 28, 2016 12:00 pm JST</div> <h1 class="title">Growbots promise to transform Australian agriculture</h1> <p>KAORI TAKAHASHI, Nikkei staff writer</p> </div> <img src="/web/20160505041730im_/http://asia.nikkei.com/var/site_cache/storage/images/node_43/node_51/2016/201604/0415t/20160415_sydney_university/4359653-1-eng-GB/20160415_Sydney_university_article_main_image.jpg" width="580" alt=""/> <p class="img-caption"> A robot nicknamed the "Ladybird" automatically sprays herbicides and fertilizers.(Photo courtesy of the University of Sydney's Australian Center for Field Robotics) </p> </div> </div> <div class="article-box detail"> <div class="wysiwyg_area"> <div class="articleBodyText"> <p><b>SYDNEY</b>   Australia is 20 times the size of Japan, but has just a fifth of its population. To make use of this vast land for large-scale agriculture and mining, the support of robotics will be increasingly important. That is why, in 1997, the University of Sydney created the Australian Center for Field Robotics -- home to 120 researchers engaged in such fields as computer science, mechanical and electrical engineering, and math. Few institutions match the scale of the center's operations in field robotics, the study of robotics for outdoor use.  </p><p>     The largest issue the center is tackling right now is the use of automation to cut labor costs. "Australia is a big place, we export about 70% of agriculture, and labor costs are very expensive, and availability is short, so we have to focus a lot on automation," said Professor Salah Sukkarieh, the center's director of research and innovation. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Australia's minimum wage is the world's third highest after Luxembourg and France, and 50% higher than the U.S. minimum wage. The intense heat that stretches over vast expanses of dry land also makes for labor shortages due to the harsh working conditions.</p><div class="page_limit free"></div><div class="page_limit"></div><p>     In Sukkarieh's vision of the future of agriculture, farmers no longer work in the fields but give commands to their robots from their living rooms. One step in that direction is the center's orchard robot, currently in development.</p><p>    The robot uses GPS and sensors to navigate an orchard and takes a picture of each piece of fruit without human assistance. Information about flowering conditions can eventually help the farmer make crop predictions and target those fruits that need more water or fertilizer, contributing to a bigger harvest. The robot is able to identify fruits like mangoes and avocados but is unable yet to determine which crops are ready for picking.</p><p>     How to then harvest the crops is also an issue that needs to be addressed, but Sukkarieh is optimistic. "The expectation is that large growers around the country will have their own bot, maybe 50 ... and probably in 2-3 years," he said.</p><p>     Technology licensing and commercial application are forthcoming for another robot, nicknamed the "Ladybird", which was commissioned by an agricultural group. The unmanned robot roams the farmland on four wheels while its embedded sensors differentiate weeds from crops, spraying either fertilizer or weed killer. The machine uses only the minimum amount required, which translates into cost savings. And on sunny days, the Ladybird is powered by its solar panels. The robots will be priced so that farmers can recoup the cost in about two years.</p><p><b>UNMANNED MINING</b>   Robot use is a few steps ahead in the mining industry, where advances are being made in remote management. The Rio Tinto Center for Mine Automation, a collaboration between the Center for Field Robotics and global mining firm Rio Tinto, has been playing an active role in bringing automation to its trucks and railroads for its unmanned mining operation.</p><p>     According to Sukkarieh, Rio Tinto has contributed about 42 million Australian dollars ($31.7 million) to the center. "Our main roles have been to develop new theories and algorithms that would support greater efficiencies in mining operations through automation," he said.</p><p>     Ninety-five percent of the robotics center's operational funds come from industry in this way. The center has collaborated with 60 companies and is currently involved in joint projects with six or seven. Beyond practical applications, these projects are also aimed at deepening cooperation between industry and academia to uncover new fields of exploration for robotics.</p> </div> </div> <div id="modal-screen_zoom"></div> </div> <div class="pagination no-border"></div> <div class="mgzNextArticleBoxWrap "> <div class="mnabL"> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20160428-Commodities-crucible/Tech-Science/Audio-manufacturers-pursue-the-perfect-sound">prev link</a> <div class="mnabImg"> <img src="/web/20160505041730im_/http://asia.nikkei.com/var/site_cache/storage/images/node_43/node_51/2016/201604/0420t/20160420_kenwood_headphone/4382233-1-eng-GB/20160420_kenwood_headphone_small_thumbnail.jpg" width="80" alt=""/> </div> <div class="mnabTxt"> <h4>Tech & Science</h4> Audio manufacturers pursue the perfect sound </div> </div> <div class="mnabR"> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20160428-Commodities-crucible/Tech-Science/AI-could-solve-Japan-s-food-waste-problem">next link</a> <div class="mnabImg"> <img src="/web/20160505041730im_/http://asia.nikkei.com/var/site_cache/storage/images/node_43/node_51/2016/201604/0414t/20160414_supermarket_foodloss/4354788-1-eng-GB/20160414_supermarket_foodloss_small_thumbnail.jpg" width="80" alt=""/> </div> <div class="mnabTxt"> <h4>Tech & Science</h4> AI could solve Japan's food waste problem </div> </div> </div> <div class="more"><a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20160428-Commodities-crucible">Go to index of 20160428 Commodities crucible</a></div> <div class="OUTBRAIN" data-src="https://web.archive.org/web/20160505041730oe_/http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20160428-Commodities-crucible/Tech-Science/Growbots-promise-to-transform-Australian-agriculture" data-widget-id="AR_1" data-ob-template="Nikkei_Asian_Review_EN"></div> <script type="text/javascript" async="async" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20160505041730js_/http://widgets.outbrain.com/outbrain.js"></script> <div class="link-box GCCMD_removeall">  <h2 class="title">Follow Nikkei Asian Review</h2> <div class="follow-nar"> <dl> <dt><div class="fb-like" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/nikkeiasianreview/" data-layout="button_count" data-action="like" data-show-faces="false" data-share="false"></div></dt> <dd class="Facebook">The best content posted</dd> <dt class="Twitter"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20160505041730/https://twitter.com/NAR" class="twitter-follow-button" data-show-count="false">Follow @NAR</a> </dt> <dd class="Twitter">The latest headlines tweeted</dd> </dl> </div> </div> </div> <script type="text/javascript">  </script> <script type="text/javascript">  </script> <script>  </script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/web/20160505041730cs_/http://asia.nikkei.com/css/article_pagination_v001.css"/> <script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20160505041730js_/http://asia.nikkei.com/js/497390b.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript">  </script> </div> <div class="secondary"> <div class="link-box "> <h5 class="title"><a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Latestheadlines">Latest headlines</a></h5> <ul class="headline-list"> <li> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Facebook-takes-page-from-Google-playbook-in-cementing-founder-s-power">Facebook takes page from Google playbook in cementing founder's power</a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Life-Arts/Arts/Japan-South-Korea-displaying-ancient-statues-to-fete-friendship">Japan, South Korea displaying ancient statues to fete friendship</a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Key-at-bay-as-NZ-seeks-wider-China-trade-deal">Key at bay as NZ seeks wider China trade deal</a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Southeast-Asia-s-migration-wave-highlights-Japan-s-barriers">Southeast Asia's migration wave highlights Japan's barriers</a> </li> <li> <a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Trump-urges-Japan-to-pay-more-to-maintain-US-military-bases">Trump urges Japan to pay more to maintain US military bases</a> </li> </ul> <div class="more"><a href="/web/20160505041730/http://asia.nikkei.com/Latestheadlines">more</a></div> </div> <div class="rectangle">  <div id="div-gpt-ad-1375148072299-0" style="width:300px;"> <script type="text/javascript"> googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1375148072299-0'); 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