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Matrix828 t1_itlognb wrote

so anyway I started blasting

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SMAMtastic t1_itlqh2q wrote

Looks menacingly at my back yard

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funkboxing t1_itlsa22 wrote

The Secret of Nimh 2: Laser Boogaloo

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wheenus t1_itltdde wrote

This is how technology should work! No harsh bs chemical just god Ole fashion LASER BEAMS

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marigolds6 t1_itltfey wrote

For context, a typical 40 acre field under herbicide control experiencing minimal yield loss has just under 2 million weeds. Without herbicides, you would be looking at more around the 6M-8M range. Cutting the time in half is pretty awesome, but still has a ways to go. (And there is the whole question of which growth stages this can be used during.)

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plopseven t1_itlvqjy wrote

So this means food prices will come down….right?!

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hadleyhu t1_itlzklk wrote

Can they adopt this for kelp farming and use sharks with frickin’ laser beams on their heads?

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redEPICSTAXISdit t1_itm57o0 wrote

Farmer steps up to turn robot off. Schpeww speww 💥💨

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GroinShotz t1_itm855z wrote

Replying to redsoxfan_goboston (#203,506)

Unfortunately, you probably can't buy it to own it... It probably comes with a subscription plan to unlock the guided weed killing lasers, and a separate subscription if you want it's wheels to turn... Throw in another subscription if you want it to ignore your pets/children when targeting with lasers.

It's subscriptions all the way down.

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trekxtrider t1_itmhgnl wrote

They have been around for a while, still cool though.

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morgulbrut t1_itms9w0 wrote

Snoop Dogg does this in half an hour...

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KenBrolack t1_itmtb94 wrote

I use a bic lighter and some zig zags

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GASeGUY t1_itmvbzg wrote

One day, we’ll be the weeds

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Shades228 t1_itnagqz wrote

Soon we’ll have sharks with “lasers” to help clean up choral reefs.

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Shufflepants t1_itngjon wrote

Replying to wheenus (#203,547)

But we've only had to resort to this because the weeds are becoming resistant to the chemicals. This is just gonna cause the weeds to adapt to look more like wheat so they don't get lasered by the robot. Do you want rye? Because that's how you get rye.

(no joke, it's thought that due to early human farmers pulling weeds out of their crops of wheat and barley, rye evolved to look more like wheat and barley, and thus reducing its chance of being spotted and pulled. But eventually, it was so much like wheat and barley that it was a good enough crop to grow and harvest on its own)

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tossme68 t1_itnl8ne wrote

Replying to ifarteditssmelly (#206,199)

I don't think the companies care how they get their money but the customers want opex and not capex so everything is a subscription and nobody owns anything. It's just another accounting trick and when the IRS gets tired of this bullshit the rules will change and so will the model.

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jayboker t1_itnlurp wrote

Stoners everywhere collectively gasped…. Then giggled.

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deepseadinko t1_itnvery wrote

But it costs only 350 million $ for one.

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saml01 t1_itob1gx wrote

They took our jobs

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rdog3 t1_itoe6h1 wrote

Anyone know of other agricultural robotic companies like Carbon Robotics that are hiring? New grad here looking for software work in the automation industry, application to agriculture would be awesome!

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stevewmn t1_itoldh5 wrote

Replying to whales-are-assholes (#208,327)

New Jersey is trying to pass a law against vehicle based subscriptions. They make an exception for services with a recurring cost like self-driving where software changes over the life of the car might require fees from a user. But charging monthly for heated seats, hell no!

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gruntbuggly t1_itop5z0 wrote

I need a residential version of this for my back yard

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LoMeinCain t1_itosx7p wrote

Can the lasers give us cancer?

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1-trofi-1 t1_itowix7 wrote

Replying to ifarteditssmelly (#206,199)

Rolls royces all ready leases their aircraft engines fkr years.

Now I am not sure about items for individual consumers , but this approach has some advantages. Although to be fair you pay the engine only when it runs and when you service it if it mber correctly.

It allows for convergence of interests since R&R and the airline aim to make the engine as efficient as possible and to last for as much as possible.

The steady income allows R&R to focus on making really good engines without focusing on making a ton of them and just push them around via marketing.

Again this is just for a product without individual consumers as final customers

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yoniyuri t1_itoxhx9 wrote

Replying to Shufflepants (#209,838)

If the lasers were accurate enough, it would take a long time if ever. Evolution can only happen if there are survivors. No survivors have a less chance of beneficial mutation. Of course the weeds come from somewhere, so not zero chance.

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sendokun t1_itphaqr wrote

Cool, but the big question, and possibly, the only question is, does it have Bluetooth?

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asdaaaaaaaa t1_itport8 wrote

Replying to wheenus (#203,547)

> No harsh bs chemical

There's a lot of "harsh bs chemicals" that are specifically derived from plants themselves, and don't do much/any long term damage. The issue is plants become resistant towards herbicides, meaning you have to have multiple methods that you cycle throughout seasons. I see no reason why the plants wouldn't adapt to this either.

If this actually works (not just in testing), and is cheaper than chemicals, I can see it being popular.

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wheenus t1_itpoxww wrote

Replying to asdaaaaaaaa (#217,254)

Well obviously plant based herbicides aren't bs, but how many large farms do you think uses those?

Edit: Why do people get into these confrontations than block you before anything happens, don't even know what was said here....

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asdaaaaaaaa t1_itpp7p1 wrote

Replying to wheenus (#217,276)

>how many large farms do you think uses those?

Depends on the specific setup and weeds they're combating. They're actually quite popular for herbicides. Made up about half at every place I've worked in the past, but nowadays I can see them being used a lot more. That being said, simply being made/derived from plants doesn't make them safe for the environment though.

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anything2510 t1_itpq2xf wrote

You can’t solve old problems with new technology.

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dustractedredzorg t1_itpqtud wrote

I saw this at FIRA last week. Very impressive, 90% weed elimination. The two main problems are it is expensive and lasers are effective when plants are small and very little coverage by crop. Nexus Robotics had a mechanical weed picking robot that has a longer efficacy period. Carbon Robotics is about 1 million per robot Nexus about 50k per season. For the Nexus you might have to follow manually to get to 90+% elimination

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Ag3ntM1ck t1_itpsny7 wrote

Replying to wheenus (#203,547)

As a kid growing up, me and my family used to work for farmers up north pulling the weeds by hand. 13 cents an hour. Big money for a 9 year old in the 70's.

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butterbleek t1_itpzi98 wrote

I want a mini version for my lawn next the cow pastures…

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Eupion t1_itq0mdr wrote

I would fucking kill for a handheld laser weed killer! My back and garden would totally appreciate it.

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parad0xchild t1_itq5cul wrote

Replying to asdaaaaaaaa (#217,254)

The weeds would have to adapt to being burned alive. Maybe by building a more thicker and heat resistant "skin", but would have to do that without using all its energy to do so.

In a horrible future its an arm race of higher temp lasers against weeds, that results in scene of a burning field of crops, with robots tangled in weeds shooting erratically as the farmer hides in the cellar for their life. Skynet becomes self aware, and the only solution to weeding is to destroy humans who categorize things as weeds, but the AI has categorized humans as weeds. Global famine and war ravage the human race, all because we wanted to burn some weeds.

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Shufflepants t1_itqaip2 wrote

Replying to yoniyuri (#214,798)

It's not about the lasers being accurate, it's about the vision system used to recognize the weeds, and rye was close enough to wheat and barley to fool human eyes at least some of the time.

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