Natural resource center (Luonnonvarakeskus Luke) and Baltic Sea Action Group (BSAG) organized a field day in Ruukki on August 16, 2022. The purpose of the event organized at Luke’s research station was to provide information on research on peatlands and agricultural lands, as well as an opportunity to meet researchers, farmers and partners. Probot Oy participated in the event by presenting a field robot. The next day, test runs of the field robot were also carried out in a nearby field.
“It was great to finally be able to present the robot and talk to potential end users.”
– Matti Tikanmäki, CEO of Probot Oy
Probot Oy develops a field robot as part of the EU-funded AgROBOfood project. The robot’s automated platform, on the other hand, is being developed as part of the EU-funded FlexiGroBots project. EU projects aim to increase the profitability of farming and reduce environmental stress with the help of robotics and automation. The projects started in 2021 and they will last three years.
-The corona era has caused challenges for the availability of many components. That also affected the progress of our development projects. So it’s great that we’ve gotten this far in the project.
Probot Oy’s field robot attracted attention, interest, and discussions at the event. The event also gave sales manager Maria Ruottinen, who had just returned to work from maternity leave, the opportunity to meet Probot Oy’s agricultural sector customers and partners.
-It was wonderful to be able to present such an exciting product. Farmers were interested in the possibilities offered by our robot.
Samples are regularly collected from the fields to guarantee the success of cultivation. Collecting these samples requires one person to go around the fields for long periods of time.
-Visitors were also interested in the tools under development in the projects for weeding and grain phenotype measurement, as well as the possibility of monitoring weeds, plant diseases and pest insects. When connected to a field robot, these measuring devices would free the worker to focus on other tasks instead of wandering around the fields. This increases productivity, Maria advises.
In traditional farming, for example, nutrients or plant protection agents are spread over the entire field. In precision farming, which the FlexiGroBots project also aims to enable, the work, like the application of nutrients or plant protection agents, is targeted only to the area that requires it. With a field robot, it would be possible to observe the field in addition to other tasks and use the information obtained to target the work.
-Driving with heavy tractors causes compaction of the soil in the field, which in turn causes more tillage. Since the field robot is significantly lighter compared to the tractor, the soil is not compacted in the same way, Maria adds.
The day after the event, field robot test runs were carried out in a nearby field. You can see the best bits in the video below.
Probot Oy – Specialist in Robotics.
