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nafex - [NAFEX] FW: Smart Weed Whacker Takes Guesswork Out of Spraying

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  • From: "Lon J. Rombough" <lonrom@hevanet.com>
  • To: NAFEX <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [NAFEX] FW: Smart Weed Whacker Takes Guesswork Out of Spraying
  • Date: Mon, 26 Aug 2002 06:24:29 -0700

Slightly off topic, but too interesting not to share.

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From: ARS News Service <NewsService@ars.usda.gov>
Reply-To: ARS News Service <NewsService@ars.usda.gov>
Date: Mon, 26 Aug 2002 07:48:54 -0400
To: ARS News subscriber <lonrom@hevanet.com>
Subject: Smart Weed Whacker Takes Guesswork Out of Spraying

STORY LEAD:
Smart Weed Whacker Takes Guesswork Out of Spraying

___________________________________________

ARS News Service
Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Amy Spillman, (301) 504-1624, aspillman@ars.usda.gov
August 26, 2002
___________________________________________

In the not-too-distant future, tractors already decked out with air
conditioning units, CD players and global positioning systems may be
equipped with another handy gadget, according to Agricultural Research
Service scientists and university cooperators.

The gadget in question? An optical sensor that detects weeds and prompts a
herbicide sprayer to target them as the tractor drives up and down crop
rows. The technology means less herbicide in the environment and lower
costs for farmers.

Most farmers now apply herbicides uniformly over a field, but weed
distribution is often patchy-particularly grass weeds in cereal crops.
Kansas State University graduate student Ning Wang and KSU professor
Naiqian Zhang, in collaboration with agricultural engineer Floyd Dowell of
ARS' Grain Marketing and Production Research Center in Manhattan, Kan.,
and others have developed an optical weed sensor and spray control system
that takes the guesswork out of herbicide application.

Using a near infrared spectrometer, the researchers studied the light
absorption characteristics of weed stems and leaves. They identified five
wavelengths that can be used to discriminate weeds from crops and soil
and, with them, developed the optical sensor.

The current model requires the tractor operator to spend about 5 to 10
minutes "training" the sensor to spot different weeds. The operator does
this by placing the sensor above a weed and typing in a "weed code" on a
simple keypad. Once the weed sensor has enough statistical data, it
prompts the operator to begin driving up and down the rows. If the sensor
detects weeds, the herbicide applicator will spray them.

During laboratory tests, the sensor identified wheat, bare soil, and weeds
with accuracies approaching 100 percent. Although these results are
promising, the researchers believe it will be several more years before
the system is ready to be commercialized.

ARS, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific research
agency, provided funding for this research, as did KSU, the National
Science Foundation and the Advanced Manufacturing Institute.

___________________________________________
* This is one of the news reports that ARS Information distributes to
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  • [NAFEX] FW: Smart Weed Whacker Takes Guesswork Out of Spraying, Lon J. Rombough, 08/26/2002

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