Viewpoint

Published September 14, 2011

Todd Davis

I have seen the future of our industry and it looks a lot like Star Wars. Actually, it looks more like the movie Wall-E without the global destruction, planet-wide lack of vegetation and stuff.

In late August I watched a demonstration of two container-moving robots at Woodburn Nursery & Azaleas in Woodburn, Ore. These machines, developed by Harvest Automation, can move, consolidate or space 1-, 3- or 5-gallon pots. They work individually or a team of robots can work in unison.

Each machine moves 200-300 containers per hour and has a battery life of 4 hours. In 2012, Harvest Automation expects to make about 150 of these robots available at a cost of $25,000 each. At that cost, the company expects nurseries would recoup their investments in 12-24 months.

Moving along
Harvest Automation says one robot can do the same work as one field worker. While they didn't appear that fast to me, they're still fascinating to watch. They space plants properly and appear eerily human as they work together.

They detect other robots and pause to let them by. You almost expect to hear them say, "No, after you."

These are early versions of the product. As the years go by, like all new technology, they're going to get cheaper, faster and better. They'll accomplish more and become more available for the average grower.

And as official spokesperson for the industry, I have a few new applications to suggest. Harvest Automation engineers should go to work on the following:

I want to see these things handle flats. Consolidating 18-count trays of Asian jasmine is just as tedious as consolidating gallon pots.
I want them to grade plants as they move them. Some type of sensor should be able to handle this.
Future versions will need to load and unload trailers. Heck, while we're at it, let's teach them to lean stack.
How much time do we spend washing pots before loading them? Surely robots can do this, too.
And don't forget the CD player. It just wouldn't be right if these things didn't play Tejano music while they worked.
When they're not moving pots, I want them patrolling the perimeter of the nursery for deer. The Winchester .270 attachment would be a factory option.
And finally, they should be programmed to make afternoon beverage runs. No explanation needed.

These requests aren't unreasonable. Get to work, Harvest Automation.