In the heart of the Netherlands, a revolution in weed control is underway, as the Rodenburg brothers, Jaco and Arie, test the Ekobot WEAI on their organic arable farm in the Flevopolder. This innovative robot is part of the Dutch National Fieldlab for Precision Agriculture (NPPL) project, aiming to reduce manual labour and increase efficiency in weed management.
The Rodenburg farm, situated in Lelystad and Dronten, is a diverse operation with a crop rotation that includes onions, carrots, red beet, potatoes, oats, barley, beans, processing peas, and kale for cutting. The farm’s marine clay soil provides a unique testing ground for the Ekobot, which is currently designed to weed onions but has the potential to work in other crops with further algorithm development.
The Ekobot operates autonomously, using GPS guidance to navigate the field. A camera monitors each crop row, detecting plants and determining their precise location. The software then identifies whether a plant is an onion or a weed, deploying a robotic arm with a U-shaped spring steel blade to remove the weed if necessary. The current model operates at a speed of 0.15 metres per second, covering about 2 hectares per day, even working through the night.
The Rodenburg brothers have found the Ekobot to be a promising tool, despite starting its deployment later than optimal due to an early spring. The robot excelled at removing small weeds but struggled with larger, more established ones and perennial weeds. This experience highlights the Ekobot’s potential as a supplement to existing weed control methods, rather than a complete replacement.
One of the key advantages of the Ekobot is its minimal soil disturbance, reducing the chance of creating a seedbed for new weeds. This allows for less aggressive hoeing, which in turn reduces the risk of damaging onion roots and preventing fusarium infections. However, the Ekobot is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Some manual weeding will always be necessary, and the robot’s effectiveness depends on proper calibration and software configuration.
The Ekobot is user-friendly, with adjustable settings for blade depth, crop tolerance, and blade stroke. It is fully electrically powered, with two 100Ah batteries providing enough energy for 8 to 9 hours of continuous operation. The robot is also equipped with a safety bumper and can be easily transported by a tractor.
Despite its current limitations, the Ekobot concept has proven to work. As the technology evolves, it is expected to be able to weed multiple crops and adjust its speed based on weed density. User requirements will continue to shape the Ekobot’s development, but the foundation is solid. The Rodenburg brothers, along with other farmers involved in the NPPL project, are at the forefront of this agritech revolution, paving the way for a more efficient and sustainable future in weed control.