Researchers at North Carolina State University and the (PSI) are working to .
AI has many potential applications in agriculture. But the industry doesn鈥檛 currently have the same resources that have enabled AI development in other fields. NC State researchers are trying to change that.
, the Platform Director for the PSI at NC State, is working with his team to collect images of weeds that will be used to teach AI-powered equipment to recognize them and differentiate them from other plants.
鈥淲e have a robot set up that drives across an area that has lots of different weed species planted in pots out there,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd so, we can image, right now, about 500 pots a day through that system.鈥�
Reberg-Horton said existing high tech agricultural equipment has the potential to observe and deliver precise care for individual plants.
鈥淲hat's been missing is the knowledge and intelligence of field conditions to be able to inform that smart equipment of what to do,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd so, I really think that, you know, AI, and specifically, computer vision is one of the missing pieces in that.鈥�
Reberg-Horton said that with the addition of AI, farming equipment could become more autonomous, including self-driving combines and tractors, or robots that could apply precise amounts of fertilizer or pesticide to crops as needed.
Advances like this could potentially make agriculture more environmentally friendly, or address labor shortages.
