Our weeding robot can distinguish randomly sown crops such as carrots or beet from weeds and destroy them on the move.
One of the biggest challenges in our organic agriculture is the use of chemical pesticides, which has a worrying impact on people and nature. Back in 2008, we commissioned the West Coast University of Applied Sciences in Heide (FHW) to develop sustainable and automated weed control solutions. The motivation behind this: Herbicides must not be used in organic farming, and manual weed control by seasonal laborers is becoming increasingly difficult.
In 2013, we launched the pioneering project “Highly accurate weed detection in organic farming” at the FHW. In the following years, a 1-track functional model and an advanced 8-track robot were developed. The spin-off into nAIture GmbH & Co. KG in December 2018 marked a decisive step. Naiture, a play on the words “Nature” and “AI” (artificial intelligence), symbolizes our successful integration of state-of-the-art technology into organic farming. The system combines AI, robotics and big data and is based on machine learning to distinguish crops from weeds and ensure the quality of our organic vegetables.
Our developed system achieves an impressive accuracy of approx. 98 % under constantly changing environmental conditions. Our robotic systems use AI to kill weeds without chemicals, especially on challenging crops such as carrots in organic vegetable production. The variable speed of 2-5 km/h enables efficient adaptation to different field conditions. With an impressive working width of 8 tracks, the system is modularly adaptable to other working widths.
With short-term goals such as the development of a non-mechanical weeding unit and the implementation of AI on energy-saving embedded systems, we are aiming for full solar operation. In the medium term, we plan to enter the market and explore further business ideas. Our long-term goal is not only to be firmly established on the market, but also to become a leader in innovative organic farming technology, while also supporting conventional agriculture.
I have a special connection to the weeding robot, which I have been working on since 2004. AROS enables an efficient search for fawns, while MOOS provides early warning of pests. These projects show that technology can make a positive contribution to agriculture.
Vitali Czymmek, Forschungsleiter nAIture
Our latest agricultural innovations include a successful autonomous roe fawn tracking system (AROS), which has improved efficiency in the fields. At the same time, we are developing a mobile ground station (MOOS) that sends daily images of fields to detect pests such as the carrot leaf miner and alert farmers to ensure the quality of organic vegetables.
Future research projects will focus on the introduction of autonomous systems that record data from the fields and enable predictive farming in the long term. Another project aims to automate the detection of virus-infected plants in potato fields to help farmers identify and remove infected plants in a timely manner and ensure the health of organic vegetables.
With these developments, we aim not only to address current challenges, but also to promote sustainable and efficient agriculture in the long term. Our technologies are designed to optimize not only the organic farming of organic vegetables, but also conventional agriculture through advanced solutions and data-based approaches.
Zum Westhof 6, DE-25764 Friedrichsgabekoog
+ 49 4839 9535-0
info(at)westhof-bio.de