Making a robot to help around my farm

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the concept of creating a robot designed to assist with farming tasks, specifically planting seeds. Participants explore various features, functionalities, and potential challenges associated with building such a robot, including its design, cost, and practicality for personal farms.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant proposes a robot with a tiered functionality approach, including basic tools like a rake, hoe, and shovel, as well as features like a seed dispenser and solar power.
  • Concerns are raised about the feasibility of building such a robot for $1000, with some participants questioning the reliability and maintainability of the design.
  • Another participant suggests that automating existing farm equipment might be more cost-effective than creating a new robot from scratch.
  • Some participants express skepticism about the energy requirements for the proposed tasks, noting that clearing farmland is energy-intensive.
  • There is a discussion about the differences between the proposed robot and existing agricultural machinery, with some participants highlighting the high costs of modern farming equipment.
  • One participant mentions the seasonal nature of farming and how it affects the use of robots, contrasting it with hydroponic systems that allow for continuous production.
  • Another participant humorously suggests licensing the design to a well-known robotics company.
  • There are multiple suggestions for simplifying the project by focusing on tier one functionalities first.
  • Some participants express doubts about the participant's understanding of modern farming practices and the complexities involved in creating such a robot.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally express skepticism about the feasibility of the project as proposed, particularly regarding cost and energy requirements. There is no consensus on the best approach to take, with some advocating for a focus on existing equipment automation while others support the idea of building a new robot.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight various assumptions about energy efficiency, cost estimates, and the practicality of the proposed robot's features. There are unresolved questions regarding the design's viability and the participant's familiarity with modern agricultural practices.

nduka-san
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TL;DR
making a robot to help around the farm with 1000 dollars or maybe 2000
i want to make a robot that can plant seeds i made it ina tier of functions i just wana gauge public instrest to see if it would be useful or not and if i should change the measuremetns and the basic control options and anything else you recomend
robots measurements 3 by 2 feet
tier 1 must have
:rake,hoe,shovel to clean the farmland,
fan,to spit seeds out

battery

solar panels

waterproof
control of some kind I am going to say robotic since i think?? that coding is cheaper than useing a remote

by contorl i mean using color sensasors to realized the boudarys of the fields and turn around i would use blue bounardys or red whatevers bright and sticksout

tier 2:realistic addtison i can add with time

water dispenser for watering the seeds

remote for controling it
fertilzer despenser?
camera for watching the fields most likely a raspberry pi camera cause raspberry pis are awesome my guys
tier 3 i somehow get a dono or something and add this
drone budies to rain down fertilizer
some music i gueess
if you see any flaws or would like to suggest somthing let me know and thanks
 
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It sounds easier said than done.

How do you know how much it will cost if you haven't built one? How do you know if it will be reliable and maintainable.

If you had a working prototype to demonstrate, it would be more interesting.

What's the difference between this robot and existing agricultural machinery that plants seeds?
 
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its solar powered and small and can be used for personal farms
 
also i think i could do tier 1 with y budet but do you think its useful or just another run of the mil robot
 
License your design to iRobot. They've got a Roomba, Poolba, Wallba, and even a Lawnba.

But so far, no CropBa.
 
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I don't believe you can do this for $1000. A good lawn mower is $3000, and it does less and runs out of power in under an acre.
 
Vanadium 50 said:
I don't believe you can do this for $1000. A good lawn mower is $3000, and it does less and runs out of power in under an acre.
While I don't disagree with your conclusion (it'll easily cost an order of magnitude more for R&D alone), I do disagree with your rationale for it.

A lawnmower has a certain minimum power requirement or it can't cut grass at all.

A crop planter has no such minimum power requirement (that I can see). It could, in theory, operate only as fast as its solar panel provided power can accommodate. (Sure, it might take 2 hours of solar power to dig a single hole for a seed, but the OP didn't specify speed as a priority.)

(I grant the distinction is moot. The OP is attempting to design one of the most sophisticated, intelligent devices ever aimed at a consumer market, and power requirements are going to be the least of his troubles.)
 
It doesn't have to just poke a hold in the ground. It needs to clear the area - "rake,hoe,shovel to clean the farmland" That is very energy intensive. But it could be gas powered. I think the bigger problem is that the OP wants something that does more than a $3000 mower for a third the cost.

I also think the OP doesn't know much about modern first-world farming. A combine costs more than a house. Planters, which are the device most like he describes, are still well into six figures. A $1000 target for a robotic planter is like a $500 target for a self-driving car.
 
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well i know about farming with my hands in my little garden and its going to probably be plowin cause its seems the most energy efficent
 
  • #10
are we able to pin comments on this like on discord
 
  • #11
Can you please use sentences? It would help understand you better.
 
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  • #12
nduka-san said:
are we able to pin comments on this like on discord
Mentors can "pin" popular threads to the top of their respective forums when appropriate. This thread has a ways to go, but don't give up yet... :wink:
 
  • #13
nduka-san said:
I want to make a robot that can plant seeds i made it ina tier of functions
nduka-san said:
tier 1 must have
:rake,hoe,shovel to clean the farmland,
fan,to spit seeds out
nduka-san said:
water dispenser for watering the seeds
fertilzer despenser?
How do you accomplish these tasks now on your farm? Do you have a small tractor that you use to plow and fertilize and seed and water? If so, it may be easier to automate that small tractor with its attachments, rather than trying to build a whole new one.

If you don't use a tractor, do you have an animal that you use to pull the plow?
 
  • #14
The problem with horticulture and farming is that everything is seasonal, you must wait for the critical weather and ground conditions, then finish the job overnight.

Intensive hydroponic horticulture in a controlled environment can use robots efficiently because the stages of production can cycle continuously. Production and utilisation of robots is then a continuous process without seasons.

Why use a machine? Marsupials do a really good job of lawn mowing.

Robots for weeding have applications when they apply herbicide to individual weeds in a crop.

If you use robots without some form of wealth distribution, the unemployed people will raid your farm.
 
  • #15
later when i have all the stuff put up could we pin the requirment s for the project and stuff
 
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  • #16
nduka-san said:
later when i have all the stuff put up could we pin the requirment s for the project and stuff
Nope, not here. Good try, though. :smile:
 
  • #17
berkeman said:
How do you accomplish these tasks now on your farm? Do you have a small tractor that you use to plow and fertilize and seed and water? If so, it may be easier to automate that small tractor with its attachments, rather than trying to build a whole new one.

If you don't use a tractor, do you have an animal that you use to pull the plow?
its my gramps farm we use a small tractor but the point is that its a mit think challenge and everythings got to be new
 
  • #18
nduka-san said:
its my gramps farm we use a small tractor but the point is that its a mit think challenge and everythings got to be new
Yeah, but designing and building a robot to drive the existing farm equipment is a lot more cost effective than trying to design and build all-new robotic farm equipment... :wink:

https://image.shutterstock.com/z/st...cyborg-artificial-intelligence-1186373551.jpg

1607375350195.png
 
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  • #19
im going to have to get a big battery maybe that can be my dono part
 
  • #20
If you can build a robot that does everything you say for $1000, you will become very rich.
 
  • #21
phyzguy said:
If you can build a robot that does everything you say for $1000, you will become very rich.
If he builds a robot
If he can build a robot that does everything he says for $1,000,000 he will still become very rich.
 
  • #22
phyzguy said:
If you can build a robot that does everything you say for $1000, you will become very rich.
I think I've found a good investment partner for this project...

1607376096675.png
 
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  • #23
Vanadium 50 said:
It doesn't have to just poke a hold in the ground. It needs to clear the area - "rake,hoe,shovel to clean the farmland" That is very energy intensive.
Not if it's real slow. :)
Vanadium 50 said:
I also think the OP doesn't know much about modern first-world farming. A combine costs more than a house. Planters, which are the device most like he describes, are still well into six figures. A $1000 target for a robotic planter is like a $500 target for a self-driving car.
👍
 
  • #24
would you suggest only doing tier one
 
  • #25
nduka-san said:
would you suggest only doing tier one
I would suggest you get further along in designing something before you ask any more questions. I think there is general agreement here that you don't really understand what you are getting into.
 
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  • #26
i understand enough i know that il have to use 4 motors are probabay 6000 mm battery pak a solar panel to keep on charging it and some other stuff
 
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  • #27
nduka-san said:
probabay 6000 mm battery pak
6m is pretty big for a battery. Your robot will be top heavy. 🤔
 
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  • #28
DaveC426913 said:
6m is pretty big for a battery. Your robot will be top heavy. 🤔
the problem is its got to be able to hoe the land and its supoosed to be able to be used for multiple types of things
 
  • #29
nduka-san said:
its my gramps farm we use a small tractor but the point is that its a mit think challenge and everythings got to be new
So this is for a school challenge at MIT?
 
  • #30
Have you looked into existing seed planting drones?
 

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