Vol. 12, Issue 4, Published 2/22/2021
Keeping up to date with the latest developments in automated weeding machines is challenging. It’s a very fast-moving space with significant private and public investment. At the “Advances in Weed Control Technologies” breakout session at the 2021 Southwest Ag Summit, university experts and cutting-edge innovators will provide updates on the latest developments in automated weeding, autonomous ag robots and non-chemical weed control. The first presenter will be Tony Koselka, COO and Vice President of Engineering, Vision Robotics Corp. Tony will be giving a history on the evolution of automated thinning/weeding technologies and real-world examples of how vision systems and artificial intelligence (AI) is being used with automated weeding machines today. Following Tony will be Paul Nagel, Chief Revenue Officer, Stout Industrial Technology, Inc. Paul will be discussing AI technologies available today, their capabilities, and where the technology is headed. Jaime Eltit, Head of Commercial Farming Operations, FarmWise, Inc. will be also be discussing AI technology and how machine learning is used for robotic in-row weed control. Additionally, he will be presenting information on the latest developments in autonomous weeding robots and their application in Arizona vegetable production systems. Finally, Dr. Steve Fennimore, Weed Scientist, UC Davis will be presenting information on a novel technique for using steam heat to control sclerotinia lettuce drop, Fusarium wilt of lettuce and in-row weeds in vegetable crops.
The session will be held TOMMOROW Thursday, February 25th from 1:30-3:30. If you are unable to attend the live session, recordings of the presentations will be available on March 2 and March 3. For those interested in CEU’s, the session offers 2 AZ/CA PCA and CCA credits. One last thing, you must be registered for the 2021 Southwest Ag Summit in order to attend the session. To register or for more information about the Southwest Ag Summit, visit https://yumafreshveg.com/southwest-ag-summit/. Hope to see you there for what promises to be an enlightening and informative session.
