Robot Farming

I applaud the development of robots doing tedious, dangerous tasks. Farming seems to be ideally suited for robots, too.

There is an often overlooked societal cost that probably predates the coining of the term Luddite. What will these displaced, low skilled workers do for a living? Does the state just subsidize and placates their existence with a "bread and circus" welfare system. For understandable reasons this leaves a bad taste in the next socioeconomic rung just above this caste. Does society take a harsh Dickensian or Edwardian perspective of poor houses, starvation and indentured servitude deal with a Ebenezer's "surplus population"?

I offer no answer to my questions. I doubt a single answer exists to this perennial problem. I just think that we should recognize that every true improvement of society has its drawbacks. As engineers we regularly weigh the advantages versus the disadvantages of a design approach. Our designs will similarly have good and bad impacts. We should at least note some of them before we implement.

There is much truth and food for thought in your comment. Well said.

Can the bell be un-rung, the genie returned into the bottle? Company Farms (commonly called 'Corporate Farms') are, I believe, the target consumer of this technology, and I further believe are likely to care little about the collective station in life of the expanded "surplus population" created by the implementation of this technology.

http://www.gizmodo.in/science/13-Fascinating-Farming-Robots-That-Will-Feed-Our-Future/articleshow/46114564.cms

http://www.gizmodo.in/science/13-Fascinating-Farming-Robots-That-Will-Feed-Our-Future/articleshow/46114564.cms

The death of the small family owned farm is in the past. During my brief stay in Iowa all they had was a big business farming operation that just leased the land from the owners.

Imagine a future where not just farming,but everything is 100% automated.

No human labor needed anywhere.

How will the people survive?

IMHO,there will have to be a system of people ownership of the corporations and

companies,with each person a stockholder, and receiving income from the production

and sales.

Either that,or humans will be managed like livestock,kept alive and healthy so that

they can consume.

I have no idea how this will be implemented,but our present system will not work in

that future scenario.

I do predict agriculture going more and more to a greenhouse environment for plant

products,and hydroponics,which will conserve resources and make automation of

harvesting easier.

Huge domes are a possibility.

Frank Lloyd Wright calculated that a hemispherical dome could be built with

conventional materials that could actually float;the volume of air within would exceed the material weight.

A large dome also creates a tremendous updraft due to it's shape,and ventilation

could be achieved with natural air currents.

His calculations were based at a minimum diameter of 5 miles,and some rough back

of the napkin calculations show that it may be possible.

And a slight change in temperature has a large effect on lift.

An earthquake proof city? Who knows.

Human society has not been around very long,but social insects have been around for millions of years.

Their system works.

I do not think it would work for humans, but our current system is becoming

obsolete,and it will change.

And there will be pain in the change.

As automation increases,and jobs decrease,the number of consumers with income

will decrease,and as a result,demand will decrease,eventually reaching a point of

diminishing returns.Who knows at what level it will occur?

"Imagine a future where not just farming,but everything is 100% automated. No human labor needed anywhere. How will the people survive? IMHO,there will have to be a system of people ownership of the corporations and companies, with each person a stockholder, and receiving income from the production and sales."

Well, I think it's pretty safe to assume that if we reach that point - a complete restructuring of the monetary system will be in order along with a revamping of what goods/services are just simply provided, as opposed to purchased.

Actually there is some good news here, well not actually some good news but some good news for some. Since I know that it probably will be good news for me, this makes it easier to comment.

Knowing that the vast amount don't have any repair it skills renders them the surplus and like seperating the wheat from the chaff, only some will be needed in the brave new world, the rest, phftt, oh well, there is always birth control, why have a bunch of extras milling about when the top tiers could reduce liabilities and increase productivity, that isin't to say more crops will be need, just better crops, we already got rid of the extra humans, so, no problema.

And as soon as possible, those or them that can, will no longer need those of us that do and we will be headed in the direction of the dodo bird.

Who would have thought that a farming robot would spark such a deep socioeconomic discussion of what to do with the displaced farm workers!

I'm not worried because I have the skills to design, build, program, re-program, repair, and revise these robots.

The lower skilled workers will be the ones rallying to get $15.00 per hour to ask if you want fries with your burger and still get your order wrong!

I have always said that if you want a better job, get the education and training to be able to go after the higher paying jobs and break out of the lower class.

(RANT BELOW)

Why do the fast food servers believe they deserve $15.00 per hour minimum wage?

• Minimum wage is not for someone that needs a LIVING WAGE!
• It's for a student living at home still going to school and wanting extra money!
• These people are completely UNSKILLED and must be trained to perform even the simplest of tasks!
• Is there a division of financial classes globally? YES! This is like a little league sports team that plays not for competition but for the betterment of their FEELINGS. (EVERYONE IS A WINNER! UGH!) That does nothing to HELP these kids learn how to compete in the real world of work! It teaches them that they will still get a trophy (PAID) even though they cannot or will not work hard.
• Competition breeds WINNERS!
• Entitlement breeds LOSERS! I see it every day, it's disgusting!

(RANT OVER)
I think that the farming robots will be a boon to farms that can program a robot to pick fruits and veggies at their prime to market time frame. The consistency of the product would be incredible due to the fact that the robots can work 24/7 and be fitted with sensors that are better than the human eye.

A robot that uses infrared or ultrasonic to check ripeness is perfect for that industry.

Also the end effectors that harvest the product would be custom designed to impart the least amount of damage to the product! Higher profits / lower costs.

GPS positioning would tell the robot where it left off when it has to return to the barn to unload or recharge when it's full then return to the place it left off or tell another robot to take over where it left off or even a different robot to collect the harvest from the picking robots so they don't have to leave the field!

Maybe the displaced farm workers can get a job assembling farm robots?