Sophisticated Blowtorch Dog to Save Farms from Insects 

A team of researchers from Texas A&M University have developed a dog robot that can manage weeds on farms with a blowtorch, as an eco-friendlier alternative to herbicides. 

Herbicides, even if they were applied in a precise manner, can put local wildlife and ecosystems at real risk. Many weeds have been shown to be resistant to common chemicals used, such as glyphosate. 

What Does the Dog Robot Do? 

Dezhen Song and his team at Texas A&M University introduced a new quadruple robot system that uses a short burst of heat from a propane-powered torch. This torch functions through a robot arm that is attached to a Spot Robot, created by Boston Dynamics. 

Rather than burning the weeds and turning them to ashes, the robot can project heat to the center of weeds. By adopting this method, the growth of the weeds could be stopped for several weeks, thereby allowing the crops to thrive. 

In the first phase, the team tested the technology’s accuracy by just using a flame nozzle to make sure it could target the center of the weed precisely. Then, they sent the robot to a cotton field, which included some of the common weeds in Texas – the common sunflower and the giant ragweed. In five trials, the robot was capable of correctly identifying the weeds and torching them at about 95% on target. 

Battery Life Needs Some Work 

This flamethrowing robot has one major issue, though. Its battery life.  

This hellfire Boston Dynamic creation can only operate for about 40 minutes before needed a recharge. The researchers are working on improving the battery life, and to do so they’re considering equipping the robot with an electrocution device capable of delivering over 10,000 volts to stop weed growth more effectively. 

Simon Pearson, an expert from the UK’s University of Lincoln, praised this new technology, saying, “People have been using some forms of fairly broad, imprecise flames to kill weeds on other machines – that’s been around for a while, but I’ve never seen a precision thing like this.” 

Pearson highlighted also that its success will be determined by whether it can hit the weeds without also hitting the valuable crops. 

Final Thoughts 

The dynamic dog robot could be the long-awaited solution for weed control, as it does not only protect the crops, but also the environment from danger of herbicides.  

While it is true it is still in the early stage, and it goes without saying that its battery life definitely needs some more work, but at the end of the day, it does offer potential to be seen as a vital assistance in agriculture and farming. This dog alone can push more sustainable farming, so imagine what we can do if we had further means. 

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