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Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

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Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#51

Post by Animats »

Fruit sorting systems have been in production use for years. They're very impressive. Vision systems, AI, robotics, and the ability to handle huge quantities of produce.

Here's a production scale apple sorting and packing system.[1] The part of the video for "big plant" shows the most automated version.

Here's a system for sorting peas.[2] Each individual pea is inspected using computer vision. Each individual pea. Anything that doesn't look like a perfect pea is kicked out by an air jet. Take a look at the speed at which the system is running, as a wide conveyor belt feeds hundreds of peas per second through the machine, with the good ones coming out on one conveyor and the rejects on another. That one machine is doing a job a thousand hand sorters could not do.

Automated cherry grading.[3] This video has a good explanation of what's going on, as size, color, stem length, and defects are all checked by a computer vision system. That system can process over 700Kg/hour of cherries. "We're enabling our clients to massively reduce their sorting staff."

Tomato sorting machine.[4] This video has slow-motion sections so you can see the tomatoes being sorted. The machine is far too fast for humans to even see what it's doing.

There are vision-based sorting machines for almost every kind of produce, and they're in wide use all over the world. All this automated sorting means that customers no longer need to examine produce in the supermarket. The rejects were removed at the plant, and turned into animal feed or something. This makes services like Amazon Fresh possible.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cprDuf0ASzU [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyGR6A5MWG0 [3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3jlq03Gviw [4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz88nsWL4kw

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#52

Post by compostor42 »

oldmanjay wrote: post #39
compostor42 wrote: post #36

Automation like this is why I call BS on the "we need more immigrants to keep the economy going!" folks. We will be struggling to keep our existing population employed. The last thing we want to do is import even more low-skilled labor who will soon be made redundant. Increasing automation means a declining population is a godsend rather than a problem. Policy makers must be aware of this. I suspect the call for incr…

The calls for restricted immigration are certainly politically motivated (mainly variations on "I don't want them getting mine") so what's the difference? National borders mean less and less all the time. Clinging to them to weather this upcoming economic storm is like using an anchor as a liferaft.

So why not let the entire population of Africa move to the United States? Borders are an antiquated concept according to you.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#53

Post by compostor42 »

acchow wrote: post #50
compostor42 wrote: post #36

Automation like this is why I call BS on the "we need more immigrants to keep the economy going!" folks. We will be struggling to keep our existing population employed. The last thing we want to do is import even more low-skilled labor who will soon be made redundant. Increasing automation means a declining population is a godsend rather than a problem. Policy makers must be aware of this. I suspect the call for incr…

What about the immigrants in high-skilled labor? The recent calls for increased immigration are mostly about STEM-trained immigrants, are they not?

Vast majority of immigrants are unskilled.

Letting in a few of the best and brightest from other countries makes sense. Importing millions of central/south American peasants is idiocy.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#54

Post by compostor42 »

BuckRogers wrote: post #42
compostor42 wrote: post #36

Automation like this is why I call BS on the "we need more immigrants to keep the economy going!" folks. We will be struggling to keep our existing population employed. The last thing we want to do is import even more low-skilled labor who will soon be made redundant. Increasing automation means a declining population is a godsend rather than a problem. Policy makers must be aware of this. I suspect the call for incr…

You had me agreeing until the part about the NRA base going down with increased immigration. Now I'm all for it.

Purposeful demographic replacement of white people to achieve political ends. Lovely.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#55

Post by BuckRogers »

compostor42 wrote: post #54
BuckRogers wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You had me agreeing until the part about the NRA base going down with increased immigration. Now I'm all for it.

Purposeful demographic replacement of white people to achieve political ends. Lovely.

> Purposeful demographic replacement of white people to achieve political ends. Lovely.

Why is being white so important? What's the difference? If the difference is no NRA, sounds like a decent trade to me.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#57

Post by compostor42 »

BuckRogers wrote: post #55
compostor42 wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Purposeful demographic replacement of white people to achieve political ends. Lovely.

> Purposeful demographic replacement of white people to achieve political ends. Lovely. Why is being white so important? What's the difference? If the difference is no NRA, sounds like a decent trade to me.

>Why is being white so important? What's the difference?

Replace "white" with "jewish" and you'd fit right in with holocaust deniers/apologist.

So just to be clear, you have no problem with ethnically cleansing a nation to change its political disposition?

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#58

Post by aidenn0 »

Animats wrote: post #51

Fruit sorting systems have been in production use for years. They're very impressive. Vision systems, AI, robotics, and the ability to handle huge quantities of produce. Here's a production scale apple sorting and packing system.[1] The part of the video for "big plant" shows the most automated version. Here's a system for sorting peas.[2] Each individual pea is inspected using computer vision. Each individual pea. A…

I think you underestimate the quality of a thousand hand sorters. That machine may replace on the order of a hundred hand sorters, but I doubt it's 1000.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#59

Post by BuckRogers »

mason240 wrote: post #49
scrollaway wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really now? No one ? [edit: You added almost , I can almost agree now ;)] Tougher border control is restrictions on immigration. Why do you think various billionaire nutjobs want to build a great wall of mexico?

No, it's not. It's enforcing current immigration policies. Moving towards an open borders would be changing restrictions on immigration.

That's not true. The border has always been open for people to pass freely for centuries. Restricting border crossings would be a change in immigration policy. I don't think it's necessary.

Re: Fruit-sorting robot ‘will disrupt the industry’

#60

Post by joosters »

forrestthewoods wrote: post #7
sitkack wrote: post #6

I think this would free migrant farm labor from having the burden of income, freeing them to be wondering poets. Reminds me a recycling sorting robot, which in my country is done by the mentally disabled. Just the kind of person you want to take a job away from.

I agree. Innovation and technological advances cause more harm than good. Break the threshing machines! Break them all!!

Don't forget to ban the plough. These unemployment causing disruptive technologies are ruining farming!
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