Open Source Farming Robot • Hacker News Board

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#21

Post by thepete2 » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 10:48 AM UTC

taylorfinley wrote: post #10

I know cnc and farming, and I really don't see this product surviving. I can't find a shovel that lasts more than a few months on my small farm, I don't know how a big 3d printer is going to cut it in anything like real agricultural conditions. I would love to be wrong though, garden robots would be great, especially if they had lasers for slugs. Actually, forget the rest of the robot, all I really want is a slug las…

I don't have much garden experience, and I could possibly imagine this thing surviving in a greenhouse. But on the outside I agree with you, at the least there will be some intervention required.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#22

Post by jasondozell » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 10:52 AM UTC

codingdave wrote: post #3

I wish I could like this idea, but their price is pretty steep for how small of an area they cover. Their ROI page is all about the cost of growing your own veggies vs. store-bought, but that misses the mark(et). Bots like this do not compete with stores, they compete with your own manual labor to DIY. And the labor to grow some veggies (especially in a raised garden box) is not that painful. They would be better ser…

Agree. Long-run, a drone type machine may well become successful (flying around zapping weeds) but this is way over-engineered for what it does.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#23

Post by mytailorisrich » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 10:54 AM UTC

From the video, I'm puzzled why they would water plants with a robotic nozzle spraying on the plant/leaves. Watering works better the way it does now: run a pipe along the plants and water the soil.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#24

Post by schmorptron » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 10:57 AM UTC

foxhop wrote: post #14

taylorfinley wrote: post #10

I know cnc and farming, and I really don't see this product surviving. I can't find a shovel that lasts more than a few months on my small farm, I don't know how a big 3d printer is going to cut it in anything like real agricultural conditions. I would love to be wrong though, garden robots would be great, especially if they had lasers for slugs. Actually, forget the rest of the robot, all I really want is a slug las…

Slug lazers ~= small flock of ducks

Ah, biological warfare.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#25

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 10:59 AM UTC

[deleted]

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#26

Post by bobiny » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 11:02 AM UTC

junon wrote: post #11

bobiny wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why unhealthy?

Yes, sorry should have been more clear.

Np, this https://qz.com/993258/dirt-has-a-microbiome-and-it-may-doubl... And in general it's about being close to nature. Traveling between a flat and an office, sitting in metal or concrete boxes and connecting via messengers is a surrogate or a simulation of life. Again, can be fun, but gotta step outside once in a while, touch plants, smell the living air.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#27

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 11:03 AM UTC

d--b wrote: post #6

bobiny wrote: post #4

I think humans moving further from soil is unhealthy in the long run, but this looks fun, like a reverse farming simulator.

Growing your own veggies requires an awful lot of time, so barely anybody does it. If this robot allows people with little time to grow vegetables in their backyard, you can argue that they will move closer to soil rather than further...

[deleted]

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#28

Post by kortex » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 11:16 AM UTC

jasondozell wrote: post #16

d--b wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Growing your own veggies requires an awful lot of time, so barely anybody does it. If this robot allows people with little time to grow vegetables in their backyard, you can argue that they will move closer to soil rather than further...

That’s not that true and the robot will hardly help. The reason people don’t do it is that commercial farming is so efficient once you factor in costs growing your own is not cheaper than buying from supermarket.

It's not really about the cost. We are working on a greenhouse with raised beds. Between parts, tools, and piles of topsoil, I think we are $2-3k in (upstate NY). It was never gonna break even. It's a fun project, and it gives you unbelievable freshness and quality.

Robot might help in a greenhouse setting but outdoors it's just gonna get mudded up and get fine, abrasive clay dust in everything. Needs to be way more ruggedized.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#29

Post by WJW » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 11:18 AM UTC

swiley wrote: post #7

That's interesting, it's a large CNC machine and not a mobile robot. That makes sense.

Does it? The current construction severely limits the scale at which it could operate, so it will run out of work to do pretty quickly. That means it'll be idle most of the time. If you have a similar complexity robot but mobile, it could be trucking around a much larger field.

Re: Open Source Farming Robot

#30

Post by wildpeaks » Fri, Jun 25, 2021, 11:18 AM UTC

taylorfinley wrote: post #10

I know cnc and farming, and I really don't see this product surviving. I can't find a shovel that lasts more than a few months on my small farm, I don't know how a big 3d printer is going to cut it in anything like real agricultural conditions. I would love to be wrong though, garden robots would be great, especially if they had lasers for slugs. Actually, forget the rest of the robot, all I really want is a slug las…

the finger on the monkey paw curls

your slugs now shoot lasers