The Belarusian Institute Of System Analysis And Informational Support Of Scientific And Technical Sphere

Belarusian scientists ready to create unmanned arable farming system
Document address: http://belisa.org.by/en/news/d7fc9ce9d612353e.html

11.10.2012

Belarusian scientists are ready to create an unmanned arable farming system, BelTA learned from Mr Mikhail Tatur, Doctor of Engineering, Professor of the Computers Chair of the Belarusian State University of Informatics and Radio Electronics.

Work is now in progress in Belarus to create smart arable farming systems also known as precise arable farming systems. Such systems can be used in unmanned tractors and harvesters in agriculture.

To create such a system, one will need agricultural machines with remote control and the ability to move along the dedicated route with the precision of 10-20 meters. Apart from that, a satellite should be used to regulate the traffic of tractors and harvesters. So the satellite should be used as part of a global control system. Robotized mechanisms and machine vision systems will have to be created.

No Belarusian organization can create the technology on its own. Many academic institutions, universities and commercial organizations should work together to make it happen, said the scientist. Finance will be required to implement the project.

Meanwhile, efforts are already exercised to create inpidual elements of the precise arable farming system. Thus, the United Mechanical Engineering Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus is busy creating remotely controlled machines. Preparations are also underway in agricultural institutes, said the professor. Space technologies are now more vigorously developed: a Belarusian satellite for the remote sensing of the Earth was launched this year.

R&D organizations are gradually getting closer to creating the software and the hardware that could be used for precise arable farming. A project to create specialized processors to handle intellectual data processing tasks was presented at the conference Russia-Belarus-Skolkovo: Common Innovation Space on 19 September. Mikhail Tatur is the head of the project.

The scientist said that the relevant hardware and the physical infrastructure are required to create a precise arable farming system. “So far there is none in Belarus but we can make it, the conditions are available”.

The scientist believes that two main components are required to implement the project – an order and finance. Such a system can be created with support of either the government or private companies. Some investors are already interested in the technology.

Source: BELTA