#Agv robot clean solar panel generator#

Last summer, AgWeek reported that the initial 2024 run of 100 Elements is already spoken for, as well as 500 Elements scheduled for production in 2025. “Offered as a service and powered 100% by solar and wind, Aigen’s vehicles reduce farmers’ workload and their reliance on fossil fuels, while increasing their crop and soil health.”įarmers interested in hiring a fleet of Element robots better act fast, too. “Aigen’s Element robotic fleet can autonomously navigate, weed, and analyze row crops without any chemicals or diesel fuel,” Aigen explains. According to the company, they have received enough pre-orders to send fleets of Elements over 20,000 acres of farmland to tackle weeds and collect data. With a total $19 million raised, Aigen is building a 7,500 sq ft manufacturing and R&D facility to manufacture their solar-powered robotic fleet,” Aigen explained in a press release. “To date, Aigen has successfully demonstrated and integrated all critical technologies to solve farmers’ most urgent problem: eliminating herbicide resistant weeds at scale. The list of other backers includes Bessemer Venture Partners, Global Founders Capital, Industrious Ventures, E2JDJ, and AgFunder. Participating in the new round of funding were ReGen Ventures, New Enterprise Associates, Cleveland Ave, Incite, and Susquehanna Private Equity Investments. On November 9 of this year, Aigen garnered an additional funding pot of $12 million, aimed at scaling up its fleet in time for the 2024 growing season. $12 Million More For Solar-Powered RobotsĬleanTechnica is not the only one to notice. “Agriculture is the intersection of human health and planetary health and that’s why we focused on creating technology for farmers that is both profitable and sustainable,” adds co-founder Kenny Lee. “Agriculture is among the few industries that have the potential to operate profitably in carbon-negative mode,” explains Aigen co-founder Rich Wurden. A sudden burst of interest in carbon sequestration has improved the bottom line benefits of investing in soil regeneration, which explains why leading players in the global agriculture industry are suddenly pricking up their ears,” CleanTechnica observed in December of 2022. “Regenerative techniques have been lingering on the fringes of Big Ag for generations. That includes enhancing the ability of soil to trap and sequester carbon. The regenerative angle refers to a set of principles derived from indigenous farming practices that conserve and improve soil health. The solar-powered electric farm vehicle is described as a “robotics platform for agriculture and soil regeneration,” aimed at reducing, if not eliminating, the use of chemicals and fossil fuels to grow food. The robotic weeding angle surfaced on the CleanTechnica radar last year, when we noted that the US startup Aigen received $4 million in seed money to develop its signature product, the Element. Friendly Solar Robots For Chemical-Free Farming

#Agv robot clean solar panel generator#

The Dutch consortium H2arverster, for example, has come up with a mobile solar system aimed at producing green hydrogen as an extra revenue generator for farmers. One example is the US Department of Agriculture’s Emerging Farmers program, which has expanded to its scope to explore how solar arrays can create new opportunities for more farmers to work the land.Īnother new development in the agrivoltaics field is the use of mobile solar arrays that can be rotated around different fields. The potential for a ripple effect on agricultural employment is also coming into view. Shade from the panels creates a cooling micro-climate that conserves soil and moisture, and protects crops from excess heat. With some fancier tweaks, row crops can be grown between solar panels. Researchers are finding that a solar array can double as a productive area for livestock grazing and pollinator habitats, at minimum. It can, but agrivoltaics offers an alternative.

Agrivoltaics On The MoveĪgrivoltaics is the solar industry’s answer to critics who argue that solar panels take valuable farmland out of service. Instead, they are mounted on busy autonomous robots that travel around the fields, weeding and analyzing as they go. In the latest twist, the panels are no longer fixed to the ground. The concept has already been taking off in all sorts of different directions with specially designed racks that enable farming to take place between solar panels. The idea that farming can coexist with solar panels is embodied in the new but rapidly growing field of agrivoltaics. Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email.